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It’s not every day that one gets to meet a real astronaut — let alone a woman — who has piloted NASA’s Space Shuttle more than once.
Commander Susan Kilrain, trailblazing NASA astronaut, distinguished US Navy test pilot and aerospace engineer came to the Garden Route to talk to school pupils in Plett and Knysna on September 15.
I got to listen to her at Knysna Primary School where she was enthusiastically received by a hall full of pupils and their parents.
Her Space Tour 2025 spanned Cape Town and the Garden Route offering pupils and communities a rare opportunity to engage with a true space pioneer, a woman who made her dreams come real.
The purpose of Kilrain’s visit was to spark curiosity in pupils and encourage them to take STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) subjects seriously.
Space Tour 2025 was part of Living Maths’ ongoing mission to empower the next generation of innovators — in collaboration with The Sakhikamva Foundation, Women in Tech, New Space Systems, Mossel Bay Tourism and Plett Tourism.
Living Maths celebrates 30 years in SA this year.
“This tour is more than just a celebration — it’s a powerful way to show students what’s possible when they believe in themselves and pursue big dreams,” Steve Sherman said.
He calls himself chief imagination officer at Living Maths.
“Having someone of Commander Kilrain’s calibre and character share her story is life-changing for many of the students we reach.
“It helps stimulate and promote a love of learning, problem-solving and innovation.”
Kilrain is one of only three women — and the youngest person — to ever pilot the Space Shuttle.
In 1997, she flew two NASA missions, STS-83 and STS-94, spending more than 20 days in space.
Her first mission was cut short due to a potentially life-threatening shuttle system failure, which she navigated with calm precision and professionalism.
She has logged more than 3,000 flight hours in more than 30 different aircraft.
Kilrain is a veteran of the US Navy, having served for 20 years.
She has broken barriers for women in aviation and received the Defence Superior Service Medal.
She worked in mission control for shuttle launches and landings, and later held roles in NASA headquarters in the offices of safety and legislative affairs.
Prior to joining the navy, she was a wind tunnel project officer at Lockheed Corporation and earned a master’s degree in aerospace engineering from Georgia Tech.
Today, she travels the world as a motivational speaker and consultant, especially focused on encouraging young women and underprivileged teens to pursue STEM careers.
She is also an avid photographer, amateur astronomer and mother of four.
She lives in Washington, DC, with her husband, Vice-Admiral Colin Kilrain.
Kilrain grew up in Augusta, Georgia.
“We were poor and I went to one of the worst schools. My dad used to take us to the nearby airport to watch planes taking off and landing because this was free — and this is how my dream to fly was born,” Kilrain said.
“Right then and there I told my parents I wanted to be an astronaut.”
She went to university where she studied aerospace engineering. On graduating she was turned down by the military who told her they weren’t taking women that year, but she got accepted into the navy.
“I was the only woman in a class of 59 men doing hundreds of push-ups, my hair was shaved off, but I came top of the class,” Kilrain said.
She built up hours flying in the navy and was a flight instructor, but it took her three times before she was accepted into NASA where she then flew all their planes — including being the first woman to fly an F-14 Tomcat on the East Coast.
In July 1994, she did a rigorous week-long interview to qualify for a space mission.
“I was put into something like a beach ball and the lights were turned off so I was in a small space in darkness while my heart rate was tested.”
She actually went to sleep and passed this test for claustrophobia with full marks.
She then spent two years in a space shuttle simulator before actually going to space at the age of 34.
She said the G-forces felt like an “elephant on your chest” in the eight-minute ground to orbit trip going at a speed of 28,000km/h.
Kilrain explained that when you slept in space, you went into a pod and floated.
Astronauts have to stay fit and use a bicycle in space. Food is dehydrated and water is added.
There was no shower in space, Kilrain said: “You wash yourself with cloths. When you brush your teeth, you can’t spit the water out or it would float. You either spit it into a cloth or swallow it.”
Toilet business was the worst part of being an astronaut, she said:
“You pee in a funnel which goes overboard, but solid waste goes into a potty.
“And I get asked if it smells in the shuttle and, yes, it does, though we all get used to it, because there is nowhere for the smell molecules to go.”
In a slide presentation, she showed pupils photos she took from outer space of the Nile River and the pyramids.
Kilrain thrilled pupils telling them she had flown the same kind of plane as the one in the movie Top Gun.
She said that at the end of a mission, the best thing in the world was a hot shower and real pizza though at first returning from space left astronauts dizzy and barely able to walk in a straight line.
Kilrain has recently written a book, An Unlikely Astronaut, which is her story she hopes will encourage youngsters to pursue their dreams.
Living Maths teaches a few thousand pupils every week and there is an opportunity for all grades from kindergarten level up where children are helped with maths and taught to solve problems.
The 2025 Living Maths Olympiad will start on October 13.
The South African leg of the Olympiad will end on November 21 and the International leg of the Olympiad will run to December 19.
To find out more about Living Maths go to www.livingmaths.com or email info@livingmaths.com
The Herald
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