Volume 19 Issue 7 www.nasa.gov/centers/stennis July 2023 

Moving Forward!

A work crew at NASA’s Stennis Space Center removes RS-25 engine No. 10001 from the Fred Haise Test Stand on July 12. Removal of the engine follows 

completion of the initial certification test series designed to pave the way for production of new RS-25 engines to help power NASA’s SLS (Space Launch 

System) rocket on future Artemis missions to the Moon, beginning with Artemis V. NASA Stennis is expected to conduct a second certification test series, 

beginning late summer/early fall.
Page 2 LAGNIAPPE July 2023

Lagniappe is published monthly by the Office of Communications at NASA’s John C. Stennis Space Center.

Access monthly copies at: www.nasa.gov/centers/stennis/news/publications/index.html

Contact info – (phone) 228-688-3749; (email) ssc-office-of-communications@mail.nasa.gov; (mail) NASA OFFICE OF 

COMMUNICATIONS, Attn: LAGNIAPPE, Mail code IA00, Building 1111 Room 173, Stennis Space Center, MS 39529

Managing Editor – Lacy Thompson Editor – Bo Black Staff Photographer – Danny Nowlin

One grandgator leaned over and said to me, 

“It’s such a sight to see.”

“The color is amazing,” another commented. 

“The memories we are making together is what I 

enjoy the most,” I told them. 

That is how the conversation went with the 

grandgators and I as we celebrated Fourth of July. 

Their eyes lit up with amazement and wonder at the 

colorful display. One right after the other, fireworks 

ignited and raced toward the sky. There were colors 

of red, blue, gold, and orange. 

When the bright orange color illuminated the sky, the 

brilliant flash of light brought to mind something else 

inspiring – the series of RS-25 engine tests recently 

witnessed at NASA Stennis. 

The RS-25 engine tests were similar in many ways to 

the firework display viewed on Independence Day. 

They both provided noise, flashes of light, and lots 

of ingenuity. One right after the other, the folks at 

NASA Stennis fired up the series of certification tests. 

While the firework show carried on for more than 

20 minutes, the hot fires at NASA Stennis lasted five 

times as long in total – almost 110 minutes – over 12 

tests from February to June. 

The next time the grandgators and I will likely have 

the opportunity to view another firework display will 

be months from now when we usher in a new year. 

However, it will not be that long we all have to wait 

to see NASA Stennis fire up another RS-25 engine. A 

second certification series is coming in the fall. 

It will usher in a new chapter for future flights of 

NASA’s powerful SLS (Space Launch System) rocket. 

And with it will come what I enjoy the most – the 

memories we are making together as we journey to 

the Moon and, eventually, to Mars..
Page 3 LAGNIAPPE July 2023

NASA Achieves Key Milestone for Production of Future Artemis Engines 

NASA achieved a key milestone June 22, completing an initial certification 

test series designed to pave the way for production of new RS-25 engines to 

help power NASA’s SLS (Space Launch System) rocket on future Artemis

missions to the Moon, beginning with Artemis V. 

“This certification test series for the redesigned engine sets the stage for a new 

chapter of spaceflight history for the RS-25 engines and future flights of the SLS 

rocket,” said Johnny Heflin, SLS liquid engines manager. “The newly redesigned 

RS-25 engines leverage advanced manufacturing techniques and innovative designs 

while increasing the engine’s performance as NASA aims to establish a sustainable 

presence on the Moon and prepare for future missions to Mars.” 

Engineers conducted a full-duration test of more than eight minutes (500 seconds) 

on an RS-25 certification engine manufactured by SLS engines lead contractor 

Aerojet Rocketdyne. The engine incorporates dozens of improvements to make 

production more efficient and affordable while maintaining high performance and 

reliability. The test series on the Fred Haise Test Stand at NASA’s Stennis Space 

Center is designed to verify that the new engines meet all Artemis flight requirements. 

The stage is now set for a second – and final – certification series to begin in early 

fall. Data from the certification tests will confirm all is good to go in producing 

new engines for use beginning with the Artemis V mission to the Moon as NASA 

continues its effort to explore the secrets of the universe for the benefit of all.

Aerojet Rocketdyne is employing new manufacturing processes and techniques, 

including 3D printing, to produce the RS-25 more efficiently. NASA has awarded 

the company contracts to provide 24 new engines, which will help power six SLS

launches. Four RS-25 engines fire simultaneously to produce more than 2 million 

pounds of combined thrust to help launch the rocket.

