>> MY NAME'S JESSICA WITTNER,
AND I AM A 2021
NASA ASTRONAUT CANDIDATE.
YEAH, I WAS BORN IN,
UH, FRESNO, CALIFORNIA
AND RAISED IN CLOVIS,
CALIFORNIA, WHICH IS JUST
ACROSS TOWN, UH, AND IT
WAS GREAT, AND THIS, UH,
CENTRAL VALLEY CALIFORNIA
WAS CLOSE TO THE MOUNTAINS
AND CLOSE TO THE BEACH,
AND, UH, ENJOYED--
ENJOYED MY TIME THERE.
SO, I AM A NAVY F-18 PILOT.
I AM STATIONED IN LEMOORE,
CALIFORNIA AND, UH,
I WAS FLYING THERE, UH,
GETTING READY TO GO
ON DEPLOYMENT NEXT YEAR.
YEAH, A NASA ASTRONAUT
IS AN EXPLORER.
THEY-THEY GET TO GO UP
AND-AND LIVE IN SPACE
AND DO RESEARCH AND--
AND BRING BACK, UM, YOU KNOW,
THAT-THAT RESEARCH BACK TO
EARTH SO THAT WE CAN LEARN
MORE ABOUT HUMAN SPACE FLIGHT.
UH, FROM A VERY YOUNG AGE,
SO, UM, I HONESTLY
DON'T REMEMBER, UH,
HOW OLD I WAS, BUT,
UH, I WAS HOOKED, UH,
WITH SCIENCE CLASS.
I USED TO BE THAT LITTLE GIRL
WHO PLAYED WITH ROCKETS
IN THE YARD AND, UM,
I WAS-- I WAS HOOKED,
UH, FROM-FROM VERY EARLY ON.
UM, KINDA GOES BACK TO WHAT
I THINK AN AS-ASTRONAUT IS,
LIKE, I-I ENJOY EXPLORING.
I-I REALLY--
I LIKE THE UNKNOWN.
I LIKE TO GO OUT AND--
AND TRY TO FIND ANSWERS TO,
UH, TO THINGS WE DON'T KNOW,
AND, UH, AND-AND--
I'M REALLY EXCITED TO BE
ABLE TO BE A PART OF THIS.
YEAH, SO, UM,
SELECTION PROCESS
HAS BEEN GREAT.
IT'S BEEN, UH, A LITTLE CRAZY,
I GUESS WITH THE PANDEMIC HERE,
BUT, UM, WE--
IT-IT'S BEEN REALLY AWESOME.
I'VE GOTTEN TO MEET
AN AMAZING GROUP OF PEOPLE, UM,
IN MY INTERVIEW CLASS,
AND, UM, YEAH.
I THINK, UH, I THINK IT'S JUST--
IT'S JUST BEEN REALLY GREAT
BOTH VISITS.
YEAH, SO, I WAS, UH,
I WAS AT WORK
FOR A FRIDAY MORNING FLIGHT, UM,
AND I HAD ACTUALLY
MISSED THE PHONE CALL,
SO I, UM, UH, WENT
AND GRAB MY PHONE,
REALIZED I MISSED A CALL
FROM A HOUSTON NUMBER,
AND DIALED IT BACK, AND, UH,
WHEN I DIALED IT BACK,
THE CHIEF OF
THE ASTRONAUT OFFICE,
REID WISEMAN
ANSWERED THE PHONE, UM,
AND WE HAD A QUICK CONVERSATION,
BUT, UH, THAT'S BASICALLY
WHEN I FOUND OUT THAT, UH,
HE WAS ASKING ME
TO BE A PART OF
THIS ASTRONAUT CLASS,
AND I RAN OFF TO GO TELL FAMILY
AND MY COMMANDING OFFICER, UH,
THE GOOD NEWS.
I DON'T KNOW IF ONE PERSON
IN-IN PARTICULAR.
UM, I KNOW AS A CHILD
I WAS HOOKED ON PRETTY MUCH
ANY SPACE MOVIE OR SPACE BOOK
I COULD GET MY HANDS ON,
AND, UH, AND I THINK
I WAS INSPIRED, UM,
AT LEAST ORIGINALLY
BY THE APOLLO ASTRONAUTS,
AND THE STUFF THAT THEY DID, UH,
WORKING 'ROUND THE MOON
AND JUST, UM,
EXPANDING OUR KNOWLEDGE
OF-OF THAT ERA--
OF THAT ERA OF SPACE FLIGHT, UH,
REALLY GOT ME HOOKED,
AND THEN EVER SINCE THEN
I'VE JUST--
I FOLLOWED ALONG WITH, UH,
ALL THE DIFFERENT MISSIONS,
AND, UH, THE THINGS
THAT NASA HAS BEEN PART OF
AND JUST--
THAT'S KEPT ME MOTIVATED
THROUGH-THROUGHOUT THE YEARS.
