This fall, the mission commander Nicole Aunapu Mann, will be the first Native American woman to travel to space.
On Sept. 20, NASA will launch the Crew-5 mission aboard a SpaceX Dragon to the International Space Station.
Accompanying her are NASA astronaut Josh Cassada, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency astronaut Koichi Wakata and Russian cosmonaut Anna Kikina.
Born in California, Mann graduated from the US Naval Academy and holds the rank of colonel in the US Marine Corps.
She has served as a Navy aviator during two deployments on aircraft carriers, supporting combat operations in Iraq and Afghanistan.
She also graduated from Stanford with a master's degree in mechanical engineering.
