Name: Jackie
Education: Bachelor’s degree in aerospace engineering, University of Michigan
What are you working on at Aerospace?
Lead mechanical engineer in the small satellite department. I work on the mechanical design of AeroCube cubesats and then physically assemble them.
What is a typical day like for you at Aerospace?
I am involved in all of the mechanical aspects of our satellite designs. This means that typically I will spend about 50 percent of my time working on the design. Working on the design includes CAD (computer aided design, 3D modeling on the computer) work, interfacing with other subsystems on the satellite, and assisting the newer members of the mechanical team in their work. The other 50 percent of my time is spent in the lab. I am the main mechanical assembler for our satellites. When a project is ready to come together, I will be either fully assembling it or assisting the other team members with assembly. I am also in the process of training our newer team members in the assembly techniques and methods we use when building our satellites.
What’s the most exciting part of your job?
The most exciting and rewarding part of my job is getting my hands dirty. It is extremely satisfying to see a satellite that I designed come together with my own hands. Learning through actually putting the satellite together is very much my favorite thing. Also, when I do get the chance to see the launch of a rocket my satellite is on, that is the most thrilling and nerve-racking experience I can have!
Tell us one thing nobody would guess about you?
I used to have blue and purple hair (and wish I still did). I can knit.
What excites you about the aerospace industry and space today?
I’m excited about the growing access to space through the cubesat format and other small satellite programs. Space is the one place where humans as a species are forced to work together in order to assure success, and it has yielded amazing results. I enjoy doing STEM outreach, and one problem in getting younger students interested in space was how abstract the concept was compared to other engineering fields, for example the automotive industry. There you get to see cars, touch them, develop designs and see them come alive. It used to be that you could spend decades working on a satellite or space mission and, as an engineer, never get to actually touch the thing. With the lower cost of cubesats, students in college and sometimes even high school, get to physically handle their designs and see them succeed or fail in the practical timeline of a few years. Honestly, it makes me jealous since this wasn’t available when I was still in school.
Would you be willing to colonize Mars if it meant never returning to Earth?
This is a difficult question to answer because I doubt our government (or many others) would allow for a mission of this type to proceed. But disregarding that, I’m not sure if I’d be up to the challenge. While personally I would leap at the opportunity, there are other considerations to be made. For one, my mom would be heartbroken if she was never to see me again. But for now, I’m not too worried about needing to make this decision. Great advances have been made in relation to the feasibility of a manned Mars mission there are still many difficult and exciting engineering obstacles to overcome first.
Ready to join the Aerospace team? Visit our careers page.
