04/29/2026
Before millions watched the Orion capsule splash down, Kristi Johnson (G’25) was already shaping what they would see.
When the capsule carrying four astronauts broke through the atmosphere and splashed down in the Pacific Ocean on a golden April evening, 27 million people were watching on the six major networks. Another 29 million tuned in through NASA+, on streaming services, and on their phones. The footage was extraordinary — sweeping aerial shots, helmet-cam video from Navy divers, the first sunlit faces of the crew emerging after a week orbiting the moon in space. It did not happen by accident.
Behind every carefully framed image, every coordinated press access decision, every cleared shot that made it to air, there was a plan — and at the center of that plan was Johnson, a U.S. Navy public affairs officer and proud 2025 alumna of Georgetown University's Master of Professional Studies in Public Relations & Corporate Communications program.
Learn more about how Johnson helped bring one of the most watched space missions to life.
She Was There When They Came Home