CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — One of the four people who were launched into space Tuesday morning as part of SpaceX's Polaris Dawn mission is a Duke University graduate.
Anna Melon, 38, earned her master's degree in Biomedical Engineering from Duke after receiving her bachelor's degree at Texas Christian University. She is now a Lead Space Operations Engineer at SpaceX, where she "manages the development of crew operations and serves in mission control as both a Mission Director and crew communicator.
Menon also previously worked at NASA.
The dragon capsule Menon is flying in launched Tuesday morning as part of SpaceX's historic mission to complete the first-ever commercial spacewalk. She was accompanied by Scot Poteet, Sarah Gillis and billionaire Jared Isaacman.
The actual spacewalk is expected to happen Thursday after a two-day "pre-breath" process, according to SpaceX.
Menon will not actively participate in the spacewalk. She will remain in the craft with Poteet while Isaacman and Gillis attach themselves to a 12-foot umbilical tether and take 15-minute turns moving in the vacuum of space.
The crew will also carry out biomedical experiments and test a new laser communications link to Earth using Starlink satellites. Starlink Services is a satellite internet company that is a subsidiary of SpaceX.
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