Kennedy welcomes historic Artemis II crew to Louisiana, celebrates Michoud workers

MADISONVILLE, La. - Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) today welcomed the Artemis II crew to NASA's Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans and celebrated the Louisiana workers who helped power the first crewed mission to the Moon in more than 50 years.

Artemis II Commander Reid Wiseman, Pilot Victor Glover, and Mission Specialists Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen visited Michoud as part of a nationwide tour thanking the people who supported their historic journey. The crew completed a 10-day mission around the Moon in April, traveling the farthest from Earth than any humans in history.

"For the first time in 50 years, Americans traveled around the Moon-and showed the world what American guts, brains and hard work can accomplish. The Artemis II crew made America darn proud, as did the Louisiana workers at Michoud who helped build the rocket that carried them. America is reaching for the heavens again, and Louisiana is leading the way," said Kennedy.

Michoud played a critical role in the Artemis II mission. Louisiana workers built the 212-foot core stage of NASA's Space Launch System (SLS) rocket which helped send the Artemis II crew toward the Moon. Michoud workers also assembled major structures for the Orion Spacecraft, including the crew module pressure vessel that formed the underlying framework of the capsule carrying the Artemis II astronauts.

In July 2026, the city of New Orleans launched the Michoud Innovation Corridor, an economic development initiative anchored by NASA's Michoud facility that aims to attract new aerospace, advanced manufacturing, research and technology investment to New Orleans East.

Michoud's workers are already helping build hardware for future Artemis missions as America works toward returning astronauts to the lunar surface and reaching deeper into space.