Katya Echazarreta, the First Mexican-Born Woman To Travel to Space, Will Have Her Own Barbie

Gone are the years when dolls were a way to imbue girls for housework. Mattel will now create a Barbie in honor of Katya Echazarreta, the first Mexican woman to travel into space.

Katya Echazarreta is a source of pride in Mexico and throughout Latin America. An astronaut and engineer, Katya was the first Mexican woman and the youngest American woman to travel to outer space.

As part of the Blue Origin NS-21 mission team, the young Mexican woman reached the stars in June 2022. She was only 27. Katya was part of the Space for Humanity program, a non-profit organization.

Now, Katya Echazarreta will have her own Barbie

On the occasion of International Women’s Day, March 8, toymaker Mattel has launched a campaign to inspire girls to enter the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM).

Mattel has honored a select group of STEM pioneers with their own Barbie doll, including the Wojcicki sisters and our very own Katya Echazarreta.

Similarly, the group includes female STEM pioneers from around the world, such as British rocket scientist Maggie Aderin-Pocock; Antje Boetius, a marine researcher and microbiologist from Germany; and Li Yinuo, co-founder of ETU Education, a new school in China that offers a more personalized education.

According to Mattel, Barbie has pursued over 40 STEM careers, including astrophysicist, rocket scientist, doctor, and robotics engineer. While in the real world, women make up half of the U.S. workforce, they make up only less than one-third of the STEM workforce.

“STEM is a field where women are severely underrepresented. Our hope is that honoring these seven leaders in science and technology will encourage girls to follow their passion in this field,” Lisa McKnight, executive vice president and global head of Barbie & Dolls with Mattel, said in a statement.

The doll, which Katya Echazarreta inspires, was created by Mattel based on the astronaut’s physical image.

The Katya Echazarreta barbie wears a navy blue spacesuit with a patch bearing her name and the legend Space of Humanity.