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By NASA
Robert Williams is a senior mechanical design engineer and the structures subject matter expert in the Engineering and Test Directorate at NASA’s Stennis Space Center.NASA/Danny Nowlin Living up to, and maintaining, the standard of excellence associated with NASA is what drives Robert Williams at NASA’s Stennis Space Center near Bay St. Louis, Mississippi.
A native of Gulfport, Mississippi, Williams said he has had the opportunity to work with and be mentored by “some truly exceptional” engineers, some with careers reaching back to the Apollo era.
“I cannot overstate the vast amount of practical knowledge and experience we have at NASA Stennis,” Williams said. “We know how to get things done, and if we do not know, I can guarantee we will figure it out.”
Williams is a senior mechanical design engineer and the structures subject matter expert for the NASA Stennis Engineering and Test Directorate.
He provides technical oversight related to engineering mechanics and machine design by reviewing analysis and design packages from NASA Stennis contractors and NASA engineers for ongoing projects.
Williams also supports projects by performing analysis and creating detailed models, drawings, and system level designs, mostly at the versatile four-stand E Test Complex, where NASA Stennis has 12 active test cells capable of various component, engine, and stage test activities to support the agency and commercial companies.
In support of NASA’s Artemis campaign of returning astronauts to the Moon, Williams also has reviewed structural and pipe stress analysis for the exploration upper stage project that will test a new SLS (Space Launch System) rocket stage to fly on future Artemis missions.
He performed similar review work for Green Run testing of the SLS core stage at NASA Stennis ahead of the successful launch of the Artemis I uncrewed mission around the Moon.
Overall, Williams has been a part of projects on every test stand throughout more than eight years with NASA and five years as a contractor. He has been tasked with solving challenging problems, both individually and as a part of teams.
There were times when he was not sure if he or the team would be able to solve the problem or address it effectively, but each time, the NASA Stennis team found a way.
“Over the span of my career, I have yet to be in a situation where the challenge was not met,” he said.
The opportunity to work with “pretty much all the major space companies in some capacity” is most interesting to Williams. “The best thing is that being a small organization within a relatively small center, there are always opportunities to develop new skills and capabilities to help fill a need or gap,” he said.
No matter the task, Williams looks forward to supporting space innovation while living up to, and maintaining, the standard of excellence associated with NASA for the benefit of all.
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By NASA
The New York Stock Exchange welcomed team members from NASA’s SPHEREx (Spectro-Photometer for the History of the Universe, Epoch of Reionization and Ices Explorer) mission to celebrate the launch of the agency’s newest astrophysics observatory to understand the origins and structure of the universe. Image courtesy of NYSE Group Members of NASA’s recently launched SPHEREx (Spectro-Photometer for the History of the Universe, Epoch of Reionization and Ices Explorer) mission team participated in the New York Stock Exchange’s closing bell ceremony in New York City on April 22.
Michael Thelen, SPHEREx flight system manager at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California, is seen here ringing the closing bell. Additional SPHEREx team members from NASA JPL, which manages the mission, and BAE Systems Inc., Space & Mission Systems, which built the telescope and spacecraft bus for NASA, participated.
The SPHEREx observatory, which launched March 11 from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, will soon begin mapping the universe like none before it. Using 102 color filters to scan the entire sky quickly, SPHEREx will gather data on hundreds of millions of galaxies that will complement the work of more targeted telescopes, like NASA’s Hubble and James Webb space telescopes. Its surveys will help answer some of the biggest questions in astrophysics: what happened in the first second after the big bang, how galaxies form and evolve, and the origins and abundance of water and other key ingredients for life in our galaxy.
Michael P. Thelen, SPHEREx Observatory Flight System Manager, rings the bell alongside NASA SPHEREx team members at the New York Stock Exchange Tuesday, April 25, 2025. Image courtesy of NYSE Group More About SPHEREx
SPHEREx is managed by JPL for NASA’s Astrophysics Division within the Science Mission Directorate in Washington. BAE Systems (formerly Ball Aerospace) built the telescope and the spacecraft bus. The science analysis of the SPHEREx data will be conducted by a team of scientists located at 10 institutions across the U.S. and in South Korea. Data will be processed and archived at IPAC at Caltech, which manages JPL for NASA. The mission principal investigator is based at Caltech with a joint JPL appointment. The SPHEREx dataset will be publicly available.
