Kahnawake talks to outer space

Twelve-year-old Ella Mae McComber was over the moon last week when she made contact with the Artemis II space mission, asking a question of astronaut Jeremy Hansen as he and his team soared hundreds of thousands of kilometres into outer space.

“I was nervous at first, but super excited too, I didn’t think I was able to actually connect with them,” said McComber. “When I did, it was a great experience.”

McComber was able to speak with the astronauts aboard the Orion spacecraft, also known as Integrity, during a space-to-earth livestream last week, where the astronauts also fielded questions from Canadian prime minister Mark Carney during their 10-day lunar fly-by. The trip marked the first crewed mission to the moon in over 50 years, and Hansen is the first Canadian to fly into deep space.

The Q&A event, hosted by the Canadian Space Agency (CSA), was opened with the Ohènton Karihwatéhkwen read in Kanien’kéha by Kahnawake’s Bryan Akwirente Deer, who shared a little about the meaning and his thoughts on the astronaut’s mission to the moon with attendees.

“The Grandmother Moon has a lot of jobs for us, a great responsibility, she works with the women, and she’s the one that we say leads the faces yet to come, the children yet to come,” he said.

“I want to thank the Creator, for still putting everything here on the Earth for us, and allowing us to still live on this Earth.”

McComber was invited to ask the astronauts a question, and chose to ask them how seeing the Earth from space changed their view on life.

“What I have seen up here has reinforced my perspective. We live on this extraordinary Planet Earth, and it’s truly out in the void of space. It was really unique to see it from the far side of the moon,” Hansen told McComber.

Hansen, who was also wearing a patch designed by Anishinaabe artist Henry Guimond throughout the mission, explained to her the feeling of seeing the Earth set behind the moon, and seeing it rise again.

“That is an amazing perspective, and it’s something we already know from science, but to see it with your own eyes is, wow,” he said. “Seeing is believing.”

McComber also told Hansen that she is a student at Kahnawake Survival School (KSS) and Hansen gave a special shoutout to students, having visited KSS back in 2018.

“I’ve been to your school, I remember it well, I had a great experience there,” Hansen said.

Victor Glover is the first Black person to travel to deep space and orbit the moon as pilot of the mission, alongside mission specialist Christina Koch, the first woman to travel beyond low-earth orbit. The team is rounded out by commander Reid Wiseman.

McComber said the opportunity inspired her to keep studying hard, and maybe pursue a science-based path in the future.

“To have the chance to speak with them virtually is a once in a lifetime experience,” she said. “It’s something I’ll remember forever.”

McComber’s mother, Tasha Kirby, said she was proud to see her daughter take part in the event.

“We’d been watching videos of the launch and sending each other reels and videos that we came across through social media,” she said. “It was super exciting for the both of us.”

Leonda Kirby, McComber’s aunt, was watching from home.

“I was so proud and excited. I truly feel like she made history, and it’s incredibly inspiring to see her be a part of something so meaningful,” she said.

“Now she has a story of her own to tell, one that reflects a moment when history was made, and she was right there in it.”

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