As global anticipation builds for the Artemis II mission – which is set to mark humanity’s first manned trip to the moon in more than 50 years – the focus isn’t just on the astronauts. Alongside the crew aboard NASA’s Orion spacecraft will be an unusual companion: a stuffed toy named “Rise,” tasked with playing a key role in the mission.
In addition to the crew of four, “Rise,” a small white plush figure, will travel inside the spaceship. Its purpose is functional – it will levitate once the spacecraft enters microgravity, signaling to the astronauts that they have passed Earth’s gravity.
Who made ‘Rise’?
The surprising twist is that the zero gravity indicator was not developed by experienced engineers. Instead, it was invented and put together by Lucas Ye, an eight-year-old space enthusiast from California, turning a childhood passion into a part of spaceflight history.
What is the lore behind zero gravity indicators?
The concept dates back to 1961, when Yuri Gagarin carried a small doll aboard the Vostok 1 mission. Since then, space missions have used various mascots—including characters like Baby Yoda and Snoopy—to visually signify weightlessness.
To choose a mascot for the lunar orbiter, NASA teamed up with Freelancer.com to host a global design contest. The challenge attracted more than 2,600 entries from participants from 50 countries. The Artemis II crew, led by Commander Reid Wiseman, ultimately chose Lucas’s proposal.
What inspired the design of ‘Rise’?
A stuffed toy has a symbolic meaning. Its design pays homage to the historic “Earthrise” photograph taken during the Apollo 8 mission. “Rise” features a white body with a hat representing Earth, while images of galaxies and rockets adorn the rim.
Mission Specialist Christina Koch said the mascot reflects the spirit of the mission. “It’s a mission that kind of mirrors our own,” she noted during her unveiling at the Kennedy Space Center.
Hidden inside the plush is a microSD card with the names of everyone who signed up for the design challenge, symbolically setting thousands of people on their way.
Although the competition only required a concept, Lucas went one step further and made the toy himself. A young space enthusiast from Mountain View has long had a fascination with space — and now something he’s created will travel around the moon.
Trisha Epp of Freelancer highlighted the impact of the initiative: “Your proposal is literally going into space, which is not a sentence most people would say. It’s a beautiful example of crowdsourcing solutions to NASA’s trickiest problems.”
