Nicole Mann on Wednesday became the first Native American woman to go to space and the first woman to command a NASA commercial spacecraft.
Mann, a North Bay native, and three others lifted off from Cape Canaveral, Florida, Wednesday morning for the International Space Station.
"You’ve got three rookies that are pretty happy to be floating in space right now and one veteran astronaut who's pretty happy to be back as well," Mann said as the crew entered space.
Mann grew up in Penngrove, just north of Petaluma, and attended Rancho Cotate High School in Rohnert Park before studying at Stanford University and the United States Naval Academy.
Her parents still live in the Petaluma area.
"I just love growing up in Northern California," Mann told NBC Bay Area before the mission. "There's always so much to do. Great community, the beach was close, the mountains were close if you wanted to go camping or skiing. Obviously, the city is right there if you want to enjoy the city life a little bit. So I think it was kind of a diverse environment to grow up in. It was really a big part of molding me into who I am today."
Mann, who flew F-18s in the Marine Corps, said she was grateful for the opportunity to take a flight into space.
"This will be my first time leaving the planet," she said. "People always talk about that first time you turn around and you get that glimpse of our planet from space. Personally, I'm really looking forward to that and wondering what that's going to feel like and what an amazing opportunity that I have."
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