NASA Is Moving to Louisiana

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If you've ever wanted to work in the explosive field of space travel, but were worried that you'd have to leave boiled crawfish and Mardi Gras behind, do I have good news for you.

I can't tell you how excited I am to bring you the news that NASA is coming to Louisiana - probably. I have to say "probably" at this point because the deal hasn't technically gone through, and you know how technical the guys and gals at NASA can be. Here's why I'm confident that the next chapter in space exploration has gone Cajun: Governor John Bel Edwards is already on board.

While the Governor's involvement in the project isn't exactly the last word, his announcement yesterday that an agreement had been signed to bring a 50-acre industrial "office park for rocket scientists" to the New Orleans area does sound pretty promising. There's only one thing keeping me from investing in a good, used spacesuit in anticipation of my next "cruise" out of the Big Easy - the way NASA worded the agreement.

According to WWL, the National Space and Aeronautic Administration and the Louisiana Economic Development (LED) had signed a "memorandum of understanding to explore the development of the space campus." I told you they were technical! I'll let my hopes get into orbit as soon as I see these slide-rulers file form 47-sm5b (in triplicate) stating that exploration phase is complete and they're ready to start building rockets! That being said, I'm sure all of the proper procedures will be followed to the "T," and in short order.

When the best and the brightest from NASA do come to New Orleans, they'll be in good company. The proposed sight is based on the existing Boeing and Lockheed Martin assembly facilities that are currently making the Artemis rocket and the Orion crew capsule. Together, they are capable of taking astronauts to the moon and beyond.

In all seriousness, this means lots of high-paying technical jobs for the area - and the state. With Elon Musk's SpaceX operations moving to Texas, including the construction and testing of the Mars bound Starship program - it looks like the new American space race has come to our part of the world. At least the food will be better this time.

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