Aaron Paz...
Welcome to my Biography. My name is Aaron Paz and I am a Mechanical
Engineering major at New Mexico State University. I would consider
myself somewhat of an adventurer. I'm into a lot of things like
mountain biking, scuba diving, skydiving, snowboarding and things
of that nature. It's that sense of adventure that I think drives
many of us toward this organization. I have been pretty heavily
involved with NASA throughout college, not only as a co-op but
also while taking classes. Here is the breakdown of what I have
done so far.
I started off working at White Sands Test Facility in my hometown
of Las Cruces New Mexico. I would highly recommend for co-ops
to do a tour out there if they are looking for a hands-on type
of environment. The work is both challenging and interesting.
Most of the projects I worked on relate to the RCS thrusters
on the space shuttle. The RCS thrusters use exotic hypergol propellants
and I was able to see them in action. I also did research on
pyrovalves.
I spent my third tour working in the Advanced Development division
of Johnson Space Center. There I worked on a Martian drill prototype.
That job was great because my office was outdoors some of the
time. The prototype we tested drilled through 2 meters of sandstone.
I also helped design a potential anchor for a future version
of the prototype. This was a fascinating , creative project and
I enjoyed the time I spent working on it.
 My fourth
tour was in the Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory. This was an incredible
experience to say the least. I became a certified diver and worked
with astronauts on a daily basis. I also learned about a variety
of different areas such as EVA tools, space suits, robotics,
test operations, and especially the international space station.
This is where it all comes together so you learn about several
aspects of human space flight.
Back at school I've worked on two separate NASA projects. One
involved pyrovalve research for Stennis Space Center. By working
on that project I was given the opportunity to visit Stennis
Space Center, which just so happens to be located right outside
of New Orleans. The other project I worked on was for the reduced
gravity student flight opportunities program. I actually flew
on the KC-135 and experienced zero gravity.  Unfortunately
zero gravity is something like the Matrix. No one can really
be told how it feels, you have to experience it for yourself.
If you are still in school, I would highly recommend getting
with a team and submitting a proposal.
Having read through this entire thing I assume that you are
into space as much as I am. With that I can say that you have
picked a good interest. I have never been bored working for NASA.
If you have any questions about anything I've done send me an
email: aapaz@nmsu.edu
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