Abigail Harrison

Years ago as a young child, around the age of 5, I remember looking up at the night sky and dreaming of someday going there. I didn’t know how and I didn’t know when but I knew that I would go to space.

Over the years my dream has grown larger than myself. And even if I’m not the one who makes it to Mars, I will work tirelessly my entire life to ensure we will get humans to Mars in my lifetime.

Orion Era Astronaut AbbyHow Astronaut Abby Got Started in 2011
Voicing my dream to become an astronaut and the first human to step foot on Mars has opened me up to many amazing experiences. Because I had a solid plan outlined at age 11, so many people have believed in me and encouraged me to reach for my dreams. This encouragement and support led me to incorporate space into everything I did as a child and teenager. I did not know at the time that my quest to learn more about space and to go to Mars would lead to a worldwide movement.

In 2011, At the age of 13, I set up a Twitter account with the name of @AstronautAbby to get a quote from a NASA employee for a school project. I got the quote which was exciting but I also got so much more than that simple quote. I found a community online of people who were just as excited about space exploration as I was. I was embraced as a leader of my generation and I chose to share my journey online through Twitter and my blog at astronautabby.org.