NASA’s Artemis II mission lifted off from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on April 1 under the guidance of a Clemson University alum.
Charlie Blackwell-Thompson, a Gaffney native, oversaw the launch of the first human flight to the moon in more than 50 years. She serves as the launch director of NASA’s Exploration Ground Systems Program.
“On this historic mission, you take with you the heart of this Artemis team, the daring spirit of the American people and our partners across the globe and the hopes and the dreams of a new generation,” Blackwell-Thompson said to the crew before liftoff. “Good luck. Godspeed, Artemis II. Let’s go.”
Blackwell-Thompson graduated from Clemson University in 1988. She became the first female launch director for NASA in 2016 and led the liftoff of the uncrewed Moon-orbiting mission called Artemis I in 2022.
The Artemis II mission sent four astronauts on NASA’s Orion spacecraft to travel around the moon and back to test systems for deep space exploration. The test flight is expected to take 10 days to complete.