'It’s totally surreal': UNC's fourth astronaut graduate recalls her path to NASA

Posted Nov 8, 2019
One UNC alumna may soon have an out-of-this-world experience — literally. Zena Cardman, who graduated with her master's in 2014, is a NASA astronaut candidate who has spent the past two years training for potential space travel. “I actually didn’t grow up always wanting to be an astronaut,” Cardman said. “I wanted to do all kinds of different things." (Daily Tar Heel)

Related: Campus Connections

Christmas 1970: James Taylor and Joni Mitchell in Chapel Hill
On Christmas Eve 1970 I had just turned twenty-one and was managing the Record and Tape Center at 456 West Franklin Street. As I was...
Sun Dec 21, 2025

Former North Carolina governor, UNC law school alum Jim Hunt dies at 88
Former Gov. Jim Hunt, who redefined the office of governor in North Carolina, championed public education and helped focus the state's economy on high-tech industries,...
Sat Dec 20, 2025

Best moments from ESPN documentary "Boo-Yah: A Portrait of Stuart Scott"
In 1984, Stuart Scott began attending the University of North Carolina, where he studied journalism. He became a member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc.,...
Thu Dec 18, 2025

UNC grad documents post-Helene recovery
In addition to Carolina’s Spring Commencement, Max Feliu ’25 had another May date circled on his calendar. The filmmaker’s nine-minute documentary on life after Hurricane...
Thu Dec 18, 2025