The recent certification series at NASA Stennis featured a dozen full-duration tests 

and plenty of highlights, including:

• Almost 110 minutes of cumulative hot fire duration. Each of the 12 tests

fired for at least 8 minutes (500 seconds) and several for even longer to fully

characterize engine performance. The 500-second tests simulate the same amount

of time the engine must perform to lift SLS and astronauts aboard the Orion

spacecraft to orbit. The engine approached 2 hours (6,570 seconds) of cumulative

hot fire time during the series.

• Four long-duration tests. Operators conducted a pair of 10-minute tests, as

well as 10-and-a-half minute and 12-minute hot fires, during the series. The

720-second test represented the longest-ever hot fire of a modified RS-25 engine.

• An aggressive gimbal test. Halfway through the campaign, operators conducted

a gimbal test of the engine to ensure it will pivot as needed to maintain the

stability and trajectory of SLS during flight. Operators moved the engine by as

much as 6 degrees from center on a tight circular axis and in a back-and-forth

pattern to demonstrate the gimbaling capability.

• A wide range of power levels. Operators fired the RS-25 engine from 80% to

113% power levels to test the performance of the engine in various scenarios.

The first four Artemis missions use modified space shuttle main engines that

can power up to 109% of their rated level. New RS-25 engines will power up

to the 111% level to provide additional thrust. Operators tested up to the 113% 

power level during a number of certification hot fires to learn about the engine’s 

capabilities and to provide a margin of operational safety.

• State-of-the-art components. The certification engine featured various

components manufactured with advanced processes and techniques, including

a main combustion chamber using hot isostatic pressure bonding, an improved

nozzle brazing process, new flex hoses, and numerous 3D-fabricated components.

The certification hot fires demonstrate the performance capabilities of the new

components.

The initial certification series provided key data about the performance limits of 

the redesigned engine and components. “Testing new hardware always is a learning 

process, even on an engine as proven as the RS-25,” said Chip Ellis, manager of the 

RS-25 Engine Test Project at NASA Stennis. “The success of this series really is a 

testament to NASA’s commitment to ‘test as we fly’ and to the expertise of the test 

team.”

“This 12-test series demonstrated our confidence level that our new designs have 

the same reliability and performance as their predecessors,” said Aerojet Rocketdyne 

RS-25 Deputy Program Manager Mike Lauer. “We put the engine through a lot of 

different scenarios, and we are extremely pleased with the results.”

By the close of the series, operators were conducting weekly full-duration tests of 

the engine. Now, all eyes turn to the second certification series. With completion of 

that campaign, it is anticipated that all systems will be “go” to produce engines for 

future Artemis missions to the Moon and, eventually, Mars. 

NASA conducts an RS-25 hot fire test on the Fred Haise Test Stand at NASA’s Stennis Space Center on June 22. The 12-test series for the initial certfication series is complete, with a second certification series to follow that 

will pavethe way for production of new RS-25 engines to help power the SLS rocket.
Page 4 LAGNIAPPE July 2023

Trusses for Exploration Upper Stage Testing Installed at B-2 Test Stand

NASA Stennis marked a milestone July 13 with the lift and installation 

of two large trusses on the B-2 Test Stand. The 35-foot-long trusses, 

each weighing 18,000 pounds, were lifted with the stand derrick and 

lowered into place in preparation for testing the SLS (Space Launch 

System) Exploration Upper Stage (EUS). The trusses were fabricated 

at NASA’s Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans and underwent 

some finishing work and inspection at NASA Stennis before being 

sandblasted and painted. The installed trusses will serve as a mounting platform for the four EUS engine diffusers and also will bear some 

of the load of the interstage simulator structure that will house the 

lower portion of the EUS on the stand. The EUS will enable NASA to 

carry larger and heavier payloads to lunar orbit than the Interim Cryogenic Propulsion Stage being used on initial Artemis flights. Prior to its 

use on SLS, the EUS will be installed on the B-2 stand and undergo a 

series of tests to ensure it is ready for flight. The so-called Green Run 

test series will represent the first full power-up of the stage and its 

systems. It will culminate with a firing of the stage’s four Aerojet Rocketdyne RL10 engines, just as must occur during an actual mission. 

NASA conducted a similar campaign with the first SLS core stage in 

2020-21. The 212-foot-tall SLS core stage also was anchored on the 

B-2 Test Stand for its own Green Run series. Once the core stage

was removed for use on the Artemis I flight, teams began modifying

the B-2 Test Stand to house the smaller EUS, which stands 54.5 feet

tall. The SLS rocket is powering Artemis missions to return humans,

including the first woman and the first person of color to the Moon, in

preparation for a future journey to Mars. In addition to stage testing,

NASA Stennis also is testing engines that will help launch SLS on its

Artemis missions.
Page 5 LAGNIAPPE July 2023

NASA Rocket Flight Software for Artemis II Meets Testing Checkpoint

NASA’s MOON to MARS MISSION

The first Artemis astronauts have begun crew 

training for their Artemis II mission around the 

Moon, and teams at NASA’s Marshall Space

Flight Center in Huntsville, 

Alabama, are testing and 

configuring the flight 

software for the mega 

Moon rocket that will 

launch them on their 

journey.

