<
https://www.thestranger.com/forced-out/2023/10/30/79233483/forced-out-the-electrical-engineer>
"From the parking lot of the launch control center on Kennedy Space Center in
Cape Canaveral, Florida, Robin Witt watched the Orion spacecraft leave earth on
the most powerful rocket ever built. It was 1:47 am, and the engine spat a
ferocious plume of fire that lit up the night sky as if it were day. The
thunderous roar reverberated through her shoes from miles away. Witt, an
electrical engineer, had helped launch that craft for Artemis 1, an uncrewed
mission around the moon. She speaks of the experience with awe.
“That was my dream–that
is my dream,” she said. “That was the greatest moment
in my life… Nothing I've ever seen before–and probably ever will see again–will
compare to that moment.”
The launch happened about six months before she quit her job at a company that
contracts for NASA. Next year, when astronauts land on the moon for the first
time since 1972, Robin won’t be there to see it. She will be living in Chicago.
She’d decided to leave because of anti-transgender laws that she saw as a part
of a precipitous fall into authoritarian politics in Florida.
“It’s changed night and day,” she said. “It’s so drastic, it’s almost funny, in
a dark way. Last year, I was talking about wanting to support the next launch
and doing all that. And now, I can’t leave fast enough.”"
Via Diane A.
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
