She’s reaching for the stars!
An Arizona educator was just chosen to join a billionaire’s SpaceX private flight, AZCentral reports.
Sian Proctor is a geologist who has always dreamed of going to space. She applied multiple times to NASA’s astronaut corps although she took part in a simulated Mars missions in Hawaii. The Guam native’s father is Edward Langley Proctor Jr. whp was also a scientist. He even worked at the NASA tracking station for the Apollo moonshots, including Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin.
Recently, billionaire Jared Issacman announced his sponsorship for the Space X “Inspiration4 mission.” Issacman is the head of Shift4 Payments, a Pennsylvania-based credit card processing company. He will be footing the bill for SpaceX’s first private flight while also using the mission to raise money for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee. Issacman launched a lottery for a chance to fly to space. He donated $100 million of his own money to the facility, while lottery contributors raised $13 million in donations.
(left to right) John Issacman, Hayley Arceneaux, Sian Proctor, Chris Sembroski. Photo Courtesy of The Associated Press/AZ Central
Proctor, a 51-year-old scientist and educator, beat out 200 businesses and nabbed the seat reserved for a customer of Isaacman’s company. A panel of judges chose her space art website as the winner, Space2inspire; Proctor said she still can’t believe her good fortune.
“It was like when Harry Potter found out he was a wizard, a little bit of shock and awe. It’s like, ‘I’m the winner?’,” she said.
The SpaceX Dragon capsule will launch around mid-September, aiming for an altitude of 335 miles. The crew includes Issacman, Proctor, Hayley Arceneaux, Chris Sembroski. will endure months of rigorous training before orbiting for three days. Issacman plans to cut no corners in preparing the crew for take-off.
“You don’t go up on Everest, right, after just a hike in the backyard. You build your way to it,” Issacman said.
Congratulations Sian!
Photo Courtesy of Patrick Breen/The Republic