Women in Space: STEM Identity, Astronomy & Inclusion

Susan Wise: Hi, and welcome to Star Launch Pod: Space Technology and Research Sciences, brought to you by StarSciences.org, where we connect, collaborate, and accelerate. I’m your host, Susan Wise, and I’m thrilled to have with us today Libby Fenstermacher. Welcome to the program.

Libby Fenstermacher: Thank you so much for having me, Susan.

Susan Wise: I love that your work sits at the intersection of sociology, outer space, and sustainability, with a focus on who feels that science is possible for them and why. Why is this important to you? Why is it possible for you?

Libby Fenstermacher: I think the future of humanity as a whole depends on collaboration between all of us. And in order to make that possible, we all need to have a say. That means everybody needs to be introduced to science and STEM and have it feel like something they can achieve and be a part of.

Susan Wise: I love that—wise words. So tell us more about you, Libby. I want to know all about you and what you’re doing.

Libby Fenstermacher: Yes. First off, this past Saturday I graduated from Sam Houston State University with my master’s in sociology.

Susan Wise: Yay!

Libby Fenstermacher: And across my time at Sam Houston, I also interned three times at NASA, where I honed my research focus on the meeting of society and space. I became interested in how people find their way into space-oriented trajectories in the first place and how they sustain themselves within them.

I focused my thesis specifically on women in astronomy, and what I kept seeing is that inequality in science isn’t usually loud—it’s often quiet and cumulative. It lives in networks, credibility, mentorship, the unspoken rules of the field, and the constant tiny decisions about whose work gets taken seriously and who gets treated like they’re out of place.

Susan Wise: I love that—women lifting up women, literally to the stars.

Libby Fenstermacher: Exactly right. Ad astra per aspera.

Right now, in addition to my academic research and my previous NASA internships—which were in astrophysics and climate resilience and Earth sciences—I’m still contributing in a few concrete ways to the space ecosystem. I’m involved with the American Astronomical Society’s Committee on the Status of Women in Astronomy, as well as their social media task force.

I’m also part of the Space Generation Advisory Council’s Giant LEAP project, which focuses on getting kids all around the world—especially in Europe—thinking about trajectories in the space sector that don’t necessarily involve becoming an astronaut. We need engineers, we need astronomers, we need everybody on board to make this something that really happens for humanity.

Susan Wise: It’s really good to encourage them when they’re young and to expose their minds to everything that’s happening—because it is happening.

Libby Fenstermacher: It is happening. And when we’re young is when we really build those identities—whether we see ourselves as a STEM person or a creative. That’s when it really starts to take shape. Especially in the United States, girls often have a harder time finding their way onto sustainable paths along these trajectories. So that’s a lot of what I’m working on right now, along with several other projects.

Susan Wise: Okay, let’s talk about one of your big “aha” moments.

Libby Fenstermacher: Yes. I feel like I’m constantly in search of those “aha” moments—I really seek them out. I’m always searching for new discoveries and new ways of understanding reality. One that I recently had came while writing my master’s thesis, and it’s the concept of hysteresis.

Susan Wise: Explain that.

Libby Fenstermacher: It’s a concept taken from physics, but sociologists use it as well. It’s basically a fancy way of saying there’s a lag. Things change, but the system doesn’t change at the same speed. We get new technologies and new knowledge, and people want to change, but institutions and norms are much slower to catch up. They don’t always want to move—they tend to hold on to their power.

Once I had that word, I started seeing it everywhere. In periods of rapid change, the status quo doesn’t just fade away—it tightens its grip. You end up with this strange overlap where new possibilities are real, but old rules are still running the room. In astronomy and the space sciences, this is especially clear because the work is so future-facing, while the institutions are still operating under older rules and trying to catch up with new technologies and knowledge. Coming across that concept was a huge “aha” moment for how I move forward in my work.

Susan Wise: People also like what’s familiar—they don’t always like to embrace change. They find comfort in keeping things the same. Does that contribute to the lag?

Libby Fenstermacher: Absolutely. You get comfortable, you get a bit complacent, because you don’t want to lose the benefits you already have. That creates the lag we’re seeing now across society, all over the world.

Susan Wise: What has been one of your biggest challenges during your journey, and how did you overcome it?

Libby Fenstermacher: I would say my biggest challenge has been math—more specifically, rebuilding my relationship with it after I lost my STEM identity as a teenager.

Susan Wise: I have a love-hate relationship with math.

Libby Fenstermacher: Yes—I like to say it’s mostly love. It definitely makes my brain hurt sometimes, though. I’ve never taken a calculus class, but I’m up to graduate-level statistics now.

As a kid in the ’90s, I was obsessed with science—marine science, space, Earth science, anything that explained the world. My family traveled to Hawaii a lot, and I was fascinated by Kīlauea. I wanted to be a volcanologist. Science was my world. But I was also an artist and a musician, and I had this mix in me.

Looking back, I think that possibly because I was a girl, I was pushed more toward the creative side. Through that, I lost my math identity. When I was a sophomore in high school, I quit math entirely and didn’t take another math class until I was 32. That completely stopped me from finishing my bachelor’s degree and really narrowed my sense of what was possible for me.

Then, at 32, I decided I was going to do it—and make it fun and enjoyable, because I genuinely wanted to learn math. I love numbers and science. I went back to school, earned all A’s in math, and now I actually tutor math.

Susan Wise: Oh—good for you!

Libby Fenstermacher: I tutor seventh- and eighth-graders through GoTutor Corps and AmeriCorps.

Susan Wise: I love that. That’s a huge challenge, and you’ve clearly overcome it. It’s made you a more well-rounded scientist—you really have the best of all worlds.

Libby Fenstermacher: It’s definitely shaped my path. I see how easy it is for people—people who should be on these trajectories—to get turned away. I just hope I can help others maintain that identity.

Susan Wise: What piece of advice would you like to share with our listeners today?

Libby Fenstermacher: I would say to treat your identity as something you can rebuild, especially in STEM. People learn very early to label themselves: “I’m not a math person,” “I’m not a science person,” “I’m not technical.” Those labels stick far longer than they should.

Susan Wise: Let’s talk about your passion project.

Libby Fenstermacher: Yes. One of my passion projects is the Space for Students series that I created for the American Astronomical Society’s Committee on the Status of Women in Astronomy. I put it together during my first NASA internship.

I interview students and early-career astronomers about their trajectories, how they got into the field, their challenges, what excites them, and their hopes for the future. It was an incredible experience to create and to connect with so many inspirational women who were deeply dedicated to inspiring the next generation. You can find the series on the American Astronomical Society’s YouTube channel—just search “Space for Students.”

Susan Wise: I found it—I was snooping around your shows. I love the series. You have amazing guests, and you’re a wonderful host.

Libby Fenstermacher: Thank you so much—I really appreciate that.

Susan Wise: That’s a fantastic passion project. Libby, thank you so much for sharing it with us. I’d love to check in with you again in a couple of months to see what’s new and what’s going on in your life. Does that sound okay?

Libby Fenstermacher: That sounds absolutely fabulous. Maybe I’ll have been accepted into a PhD program by then.

Susan Wise: I think that would be a great next step.

Libby Fenstermacher: Thank you, Susan.

Susan Wise: Thank you. Make sure you join us where we connect, collaborate, and accelerate. If you enjoyed this episode, please leave us a review and subscribe.

Until next time, keep looking up.