WATCH: Richland native launches into space with NASA & SpaceX
UPDATE: Richland native Kayla Barron and three other astronauts successfully launched into orbit at 6:04 p.m. PST.
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — Among the four astronauts set to take flight into the cosmos during the SpaceX launch on Wednesday night is Kayla Barron—a native of Richland who has been gearing up for this trip for years despite never seeing a space launch herself.
Barron is scheduled to be part of the 6:03 p.m. PST launch of a Falcon-9 rocket, which will hurl her into space at incredible speeds. A local legend for her incredible accomplishments already, Barron spent her teenage years in the Tri-Cities and graduated from Richland High School in 2006.
NASA selected Barron to join the 2017 astronaut candidate class after she graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy with a bachelor’s degree in systems engineering. The accomplished engineer served in the U.S. Navy on a ballistic missile submarine located in Bangor, WA.
PREVIOUS: Richland woman is gearing up for an out-of-this-world adventure to the ISS
She went on to earn a master’s in nuclear engineering before becoming a member of the first class of women commissioned into the submarine community.
Barron is essential to this mission to the International Space Station through a collaboration between SpaceX and NASA.
READ: Kayla Barron announced to NASA’s Artemis program
The crew is gearing up for a launch that has already been delayed several times. Barring weather concerns of technical difficulties, they will launch into orbit on Wednesday evening.
You can watch Kayla Barron and the Falcon-9 rocket launch live on KAPP KVEW Local News at 6. We are also live-streaming the rocket launch on our Facebook page (Click here).
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