IWASM Kids Club

Roberta Bondar

Roberta Lynn Bondar was born December 4, 1945 in Ontario, Canada. After graduating with a Bachelors in zoology and agriculture from the University of Guelph, Roberta went on to receive a Ph.D. in neuroscience from the University of Toronto.

In 1984 Roberta began astronaut training and in 1990 became a Payload Specialist for the first International Microgravity Laboratory Mission (IML-1). In 1992 Roberta flew in the Space Shuttle Discovery with mission STS-42 to the Spacelab Module (no longer in use).

After Roberta returned to earth she wrote a book titled Touching The Earth about her experience in space. She also worked with a team of researchers at NASA examining data obtained from astronauts on 24 space missions to better understand the mechanisms underlying the body's ability to recover from exposure to space.

From 2003 to 2009, Roberta was the Chancellor of Trent University. In honor of Roberta’s many achievements she has had parks, buildings, and schools such as “Roberta Bondar Public School” in Brampton, Ontario named after her.

Roberta enjoys photographing nature, biking, hot air ballooning, roller blading, and flying. Roberta will be carrying the Olympic Torch in the 2010 Winter Olympics.

To find more information about Roberta visit http://www.asc-csa.gc.ca/.