Some lucky middle school students had the opportunity Monday to talk to a Scripps Oceanography of UC San Diego alum and current NASA astronaut all the way from outer space!
Astronaut Jessica Meir chatted from a faraway "land" with about 150 middle school students at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography in La Jolla on Monday.
"The weather is very steady, as usual up here," Meir said from the International Space Station.
Students from Fulton K-8 School and Memorial Preparatory for Scholars and Athletes filed in, ready to hear about her journey "From STEM to Stars."
"What was your inspiration to become an astronaut?" one student asked.
Meir said she has always been enthralled with exploration ever since she was 5 years old. She hasn't stopped exploring since.
"Make sure that you identify your passion and do what it is that you really care about. Once you've done that, you do need to work very hard to make those dreams come true," she told students.
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Students listened closely as she shared her overall love for science and described day-to-day life on the ISS as a scientist, and she was floating in zero gravity the whole time.
"It really means so much for me to be able to share my life up here with all of you," she said.
Meir first landed at the ISS in Sept. 2019 and then made history as part of the first and second all-female space walks in history.
NASA Astronaut With Ties to San Diego Launches Into Space
Meir hails from Maine and received her Ph. D. in marine biology from Scripps in 2009.
To track Meir's journey, visit her NASA page here.
