David Eslinger...
Hello. I’m David Eslinger and as you probably know by now, I’m
a NASA Co-op. I’d like to say right up front that this is a great
opportunity and if you get the chance to co-op here …take
it. A little about me…
I grew up in Dayton, OH…the birthplace of aviation. My dad was in
the AirForce so I’ve been around planes all of my life. My brothers
and I used to love going to the AirForce Museum to look at all the different
kinds of planes. I also love the thought of being able to travel through
space to other planets. I’m a pretty big StarWars fan, and my favorite
TV show is Stargate SG-1. So you’d think that I would know what I
wanted my career to be, right? Obviously I would focus my time and energy
on getting a job with NASA. Well, that’s not quite how it worked
out.
I didn’t know what I wanted to do once I graduated high school. I
knew I was going to college, but that was about it. For a while I was seriously
considering becoming a professional musician, but in the end my interest
in science and mathematics won out. I now attend Purdue University, and
am studying Electrical Engineering. I chose Purdue because I knew it was
a good engineering school and had heard that it had a good co-op program.
I never even really thought of working for NASA until I got to college.
I didn’t even know it was an option for me until I joined the co-op
program at Purdue.
Becoming a Co-op…
Purdue has a very good, very structured co-op program. It was
one of the reasons why I chose to go to school there. Having actual,
real world engineering, job experience looks very good on a
resume, and being a co-op is a great way to get that experience. I highly
recommend
getting a co-op or internship before you graduate. The fact
that you’re
at this website means you’re at least looking around for
one. Good for you.
Anyway…once you get invited to participate in Purdue’s
co-op program, they set you up with an advisor who pretty much
takes care of you. The advisor gives you a list of companies
that are looking to hire co-ops, and you choose about ten or
so that are your top choices. You get something around three
or four interviews, and you’re on your way. So I got
the list and was looking through the names when I saw that
the NASA Johnson Space Center was looking for co-ops. I’m
like, “Huh…I didn’t know NASA hired co-ops.
That would be pretty cool. They do pretty much exactly what
I’m interested in.” Then I went to this website
to see what kind of stuff the co-ops did, and decided that
this was what I wanted to do.
Co-op at JSC…
 |
T-38 at Ellington Field |
Needless to say, I got hired. So now I’m in Houston, TX enjoying my
first tour at JSC. Unlike most of the other co-ops, I was given the chance
to work
at Ellington Airfield. In case you don’t know, Ellington is the
place where they keep the T-38s, STA’s (Shuttle Training Aircraft),
WB-57s, the Super Guppy, and C-9 (better known as the Vomit Comet). What
do I do here? I’m
helping to protect the hearing of the WB-57 pilots by changing the headsets
they use to CEPs (communication ear plug). This is a headphone that goes
in the ear
to help block out cockpit noise. I’m also setting up an ARINC 429
data recorder to use with the T-38’s. Along with figuring out how
to use the recorder, I am writing a macro in Excel to make it easy to
look at the data once
it’s recorded. I’m also helping with the EFIS (Electronic
Flight Instrument System) upgrade to the T-38’s. Basically we’re
taking out the existing instruments in the cockpit and putting in two
LCD panels
that will display the needed information.
It’s not all work…
As a co-op, I’ve gotten to go on tours of places like the Mission Control
Center, Neutral Buoyancy Lab, and of course Ellington. I’ve also gotten
to attend lectures from people like Gene Kranz (Apollo 13 Flight Director)
and John Young (Apollo Astronaut…walked on the moon). Exciting tours
and lectures like this happen just about every week, and the best part is that
you get paid to go to them.
 |
 |
Under the wing of an
STA during the Ellington Tour |
Spring 2006 Skydiving Group |
Stuff happens in the evenings and weekends too. The co-ops form sports teams
to play in the various JSC leagues. We play softball, volleyball, ultimate
Frisbee, soccer, bowling, and most recently curling. We go to the beach, Rockets
games,
movies, skydiving, and more.
Contact me…
If you have any questions, feel free to ask:
deslinge@purdue.edu
david.f.eslinger@nasa.gov
|
|
|
