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Meet 'Rise,' the Moon Mascot Plush Flying Aboard NASA's Artemis II Test Flight
Rise, a plush designed by a 2nd grader, will carry a microSD card with public names and serve as a zero-gravity indicator on the Artemis II lunar orbit mission.
- On Friday, NASA Mission Specialist Christina Koch announced at Kennedy Space Center that 'Rise,' a plush designed by second-grader Lucas Yee of California, was selected as the zero-gravity indicator for the Artemis II mission.
- Zero-Gravity indicators are small plush items carried aboard spacecraft to visually signal when crews reach space. NASA previously used Snoopy for Artemis and Baby Yoda for SpaceX's Crew-1, continuing a tradition of mascots in human spaceflight.
- The 'Rise' plush features an Earth-inspired cap and includes a hidden MicroSD card containing names submitted by the public, while its design honors the iconic Earthrise photo from the Apollo 8 mission.
- Artemis Commander Reid Wiseman noted that Rise serves as a friendly 'human element' within the complex spacecraft, and the crew personally selected the winning design from worldwide submissions to join their 10-day lunar mission.
- NASA targets Wednesday night, April 1, 2026, for the first launch attempt of Artemis II, with the crewed flight aiming to test the Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft in the broader lunar exploration program.
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