Deniz Burnham was one of the 10 astronaut candidates chosen by NASA from among 12 thousand of people. 36-year-old woman' will be trained to go into space.
NASA determined new astronaut candidates among 12 thousand of people. Among the astronaut candidates consisting of 6 men and 4 women, 36-year-old Deniz Burnham, who was born in Incirlik Air Base in Adana, was also included. Burnham, who lived in Alaska and studied engineering and piloting, also served in the US military. Burnham will begin a challenging 2-year training period with 9 of her friends. If successful, she will be assigned for space missions. Asked who inspired her to become an astronaut, Burnham replied, “My mother sitting in the audience. Her dream was to become a military officer, but that was not allowed in Turkey at that time. As a little girl at that time, I saw my mother finish school, and enter the US Air force. She showed me how big I can dream and that when I want anything, I can achieve it. This was the situation that made my dream of becoming an astronaut come true,” she said.
Who is Deniz Burnham?
Growing up in a military family, Burnham graduated from Vanden High School in California after studying in various regions. She earned a bachelor's degree in chemical engineering from the University of California, San Diego, in 2007. A graduate student at the University of Southern California, Burnham interned at NASA Ames Research Center as part of the Deployable Autonomy Technologies group. She began her career as a field engineer on a remote oil rig in Prudhoe Bay, Alaska.
She was responsible for all aspects of measuring and recording during drilling operations at drilling rig sites throughout the Arctic. She led onsite operations for nearly 9 years at drilling rigs in Canada, Ohio, and Texas.