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President Honors NASA’s Artemis II Crew with Highest US Space Award
President Donald J. Trump awarded the Congressional Space Medal of Honor to the four members of the Artemis II crew on August 28, 2026. The award recognizes their service during a record-setting mission that included a lunar flyby.
Why it matters
The success of the Artemis II mission proves the capability to send humans far beyond Earth, providing the necessary foundation for returning to the lunar surface and eventually reaching Mars.
The details
The mission launched April 1 and splashed down April 10, with the crew flying a total of 695,081 miles. They were the first astronauts to launch using the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket. The award recipients include three NASA astronauts and one astronaut from the Canadian Space Agency.
What's next
NASA plans a 2027 Artemis III test flight in low Earth orbit and an Artemis IV mission in 2028 to return astronauts to the lunar surface.
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Key connections
Donald J. Trump is related to NASA
Awarded the Congressional Space Medal of Honor to the Artemis II crew at NASA's Johnson Space Center.
Related events
Artemis II Crew Receives Congressional Space Medal of Honor
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