In the middle of last year, the electronic engineer Katya Echazarreta became the first Mexican and the youngest American to travel to space after participate in mission NS-21 of blue origin.
The journey, barely 10 minutes, not only changed her life when she was 26 years old, but also catapulted her to fame in her country. Now, she paused in her run at the POT and struggle to speed up the aerospace industry in Mexico promoting a reform to the constitution and legislation for that sector.
“That is the most basic, the most necessary, because not only is it stopping the progress of the Government, of the Mexican Space Agency (AEM), but also of private companies that might want to create something, like SpaceX, blue origin, Axiombut they can’t,” he said in an interview with Reuters.
The astronaut born in Guadalajara and who immigrated to the United States with her family at the age of eight, said that she is looking for two reforms to the Magna Carta that would increase the AEM budget, create rocket launch bases and facilitate the installation of signatures aerospace.
The Mexico’s civil aerospace industry It has taken a leap in recent years, but has focused more on manufacturing aircraft parts and equipment maintenance than spacecraft and rockets.
Echazarreta hopes that the changes can be approved before the current congress concludes its legislature, in August 2024, and that Mexico becomes a country “that develops its own technology” so that, in the not so distant future, it can take astronauts to the moon, past the Artemis program.
For now, in addition, he seeks to make a difference in his sector, which is why he is trying to shape a foundation to support space technology and development.
“For me it was very sad to talk with engineers who studied the same degree as me, who (now) are fixing cell phones, who are fixing washing machines or who have completely abandoned engineering,” he said in Mexico City.
I had to do something about it and if I couldn’t fix everything and I couldn’t bring opportunities to everyone, at least I’m going to be able to bring opportunities to some.”
