NASA astronaut Christina Koch is taking a new role at the agency after making history as the first woman to fly near the moon during the Artemis II mission in April.
Thirteen years after being selected as an astronaut, Koch plans to trade her spacesuit for a desk, NASA announced.
The news comes about six months after Koch was part of the four-person Artemis II crew that rode a NASA spacecraft on a 10-day journey toward the moon. The mission marked a landmark moment in U.S. spaceflight, becoming not just the first crewed moon mission in half-a-century, but taking the astronauts farther from Earth than anyone had ever been.
With Koch's announcement, all four of those astronauts have now stepped away from spaceflight to eye new career opportunities.
Here's what to know about Koch, as well as what's next for the record-setting NASA astronaut.
Artemis II astronaut takes on new role at NASA
Effective Nov. 1, Koch will become NASA's acting deputy chief engineer, NASA announced in an Oct. 13 press release. Koch will replace Katherine Van Hooser, who served in the role for 35 years.
The role means Koch will no longer be eligible for future spaceflight assignments, NASA added.
"She brings an extraordinary combination of technical expertise, operational experience, and judgment to this role," NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman said in a statement. " I am excited to see the impact she will have across NASA as we return Americans to the lunar surface ... and develop the capabilities that will ultimately take us on to Mars.”
Who is Christina Koch? About record-setting astronaut
A native of Grand Rapids, Michigan, Koch grew up in Jacksonville, North Carolina. Before she was selected for the Artemis II mission, Koch, an engineer, has already had a prolific, record-setting astronaut career.
First selected in the 2013 astronaut class, Koch made history in 2019 when she conducted the first all-woman spacewalk at the International Space Station. On Oct. 28, 2019, Koch spent more than seven hours suited up and exposed to the vacuum of space with astronaut Jessica Meir, who recently returned from the outpost for the second time as part of the Crew-12 mission.
Koch spent almost all of 2019 in space during her first mission, setting a record for the longest spaceflight for any American woman at 328 days. Just three other NASA astronauts have been on longer single missions than she has.
Koch, 47, is also an avid amateur hobbyist, whose favorite activities include surfing, rock climbing and adventuring.
What was the Artemis II mission?
In April, Koch joined NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman and Victor Glover, as well as the Canadian Space Agency's Jeremy Hansen on the Artemis II mission.
The second mission under NASA's multibillion-dollar Artemis program, Artemis II marked the first time humans flew near the moon in more than 50 years and set the stage for a potential crewed landing as early as 2028.
The four astronauts rode in NASA's Orion spacecraft, which hitched a ride to space atop NASA's powerful 322-foot Space Launch System rocket during an April 1 launch from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. During the 10-day spaceflight, the Orion vehicle carried the astronauts around the moon and back to Earth without landing on the lunar surface.
Along the way, Wiseman, Glover, Koch and Hansen surpassed a record set during the infamous Apollo 13 mission in 1970 – traveling a historic 252,756 miles from Earth. They also bore witness to sights of the moon's far side never before seen by human eyes while traveling as close as 4,067 miles above the surface during a lunar flyby.
Three of the astronauts also made individual history. Hansen became the first Canadian selected for a moon mission, while Koch became the first woman and Glover the first Black man.
All 4 Artemis II crew members have stepped away from spaceflight
While Koch technically remains in active service, her announcement still means all four astronauts who flew on the Artemis II mission have now stepped away from spaceflight.
In September, Wiseman, the mission's commander; Victor Glover, the mission's pilot, also announced their plans to transition to an emeritus role at the U.S. space agency. Instead of officially retiring, Glover and Wiseman intend to essentially serve as consultants to NASA while seeking other professional opportunities.
Glover, for instance, has already accepted a full-time administrative leadership position at his alma mater, California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo.
In July, Hansen said that he would step back from a full-time astronaut role as well with the Canadian Space Agency.
Eric Lagatta is the Space Connect reporter for the USA TODAY Network. Reach him at elagatta@usatodayco.com
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Astronaut Christina Koch trades spacesuit for desk in new role at NASA
