{{Short description|Australian Bureaucrat (born 1984)}}
{{Short description|Australian (born 1984)}}
{{Infobox astronaut
{{Infobox astronaut
| name = Katherine Bennell-Pegg
| name = Katherine Bennell-Pegg
| image = Katherine Bennell-Pegg (cropped).jpg
| image = Katherine Bennell-Pegg (cropped).jpg
| caption = Bennell-Pegg in 2025
| caption = Bennell-Pegg in 2025
| type = [[Australian Space Agency]] astronaut
| type =
| birth_date = {{birth year and age|1984}}
| birth_date = {{birth year and age|1984}}
| birth_place = [[Sydney]], [[New South Wales]], Australia
| birth_place = [[Sydney]], [[New South Wales]], Australia
== Awards ==
== Awards ==
In March 2023, she was named as the overall winner in addition to the winner of the Leader of the Year category at the Woman of the Year Awards in Adelaide.<ref>{{cite news |last=Polymeneas |first=Evangeline |date=7 March 2023 |title=Out of this world: South Australia’s best recognised in Woman of the Year Awards |work=The Advertiser |publisher=News Corp Australia |location= |url=https://www.adelaidenow.com.au/news/south-australia/out-of-this-world-south-australias-best-recognised-in-woman-of-the-year-awards/news-story/057160a1a9cf45df030a91ec33521484 |access-date=9 March 2023 |quote=The sky was not the limit for the winner of the OCPSE Leader of the Year and overall winner, Katherine Bennell Pegg, who dreamt of being sent to space…}}</ref> In 2020, she was selected as a member fellow of the Karman Project.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Members {{!}} The Karman Project |url=https://www.karmanproject.org/members/#community-fellows |access-date=2025-08-13 |website=www.karmanproject.org}}</ref>
In March 2023, she was named as the overall winner in addition to the winner of the Leader of the Year category at the Woman of the Year Awards in Adelaide.<ref>{{cite news |last=Polymeneas |first=Evangeline |date=7 March 2023 |title=Out of this world: South Australia’s best recognised in Woman of the Year Awards |work=The Advertiser |publisher=News Corp Australia |location= |url=https://www.adelaidenow.com.au/news/south-australia/out-of-this-world-south-australias-best-recognised-in-woman-of-the-year-awards/news-story/057160a1a9cf45df030a91ec33521484 |access-date=9 March 2023 |quote=The sky was not the limit for the winner of the OCPSE Leader of the Year and overall winner, Katherine Bennell Pegg, who dreamt of being sent to space…}}</ref> In 2020, she was selected as a member fellow of the Karman Project.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Members {{!}} The Karman Project |url=https://www.karmanproject.org/members/#community-fellows |access-date=2025-08-13 |website=www.karmanproject.org}}</ref>
== Public outreach and STEM advocacy ==
In August 2024, Bennell-Pegg undertook a National Science Week roadshow across four states and territories to promote STEM participation and careers.<ref>{{cite web |title=Make space for Aussie astronaut this National Science Week |url=https://www.space.gov.au/news-and-media/make-space-for-aussie-astronaut-at-national-science-week-2024 |website=Australian Space Agency |date=1 August 2024}}</ref>
In May 2025, she delivered a series of public talks, ”Making space for a sustainable future”, at the Australian Pavilion during Expo 2025 Osaka.<ref>{{cite web |title=Making space for a sustainable future |url=https://theme-weeks.expo2025.or.jp/en/program/detail/67d52cd10fb1e.html |publisher=Expo 2025 Theme Weeks |date=23–24 May 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Making space for a sustainable future |url=https://www.industry.gov.au/expo-2025-osaka/making-space-sustainable-future |publisher=Department of Industry, Science and Resources |date=23–24 May 2025}}</ref>
She has given keynote addresses at the Australian Space Forum, including a 2025 talk on the benefits of microgravity for health and medical research.<ref>{{cite web |title=Health in Orbit: The Microgravity Opportunity |url=https://australianspaceforum.com.au/progam/health-in-orbit/ |publisher=Australian Space Forum |date=15 July 2025}}</ref>
In July 2025, Bennell-Pegg joined Scitech’s Mission: SPACE program for primary students, discussing space careers and research.<ref>{{cite web |title=Aussie students to explore space careers with astronauts |url=https://www.scitech.org.au/2025/07/aussie-students-to-explore-space-careers-with-astronauts/ |publisher=Scitech |date=21 July 2025}}</ref>
She has also appeared on national broadcast programs discussing astronaut training and science outreach.<ref>{{cite web |title=Katherine Bennell-Pegg – Australia’s astronaut-in-waiting |url=https://www.abc.net.au/listen/programs/scienceshow/katherine-bennell-pegg-australia-s-astronaut-in-waiting/104292964 |work=ABC Radio National – The Science Show |date=30 August 2024}}</ref>
== References ==
== References ==
Australian Astronaut (born 1984)
Katherine Bennell-Pegg (born 1984) is Director of Space Technology at the Australian Space Agency.[1] In 2024, she became the first qualified astronaut under the Australian flag as well as the first female Australian to be trained as an astronaut.[2] She is a dual Australian and British citizen.
