My Thesis Director: A “Professional Martian”
Dr. Tanya Harrison is a planetary scientist, future-focused science strategist, author, and one of the world’s go-to voices on Mars and space exploration
She calls herself a “Professional Martian,” having worked in science and mission operations on multiple NASA Mars missions, including the Perseverance, Curiosity, and Opportunity rovers. She holds a Ph.D. in Geology from the University of Western Ontario, a Masters in Earth and Environmental Sciences from Wesleyan University, and a B.Sc. in Astronomy and Physics from the University of Washington. She is currently a Fellow of the Outer Space Institute and the Director of Earth and Space Science at Mission Control in Ottawa, Canada. Tanya is also an advocate for advancing the status of women and the LGBTQ+ community in science and for accessibility in STEM. You can find her on most social media platforms as @tanyaofmars.
We’ve all heard of baby showers, wedding showers, and bachelorette parties. In 2018 I learned about Shine Registry, an online community where you can throw a “business shower” for new businesses, endeavors or passion projects. Earlier this year I was in Boston completing my thesis proposal, and one of my cohort members shared that she was going to do a thesis launch party — with life having taught me to celebrate the good things as they come vs. waiting till the end to celebrate, this seemed like a great idea so I sent out my invites and followed suit. We celebrated my thesis being approved and the new appointment of my thesis director, and for the first time —outside of my husband, family, research advisor and thesis director— I shared what my thesis was about and what I’d be dedicating the rest of the year to.
So to continue in celebrating the good things as they come, I wanted to publicly share that the one and only Dr. Tanya Harrison, aka “Professional Martian” is my space sustainability thesis director. Continue reading below to learn more about “one of the world’s go-to voices on Mars and space exploration.”
Sources: @wouterpasman, @exoplanet_emma, @dearsmartgirl
Why Mars? What ignited your passion for planetary science and set you on the path to becoming a “Professional Martian”?
I’ve been obsessed with space ever since I was a kid thanks to influences like the book The Magic School Bus: Lost in the Solar System and Star Trek. But it wasn’t until NASA’s Pathfinder mission landed on Mars when I was 11 that my obsession honed in on the Red Planet specifically. Pathfinder was the first space mission to ever have a website. NASA released an animated GIF of images taken by Pathfinder showing the little rover it carried to Mars, Sojourner, driving off the lander platform and onto the planet’s surface. My immediate reaction was, “I *have* to work on Mars rovers!” And that set the path for the rest of my life.
You've been deeply involved in the daily operations of iconic Mars missions like Curiosity and Perseverance. Could you share a story of a particularly memorable day that encapsulates what it's truly like to explore another planet from millions of miles away?
The most memorable day has to be the day I got to take my first photo of Mars with the very first mission I worked on, NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. I was a targeting specialist for the Context Camera (CTX), which meant I was quite literally a martian photographer, picking what the camera would take pictures of and when based on science priorities, weather, lighting conditions, etc. This job requires many weeks of training before you’re handed the keys, so-to-speak. When the first image I ever targeted was “downlinked” back to Earth, I was in awe. Looking at photos from space is one thing. Knowing that you took that photo is something else entirely. It’s a bit like looking at photos of your dream vacation destination on Instagram versus going to that place and taking a photo yourself. Sure, I wasn’t physically on Mars to take the photo, but it evoked similar emotions for me.
Source: Flickr
You have so many great space items in your shop, which is your favorite?
Oh gosh, that’s a tough question! I think it has to be the “Queer Space Agency” logo modelled after the iconic NASA meatball. It was a lot of fun to make, and I’ve been challenging myself to create more colourful things. A close second is the “Think Metric” Mars Climate Orbiter shirt, because it’s so niche and nerdy that anytime someone buys it, I just have to smile.
Source: tanyaofmars REDBUBBLE store
You're a passionate advocate for ensuring that women, people with disabilities, and the LGBTQ+ community feel that space is a place where they belong. As the traditional mold of ‘astronaut’ is changing with the rise of commercial spaceflight, what is your advice for individuals from these groups who are dreaming of a career in this new era of exploration?
You’ve put it so well in the question—the boundaries of who “can” be an astronaut have been completely shattered in the era of commercial spaceflight. It’s still out of financial reach for the vast majority of people, but things like physical disabilities or gender identity aren’t the blockers they once were. If your dream is to go to space, don’t rule yourself out! The prices will undoubtedly come down over time on the tourism side, and on the research side I think we’ll start to see new funding programs arise for scientists to fly with their own experiments. So if going to space is your dream, chase it relentlessly.
Source: The Explorers Club
What fundamental question about Mars do you hope we answer in your lifetime?
This is probably the answer any Mars scientist would give: I want to know if there is, or was, life there. It’s such a fundamental question that we haven’t been able to answer yet, and likely can’t give a definitive answer until we send humans there with equipment that can do more (and more quickly) than our rovers can. So I want to see a human mission to Mars that has the goal of answering that question in my lifetime.
