He was the last person to walk on the moon, in 1972. This is his advice for Artemis II astronauts who just took off

As NASA launched the Artemis II mission — a 10-day trip around the moon and back — on April 1, Harrison Schmitt, an ex-astronaut and the 12th person to step on Earth's only natural satellite, came forward with some profound wisdom. In an interview with NBC News, Schmitt, 90, spoke of his expectations of the four astronauts and insisted they be ready to face the unexpected.

NASA's last trip to the moon happened during the Apollo 17 mission on December 7, 1972, with astronauts Gene Cernan, Harrison Schmitt, and Ron Evans exploring the Taurus-Littrow valley. Now, over half a century later, Commander Reid Wiseman, pilot Victor Glover, astronaut Christina Koch, and astronaut Jeremy Hansen lifted off at 6:24 p.m. EDT, with an expectation of groundbreaking scientific findings.

Amidst the anticipation, Schmitt seemed confident that the Artemis II astronauts would experience some of the magical sights that he did 54 years ago. "Every day, every hour, every minute, is a new experience. Make sure that you’ve got your training down pat. Be ready for anything unexpected, but have a great time. Enjoy it," he suggested. Even after so many years, Schmitt still remembers the day his crew entered lunar orbit very vividly. "Going into the dark of the moon was really something. Because one of the things that you notice right away is the moon illuminated by Earthlight. There’s a bluish tint to the light," he recalled. Notably, the primary objective of Artemis II is to gather information on how deep space travel affects human health.

For the current mission, researchers are all set to conduct a groundbreaking "organ-on-a-chip" experiment to understand the changes in the human body at the cellular level. For this, scientists extract immature bone marrow cells and grow them on tiny chips about the size of a USB drive. Next, it is expected that one chip will be sent into space with the crew, while an identical one stays on Earth. In the end, the researchers can compare both chips to predict health risks for future long-duration missions to the Moon and beyond. Moreover, NASA confirmed that the Artemis II mission will carry the four astronauts closer to the Moon than any humans have ever traveled to collect evidence for future human spaceflight missions. "These kinds of flights for the country are extraordinarily important. China is clearly interested in dominating space as they're interested in dominating terrestrial activities. And so it’s a national effort and needs to be done well and right," Schmitt explained. 

NASA's Artemis mission is a long-term exploration plan, unlike the Apollo program. In fact, they first want to establish a permanent lunar base to allow astronauts to stay for extended periods and then use that base as a launch point for further missions to Mars. While it may sound too ambitious, Schmitt believes we're not far from the day when humans could live on the Moon for months, even years, in a true settlement. "Mars is attainable, and I think we will keep going... we're humans, that’s what we've always done. From the time that the human race began in Africa to the present, it’s always expanded. It’s part of our being, our psychology," he said. 

More on Scoop Upworthy

Astronaut Neil Armstrong describing what space looks like from the moon is so surreal

NASA hilariously shows how astronauts struggled to walk on moon in unseen footage

Apollo astronaut left family portrait on the moon in 1972. It was him honoring a sweet promise to his kids