- Born:
- April 30, 1976, Pomona, California, U.S. (age 50)
- Role In:
- Artemis II
Victor Glover, Jr.
Who is Victor Glover, Jr.?
Is Victor Glover, Jr., the first Black astronaut?
What was Victor Glover, Jr., famous for?
Victor Glover, Jr. (born April 30, 1976, Pomona, California, U.S.) is an American astronaut who, as the pilot of the Artemis II mission (April 1–10, 2026), became the first Black person to fly to the Moon. During the mission, he and his crewmates set the record for the farthest distance traveled by humans in space: 406,771 km (252,756 miles). Glover’s first spaceflight was as the pilot on the SpaceX Crew-1 mission (2020–21).
Early life and education
Glover graduated from California Polytechnic State University with a degree in general engineering in 1999. He was commissioned in the U.S. Navy and flew combat missions during the Iraq War. He graduated from the Air Force Test Pilot School in 2007, and he received three master’s degrees from military educational institutions between 2007 and 2010.
Astronaut and Artemis II
Glover was working as a legislative fellow in the office of U.S. Sen. John McCain when he was selected as an astronaut by NASA in 2013. His first spaceflight was as the pilot on the SpaceX Crew-1 mission, which was the first fully operational flight of the Dragon spacecraft. He and three other astronauts launched to the International Space Station (ISS) in November 2020. He spent 168 days in space and performed four spacewalks.
“We need to be reminded that we, right now, are capable of great things, of swinging for the fence and knocking it out of the park.” —Victor Glover, Jr.
In 2023 Glover was selected as the pilot for the Artemis II mission, which is the first crewed flight in the Artemis program. The crew also consists of commander Reid Wiseman and mission specialists Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen. The four astronauts flew around the Moon in the Orion spacecraft. During the mission, Glover noted observed the lunar landscape, particularly the valleys, noting incredulously, “You’d fall straight to the center of the moon if you stepped in some of those.”
Artemis II was the first crewed mission to the Moon since Apollo 17 in December 1972, and it will pave the way for the Artemis IV mission, which is planned to land astronauts on the Moon in 2028.