For more information on SPHEREx, visit:
https://www.nasa.gov/spherex
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Alise Fisher
NASA Headquarters, Washington
202-358-2546
alise.m.fisher@nasa.gov
Calla Cofield
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
626-808-2469
calla.e.cofield@jpl.nasa.gov
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By NASA
2 min read
Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)
Syncom Space Services employees Kenneth Shipman, left, and Jesse Yarbrough perform final tubing install in early March to prepare the interstage simulator gas system on the Thad Cochran Test Stand at NASA’s Stennis Space Center for leak checks. Leak checks were performed prior to activation of the gas system this month. The activation marks a milestone in preparation for future Green Run testing of NASA’s exploration upper stage (EUS) in the B-2 position of the Thad Cochran Test Stand.NASA/Danny Nowlin Syncom Space Services employees Branson Cuevas, left, Kenneth Shipman, and Jesse Yarbrough install final tubing in early March before activation of the interstage simulator gas systems on the Thad Cochran Test Stand at NASA’s Stennis Space Center. The activation marks a milestone in preparation for future Green Run testing of NASA’s exploration upper stage (EUS) in the B-2 position of the stand.NASA/Danny Nowlin Crews at NASA’s Stennis Space Center recently completed activation of interstage gas systems needed for testing a new SLS (Space Launch System) rocket stage to fly on future Artemis missions to the Moon and beyond.
The activation marks a milestone in preparation for future Green Run testing of NASA’s exploration upper stage (EUS) in the B-2 position of the Thad Cochran Test Stand. For Green Run, teams will activate and test all systems to ensure the stage is ready to fly. Green Run will culminate with a hot fire of the stage’s four RL10 engines, just as during an actual mission.
The interstage simulator component will function like the SLS interstage section that protects the upper stage during Artemis launches. The interstage simulator will do the same during Green Run testing of the stage at NASA Stennis.
The interstage simulator gas system will provide helium, nitrogen, and hydrogen to the four RL10 engines for all wet dress and hot fire exercises and tests.
During the activation process, NASA Stennis crews simulated the engines and flowed gases to mirror various conditions and collect data on pressures and temperatures. NASA Stennis teams conducted 80 different flow cases, calculating such items as flow rates, system pressure drop, and fill/vent times. The calculated parameters then were compared to models and analytics to certify the gas system meets performance requirements.
NASA engineers Chad Tournillon, left, and Robert Smith verify the functionality of the control system in early March for activation of the interstage simulator gas systems on the Thad Cochran Test Stand at NASA’s Stennis Space Center. The activation marks a milestone in preparation for future Green Run testing of NASA’s exploration upper stage (EUS) in the B-2 position of the stand.NASA/Danny Nowlin Members of the engineering and operations team review data as it is collected in early March during activation of the interstage simulator gas systems on the Thad Cochran Test Stand at NASA’s Stennis Space Center. Pictured are NASA’s Mark Robinson, Robert Simmers, Jack Conley, and Nick Nugent. Activation of the gas systems marks a milestone in preparation for future Green Run testing of NASA’s exploration upper stage (EUS) in the B-2 position of the Thad Cochran Test Stand.NASA/Danny Nowlin NASA engineers Pablo Gomez, left, and B.T. Wigley collect data in early March during activation of the interstage simulator gas systems on the Thad Cochran Test Stand at NASA’s Stennis Space Center. The activation marks a milestone in preparation for future Green Run testing of NASA’s exploration upper stage (EUS) in the B-2 position of the NASA Stennis stand.NASA/Danny Nowlin Syncom Space Services employees Brandon Fleming, Robert Sheaffer, and Logan Upton review paperwork in early March prior to activation of the interstage simulator gas systems on the Thad Cochran Test Stand at NASA’s Stennis Space Center. The activation marks a milestone in preparation for future Green Run testing of NASA’s exploration upper stage (EUS) in the B-2 position of the stand.NASA/Danny Nowlin Syncom Space Services engineering tech Brandon Fleming tightens a pressure transducer on the Thad Cochran Test Stand at NASA’s Stennis Space Center in early March. Various transducers were used to provide data during subsequent activation of the interstage simulator gas systems at the stand. The activation marks a milestone in preparation for future Green Run testing of NASA’s exploration upper stage (EUS) in the B-2 position of the Thad Cochran Test Stand.NASA/Danny Nowlin Crews now will work to activate the umbilical gases and liquid oxygen systems. The NASA Stennis team will then conduct water system activation, where it will flow the flame deflector, aspirator, diffuser cooling circuits, purge rings and water-cooled fairing.
Afterward, the team will deploy the FireX system to check for total coverage, expected to be completed in the summer.
Before the exploration upper stage, built by Boeing at NASA’s Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans, arrives at NASA Stennis, crews will perform a final 24-hour check, or stress test, across all test complex facilities to demonstrate readiness for the test series.
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By NASA
NASA’s SPHEREx (Spectro-Photometer for the History of the Universe, Epoch of Reionization and Ices Explorer), a space telescope, is situated on a work stand ahead of prelaunch operations at the Astrotech Processing Facility at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California on Jan. 16, 2025.Credit: BAE Systems/Benjamin Fry Members of the team behind NASA’s newest space telescope will ring the New York Stock Exchange closing bell in New York City at 4 p.m. EDT on Tuesday, April 22. The team helped build, launch, and operates NASA’s SPHEREx (Spectro-Photometer for the History of the Universe, Epoch of Reionization and Ices Explorer) mission to explore the origins of the universe. The New York Stock Exchange will share a recording of the closing bell ceremony on YouTube after the event.
