José Moreira
2018-05-10
I am part of the Ascent Abort-2 (AA-2) Crew Module and Separation Ring team under the Advanced Exploration Systems Division, supporting the Orion Program. For as long as I can remember, I have always had a fascination with space exploration, but it didn’t really dawn on me as a kid that I could actually be part of the teams that get to make exploration happen. It wasn’t until I was nearing the end of my mechanical engineering program in college that I realized, “Wait, NASA needs engineers, and I’m an engineer.” I must have submitted more than a dozen applications. Then, one day, I received a phone call and then an interview. All of a sudden, I was the newest newbie on the International Space Station Program. That was 2004, and it has been an amazing journey ever since.
For anyone thinking about working at NASA, I would say that there is a place for you here, and you don’t have to be an engineer or scientist. What we do takes a village, with all kinds of talents needed to accomplish our goals on the ground and our goals in space.
I absolutely love doing what we do at NASA. Every day we get to support projects that are part of larger missions with goals to answer some of the most fundamental questions of human nature: Why? And how? And … what’s out there? As part of the Orion AA-2 project, we are designing and building a crew module and separation ring so that we can test the Orion Launch Abort System—all to ensure astronaut safety during the launch of Orion’s crewed missions. It’s a special thing to watch something go into space and know that you contributed to making it happen.
For anyone thinking about working at NASA, I would say that there is a place for you here, and you don’t have to be an engineer or scientist. What we do takes a village, with all kinds of talents needed to accomplish our goals on the ground and our goals in space.
I absolutely love doing what we do at NASA. Every day we get to support projects that are part of larger missions with goals to answer some of the most fundamental questions of human nature: Why? And how? And … what’s out there? As part of the Orion AA-2 project, we are designing and building a crew module and separation ring so that we can test the Orion Launch Abort System—all to ensure astronaut safety during the launch of Orion’s crewed missions. It’s a special thing to watch something go into space and know that you contributed to making it happen.