For most, getting into a car is a task that can be done without assistance. Yet for those whose destination is the Moon, the process of getting inside and secured – in this case, in NASA’s Orion spacecraft – requires help. That’s the role of the Artemis closeout crew.
Trained to support Artemis II and future Moon missions, the five closeout crew members will be the last people to see NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Koch, and CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen before their lunar journey.
The Artemis II closeout team consists of a lead, Taylor Hose; an astronaut support person, astronaut Andre Douglas; one technician specially trained on Orion crew survival system spacesuits, Bill Owens; and two Orion technicians, Christian Warriner and Ricky Ebaugh.
We are responsible for getting the astronauts strapped in their spacecraft, getting all their connections attached to their spacesuits, and then we close the hatch and close out Orion for launch.
Taylor Hose
Artemis II Closeout Team Lead
Think of them like a pit crew for car races.
When the astronauts arrive on launch day at Launch Complex 39B at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the closeout crew will already be in place. First, the team will help the astronauts don their helmets and gloves before entering the Orion spacecraft.
Closeout Crew lead Taylor Hose, second from left, talks with NASA astronaut Andre Douglas, second from right as he and closeout crewmembers Will Sattler, left, and Christian Warriner prepare for the arrival of Artemis II crewmembers NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, commander; Victor Glover, pilot; Christina Koch, mission specialist; and CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen, mission specialist; at the 275-foot level of the mobile launcher as they prepare to board their Orion spacecraft atop NASA’s Space Launch System rocket during the Artemis II countdown demonstration test, Saturday, Dec. 20, 2025, inside the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA Kennedy.
NASA/Joel Kowsky
Once inside, Owens and Douglas will assist each crew member with buckling up – except instead of using just one seatbelt like in a car, the crew needs several more intricate connections. Each seat includes five straps to secure the astronauts inside the crew module and several additional connections to the environmental control and life support systems and communications system aboard.
After the astronauts are secured, the hatch technicians will begin closing the spacecraft hatch. Unlike a car door that easily opens and closes with the pull of a handle, Orion’s hatch requires more effort to securely close.
“The hatch is pneumatically driven so we have to have air lines hooked up to it, and we need the help of the ground support system to close it,” said Hose.
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