By Honorary Reporter Geanina Voicu from Romania

Photos = spacefest.upb

Korea's first astronaut Yi So-yeon on May 9 shared her journey to space at the third SpaceFest at Politehnica University of Bucharest, Romania.

Intended to make astronomy more accessible to the public, the three-day event was organized by the university with the Romanian Space Agency and the school's aerospace engineering department.

Korea's first astronaut Yi So-yeon on May 9 speaks at a conference of SpaceFest in Bucharest, Romania.

Alongside retired NASA astronaut Daniel Michio Tani, Yi participated in conferences and meet-and-greet sessions that attracted over 200 attendees. On her humble beginnings, she said, "I was not a kid to look at the night sky at all, and when I took the plane to Russia to embark on the spaceship, I didn't even know who Yuri Gagarin (the first person in space) was."

Earning a Ph.D. in biotech systems from the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Yi said her curiosity about experimentation in space led her to apply for the space program.

Korea is the seventh country to have launched a satellite and aims to join the ranks of the world's top five space powers through the Korea AeroSpace Administration.

Yi So-yeon (left) and Daniel Machio Tani sign autographs at a conference and discuss their experiences in space.

Yi shared both the challenges and lighter moments of space travel. For example, she said astronauts temporarily grow taller in space, 2.5 cm in her case, or double the average increase. She also recalled watching a fellow astronaut practicing taekwondo in zero gravity.

She mentioned one regret: excessive focus on government-assigned tasks, but had advice for aspiring space professionals. "Do your best where you are right now, and those results guide you to where you really want to be," she said.

msjeon22@korea.kr

*This article is written by a Korea.net Honorary Reporter. Our group of Honorary Reporters are from all around the world, and they share with Korea.net their love and passion for all things Korean.