--- title: "NASA Ran Into Trouble Telling Astronauts They Were Going to the Moon" description: "NASA astronaut chief Joe Acaba wanted to get three lucky astronauts all in the same meeting to tell them they were Moon-bound. Easier said than done." date: "2023-04-06" modified: "2023-04-06" authors: - name: "Frank Landymore" job_title: "Contributing Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/flandymore" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/nasa-trouble-tell-astronauts-moon" categories: - "Astronomy" - "Moon" - "NASA" - "Space" tags: - "artemis" - "NASA" - "the digest" --- # NASA Ran Into Trouble Telling Astronauts They Were Going to the Moon ![NASA astronaut chief Joe Acaba wanted to get three lucky astronauts all in the same meeting to tell them they were Moon-bound. Easier said than done.]() *\Image: NASA\* ## Party Planning NASA's upcoming [Artemis II mission]() , set to launch in November 2024, will see the first humans return to the moon in over 50 years**—** assuming everything goes according to plan. Needless to say, it's a pretty big deal, so Joseph Acaba, chief of the space agency's astronaut office, wanted to inform the lucky three NASA astronauts that they were chosen for the lunar mission in a memorable way. "You wanted to find a way to get all those individuals in the same room without them knowing what it is — to make it special for them," Acaba [told *The New York Times*](). But as it turns out, throwing a "Surprise! You're going to the Moon**!**" party is comically difficult to coordinate, even with the most competent people on the planet. ## Meeting of the Minds First Acaba had to ensure that [the selected crew]() were all around on the same day at the Johnson Space Center. Then, Acaba had to summon each of the astronauts to fake meetings to throw off their scent. Which was easier said than done. Victor Glover, the mission's pilot, had just gotten out of an unrelated lunch meeting. "I was like, 'Hey boss, I'm going to be a few minutes late,'" he told *NYT*. "I sent him a text message." Christina Koch, the mission specialist, was at the Neutral Buoyancy Lab miles away and figured she could attend remotely. "I texted our boss and said, 'Hey, can we just meet virtually?' And he said, 'Nope.'" And finally, Reid Wiseman, the mission's commander, was stuck at a doctor's appointment. Eventually, after all, three astronauts finally got to his office, Acaba told them the news. "They were a little bit late," Acaba said. "And luckily, I didn't want to change my mind." Who knew it was this difficult to gather a group of astronauts, who are about to make history by flying to the Moon and back, for an in-person meeting? **More on NASA:** *[NASA Debuts Its Brand New Sci-Fi-Inspired Moonsuit — But It's a Rental]()* ## Author At Futurism, my work has often centered on bringing a sense of clarity and insight to complex topics ranging from the regulation of emerging technologies to the esoteric ideologies of Silicon Valley executives, while striving not to lose the poetic sense of awe inspired by often-obscure fields like astrophysics and quantum computing. I broke the story of CNET using AI to produce articles that turned out to be riddled with factual errors and plagiarism — a dam-breaking inflection point, as I've reported, that's inspired copycats and endless discourse while beguiling stakeholders ranging from tech giants to purveyors of spam around the web. My work at Futurism has been cited by publications including CBS News, the Los Angeles Times, Vice, Gizmodo, Engadget, the Verge, and Vanity Fair. I grew up in locales ranging from India to China, and now live in the exotic suburbs of Virginia. In my free time, I'm an avid reader of weird sci-fi literature, an aficionado of East Asian cinema, and, regrettably, a relapsed gamer. Allegedly, I’m working on a debut novel, currently untitled. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()