‘A golden spike in the history of space flight’: Spokane astronaut Anne McClain reflects on humanity’s return to the moon

U.S. Army Colonel Anne McClain said she’s had lots of time to reflect lately.

The Lilac City astronaut isn’t directly involved in the Artemis II mission, which means she hasn’t had to be “head down”-focused like she was ahead of her launch to the International Space Station in 2025.

“I’ve really got to just reflect on the fact that some of my closest friends are getting to fly to the moon,” McClain said. “It’s so much incredibly farther than the International Space Station, and even the International Space Station feels so far away.”

Farther, indeed. The space station sits in low-Earth orbit at an altitude of around 250 miles. The Artemis II crew will travel aboard the Orion capsule to cruise about 4,000 miles from the surface of the far side of the moon.

Reached by phone while in Cape Canaveral Tuesday, McClain shared her thoughts on humanity’s return to deep space flight, her workplace’s grander mission and lunar journeys to come.

NASA does not set out to break records or set records, McClain said; it is about repeatedly doing the right thing to further the cause. Still, even before the Artemis II crew successfully launched Wednesday, McClain knew it would be a “golden spike in the history of space flight,” she said.

“And it’s pretty humbling to get to be a part of it,” McClain said.

McClain said it is important to keep in mind that the Artemis II mission is the proving ground for future flights in the Artemis program. In 2027, Artemis III will be a test flight of the Orion capsule in low orbit to see if it will be able to dock with a lander made by private companies like SpaceX, Blue Origin or Boeing. Artemis IV, scheduled for early 2028, will bring astronauts to the lunar South Pole for the first time ever. Another boots-on-the-moon mission is planned for late 2028.

“This is very much a test mission, and it is definitely the culmination of years of work by thousands of people,” McClain said. “It is not a victory lap; it is a license to operate on future missions.”

McClain could very well be a more involved member of the Artemis missions to come. No crew assignments have been made yet, as most of the NASA team is laser-focused on Artemis II, she said. When the time comes, however, she will be among a small pool of potential crewmembers.

“Our office is not big, it’s under 50 people, and we’ve got half of those folks assigned and flying right now,” McClain said. “So it’s a good group to be in.”

The significance of the Artemis II mission does not just belong to the crew, or to NASA, McClain said. The agency’s motto, “For the benefit of all,” is something she and her peers try to embody every day. It is a responsibility they hold in high regard, she said.

“And sometimes people don’t see it; they question why we’re exploring in space when we have other problems,” McClain said. “Human beings can do more than one thing at once, and it’s important that we do more than one thing at once.”

“Humans have an insatiable curiosity about what’s out there, and there are so many benefits back on Earth to what we’re doing in space exploration,” she continued.

McClain, speaking Tuesday, said she would be watching the launch in person and closely following the mission as it plays out over the next week and a half. She’s “incredibly proud” of the crew, who she said she’s lucky to know. She expects inspiration to be a clear benefit of the mission.

“That benefit might just be that there’s even one person out there, one little kid, that watches and believes that they can do something great,” McClain said. “I have a feeling that there’s gonna be a lot more people than that.

“I know I’m gonna be watching, reminding myself that I can do great things if I stay focused and keep a dream alive.”