For many at NASA, the upcoming Artemis II mission isn't just a technological feat—it's a deeply personal moment. The launch, slated for tonight from Kennedy Space Center in Florida, will send four astronauts on a 10-day journey around the moon, paving the way for a lunar landing in 2028.

Inspired by Apollo

Shawn Quinn, now a manager of exploration ground systems, was just four years old when Apollo 11 landed in 1969. He recalls watching the Saturn V rocket launch on a small television, sparking a lifelong ambition. “The only thing I ever wanted to do was work for NASA, build big rockets, and go to the moon,” Quinn says.

Charlie Blackwell-Thompson, now serving as the Orion stage adapter lead, shares a similar story. She remembers her second-grade teacher wheeling in a TV to watch a moon landing. “It is the very threads of that Apollo program that started weaving the path that led me to where I am today,” she explains.

A Childhood Dream Realized

Rex A. Stucky, National Geographic Image Collection captured an estimated 10,000 people gathering in New York's Central Park to witness Neil Armstrong's first steps on the moon.

Many of these Apollo-inspired employees are now in leadership roles within the Artemis program. Quinn, who began working at NASA in the 1980s, will be handling launch and recovery for the Artemis II crew. He acknowledges this will be his final mission, making it a particularly poignant moment. “That dream was still in my bones… I never lost hope,” he says.

A Generation of 'Space Geeks'

The impact of the Apollo missions extends far beyond those who witnessed the landings as young children. Dennis Dillman, formerly with earth sciences projects at Goddard Space Flight Center, estimates that about half of NASA’s workforce grew up captivated by space exploration. He fondly recalls clipping articles about astronauts and devouring space books from his local library.

This sentiment is echoed by Brent Gaddes, an engineer at Marshall Space Flight Center, who received a young reader’s edition of John Noble Wilford’s book, We Reach the Moon, as a gift in his youth.

Passing the Torch

While the original Apollo generation is nearing retirement, their passion has been passed down. Noah Petro, a planetary geologist at Goddard, was born six years after the last Apollo mission. His father, Denis Petro, a neurologist, had previously worked as an engineer at NASA, building part of the Apollo astronaut suits.

“That was jaw-dropping to me,” Petro says. Learning of his father’s involvement fueled his own career path. He will now serve as the lead project scientist for the first lunar landing of the Artemis program. Petro emphasizes that this mission will be a first-time experience for a vast majority of the world’s population. “Something like 75 percent of the human population was not around in 1972,” he notes.

Looking to the Future

The original Apollo program was ultimately scaled down due to budget cuts and shifting priorities, leaving many lunar scientists feeling that opportunities were missed. However, the Artemis program aims for a sustainable, long-term human presence on the moon, setting the stage for future exploration of Mars.

James Green, who watched Apollo 11 land during his high school graduation year and later served until his retirement in 2022, believes this moment is crucial. “We need to know what’s out there to preserve life on Earth,” he states. “If we’re going to survive for long periods of time, we will have to be a multi-planet species.”

As the launch approaches, NASA employees like Shawn Quinn reflect on the trust placed in their team by the Artemis II crew – Commander Reid Wiseman, Pilot Victor Glover, and Mission Specialists Christina Hammock Koch and Jeremy Hansen. The mission represents not just a return to the moon, but a bold step towards a new era of space exploration.