Seven weeks after the Orion spacecraft returned four astronauts from humanity’s first crewed journey around the Moon since Apollo, Artemis II Orion Vehicle Manager Branelle Rodriguez reflected on the mission’s achievements and how it is shaping NASA’s return to the lunar surface and future missions to Mars.
Introduced by NASA’s Johnson Space Center Acting Director of Business Development and Technology Integration Monte Goforth, Rodriguez spoke at the Ion in Houston on May 28 as part of the NASA Stories at the Ion speaker series. Located in Houston’s Ion District, the innovation hub serves as a gathering place for entrepreneurs, researchers, and industry leaders working to advance technology and shape the future of industries ranging from aerospace to energy.
She shared an inside look at the mission she helped guide — as the Orion vehicle manager for Artemis II, Rodriguez has overseen the life of the spacecraft from end-to-end, through its development, production, execution of the mission, and currently, the post-mission work underway now that Orion is back at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
“This mission was very near and dear to my heart,” Rodriguez said. “It has not sunk in what this mission and what this accomplishment all means to us and humanity.”
Launched April 1, Artemis II carried NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Koch, along with CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen, on a 10-day voyage around the Moon inside the Orion spacecraft.
Using mission imagery and video, Rodriguez walked attendees through key milestones, including launch aboard NASA’s SLS (Space Launch System) rocket, oper …