03/07/2024
As I graduate this May and start the next chapter of my life, I want to thank the Astrobiological Research and Education Society (ARES) for giving me life-changing opportunities that have shaped me into the person I am today. Providing these experiences for other students after me is only made possible by generous donations and gifts from people like you made at https://www.fit.edu/giving/what-to-support/ares/. ❤️
This year, as the Director of the ARES Future Astronaut Corps (AFAC), I am excited to announce that I am offering two programs this year for our students which will only be possible with your support:
(1) 👩🚀 Analog Astronaut Mission at the Inflatable Lunar/Martian Analog Habitat (ILMAH): 4 students from Florida Institute of Technology will participate in a 2-week simulated astronaut mission in collaboration with the University of North Dakota. The analog astronauts will undertake student-led research and education projects, live in an isolated habitat, and perform simulated EVAs in mock spacesuits. These missions are crucial in helping us prepare humans for long duration space missions to Mars and the Moon. 🌕
(2) 🚀 Spacesuit Testing and Water Egress Training at Biosphere 2: In collaboration with the Center for Human Space Exploration (CHaSE) at the University of Arizona, we will be sending 5 students for intensive training on donning and doffing pressurized EVA spacesuits and egressing from spacecraft. In addition, the students will get to tour Biosphere 2 and learn about aerospace physiology. 👩⚕️
💕 In order to keep these programs sustainable and running after I graduate, we are opening up for donations to ARES to support our student opportunities at the following link: https://lnkd.in/ek3d-KnV . If you or your organization are unable to donate, we would greatly appreciate sharing with your network and spreading the word to potential donors!
These programs are not only crucial in helping us better understand how humans may fare on long duration space missions psychologically and physiologically, but in exposing students to amazing research and training experiences. 👩🎓
You can read about our previous work here: https://news.fit.edu/archive/interstellar-florida-tech-students-and-alumna-take-on-mars/, and I am currently working on an analog mission documentary which I hope to share soon. Thank you for supporting pivotal research on humans in space and in making these experiences accessible to students and aspiring future astronauts!!
