
NASA’s Kennedy Space Center Director Janet Petro (right) and Deputy Director Kelvin Manning (left) present a KSC Certificate of Appreciation to Rick Goltz at the center's 2022 KSC Honor Awards Ceremony inside the IMAX Theater at the Florida spaceport’s nearby Visitor Complex on June 13, 2023. Kennedy Space Center employees, award recipients, families, and friends attended the ceremony, which honored both civil servants and contractors for their contributions to NASA and Kennedy.

NASA’s Kennedy Space Center Director Janet Petro (right) and Deputy Director Kelvin Manning (left) present a KSC Certificate of Appreciation to Henrietta Hanner at the center's 2022 KSC Honor Awards Ceremony inside the IMAX Theater at the Florida spaceport’s nearby Visitor Complex on June 13, 2023. Kennedy Space Center employees, award recipients, families, and friends attended the ceremony, which honored both civil servants and contractors for their contributions to NASA and Kennedy.

NASA’s Kennedy Space Center Director Janet Petro (right) and Deputy Director Kelvin Manning (left) present a KSC Certificate of Appreciation to Malcom Boston at the center's 2022 KSC Honor Awards Ceremony inside the IMAX Theater at the Florida spaceport’s nearby Visitor Complex on June 13, 2023. Kennedy Space Center employees, award recipients, families, and friends attended the ceremony, which honored both civil servants and contractors for their contributions to NASA and Kennedy.

NASA’s Kennedy Space Center Deputy Director Kelvin Manning speaks to the audience during the center's 2022 KSC Honor Awards Ceremony inside the IMAX Theater at the Florida spaceport’s nearby Visitor Complex on June 13, 2023. Kennedy Space Center employees, award recipients, families, and friends attended the ceremony, which honored both civil servants and contractors for their contributions to NASA and Kennedy.

NASA’s Kennedy Space Center Director Janet Petro speaks to the audience during the center's 2022 KSC Honor Awards Ceremony inside the IMAX Theater at the Florida spaceport’s nearby Visitor Complex on June 13, 2023. Kennedy employees, award recipients, families, and friends attended the ceremony, which honored both civil servants and contractors for their contributions to NASA and Kennedy.

Scott Henderson, vice president of Test and Operations at Blue Origin, speaks at a ceremony honoring Kennedy Space Center Director Janet Petro with the Dr. Kurt H. Debus Award on June 24, 2022, at the Florida spaceport’s visitor complex. The National Space Club Florida Committee presented Petro with the prestigious award for her contributions to America’s aerospace efforts within the state of Florida. The award – originating in 1990 – is named after Kennedy’s first director.

Kennedy Space Center Director Janet Petro is photographed in the audience during an award ceremony held in her honor on June 24, 2022, at the Florida spaceport’s visitor complex. The National Space Club Florida Committee presented Petro with the Dr. Kurt H. Debus Award for her contributions to America’s aerospace efforts within the state of Florida. The award – originating in 1990 – is named after Kennedy’s first director.

Scott Henderson, vice president of Test and Operations at Blue Origin, speaks at a ceremony honoring Kennedy Space Center Director Janet Petro with the Dr. Kurt H. Debus Award on June 24, 2022, at the Florida spaceport’s visitor complex. The National Space Club Florida Committee presented Petro with the prestigious award for her contributions to America’s aerospace efforts within the state of Florida. The award – originating in 1990 – is named after Kennedy’s first director.

Brigadier General Stephen Purdy, commander of Space Launch Delta 45, speaks at a ceremony honoring Kennedy Space Center Director Janet Petro with the Dr. Kurt H. Debus Award on June 24, 2022, at the Florida spaceport’s visitor complex. The National Space Club Florida Committee presented Petro with the prestigious award for her contributions to America’s aerospace efforts within the state of Florida. The award – originating in 1990 – is named after Kennedy’s first director.

Bill Parsons, vice president of Human Space Programs at Peraton, speaks at a ceremony honoring Kennedy Space Center Director Janet Petro with the Dr. Kurt H. Debus Award on June 24, 2022, at the Florida spaceport’s visitor complex. The National Space Club Florida Committee presented Petro with the prestigious award for her contributions to America’s aerospace efforts within the state of Florida. The award – originating in 1990 – is named after Kennedy’s first director.

