Tensions between the United States of America and Iran may be at an all-time high but that has not stopped Jasmin Moghbeli from becoming the first Iranian-American astronaut in NASA. Jasmin 'Jaws' Moghbeli earned her nickname as she served her time as a decorated attack helicopter pilot in Afghanistan where she flew over 150 missions.
Moghbeli is an MIT graduate and a Marine Corps major and now adds to her resume, the title of the first Iranian American astronaut.
Speaking to news agency AFP, Moghbeli said, "I would love for everyone to be able to be inspired by everyone, but it is a little easier to be inspired by someone who looks like you or has something in common with you, so I do hope there is that influence."
She said her parents fled their native country after the 1979 Islamic Revolution. Moghbeli grew up in New York, USA.
At the age of 15, she attended several space camps solidifying the base of her ambitions to reach the stars. Moghbeli signed up in the US Army in 2005, 4 years after 9/11. She said her parents were worried about what their daughter might face as a person of Middle Eastern heritage.
"But once I joined, they gave me absolute support," she said, crediting her family for backing her.
Moghbeli spoke fondly of her close friendships with US military personnel during her time serving in the army and said that the US-Iran situation has not changed that in any way.
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