 
|
| | Robonaut
may be able to work side-by-side with spacewalking astronauts
or even go where the environment is too risky for humans.
Visit the Gallery to
see Robonaut images. |
|
Engineers design
the tools and equipment astronauts will need in space, as well as
any software that may be needed to run that equipment. They also
design equipment that can be used in future space missions. From
the pistol grip tool that allowed astronauts to service the Hubble
Space Telescope to the sleep station that gives space station astronauts
added protection from space radiation, engineers continually strive
to make it easier and safer to work in space.
Facilities
and Projects
Advanced
Life Support
The Advanced Life Support program, based at the Johnson Space Center, Houston, Texas, is working to support self-sufficiency for human
beings to carry out research and exploration productivity for benefits
on Earth and to open the door for planetary exploration.
| The
People of Engineering | |
| MarshallSpace
Flight Center engineer Cindy
Hutchens is developing new technologies to turn wastewater
into clean water on the International Space Station.
More People of Engineering |
|
Advanced
Technology Integration
The
Advanced Technology Integration Web site is for any technology developer
interested in partnering with NASA to advance technologies for human
space flight. The site includes information on NASA technology needs
and features more than 50 streaming audio talks.
Engineering
Research and Technology
The goals of the Engineering Research and Technology program include
maximizing the use of the International Space Station as a unique
on-orbit laboratory.
Hypervelocity
Impact Technology Facility
The Hypervelocity Impact Technology Facility, or HITF, at the Johnson Space Center, Houston, Texas, tests many materials and spacebound
items for their susceptibility to micrometeoroid impact and develops
ways to make them stronger and more resistant to damage.
Robonaut
In
the future, a humanoid robot called Robonaut may be able to work
side-by-side with spacewalking astronauts or even go where the environment
is too risky for humans. Robonaut can work autonomously or while
operated by a person from inside the spacecraft.
Visit the Gallery to see Robonaut
images.
Meet
the People
|
| "I
like working for NASA because I can be 'out there' -- working
on 'spacey,' cutting-edge technology that makes a real difference
here on Earth," says Elaine Flowers Duncan, project manager
for the Spacelab Pallet at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center
in Huntsville, Ala. | |
| When
Johnson Space Center engineer Michael K. Ewert entered his design for a solar-powered house in his sixth-grade science fair, he
never dreamed he would some day be designing air conditioning
systems for a human habitat on the Moon. | |
| This
Johnson Space Center engineer is a leading expert in the field of aircraft structural integrity. He and his team developed
software that predicts the growth of fatigue cracks and structural
failures caused by metal defects. | |
| As
chief engineer of the Flight Projects Directorate at the Marshall
Space Flight Center, Bob Goss is responsible for the technical
success of several key Marshall projects, including its International
Space Station role. | |
| George
Hopson is the manager of the Space Shuttle Main Engine Project
at Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala. He has worked
for NASA for 40 years, but at the age of 75 he still enjoys
the challenges each new day brings. | |
| As
a life support engineer at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center,
Cindy Hutchens is developing new technologies for recycling
water on the International Space Station. | |
| Mike
Kearney is the assistant to the director of the Ground Systems
Department in the Payload Operations Center. His team works
with ground controllers and scientists to develop the computer
and communications systems so they can monitor and control experiments
on the Space Station. | |
| Todd
May leads the team that built a “doorway to the stars” -- a
new airlock that is making it easier to exit the International
Space Station for space walks. | |
| It’s
up to space-suited astronauts to put the International Space
Station together, but Brian Mitchell is one of the people behind
the scenes who makes it look so easy. | |
| Michelle
Munk is the lead systems engineer for the Advanced Space Transportation
Program's Aerocapture Project. The project is developing ways
to use a planet's atmosphere to slow down a spacecraft. | | Shamim
Rahman | NASA
has touched Dr. Shamim Rahman's life for about as
long as he can remember – or at least as far back as 1969, when
he was glued to the television watching Neil Armstrong step
onto the lunar surface. | | Miguel
Rodriguez | Growing
up in Santurce, Puerto Rico, Miguel Rodriguez knew at age 17
that he wanted to work in America's space program. Little could
he have known then that staying focused on that goal would lead
him to become director of NASA's Center Operations Directorate
at Stennis Space Center, where he is responsible for the center's
institutional services. | |
| He
fled Castro's Cuba as a child. She made a less dramatic, but
long journey from the Philippines. Their love for art, science
and science fiction brought them together in high school. Now
this married couple works on key NASA programs at the Marshall
Space Flight Center. | |
| The
manager of the Space Shuttle Vehicle Engineering Office leads
a team of more than 2,000 government and contractor engineers
working on the space shuttle orbiters. He has been instrumental
in the technical leadership role of several space shuttle anomaly
investigations and repair events.
| |
| Susan
Spencer is part of the team that designed, manufactured and
tested the Lightweight Multi-Purpose Experiment Support Structure
Carrier, a cargo container that makes it possible to carry more
science experiments in the shuttle or quickly deliver spare
parts to the International Space Station. |
|
