NASA shares the wake-up songs for the Artemis II crew, keeping a space tradition alive

As the Artemis II crew prepares for their historic trip around the Moon, NASA has shared the soundtrack that will greet them each morning in space. The agency released the official wake-up playlist this week, a collection of songs chosen by the astronauts and their families to start each day with a burst of energy, nostalgia, or comfort. It's a small but meaningful tradition that's been part of spaceflight since the early Apollo missions.

The playlist mixes personal favorites with symbolic picks. Tracks like David Bowie's "Space Oddity" and Radiohead's "Exit Music (For a Film)" nod to the journey's setting and emotional weight. Others, like Aretha Franklin's "Respect" and Louis Armstrong's "What a Wonderful World," reflect broader themes of humanity and pride. Each song is timed to play at the start of the crew's workday, beamed up from mission control in Houston.

This tradition began during the Gemini missions in the 1960s, when flight directors started playing songs to boost crew morale. Over time, it evolved into a personalized ritual. Family members often suggest songs, adding a touch of home to the vast quiet of space. For Artemis II, those choices carry extra weight-it's the first crewed mission to leave Earth orbit since Apollo 17 in 1972.

One lighter moment tied to the mission comes from commander Reid Wiseman, whose wife recently shared a story about a fortune cookie from nearly a decade ago. The slip of paper read: 'You will soon be on a mission to the Moon.' At the time, it seemed like a generic quip. Now, it's being shared widely as a quirky footnote to a high-stakes journey. While NASA isn't adding fortune cookies to the payload, the anecdote has given the mission a human, almost serendipitous glow.

The Artemis II mission itself will last about 10 days and serve as a full dress rehearsal for landing astronauts on the lunar surface in later missions. The crew won't land on the Moon, but they will travel farther from Earth than any humans in over 50 years. Throughout that journey, music will play a quiet but steady role in keeping them grounded-even as they're farther from home than almost anyone in history.

NASA says the playlist is more than just background noise. It's a tool for mental well-being, a way to mark time, and a bridge between Earth and orbit. In moments of tension or isolation, a familiar melody can be a powerful anchor. As one flight director put it, 'We may be sending people to the Moon, but we're still sending people.'

For space fans on the ground, the full playlist is available online. Some tracks are predictable, others deeply personal. All of them are part of a quiet ritual that turns a high-tech mission into something deeply human.