Katherine Bennell-Pegg on making history as Australia's first astronaut, the intense training and why space travel is worth the risks

When Katherine Bennell-Pegg was in high school, she was asked to write down three career options to pursue. She wrote down one - astronaut. Last year, she not only fulfilled that ambition but she made history in doing so, becoming Australia’s first female astronaut and the first person to qualify as an astronaut under the Australian flag. For this episode, Julia met Katherine at the Australian Space Agency in Adelaide, where the mother-of-two is the Director of Space Technology. They discussed the intense training she’s undergone, her passion to progress action on global issues like climate change, the importance of diversity in space and why space travel is worth the risks. Show notes: Learn more about Katherine Bennell-Pegg and the work of the Australian Space Agency: Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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Katherine Bennell-Pegg on making history as Australia's first astronaut, the intense training and why space travel is worth the risks is an episode from A Podcast of One's Own with Julia Gillard by A Podcast of One's Own with Julia Gillard.

This episode is 44:28 long.

This episode was published on Aug 20, 2025.

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