By: Georgia Free
A lot of kids dream of going to space.
However, by the time we finish school, most of us have moved onto different, more modest pursuits.
Katherine Bennell-Pegg never gave up on that childhood dream. As of April this year, the Sydney woman is Australia’s first female astronaut and the first astronaut to train under the Australian flag.
A childhood dream come true
As a child, Katherine had a dream to go to space. Harbouring a natural curiosity about the stars and night sky, it was a dream she refused to let go of.
“I loved the stars and wanted to know how everything in the world worked and why things were the way they were. And then I was stubborn enough to never let go of that dream,” Katherine laughed.
“When people thought it was a little bit out there, I’d say, watch me. And then I grew up and I realized how hard and how unlikely it would be to achieve it.
“But by then, I’d fallen in love with working in the space industry in its own right. I wanted to develop missions, so I became a space engineer.
“Then, a few years ago, the chance to apply to be an astronaut came up and I was really pleased that I was eligible and threw my hat in the ring.”
A long journey
Since Katherine had a UK passport due to her mother’s heritage, she was eligible to apply to the space program in the European Space Agency.
Her career as a space engineer, plus her time in the Australian Army Reserves, made her an ideal candidate. After an 18-month-long selection process, with over 22,000 potential candidates, Katherine was accepted as an astronaut candidate in 2023 – the first candidate ever chosen to represent Australia.
“At the end, when I was selected not to represent Europe, but rather to represent Australia, it was the best outcome I could have possibly hoped for,” Katherine said.
In April of this year, after a year of basic training, Katherine graduated with five others, as the newest class of astronauts from the European Space Agency, making history as Australia’s first female astronaut.
“I felt so proud and so excited, not just for my future, but for what it could do to unlock opportunity in Australia for our scientists and engineers and educators and other people that might also have the astronaut dream,” Katherine said.
“Becoming an astronaut means you’re eligible for flight assignments to the International Space Station as a professional astronaut, doing good science up there, or even beyond to the moon.
“Pinch me stuff, really.”
Roo-ver – Australia’s moon rover
Although there are no plans to send Katherine to space yet, her role as Director of Space Technology at the Australian Space Agency ensures that she is at the forefront of Australia’s space endeavours.
“For Australia, this is the first time we’ve ventured forward with a trained astronaut, so there’s options for the future,” Katherine said.
“But Australia’s taking a breath and figuring out what the right approach is for us, because there’s many different ways to take part.
However, later this decade, Australia will be venturing where no human has gone before – the south pole of the Moon. Australia’s moon rover, which the Australian public recently named Roo-ver, will collect data about the formation of the Earth and Moon.
“It’s a destination first for robots,” Katherine said.
“And what’s interesting about it is it’s thought to hold some water ice, which can be used to sustain human presence through creating air out of it and rocket fuel out of it, so that we can do some incredible science up there.”
Article supplied with thanks to Hope Media.
About the Author: Georgia Free is a broadcaster and writer from Sydney, Australia.