Almost 20 years ago Roberta Bondar autographed one of her books for me (signed “Reach for the stars Natalie, and I’ll see you there”). After 20+ years chasing a dream of becoming an astronaut (no, I am not one yet!), I am part of a museum exhibit alongside her, as well as Canadian Physician Shawna Pandya. Just unbelievable! If you are in Toronto, you MUST check out the Women In Space exhibit at the Ontario Science Center, showing as part of their 50th anniversary celebrations this year.

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Slideshow photo credits: Ontario Science Center

Right next to my panel in the exhibit is a Barbie doll that my mom bought when I finished grad school. She thought maybe one day I could take it to space. I have not made it to space mom, but I could still autograph it 😉

Additionally, Engineer, physician, and former Canadian Space Agency astronaut Robert Thirsk, Software Engineer and NASA historian Ben Feist, as well as Mark Armstrong (son of the first person to walk on the Moon) were all in attendance for the premiere evening of the exhibit. While visiting the OSC, you can also watch films on the IMAX Dome.

Showing now is Apollo 11: First Steps Edition . The movie “showcases the real-life moments of humankind’s first steps on the Moon. In this critically-acclaimed documentary, the filmmakers reconstruct the final moments of preparation, liftoff, landing and return of this historic mission—one of humanity’s greatest achievements and the first to put men on the Moon”. We had the privilege of hearing from Ben Feist talk about his exciting work on the Apollo 11 movie, as well as his work reconstructing Apollo 11 mission control displays!