First Mexican woman to ever travel to space

The rocket, built by Blue Origin, an aerospace venture founded by billionaire Jeff Bezos, welcomed aboard six passengers. Katya Echazarreta, the first Mexican woman to travel to space, was one of them.

Echazarreta was selected from more than 7.000 applicants in 100 countries to be Space for Humanity United States-based non-profit organization’s first citizen astronaut ambassador in the history.

The woman is an electrical and computer engineer and online science educator, native from Jalisco, but relocated to the United States since childhood.

The six passengers aboard Blue Origin’s New Shepherd rocket travelled 100 kilometres above the Earth’s surface, in a trip that lasted only ten minutes into the planet’s atmosphere. Echazarreta spend that once in a lifetime precious time studying the overview effect, a cognitive alteration in consciousness frequently reported during space exits.

“Looking down and seeing how everyone is down there, all of our past, all of our mistakes, all of our obstacles, everything — everything is there.

“And the only thing I could think of when I came back down was that I need people to see this. I need Latinas to see this. And I think that it just completely reinforced my mission to continue getting primarily women and people of colour up to space and doing whatever it is they want to do”, Echazarreta commented.

With the occasion of the flight, the woman became the second Mexican to fly to space, after Rodolfo Neri Vela back in 1985. Echazarreta is also the youngest American-citizenship woman to enter space.

“Visiting space is a dream I’ve had for as long as I can remember.

“I am honoured to be representing not just Space for Humanity in this mission, but also all of the little girls and women out there who are dreaming of achieving something bigger, those that maybe just need an extra nudge or an example of someone who looks or sounds like them to help encourage them to take the next step towards their dream”, Echazarreta declared before the flight.

The 26 years old woman is currently studying for a master’s degree in engineering at Johns Hopkins University.

 

Source: mexiconewsdaily.com