When the newly-dubbed “Mars Stepmom,” AKA Sonia Van Meter, was chosen for the “Mars One for Martian” mission in 2025 she was delighted to have been offered the honor of the position.
However the stepmom-of-two has received more than just a little criticism on social media for her decision to go to Mars, mainly because she has two stepkids and a family, job, and career.
For example, one Twitterer (not really a word but it works) made the tongue-in-cheek comment, “Nothing says ‘I love you’ more than a one-way ticket to Mars,” while another social media pundit asked, “I realize the sexist basis in the ‘what about your family?!’ reaction but like, seriously…what about her family?”
For her part, the Mars Stepmom realizes that leaving Earth, forever, would certainly have a big impact on her family, especially as she’ll be over 35 million miles away. Then again, the prospect of life on Mars, which would be a first for humans, is something Van Meter is really excited about.
As she told reporters ,
“It’s a hard thing to comprehend—leaving family behind. But I wouldn’t dream of doing this if I didn’t have the 100 percent support of my family. They know I’m doing this not for myself, but for families across the world. This is a threshold worth crossing, and my husband and stepsons believe in this mission as I do. The minute they tell me not to go, I’m out. But they won’t do that because they know that space exploration is worth a human life.”
While in a separate interview, the Mars Stepmom said, “I might be one of the candidates who has younger children, even though—not to be cold—my children are stepchildren, and they do have two biological parents who will take care of them. And in 2024 they’re going to be 21 and 24. It’s not like I’m leaving infants to twist in the wind. As an ancillary parent, I feel like it’s incumbent upon me to demonstrate to them that there’s no reason why they shouldn’t pursue their dreams.”