NASA Associate Administrator for Science Thomas Zurbuchen gives remarks after the 2022 John L. “Jack” Swigert, Jr., Award for Space Exploration was presented to the OSIRIS-REx team by the Space Foundation during the 37th Space Symposium, Monday, April 4, 2022, in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The John L. “Jack” Swigert, Jr., Award for Space Exploration recognizes extraordinary accomplishments by a company, space agency, or consortium of organizations in the realm of space exploration and discovery. The award honors the memory of astronaut John L. “Jack” Swigert, Jr., one of the inspirations for the creation of Space Foundation. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)

University of Arizona OSIRIS-REx Principal Investigator Dante Lauretta gives remarks after the 2022 John L. “Jack” Swigert, Jr., Award for Space Exploration was presented to the OSIRIS-REx team by the Space Foundation during the 37th Space Symposium, Monday, April 4, 2022, in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The John L. “Jack” Swigert, Jr., Award for Space Exploration recognizes extraordinary accomplishments by a company, space agency, or consortium of organizations in the realm of space exploration and discovery. The award honors the memory of astronaut John L. “Jack” Swigert, Jr., one of the inspirations for the creation of Space Foundation. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)

Artemis Launch Director Charlie Blackwell-Thompson (left) acknowledged and honored members of the Artemis team during the inaugural Artemis Launch Director Awards, held March 24, 2023, inside Firing Room 1 of the Rocco A. Petrone Launch Control Center at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Award recipients included Assistant Launch Director Jeremy Graeber, who directly supports and assists Blackwell-Thompson during launch countdown operations. Artemis I launched successfully from Kennedy's Launch Pad 39B at 1:47 a.m. EST on Nov. 16, 2022.

Space Foundation Chief Executive Officer Thomas E. Zelibor, Rear Admiral, USN (Ret.); left, Mike Moreau, Deputy Project Manager, Space Science Mission Operations, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center; NASA Associate Administrator for Science Thomas Zurbuchen; Sandra Freund, OSIRIS-REx Mission Operations Manager, Lockheed Martin Space; Pete Antreasian, OSIRIS-REx Navigation Team Chief, KinetX; University of Arizona OSIRIS-REx Principal Investigator Dante Lauretta; Rich Burns, Project Manager, Space Science Mission Operations, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, right, pose for a photograph during the awarding of the 2022 John L. “Jack” Swigert, Jr., Award for Space Exploration given to the OSIRIS-REx team by the Space Foundation during the 37th Space Symposium, Monday, April 4, 2022, in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The John L. “Jack” Swigert, Jr., Award for Space Exploration recognizes extraordinary accomplishments by a company, space agency, or consortium of organizations in the realm of space exploration and discovery. The award honors the memory of astronaut John L. “Jack” Swigert, Jr., one of the inspirations for the creation of Space Foundation. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)

Artemis Launch Director Charlie Blackwell-Thompson (left) acknowledged and honored members of the Artemis team during the inaugural Artemis Launch Director Awards, held March 24, 2023, inside Firing Room 1 of the Rocco A. Petrone Launch Control Center at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Award recipients included members of the crawler transporter team, which using Crawler-Transporter 2, carried the agency’s mobile launcher with the Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft 4.2 miles from the Vehicle Assembly Building to Launch Pad 39B for the launch of Artemis I. The first in a series of increasingly complex missions, Artemis I launched successfully at 1:47 a.m. EST on Nov. 16, 2022.

Artemis Launch Director Charlie Blackwell-Thompson (center) acknowledged and honored members of the Artemis team during the inaugural Artemis Launch Director Awards, held March 24, 2023, inside Firing Room 1 of the Rocco A. Petrone Launch Control Center at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Award recipients included members of the crawler transporter team, which using Crawler-Transporter 2, carried the agency’s mobile launcher with the Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft 4.2 miles from the Vehicle Assembly Building to Launch Pad 39B for the launch of Artemis I. The first in a series of increasingly complex missions, Artemis I launched successfully at 1:47 a.m. EST on Nov. 16, 2022.

Artemis Launch Director Charlie Blackwell-Thompson (right) acknowledged and honored members of the Artemis team during the inaugural Artemis Launch Director Awards, held March 24, 2023, inside Firing Room 1 of the Rocco A. Petrone Launch Control Center at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Award recipients included members of the red crew, who are employees of ERC – a company that partners with Jacobs, which is the prime contractor on NASA’s Test and Operations Support Contract. From left are ERC employees Chad Garrett, safety engineer; Billy Cairns, cryogenic engineering technician; and Trent Annis, cryogenic engineering technician. The team of technicians are part of the personnel specially trained to conduct operations at the launch pad during cryogenic loading operations at the launch pad. Prior to the launch of Artemis I, the red crew entered the zero deck, or base, of the mobile launcher and tightened several bolts to troubleshoot a valve used to replenish the core stage with liquid hydrogen, which showed a leak with readings above limits. Artemis I launched successfully from Kennedy's Launch Pad 39B at 1:47 a.m. EST on Nov. 16, 2022.