YEAH, SO THE BEST SCHOOL MOMENT
I CAN, UH, REMEMBER
IS I-I DON'T KNOW
A SPECIFIC TEACHER
COMES TO MIND,
BUT DEFINITELY IN JUNIOR HIGH
IN HIGH SCHOOL
I WAS HOOKED ON SHOP CLASS
AND DRAFTING CLASS AND, UH,
WE-WE USED TO BE ABLE TO, UH,
AT THE END OF
OUR DRAFTING CLASS,
WE COULD BASICALLY, UH,
DRAW OUT A, UM, OUR, LIKE,
DREAM HOME ESSENTIALLY, LIKE,
IN-IN ENGINEERING SPEAK
ON PAPER,
AND THEN WE GOT TO BUILD IT
OUT OF LITTLE
BALSA WOOD PIECES AND PAPER
AND IT WAS PRETTY AWESOME
TO SEE, LIKE,
WHAT YOU HAD CREATED, LIKE,
COME TO LIFE IN A SENSE,
AND I REALLY ENJOYED--
AND I REALLY ENJOYED
MY TIME THERE.
YEAH, UH, VERY EXCITED--
VERY EXCITED.
IT'S VERY, UH,
SURREAL BEING HERE.
I'M-I'M-I'M, UH,
I'M HUMBLED THAT-THAT
THEY HAVE CHOSEN ME, UH,
TO BE A PART OF THIS CLASS
AND I-- YEAH.
I'M JUST-- I'M THRILLED.
I HAVE A LOT OF
DIFFERENT HOBBIES, UM,
BUT, YOU KNOW,
I-I STARTED OUT AS A MECHANIC
A LONG TIME AGO.
I JUST USED TO WORK ON
AIRCRAFT ENGINES, AND, UM,
AND I REALLY ACTUALLY LOVED
TURNING A WRENCH,
SO I THINK, UM,
EVEN NOW, I JUST--
I LIKE TO WORK ON MY OWN CARS,
MY OWN MOTORCYCLES.
I-I LOOK FOR NEW PROJECTS
ALL THE TIME.
THAT KIND OF STUFF.
SO, YOU CAN PROBABLY FIND ME
HANGING OUT IN THE GARAGE
MORE THAN IN THE HOUSE, SO...
UM, IT'S-IT'S JUST
A VERY EXCITING TIME TO BE--
TO BE COMING INTO NASA FOR SURE.
THEY, UM, AND-AND IT'S NOT EVEN
JUST NASA, BUT LIKE,
WITH ALL THE COMMERCIAL SYSTEMS,
EVERYTHING COMING ONLINE.
IT'S JUST AN EXCITING TIME
TO BE PART OF THE, UH,
THE SPACE TEAM REALLY.
UM, GOING TO THE MOON,
EVENTUALLY GOING TO MARS,
I THINK-- I THINK--
I COULDN'T-COULDN'T ASK FOR
A BETTER TIME TO BE-BE HERE.
GOSH, I-- JUST THE OPPORTUNITY
I THINK REALLY
JUST TO BE-BE THERE, UM,
IN SPACE IS GONNA BE AWESOME.
EVERYBODY SAYS IT REALLY
CHANGES YOUR PERSPECTIVE.
JUST BEING ABLE TO LOOK DOWN
ON THE EARTH AND-AND, UH,
SEE THAT FROM
A DIFFERENT VANTAGE POINT,
SO I'M-I'M REALLY LOOKING
FORWARD TO-TO DOING THAT.
OH, LIKE I SAID,
I HAVE A LOT OF
DIFFERENT HOBBIES.
I DO A LOT OF DIFFERENT
OUTDOOR ACTIVITIES.
I'M KIND OF
A JACK OF ALL TRADES--
MASTER OF NONE, MAYBE,
BUT, UH,
PRETTY MUCH ANY OUTDOORS.
I LOVE LEARNING NEW SKILLS,
GOING OUT WITH FRIENDS.
UM, RECENTLY WE'VE GOTTEN
INTO LONG OVERLANDING TRIPS, UH,
WE'RE-WE'RE BUILDING
A-A BIG RIG WITH A CAMPER ON IT
SO THAT WE CAN KINDA GO OUT AND
EXPLORE THOSE
HARDER TO REACH PLACES,
SO THAT KIND OF STUFF.
AS FAR AS
THE INTERVIEW PROCESS GOES,
I THINK THE BEST ADVICE
I'VE RECEIVED
WAS JUST BE YOURSELF.
JUST, UH, ENJOY
EVERY MOMENT OF IT.
SOMETIMES I THINK
YOU CAN GET LOST
TRYING TO THINK ABOUT
WHAT PEOPLE ARE GONNA ASK
AND WHAT-WHAT
THEY'RE GONNA TEST YOU ON,
AND THAT TYPE OF STUFF,
AND THEN AT THE END OF THE DAY,
UM, REALLY JUST BEING YOURSELF
AND REALIZING WHERE YOU ARE
AND TAKING A STEP BACK
AND-AND JUST ENJOYING
EVERY MOMENT
WHILE YOU'RE THERE
IS THE BEST ADVICE THAT I GOT.
