Carroll Taylor Wiseman
Reid Wiseman's late wife; crater proposed in her honour during 2026 lunar flyby.
Last refreshed: 7 April 2026
Why did Commander Wiseman weep during the lunar flyby?
Latest on Carroll Taylor Wiseman
- Why was a crater named Carroll after Reid Wiseman's wife?
- During the Artemis II lunar flyby on 6 April 2026, the crew proposed naming a near/far-side crater 'Carroll' in honour of Carroll Taylor Wiseman, who died of cancer in 2020.Source: CBC News / Space.com
- When did Reid Wiseman's wife die?
- Carroll Taylor Wiseman died on 17 May 2020 of cancer.Source: CBC News
- Will the Carroll crater name be officially recognised?
- The name requires post-mission submission to and ratification by the International Astronomical Union.Source: Space.com
Background
Carroll Taylor Wiseman died of cancer on 17 May 2020, five years before her husband Reid Wiseman commanded Artemis II. During the Day 6 lunar flyby on 6 April 2026, crewmate Jeremy Hansen relayed a formal proposal to Mission Control that a crater near the near/far-side boundary be named Carroll in her honour. Commander Wiseman wept as the proposal was transmitted; all four crew members embraced on the flight deck. A second crater, 'Integrity', was also proposed in the same moment. Both names await post-mission IAU submission.
Carroll Taylor Wiseman was a nurse and long-time partner to Reid Wiseman before his selection as a NASA astronaut in 2009. Little biographical detail has been shared publicly, in keeping with the family's wishes. Her death preceded Wiseman's assignment to Artemis II by several years.
The crater naming proposal is notable beyond its personal significance: if ratified by the IAU, it would be the first lunar feature name proposed in real time from deep space, and one of the very few proposed by a serving crew member in honour of a private individual. The Carroll crater sits in a region sometimes visible from Earth at favourable librations.