When NASA’s SLS

(Space Launch System) 

rocket launches NASA’s 

Artemis II crew aboard 

the Orion spacecraft, it 

will produce more than 

8.8 million pounds of 

thrust. The SLS rocket’s 

flight software acts as the 

“brains” of the rocket, 

activating 48 hours prior 

to launch to command 

all that power and energy 

for the first eight minutes 

of the mission through 

the separation of its inspace propulsion stage. 

Inside the SLS Software 

Development Facility 

(SDF) at Marshall, 

software engineers recently 

completed the first part of 

formal qualification testing 

for the Artemis II SLS 

flight software.

The rocket’s flight software 

consists of approximately 

50,000 lines of code. To 

test the SLS computer 

systems and flight software 

ahead of launch, a team 

inside the SDF simulates 

a series of normal and 

off-nominal SLS rocket and environmental scenarios, 

called test cases. SLS flight software qualification testing 

includes multiple test procedures to verify software 

requirements. By the conclusion of the two-week test 

period on May 15, engineers had completed 179 test 

procedures with approximately 58,000 test cases. In 

comparison, the first phase of qualification testing for 

Artemis II completed in 2022 had 72 test procedures 

consisting of 9,500 test cases.

“The SLS flight software team integrated operational 

improvements and new test scenarios in preparation for 

Artemis II based on lessons learned from the successful 

launch of Artemis I in November 2022,” said Dan 

Mitchell, NASA’s lead SLS 

integrated avionics and 

software engineer. “The 

test facilities at Marshall 

Space Flight Center have 

the capability to produce 

thousands of test cases 

the SLS flight software 

is required to detect and 

respond to appropriately 

on launch day, offering us 

the opportunity to assess 

and certify all the major 

software elements and 

systems on the rocket 

before the first crew flies 

on SLS.”

The second and final phase 

of formal qualification 

testing for the SLS flight 

software in the SDF is set 

to begin in July. Beginning 

in the fall, engineers will 

begin integrated system 

testing in the SLS System 

Integration Lab (SIL) 

using the full suite of SLS 

avionics hardware and 

flight software. Together, 

the test results from the 

SIL system and the flight 

software SDF will provide 

teams key evidence to 

support mission readiness 

for Artemis II. By the time 

the SLS rocket launches 

Artemis II, flight software 

engineers will have “flown” 

the SLS mission more than 

100,000 times within the 

various SLS avionics and 

software development and test facilities.

NASA is working to land the first woman and first 

person of color on the Moon under Artemis. SLS is 

part of NASA’s backbone for deep space exploration, 

along with the Orion spacecraft, advanced spacesuits 

and rovers, the Gateway in orbit around the Moon, and 

commercial human landing systems. SLS is the only 

rocket that can send Orion, astronauts, and supplies to 

the Moon in a single mission.

A software engineer evaluates the flight software and avionics configuration 

inside the Systems Integration Laboratory (SIL) at NASA’s Marshall Space 

Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama. Engineers will soon begin integrated 

system testing in the SIL to support flight software development and mission 

readiness for Artemis II. Photo Credit: NASA/Brandon Hancock
Page 6 LAGNIAPPE July 2023

New Fleet of Vehicles for NASA’s Artemis Crews Arrives at Kennedy

NASA’s MOON to MARS MISSION

NASA has received the fleet of vehicles that will 

take Artemis crews on the final Earth-bound leg 

of their journey to the Moon before boarding 

their rocket and spacecraft.

Teams from manufacturer Canoo Technologies Inc. 

of Torrance, California, delivered three specially 

designed, fully electric, environmentally friendly crew 

transportation vehicles to NASA’s Kennedy Space Center 

in Florida on July 11. The zero-emission vehicles can 

carry four astronauts in their Orion crew survival system

spacesuits, support personnel including a spacesuit 

technician, and provides room for specialized equipment 

for the drive to Launch Pad 39B ahead of Artemis 

missions to the Moon.

The new vehicles are customized to accommodate 

NASA’s unique specifications for Artemis missions while 

also paying homage to the legacy of the agency’s human 

spaceflight and space exploration efforts. Many aspects 

of the design, from the interior and exterior markings to 

the color of the vehicles to the wheel wells, were chosen 

by a creative team that included the Artemis launch 

director and representatives from NASA’s Astronaut 

Office based at Johnson Space Center in Houston. They 

provided insight from the conceptual phase throughout 

production. Canoo was awarded a contract in April 2022 

to manufacture the vehicles.

