Senator Collins Sits Down with Maine Astronaut Dr. Jessica Meir

Download High-Resolution Video HERE.
Download High-Resolution Photos HERE and HERE.

Washington, D.C. – Yesterday, U.S. Senator Susan Collins met with NASA astronaut Jessica Meir, a native of Caribou, Maine, in her D.C. office. Dr. Meir conducted the first three all-woman spacewalks with fellow astronaut, Christina Koch, which totaled 21 hours and 44 minutes. Yesterday’s visit is Dr. Meir’s first time on Capitol Hill since returning from space in April 2020.

“Dr. Meir’s journey from the halls of Caribou High School to the vastness of space serves as inspiration for children throughout Maine and across the country that they, too, can achieve their dreams,” said Senator Collins. “Mainers are incredibly proud of the work that Dr. Meir has done to advance humanity, from her scientific experiments, to her historic all-woman spacewalks, and it was a pleasure to meet with her and congratulate her on all of her accomplishments.”

On September 25, 2019, Dr. Meir became the first Maine woman to travel to space. During her first spaceflight in 2019, Senator Collins spoke with Dr. Meir while she was working onboard the International Space Station. To congratulate Dr. Meir and the first all-woman spacewalk, Senator Collins led a bipartisan resolution to fully integrate women into the astronaut corps and ensure that one of the next humans to walk on the moon will be a woman.

Most recently, Dr. Meir served as a flight engineer on the International Space Station for Expedition 61 and 62, from September 2019 to April 2020. Throughout her time in space, Dr. Meir contributed to hundreds of experiments in biology, Earth science, human research, physical sciences, and technology development. In total, she has spent 205 days in space, that included 3,280 orbits of Earth and a total travel distance of nearly 87 million miles.

In 2016, Senator Collins and Dr. Meir were two of the six inaugural inductees of the Caribou High School Alumni Hall of Fame.

###