She’s searching for the building blocks of life in deep space, and now UW-Madison astrochemistry Ph.D. student Alejandra Lopez Olguin is bringing that search to Trempealeau.

Lopez Olguin joined The Rick Solem Show to share her journey from a small town in Mexico to studying interstellar molecules — and to preview her hosting Friday’s free “Universe in the Park” event at Perrot State Park.

Lopez Olguin also breaks down the science of her search for life in deep space — including whether she gets to name any new discovery something like “Lil Alejandra” — plus we had to talk space movies — her love for Interstellar and why we’re not living on Mars like in The Martian.

EVENT DETAILS

• WHEN: Friday, Aug. 28 at 8 p.m.
• WHERE: Perrot State Park in Trempealeau
• COST: Free (No registration required, open to all ages)
• WHAT TO EXPECT: A 30-to-40-minute interactive talk exploring how the chemical elements inside our bodies were forged in stars, followed by guided outdoor telescope viewing (weather permitting).

EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS

• Odds of life in space: Why discovering precursor organic molecules floating around space means life could easily exist well beyond Earth.
• Alejandra’s Project Hail Mary: How a chemical engineer with zero astronomy background sent 100 cold emails, survived 98 rejections, and landed the single life-changing internship that launched her career.
• Space Detective: What it’s actually like using giant radio telescopes to hunt down hidden molecules in deep space.
• We’re Not Moving to Mars: Breaking down why Elon Musk’s colonization plans hit a wall when faced with real-world space environment realities.