Two NASA astronauts who guided the Artemis II lunar mission earlier this year are retiring from active spaceflight.
NASA announced Wednesday that commander Reid Wiseman and pilot Victor Glover will step down from active duty to become emeritus astronauts, supporting the lunar exploration program moving forward.
Glover has taken a leadership role at his alma mater, California Polytechnic State University, while Wiseman’s future plans remain undisclosed. The pair flew around the moon in April alongside two crewmates, setting a new human distance record.
Artemis II crewmate Jeremy Hansen retired from the Canadian Space Agency in July, leaving Christina Koch as the only active astronaut from the mission.
In their emeritus roles, Wiseman and Glover will voluntarily mentor NASA personnel and pass along knowledge for future lunar missions, a novel strategy for applying flight expertise.
"Together, they took on one of the most challenging missions in human spaceflight and helped return America to the lunar environment," NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman said in a statement. "I’m grateful they will continue sharing what they learned."
Cal Poly stated Glover will shape long-term strategy and inspire students in science and engineering. His role in San Luis Obispo began Sept. 1, coinciding with his Navy retirement.
In an interview with The Associated Press, Glover emphasized, "this is not a leaving ... for me, this is opening the aperture, not closing it down."
"I want to keep talking about how faith and science work together in my life," Glover remarked. "That’s not NASA’s mission, but I can still help NASA from the sidelines."
Rather than waiting to command a moon landing, Glover chose to leave spaceflight behind to focus on youth outreach and spend time with his wife and four daughters—three of whom attend Cal Poly, where his eldest graduated.
Wiseman’s transition takes effect this month. Selected as an astronaut in 2009, the retired Navy captain spent over five months aboard the International Space Station in 2014 and later served as chief astronaut.
After graduating Cal Poly in 1999, Glover served as a Navy test pilot before NASA selected him in 2013. He piloted SpaceX’s second operational crew flight, spending nearly six months on the space station in 2020 and 2021.
Glover’s eloquent observations stood out during the lunar journey.
Describing Earth as an oasis amidst "a whole bunch of nothing, this thing we call the universe," he reflected: "This is an opportunity for us to remember where we are, who we are, and that we are the same thing and that we’ve got to get through this together."
Wiseman also shared a poignant moment when the crew asked to name a lunar crater after his late wife, Carroll, who died of cancer in 2020.
Last month, President Donald Trump presented the Artemis II crew with the Congressional Space Medal of Honor at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston.
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