Former Astronaut Dr. Cady Coleman, featured in new doc Space: The Longest Goodbye

ABOUT SPACE: THE LONGEST GOODBYE

In the next decade, NASA intends to send astronauts to Mars for the first time. To succeed, crew members must overcome unprecedented life-threatening challenges. And while many of these hazards are physical, the most elusive are psychological. Throughout their three-year absence, crew members won't be able to communicate with Earth in real time due to the immense distance. The psychological impact of this level of disconnectedness and isolation-both from mission control and loved ones-is impossible to predict, endangering the mission itself. Directed to mitigate this threat is Dr. Al Holland, a NASA psychologist whose job is to keep astronauts mentally stable in space. Space: The Longest Goodbye follows Holland, rookie astronauts Kayla Barron and Matthias Maurer, and former astronaut Cady Coleman, among others, as they grapple with the tension between their dream of reaching new frontiers and their basic human need to stay connected to home. This conflict transcends space travel: how do humans balance the quest for progress with a deep connection to history and each other?

Here's the trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=63KKJM4aOtE 

DR. CADY COLEMAN BIO

Dr. Cady Coleman is a former NASA Astronaut and Air Force Colonel with more than 180 days in space, accumulated during two space shuttle missions and a six-month expedition to the International Space Station (ISS), where she acted as the Lead Robotics and Lead Science officer.

Cady is a vocal advocate for inclusion in STEM/STEAM fields and a sought after speaker on a wide range of topics. She recently co-anchored ABC News Live's coverage of the SpaceX launch and the Perseverance Mars Rover landing. Other speaking highlights include the opening speech for TED 2011 from space, extensive NASA commentary for CNN, ABC and Fox and TED Unplugged 2019.

Cady is the Global Explorer in Residence at Arizona State University and co-host of the podcast Mission: Interplanetary. She's also a research affiliate at the MIT Media Lab. Cady consults on space-related work for research and for the media. She serves on several boards, including the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, Greenfield Community College and Dent the Future.

Cady lives in Western Massachusetts with her husband Josh Simpson, a glass artist, and their two sons. She is an amateur flute player, known for her "Space Duet" with Ian Anderson of Jethro Tull and her work from space with the acclaimed Irish band, The Chieftains. She coached actress Sandra Bullock from the ISS in preparation for Bullock's astronaut role in Gravity.    

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