“The collaboration between Canoo and our NASA 

representatives focused on the crews’ safety and comfort 

on the way to the pad ahead of their journey to the 

Moon,” said Charlie Blackwell-Thompson, NASA’s 

Artemis launch director. “I have no doubt everyone 

who sees these new vehicles will feel the same sense of 

pride I have for this next endeavor of crewed Artemis 

missions.”

Historically, during launch operations at Kennedy for 

NASA’s Apollo and Space Shuttle Programs, the earlier 

Astrovans were the primary means of transporting 

crews from the astronauts’ crew quarters in the Neil A. 

Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building to the 

launch pad. While the path to the pad may look similar, 

the ride to get there has changed with the times.

Ahead of Artemis II, the first crewed mission under 

Artemis that will send four astronauts around the Moon 

and bring them home, the fleet will be used for astronaut 

training exercises at the spaceport. The approximately 

10-day flight will test NASA’s foundational human deep

space exploration capabilities, the Space Launch

System rocket and Orion spacecraft, for the first time

with astronauts and will pave the way for lunar surface

missions, including landing the first woman and first

person of color on the Moon.

With the Vehicle Assembly Building in the background, the three specially designed, fully electric, environmentally friendly crew transportation vehicles 

for Artemis missions arrived at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on July 11. The zero-emission vehicles, which will carry astronauts to Launch 

Complex 39B for Artemis missions, were delivered by the manufacturer, Canoo Technologies Inc. of Torrance, California. Photo Credit: NASA/Isaac Watson
Page 7 LAGNIAPPE July 2023

Webb Celebrates First Year of Science With Close-up on Birth of Sun-like Stars

Lee esta historia en español aquí.

From our cosmic backyard in the solar 

system to distant galaxies near the dawn 

of time, NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope has delivered on its promise of 

revealing the universe like never before 

in its first year of science operations. To 

celebrate the completion of a successful 

first year, NASA has released Webb’s image of a small star-forming region in the 

Rho Ophiuchi cloud complex.

“In just one year, the James Webb Space 

Telescope has transformed humanity’s 

view of the cosmos, peering into dust 

clouds and seeing light from faraway 

corners of the universe for the very first 

time. Every new image is a new discovery, empowering scientists around the 

globe to ask and answer questions they 

once could never dream of,” said NASA 

Administrator Bill Nelson. “Webb is an 

investment in American innovation but 

also a scientific feat made possible with 

NASA’s international partners that share 

a can-do spirit to push the boundaries 

of what is known to be possible. Thousands of engineers, scientists, and leaders poured their life’s passion into this 

mission, and their efforts will continue 

to improve our understanding of the 

origins of the universe – and our place 

in it.”

The new Webb image released on July 12 

features the nearest star-forming region 

to us. Its proximity at 390 light-years allows for a highly detailed close-up, with 

no foreground stars in the intervening 

space.

“On its first anniversary, the James Webb 

Space Telescope has already delivered 

upon its promise to unfold the universe, 

gifting humanity with a breathtaking 

treasure trove of images and science 

that will last for decades,” said Nicola 

Fox, associate administrator of NASA’s 

Science Mission Directorate in Washington. “An engineering marvel built by the 

world’s leading scientists and engineers, 

Webb has given us a more intricate 

understanding of galaxies, stars, and the 

atmospheres of planets outside of our 

solar system than ever before, laying the 

groundwork for NASA to lead the world 

in a new era of scientific discovery and 

the search for habitable worlds.”

Webb’s image shows a region containing 

approximately 50 young stars, all of them 

similar in mass to the Sun, or smaller. 

The darkest areas are the densest, where 

thick dust cocoons still-forming protostars. Huge bipolar jets of molecular hydrogen, represented in red, dominate the 

image, appearing horizontally across the 

upper third and vertically on the right. 

These occur when a star first bursts 

through its natal envelope of cosmic 

dust, shooting out a pair of opposing jets 

into space like a newborn first stretching 

her arms out into the world. In contrast, 

the star S1 has carved out a glowing cave 

of dust in the lower half of the image. 

It is the only star in the image that is 

significantly more massive than the Sun.

“Webb’s image of Rho Ophiuchi allows 

us to witness a very brief period in the 

stellar lifecycle with new clarity. Our 

own Sun experienced a phase like this, 

long ago, and now we have the technology to see the beginning of another’s 

star’s story,” said Klaus Pontoppidan, 

who served as Webb project scientist at 

the Space Telescope Science Institute in 

Baltimore, Maryland, since before the 

telescope’s launch and through the first 

year of operations.

