Bank of America Women’s Leadership Series Spotlights Trailblazing Women Breaking Barriers in Space Exploration
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HOUSTON, June 18, 2021 — Asia Society Texas Center wrapped up the sixth year of its Bank of America Women’s Leadership Series with a third and final webcast celebrating women in space exploration who have broken barriers on earth – and beyond. NASA flight director Pooja Jesrani, astronaut and Marine Corps test pilot Jasmin Moghbeli, and NASA’s Jet Propulsion Lab (JPL) principal systems engineer Grace Tan-Wang joined moderator Rose-Ann Aragon, Space Reporter for KPRC Channel 2 News, for a conversation about how they got started in their space careers, what their work is like, and their advice for future generations.
Beginning the journey
The three speakers each shared how they began their journeys into their space careers and emphasized the immense influence from their families. Moghbeli, born in Germany, spoke about her parents’ courage in fleeing Iran after the 1979 revolution and how they began a new life in New York, where she was raised. Jesrani attributed her initial interest in space to her father, whose own avid interest in space began early and persisted throughout his life even as he became an orthopedic surgeon.
Tan-Wang shared a similar story of learning the importance of hard work and trying new things from her mother, who along with Tan-Wang’s father had immigrated from China for new opportunities in the U.S. As an engineer, Tan-Wang’s mother also set an early example for her of a successful woman in STEM. Tan-Wang said when she herself was studying at MIT, women made up only 25 percent of the class, but shared that today women are closer to half of the class and are represented across every discipline.
A day on the job
Aragon invited the speakers to share more details about what their jobs entail, including daily life and any particular challenges. Jesrani, as a flight director, manages mission control to support human space flight, which she explained falls into two main parts: planning and execution. Planning includes vehicle dockings and undockings, space walks, science and maintenance, while execution is making sure everything lines up and goes smoothly on the day of, which requires grace under pressure and the ability to calmly figure out logistics and solve problems when things go awry.
At JPL, Tan-Wang explained the focus is on systems in space rather than humans in space — that is, robotic, non-human space exploration such as the Mars rover Perseverance, which she worked on since its early stages of inception, as well as previous rovers Spirit, Opportunity, and Curiosity. She described her job as systems engineer as focused on the big picture and figuring out how to put all the pieces together; a typical day involves meeting with different teams working on a project for hardware, software, and testing. The work requires collaboration, intellectual curiosity, and a healthy amount of paranoia, according to Tan-Wang, to think about what might go wrong and to solve for it.
Moghbeli, who is part of the Artemis generation of astronauts, said that her training was incredibly diverse: one day might involve studying biomedical, while another day would cover robotics, geology, or learning Russian. The Artemis mission’s goal is to return humans to the moon, landing the first female astronaut and next male astronaut by 2024. As Moghbeli explained, because there is such a small group of people involved, each person has to learn a wide range of skills to ensure they can work together to solve problems while in space. For her, she said the most challenging moment of training was putting on the space suit and confronting how difficult it was to move within it, leaving her feeling clumsy, exhausted, and even doubtful about her own abilities. But Moghbeli sees doubt as a natural part of growth. “If you’re pushing yourself to your max potential, you will absolutely fail,” she said. “What’s really important is not to let that overcome you.”
The strength of collaboration and diversity
There was a strong emphasis on the importance of teamwork throughout the program, as each speaker noted the incredible level of collaboration needed for each of their jobs to succeed. Moreover, Jesrani noted that “we’re really standing on the shoulders of giants,” pointing to all the people who came before them and the work that has been done. She is the first female flight director of South Asian descent — and the 15th female flight director in history, out of 101 flight directors — but she noted that over time she is seeing more and more women in mission control.
Jesrani and Moghbeli both emphasized that diversity is vital, particularly diversity of thought and perspectives, as well as of representation of different backgrounds and experiences. Tan-Wang added that their jobs at NASA require a lot of ingenuity and innovation, and indicated that diversity spurs new ideas and better solutions.
Help Us Build a More Inclusive World
Advice for future space explorers
The audience had a chance to ask questions to the speakers, and provided an opportunity for some lighthearted responses. When asked about her favorite TV show, movie, or book about space, Jesrani responded without hesitation, “Apollo 13” and tied it back to an earlier conversation about teamwork and problem-solving. Moghbeli shared her enthusiasm for music, including playing the drums and the numerous guitars displayed on the walls behind her.
When asked their advice for students and future generations interested in pursuing space exploration, the speakers unanimously endorsed finding interests you are passionate about and pursuing them. While good math and science skills are foundational, Moghbeli added to not feel pressure to follow a checklist but rather to find room to grow; she shared that she had pursued sports along with her aerospace engineering degree at MIT. Jesrani also highlighted the need to develop good social and emotional skills, noting again how collaborative and people-oriented the work is.
“Figure out what you feel passionate about, work hard,” said Tan-Wang. “Then it shows that this is what you love and you really enjoy it, and you will do whatever it takes to get it right.”
About the Speakers

