In a twist on this series, we video-interviewed students in astronomy and astrophysics to highlight their personal and academic career paths. The purpose of this series is three-fold. It aims not only to give a voice and exposure to those who are up and coming in the field but also to give feedback to the Astronomical community at large about the experiences of students who identify as women. The hope is that these interviews will not only share advice and lessons learned but will shed light on how to encourage and inspire more women, from various backgrounds and skill sets, to follow space trajectories, and reach towards the stars.
By: Libby Fenstermacher
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| Image Credit: L. Wiser |
Below is our interview with Lindsey Wiser, a fifth-year Astrophysics PhD Student at Arizona State University (ASU). Lindsey’s current research involves studying exoplanet atmospheres and space science mission development. She remembers first being drawn to space when very young. Beingdriven by existential questions, this passion was inspired and solidified through reading and watching Star Trek: TOS (The Original Series), with her mom. Before ASU, Lindsey graduated from Johns Hopkins University, where she received a Bachelor’s degree in both Engineering Mechanics and Earth and Planetary Science. Lindsey is heavily involved in science policy and advocacy, including leading the Space Generation Advisory Council's (SGAC) Policy and Advocacy Task Force for the NCAC region (North America, Central America, and the Caribbean). Outside of research and policy, Lindsey enjoys spending time with her cat, exploring the outdoors, and watching Formula 1 racing.
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| Image Credit: L. Wiser |
“There are lots of ways to be an astronomer or to be involved in astronomy that aren't necessarily academia, and I think it takes time for everyone to learn that in astronomy. (...) You can help on space missions, or policy and advocacy, or outreach and teaching. There are lots of components to careers in astronomy and astrophysics that aren't just writing papers all day, every day. And that's something that I think sometimes gets lost, especially maybe for kind of earlier or younger students or people kind of earlier in the learning process.”
-Lindsey Wiser
Transcript: Libby Fenstermacher and Lindsey Wiser
Libby: Hey, everybody. My name is Libby Fenstermacher. Thanks for joining me today. I am here interviewing Lindsay, and she's going to tell us a little bit about being a woman and a student in astronomy. So, thanks so much for joining me. Do you want to tell me a little bit about your background?
Lindsey: Yeah, sure. So hi, everybody. So yeah, I got interested in space as a kid. I wasn't sure what to do with that interest immediately. But I knew NASA was cool, and I knew that NASA probably hired engineers. So, I did mechanical engineering first at Johns Hopkins University. And a couple of years into that, I'd done some science internships, and I did the Brooke Owens Fellowship for women and gender minorities in aerospace. And through those, through that fellowship and those internships, I realized I was really excited about science specifically and about policy. And so, I'm now going into my fifth year of my PhD in astrophysics. I study exoplanet atmospheres nowadays, looking at atmosphere models and data from the James Webb Space Telescope. I'm also doing some science, policy, advocacy, and submission work.
Libby: Awesome. What inspired you to choose a path in astronomy and astrophysics in the first place?
Lindsey: I think so, like I said, kind of from a kid I was already interested in space. I think I was always really excited by the unknown and sort of like existential questions. And so that combined with… I did a lot of reading and watching Star Trek with my mom, kind of all those things combined, into an interest in space exploration. And then, yeah, science specifically came a little bit later on, but like later into my undergraduate degree. But yeah, space from the beginning.
Libby: I'm a big Trekkie myself, so that definitely inspired me to want to be a part of this community.
Lindsey: Yeah, it's a good community.
Libby: It's like I was saying this to another one of my interviewees. It's like NASA…is its own version of Starfleet, you know?
Lindsey: That's fair.
Libby: But what about astronomy excites you?
Lindsey: So, Earth is definitely my favorite planet, but I think that in high school, I thought it… it felt kind of absurd to me that Earth is one planet of so many in a much bigger universe, and that I didn't really learn much about space through school. I kind of had to find it myself. I think nowadays I understand the focus on Earth. I think preserving Earth is critical. Earth is fantastic, but what space does for me is really put Earth into perspective. So, you know, I spend a lot of my day thinking about other planets that aren't even in our solar system. And studying that diversity of planets is really exciting from a personal perspective. But I also think from a broader perspective it helps to put Earth into context and helps us to realize how valuable our own planet really is to protect. Plus, space pictures are fun and pretty, and so I think there's always something to be said for that. And using astronomy as a way to inspire an interest in science and technology, yeah. And then there are also so many components of the space world beyond astronomy. There's so many ways that satellites help people on Earth and Yeah, I don't want to lose sight of all those things either, because astronomy really excites me for the science. But there's also a much broader space community that is really valuable for a lot of different reasons.
Libby: I came across a project earlier from the European Space Agency, actually, where they're using satellites to monitor organic cotton production in different regions and to see policy uptakes with that. So, it's really amazing all that we can do with space.
Lindsey: Yeah, that’s cool.
Libby: What about astronomy is challenging for you and astrophysics is challenging for you. And what have you done to overcome those challenges?
