Anna Menon | |
|---|---|
| Born | Anna Wilhelm 1976 (age 47–48) Minneapolis, Minnesota, U.S. |
| Status | Active |
| Alma mater | Texas Christian University (B.Math and and B A. Spanish) Duke University (MSc-BME) |
| Space career | |
| SpaceX Astronaut | |
Current occupation | SpaceX Lead Operations Engineer/Mission Director |
Time in space | None |
| Missions | Polaris Dawn |
Anna Menon is an American astronaut. Menon worked for NASA for seven years before joining SpaceX, where she serves as chief engineer of space operations.
Menon was selected to be a mission specialist and medical officer for the Polaris Dawn mission, scheduled for the end of 2022.[1]
She earned her undergraduate degree (bachelor's degree) in math and Spanish from Texas Christian University and her graduate degree (master's degree) in biomedical engineering from Duke University.
Anna Menon is also involved in humanitarian causes. In the immediate aftermath of the 2015 earthquakes in Nepal, she supported the World Health Organization's water and sanitation response and also volunteered with the organizations Engineers Without Borders and Engineering World Health. Her dream of flying in space began in elementary school when her teacher Alison Smith Balch (daughter of Space Shuttle Challenger pilot Michael J. Smith) took her on an immersive field trip to NASA. In addition to pursuing her[according to whom?] lifelong passion for space, Anna enjoys hiking, salsa.
Prior to SpaceX, Anna worked for seven years at NASA as a biomedical flight controller for the International Space Station. In this role, she supported space station crews from NASA's Mission Control Center-Houston, helped engage engineers and medical services from international partners, and led the planning and execution of all biomedical operations for Expedition 47/48.
Anna Menon is Chief Space Operations Engineer at SpaceX, where she manages crew operations development and serves in mission control as mission director and crew communicator. During her tenure at SpaceX, she led the implementation of Dragon's crew capabilities, helped create the role of Crew Communications Operator, and developed critical operational responses to vehicle emergencies such as fire or cabin depressurization. Anna served in mission control on several Crew Dragon missions, such as Demo-2, Crew-1, CRS-22, and CRS-23.
She appears in the five-episode docuseries entitled Countdown: Inspiration4 Mission to Space, released on the subscription streaming service Netflix in September 2021.[2].
She is married to Anil Menon, lieutenant colonel in the United States Air Force, NASA astronaut candidate and a former SpaceX Medical Director[3] and has two children.[4]