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in partnership with the Dill Faulkes Educational Trust

 

Noelia González

Early Life

Noelia González is from Uruguay. She studied communication and journalism at the University of Montevideo, the country's capital. While she was a student, she worked as a reporter for local news. Noelia later moved to the USA to study more. She earned a Master's degree in Journalism at the University of California, earning three scholarships for her work.   

Research Areas: Journalism, Communication

 

"I was and I am in awe of everything we can see in the sky, our very own, magnificent window to the Universe."

Rosa Avalos-Warren

Early Life

Rosa Avalos-Warren was born in Lima, Peru. In school, she showed a strong passion for learning, and she especially liked maths. In 2003, she watched the tragic return of the space shuttle Columbia. On re-entry to Earth, the shuttle broke apart, and all 7 of the astronauts died. After seeing this, Rosa decided she wanted to work for NASA to make sure this type of thing couldn't happen again. She did so well at school that she earned a scholarship to Virginia Tech in the USA. Here, she got a degree in aerospace engineering.

Year born: ~1989

Research Areas: Aerospace Engineering, Robotics, Human Spaceflight

 

"To be bold, to work hard for the benefit of humanity, and to be prepared to explore the unknown."

Space Stations

Did you know there are always humans in space? 

Since 1971, men and women have been living for months at a time on space stations. These are spacecraft large enough for several astronauts to live there at once. 

Image
The International Space Station (ISS) is shown in orbit above Earth, with its distinctive structure including multiple modules and large solar arrays extending from either side, reflecting sunlight against the dark backdrop of space
Credit
This work by NASA/Crew of STS-132 is licensed under Creative Commons Zero v1.0 Universal
International Space Station, as photographed by Space Shuttle Atlantis

Crewed Missions

Humans have been travelling to space since the 1950s. 

We have used telescopes to study space for centuries, but it was the invention of massive rockets which finally let us explore space in person. 

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Astronaut performing a spacewalk attached to the Canadarm2 robotic arm with Earth visible in the background
Credit
This work by NASA is licensed under Creative Commons Zero v1.0 Universal
An astronaut on an EVA (extravehicular activity) on the International Space Station

Firsts in Space

The journey to space didn’t start with humans. Before astronauts, animals were sent to test if living things could survive the trip. From fruit flies to dogs, these animals played a key role in space exploration. Some, like Laika the dog, became famous for their bravery. 

Image
An image showing an astronaut floating in space above Earth with the text 'Space Exploration' in blue and purple font at the top. The background is a black sky with the curvature of the Earth visible at the bottom
Credit
This work by NASA is licensed under Creative Commons Zero v1.0 Universal