Lindsey: Yeah, so I think the process of doing research hasn't always come easily to me, and I don't think I'm alone in that. I think for a lot of astronomers, the process of research is kind of a learned process. It doesn't come naturally to everybody, and that's OK. I think I'm naturally a pretty big-picture thinker. And so when I'm approaching a research problem and there's something that's kind of much more specific or technical, that's not and that hasn't always been easy for me to really narrow my mind in on things like that. But over time, I've definitely learned how to put seemingly very kind of small, specific challenges into a much broader picture in my mind, which helps me really motivate… like, OK, why am I spending multiple days trying to fix this one bug in my code? Like what? What am I really going to get out of that? And putting it in the bigger picture in my brain has really helped. And that's a constantly evolving process of learning to do that well. I've also found that having a diversity of different projects is really valuable to me. So having multiple research projects going on at once or having side projects kind of helping support a mission or helping to do some policy or science advocacy work, having those other ways so that I can. Utilizing other pieces of my brain whenever I need a switch is really helpful for me.
Libby: That probably helps you holistically as well with problem-solving. Coming from all those different angles, you're probably able to see things in a unique perspective.
Lindsey: Yeah, I think that, yeah, I think all of us like it helps when you just have other, whether it's hobbies or other components of your job, just like being able to use your brain in different ways is helpful.
Libby: Yeah, no one track mind has got anything much accomplished. What do you think is a common misperception about astronomers, astronomy and astrophysics, and the educational path in general?
Lindsey: Let me think. I think, yeah, a big one, at least that I wish I had kind of understood earlier on, is it doesn't have to be pure research all the time. There are lots of ways to be an astronomer or to be involved in astronomy that aren't necessarily academia, and I think it takes time for everyone to kind of learn that in astronomy. And so certainly people who want to stay in peer research or working in academia, if you want to do that, fantastic. But there's also lots of ways to stay involved that aren't just that. So, you can, you know, help on space missions. Or policy and advocacy or outreach and teaching. Yeah, there's lots of components to careers in astronomy and astrophysics that aren't just writing papers all day, every day. And that's something that I think sometimes gets lost, especially maybe for kind of earlier or younger students or people kind of earlier in the learning process. Yeah.
Libby: On the Committee for the Status of Women in Astronomy resource page on the AAS website, there's actually a whole section dedicated to alternative paths within astronomy. So, I would recommend anybody who's watching this video check that out. I will share the link on the blog post itself. What are you currently working on right now?
Lindsey: Yeah, so a few things. I think I've mentioned a few of them, but... I am working on looking at data from JWST, the James Webb Space Telescope, and developing atmosphere models to try to compare our observations of exoplanets to models of exoplanet atmospheres to learn more about what are the atmospheres made of and what might their climates be like. A lot of these planets are nothing like the planets we see in our own solar system. And so, it's really a fun puzzle to try to figure that out. I am also a graduate student shadow on the Pandora Smallsat mission, which is a NASA mission that plans to launch next year. That'll help us better understand the stars, the host stars that there are exoplanets orbiting. That'll also help us better understand when we're looking at these systems, what information is coming from the star, and what's coming from the planet. So, it helps us understand both a bit better. And so for that, I've been helping with some outreach initiatives. I've also been helping to plan the commissioning process, which is basically the first month after Pandora launches…What are the tests that we need to do? What are the calibrations that need to happen to make sure that the instruments are working the way we need them to, to get all the science done? Yeah. And then outside of my kind of PhD world, I'm also doing quite a bit of volunteer policy and advocacy work through different channels, but mostly through the Space Generation Advisory Council. Which is an international network of young professionals in the space world that also has some involvement with the United Nations. So yeah, that's another network that I really encourage any early career and student space people to look into cause it's been really valuable for me.
Libby: Absolutely. I have been a part of SGAC myself on the Our Giant Leap project group which focuses on gender equality and diversity in the space sector. So, yes, anybody watching this, please get involved with SGAC. If you're under the age of 35, it will…It's just such an amazing network and you won't be disappointed.
Lindsey: Yeah, you won’t.
Libby: What are your near future plans? What are you looking to do after you get your PhD?
Lindsey: Yeah. So yeah, I have a couple more papers to finish up in the coming months and then I'm going to be starting to apply for postdocs and jobs in the fall. So yeah, that's the near future. Kind of the next year-ish of my life is making sure everything's done. So I'm, I'm done with the PhD.
Libby: Awesome. But what are your aspirations beyond that? Let's say like 80 when you're 80 years old, what do you want to have accomplished?
Lindsey: Yeah, I think that. My answer to that question is constantly evolving, but at the moment I'm really excited about supporting space missions, and helping to formulate future missions. So yeah, working on space missions in some capacity is something I'm really excited about doing more of. And then also the policy work. I definitely see a future in which I'm hopefully working on government policy in some capacity, helping to ensure that all the cool science that we do as astronomers can continue to happen, whether that's through finding funding for it or coming up with policies to help maintain the sustainability of space activity in the future. So yeah, there's a lot of, there's a lot of really cool kind of policy questions that I also hope to contribute to.
