TEXAS — Being selected as a NASA astronaut candidate was an “I made it” moment, even for Becky Lawler — an engineer, veteran and hurricane hunter.
With a fist pump and ear-to-ear grin, the Texas native joined 10 others on stage Monday morning for a ceremony announcing NASA’s newest class of astronaut candidates.
“It’s exciting, it’s a relief, it’s shocking to be here part of this amazing class during this exciting time for NASA,” Lawler told Spectrum News 1.
Lawler is from Little Elm, Texas, near Dallas. She didn’t always know she wanted to be an astronaut, but says she always knew she wanted to fly.
“I was one of those kids that was always looking at the sky. I still feel that way as an adult,” she said. “Seeing the sunrise, cloud formations, I was like, ‘I want to be up there.’”
She says that’s what led her to become a test pilot in the U.S. Navy. After 11 years there, she became a hurricane hunter with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Lawler has flown planes into the eyes of 32 hurricanes and 11 tropical storms.
Now, she’ll begin two years of astronaut training. While the crew has not been selected yet, Lawler could be on board Artemis III — which will land humans on the moon for the first time in more than 50 years.
“It’s such an honor to be representing my home state and where I came from,” she said. “We’re going further than ever. And we’re doing it with the people of the great state of Texas.”
Lily Celeste
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