Letting Go of a Dream: Dr. Kimberly Robinson on 31 Years at NASA

Letting go of a dream does not make you a failure. Dr. Kimberly Robinson, a 31-year NASA veteran, former astronaut trainer, and former CEO of the U.S. Space & Rocket Center, talks about the astronaut who changed the course of her life at a high school awards ceremony, the eyesight rule that closed the door on her own astronaut dream, and why she stopped defining herself by one title.

A NASA astronaut in a blue flight suit flew in on a T-38 to hand a Birmingham high school student an award, and that student decided on the spot what her life would be. She never caught the astronaut's name, and she spent years trying to find her so she could say thank you. She also talks about taking over the U.S. Space & Rocket Center when it could not promise to pay her salary, and what young people around the world are looking for when they picture a technical career: the next handhold, not the whole route up the mountain.

▶️ Watch the full conversation on YouTube: https://youtu.be/XFQgXbK226I

CHAPTERS

00:00 The astronaut who flew in on a T-38

00:20 What if one moment you didn't choose set your course

01:28 Meet Dr. Kimberly Robinson

03:51 Faith and belief in yourself

04:38 Prayer, meditation, and choosing the day

05:07 The award that changed everything

06:31 "Women shouldn't be in this field"

07:35 The astronaut dream that didn't happen