Libby: It sounds like you are making your mark there and I'm excited to see what you put forth and what you come up with and I'm just going to be following your journey.
Lindsey: Thank you. You too and in the SGAC stuff. I hadn't. I didn't know you were part of that. So that's really awesome.
Libby: What advice would you give to someone considering a trajectory similar to yours?
Lindsey: Definitely reach out to people who are doing things that you think are cool and just ask them about it. I think, yeah, a big part of figuring out whatever it is I want to do next is always just like talking to random people, cold emailing people, or talking to friends of friends and just being like. What do you do on the day-to-day and not being afraid to ask them what don't you like about your job? Because I found that that's also a really great, great question depending on who you're talking to. But yeah, it helps to just kind of learn what people are actually doing day-to-day, cause sometimes it's not always obvious.
Libby: That’s really great advice. Did you receive any mentorship yourself? And if so, do you have any advice that you'd like to share that you received?
Lindsey: I certainly have a lot of mentorship. It's definitely important to have people around you that want to support you in doing what you want to do, regardless of whether or not it's what they're doing. So that's one thing I found, finding people who maybe don't have the same career path as me, but are really encouraging and supportive of me doing what I want to do. I think [it] has been fantastic having mentors that are both older than you and kind of have more experience as well as mentors who are the same age as you or even younger than you. I do think that having kind of a diversity of career perspectives can be valuable too. I have a couple of close friends who have very similar kinds of goals to me who are also in the same stage as me. And so they're also mentors in a way that we can kind of support each other and help each other as we try to do things. And then, yeah, finding mentors through whether it's fellowships or cold emails or internships or whatever, kind of maintaining those contacts over time. Yeah, just kind of maintaining those relationships. Yeah, I think one big lesson you asked me about lessons. One big lesson I think I have been learning is how to say no to things. Because if it hasn't become clear, I have a lot of different interests and a lot of different things and I can't do everything at the same time. And so learning to say no to things and to have learning that it's OK to be really focused on one area that I'm excited about at some point in my life. So, I'm doing a lot of science right now for my PhD. It's possible that the next thing will be more mission programmatic focused or policy or maybe more science, but it's OK for those priorities to shift over time. And it just helps you build more experiences overall. So, I think that's, yeah, that's a big lesson that I've learned.
Libby: I think it's a good one. It's great advice. I tend to be someone with my fingers in many, many piles at the same time. So, I totally relate to that. No is one of those words that can be hard to learn how to say sometimes. So, if you have any great advice on how to implement that, you'll have to pass it along later. What if, what if any changes would you like to see for women in this field?
Lindsey: Yeah, I think definitely encouraging more women and gender minorities in general in astronomy would be fantastic. I do think that certainly, of course, anyone should be able to leave a field if they aren't excited about it, but I would hope that it's not because they didn't feel welcome there. It can be for other reasons. And so, I think I have been mostly lucky in that most of my mentors have been relatively welcoming, and I've had women who I can look up to. But that is not the case for everyone. I certainly know that that's not the case for everyone. And lots of people have subconscious biases too. So yeah, one example is I've been told a couple of times that my being ambitious is a flaw. I don't think that's true. I also don't know how many men get told that, but I would guess not as many. So when it was told to me it didn't come across maliciously, but obviously it was not a good thing to say and so continuing to be aware of biases like that and yeah, just trying to maintain a welcoming environment, I think would be great to constantly see more of.
Libby: Yeah, that sort of statement is, I mean, that's the definition of unconscious bias right there. Absolutely meant with no ill intent, I'm sure. But just, yeah, I doubt that was asked to many men. Little curveball here. What's your favorite movie or TV show? I know we talked about Star Trek….
Lindsey: Yeah, I mean, that's the classic answer. So, it's kind of a boring answer coming from an astronomer, but I do think it's the one I have to go with just because, I don't know, I haven't. Yeah, I think for a sentimental perspective, I have to go with Star Trek.
Libby: Which series?
Lindsey: So, I grew up on the original series. So, if we're going sentimental, definitely, definitely that one. But I also loved it when the movies with Chris Pine were coming out in my kind of teenage years, I think. So yeah, those are great.
Libby: They're coming out with another one of those.
Lindsey: Oh, really? I didn't even know that. That's exciting.
Libby: Yeah, I don't know when it is, but I know it’s happening. So keep your eyes peeled on your Google feed.
Lindsey: Yeah, that's exciting. Yeah.
Libby: Is there anything else you want to share today?
Lindsey: No, just, yeah. Thanks for having me. It was a good chat. I think this is definitely valuable. Having conversations like this is valuable. So yeah, I encourage people to just kind of reach out if they have any questions or want to chat or anything like that.
Libby: Thank you so much for meeting with me. This has been great, and I can't wait to share your story.
Lindsey: Hey, thanks so much.
Libby: Yep. Have a great day. You too.
Lindsey: You too.
Libby: Bye.
Lindsey: Bye.