Some stars in the image display tell-tale 

shadows indicating protoplanetary disks 

– potential future planetary systems in

the making.

A Full Year, Across the Full Sky

From its very first deep field image, 

unveiled by President Joe Biden, Vice 

President Kamala Harris, and Nelson live 

at the White House, Webb has delivered 

on its promise to show us more of the 

universe than ever before. However, 

Webb revealed much more than distant 

galaxies in the early universe.

“The breadth of science Webb is capable 

of exploring really becomes clear now, 

when we have a full year’s worth of data 

from targets across the sky,” said Eric 

Smith, associate director for research 

in the Astrophysics Division at NASA 

Headquarters and Webb program scientist. “Webb’s first year of science has not 

only taught us new things about our universe, but it has revealed the capabilities 

of the telescope to be greater than our 

expectations, meaning future discoveries 

will be even more amazing.” The global 

astronomy community has spent the past 

year excitedly poring over Webb’s initial 

public data and getting a feel for how to 

work with it.

Beyond the infrared images, what really 

has scientists excited are Webb’s crisp 

spectra – the detailed information that 

can be gleaned from light by the telescope’s spectroscopic instruments. 

The first anniversary image from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope displays star birth like it never has been seen before, full of detailed, impressionistic texture. The 

subject is the Rho Ophiuchi cloud complex, the closest star-forming region to Earth. It is a relatively small, quiet stellar nursery, but one never would know it from Webb’s 

chaotic close-up. Jets bursting from young stars crisscross the image, impacting the surrounding interstellar gas and lighting up molecular hydrogen, shown in red. Some 

stars display the telltale shadow of a circumstellar disk, the makings of future planetary systems. Credits: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, Klaus Pontoppidan (STScI) 

Download the full-resolution, uncompressed version and supporting visuals from the Space Telescope Science Institute.

The James Webb Space Telescope is the world’s premier space science observatory. Webb is helping to solve 

mysteries in our solar system, looking beyond to distant worlds around other stars, and probing the mysterious 

structures and origins of the universe and humans place in it. Webb is an international program led by NASA with 

its partners, ESA (European Space Agency) and the Canadian Space Agency.

Read more about the mission of NASA’s James Webb Space 

Telescope to #UnfoldTheUniverse by clicking here.

Did you know? NASA Stennis supported Webb’s predecessor, the Hubble Space Telescope, by 

testing and proving flightworthy the space shuttle main engines for the six shuttle flights over 19 years 

to launch, deploy, service, and repair Hubble.
Teams install the heat shield on the Artemis II Orion spacecraft at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on June 22. The 16.5-foot-wide shield will 

ensure the safe return of the astronauts on board as the spacecraft travels at speeds of about 25,000 miles per hour and experiences outside temperatures 

of nearly 5,000 degrees Fahrenheit. See progress on Artemis II, the first crewed mission on NASA’s path to establishing a long-term presence at the Moon 

for science and exploration by clicking here. Photo Credit: NASA/Cory Huston

Page 8 LAGNIAPPE July 2023

NASA in the News

When NASA’s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft releases 

a capsule with material from asteroid Bennu 

onto the Utah desert on Sept. 24, it will 

become the latest in a line of missions to gather samples 

from space and deliver them to Earth. Collecting material 

from space is a challenging feat that requires teams of 

dedicated scientists and engineers, innovative technology, 

and patience. But the scientific breakthroughs these 

samples unlock make the effort worthwhile as humans 

attempt to understand the origins of the planet and the 

life that thrives here. The practice of retrieving samples 

from space began in 1969 with NASA’s Apollo 11 

mission, the first to land astronauts on the Moon. Many 

more sample-gathering missions to the Moon and beyond 

followed, growing in ambition. Read more here.

Long History and Bright Future of 

Space Sample Deliveries

Researchers have discovered the most distant active 

supermassive black hole to date with the James 

Webb Space Telescope. The galaxy, CEERS 1019, 

existed just over 570 million years after the big bang, and 

its black hole is less massive than any other yet identified 

in the early universe. Researchers also have easily “shaken 

out” two more black holes that are also on the smaller 

side, and existed 1 and 1.1 billion years after the big bang. 

Webb also identified eleven galaxies that existed when the 

universe was 470 to 675 million years old. The evidence 

was provided by Webb’s Cosmic Evolution Early Release 

Science (CEERS) Survey, led by Steven Finkelstein of the 

University of Texas at Austin. The program combines 

Webb’s highly detailed near- and mid-infrared images and 

data known as spectra. Read more here.

