VCT Presents the 2025/26 National Geographic Live Speaker Series Season: Cosmic Adventures

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Discover the marvels of our cosmic backyard through the eyes of the robotic spacecraft sent out to explore it. Aerospace engineer and National Geographic Explorer Tracy Drain works at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory to develop, test, and operate the complex machines that uncover some of the countless mysteries within (and way beyond!) our solar system. Among her projects: rovers on Mars, a mission to Jupiter, and a hunt for exoplanets that reshaped our entire understanding of the galaxy.

Tracy Drain is a flight systems engineer who has helped develop, test, and operate a variety of robotic spacecraft for deep space exploration in a career spanning more than two decades. After obtaining B.S. and M.S. degrees in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Kentucky and Georgia Tech respectively and interning at the NASA Langley Research Center as an undergraduate student, she landed a full-time position on the engineering staff at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in 2000. She is a 2024 National Geographic Society Wayfinder Award recipient, and she is currently the lead flight systems engineer on the Europa Clipper mission, which should arrive at Jupiter in 2030.

Vancouver Civic Theatres is pleased to present our 2025/26 National Geographic Live Speaker Series season at the intimate Vancouver Playhouse. Covering fascinating topics including the complex ecology of tree canopies, deep space exploration, and the neuroscience of memory, National Geographic Live thrills and educates guests with striking photography, captivating video, and compelling stories shared by some of the world’s most renowned adventurers - LIVE on stage!
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