Carmen Victoria Félix Chaidez is a scientist, engineer, and the first Mexican to work on simulations for future Mars missions with space analogs. She has been credited in part for creating the Mexican Space Agency and promoting space-related careers in her native country. Her work has been recognized by her home state of Sinaloa and Quien magazine named her as one of 50 Mexicans transforming the country in 2017.
Formation
Félix was born in 1985 and raised in Culiacán, Sinaloa, Mexico.
One night when she was five, Félix went out at night with her father to look at the stars. He taught her to identify constellations such as Orion and Pleiades. Studying the night sky became a favorite activity for the young girl. She grew up reading about the Apollo Moon missions and other space exploration, and she decided early she wanted a career in space.
When she was twelve, she gained access to the Internet and immediately went to study NASA's website, looking for information about how to become an astronaut. She wanted to study astronomy or aerospace engineering, but those fields were not available in Culiacan. She decided to study at a local international commerce school in the city. While there, she found out about a group of engineers going to visit NASA in Houston. The congress was the same week as the midterms, but despite being against the rules, she convinced all of her professors to let her take her exams early. She then borrowed all her savings from her parents to finance the trip. While in Houston, she visited various enterprises including the Johnson Space Center. She also attended the International Astronautical Congress, where she had an opportunity to talk to real astronauts. Her question was how to work towards a career in space, as she was from Mexico and did not have programs to support those interested in such pursuits. Astronaut Mike Massimino told her to study the sciences and engineering, fields NASA prefers, but of a type she had a passion for.
Less than two weeks after the trip, she applied to study communication and electronic engineering at Monterrey Tech, graduating in 2003. Unfortunately, she was the only one at the school at the time interested in space. Despite this, she attended space conferences and other events such as the National Astronomy Congress, which allowed her to meet people in her future field. She was also invited to join a project to conserve Chipinque Park in Monterrey, which has an observatory. It had been out of use for some time and she worked to reactivate it. She then gave classes and workshops on astronomy to student visitors.
When she graduated, she knew she wanted a master's but in something more specific to space.
Early career
As there were no space-related programs in Mexico at the time, she began her career working for AT&T and Texas Instruments. Three years later, she found the opportunity to do a masters in space science with the International Space University (ISU), located in Strasbourg, France.
In 2002, Félix went on a trip to Houston to attend the World Space Congress and visit tech sites, She was inspired as a young woman by the young professionals who were aspiring to a career she was interested in. As she grew older and gained more experience in her field of study/career, in 2008 Félix actively worked to spread awareness and opportunities regarding space in her country. Soon after this, she became an active member of the Space Generation Advisory Council (SGAC). Eventually, Félix attended one of the first International Space Events in her native country, the VI American Space Conference (CEA).
As part of her graduate studies, Félix interned at NASA, working with the small satellite division. Here, she worked on a project to use smartphone technology to produce small satellites more economically (PhoneSat), working with developers from Google as well as other researchers from NASA.
At the end of the internship in 2009, she was asked to stay on with NASA, which she accepted even before finishing her master's program. Félix became the first and only Mexican scientist working at the agency. Her record there prompted NASA to look into finding more talent in Mexico. One year into her employment, she returned to Mexico to help the agency identify student candidates for NASA internships resulting in students from various parts of Mexico studying at various NASA centers. Another program sponsors four high school students and a teacher to spend time with NASA to learn about the work.
During that time, Félix also became involved with efforts to create the Mexican Space Agency, working with formation committees and Mexican authorities.