Alyssa Carson, also known by her call sign Blueberry, is the name that has been in the headlines for the past few days as she has grabbed the opportunity of becoming a part of the first crew to embark the red planet.
Alyssa is being trained by NASA to fulfill her dream of becoming an astronaut, according to the Sun.
In 2016, she became the youngest person to be accepted into this program by Advance Possum Academy, a space study program leading to an astronaut-trainee certification.
Alyssa Carson was born on March 10, 2001, in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
She is a typical southern girl who loves crawfish, music, festivals, hanging out with her friends and watching cooking shows on Netflix. Besides this pretty normal life, Alyssa, 17, is well ahead in reaching her ambition of becoming the first Human to step on Mars around 2033.
Alyssa's dream towards reality
The Charlotte Observer quoted her father Bert as saying, "She was three years old when she aimed to be an astronaut. This mind-blowing dream started with a cartoon when she watched an episode called 'Mission to Mars' in the series 'The Backyardigans.' Alyssa said that she had decided to be one of those astronauts going to Mars one day. She developed a fascination, and it kept even developing more as she grew up."
"Alyssa has been to space camp in Canada, Turkey, and Huntsville, Missouri, 18 times in the last ten years.
She's gearing up for her 19th trip, set for later this summer," Bert added. "she's not a genius. However, she works hard every day and has been studying space since she was seven," he added.
"I still have to go to university, validate a thesis, and then I may be able to join the selection of astronauts who will go to Mars," Alyssa says.
Alyssa is also the first person to visit all 14 NASA visitor centers in the US. She is also working on her pilot's license, scuba diving certification, and underwater survival training.
Alyssa's achievements so far
For the past two years, she had followed an intensive training course in parallel with her high-school curriculum which will give her a head start when it comes to joining NASA teams.
In a write-up on the Mars One website, her accomplishments are listed. Alyssa has achieved:
- Attended Space Camp seven times, Space Academy three times and Robotics Academy once.
- The first person to complete all the NASA Space Camps in the world, including Space Camps of Turkey and Canada.
- Witnessed three Space Shuttle launches.
To follow Alyssa’s track to the red planet, search "NASA Blueberry," her NASA call sign, on Facebook.
