For the first time in history, a woman and a man of color are part of a lunar mission from NASA.

The announcement was made Monday that Commander Reid Wiseman, Pilot Victor Glover, Mission Specialist 1 Christina Hammock Koch, and Mission Specialist 2 Jeremy Hansen will be part of the Artemis II mission that will journey to the moon and fly past it next year. 

It has been more than 50 years since a lunar mission was completed. That being the Apollo 17 mission in 1972.

"For the first time in more than 50 years, these individuals – the Artemis II crew – will be the first humans to fly to the vicinity of the Moon. Among the crew are the first woman, first person of color, and first Canadian on a lunar mission, and all four astronauts will represent the best of humanity as they explore for the benefit of all,” NASA Johnson Director Vanessa Wyche said in a statement. 

The 10-day Artemis II flight test will launch on the agency’s powerful Space Launch System rocket, according to a  NASA press release , prove the Orion spacecraft’s life-support systems, and validate the capabilities and techniques needed for humans to live and work in deep space. 

If all goes according to plan, an Artemis III mission from NASA would send a crew to land on the lunar surface.