Webb Detects Most Distant Active 

Supermassive Black Hole to Date

Artemis II Heat Shield Installed
Page 9 LAGNIAPPE July 2023

NASA Stennis News

NASA Program Specialist Louis Thompson speaks with interns from the Office of Louisiana Congressman Garret 

Graves during their visit to NASA’s Stennis Space Center on July 6. During the day, the group learned more 

about the nation’s largest rocket propulsion test site and the NASA internship program. Additionally, participants 

visited the Fred Haise Test Stand, where NASA Stennis completed an initial certification test series last month in 

reparation for production of redesigned RS-25 engines. the group also visited the Aerojet Rocketdyne’s Engine 

Assembly Facility on site. Aerojet Rocketdyne is the lead contractor for SLS (Space Launch System) engines, 

which are assembled and processed in the south Mississippi facility.

NASA Stennis 

Celebrates Employees 

during June’s Pride Month 

Recognizing Lesbian, 

Gay, Bisexual, 

Transgender, Queer, 

Intersex, and Asexual + 

Communities

Syncom Space Services employee Shane Cravens (center) accepts a NASA Engineering and Safety 

Center (NESC) Group Achievement Award from NESC Director Timmy Wilson (l) and NESC Chief 

Astronaut Mark T. Vande Hei on May 23 at NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia. 

A blended team of employees at NASA Stennis and White Sands Test Facility in Las Cruces, New 

Mexico, were honored for work on the Thruster Advancement for Low-Temperature Operation in 

Space (TALOS) Project, conducted at NASA Stennis. Employees working on the project included 

Alex Elliot and Kris Mobbs of the NASA Engineering and Test Directorate, along with Cravens, 

Brandon Carver, Richard Smith, and Peggi Marshall from Syncom Space Services. The award 

recognized the team for outstanding technical achievement in the evaluation of the TALOS Project’s 

Labview code for ground tests of hypergolic thrusters. Photo Credit: NASA/Langley

Participants in the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) Summer Institute stand in front of the Roy Estess Building at NASA Stennis during a site tour on July 10. 

The students viewed multiple areas of the federal city, including a visit to the B-1/B-2 Test Stand, where students 

learned about NASA Stennis’ role in the Artemis program. Through Artemis, NASA will send the first woman 

and first person of color to the Moon. The agency will use what is learned on and around the Moon to take the 

next giant leap – sending astronauts to Mars. The Arkansas at Pine Bluff STEM program started in 2003 and is 

designed to help increase the number and diversity of well-prepared STEM graduates.
Page 10 LAGNIAPPE July 2023

Employee Helps NASA Stennis Space 

Center Move Forward into the Future

Each day Ken Griffey shows up for work, he 

participates in the ongoing transformation of 

NASA’s Stennis Space Center near Bay St. Louis, 

Mississippi. Much like his role at NASA Stennis for the 

past 17 years, the nation’s largest rocket propulsion test 

site and unique federal city continues to evolve. 

Having a chance to be a 

part of the process has 

provided Griffey with some 

of his “most rewarding 

work.” 

The chief of staff for 

the NASA Stennis Center 

Operations Directorate 

points to a key factor in 

the continued development 

of the south Mississippi 

site. “The people, hands 

down,” he said. “Mighty 

little Stennis has a ‘can do’ 

attitude.”

The Diamondhead, 

Mississippi, resident would 

know since he has served 

in variety of roles. As 

acting agency architect for 

the NASA Shared Services Center, Griffey helped make 

way for the facility to locate at NASA Stennis in 2006 

and unify NASA’s mission support functions. He became 

the center’s acting deputy director for business and 

administration and then its chief information officer in 

2008. NASA Stennis began operating the National Center 

for Critical Information Processing and Storage, a shared 

federal data center facility supporting more than 10 federal 

organizations, under Griffey’s watch as program manager. 

In subsequent years, Griffey played a role in revitalization 

of the B-2 Test Stand for direct support of the Artemis 

effort and helped pave the way for new growth at NASA 

Stennis as the primary liaison of the federal city. 

Griffey believes mental flexibility is the primary key to 

success as NASA Stennis has transformed from its early 

days of mainly testing rocket engines and stages, to having 

as many as 40 on-site agencies, organizations, universities, 

and companies sharing operating costs, while pursuing 

individual missions, and employing about 5,000 people 

sitewide. This concept is something he lives out while 

encouraging and mentoring newer employees.

“The ability to flex into new paradigms and processes 

is more important to successful change than any other 

factor,” Griffey said. “These brilliant, diverse people are 

truly our greatest resource for the future.” 

