September 2024 marked a milestone for human spaceflight when Sarah Gillis performed a stand-up extravehicular activity during the Polaris Dawn mission. This private orbital flight, managed by SpaceX on behalf of Jared Isaacman, secured her place in records as the youngest person to conduct a spacewalk, expanding the operational capabilities of the Dragon spacecraft.
Background and Education
Born in 1994 in Palo Alto, California, Sarah Levine Cooper Gillis pursued a path in aerospace engineering. She graduated from the Shining Mountain Waldorf School in Boulder, Colorado, in 2012. Her higher education took place at the University of Colorado Boulder, where she earned a Bachelor of Science degree in aerospace engineering in 2017. During her studies, she received guidance from former NASA astronaut Joseph R. Tanner.
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Gillis joined SpaceX as an intern in 2015 while still completing her university coursework, focusing on human-in-the-loop testing for the Dragon vehicle. Upon transitioning to a full-time role, she became a lead space operations engineer. Her responsibilities included overseeing training programs for astronauts, specifically for the Crew Dragon vehicle. She provided instruction for participants in the Demo-2 and Crew-1 missions, as well as the Inspiration4 project, which represented the first all-civilian crew to achieve orbit. Her expertise extended to Mission Control, where she served as a Navigation Officer for cargo resupply missions and as a Crew Operations and Resources Engineer for crewed flights.
Polaris Dawn and Beyond
During the Polaris Dawn mission in 2024, Gillis demonstrated the operational viability of private sector spacewalks. Beyond technical maneuvers, she participated in artistic outreach, performing a violin solo during the flight to benefit St. Jude Children's Research Hospital and El Sistema. Her professional profile also includes media appearances, notably in the 2021 Netflix series Countdown: Inspiration4 Mission to Space. Following her orbital experience, she transitioned into government service, taking a position as a Senior Advisor to the Administrator at NASA starting in 2026.
Fast facts
- Born: 1994, Palo Alto
- Citizenship: United States
- Education: University of Colorado Boulder, 2017
- Professional Role: Astronaut and military flight engineer
- Space Mission: Polaris Dawn, 2024
- Current Position: Senior Advisor to the NASA Administrator
Questions readers ask
What was the significance of the Polaris Dawn mission for Sarah Gillis?
It served as her first spaceflight, during which she performed the first commercial spacewalk and became the youngest individual to do so.
Where did Sarah Gillis work before her NASA advisory role?
She spent several years at SpaceX, where she served as a lead space operations engineer and trained various civilian and NASA astronaut crews.
Achievements
- Recorded as military flight engineer and astronaut
