She didn't fit the 'stereotype', but she's still Australia's first qualified astronaut

As a young girl lying on the grass in her backyard looking up at the sky, it was the realisation that whole other worlds existed that first drew Katherine Bennell-Pegg, Australia's first official astronaut, to space.

"When my mum told me that some of those stars really far away were actually whole worlds, planets, and no one had ever seen them up close with their own eyes as a young kid, I thought, 'That sounds like a great adventure'," she said.

After graduating from the European Space Agency's astronaut training program last year, Ms Bennell-Pegg, 41, became the first person qualified as an astronaut under the Australian flag.

Previously, Australian-born astronauts like Dr. Paul Scully-Power and Dr Andy Thomas trained and travelled to space as US citizens.

"It's a huge honour to have graduated as an astronaut, let alone an Australian astronaut, which is greater than I could have ever even hoped for when I applied to be one," Ms Bennell-Pegg told The Canberra Times.

"I've been so excited, not just for me, but for what I hope for our country."

As the Australian Space Agency's STEM ambassador and former director of space technology, the astronaut has been travelling all over the country to inspire young people to follow their dream space career.

Ms Bennell-Pegg said more people choosing to study and work in space-related fields opened doors for research and organisations, ultimately allowing Australia greater access to space and human spaceflight.

On her travels, she said children had asked her the best questions - from "how do you shower in space?" to "are there aliens?".

"Never lose that, because that helps you be a great scientist or great engineer in the future," the astronaut told a room full of students in Questacon's Japan Theatre on Thursday.

Ms Bennell Pegg, who is also a British citizen, grew up in NSW and is a University of Sydney engineering graduate among her extensive list of qualifications.

The breadth of her work experience spans the Royal Australian Air Force, the Army, NASA, the European Space Agency, and Airbus before joining the Australian Space Agency a year after it was set up in 2018.

"I carry the hopes and dreams of so many on my shoulders. I hope that I show you don't have to fit the stereotype to have a fulfilling career in STEM," she said.

The astronaut said Australia had unique strengths that would be demonstrated by the Australian Space Agency's recently signed technology safeguards agreement with the United States.

Ms Bennell-Pegg said there could be almost 100 launches supported by Australian spaceports in the next decade, contributing between $460 million and $1.2 billion to the economy.

"The future is bright. Australia has always been sought-after internationally for its ... contribution to space because of our large, beautiful patch of land and sky, our uncrowded launch and return corridors, our workforce, our stable politics and economy," she said.

"So Australia has fantastic strengths in remote operations of industries, out in our vast and remote lands, in the field of robotics, in our horticulture, in biotech and in many more."