Jessica Watkins is set to make space exploration history next year! NASA announced that they have selected Watkins to serve as a mission specialist on the SpaceX Crew-4 mission slated for April 2022. In doing so, the Colorado-born astronaut will become the first Black woman to join a crew for a long-term mission on the International Space Station. The mission aboard the Crew Dragon capsule is expected to last six months. In an interview with The New York Times, Watkins said that she hopes her accomplishment will help children of colour, particularly young girls, "to be able to see an example of ways that they can participate and succeed." "For me, that's been really important, and so if I can contribute to that in some way, that's definitely worth it," the astronaut continued. Watkins will be joined by fellow NASA astronauts Kjell Lindgren and Robert Hines on the upcoming mission, per NASA's announcement. European Space Agency astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti will also be part of the crew. Jeanette Epps was originally set to become the first Black woman to live and work on the International Space Station for a long-term mission in June 2018, but was pulled from the crew in January, per The Washington Post.