JOURNEY TO THE STARS

On space travel…

The answer to why we explore is so multifaceted. When we look back through history, humans were always curious to travel and explore new lands. Space exploration provides an opportunity to learn more about us, to better understand the world we live in, to uncover more about our universe and more about the origins of life itself. It also serves as a platform for each of us to push ourselves beyond what we thought was possible, to work collectively across nationalities, genders and religious beliefs, and inspire the next generation to shoot for the stars.

On Space Training

For many years I have been paving my career in the direction of space. I started out by studying aeronautical engineering in university, a long time ago now! There really was no road map for this kind of career in Ireland at the time. In 2010, I participated in the International Space University Space Studies Programme and in 2017, I joined a citizen science program at the International Institute for Astronautical Sciences (IIAS). This was real hands-on space training. So far, I have flown as a researcher on microgravity flights, conducted spacesuit testing and evaluation, experienced high G flights and hypoxia training, and completed spacecraft and aviation egress simulations. Our goal is to fly on the commercial suborbital spacecraft.

On NASA inspiration…

I was lucky enough to visit NASA in Cleveland, Ohio when I was 11 years of age, and that experience opened my eyes to a whole new world of possibilities. I grew up in the West of Ireland and at that time there really was no road map for a career in space. When I was 15 years of age, I visited Kennedy Space Center in Florida and when I stood under the Saturn V rocket in the visitor complex, I think for me that was the moment I knew space was the only thing I wanted to do. The sheer feat of engineering and everything that needs to come together to send humans off this Earth is phenomenal. I found it really inspiring and exciting, and I wanted to learn as much as I could and be part of it.

On advice for budding astronauts…

In some ways I wish I was twenty years younger as there are more opportunities for people to get involved in the space sector now than there was when I was finishing secondary school. Over the past decade in particular, there has been a huge growth in the amount of commercial activity. The space sector has very much moved away from government only and this is opening opportunities for more countries, like Ireland, to get involved. My advice to anyone who is interested in space is to look at the many careers that feed into this sector, to choose something you would love to know more about, and then find ways to get involved.

On the future of space travel…

Space travel is difficult. It's not easy to send people off planet Earth so I don't think in the near future we will all be taking flights to space. We are however in a time of change, with the International Space Station having a finite number of years remaining, there are plans to send humans back to the moon, this next decade will tell us a lot.

On advice for her younger self…

I have been asked this question quite often. This was part of the reason why I included a spread in my children's book focused on some thoughts I wanted to share. These include: (1) the journey has to be as important as the destination (2) be as kind to yourself as you would be to your best friend; sometimes I have been way too hard on myself so my advice is to give yourself a break! (3) Don't take things for granted because some opportunities may never come by again. And (4) just because someone tells you something is impossible that's not a good enough reason not to try.

On space-themed podcasts…

Houston We Have a Podcast. This is a great podcast organized by NASA and it covers a whole range of space related topics - everything from moon farming, experiments, Mission Control, space food, orbital debris and so much more.

On working on the Brown Thomas Christmas windows…

I really enjoyed working with Brown Thomas on the launch of Christmas this year. The windows are magical every year, but this year they are even more out of this world because they are space themed. I had the awesome job of featuring in and narrating a beautifully crafted video to unveil the windows.

On her Christmas traditions…

We welcomed our beautiful baby girl, Laoise, into the world in February this year, so for Christmas we are really excited to be able to enjoy the festive season with her. I think me and my husband are looking forward to the Christmas period in a whole new way now. We will still visit our families and see our friends but our first Christmas as parents is a special one and we are really grateful for that.

On the Christmas wish-list this year?

Oh, I would have to say the magnificent Zimmermann celestial Zodiac mini dress I had the opportunity to try on while I was working with Brown Thomas on their Christmas windows launch. If Santa misses that order, I'm always delighted to see a beautifully wrapped Jo Malone London gift too!

GIFT THE MOON

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