Mamta Patel...

HOWDY Y'all! So you want to work for NASA huh? If you're surfing the Coop web page, and I'm guessing that you are, then you're doing the right thing! It gives you some good information that you should know before you make your decision. The other thing that I did was read these biographies and email random coops for advice. Of course that's all the little stuff! You still have to pursue the job with the hiring coordinator yourself (that's with Anne Roemer in case you do not know), go to your school's career fairs, and send in your resume (start making one if you don't already have one)!

Introduction

Well, let me tell you a little bit about myself. My name is Mamta Patel, and I graduated with a B.S. in Aerospace Engineering from Texas A&M University and am a proud member of the Fightin' Texas Aggie Class of 2002 (WHOOOOOOOP!). I have my M.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Georgia Tech, and I am still en route to a Ph.D. in Bioengineering at Georgia Tech and Emory University. I am originally from San Angelo, Texas (better known as Desert Land, USA!), and this is my seventh tour (5 undergraduate and 2 graduate tours) out here in good ol' Houston, TX working at NASA. I LOVE IT! No really--I mean I truly LOVE it! My friends here tease me because I always say that I "love" things. But I REALLY AND TRULY LOVE NASA! For me, it is a dream unfolding right in front of my very own eyes. I'm one of those big dorks that knew she wanted to be an astronaut from the day I was born. And now, lil' old me is helping send them to space! WOW!

Seventh Tour (Second Graduate Tour)

Well, in the Summer of 2005, I co-oped in the Space Life Sciences Directorate in the Human Adaptation and Countermeasures Office. I came here on the premise of my graduate studies and hope to collaborate with NASA on my dissertation topic. We aim to investigate the cause of bone loss due to microgravity and believe the bone loss is due to changes in genes upon exposure to long-term microgravity. We are using the NASA simulator of microgravity called the Rotating Wall Vessel to assess the changes in gene expression profiles of precursor bone formation cells called pre-osteoblasts. We plan to compare the study to published data (Pardo and Patel, et.al., Americal Journal of Physiology, 2005) that used the European simulator called the Random Positioning Machine. From these comparisons, we hope to obtain a narrow list of genes that may be responsible for the bone loss in microgravity, and we plan to provide a countermeasure for the pathophysiology.

Sixth Tour (First Graduate Tour)

My first graduate tour was in the Space Flight Training Division, in which I co-oped during my first and second undergraduate tours. I returned to this group because I enjoyed being in the Mission Operations loop! I love being updated about what goes on with ISS daily, and I love personally interacting with the people who make each flight a success! Since I was a graduate student who had co-oped in DT before, my tasks that summer were both challenging and achievable. My objectives were to certify in two lessons this summer, which was quite a feat for a two month tenure.

Fifth Tour

My fifth and final undergraduate tour was in EG5, the Advanced Missions branch of NASA. The thing that I loved the most about EG5 was that the work was completely different than anything else I had done at NASA. It was probably the most interesting work that I had as orbital mechanics is my favorite part of aerospace engineering. I planned the mission trajectories to send a robotic mission to Mars to drill for ice. Previously, the Mars Odyssey had found ice on the Martian surface, and this was very exciting news!

Fourth Tour

My fourth tour was in EG4, the Guidance, Navigation, and Control branch of NASA. I actually had an incredibly challenging project where I helped my mentor to simulate the X-38 control system in MATLAB's Simulink program. This project would eventually allow NASA to make changes and run simulations for the control system on the PC before implementing those changes in the real simulator, known as the Spacecraft Engineering Simulator (SES), which is more complicated and thus more difficult in which to troubleshoot changes.

Third Tour

During my third tour, I worked in EG3, which is the Aerosciences and Computational Fluid Dynamics branch of NASA. I performed aerodynamic analysis for the X-38, concentrating on lateral directional control. When you get to JSC, you will find that EG has an incredible reputation among the coops (particularly the aerospace majors!), and now that I have worked there, I know exactly why! They treat their coops with great respect, and I felt like I was doing real work that we needed in order to wrap up work on the X-38.

First and Second Work Tours

On my first two tours, I worked in the Mission Operations Directorate in the Space Flight Training Division for the International Space Station TCS/EPS group. I was a certified trainer for the Expedition crews that went up to the Space Station. Particularly, I trained the astronauts in operations of the Thermal Control System, which basically keeps things on the Station at the temperatures at which they are supposed to be while getting rid of the extra heat that accumulates from payloads, computers, and other equipment. I loved it! I mean how many 20 year olds get to claim that they trained astronauts?!?!? And the coolest part about DT was the fact that some people thought I was full-time by the end of my tours there. That is how well this group treats their coops!

Co-op SOCIAL LIFE!

I think you would be interested in hearing what co-ops do besides work! The FUN STUFF begins with the COOP SOCIAL LIFE!!!! This is one of the best parts of being a coop! It's like being in college without the homework, stress, and tests! There is never a dull moment in Coop Land! They plan trips to see a launch in Florida, ski in the Rockies, cruise the French Quarter in New Orleans, party at the BEACH, or just chill in good ol' Houston, Texas! There are so many different people and personalities that you will most definitely find someone with whom you just click! Plus, they also plan cool stuff at work too! While at work, they plan tours around the various facilities at NASA. They tour the Mission Control Center, the Neutral Buoyancy Lab (NBL-The big pool that simulates microgravity!), the Lunar Labs (with real MOONROCKSJ), and SO MUCH MORE! On top of that, they have astronauts and flight directors speak to the co-ops, such as Gene Kranz (Flight Director for the Apollo program), Robert Curbeam (astronaut), and John Young (yes-the man who actually stepped on the Moon on Apollo 16 and commanded the first Shuttle flight STS-1!).

Questions????

Well that's it for me! I have successfully drained your eyes for the time being! BUT, if you want to ask any questions or want advice, I am just an email away! You can email me at mamta02@hotmail.com. HAVE FUN JOB SEARCHING! AND BEST OF LUCK! DON'T HESITATE TO ASK FOR ADVICE!

This is my little sister, Pritty, with my amazingly beautiful little niece, Smita. Pritty is a junior at Texas A&M, and Smita is the 6 year old daughter of my oldest sister, Hima. My family is VERY close, and we are all best friends! I love them!!!	This is Trisha, my adorably cute younger niece (Smita's little sister), and she is nine months old. Can we just say she is one happy baby!?! Look at that smile!!! (Of course she is related to Care Bear--If you ever meet Canada, ask him about this one!--And while you are at it--Ask him why his name is Canada.)	These are my biggest role models, the smartest people I have ever known, and the most unselfish people on this planet--My parents!
These are my Penn State girls (PSG) from my first tour--Me, Bini, Lisa, and Laura	Jamal is pimpin' it with PSG and Mamtz	This is my lacrosse team back at school. I play offense at first home! This is the sport of all sports!!!
OH MY GOSH! SO YEAH! We went skydiving and there I am falling at 120 MPH! WOW!	We also went camping this year in the freezing cold! SO FUN!	Laura and me at our Luau par-taaaaay! Co-ops be livin up....
THE GIRLS IN NEW ORLEANS! Annie, Jess, Tiff, Jackie, Annie Bader, and me	MY GIRL SABRINA AND ME--JUST HANGIN OUT IN DOWNTOWN H-TOWN!	My roomie Laura, good friends Canada and Alex, and me at one of our hang-out nights at the bowling alley!