Victor Glover, the first black astronaut on a mission to the moon

Victor Glover is breaking the glass ceiling for many blacks who have waited many years to see people of their likeness making great strides, like flying to the moon, which serves as a motivation for others. The astronaut has been named among three others to take the first trip to the Moon in more than five decades since the end of Apollo missions.

According to Phys.org, Glover will pilot the Orion spacecraft that will circle the Moon in November 2024, making him the first black person to achieve such a historic feat. According to him, Artemis II is “more than a mission to the Moon and back.”

“It is the next step that gets humanity to Mars,” he said.

The other astronauts include Christina Koch, who will become the first woman astronaut ever assigned on a lunar mission, Reid Wiseman and Jeremy Hansen. Koch also holds the record for the longest single spaceflight by a woman.

The New York Times reports that the first black person to be involved in the astronaut program was Ed Dwight in the 1960s. The first black to go to space was Guion S. Bluford Jr in 1983, while Mae Jemison was the first Black woman in 1992. Since then, only 20 blacks have become part of the program.

A US Navy test pilot, Glover, 46, joined the US space agency, NASA, in 2013 and made his first spaceflight in 2020, according to the BBC. The platform also reported that he became the first black to stay on the space station for an extended period of six months.

Glover earned a Bachelor of Science degree in General Engineering from California Polytechnic State University, and proceeded to Air University at Edwards Air Force Base, California, as a part of the USAF TPS program to get his masters in Flight Test Engineering, according to the EconomicTimes.

His pursuit of knowledge and specialization did not end there, he also obtained a Master of Science degree in Systems Engineering from the Naval Postgraduate School in 2009. Additionally, in 2010, he acquired a Master of Military Operational Art and Science from the Air University in Montgomery, Alabama.

While working as a Legislative Fellow in the United States Senate, Glover was chosen as an astronaut in 2013. His most recent mission was to serve as a pilot and second-in-command on the Crew-1 SpaceX Crew Dragon, which successfully landed on May 2, 2021.

Glover is a resident of Pomona, California. He is married to Dionna Odom and together, they have four children.