FLORIDA, USA — As NASA’s most powerful rocket left planet Earth from its Florida launchpad, Ryan Roberts couldn’t help but smile, as the rocket got a little blurry.
“My legs were shaking. It was incredible,” Roberts said. “I can’t say there weren’t probably a few tears in my eyes.”
The Chalmette native watched the launch in person. He also put in a lot of hours testing the core stage of the rocket where he works as a testing director at Stennis Space Center in Hancock County, Mississippi.
“It was awesome to be a part of that history while it was going on and when the stage was actually at Stennis and in the stand, there was never a dull day at Stennis,” Roberts said. “Every day was just a breathtaking site to see it.”
Roberts and a team of workers started on the project seven years ago. Before testing at Stennis, the rocket’s core stage was built at the Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans East, where Director Lonnie Dutreix says everything worked as expected during the launch.
“It was very exciting,” Dutreix said. “It gives everybody a goal and confidence that we do have a long-term program. We are going to continue building flight hardware.”
The rocket sent an unmanned Orion capsule, also built at Michoud, to space. Part of NASA’s Artemis I mission, the test flight will circle the moon before coming back to Earth.
The goal is to put humans back on the moon, as soon as 2025, 50 years after the Apollo Program ended. The long-term goal is a deeper exploration into space, specifically Mars.
“When we got to that ten-minute moment, that’s when it really became a reality that all this hard work and dedication and grueling work hours were worth it,” Roberts said.
Roberts grew up near the Michoud Assembly Facility but says it wasn’t until late high school that he began to pay attention.
“Every single space shuttle external tank was built right there in New Orleans in my back yard and every single space shuttle engine that ever flew to space was certified and tested at Stennis Space Center,” Roberts said.
While no humans are in the Orion capsule, Dutreix says workers, especially young ones, sort of are.
“This is their Apollo, right? This is their long-term mission and this first launch solidified that,” Dutreix said.
Both Dutreix and Roberts say the successful launch is a testament to the two facilities that made it happen. Now, they’re looking to the future.
“Hopefully one day we get to set up shop on the moon and run a lot of experiments and eventually get to Mars. I hope I can see that one day,” Roberts said.
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