Reach Across the Stars 3.1

In the app’s journeys, a current scientist takes viewers into her work environment, recalling her favorite career moments as well as challenges and obstacles. Some of the feature stories combine audio interviews, video, 3D environments, and 360-degree virtual reality content to allow viewers to gain insight into the experiences of these scientific figures.

Users can delve into NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory with astronaut Cady Coleman, venture through the Crab Nebula pulsar alongside astrophysicist Jocelyn Bell Burnell, and witness a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the Mars 2020 rover with Christina Hernandez, an instrument engineer at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

The app features notable women such as computer scientist Grace Hopper, astronomer Nancy Roman, mathematician Katherine Johnson, physicist and chemist Marie Curie, and astronauts Mae Jemison and Sally Ride.

The project garnered support from the Smithsonian American Women’s History Initiative, Because of Her Story. Launched in 2018, this initiative stands as one of the most extensive endeavors in the nation to research, collect, document, exhibit, and disseminate the captivating narratives of women.

Furthermore, the project is endorsed by Chandra. The Chandra X-ray Observatory, one of NASA’s “Great Observatories,” has a close affiliation with the Smithsonian as its science and operations center is located at the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory in Massachusetts. The Chandra X-ray Center is managed by NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama.