Elaine Fortin has taken several university astronomy courses and worked at the Harvard Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics. She has followed astronomy in the news all her life and can present a vibrant presentation on many topics in astronomy. She holds a Masters degree from Harvard University in Information Technology. She has an understanding of how things fit together in space exploration: from the building of telescopes, to the launch into space or Earth based observatories, to orbits to daily operations, to transmission of data between Earth and spacecraft, to the control centers and delivery of end products to scientists and the public.