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NASA’s Artemis II mission holds special meaning for Alabama ‘rocket science’ Episcopalians

April 08, 2026

[Episcopal News Service] NASA’s successful April 1 launch of Artemis II, the first crewed mission to the moon since 1972, drew more than 18 million viewers and nearly 400,000 spectators to Florida’s Atlantic coastline, aka the Space Coast. Several parishioners of St. Thomas Episcopal Church in Huntsville, Alabama, home of NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center, were among thousands of engineers, technicians and chemists who contributed to the preparation and launch of Artemis II, and witnessed the launch in person at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral. “This launch was beautiful. …I’ve been to many space launches, but Artemis II was unique because it’s a very, very large vehicle, and it’s manned by four astronauts,” Jill Eskew, program manager for Space Launch System boosters at Northrup Grumman and a member of St. Thomas’ altar guild, told Episcopal News Service. “Every time there’s a launch, I look forward to seeing what we’re going to learn from all the data collected.” Eskew, a chemist who serves on board of the National Space Club – Huntsville, which offers youth rocketry and astronautic education programming, is one of several parishioners affectionately referred to as a “rocket scientist” by the Rev. Donovan Cain, St. Thomas’ rector, and the Rev. Katie Kirk-Costas, curate and associate rector, because they’ve worked for NASA or various private contractors in the aerospace industry. “St. Thomas is like a lot of churches, with a wonderful family of Christians from all walks of life,” Cain told ENS. “It’s just that here in Huntsville, the ‘Rocket City,’ we also have dedicated parishioners whose career really is ‘rocket science.’” Ahead of Artemis II’s launch day, St. Thomas offered a prayer on Facebook for the astronauts’ safety and a successful mission using a modified prayer from the 1964 Collectio Rituum, a Catholic liturgical book. Most of the “rocket science” parishioners are active with St. Thomas’ ministries, including John Hanson, a retired aerospace engineer who served several roles for NASA at Marshall Space Flight Center. He leads the St. Thomas’ Joyful Noise band that performs monthly at worship services, and he goes on the church’s annual mission trip to Honduras to teach science lessons to high school students.  Much of Hanson’s research and techniques he developed before he retired at the end of 2024, including an advanced control system, were applied to Artemis II’s Orion spacecraft. Like Eskew, Hanson also witnessed Artemis II’s launch in person. “It’s the kind of thing that you really can’t describe unless you are actually there and experience it,” Hanson told ENS. “The rocket plume is so bright, and it accelerates really fast. And it was way, way up in the air before the sound wave came. It’s kind of a visceral experience.” Neither Hanson nor Eskew will be in San Diego, California, where the Artemis II astronauts are scheduled to re-enter Earth’s atmosphere and splash down into the Pacific Ocean on April 10, concluding the mission. By the time the astronauts return to Earth, they will have traveled at the farthest point about 252,756 miles from Earth, orbiting around the moon and taking pictures of its dark side. As scientists and people of faith, Hanson and Eskew, reflecting on Artemis II’s launch taking place during Holy Week, both said they firmly believe that science and religion are compatible and can co-exist, though they’ve often debated their beliefs with their colleagues and other religious people. “I appreciate the fact that The Episcopal Church is not threatened by science and is eager to know what we’re finding out through scientific advancement,” Eskew said. “I think as we discover things scientifically, it allows us to understand our creator and this magnificent creation.” Hanson echoed a similar sentiment. When he presented his doctoral dissertation at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, he included in the dedication Psalm 19:1: “The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands.” “When we talk about creation care, we tend to only focus on what’s happening on Earth. But there’s so much beyond our galaxy that we have yet to explore, and there is evidence that the universe appears to be fine-tuned for life to exist,” Hanson said. “All the incredible things we already know that are going on in the amazing universe, and all the incredible things we have yet to explore, to me, are all kinds of pointers to God.” -Shireen Korkzan is a reporter and assistant editor for Episcopal News Service. She can be reached at skorkzan@episcopalchurch.org.