NASA’s Artemis II crew named a moon crater after late Friendswood nurse Carroll Wiseman, whose husband Reid Wiseman is part of the historic crew. (NASA Johnson/CC BY-NC-ND 2.0).
NASA’s historic Artemis II mission named a lunar crater after the late Carroll Wiseman, a former Friendswood nurse. Here’s what to know.
NASA’s Artemis II mission has been captivating the public since the spacecraft launched into lunar orbit on April 1. The crew—consisting of Reid Wiseman (commander), Victor Glover (pilot), Christina Koch (mission specialist), and Jeremy Hansen (Canadian space agency mission specialist)—recently captured the first ever photos of the far side of the Moon. Their historic trip is moving and inspiring people across the country and around the world, with one moment in particular creating a bright spot of joy amid an increasingly bleak landscape here on Earth.
As the crew was looking out the windows of the Orion capsule to observe the Moon, they spotted a lunar crater. Later, when they spoke with Mission Control in Houston, Hansen had a special naming request for the crater in question. As his voice wavered, he said, “A number of years ago, we started this journey in our close-knit astronaut family, and we lost a loved one.” Wiseman could be seen placing his hand on Hansen’s shoulder as the mission specialist added, “It’s a bright spot on the moon, and we would like to call it Carroll, C-A-R-R-O-L-L.” The Carroll he was referring to was Wiseman’s late wife, who died in 2020 after a lengthy battle with cancer.
After making the request, Hansen and Reid embraced one another before Koch and Glover joined the group hug. All four astronauts were seen wiping away tears as they honored Carroll’s memory in this uniquely beautiful way. Hansen mentioned over the course of the request that the lunar crater can be seen from Earth at specific intervals during the lunar cycle. It was a touching reminder that we all, despite our differences, look up at the same Moon and stars every evening. Now, for everyone who knew and loved Carroll Wiseman, the view will hold even more meaning.
Carroll Wiseman was a nurse in Friendswood from 2014-2017
Carroll Wiseman was raised in Virginia, but she spent several years working as a nurse at the Cline Elementary School in Friendswood. She was known for being someone who “dedicated her life to helping others as a newborn intensive care unit Registered Nurse,” and she was deeply supportive of her husband, Reid Wiseman, in all of his NASA endeavors. The pair had two daughters together, Katherine and Ellie. Carroll was only 46 years old when she died. Since her passing, Reid has been balancing his career with being a single father. Their girls were there to see Reid off on his mission, and he said they were the ones who gave him the confidence to keep pursuing his dreams.
Being able to name a lunar crater after his late wife, who was beloved by his Artemis II crew, must have been an extremely emotional yet gratifying experience. Reid previously spoke with CBS News about Carroll’s selflessness in the face of her diagnosis: “When she really started getting sick, I wanted to move us back towards where her family was from — And she’s like, ‘No, this is where you work. This is the job you love. This is where you work, and this is where our kids are growing up, and we are going to stay right here.’ To me, that was marching orders — to continue down this path,” he said.
His daughters have since helped carry out those marching orders, as have his fellow astronauts. There’s a special program set up for the families of NASA’s astronauts called the Astronaut Spouses Group. It’s there that many people bond with one another as they navigate the incredible uncertainty of what they’re experiencing. When Jeremy Hansen referred to Carroll as a loved one for himself, Christina Koch, and Victor Glover, it was his way of acknowledging the deep affection that’s fostered through this program.
It will take time for the name to be officially adopted
The request to name a bright lunar crater after Carroll Wiseman will need to be submitted formally to the International Astronomical Union—an agency that oversees the naming of celestial bodies and any features found on their surfaces—before it can be officially adopted. This process will begin once the Artemis II crew lands safely back on Earth on Friday, April 10. Until then, many people will spend the next several nights looking up at the sky hoping to catch a glimpse of Carroll Crater.
