NASA Publish Augmented Reality Graphic Novel ‘First Woman’

ASA has released its first digital, interactive graphic novel on Saturday in celebration of National Comic Book Day. “First Woman: NASA’s Promise for Humanity” imagines the story of Callie Rodriguez, the first woman to explore the Moon.

Callie’s story is fictional, however the first woman and the first person of color will walk on the Moon, achieving these historic milestones as part of NASA’s Artemis missions. Through this graphic novel, NASA aims to inspire the next generation of explorers – the Artemis Generation.

NASA Deputy Administrator Pam Melroy stated:

“The story of Callie captures how passion, dedication, and perseverance allow us to turn our dreams into reality... Callie, much like myself, grew her skills, seized learning opportunities, and overcame challenges to become a NASA astronaut. Her diversity is reflected in our own astronaut corps today – it's important we can see ourselves as the explorers among the stars.”

The comic book highlights NASA technologies for traveling to, landing on, and exploring the Moon. The digital format comes to life, letting readers engage and interact through augmented reality elements using the First Woman website or their mobile devices.

To activate the XR elements, readers simply need to download the First Woman application for Android or iOS and point their phone at special "XR" codes through the app and they can tour the Orion spacecraft, the Moon and other objects. Readers can also play games, watch videos and earn badges.

Derek Wang, director of communications for the Space Technology Mission Directorate at the agency’s Headquarters in Washington stated:

“We crafted this graphic novel and digital ecosystem to share NASA’s work in a different and exciting way… We set out to make the content both engaging and accessible. From space fans of all ages to hardworking educators looking for new ways to get students excited about STEM, we hope that there is something for everyone to enjoy.”

NASA plans to release a Spanish version of the first issue of the comic book, “From Dream to Reality,” on the website in the future.