The first Native American woman in space said Wednesday she is overwhelmed by the beauty and delicacy of Mother Earth and is channelling positive energy as her five-month mission gets underway.
NASA astronaut Nicole Mann said from the International Space Station that she's received lots of prayers and blessings from her family and tribal community. She is a member of the Wailacki of the Round Valley Indian Tribes in Northern California.
Mann showed off the dream catcher she took up with her, a childhood gift from her mother that she's always held dear. The small traditional webbed hoop with feathers is used to offer protection, and she said it's given her strength during challenging times.
45-year-old Mann is a veteran combat pilot who has made spaceflight history. She is not just the first indigenous woman in orbit, but the first woman to command a Crew Dragon capsule. she joined NASA in 2013
A US Marine Corps colonel, Mann holds a master’s degree in engineering, specializing in fluid mechanics. Mann has flown combat missions in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The only other Indigenous American to have entered orbit is John Herrington, who flew on a 2002 shuttle mission, the Guardian reported.
Mann's crew includes the Russian cosmonaut Anna Kikina, American astronaut Josh Cassada and Japan’s Koichi Wakata. Kikina is the first Russian to fly onboard an American spacecraft since Russia invaded Ukraine in February. She is a female cosmonaut on active duty for the Russian space agency Roscosmos.
-- With PTI inputs
