S3 E10 : Shooting for the Stars as a Woman in Aeronautics with Payton Barnwell, Space Flight Science Engineer
Episode Overview:
As young girls and products of our times, it’s not uncommon to be told not to pursue a career simply because it’s a male dominated field. Though, with the times changing and parents realising and challenging gender norms-- we have some women that now that have risen from these teachings-- proving that we are just as capable of handling these careers.
One of them is Payton Barnwell, a remarkable woman that has designed hypersonic research programs and worked on innovations for astronaut nutrition at the NASA Kennedy Space Center. With her work, she has easily paved a way for young women in the field of engineering and aeronautical sciences.
In this episode, Payton brushes up on her childhood, how she got to where she is now and where she plans to go for her future in the field.
Episode Highlights:
- Being told she was too weak in math to be an engineer
- Deciding on a career path
- How her internship with NASA went
- What she does at work
- The importance of mentoring
About Payton Barnwell:
Payton Barnwell is a young professional that graduated from Florida Polytechnic University last 2019. Since then, she has worked for NASA and then eventually moved onto working under The Spaceship Company where she is an Associate Flight Sciences Engineer.
Her passion for space exploration brought unique opportunities for her, allowing her to work on innovative solutions to traditional astronaut nutrition, and designing an Air Force designated X-Plane research program at Generation Orbit as a 2018 Brooke Owens Fellow, out in the Mojave Desert with The Spaceship Company.
Connect with Payton:
Notable Women Mentioned and Related to this Episode:
- Emily Calandrelli
- TV host/producer of Xploration Outer Space and Emily's Wonder Lab.
- @TheSpaceGal
- Cassie Lee
- One of the founders of the Brooke Owens Fellowship.
- www.brookeowensfellowship.org
- Natalie Brown
- Technical Recruiter at Hermeus (hypersonic commercial planes), she has the interesting challenge of trying to find women to come to their incredibly niche, but amazing, area of work.
- Kellie Gerardi
- She's super active online, which seems to get mixed reviews from the industry. Her book is also coming out soon!
- www.kelliegerardi.com
- Poppy Northcutt
- First woman in the Apollo control room.
- First woman in the Apollo control room.
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