The Lawrenceburg, Kentucky, native has firsthand 

experience in success and change. Griffey has four college 

degrees, ranging from an associate degree in general 

studies to a doctoral degree 

in business administration – 

with highest honors earned 

each time. 

His son Benjamin, better 

known as Casper, is a 

Germany-based rap star 

with more than 10 Gold 

and Platinum albums, as 

well as multiple awards. 

Griffey, himself, has one 

Platinum and two Gold 

awards for contributions to 

his son’s first two albums. 

Additionally, Griffey serves 

as commander of Veterans 

of Foreign Wars Post 2880 

in Diamondhead, selected 

as one of Mississippi’s “AllState Post” for 2022-23. 

The U.S. Army veteran also 

spearheaded creation of the Veterans Employee Resource 

Group for NASA Stennis and NASA Shared Services 

Center employees. The group has grown from three 

members to 69 in two years. 

“The primary reward from the group has been the 

camaraderie,” Griffey said. “When serving in the military, 

there is a shared purpose. Everyone from all backgrounds 

bonds over the remote locations, shared purpose, and 

the sense of looking after each other or having each 

other’s back. Having the group at NASA Stennis helps 

improve employee morale through a renewed sense of 

comradeship and shared experience.”

The group supports local events on behalf of NASA 

Stennis. It focuses on inclusion and encompasses veterans, 

veteran allies, veteran families, and friends of veterans. For 

Griffey, it is all about feeling “included and seen.”

Griffey cannot wait to see how the center moves 

forward. NASA Stennis continues to expand the agency’s 

partnership as it welcomes new commercial aerospace 

companies to the federal city, all while contributing to the 

Artemis initiative to send the first woman and first person 

of color to the Moon.

Ken Griffey, chief of staff for the Center Operations Directorate at NASA’s 

Stennis Space Center, serves as the primary liaison for the NASA Stennis 

federal city and chairs the Veterans Employee Resource Group at the south 

Mississippi site, in addition to mentoring and encouraging newer employees 

in their own career growth and development.
Page 11 LAGNIAPPE July 2023

“Black Monday” Turns into Bright Future

For employees of the then-Mississippi Test Facility, 

Nov. 9, 1970, represented “Black Monday.” It was 

the closing ceremony of Saturn V rocket stage 

testing at what 

is now known as 

NASA’s Stennis 

Space Center. The 

end of the Apollo 

Program had 

been decided, so 

there would be no 

more testing of its 

associated engines 

and rocket stages. 

NASA 

Administrator 

George Low 

came to the south 

Mississippi site, 

accompanied by 

top managers 

from NASA 

Headquarters 

in Washington, 

and NASA’s 

Marshall Space 

Flight Center 

in Huntsville, 

Alabama, to give 

employees a “pat 

on the back” and 

a “job well done” 

for their work on 

the program. 

However, 

employees, 

including site 

Director Jackson 

Balch, also saw 

the ceremony as 

a sign that NASA 

wished to close 

the Mississippi 

facility. Meanwhile, 

what Low and 

the other NASA 

managers did not know was that Balch, U.S. Sen. John 

Stennis, U.S. Sen. Bill Colmer, Mississippi Gov. John 

Bell Williams, local community leaders, and heads of at 

least 10 different federal agencies already located on site 

or considering a move to the facility, were attending the 

ceremony to speak with Low to let him know how vital 

MTF was to the government and local community. 

Balch, Stennis, Colmer, and their team challenged the 

NASA administrator and officials. Colmer said, “Sen. 

Stennis is noted to be a gentleman, and you may not 

understand his message, but I am telling you now that 

if NASA fails to 

support MTF, 

we will withdraw 

our support for 

NASA.” Without 

the support of 

Stennis and Colmer 

in the U.S. Senate, 

NASA faced a 

budget cut, and 

programs already 

in the works, like 

the space shuttle, 

possibly would 

never materialize.

Balch dreamed 

that MTF 

would become 

a “scientific 

utopia.” He 

tried for years to 

establish state and 

federal agencies 

at the facility to 

work together 

on projects that 

would benefit each 

other, as well as 

the larger scientific 

community. 

In 1972, Balch 

began to see his 

dream come to 

fruition. Federal 

and state agencies 

began moving to 

MTF and brought 

their resources and 

staff. The following 

year, 16 federal and 

state agencies and 

universities moved 

to the facility and 

were able to work together on various projects using data, 

sensors, computers, and instruments they would not have 

had access to by themselves. 

Following discussions, NASA affirmed its intention to 

keep the south Mississippi site open. Since then, Balch’s 

vision has continued to grow. Flash forward to 2023, and 

there are currently about 40 agencies located at NASA 

Stennis.