REALLY, I'D JUST BE HAPPY
TO GET TO SPACE.
UM, I THINK-- I THINK--
LIKE I SAID EARLIER,
THE-THE BEST, UM, LIKE--
NASA IS DOING
SOME AWESOME THINGS RIGHT NOW,
UM, GOING TO THE MOON,
GETTING READY TO GO TO THE MOON,
UM, AND EVENTUALLY
GETTING READY TO GO TO MARS.
UM, AND I THINK REALLY, UM,
ANY DESTINATION UP THERE
WOULD BE FINE BY ME.
THE, UH, I THINK GROWING UP
WITH THE APOLLO ASTRONAUTS
AS MY INITIAL MENTORS,
AND STILL MENTORS, UM,
I WOULD THINK
I WOULD LOVE TO GO TO THE MOON
IF I HAD A CHOICE.
I GUESS THE BEST STUDY TIP
I HAVE, AND IT--
AND IT MAYBE
MORE-MORE PERSONAL REALLY,
BUT JUST TRY TO GET
AN UNDERSTANDING EVERYBODY, UH,
EVERYBODY LEARNS
A LITTLE BIT DIFFERENT, UM,
AND-AND AT LEAST
FOR ME PERSONALLY,
I WOULD WRITE EVERYTHING DOWN,
SO YOU'VE, LIKE,
EVEN IF I WAS LISTENING TO
A LECTURE,
I WOULD WRITE EVERYTHING DOWN,
BUT I HAVE PLENTY OF FRIENDS
WHO COULD LISTEN TO
THE LECTURE AND
REMEMBER EVERYTHING JUST FINE,
SO I THINK
THE BEST STUDY TIP I HAVE
IS JUST UNDERSTANDING THAT, UH,
PEOPLE LEARN IN DIFFERENT WAYS,
AND FINDING THAT BEST WAY, UH,
THE WAY THAT WORKS BEST FOR YOU.
AS A KID, I-I MEAN,
I GREW UP HANGING OUT AROUND
MY DAD'S MOTORCYCLES A LOT,
AND, UM, LIKE I SAID,
I LIKE TO TINKER
WITH MY OWN THINGS AND
I-I JOINED THE NAVY
AS A MECHANIC A LONG TIME AGO,
SO I THINK, UM,
JUST BEING AROUND, UH,
THAT TYPE OF ENVIRONMENT,
AND, YOU KNOW,
WORKING ON BIKES
AND TURNING WRENCHES,
IT-IT REALLY GOT ME INVOLVED
IN THE ENGINEERING SIDE
OF THINGS.
YEAH SO, UM,
ONE OF THE CHALLENGES
I HAD IN SCHOOL.
I WAS TRYING AS HARD AS I COULD
TO GET STRAIGHT A'S
A LONG TIME AGO, AND, UM,
I TRIED SO HARD, UH,
TO THE POINT THAT MAYBE EVEN
I BURNT MYSELF OUT A LITTLE BIT,
LIKE, ON-ON SCHOOL,
AND I DEFINITELY, UM,
I DEFINITELY--
THE ADVICE
THAT I WOULD GIVE PEOPLE
WOULD BE, UM,
YOU DON'T HAVE TO BE PERFECT,
SO THAT ONE B EVERY NOW
AND THEN IS OKAY.
YOU KNOW, IF YOU'RE
LEARNING THE CONTENT
AND-AND YOU UNDERSTAND
WHAT'S GOING ON AND
YOU'RE PROGRESSING,
THEN-THEN JUST
KEEP WORKING AT IT
AND YOU'LL GET THERE.
I GUESS IT'S--
I GUESS IT IS THE SAME ANSWER
THAT I HAD EARLIER.
SO, I-I-- THE--
JUST GROWING UP I GUESS
AND JUST MY DESIRE AS A KID
WAS TO BE INVOLVED
IN ALL THINGS MECHANICAL
AND-AND AEROSPACE, AND, UM,
I USED TO BUILD
LITTLE STS ROCKETS,
AND WE WOULD GO TO THE PARK
AND SHOOT THEM AND-AND, UM,
I LOVE DOING THAT,
AND THEN WE USED TO
GO TO THE GARAGE AND
WORK ON MY DAD'S MOTORCYCLES,
AND I ENJOYED DOING THAT TOO.
SO, I THINK, UM,
I THINK THAT REALLY GOT ME INTO
THE ENGINEERING FIELD, AND--
WELL, I MEAN,
ONCE I GOT A TOUR OF, UH,
NAS LEMOORE,
I GOT TO SEE THE-THE, UH,
JET AIRCRAFT, YOU KNOW,
TAKING OFF OUT LEMOORE,
AND, UM, THAT--
IT JUST CULMINATED FOR ME,
SO I WENT INTO
THE ENGINEERING FIELD, LIKE,
I-I DEFINITELY DESIRED
TO GO THAT ROUTE.