Meet the Prodigious Young Woman Who is Passionate About Asteroids

Nicole, the young astronomer who inspires generations with her passion and dedication to asteroids!

Nicole Semião, better known as Nicolinha, is a young Brazilian who began her journey to understand celestial bodies at an early age. Her first exposure to the stars was during her infancy. By the age of two, she had developed the habit of lying on the floor of her home´s balcony to observe the sky.

Initially, her parents found her behaviour unusual. Nicolinha dedicated much of her time to looking at the sky rather than playing and interacting with friends and other children. As she celebrated each birthday, dolls, stuffed animals, and traditional toys typically associated with girls were gradually replaced by decorative stars, rockets, and other space-themed items, all at Nicolinha’s request.

At the age of 6, she successfully enrolled in an astronomy course designed for adults, setting a precedent that inspired other children with similar interests. After participating in numerous classes, exercises, and tests, Nicolinha earned her amateur astronomer certificate, gaining recognitionas the youngest astronomer in the world and receiving acclaim for her achievement.

At the age of 6, Nicolinha completed her first Astronomy course. (private archive/CEAAL/Brazilian Space)

At 7 years old, she received her first telescope, an item she had desired for a long time,even forgoing birthday parties to obtain one. At this same age, Nicolinha requested her parents to create a club where children could participate in free astronomy classes. In 2020, during the pandemic and the challenges of holding in-person classes, an online club was launched: Nicolinha & Kids.

One of the virtual initiatives of the Nicolinha & Kids Astronomy Club was conducted in 2020 during the pandemic (YouTube).

In that same year, Nicolinha was invited to give a talk about asteroids on an Astronomy News channel on YouTube. During her research for this presentation, she was introduced to Asteroid Day and its global community for the first time. 

Asteroids are Nicolinha’s passion. She has demonstrated impressive performance in asteroid detection projects by analysing images captured by large telescopes, leading to the discovery of dozens of asteroids. In addition to her enthusiasm for this field, Nicolinha is also concerned about the potential for these celestial bodies to collide with Earth. As a result, she has embraced the goals of Asteroid Day, actively participating in events and activities related to asteroids, exploration missions, and planetary defense.

Every day, Nicolinha dedicates part of her time to studying asteroids. She regularly creates videos on the topic, actively participates in asteroid search campaigns, and also offers assistance to children in these initiatives, particularly the members of her Astronomy club.

Nicolinha’s enthusiasm for asteroids has motivated her to engage actively in Asteroid Day by delivering lectures, hosting exhibitions, and producing videocasts (private archive).

Nicolinha frequently receives invitations to various cities to deliver lectures and conduct workshops on asteroids, inspiring both children and adults. Monthly, she can be found in a public square with her telescope, demonstrating the impact craters on the Moon and presenting the Mission to Asteroids exhibition, which includes panels depicting her preferred celestial bodies. As of 2024, the count of Asteroid Day events organized by Nicolinha has already exceeded 40.

In 2022, Nicolinha traveled to Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates, to receive an honor at the Global Child Prodigy Awards, an event designed to acknowledge exceptionally gifted children with distinctive abilities and expertise in fields such as the arts and science, among others. In the future, Nicolinha plans to pursue a degree in aerospace engineering to construct rockets. Her infectious enthusiasm and motivational determination lead us to envision her operating her spacecraft in the future and embarking on a tour of the asteroids she is so passionate about.

More information:

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YouTube

Nicolinha & Kids STEM Astronomy Club

Website

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