NASA astronaut born in Türkiye prepares for first mission to space

NASA astronaut Deniz Burnham, who was born in Türkiye’s southern province of Adana, has promised to wave to her family and the people of her birthplace when she travels to the International Space Station next year.

Burnham said in a video shared by the US Consulate in Adana that she was training for Expedition 76, a long-duration mission aboard the orbiting laboratory.

“I was born at Incirlik Air Base in Adana, and my grandmother and grandfather live in Türkiye,” she said.

“When I go into space, I will wave to my grandmother, my grandfather, my fellow Adana residents and the entire world.”

NASA announced in July that Burnham would make her first spaceflight aboard Russia’s Soyuz MS-30 spacecraft with cosmonauts Dmitri Petelin and Konstantin Borisov.

The mission is scheduled to lift off from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan in March 2027. The three crew members are expected to spend approximately seven months aboard the space station.

Burnham will serve as an Expedition 76 flight engineer and participate in scientific investigations and technology demonstrations intended to support future missions to the Moon and Mars, while also contributing to research on Earth.

Burnham said her grandmother was from Eceabat in the northwestern Turkish province of Canakkale, while her grandfather came from Afyonkarahisar in western Türkiye.

She said she grew up eating Turkish food and credited her grandfather with encouraging her interest in space.

“My grandfather’s curiosity about space influenced our entire family,” she said. “I remember that he built his own telescopes. We would spend hours in our backyard watching the stars and planets.”

From drilling engineer to astronaut

Burnham was selected for NASA’s astronaut candidate class in 2021 and began training in January 2022. She graduated as a member of the agency’s 23rd astronaut class in 2024, becoming eligible for missions to the space station, the Moon and potentially Mars.

She holds a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from the University of California, San Diego and a master’s degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Southern California.

Before becoming an astronaut, Burnham spent more than a decade in the energy industry, managing drilling operations on oil rigs in Alaska, Canada, Ohio and Texas. She also served as an engineering duty officer in the US Navy Reserve.

Burnham previously interned with the Deployable Autonomy Technologies group at NASA’s Ames Research Center and holds private pilot qualifications covering fixed-wing aircraft, seaplanes, helicopters and instrument flying.

Praise for Türkiye’s space program

Burnham also welcomed Türkiye’s accession to the Artemis Accords, an international framework promoting peaceful, transparent and sustainable space exploration.

Türkiye signed the accords on Aug. 31, becoming the 71st member.

She highlighted Türkiye’s two astronaut missions and its progress on AYAP-1, the country’s planned first lunar mission. Burnham also noted Türkiye’s role in bringing together the international space community through the TEKNOFEST aerospace and technology festival and the International Astronautical Congress.

“It is an honor for NASA to welcome Türkiye into the Artemis Accords community,” she said, adding that she was excited about what the two countries could accomplish together in the coming years.