9781422270011

Cool Careers in Science

Scientists and Engineers

3–D PRINTING SPECIALISTS ALTERNATIVE REALITY DEVELOPERS ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE SCIENTISTS BIG DATA SPECIALISTS COMPUTER GAME & APP DEVELOPERS DRIVERLESS VEHICLE DEVELOPERS DRONE PILOTS

ENTERTAINMENT ENGINEERS ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENTISTS FOOD SCIENTISTS

FORENSIC SCIENTISTS GENETICS ENGINEERS GEOSCIENTISTS METEOROLOGISTS PROFESSIONAL HACKERS RENEWABLE ENERGY WORKERS ROBOTICS DEVELOPERS SPACE SCIENTISTS AND ENGINEERS VISUAL EFFECTS ARTISTS

Cool Careers in Science

Scientists and Engineers

ANDREW MORKES

MASON CREST MIAMI

PO Box 221876, Hollywood, FL 33022 (866) MCP-BOOK (toll-free) • www.masoncrest.com

Copyright © 2024 by Mason Crest, an imprint of National Highlights, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. Printed in the United States of America First printing 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Series ISBN: 978-1-4222-4818-8 Hardcover ISBN: 978-1-4222-4822-5 ebook ISBN: 978-1-4222-7001-1 Cataloging-in-Publication Data on file with the Library of Congress Developed and Produced by National Highlights, Inc. Project Manager: Andrew Morkes Cover and Interior Design: Tara Raymo • CreativelyTara Layout: Priceless Digital Media, LLC Publisher’s Note: Websites listed in this book were active at the time of publication. The publisher is not responsible for websites that have changed their address or discontinued operation since the date of publication. The publisher reviews and updates the websites each time the book is reprinted.

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Table of Contents

CHAPTER 5: The Future of Space Exploration and Careers . . . . . . . . . 81 Photo Credits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92 Further Reading & Internet Resources . . 93 Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94 Educational Video Links . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96 Author Biography 96

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 CHAPTER 1: What Do Space Scientists and Engineers Do? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 CHAPTER 2: Terms of the Trade . . . . . . . 30 CHAPTER 3: Preparing for the Field and Making a Living . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39 CHAPTER 4: Key Skills and Methods of Exploration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57

Introduction

CAREERS IN SCIENCE OFFER GOOD PAY, THE OPPORTUNITY TO HELP PEOPLE, AND OTHER REWARDS

Where would we be without science? Well, we’d be without computers, smartphones, robots, spacecraft, and other cutting-edge technologies. Crimes would take longer to solve without modern forensic analysis techniques. We’d be stuck relying on environmentally unfriendly fossil fuels instead of using renewable energy. And life would be less fun because we wouldn’t have drones, awe-inspiring and physics-defying roller coasters, and the computer and video games that we play for hours. Job markets are sometimes strong and sometimes weak, but a career in science (which, for the purposes of this series, includes the related fields of technology and engineering) is almost a sure path to a comfortable life. The following paragraphs provide more information on why a career in science is a great choice. Good pay. People in science careers earn some of the highest salaries in the work world. The median annual salary for those in engineering careers in the United States is $79,840, according to the US Department of Labor (USDL). This is much higher than the median earnings ($45,760) for all careers. Additionally, those in life, physical, and social science occupations earn $72,740. Science professionals who become managers or who launch their own businesses can earn anywhere from $150,000 to $300,000 or more.

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Strong employment prospects. The USDL predicts that employment of computer and information technology professionals in the United States will grow by 15 percent during the next decade. This is much faster than the average for all careers. Career opportunities for those in life, physical, and social science occupations will grow by 7 percent, and employment for engineering professionals will grow by 4 percent. By 2031, the USDL predicts that there will be nearly 873,000 new science, technology, engineering, and mathematics jobs. Rewarding work environment and many career options. A career in science is fulfilling because you get to use both your creative and practical sides to develop new technologies (or improve existing ones), solve problems, and make the world a better place. In the instance of space science and engineering, you get the chance to build spacecraft that will allow humans to travel into space and explore and conduct research, as well as devise and conduct experiments that help us to better understand the universe, improve life on Earth, and make space exploration and tourism safer for humans. There’s a common misconception that science workers spend most of their time in dreary, windowless laboratories or research facilities. While they do spend lots of time in these places, they also spend time in the field, testing, troubleshooting, and trying out their inventions or discoveries. And some scientists who are also astronauts get to travel into space to conduct experiments and other research! Entrepreneurism is another option for scientists and engineers. Some science professionals launch their own businesses, which can be both fun and very rewarding. Job opportunities are available throughout the United States and the world. Science professionals play such an important role in our modern world that there are job openings almost anywhere, although many positions are found in big cities.

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IS A CAREER IN SCIENCE RIGHT FOR ME?

Test your interest. How many of these statements do you agree with? • My favorite class in school is science. • I also enjoy computer science classes. • I like to learn about scientific breakthroughs. • I like to design and build things. • I like to solve puzzles. • I enjoy doing science experiments. • I am curious about how things work. • I am creative and have a good imagination. • I like to build electronics and other things that require electricity. • I like to take things apart and see how they work. • I am good at math and physics. If many of the statements above describe you, then you should consider a career in the sciences. But you don’t need to select a career right now. Check out this book on a career as a space scientist or engineer, and other books in the series, to learn more about occupational paths in the sciences and related fields. Good luck with your career exploration!

