STORY: :: U.S. Senator Ted Cruz and other lawmakers thank Artemis II astronauts ahead of their return to Earth

:: April 9, 2026

"I can only imagine the awe and wonderment you feel, but I want to just start by saying thank you. You are inspiring. That is not hyperbole. You are bringing people together all across our globe.

Thank you for inspiring people. I have two questions. Number one, if you could go back in time and talk to yourself at age ten, what would you tell yourself about going to the moon? And then question two, if and when they make a movie about this, who do you want to play you?"

:: Christina Koch, NASA astronaut

"I recently found some photos of myself on a family vacation at Kennedy Space Center, and we were posing in front of the Saturn Five Rocket, with me, with my siblings and my parents. And if I could have told that little girl who took home a picture of Earthrise and hung it in her room that she would eventually launch from that same place to see that same view, I'm pretty sure she would not believe it. But even though I still can't believe it and she certainly wouldn't believe it, she chased that dream and it ended up happening."

:: Reid Wiseman, NASA astronaut

"We've thought a little bit about the movie, and I think that's way out of our pay grade. So we don't know who is, we don't know who's going to play us. That's up to whoever decides. But one thing we do know for sure for certain is this guy is going to be played by Buzz Lightyear. 100%. No doubt."

NASA's Artemis II mission, the world's first astronaut voyage to the moon in over half a century, has captivated Americans young and old across political divides, bringing unity of wonder, hope and pride to a nation torn by partisan rancor and war.

From a profusion of rocket-launch watch parties and special classroom lessons on space, to a surge in planetarium visits and a retail boon in NASA- and Artemis-themed apparel, signs abound of public fascination with the astronauts who flew to the far side of the moon.

The 10-day mission, a key dress rehearsal for a planned attempt later this decade to land astronauts on the moon for the first time since Apollo 17 in late 1972, is set to conclude on Friday (April 10) with splashdown of the Artemis II crew in the Pacific Ocean off California.