Mini-profile:

Silvia Bayon works as a System Engineer in the Solar System Missions Section of ESA's Science Future Missions Department. 

Silvia was born in Bilbao, Spain but grew up in Madrid. She obtained a Bachelor of Science in Aerospace Engineering by Parks College of Engineering and Aviation of Saint Louis University (USA). After graduation, she was awarded a NASA research contract scholarship to pursue a Master of Science also in Aerospace Engineering.

Silvia joined the European Space Agency in 2003 as part of the Agency's Young Graduate Trainee Programme. She was hired to work at ESA's Concurrent Design Facility (CDF), performing internal assessment studies of future missions concepts. While still in CDF she started giving system engineering support to the ExoMars Project. In 2009 she became the ExoMars Spacecraft Composite System Engineer and worked in that position until 2017 when she moved to her current job in ESA's Science Directorate. Besides work, Silvia enjoys spending time with her family, skiing and diving. 

Quote: "I love designing spacecrafts that travel to other worlds and help humankind in the conquest of space."

Looking for more career profiles? You can find them in the Space Awareness career booklet!

Image credit (cover): Clara Cruz/ESA