An image shows the plaque given to Mississippi Test Facility for its role in the Apollo missions.
Page 12 LAGNIAPPE July 2023

Unconscious Bias: How to Identify and Overcome

Office of Diversity and Equal Opportunity

Have you ever assumed that an employee 

from an older generation needed more 

help with technology or that men have 

illegible handwriting? These are both examples of 

“unconscious bias” or “implicit bias.” 

An unconscious/implicit bias can be an unconscious 

assumption, belief, or attitude toward a group of 

individuals. Learning what and how unconscious 

biases are formed and executed can help individuals 

identify the kinds of unconscious biases they have and 

how to combat them. 

Sometimes an unconscious bias is learned through a 

stereotype. According to the Unconscious Bias

Project, “a stereotype is a widely held fixed and 

oversimplified image or idea of a particular type of 

person or thing.” 

Stereotypes can be about gender, race, age, sexuality, 

ability and even how someone dresses. Even 

though stereotypes seem harmless, stereotypes can 

result in negative associations regarding groups of 

people. Quick judgements can lead to developing an 

unconscious bias. 

An “unconscious bias manifests in many ways, 

such as how we judge and evaluate others, or 

how we act toward members of different groups 

(unconsciousbiasproject.org).”

For example, if someone has an unconscious bias that 

food derived from India is too spicy, they miss out 

on several Indian dishes, like buttered chicken, which 

contains marinated chicken with rice and a creamy 

sauce. 

Studies have shown that unconscious bias can 

negatively affect groups of people. In 2006, the U.S. 

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission won a 

class action law suit on behalf three individuals who 

were denied entry level management positions due to 

racial bias (United States Court of Appeals, Seventh

Circuit, No. 04-3559). Moreover, a study from the 

University of California Berkeley and the University 

of Chicago found in 2022 that several of the largest 

employers in the United States were discriminating 

based on their assumed biased view of gender and 

race when seeing applicants names (berkeley.edu).

It is helpful to know how to combat unconscious bias 

before it causes harm to a group or individual. 

Listed are eight helpful tactics for identifying and 

combatting implicit bias created by the American 

Academy of Family Physicians, using the acrostic 

“implicit:”

1.Introspection: Explore and identify prejudices by

taking implicit association tests or through other

means of self-analysis.

2. Mindfulness: Since one is more likely to give in to

biases when under pressure, practice ways to reduce

stress and increase mindfulness, such as focused

breathing.

3. Perspective-taking: Consider experiences from the

point of view of the person being stereotyped. One

can do this by reading or watching content that

discusses those experiences or directly interacting

with people from those groups.

4. Learn to slow down: Before interacting with

people from certain groups, pause and reflect to

reduce reflexive actions. Consider positive examples

of people from that stereotyped group, such as

public figures or personal friends.

5.Individuation: Evaluate people based on their

personal characteristics rather than those affiliated

with their group. This could include connecting

over shared interests.

6. Check one’s messaging: Utilize statements that are

welcoming and that embrace multiculturalism or

other differences.

7.Institutionalize fairness: Support a culture of

diversity and inclusion at the organizational level.

This could include using an equity and

empowerment lens tool to identify one’s blind spots

or reviewing the images in one’s office to see if they

further or undercut stereotypes.

8. Take two: Resisting implicit bias is lifelong work.

Individuals must constantly restart the process and

look for new ways to improve.

Unconscious bias, as the name suggests, can be 

difficult to overcome because it is an unconscious 

view. By using these eight tips, one can begin to 

identify biases and learn proactive ways to overcome 

them. 

For more information, visit the links below:

• Eight tactics to identify/reduce your implicit biases

• Harvard Project Implicit

• Name Discrimination Study Finds Lakisha And

Jamal Still Less Likely To Get Hired Than Emily

And Greg | Here & Now (wbur.org)
•

Online Resources

Page 13 LAGNIAPPE July 2023

NASA Stennis

Artemis Resources

Click the above photo for 

NASA Stennis Artemis resources.

View coverage from NASA Stennis Media Day

Click the links below.

• AP: NASA Tests Redesigned Moon Rocket Engine

• WDAM: NASA Tests Engine for Artemis Mission

• WDSU: NASA Crews in Southern Mississippi Work on Future Space Flights

• WGNO: NASA Tests Engines for Future Artemis Flights

• WLOX: Stennis Space Center Engine Test Takes Next Step Toward Space Travel

NASA Moon To Mars

Click the above photo to learn more about 

NASA’s Moon to Mars Strategy and Objectives Development.

SuperTalk Mississippi

Interviews NASA Engineer

Bradley Tyree

Click the above photo for the interview.