How to be an Astronaut with Australian of the Year, Katherine Bennell-Pegg

Katherine Bennell-Pegg is the 2026 Australian of the Year and the first person to qualify as an astronaut under Australia’s own space program. She’s an engineer, a space leader, and one of just a handful of people on the planet to complete astronaut training with the European Space Agency selected from more than 22,000 applicants. In this chat with Helen Smith, Katherine unpacks what it really takes to become an astronaut, the invisible ways space technology shapes our everyday lives, and whether we’ve truly made progress for women in STEM.