Abigail Harrison

Abigail Harrison (born June 13, 1997), also known as Astronaut Abby, is an American internet personality and science communicator, particularly in the area of the United States space program. Harrison is the founder and current leader of The Mars Generation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit. She is not an astronaut.

This article is about the American science communicator. For the English actress by the pseudonym "Abigail Harrison", see Abigail Hopkins.

Abigail Harrison
Abigail Harrison (photo by Nicole Harrison)
Born (1997-06-13) June 13, 1997[1]
Saint Paul, Minnesota, U.S.
NationalityAmerican
EducationWellesley College (BA)
OccupationScience communication
EmployerThe Mars Generation
Known forAstronaut Abby
Websitewww.astronautabby.com

Early life and education

Harrison was born in 1997[2] in Saint Paul, Minnesota. Harrison has sought to become the first person on Mars since an early age. Harrison attended Saint Paul and Minneapolis Public Schools for K-12 education.[3][4] Harrison graduated in 2019 from Wellesley College with a Bachelors of Arts.[5] She pursued astrobiology (self-made major) and Russian Area Studies degrees.[3]

Career

The Mars Generation

In 2015, Harrison founded the 501(c)(3) nonprofit called The Mars Generation[6] and currently serves as the President of the Executive Board.[7] The Mars Generation is an American non-governmental nonprofit organization involved in public outreach and advocating for human space exploration and science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education.

The Mars Generation offers 3 main programs.[8][9] The Future of Space Outreach program encourages the support of space exploration and STEM education.[10][11][12] The Student Space Ambassador Leadership Program (SSA) is a dual program in mentorship and leadership designed to provide school and career guidance to students ages 13–24.[2]

The final program provides full paid scholarships for students demonstrating financial need to attend U.S. Space Camp.[13][14] In order to apply for consideration students need to be age 15–17, demonstrate interest in space exploration and an aptitude in STEM and complete the application, including obtaining a recommendation from a teacher and/or mentor.[15][16]

Author

In January 2021, Penguin Random House published a book by Harrison titled "Dream Big! How To Reach For Your Stars".[17] Harrison and Random House have stated that any proceeds from the sale of the book will be donated to The Mars Generation, Harrison's nonprofit organization.[18]

Public engagement

Harrison's online presence as Astronaut Abby was spurred from an 8th grade National History Day project titled 'Debate and Diplomacy: The History of the ISS".[19] Harrison set up a Twitter account under the name of AstronautAbby to connect with NASA employees to get a quote for her project.[3][20] On May 28, 2013, Harrison attended the Soyuz TMA-09M launch of her mentor, Astronaut Luca Parmitano, to the International Space Station, becoming Parmitano's Earth Liaison.[21][22] As his Earth Liaison, she shared his 6-month experience of living in space with her social media community.[23]

References
  1. @astronautabbyofficial (June 13, 2021). "Another orbit around our sun complete!". Archived from the original on September 9, 2022. Retrieved September 9, 2022 – via Instagram.
  2. "Launching 'The Mars Generation': Teen on Mission to Get People to Mars". Space.com. Retrieved August 14, 2017.
  3. Brooke Metz (March 17, 2017). "Meet Abby Harrison, the college sophomore headed for Mars". USA Today. Archived from the original on December 2, 2018. Retrieved August 7, 2017.
  4. Alan Boyle i (May 8, 2013). "15-year-old Astronaut Abby fuels her outreach mission with social media". NBC News. Archived from the original on May 10, 2013. Retrieved August 9, 2017.
  5. Bob Brown (August 27, 2015). "Mars astronaut hopeful stationed on planet Wellesley for now". The Swellesley Report. Archived from the original on September 26, 2017. Retrieved August 7, 2017.
  6. Shannon Serpette (March 30, 2017). "Astronaut Abby is an Out-Of-This-World Role Model for Kids". Archived from the original on August 19, 2017. Retrieved August 10, 2017.
  7. "Abigail Harrison". The Mars Generation. Archived from the original on August 8, 2017. Retrieved August 10, 2017.
  8. "Launching 'The Mars Generation': Teen on Mission to Get People to Mars". Space.com. Retrieved August 14, 2017.
  9. "2017 Eureka! Innovation award winner: The Mars Generation". www.bizjournals.com. Archived from the original on August 15, 2017. Retrieved January 1, 2021.
  10. "Launching 'The Mars Generation': Teen on Mission to Get People to Mars". Retrieved August 14, 2017.
  11. "2017 Eureka! Innovation award winner: The Mars Generation". www.bizjournals.com. Retrieved August 14, 2017.
  12. "Mars and the Public Imagination". PCMAG. Retrieved August 14, 2017.
  13. "Meet Abby Harrison, the college sophomore headed for Mars". USA TODAY College. March 17, 2017. Retrieved August 14, 2017.
  14. "Mars and the Public Imagination". PCMAG. Retrieved August 14, 2017.
  15. "The Mars Generation – GuideStar Profile". www.guidestar.org. Retrieved August 14, 2017.
  16. "Kids who KARE: Astronaut Abby". KARE. Retrieved August 14, 2017.
  17. "Dream Big!". Penguin Random House. Archived from the original on November 1, 2020. Retrieved September 1, 2020.
  18. "Abigail Harrison". Penguin Random House. Archived from the original on November 24, 2020. Retrieved September 1, 2020.
  19. Erin Winick (January 17, 2017). "On Her way to Mars". Code Like A Girl. Archived from the original on December 8, 2019. Retrieved August 7, 2017.
  20. MORGAN MERCER (May 20, 2013). "'Astronaut Abby' is crowdfunding her way to outer space". Star Tribune. Archived from the original on August 13, 2017. Retrieved August 7, 2017.
  21. Elizabeth Howell (September 23, 2013). "This Teenager Hosts Earth-To-Space Q&As With An Orbiting Astronaut". Universe Today. Archived from the original on January 10, 2017. Retrieved August 10, 2017.
  22. AstronautAbby (June 14, 2013), Soyuz TMA-09 Launch, archived from the original on January 18, 2021, retrieved August 10, 2017
  23. Elizabeth Howell (April 30, 2013). "Why An Astronaut Asked 15 Year Old Abby to Help Get The Word Out". Universe Today. Archived from the original on July 8, 2017. Retrieved August 7, 2017.
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