Nature Magazine — Nicole McGaa’s childhood was full of activities that showcased her handiness: from repairing cars in her parents’ garage to building boats by the Ohio River. Born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and growing up in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, with a chemical-engineer father and a chemist mother, McGaa enjoyed early childhood experiences, such as stargazing in a forest, that ignited her love for space and engineering. McGaa, who is Oglala Lakota, is entering her fourth year of undergraduate studies in aeronautics and astronautics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Cambridge.
