Johnson Employees Unite for Artemis

On April 3, 2023, more than 200 NASA’s Johnson Space Center employees joined together in the Building 3 cafeteria to celebrate and cheer on the new Artemis II crew members. Artemis II will be the first crewed mission to the vicinity of the Moon in more than 50 years. Employees watched as Commander Reid Wiseman, Pilot Victor Glover, and Mission Specialists Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen were named the aspiring astronauts who will venture around the Moon. 

NASA’s Orion spacecraft will carry the crew to space on an approximate four-day trip around the far side of the Moon, setting the stage to explore more of the Moon than ever before. The Artemis II crew will test the spacecraft’s systems and ultimately create a figure eight extending more than 230,000 miles from Earth. The quartet will travel 6,400 miles beyond the far side of the Moon. From this vantage point, the Moon will be close in the foreground, with Earth nearly a quarter-million miles in the background. 

While maintaining exploration leadership, NASA will build a global alliance and pave the way for lunar surface missions, including landing the first woman and first person of color on the Moon. We are returning to the Moon for scientific discovery, economic benefits, and inspiration for a new generation of explorers: the Artemis Generation.

Johnson employees donned their Artemis gear and enjoyed NASA-themed outreach materials such as posters, stickers, calendars, pins, and lanyards. The event was in true “One NASA” spirit, with everyone engaged in accomplishing one common goal: DARE, UNITE, and EXPLORE the Moon and beyond for the benefit of all!

Check out these photos and see why B3 was the place to be on April 3, 2023.  

Photo Credits: NASA/David DeHoyo