Alabama
Alabama’s role in Artemis II mission includes Birmingham native who helped shape NASA rocket
Alabama’s footprint in NASA’s return to deep space was on display this week as the Artemis II mission launched, marking the first human journey toward the moon in more than 50 years.
From work at Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville to leadership across the Artemis program, the state has played a central role in developing the systems powering the mission.
Among those contributions is Kimberly Robinson, a Birmingham native who helped develop the Artemis program and contributed to the formulation of the Space Launch System rocket used for the mission.
Robinson also served as payload mission manager for Artemis I, the uncrewed test flight that laid the groundwork for Artemis II.
Her connection to the current mission extends to its crew. Years ago, Robinson briefed astronaut candidate Victor Glover on the Artemis rocket during a visit to Marshall Space Flight Center. Glover now serves as pilot of Artemis II.
Robinson, a graduate of Shades Valley High School, told Birmingham television station WBRC the moment carries both personal and professional significance.
“It’s very historic and has a lot of meaning for me personally as I was a part of setting up the program and organizing it,” Robinson said.
She reflected on how her path to NASA began with an early interest in space exploration.
“It’s really incomprehensible. I can’t believe it. I remember doing my 5th grade term paper on Wernher von Braun and his rocket team. Never in my wildest imagination would I think that I would ever do something in a center he created,” she said in her interview with the outlet.
Robinson spent more than 30 years at NASA and later led the U.S. Space and Rocket Center before retiring in 2025.
The Artemis II mission is expected to push astronauts farther into space than ever before, building on decades of work led in part by Alabama-based teams.
“Not only are we returning them to the area, picking up where we left off but we are going further than humans have ever ventured into space before. They will have a perspective that we have not ever had before and I want to hear about their experiences so I’m very excited for that,” Robinson said, according to the station.
She added that continued space exploration could lead to advances beyond spaceflight itself.
“It’s very important that we keep pushing forward and meeting challenges because that’s where we’re going to find new materials, new drugs to cure diseases that have been around a long time,” she said.
Artemis II’s mission is anticipated to last ten days, with the astronauts returning to earth in mid-April.
Sherri Blevins is a staff writer for Yellowhammer News. You may contact her at [email protected].
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The SEC opponents for Alabama women’s basketball during the 2026-27 campaign has been officially revealed.
The Tide will face some of the top teams in all of women’s college basketball throughout SEC play this upcoming season. Alabama will face Auburn, Florida, Georgia, LSU, Missouri, Vanderbilt, Ole Miss and Texas A&M at home, with Ole Miss being the Tide’s only SEC opponent that they will face twice this year, both home and away. Alabama will be on the road for matchups against Arkansas, Kentucky, Mississippi State, Oklahoma, Ole Miss, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Texas as well.
The dates, start times, and television network for each will be revealed at a later date.
Alabama held a 7-9 record throughout SEC play last season. The Tide were widely regarded as one of the top teams in the nation despite struggling at times during conference play, and Alabama was able to make a run during the SEC Tournament with a shocking upset to the Tennessee Lady Vols in Nashville.
Alabama went 24-11 last season as a whole, but the Tide will undoubtedly need to play better during SEC play this year nonetheless.
Contact/Follow us @RollTideWire on X, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Alabama news, notes and opinion.
Enjoy two nights of free dance at Stars on the Riverfront
Alabama Dance Theatre will present Stars on the Riverfront on June 20 and 21, at 7:30 p.m. each night at Riverwalk Amphitheater in Montgomery.
In Alabama’s coastal landscape, two Alabama bridges quietly stand among the longest in the United States.
A new World Atlas ranking of the 11 longest bridges in the United States is a reminder that not all crossings are so forgettable. These are the spans that stretch the idea of a “quick drive” into something else entirely.
As World Atlas notes, the country’s roughly 617,000 bridges are mostly routine. The ones on this list “swallow the horizon,” turning open water into a roadway that can take ten or fifteen minutes to cross.
Louisiana dominates the ranking, but Alabama also makes its presence known with two entries: the Jubilee Parkway and the General W.K. Wilson Jr. Bridge.
Jubilee Parkway: Alabama’s 7.5-mile bridge ranks No. 7 among longest in US
Ranked at No. 7 on World Atlas’ list, the Jubilee Parkway carries Interstate 10 across Mobile Bay as a pair of parallel viaduct bridges stretching 7.5 miles between Mobile and Spanish Fort/Daphne. Opened in 1978, the four-lane crossing is often called the “Bayway.”
The World Atlas says the bridge takes its name from Mobile Bay’s “jubilee” phenomenon, when marine life is pushed into shallow water, making it unusually easy to catch.
General W.K. Wilson Jr. Bridge: 6.08-mile span ranks No. 10 in U.S.
The General W.K. Wilson Jr. Bridge ranks No. 10 on the World Atlas list, stretching 6.08 miles across the Mobile-Tensaw River Delta northeast of Mobile as part of Interstate 65.
World Atlas says the bridge is better known locally as the “Dolly Parton Bridge,” a nickname inspired by the paired arch design that, locals say, resembles a distinctive silhouette when viewed from certain angles.
Completed in 1980, it features twin parallel weathering-steel arches and concrete viaducts carrying four lanes over the wide, marshy delta.
Longest bridges in the U.S. Full World Atlas ranking
World Atlas ranks these as the longest bridges in the U.S.:
- Lake Pontchartrain Causeway: 23.83 miles
- Manchac Swamp Bridge: 22.8 miles
- Louisiana Airborne Memorial Bridge: 18.2 miles
- Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel: 17.6 miles
- Bonnet Carré Spillway Bridge: 11 miles
- Louisiana Highway 1 Bridge: 8.26 miles
- Jubilee Parkway: 7.5 miles
- San Mateo-Hayward Bridge: 7 miles
- Seven Mile Bridge: 6.79 miles
- General W.K. Wilson Jr. Bridge: 6.08 miles
- Norfolk Southern Lake Pontchartrain Bridge: 5.8 miles
Jennifer Lindahl is a Breaking and Trending Reporter in Alabama for USA TODAY’s Deep South Connect Team. Connect with her on X @jenn_lindahl and email at jlindahl@usatodayco.com.
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