Baldwin native chosen for NASA’s Moon mission team

Jasmin Moghbeli, a Baldwin native and graduate of Baldwin High School, has been selected by NASA to join a team of astronauts heading to the Moon.

As NASA announced this week, Moghbeli will be part of its Artemis Program, which will send the first woman and the next man to the lunar surface. The program is NASA’s effort to establish a sustainable presence on the Moon and continue deep space exploration in preparation to go to Mars.

After graduating from Baldwin High, Moghbeli earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Aerospace Engineering with Information Technology from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a Master of Science degree in Aerospace Engineering from the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, Calif. She also graduated from the U.S. Naval Test Pilot School in Patuxent River, Md.

Moghbeli began her operational flying career in 2008 with Marine Light Attack Helicopter Squadron 367 Scarface at Marine Corps Air Station Camp Pendleton, Calif. She deployed with HMLA‑367 to support International Security Assistance Forces and Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan from 2009 to 2010.

In 2017, Moghbeli reported to MCAS Yuma, Ariz. to join Marine Operational Test and Evaluation Squadron 22 and, subsequently, became a plank holder for Marine Operational Test and Evaluation Squadron 1. She has accumulated more than 150 combat missions and 2,000 hours of flight time in over 25 different aircraft before joining NASA in June 2017.

NASA’s first Artemis program missions are slated to begin in 2021, with robotic precursor missions that will position scientific instruments and other supplies in preparation for human explorers. The Artemis III mission will land astronauts on the Moon in 2024, who will work to begin establishing a long-term presence.