SCS, Duanesburg Alum Helps Send Astronauts to the Moon

McKinley at the control center

HOUSTON — Growing up outside of Schoharie on the family vegetable farm, Thunder Hill Organic, Wyeth McKinley went from a youthful fascination with science and space to NASA, where he played an important role in sending humans around the moon in the recent Artemis II mission. 

McKinley’s parents, Marcy McKinley and John Kuntz, were middle and high school science teachers in the area during his childhood, which along with the freedom of growing up on a farm led to “loads of science exposure and plenty of room for my imagination to roam as a curious kid.” The Flight Controller at NASA recalled fondly his mother waking him up in the middle of the night to watch a meteor shower as one of his first and favorite memories thinking about space.

He said due to light pollution, the stars in Houston simply don’t compare to those early memories.

After attending both Schoharie and Duanesburg Central Schools, McKinley and his family moved to North Carolina in his teenage years, where he attended the North Carolina School of Science and Math in Durham. After studying there, he attended Rice University to study engineering, where he found out about the NASA Pathways internship program. 

“That’s when I realized that working for NASA was a real possibility, not just a hypothetical idea. I’ve been obsessed with space since I was a kid, but that’s when I realized it’s what I wanted to do with my life,” he said.

“It’s easy to see my interest in space as a child looking back now,” he said. In middle school he even went to space camp (Exxon Mobil Bernard Harris Summer Science Camp at RPI), which had a “deep and profound impact I can only appreciate in hindsight,” but he said that he never considered a career in space exploration something he could actually pursue.

McKinley said that he wants to prevent others from falling into the same trap and encourages all interested students to apply for internships at NASA or participate in one of many competitions. “It’s a lot more accessible than people think,” he said, “check out www.nasa.gov/learning-resources for more information!”

After completing the Pathways program at NASA and graduating from Rice in 2023, Wyeth began a full-time job with NASA training as a Flight Controller for the International Space Station program for about six months, prior to joining the Artemis team. He’s been involved with the project for the last two years now, in which he taught several classes to the astronauts, wrote procedures and flight rules, and practiced responding to failures in simulations to certify as a flight controller.

The Artemis II mission itself was a crucial moment for him. While working the ascent shift, when the mission turned over operations to the Mission Control team in Houston, McKinley said that this was the beginning of 10 days of “very serious work” and “paying close attention.” McKinley sat shift at the Intra-Vehicular Activity (IVA) console, which meant he was responsible for food and galley operations, space suits, stowage, contingency repairs, and the toilet!

McKinley said that with the Artemis II crew safely back on Earth the team is now hard at work for Artemis III and future. He said that he feels “really grateful” for the chance to help with the future missions, which will include a lunar landing with Artemis IV.

He said that the Apollo missions captured the world’s attention and allowed people to “all be on the same team of human exploration,” and hopes the Artemis missions can do the same.

McKinley said that he feels fortunate that he was born during a time he is able to contribute to these missions, especially since it’s been over 50 years since the last crewed moon missions.

He described the “immense effort” of so many people involved in the mission, from engineers to technicians, stating that the contributions of so many people were necessary to make this happen. More than 60 countries have now signed the Artemis accords, and he said that this is a “worldwide effort.”

“Going to the moon is an incredible adventure,” and he said that being able to be a part of the “public facing side is a privilege.”

McKinley said that he is grateful to his parents, including that his parents “never pushed a particular path” and sought for him to seek his “passion.” 

“I owe them a huge debt of gratitude in many ways,” he said, including allowing him to follow his curiosity.

McKinley said that he encouraged all students who are interested in space exploration to get involved because “we’re going to need all the help we can get’”

Up next, NASA plans for Artemis III to practice docking in orbit, followed by Artemis IV’s crewed landing on the moon.

“This is just the very start of our lunar exploration,” he said. “This time we’re going to stay.”

McKinley during the crucial Artemis mission

McKinley (right)

McKinley