![EILEEN COLLINS: “IT WAS A DIFFICULT MISSION… WE WERE THE FIRST TO SEE MIR”](https://cdn.magzter.com/1493279487/1650474675/articles/9C_1hYnh91651219860326/EILEEN-COLLINS-IT-WAS-A-DIFFICULT-MISSION-WE-WERE-THE-FIRST-TO-SEE-MIR.jpg)
BIO
Eileen Collins Born on 19 November 1956, Eileen Marie Collins served as a pilot in the United States Air Force before becoming one of the most decorated astronauts in NASA history after her selection in 1990. She served on four separate Space Shuttle missions, including the first American rendezvous with Russia's Mir space station and the return-to-flight mission after the Columbia accident. After completing over 872 hours in space, she retired from NASA on 1 May 2006 to pursue private interests, but retains an interest in space exploration to this day.
How did you become interested in space exploration?
It all started when I was nine years old; I was in fourth grade reading an article in a magazine about the Gemini program. They were profiling the astronauts and the missions, and that was when I really, as far back as I remember, found myself very interested in the space program. While I attended summer camp as a child I would visit the glider field and we’d watch the gliders take off. So there was a little bit of aviation in my background, and I think that’s maybe the roots of my getting interested in aviation and space.
Were you proud to be selected as the first female Space Shuttle pilot?
Back in 1989 I interviewed for the job of Space Shuttle pilot, and in January of 1990 I talked to John Young and he told me that I was selected, and also I was going to be the first woman pilot. It was 16 January 1990; I remember the date. I went through training from the summer of 1990 to the summer of 1991. It was September of 1993 when I was actually assigned to a flight, and then that mission [STS-63] didn’t fly until February of 1995.
ãã®èšäºã¯ All About Space ã® Issue 129 çã«æ²èŒãããŠããŸãã
7 æ¥éã® Magzter GOLD ç¡æãã©ã€ã¢ã«ãéå§ããŠãäœåãã®å³éžããããã¬ãã¢ã ã¹ããŒãªãŒã9,000 以äžã®éèªãæ°èã«ã¢ã¯ã»ã¹ããŠãã ããã
ãã§ã«è³Œèªè ã§ã ?  ãµã€ã³ã€ã³
ãã®èšäºã¯ All About Space ã® Issue 129 çã«æ²èŒãããŠããŸãã
7 æ¥éã® Magzter GOLD ç¡æãã©ã€ã¢ã«ãéå§ããŠãäœåãã®å³éžããããã¬ãã¢ã ã¹ããŒãªãŒã9,000 以äžã®éèªãæ°èã«ã¢ã¯ã»ã¹ããŠãã ããã
ãã§ã«è³Œèªè ã§ã? ãµã€ã³ã€ã³
![LONG AGO, A LAKE ON MARS MAY HAVE BEEN SPRAWLING WITH MICROBES](https://reseuro.magzter.com/100x125/articles/15256/1729654/KBMk_Cfs41719993738326/LONG-AGO-A-LAKE-ON-MARS-MAY-HAVE-BEEN-SPRAWLING-WITH-MICROBES.jpg)
LONG AGO, A LAKE ON MARS MAY HAVE BEEN SPRAWLING WITH MICROBES
Curiosity discovered manganese oxide in bedrock in a Martian region that may have been a shoreline billions of years ago
![MOON TOUR HELL](https://reseuro.magzter.com/100x125/articles/15256/1729654/ht0gO_mHi1719993459712/MOON-TOUR-HELL.jpg)
MOON TOUR HELL
Finding this fascinating crater isnt as hard as its name suggests...
![THIS MONTH'S PLANETS](https://reseuro.magzter.com/100x125/articles/15256/1729654/-7K-H52mO1719993250345/THIS-MONTHS-PLANETS.jpg)
THIS MONTH'S PLANETS
Most of the planets are tricky targets this month, but our guide will help you locate them
![UNIVERSE BEFORE TIME](https://reseuro.magzter.com/100x125/articles/15256/1729654/cHFLjjJOS1719991851680/UNIVERSE-BEFORE-TIME.jpg)
UNIVERSE BEFORE TIME
Could the existence of a mirror-image cosmos before the Big Bang solve some of the biggest mysteries in astronomy?
![CLIMATE CHANGE IN THE SOLAR SYSTEM](https://reseuro.magzter.com/100x125/articles/15256/1729654/Se3Bbyf0G1719991384386/CLIMATE-CHANGE-IN-THE-SOLAR-SYSTEM.jpg)
CLIMATE CHANGE IN THE SOLAR SYSTEM
Alongside Earth, our planetary neighbourhood is changing, but itâs not for the betterâŠ
![Stars give tiny planets a gravitational 'squeeze' to strip away their atmospheres](https://reseuro.magzter.com/100x125/articles/15256/1729654/QMnZ5oBmH1719991224194/STARS-GIVE-TINY-PLANETS-A-GRAVITATIONAL-SQUEEZE-TO-STRIP-AWAY-THEIR-ATMOSPHERES.jpg)
Stars give tiny planets a gravitational 'squeeze' to strip away their atmospheres
A scientist has learned more about the violent processes that rip atmospheres away from planets, finding that squashing and squeezing by a parent star can contribute to this process.
![The Milky Way's halo is filled with âmagnetic doughnuts' as wide as 100,000 light years](https://reseuro.magzter.com/100x125/articles/15256/1729654/zhhazHOyf1719991166108/THE-MILKY-WAYS-HALO-IS-FILLED-WITH-MAGNETIC-DOUGHNUTS-AS-WIDE-AS-100000-LIGHT-YEARS.jpg)
The Milky Way's halo is filled with âmagnetic doughnuts' as wide as 100,000 light years
The outer halo of the Milky Way is filled with magnetic fields that take the shape of vast doughnuts with diameters ranging from 12,000 to 100,000 light years, with the heart of our galaxy at their centre.
![The Pentagon wants the commercial space reserve to support military satellites in orbit](https://reseuro.magzter.com/100x125/articles/15256/1729654/RRDjAi68P1719991027212/THE-PENTAGON-WANTS-THE-COMMERCIAL-SPACE-RESERVE-TO-SUPPORT-MILITARY-SATELLITES-IN-ORBIT.jpg)
The Pentagon wants the commercial space reserve to support military satellites in orbit
The US Department of Defense is developing a plan to use the ever-growing American commercial space industry for national security purposes.
![DOES A COSMIC 'GLITCH' IN GRAVITY CHALLENGE ALBERT EINSTEIN'S GREATEST THEORY?](https://reseuro.magzter.com/100x125/articles/15256/1729654/qd-Mswgsf1719990737533/DOES-A-COSMIC-GLITCH-IN-GRAVITY-CHALLENGE-ALBERT-EINSTEINS-GREATEST-THEORY.jpg)
DOES A COSMIC 'GLITCH' IN GRAVITY CHALLENGE ALBERT EINSTEIN'S GREATEST THEORY?
Gravity changes once you reach a cosmic scale
![DEEP SKY CHALLENGE : STELLAR TREASURES OF THE ARCHER AND SCORPION](https://reseuro.magzter.com/100x125/articles/15256/1729654/kQkKImKfQ1719990358327/DEEP-SKY-CHALLENGE-STELLAR-TREASURES-OF-THE-ARCHER-AND-SCORPION.jpg)
DEEP SKY CHALLENGE : STELLAR TREASURES OF THE ARCHER AND SCORPION
Summer skies are stuffed full of amazing objects for your telescope - if you're prepared to stay up late