Nuri Tam, Opinion’s Writer
On April 10, 2026, Artemis II officially landed in the Pacific Ocean after a successful ten days spent in a historic mission. Among the four astronauts, Christina Koch became the first woman to travel past low Earth orbit and to the moon. She served as a mission specialist alongside Jeremy Hansen, Victor Glover (pilot), and Reid Wiseman (commander).
This is the first mission in 50 years to send astronauts as far as the moon, with the goal of researching for future lunar expeditions. By being the only woman aboard the first crewed lunar flight in half a century, Koch serves as a representation for all women and girls around the world. However, she is not a stranger to breaking historical records.
In 2020, she was featured in Time magazine as part of the 100 Most Influential People. She gained this merit because in October 2019, she completed the first all-female spacewalk with Jessica Meir. With a seven-hour, 17-minute walk, they ventured out of the International Space Station to replace the batteries that controlled the station’s solar power.
With the recent Artemis II mission, Koch’s recognition for this major achievement has stepped into the spotlight once more. It’s not just her historic accomplishments; her success is especially inspiring because of the technical skill and expertise required to get her this far.
Koch’s recent and past achievements have always been headlined with a key phrase: the first woman. However, even more impressive than simply being a woman, she has succeeded in one of the most challenging, male-dominated fields. In studying electrical engineering and physics, her credentials are what make her an even more admirable person.
Scott Fisher, a physics professor at the University of Oregon, emphasizes that the breadth of her studies is a great formula for thinking on your feet and problem-solving.
“We [physics] teach you fundamental science, the understanding of how atoms and electricity work. Then you move into something like electrical engineering, and you apply those principles to real-world problems,” Fisher said.
Of course, many people know her as the “first woman” to do something, but what should be stressed more is her sheer experience. She has the most combined spaceflight experience among her crew aboard the Artemis II mission. Both Wiseman and Glover have spent six months aboard the ISS, whereas Hansen has had no prior experience. Koch surpasses all three of them with 328 days in orbit, holding the record for the most consecutive days spent in space by a woman.
Emphasizing more of Koch’s intelligence should cover just as many headlines as those that emphasize her gender. Koch’s work, whether it was spending three years in Antarctica doing research, completing a spacewalk that lasted over seven hours or immersing herself in the ISS for 328 days is such an impressive display of dedication and hard work, regardless of her sex.
But realistically, her gender adds a layer of complexity to her identity that her male crew-mates aren’t subjected to, creating more space for both criticism and admiration.
On social media, deeply-rooted misogynistic comments are unable to overlook her gender. In an Instagram post titled “Christina Koch just became the farthest any woman has ever been from Earth,” one comment said, “Also the farthest from a kitchen.” Many men still have this conception that a woman’s only purpose in life is to serve her family and household. Therefore, because Koch was the only woman sent to space on this mission, many people found it difficult to accept that a woman, rather than a man, was capable of such a feat.
In a TikTok post titled “we don’t need feminism anymore it’s 2026,” the post showcases a compilation of misogynistic and negative comments imposed on Koch such as, “Imagine your wife going around the Moon with 3 dudes. Poor fella,” “Her husband still waiting for his sandwich,” and perhaps the most appalling one, “Why we have to all ways push this female gender narrative?” (and yes it was spelled “all ways.”)
We need to push this “narrative” even more. Physics professor Clare Yu from the University of California, Irvine, stresses one of the most important flaws in how society raises women compared to men.
“I think women in particular have more difficulty doing physics because there’s more self-doubt and more lack of self-confidence. Some areas of physics that I’m in can be macho and tougher. And if you let the self-doubt and lack of self-confidence get you, then it’s harder to succeed in physics and get a degree. It’s not that women are less skilled, I think men have more of an arrogant confidence,” Yu said.
Koch’s gender, in this case, is just as much of a symbol serving young women worldwide. She is a representation of all women who are capable of achieving difficult things despite those who tell them otherwise. One of the most iconic pictures from the mission perfectly captures this: when Koch stares out the window, looking at Earth as her braid floats right into the frame. Posted to Koch’s Instagram, the comments are flooded with women appreciating the braid for its symbolism, one even writing, “The braid is making me emotional.”
Koch has stated that she always wanted to travel to space as a child. The braid embodies that innocence and finally reaches those childhood dreams. It is motivation for women to continue believing in their dreams, just as young Koch once had when she was younger. Braids have also historically served many purposes, such as identity, survival and practicality. Along with being a sign of dreams, her braid is also a testament to the difficulties and struggles women have and still face.
Fisher reinforces visually seeing someone who looks like you, whom you can look up to. It gives young people a tangible role model and a clearer picture of who they can be when they grow up.
“It’s much more subtle than that. This is a little girl who saw her on TV, and she has curly hair, and Christina has curly hair, and she’s like, she has curly hair. Look, we are humans, we are visual creatures, and seeing people that look like us, doing things that we want to do, is inherently inspiring,” Fisher said.
As a woman, it is inspiring, because I know she needed to earn respect and acknowledgement to achieve her level of success. And in rooms full of people who undermined her, it is even more powerful that she has shown her achievements. There is undeniable proof that she has done something great. And to me, that is pretty hard for men and anyone else, for that matter, to ignore and refute.
Christina Koch is the manifestation of a woman reaching her dreams in a male-dominated field, and that is what makes her triumph all the more monumental. Her story is the physical embodiment that drives young women to be comfortable in the uncomfortable. She is a powerful representation that women are so much more than their gender. They have what it takes to go to the moon.
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