Early life and education
[edit]
Bennell-Pegg was born in Sydney and grew up in the Northern Beaches area.[2][3] She completed a Bachelor of Engineering (Honours), Aeronautical & Space Engineering and a Bachelor of Advanced Science majoring in Physics at the University of Sydney.[4]
Upon completion of her double-degrees, Bennell-Pegg received an Erasmus Mundus full scholarship to study in Germany, Sweden, United Kingdom and the Netherlands as part of the Joint European Master in Space Science and Technology programme.[5] Under this program, she completed a Masters of Science in Astronautics and Space Engineering at Cranfield University (1st prize shared) and a Masters of Science in Space Technology at Luleå University of Technology.
During her university education, Bennell-Pegg also completed the Space Studies Program at the International Space University, alongside two internships. These included working as a Thermal Engineer at the European Space Agency, and at NASA Ames designing a low-cost spacecraft development platform.
Bennell-Pegg also served in the Australian Army Reserve for which she was awarded the Sword of Honour and the Sir Thomas Blamey Memorial Award.[6]
Bennell-Pegg’s first job after her MScs was as a mission systems engineer at Airbus UK, working on a range of future missions and concept studies, including Martian in-situ resource utilisation (ISRU), future remote sensing missions and space debris removal. She also worked as a thermal architect on the LISA Pathfinder team during the thermal test campaign.
She was transferred to Airbus Defence and Space Germany in 2016 where she worked as a project manager and systems engineer of advanced robotic projects, as well as being the Service Operations Lead for the Bartolomeo International Space Station Platform.
Australian Space Agency
[edit]
Bennell-Pegg moved back to Australia to support the growing local space sector and started her position as the Assistant Manager of Space Capability and Robotics & Automation at the Australian Space Agency based in Adelaide, South Australia. In 2022 she was promoted to the role of Director of Space Technology.[1]
In 2022, Bennell-Pegg delivered The Warren Centre for Advanced Engineering Innovation Lecture.[6]
Australian astronaut candidate
[edit]
Bennell-Pegg applied to join the European Astronaut Corps as a British dual citizen in early 2021.[7] She was one of the 25 finalists for the 2022 ESA Astronaut Group, but was not selected as part of the 17-person crew.[8] However, the Australian Space Agency sponsored her training with the European Space Agency (ESA), announcing in March 2023 that she would train alongside the mission crew at the European Astronaut Centre (EAC).[7] This marked the first time ESA provided basic training to an astronaut candidate from an international partner, making the EAC the third centre in the world to do so.[9] Bennell-Pegg became the first person to train as an astronaut under the Australian flag, marking a significant achievement for the country’s representation in human spaceflight. Previous Australian-born astronauts, Paul Scully-Power and Andy Thomas, flew to space as US citizens representing NASA.[2] UK-born Australian citizen Meganne Christian was also selected as a member of the 2022 ESA astronaut reserve, representing the UK Space Agency.[10] Bennell-Pegg completed the ESA Basic Training curriculum and graduated with her ESA classmates from “The Hoppers” group on 22 April 2024 as a fully qualified astronaut.[11][12]
Royal Australian Air Force
[edit]
On 5 December 2024, Bennell-Pegg was appointed as a reservist Group Captain in the Royal Australian Air Force in the role of a Specialist Capability Officer in the Air Force Reserve. Her duties include instructing and informing colleagues about human performance optimisation, space capabilities and technologies, and how to build the necessary resilience for a resourceful, ready and inclusive workforce.[13]
In March 2023, she was named as the overall winner in addition to the winner of the Leader of the Year category at the Woman of the Year Awards in Adelaide.[14] In 2020, she was selected as a member fellow of the Karman Project.[15]
Public outreach and STEM advocacy
[edit]
In August 2024, Bennell-Pegg undertook a National Science Week roadshow across four states and territories to promote STEM participation and careers.[16]
In May 2025, she delivered a series of public talks, Making space for a sustainable future, at the Australian Pavilion during Expo 2025 Osaka.[17][18]
She has given keynote addresses at the Australian Space Forum, including a 2025 talk on the benefits of microgravity for health and medical research.[19]
In July 2025, Bennell-Pegg joined Scitech’s Mission: SPACE program for primary students, discussing space careers and research.[20]
She has also appeared on national broadcast programs discussing astronaut training and science outreach.[21]
