Maine Astronaut Jessica Meir Watches Artemis II Launch From Space

The Caribou-born astronaut shared a video of herself watching Wednesday evening’s launch from the International Space Station.

Four astronauts launched from Kennedy Space Center aboard Artemis II, beginning a historic 10-day mission around the Moon that marks humanity’s first return to lunar space in over 50 years and could take humans farther from Earth than ever before, surpassing Apollo-era records.

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For those unfamiliar with Jessica Meir, she is a first-generation American born in Caribou to Israeli and Swedish immigrants.

She graduated from Caribou High School and earned degrees from Brown University, the International Space University, and Scripps Institution of Oceanography.

Meir is currently on her second mission to the International Space Station, which launched in February 2026 and is expected to last about eight months.

This follows her first mission in 2019–2020, during which she spent 205 days in space, completed 3,280 orbits of Earth, and participated in the first all-woman spacewalks.

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And there you have it! Jessica Meir and her Expedition 74 crew aboard the International Space Station observed the Artemis II launch and filmed their reactions.

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