After launching March 11 from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, SPHEREx will soon begin collecting data on more than 450 million galaxies and 100 million stars in the Milky Way, to improve our understanding of how the universe evolved and search for key ingredients for life in our galaxy. The observatory’s first images confirmed all of the telescope’s systems are working as expected, as the team prepares SPHEREx to begin mapping the entire sky.
Bell ringers from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, which manages the mission, will be joined by team members from BAE Systems Inc., Space & Mission Systems, which built the telescope and spacecraft’s main structure, known as a bus, for NASA.
For more information on SPHEREx, visit:
https://www.nasa.gov/spherex
-end-
Alise Fisher
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1100
alise.m.fisher@nasa.gov
Calla Cofield
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
626-808-2469
calla.e.cofield@jpl.nasa.gov
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Last Updated Apr 21, 2025 EditorJessica TaveauLocationNASA Headquarters Related Terms
SPHEREx (Spectro-Photometer for the History of the Universe and Ices Explorer) Jet Propulsion Laboratory NASA Headquarters Science Mission Directorate
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By NASA
4 min read
Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)
As an adventurous individual, Becky Brocato, Ph.D., has a deep curiosity for understanding the conditions of the human body, especially as it pertains to spaceflight. This passion directly translates to her role at NASA, where Brocato serves as the Element Scientist in the Human Health Countermeasures division and oversees research that seeks to reduce medical risks that astronauts face from spaceflight, ensuring the continual health and safety of current and future NASA astronauts.
As part of the Human Research Program, the group strives to understand the physiological effects of spaceflight and develop strategies to mitigate any detrimental effects on human health and performance. For Brocato, her role presents the exciting opportunity to tangibly improve the lives of astronauts and actively contribute to the success of their missions.
Becky Brocato, Human Health Countermeasures Element Scientist for NASA’s Human Research Program “The thrill of my job comes from the sheer audacity of what we are undertaking—enabling humans to conquer the challenges of deep space,” said Brocato. “I’m invested in ensuring our astronauts are not just prepared—but confident—as they tackle immense physical and mental demands.”
Brocato attributes her early interest in flight and space research to her father and grandfather, who built a plane together when Brocato was younger. She recalls sitting in the plane’s fuselage, pretending she was traveling the world.
“My dad was my childhood hero for opening my eyes to the skies,” said Brocato. Fueled by this passion, she began her career as an aerospace engineer at the U.S. Army’s Yuma Proving Ground in Arizona, where she tested parachutes for aerial delivery, including the parachute designed for NASA’s X-38 crew return vehicle.
Now, having worked at NASA for four years, Brocato is excited to pass down her insight to younger generations, teaching them how her work ensures the sustainability of future space missions. Recently, after delivering a seminar on the methods to counter the risks humans face from spaceflight, Brocato spoke with college students eager to learn more about the complexities of the human body.
Becky Brocato gives a presentation on the research strategy for NASA’s Human Research Program to the Food and Nutrition Risk at the International Space Life Sciences Working Group Plant Symposium, held in Liverpool, England in September 2024.Becky Brocato “I felt like I wasn’t just sharing knowledge; I was helping to inspire a new generation of potential researchers to tackle the challenges of space exploration that was a real bright spot,” said Brocato. “Seeing their enthusiasm reaffirmed exactly why I came to NASA.”
This enthusiasm manifests in Brocato’s personal life: as a mother, she loves witnessing her child’s reaction to launches. “It was awesome to see the pure, unadulterated awe in my 7-year-old’s eyes when NASA’s SpaceX Crew-8 lifted off,” said Brocato. “Moments like that are a reminder that spaceflight can touch all generations, which fuels my passion both at work and at home.”
For Brocato, prioritizing her personal time is crucial, and she enjoys spending it pursuing physical activities. She is an avid runner, whether she is jogging to work at NASA’s Johnson Space Center or competing in local adventure races. She has even been skydiving, which is where she met her husband.
Brocato is excited to witness NASA continue to push boundaries in human exploration, returning to the Moon and onto Mars. As a dedicated worker known for her curiosity and enthusiasm, Brocato’s work is crucial to advancing NASA’s mission.
NASA’s Space Operations Mission Directorate maintains a continuous human presence in space for the benefit of people on Earth. The programs within the directorate are the hub of NASA’s space exploration efforts, enabling Artemis, commercial space, science, and other agency missions through communication, launch services, research capabilities, and crew support.
To learn more about NASA’s Space Operation Mission Directorate, visit:
https://www.nasa.gov/directorates/space-operations
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Last Updated Apr 17, 2025 EditorHeather Monaghan Related Terms
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