Future Mars Walker Alyssa Carson: Ready For Her Space Odyssey

 
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As humans, we tend to think of Earth as the center of all life. What if your actions could impact not just the course of events on Earth, but in the universe? Alyssa Carson, also known by her call sign NASA Blueberry, is preparing to be the first person on Mars. With that, she will not just be a woman that changes the world, she would become a woman that changes the solar system. She is also the author of the book, So You Want to Be an Astronaut
Why does a young woman want to leave behind her home planet as well as everyone she has ever loved and known at risk of never seeing them again? What inspires her to push forward into the deep unknown of space? Why does she call Mars home? We are talking to Alyssa to find those answers and much more!
Alyssa was born in Louisiana.  She has an incredible amount of qualifications for someone who is only 19 years old. By the age of 12, she had participated in the MER 10 panel about an expedition to Mars live on NASA TV and had visited all 14 NASA Visitor Centers in the US, becoming the first person to ever complete the NASA Passport Program. She was also the first person to ever complete all three NASA Space Camps around the world, including in Turkey and Canada.
She is the youngest person ever accepted into the International Space University as well as the youngest person accepted into the Advanced PoSSUM (Project Polar Suborbital Science in the Upper Mesosphere) where future astronauts are trained in areas such as space suit training, underwater survival training, microgravity training and decompression training. Alyssa Carson was chosen as one of seven ambassadors of the Mars One expedition to Mars.
She has watched three Space Shuttle launches and is an Honorary Member of the Civilian Air Patrol. She attained her rocket license before she got a driver’s permit and she is currently a freshman at Florida Tech studying astrobiology. She has already given 3 TEDx Talks. In her spare time, she founded the Blueberry Foundation to help children have the opportunity to make their dreams come true.
Visit Alyssa on her website nasabluberry.com
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The Blueberry Foundation