Artemis II astronaut has a Lakefield connection

By Stacey Sullivan

Artemis II, NASA’s first crewed mission to the Moon in more than 50 years, includes a Lakefield connection.

Jeremy Hansen, a colonel in the Royal Canadian Air Force, is one of four astronauts selected for the mission and the only Canadian on board. The mission lifted off from Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Wednesday evening.

A familiar face in the Lakefield community in recent years, Hansen has ties to Lakefield College School, where his three children attended. Devon Hansen, Class of 2023, and Ashley and Katelyn Hansen, both Class of 2024, are LCS graduates.

Lakefield College School shared a video on social media Wednesday morning, offering congratulations and well wishes to Hansen and his family.

Local business Cassis Bistro also marked the occasion, sharing a photo from 2024 when Hansen and his wife, Dr. Catherine Hansen, visited the restaurant while in the area.

Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen visits Cassis Bistro in 2024. Shown here with owners Rob and Jacky Rocan, and his wife, Dr. Catherine Hansen. (Photo courtesy of Cassis Bistro)

A native of London, Ontario, Hansen serves as a mission specialist on Artemis II. He joins Commander Reid Wiseman, Pilot Victor Glover, and Mission Specialist Christina Koch aboard NASA’s Orion spacecraft.

The mission, part of NASA’s broader Artemis program, is designed to send astronauts on a journey around the Moon and back to Earth, testing critical systems needed for future lunar landings. Artemis II will not land on the Moon but will pave the way for later missions that aim to return humans to the lunar surface and eventually support exploration of Mars.

NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Artemis II commander, left, Victor Glover, Artemis II pilot, Christina Koch, Artemis II mission specialist, and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen, Artemis II mission specialist, right, stop for a group photograph as they visit NASA’s Artemis II SLS (Space Launch System) rocket and Orion spacecraft, Monday, March 30, 2026, at Launch Complex 39B of NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. (Photo Credit: NASA/Bill Ingalls)

The spacecraft is expected to travel farther from Earth than any previous human mission, reaching more than 250,000 miles into space before returning home.

Hansen’s role marks a historic milestone, as he becomes the first Canadian to travel toward the Moon.