How this group of Philadelphia students became a part of the Artemis II mission
A group of Philadelphia third graders can now say their names have traveled to space and around the moon.
Students at Springside Chestnut Hill Academy, a private school serving pre-K through 12th grade, are part of NASA's Artemis II mission. Twenty-three students have their names stored on an SD card aboard the Orion spacecraft as it carries astronauts on a historic lunar flyby.
The opportunity started with a simple act of kindness.
In November 2025, third grade students in Laura McManus and Marisol Booth's class wrote thank you cards to veterans. Some of those letters reached Rick Yasky, a retired NASA engineer, former Navy pilot and current NASA contractor.
"[I was] very, very moved," Yasky said. "I don't know them. They don't know me. And yet they took the time to reach out and write to me. That's why I want to give something back to them."
Touched by their letters, Yasky became the students' pen pal, and in December 2025, he surprised them with big news.
"Our names are going around the moon," 9-year-old Nora Walsh, a third grader at Springside Chestnut Hill Academy, said. "Our names are on Artemis II. It's crazy."
Yasky helped the students register for a NASA outreach program tied to the mission, which sent more than 5.6 million "boarding passes" to participants worldwide.
The mission marks the first crewed flight to circle the moon in more than 50 years, making the students part of a historic return to deep space.
"I'm proud of myself because, well, my name's going to be in outer space," 8-year-old Mira Mayo, a third grader at Springside Chestnut Hill Academy, said.
Mira even had the chance to meet astronaut Victor Glover, bringing her astronomy lessons to life.
"We've been learning about space for two months," Mira said. "We've learned about Galileo. He created the telescope."
School staff members said the experience teaches a lesson beyond science.
"One of the values at Springside Chestnut Hill Academy is thoughtfulness," third grade teacher Laura McManus said. "So writing these thank you cards to a veteran, the end result is not to have something like this happen. It's just to spread that thoughtfulness and kindness, and this is just a full circle moment for our students."
The Artemis II mission is expected to wrap up later this week. Students said they'll be watching closely and cheering on a journey they're now part of.