Carol Higgins has a degree in Business, Management and Economics from Empire State College. Her work career includes over 15 years of experience providing software and hardware technical support services to international customers and field support personnel, Vice President and Director of Application Software Development for a computer software company, and Product Manager for an international information technology and internet solutions company. Currently she volunteers at a local non-profit organization that provides a variety of individual and family services, including job preparation workshops and computer classes to unemployed and underemployed women. Her interest in space exploration began the day her teacher rolled a television set into the classroom so students could watch live coverage of a NASA rocket delivering a spacecraft and astronaut into space. Awestruck, that experience sparked a life-long passion for learning about the solar system, crewed and robotic space exploration, and astronomy. Carol is an amateur astronomer and member of the outreach team of a local astronomy club, and writes a monthly article for the club’s newsletter. She regularly presents educational programs to astronomy clubs, libraries and STEAM-oriented venues, and enjoys sharing her telescopes and knowledge of the night sky with others during stargazing events. She hopes to inspire others to learn more about crewed and robotic exploration missions, research, discoveries, our solar system and beyond -- the same way she was inspired as a young girl filled with curiosity.