“ Mars is the goal , the best-case scenario . But there is a lot that I don ’ t have control of , for example , which mission I ’ m put on . But I want to contribute to space any way that I can .”
Alyssa Carson lives for today and spends every moment planning for tomorrow . In her 21 years of life , she has been to Space Camp , Space Academy , and even robotics camp 19 times and has seen the Space Shuttle launch three times . She is the youngest to graduate from Advanced Space Academy and has attended multiple Sally Ride Camps ( Note : Sally Ride was the first woman in space ).
She has traveled to Turkey , Canada , and Huntsville , Alabama to attend Space Camps . She has been involved with the
8 LET ’ S GO AEROSPACE
NASA Passport program , “ visiting all 14 NASA Visitor ’ s Centers stretching across nine states .” ( www . nasablueberry . com )
Alyssa is determined to be prepared and well-rounded . She wants her resume to stand out in a sea of astronaut resumes received by NASA .
To prepare , she has immersed herself in academics . She is currently a senior at Florida Technical Institute , where she will earn a Bachelor of Science in Astrobiology . After completing her undergraduate degree , she plans to enroll in a Ph . D . program . She said , “ I am interested in research like testing bacterial samples ; my current project is testing plant growth bacteria in microgravity — ( for ) food security on Mars . I am very research focused .”
Alyssa added that she has taken many years of science and math . She said astrobiology combines all sciences — chemistry , physics , biology , and math .
NASA requires that astronaut applicants have an undergraduate , bachelor ’ s , and master ’ s degree in a STEM field before applying to the program .