Charting a Path to NASA: How Rachel Harris Turned Curiosity Into Policy

Center: NASA HQ

As a child in rural Appalachia, Rachel Harris spent her days in her father’s vegetable garden, playing with dinosaur figurines and dreaming of ancient worlds. Today, she’s part of a very different world, working behind the scenes at NASA Headquarters in Washington, D.C., as a NASA Postdoctoral Management Program (NPMP) fellow.

Harris, who holds a Ph.D. in geosciences with a focus on biogeochemistry and environmental microbiology, isn’t in a traditional lab or field site. Instead, she’s embedded in science management and policy, where NASA’s missions are carefully shaped and supported.

“I wanted to see how the sausage gets made,” Harris said, reflecting on her transition from academia to NASA HQ. “I thought I had a good understanding of NASA bureaucracy, but I’ve come to realize how interconnected and thorough the process really is. There’s a lot of behind-the-scenes work that ensures everything NASA shares with the community is vetted and supported.”

Harris’s love for science started early. In the mid-1990s, she won an essay contest through the Museum of the Rockies and spent a week digging into dinosaur fossils in Wyoming with renowned paleontologist Jack Horner. “That experience really hooked me,” she said.

Space entered the picture during middle school. While her sister hosted a birthday party downstairs, Harris stayed upstairs watching the Spirit Mars rover landing. “The idea of ‘follow the water’ to find life was so simple but powerful. That connection between Earth and Mars, what we could learn about both planets’ histories, captivated me. I wanted to stay tuned.”

From that moment on, space exploration became a guiding passion. As she pursued undergraduate and graduate research, Harris stayed rooted in the biological sciences, studying microbes in extreme environments, and eventually methane biogeochemistry. “Even though I was in a geosciences department, everything I worked on was tied to big-picture questions about planetary habitability.”

Her journey wasn’t without obstacles. As a first-generation graduate student from a quiet part of northwestern North Carolina, Harris dealt with imposter syndrome and faced health issues during her third year of graduate school. She took a break and moved across the country to work in a lab at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, affiliated with UC San Diego.

“That time was critical for my healing,” she said. “It gave me space to recover and get to a place where I could finish my Ph.D.” She credits her Scripps mentor, Doug Bartlett, for his support and guidance during that time.

Now, in her role at NASA, Harris is learning how to turn scientific goals into tangible programs from concept to community outreach to execution. It’s a complex and often slow process, but one she’s come to deeply respect.

“People on the outside may see federal science as slow, but it’s slow for a reason, it’s thorough,” she said. “I’m gaining an appreciation for how much coordination and thought goes into launching meaningful opportunities for the scientific community.”

Along the way, she’s also learning to manage herself with the same care she applies to her work. “I’m working on learning to say ‘no’ and recognizing that it’s a complete sentence,” Harris said. “There are always exciting things to work on, but I’m also trying to prioritize my health and avoid burnout.” She emphasizes this advice to others, especially aspiring scientists. “Be kind to yourself. Get some sleep. It’s easy to tell others to take care of themselves, but hard to do it for yourself.”

Despite the demanding work, Harris still finds joy in the simple things that first sparked her love of science. “I love gardening. It was my introduction to science and still brings me happiness. No matter where I’ve lived, I’ve always had a grow light or a little green space.”

From childhood fossil digs to navigating the halls of NASA Headquarters, Harris has stayed true to the passions that inspired her. “I feel very fortunate to have followed this path. I’ve dreamed about this since I was little. It’s incredible to be here, working on the questions that captivated me from the very beginning.”