Pooja Joshi Jesrani is one of 29 NASA Flight Directors responsible for managing operations for all human spaceflight programs including the current International Space Station (ISS), a habitable artificial satellite and microgravity laboratory carrying an international crew of six astronauts. Jesrani began her NASA career in 2007 as a member of the flight control team operating the ISS’s motion control system (ADCO). She certified to be a guidance, navigation and control front room and backroom flight controller as well as an instructor to the astronauts. In 2016, Jesrani was selected to be a Capsule Communicator (CapCom) for the ISS. In this role she interfaced directly with the astronauts in space, including as the lead CapCom for SpaceX’s 14th mission to the ISS. NASA selected Jesrani to become a Flight Director in 2018 and she has since acted as lead Flight Director for the International Space Station’s 14th Northrup Grumman cargo flight and has supported Russian crewed and uncrewed vehicles. More recently, Jesrani completed her Flight Director certification for the CST-100 Boeing Starliner crewed vehicle, which will be launching American astronauts from U.S. soil in 2021.

Jasmin Moghbeli was selected by NASA to join the 2017 Astronaut Candidate Class. She reported for duty in August 2017 and having completed the initial astronaut candidate training is now eligible for a mission assignment. The New York native earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Aerospace Engineering with Information Technology at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a Master of Science in Aerospace Engineering from the Naval Postgraduate School. Moghbeli, an AH-1W Super Cobra pilot and Marine Corps test pilot, has over 150 combat missions and 2,000 hours of flight time in over 25 different aircraft. She is also a distinguished graduate of the U.S. Naval Test Pilot School in Patuxent River, MD.

Grace Tan-Wang is a Principal Systems Engineer at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Lab (JPL), spending first half of her 30+ years in flight systems and the second half in mission operations. She has worked primarily on in-house flight projects such as Cassini, Spirit and Opportunity, Curiosity, and now Perseverance as deputy Chief Engineer for Surface Development. She has also been working on technology advancements such as the Low Density Supersonic Decelerator project and now is co-leading the Europa Lander’s Autonomy task. Grace has a BS in Aeronautics and Astronautics from MIT and a MS in Aerospace Engineering from USC.
About the Moderator

Rose-Ann Aragon is an Emmy award-winning Filipina American reporter for KPRC Ch2 News for NBC in Houston. She was a Bronze Tablet Scholar and graduated summa cum laude in Broadcast Journalism at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. In Houston, Rose-Ann was honored to be selected as KPRC's Space Reporter and has sat down with space legends including Bill Moon, the first Asian American to work in Mission Control; Apollo Flight Director Gene Kranz; and Apollo 13 astronauts Commander Jim Lovell and Fred Haise. As a proud "space nerd," Rose-Ann was on the ground in Florida, covering the launch of the SpaceX Demo-2 mission, the first launch from American soil in over a decade. She also serves on the KPRC committee dedicated to promoting diverse and community-driven storytelling. Her reporting on various news events earned her a Telly, Lone Star Award, two Edward R. Murrow National & Regional awards and several Emmy nominations.
Additionally, Rose-Ann is a co-founder of the Pilipino American Unity for Progress, Inc. (UniPro) Chicago-Midwest Chapter, and was the Programming Director for UniPro Texas, where she founded and directed UniPro Texas' first-ever Lumikha Arts Showcase, the chapter's core art and storytelling event featuring local FilipinX artists.
About the Women's Leadership Series
The Women's Leadership Series (WLS) celebrates influential, diverse women making a substantive impact in both the business and culture arenas, locally and globally.
Previous programs:
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The Women's Leadership Series Steering committee is chaired by Dr. Anne Chao. Members include Nancy C. Allen, Dr. Dina Alsowayel, Lisa Barksdale, The Honorable Theresa Chang, Kathy Goossen, Dr. Ellen Gritz, Dr. Michelle Herrera, Richa Himani, Brigitte Kalai, Mandy Kao, Shirley Kwan, Sultana Mangalji, Niloufar Molavi, Davana Petree, Vani Rao, Sue Sim, and Y. Ping Sun.
About Asia Society at Home
We are dedicated to continuing our mission of building cross-cultural understanding and uplifting human connectivity. Using digital tools, we bring you content for all ages and conversations that matter, in order to spark curiosity about Asia and to foster empathy.
About Asia Society Texas Center
With 13 locations throughout the world, Asia Society is the leading educational organization promoting mutual understanding and strengthening partnerships among the peoples, leaders, and institutions of Asia and West. Asia Society Texas Center executes the global mission with a local focus, enriching and engaging the vast diversity of Houston through innovative, relevant programs in arts and culture, business and policy, education, and community outreach.