Two Colorado Astronauts Could Be Some of the First Humans on Mars
These two astronauts from Colorado could be some of the first humans on Mars. Meet Matthew Dominick from Wheat Ridge and Jessica Watkins from Lafayette.
13 astronauts just graduated from NASA's Artemis program which aims to send astronauts to the moon, then to Mars. These 13 people were chosen out of over 18,000 candidates, according to 9NEWS.
The pinning ceremony celebrates their graduation from basic training and means that now -- they're ready to fly in space. NASA's Artemis program aims to get astronauts to the moon by 2024 and to Mars sometime in the 2030s. These 13 astronauts could be the first people to land on Mars -- ever.
11 of the 13 astronauts are from the United States and 2 are from Canada. Many of the astronauts are veterans and they're from all over the nation from Miami to Washington. The two astronauts from Colorado are Matthew Dominick and Jessica Watkins.
Matthew Dominick is from Wheat Ridge, Colorado and was a U.S. Navy Lieutenant commander. He has a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering and a Master of Science in Systems Engineering. He has contributed to numerous test programs and was selected while at sea as a lieutenant commander in the US. Navy and a department head for Strike Fighter Squadron 115. Matthew has over 1,600 hours of flight time and is married with two daughters.
Jessica Watkins is from Lafayette, Colorado and has her bachelor's in geological and environmental sciences and her master's in Geology. She loves rugby, basketball, rock climbing, skiing, soccer, and writing. Jessica did her graduate research on the emplacement mechanism of large landslides on Mars and Earth and was a science team collaborator for NASA's Mars Science Laboratory rover -- Curiosity.
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