On a very long-distance call, students from Georgia Tech and an Atlanta elementary school wanted to know how two women floating 220 miles above the Earth’s surface got there.

Not in the sense of strapping into a capsule atop a rocket, but rather how their passions and careers led them to be NASA astronauts aboard the International Space Station.

After all, it’s not every day you can gather a little bit of career advice from an actual space traveler.

“Find out what you really enjoy doing and pursue that thing,” said Tracy Dyson, who arrived this week for her second stint aboard the space station. “I think about my own upbringing, and my parents never told me or my sister that there was anything we couldn't do or that girls didn't normally do. My parents just let us do the things that we enjoyed doing. So I think what I would say more is to the parents than to the kids: If they show an interest in something, help open the door and pave the way. And let's see what they can do.”

Truthfully, the audience also asked about the physical journey to space along with the metaphorical one. They wanted to know about the food and life in orbit. And they asked about the science that’s keeping the 10 astronauts currently aboard the space station busy.

The conversation with Dyson and crewmate Jeannette Epps was just part of a day-long celebration of women in aerospace hosted by the Women in Engineering (WIE) program and the Daniel Guggenheim School of Aerospace Engineering (AE).

The March 28 event gathered Georgia Tech students and approximately 50 Atlanta-area elementary school students to celebrate and explore the journey of women in AE research, education, and industry.

Get the full story on the College of Engineering website.