As NASA sent four astronauts on a journey around the moon last week, one Woodland Park High School graduate knows well how complex, but also fun, blasting into space is. 

A WPHS and Air Force Academy graduate, Astronaut and Air Force Maj. Nichole Ayers has flown everything from T-38 training aircraft to F-22 fighter jets and even a SpaceX Dragon Capsule. 

Ayers piloted the SpaceX Crew 10 mission in 2025, docking with the International Space Station on March 16. She spent 146 days aboard the ISS and conducted a roughly six-hour space walk, completing maintenance on the station, leaving it in a slightly better state than when Crew 10 arrived, she said.  

The Artemis II and Crew 10 missions share some traits, but there are also stark differences. While Ayers spent an extended time in space aboard the ISS, the crew was relatively close to home – about 250 miles, depending on factors such as orbital mechanics. That proximity enabled relatively quick responses should issues arise, such as a medical emergency or safety issue.

But Artemis II, which launched Wednesday, is traveling approximately a quarter million miles from Earth – roughly a thousand times the distance to low Earth orbit (LEO).

“(Artemis II is not) long duration, but they are going to be in deep space,” she said. “We’re using the space station and low Earth orbit as a test bed and a proving ground so we can eventually get onto the moon.”

Artemis II was originally planned to launch in February. Issues emerged as NASA fueled the rocket – called Space Launch System or SLS – and the agency canceled the launch. A scrub isn’t uncommon in space flight, and Ayers experienced one firsthand during the Crew 10 mission. 

But it’s not always a bad thing, she said. 

“The Friday launch was much smoother, you know, a few less nerves, and everybody was a little bit more comfortable,” Ayers said. “We know what could go wrong, and we know the danger behind it, but we still climb up in that rocket, and we know that if we scrub one day, we’re just going to try again.”

Getting into orbit and experiencing zero gravity for the first time is different for everyone, said Ayers, who provided commentary for the livestream of the Artemis II launch. For her, it was a phenomenal feeling.

Blood rushed to her brain, as if she was hanging her head upside down off a bed, she said. But she was inverted in the space capsule seat and floating. 

“It feels like you’re flying,” she said. “One of (the) cool parts about the human body is how adaptable we are. Within a couple weeks, your brain and your body is just used to being in space.” 

Combined, the Artemis II crew has about 660 days in space, with Mission Specialist Christina Koch accounting for about half (328 days). One astronaut, the Canadian Space Agency’s Jeremy Hansen, has not yet been to space and will be the first Canadian to travel to deep space. 

“I think human space flight is one of the most important things that we do,” Ayers said. “Eventually, we can use the moon as a stepping stone to get to Mars. It’s a really exciting time to be in human space flight.”