Zena Cardman was among the more than 18,300 people who applied to NASA's most recent class of astronaut candidates. Shortly after submitting her application, Cardman heard those numbers and figured she'd try again next time.

But then came a call from Houston for her first interview. Then another call for the finalist interview. And last week, Cardman had her named called as NASA introduced its 12 newest astronaut candidates.

This week, the two-time Carolina graduate calls in from Houston to talk about her new position, her time at Carolina and her future as a potential astronaut.