SAMMAMISH, Wash. — A woman from Sammamish joined the prestigious ranks of NASA astronaut candidates Monday.

Lauren Edgar, 40, of Sammamish was one of 10 candidates named to this year’s class out of more than 8,000 applicants.

Edgar and the nine other candidates will complete nearly two years of training before they are eligible for flight assignments. Once trained, the team will support science and exploration missions to the low Earth orbit, the moon and Mars.

A graduate of Skyline High School, Edgar considers Sammamish her hometown, according to her NASA profile. She went on to obtain earth sciences and geology degrees from Dartmouth College and the California Institute of Technology.

She most recently worked as a research geologist with the U.S. Geological Survey studying the Earth,

See Full Page