Suppose you dream of being a “rocket scientist” of some kind… doing great things in the world of aerospace or aviation. But you live in a remote place where nobody you know has ever done this. If you can relate to this, I want you to meet Martina Dimoska. She lives in Macedonia which is a country in the Balkans.
If that still doesn’t help orient you enough, the Balkans are the region of southeastern Europe which includes Greece, Romania, Bosnia, Serbia, and Turkey.
Martina had a burning desire to be an astronaut. At some point, she learned that there is something called being an ANALOG ASTRONAUT. I confess I wasn’t too familiar with this term until recently. Analog astronaut missions are when we reproduce space environments on Earth so that we can learn and practice what it is like to live and work in space.
These efforts happen all around the planet. They need people to design the missions, build the habitats, and operate in the analog astronaut environments. Through her passion, initiative, and amazing work ethic, Martina has become the first woman in Macedonia to be an analog astronaut.
She has also done many other things that have blazed a trajectory into the aerospace world when it didn’t appear she had other opportunities. She founded a group called International Space Alliance (ISA). This led to the opening of many doors and making many valuable connections in the aerospace world.
She also become an organizer for the NASA International Space Apps Challenge. That’s how I got to know her. Somehow, she leads two of those events – in Cleveland, Ohio and Mountain View, California!
Maybe you don’t see yourself as having all of the personal initiative and leadership skills as Martina. But everybody has to start somewhere. She started from a relatively small city in a small country that doesn’t have any notoriety for being a source for rocket scientists, astronauts, or space professionals. But now she is doing amazing things all around the world in the space community.
You can follow her adventures and accomplishments on the astro_smarta Instagram page. Martina Dimoska is also on LinkedIn. If you want to learn more from her professional journey, take a look there at her history with education, organizations, and activities.
We are living in a world of abundant opportunities and possibilities. When you find someone from a relatively unknown corner of the world who has made great things happen for themselves and for others, be smart enough to learn from them.
That’s how to be a rocket scientist in today’s world.