Jack already had the outfit.<\/p>\n
When NASA\u2019s Artemis II crew lifted off last month, the 5-year-old aspiring astronaut showed up in his own white spacesuit, complete with the rank of commander. During a CBS interview<\/a> near the launch, he cheerfully explained that he was \u201cso obsessed with space,\u201d a line that quickly spread online and turned him into one of the mission\u2019s youngest unofficial stars.<\/p>\n On Friday, that enthusiasm came full circle.<\/p>\n During a CBS Sunday Morning town hall hosted by Gayle King and Tony Dokoupil, Artemis II astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen surprised Jack with a signed orange flight suit modeled after the one they wore on their mission. For a child who had already been following the crew from launch to splashdown, it was less a souvenir than a kind of invitation into the world he clearly dreams about.<\/p>\n The Artemis II crew surprised 5-year-old Jack, a space superfan, with a signed flight suit. (CREDIT: Gail Schulman\/CBS Mornings) <\/p>\n Koch made that invitation explicit.<\/p>\n \u201cIt says commander just like yours, so you can still keep your title,\u201d she told him as she handed over the suit.<\/p>\n A mission with one very young fan<\/p>\n Jack had already become familiar to viewers who followed the moon mission through CBS coverage. He was interviewed during the launch from Kennedy Space Center<\/a> in Cape Canaveral, where his excitement stood out even amid the spectacle of a crewed flight headed beyond low Earth orbit. CBS checked back in with him again when the astronauts returned safely to Earth.<\/p>\n By then, Artemis II had made history.<\/p>\n The four-person crew splashed down off the coast of San Diego on Friday, April 10, after circling the moon in the first crewed lunar mission since Apollo 17 in 1972. During the journey, the astronauts also set a new distance record for human spaceflight, traveling farther from Earth than any crew before them. Their mission passed the previous mark of 248,655 miles, a record set by the Apollo 13 crew in 1970.<\/p>\n That kind of milestone can feel remote, measured in miles, dates and program goals. Jack gave it a more human scale.<\/p>\n He watched, asked questions and showed up wearing a suit of his own.<\/p>\n So when he joined the astronauts<\/a> for the town hall, still dressed in white, the crew decided their youngest supporter needed gear that matched the real thing.<\/p>\n Vladimir Duthiers, Gayle King, Jack, Nate Burleson, Tony Dokoupil and the live audience for CBS MORNINGS PRESENTS: ARTEMIS II A CELEBRATION OF HEROES. (CREDIT: Gail Schulman\/CBS Mornings) \u201cWe would like to have you on our team\u201d<\/p>\n The most memorable part of the exchange came after Jack received the signed suit.<\/p>\n \u201cWe would like to have you on our team,\u201d Koch told him. \u201cWhat do you think?\u201d<\/p>\n Jack answered without much hesitation. He gave a thumbs-up, ran to his parents for a hug, then crossed back to hug Koch too. It was the kind of unfiltered reaction adults rarely manage on television, and it gave the moment an easy warmth that fit the mission\u2019s unusually emotional public arc.<\/p>\n Koch had already given him a nickname, \u201cCommander Jack,\u201d and by the end of the segment, it seemed to stick even more firmly than before.<\/p>\n His mother said watching his reaction felt \u201camazing.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re so incredibly thankful,\u201d she said. \u201cJack has been hugely inspired by this mission and by all of you, so thank you so much for everything you\u2019re doing, obviously not just for Jack, but for all of humanity.\u201d<\/p>\n