#WebbTelescopeWomen Kay Justtanont

Kay Justtanont, Principal Investigator for Webb’s MIRI instrument in Sweden and Associate professor/senior researcher at the department of Space, Earth and Environment, Chalmers University of Technology, Sweden.

What is your role in Webb?

I study how Sun-like stars evolve towards the end of their lives, and I look at how the stars shed most of their mass (from 50% up to 80% of the masses they were born with!). The mass loss is in the form of both gas and dust, and with Webb, we will be able to study how stars recycle their mass back into the interstellar medium, which will reform the next generation of stars and planets. With the sensitivity of Webb we can study these stars out beyond the local group of galaxies, much farther than previous space missions have done. 

Why are you excited about Webb?

Webb is the largest space project I have been involved with and I have spent a good part of my career on it. It amazes me what collaborations across a dozen of countries can do together when we set our sight high. Webb will achieve science that we may have not even yet thought of and it will advance the science that we all have been working on. Technologically, there are many new steps taken with the whole observatory so I will be watching and waiting from launch until all the scientific instruments are turned on and to know that all are functioning well.

What has been the highlight of your career so far?

Being involved in several space programs, ISO, Herschel and now Webb, in both instrument as well as scientific programs.

Did you have a mentor during your career, and if so, how did they inspire you?

My role model was my PhD supervisor, Professor Alexander Tielens. I was working with him at NASA-Ames Research Center. His relaxed but very professional approach to science was what I aspired to be. He did not only guide but allowed me to grow as a scientist. But the person who inspired me to pursue astronomy was Dr. Carl Sagan. His TV program Cosmos was what affirmed to me that I wanted to study astronomy.

What advice could you offer to young people thinking of pursuing a career in STEM?

Go for what you want to do. With passion and solid basic knowledge, anything is possible.

The 2021 International Women’s Day theme is “Choose to Challenge”. What are the biggest challenges you’ve fought to overcome in your career?

Well, although in science, women are vocal about our ability to do science, the career path is never easy. We still need to work on having equal footing especially in our career. There are many female students and postdocs, but at professor levels, it is still hard to break into.