Meet Jessica Watkins, The Only Black Woman In NASA’s Newest Astronaut Class

Watkins, a 29-year-old geologist from Lafayette, Colorado, told Blastr that she’s excited about NASA’s efforts to diversify STEM.

“I’m very excited about the diversity on this team, this amazing group of people. I think that says a lot about NASA and their goals towards creating a diverse workforce,” she said. “I think the thing about diversity is that it allows for experiences that may not be exactly the same to bring different things to the table. And then the other side of that… is the idea of being able to be a face to others who may not see people who look like them in STEM fields in general, and doing cool things like going to space.”

Watkins said that she always knew that she wanted to be an astronaut. After majoring in mechanical engineering at Stanford and admitting that wasn’t her passion, she shifted gears and started studying planetary geology. After completing her doctorate in geology at UCLA, Watkins began working on the Mars Curiosity rover, according to NASA.

The new class will begin their two-year training at the Johnson Space Center in Houston in August. While training, the candidates will learn a range of lessons, including on the International Space Station systems, robotics training, space walks, the Russian language and flight training.

Some of the candidates could participate in the Orion mission, which aims to send men…