Yasmin Maqbali in an Interview with Voice of America: I Wanted to Go to Space Since Childhood

A press conference for the 'Crew 7' mission was held on Tuesday, July 25, at the Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas. In this meeting, Yasmin Maqbali, an Iranian-American astronaut; Andreas Mogensen, a Danish astronaut; Satoshi Furukawa, a Japanese astronaut; and Konstantin Borisov, a Russian astronaut participated. These astronauts will head to the International Space Station from Kennedy Space Center in Florida this August and will stay there for several months. Yasmin Maqbali is the commander of this space mission, which has generated a lot of excitement among Iranians around the world. After the press conference, Yasmin Maqbali gave an exclusive interview to the Persian section of Voice of America about her first trip to space. When asked how excited she is about her first space journey, she mentioned that she was so involved in training that she didn't think about it until the last couple of days. Now that the press conference is taking place, she is facing the reality of her upcoming journey. She expressed that she has wanted to go to space since sixth grade and finds it unbelievable that she will be going in less than a month. Regarding her family’s reaction, she noted that initially, her mother was supportive of her becoming an astronaut but was worried about her going to space. Now, her parents are very excited as they know this is something she has wanted to do since childhood. Her husband is excited for her but will have to take care of their two daughters in her absence. The twin daughters are aware that their mother is going to space but may not fully understand what that means. As the mission commander, she explained her responsibilities include ensuring the safety of the astronauts and the spacecraft, as well as achieving the mission's goals of reaching the International Space Station and returning to Earth. She considers herself a member of an extraordinary team, with two members having been to space before, while she and Konstantin are going for the first time. Yasmin expressed her eagerness to be part of future missions, including potential trips to the Moon or Mars. She encouraged Iranian children and teenagers aspiring to become astronauts to work hard and pursue their dreams despite challenges. Yasmin has also supported the 'Women, Life, Freedom' movement in Iran, stating that she has been inspired by many Iranian women and men. She believes that when someone strives to achieve something, there should be no barriers preventing them from doing so. The press conference also featured Laura O'Hara, an American astronaut who will travel separately to the International Space Station in September. The Crew 7 astronauts are set to launch on Tuesday, August 15, aboard SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft, which will be launched into orbit by a Falcon rocket. This is the seventh crew rotation mission that SpaceX is conducting for NASA.