Cecil Shy

My name is Cecil Shy, and I am a Mechanical Engineering major at Prairie View A&M University. I was born in St. Louis Missouri; however, I have lived most of my life in Houston Texas, home of the great Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center. Throughout my life I have found that I am very cognitive; this state of mind combined with overwhelming grace helped steer me towards the wonderful Coop opportunity I have today.

This is my first tour with NASA Johnson Space Center. The NASA Coop experience has proven to be one of the most beneficial opportunities I have ever received. Through the Coop program I have learned that NASA Johnson Space Center has taken all the positive morals and ethics of life and combined them into an immensely successful conglomerate. NASA is an establishment that promotes extreme caution, which shows the wisdom of its leaders; it exemplifies cerebral behavior, as each worker knows his or her profession to its full extent; and finally it produces visceral persons, as the servants that comprise NASA are constantly alert each day responding to the unpredictable intricacies of the cosmos.

Moreover, my Coop experience from a technical perspective has also proven to be exceedingly valuable. I work within the Mission Operations Divisions (MOD) in the Cargo Operations and Integrations Branch (DO5). The Cargo Branch has graciously provided me with constant hands-on work throughout the entire semester; I have worked on as many as three projects thus far!

My project experience began with the Transfer Crew Team. The Transfer Crew consists of the astronauts trained by the Assembly Checkout Officers (ACO) to manage the distribution of supplies and goods during ascent and descent to and from the International Space Station (ISS). They also withhold the manifest, important constraints, and locations of the ISS middeck lockers, Cargo bags, and various mechanical components stored within the ISS. I was personally instructed to build the transfer notebooks for the Transfer Crew. I was entrusted with both sensitive and non sensitive ISS procedural Transfer information, to put together the most efficient notebook composition for the astronauts use.

Riding in the motion-based simulator

My next project involved the Japanese H-II Transfer Vehicle (HTV). I spent the majority of my Coop experience working with the HTV. I served as an assistant to the ICAAT team who are responsible for developing Portable Computer System (PCS) displays for both PROX (Radio Frequency) and Hard Linked operations during HTV and ISS rendezvous. I built several PCS displays throughout the semester, which dealt with both hard linked and PROX operations. The most challenging display I built was the GNC SIGI/RVS Power display. I was instructed to build a display to show the power distribution throughout the GNC SIGI & RVS systems. I spent several days researching schematics and constructing several mock circuit diagrams to efficiently meet all the requirements given to construct the GNC Power display. As a result I gained valuable CGE schematics, SIGI, RVS, and GPS (Global Positioning Systems) knowledge while completing the task.

Along with HTV, I also worked with telemetry data from both the Wing Leading Edge Sensors (WLES) and the several Shuttle sensors on the Orbiter. My assignment required me to attempt to make the most accurate WLES mounting plate temperature predictions by applying an algorithm which involves finding the smallest squares of the WLES and Shuttle telemetry. Through this in-depth analysis and comparison of WLES and Shuttle telemetry I would hope to obtain rewarding results for more resourceful on-orbit monitoring. This project really helped me learn the art of analyzing data. I will surely take the skills I've learned working with WLES to help me effectively continue my undergraduate education.

Check out the cool T-38!

In addition, I also received the rare opportunity to consult with notable members of the Space Program such as, Flight Director Chris Kraft, JSC Director Mike Coats, Deputy Director Robert Cabana, Associate Director Milt Heflin, and many more! I have gained an abundance of knowledge pertaining to both the technological advancement of Space exploration and the importance of ethical enhancement. I will surely incorporate their words of advice to help me mature into a wise and resourceful engineer.

By and by, apart from the vast technological experience, I learned that NASA Coops really know how to have fun! I played on the Coop Basketball team.Go Space Jam! There are lots of other extracurricular opportunities as well; they offer volleyball, baseball, soccer, and football! They are all solely for your enjoyment! Along with sports, there is also sky diving, rock climbing, camping.the list goes on! I really enjoyed the delicate balance between work and play while being a Coop; it helped to realize that there is actually great benefit behind relaxation!

Finally, the entire Coop semester has been absolutely wonderful! I have grown both technically and morally while working with the noble civil servants of NASA JSC. I would encourage every student to strive for a NASA Coop opportunity; it will surely affect his or her life in a positive manner. I would be more than delighted to assist anyone who may be interested in such an opportunity; the NASA Coop experience is simply, priceless.

Cool WB57!	Hanging out at Ellington Field!