Charles Bolden Jr.
Early Life
Charles was born in South Carolina, USA. His parents were teachers. He wanted to join the Navy and after school applied to the United States Naval Academy. The government rejected his application. Charles has said he was rejected because he is Black. Charles did not give up and wrote to President Johnson (in power at the time) for support. He was then accepted into the Naval Academy. Charles got a degree in Electrical Science from the United States Naval Academy in 1968, and trained as a fighter pilot. He flew in more than 100 combat missions.
Year born: 1946
Research Areas: Space Exploration, New Technology
"Our missions demand decades, even generational planning. But beyond technical milestones, the legacy we must pass on is inspiration."
Piers Sellers
Early Life
Piers Sellers grew up in Sussex, UK. He watched the Apollo 11 Moon landing when he was 13 and decided he wanted to be an astronaut. He volunteered as a Royal Air Force cadet during school and learned to pilot planes and gliders. Piers studied Ecological Science (the interaction between nature and organisms) at the University of Edinburgh and went on to get a PhD in Meteorology (studying the atmosphere and weather) from the University of Leeds.
Year born: 1955
Research Areas: Climate Science
"to make the changes that we need to make and to reach a safer future, we need the resources of everybody"
Junichiro Kawaguchi
Early Life
Junichiro was born in Aomori Prefecture, Japan. He studied for a degree in Mechanical Engineering at Kyoto University and completed a PhD in Aeronautics at the University of Tokyo.
Year born: 1955
Research Areas: Engineering, Planetary Exploration
"the most important thing is creativity - not repeating the same way of doing things but finding completely new methods."
Maggie Aderin-Pocock
Early Life
Maggie grew up in a working-class family in London, UK and wanted to be an astronaut but her teacher was not very encouraging. Maggie studied sciences and maths at school anyway. She went on to achieve a degree in physics and a PhD in mechanical engineering. She was not sure what to do when she left university. Maggie’s first job was working for the Ministry of Defence. She worked on systems to warn and protect aircraft from missiles and to detect landmines.
Year born: 1968
Research Areas: Mechanical Engineering, Satellites
"I like to try and translate some of the complexities of science into a simple format for everybody to understand."
Katherine Johnson
Early Life
Katherine Johnson grew up in West Virginia, USA. Her mother was a teacher and her father a farmer and handyman. Katherine was curious about numbers from an early age and took every course in maths she could at West Virginia State College. She graduated with the highest honours in 1937 and took a job teaching at a Black public school in Virginia. In 1939, Katherine became the first Black woman to study for a postgraduate qualification at West Virginia University. She then took a break from studying and teaching to have children.
Year born: 1918
Research Areas: Rocket Flightpaths, Trajectories, Orbital Mechanics
"I loved going to work every single day"
Making things
Modern telescopes have lots of sensitive instruments on them that can make different measurements and record different types of data. They can also weigh thousands of tonnes and are often located in extreme environments, high up on mountains in deserts. The James Webb Space Telescope team also face the challenge of getting it to work in space.
Astronomers use telescopes to observe objects in space. Space scientists use space probes and robots to explore beyond Earth.
Rockets Quiz
Rockets are used to send astronauts, spacecraft, or equipment to space. They are a vital part of space exploration and research. But how much do you know about how rockets work?