Aracely Quispe Neira, DSc, is a Peruvian-born senior astronautical engineer. Inspired by the Apollo 11 Moon landing as a child, she earned a degree in systems engineering in Peru before moving to the United States. Continuing her education, Quispe-Neira earned a Doctor of Science degree and pursued graduate studies in geospatial intelligence. She is the first Latin-American woman to lead three successful NASA missions in the United States: Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission, the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, and James Webb Space Telescope. Quispe-Neira is a passionate STEM advocate and in 2014 started AQN, a personal project that encourages young women in Latin America to pursue STEM careers.
