Public interest in the word “perseverance” peaked earlier this year with the landing of the Mars rover bearing that name.
Due to the interest, Cambridge Dictionary selected “perseverance” as the 2021 word of the year.
Joining in the year’s theme, “perseverance” can describe this year’s workforce efforts at Stennis Space Center near Bay St. Louis.
The perseverance of the Stennis workforce during the past year enabled the Space Launch System (SLS) to progress toward its maiden launch, site teams to move forward in propulsion test activities, commercial partners to reach new testing milestones, an autonomous systems team to move ahead in its cutting-edge work, and ASTROCAMP to reach beyond its traditional audiences, all amid the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic.
Throughout 2021, workforce routines at Stennis continued to involve less traffic at work sites while still maintaining the infrastructure and staff to provide support for ongoing government and commercial projects. In addition, many Stennis employees supported ongoing work from their homes. Getting the job done, staying connected, and reaching out virtually required determination and patience, but Stennis persevered.
Stennis spent 2021 at the forefront of public interest. The world watched as NASA’s new SLS rocket prepared for its maiden voyage. The conclusion of the SLS core stage Green Run test series on Stennis’s B-2 Test Stand in March 2021 gave the world a chance to view the power of America’s new deep space rocket. The SLS is destined to be the backbone of NASA’s Artemis. Prior to its initial launch, the first SLS core stage underwent a series of Green Run tests of its systems, including a final hot fire of the stage’s four RS-25 engines, just as during an actual flight. It was the most powerful test conducted at Stennis in more than 40 years.