“I’ve always dreamed of becoming an engineer because I loved the building all my life,” she added.
Her passion was born when she started building at LEGOS at the age of four and told her mother, Daphne McQuarter, that she would one day work for the agency.
“I’m a bit of a geek for NASA-sized legos,” said Wicker, who finished high school this year after taking all of her home school classes.
She will be attending ASU this summer and majoring in astronomical and planetary science and chemistry.
Study the stars in this online degree in astronomy and planetary sciences. You will explore planets, solar systems and galaxies to understand where we come from and where we are going and use the universe as your laboratory, ”the university website states.
The program “provides you with a broad education in the scientific foundations and fundamentals of space exploration, including continuous advancements in the field,” it continued.
If all goes to plan, Wicker will graduate by the time she turns 16.
“I’ll be riding one of those future space mobiles by the time I graduate,” said Wicker, who wants to build rovers like the one sent to Mars in 2020.
The rover’s job is to “look for signs of ancient life and collect rock and regolith (fractured rock and soil) samples for possible return to Earth,” NASA said.
However, Wicker said she plans everything along the way, but encouraged others to set a goal and work towards it.
‘It doesn’t matter what your age is or what you plan to do. Go for it. Dream, then complete it, ”she concluded.