8 COOL CAREERS IN SCIENCE: SPACE SCIENTISTS AND ENGINEERS

INTRODUCTION

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WORDS TO UNDERSTAND

advanced manufacturing: a manufacturing process that seeks to increase efficiency and the quality of products, reduce the risk of human error by automating processes (when possible), increase flexibility and responsiveness to market demands, and meet other goals feasibility: the degree of being easily or conveniently done infrastructure: in relation to the construction industry, the systems of a city, region, or nation, such as communication, sewage, water, transportation, bridges, dams, and electric professional association: an organization that is founded by a group of people who have the same career—such as engineers, professional hackers, or scientists—or who work in the same industry specialty (eg, space, information technology, health care) yield: the final amount of an agricultural or industrial product after harvest or production is completed

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Chapter 1

WHAT DO SPACE SCIENTISTS AND ENGINEERS DO? A BRIEF HISTORY OF SPACE EXPLORATION

On July 29, 1958, President Dwight Eisenhower signed the National Aeronautics and Space Act, which created the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). The agency opened for business on October 1, 1958. In the ensuing decades, NASA’s scientists, engineers, technicians, astronauts, and other professionals worked together to achieve some of the greatest feats of science and exploration that have ever been accomplished by humans. In the 1960s alone, these included: • May 1961: The first American space flight involving a human being (astronaut Alan B. Shepard Jr.) • July 1962: The launch of Telstar l, the first privately built communications satellite, which transmitted the first telephone and television signals via satellite • July 1969: The first astronauts—Neil A. Armstrong and Edwin E. Aldrin—landed on and explored the moon.

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Astronauts Neil Armstrong (left) and Buzz Aldrin (right) deploy the US flag after becoming the first humans to land on the moon on July 20, 1969.

During the 1950s and 1960s, the Soviet Union (which dissolved in 1991, with many of its remnants now grouped together and known as Russia ) also accomplished amazing things in space. Examples include launching Sputnik I, the world’s first artificial satellite, in October 1957, and launching the first human, cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin, into space in April 1961. In addition, China began making advancements in space in the 1970s and has continued to advance its space program since then. For nearly three decades, the United States, Soviet Union, and China were the main players in space flight. That changed in 1990, when the aerospace company Orbital Sciences Corporation launched Pegasus—the first launch vehicle that was fully developed by a private company. Until 2001, astronauts were the only humans to travel to space. That changed on April 30 of that year when US businessman Dennis Tito became the world’s first space

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COOL CAREERS IN SCIENCE: SPACE SCIENTISTS AND ENGINEERS

tourist. Tito paid $20 million to be transported via a Russian Soyuz rocket to the International Space Station (ISS). In 2020, SpaceX became the first private company to launch humans into orbit. It transported NASA astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley into space via its Crew Dragon Endeavour capsule. SpaceX made history again in 2021 by becoming the first private spaceflight company to launch an all-civilian crew into space. Today, NASA and other space agencies work with aerospace companies to conduct research, launch spacecraft (including satellites), and explore the universe. These companies also pursue their own business goals in space. In 2022, approximately 15 new launch commercial vehicles made their maiden flights, according to The Space Report, making it the busiest year for new rockets since the early days of the Space Age.

The Crew Dragon Endeavour spacecraft.

What Do Space Scientists and Engineers Do?

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Learn about the history of NASA.

ALL ABOUT THE SPACE INDUSTRY The space industry is comprised of three sectors: civil, national security, and commercial. The civil sector involves all nondefense-related government space activities. In the United States, NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) manage or are otherwise responsible for nearly all civil space missions. There are nearly 80 space agencies around the world, and 16 have launch capabilities, according to the employment site RocketCrew. In addition to NASA, other space agencies include the Canada Space Agency, China National Space Administration, European Space Agency, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, and Roscosmos-Russian Federal Space Agency. The national security sector involves defense and intelligence agencies that oversee space missions in support of military and law enforcement operations. Federal government agencies that are involved in this sector

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COOL CAREERS IN SCIENCE: SPACE SCIENTISTS AND ENGINEERS

include the Department of Defense, (including the US Space Force, Defense Intelligence Agency, US Space Command, and National Geospatial Intelligence Agency), Central Intelligence Agency, and other agencies. The commercial sector involves companies that engage in for-profit activities (e.g., cargo delivery, satellite communication, space tourism). The leading companies are SpaceX, Blue Origin, Virgin Galactic, Bigelow Aerospace, Sierra Nevada Corporation, Lockheed Martin, Boeing, and United Launch Alliance (which is co-owned by Lockheed Martin and Boeing). Many small- to midsize space technology companies also operate in this sector. CAREER OPPORTUNITIES IN SPACE SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING Approximately 198,500 people work in the US space industry (for private sector and government organizations), according to The Space Report. About 77 percent of them work for commercial space companies. Many work in science and engineering positions. The following sections provide more information about these careers. SCIENTISTS Scientists conduct research and experiments to answer questions such as, How old is the universe? What happens when black holes collide? How does low gravity affect people, plants, and other organisms? How does it alter physics as we know it? They also find answers to more practical questions such as How can astronaut extravehicular exploration suits be made safer? How can astronauts maintain good health and nutrition on long-term future trips to Mars and other planets? What are some ways to reduce the amount of space junk that is creating a hazard to spacecraft and satellites? How can we increase the yield of fruits and vegetables grown in space or on the moon?

What Do Space Scientists and Engineers Do?

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Learn about experiments conducted by space scientists.

NASA employs 15 different types of scientists, but it says that its most common science roles are in general physical science, astronomy and space, and physics. The following paragraphs spotlight career options for scientists in the space industry. Archaeoastronomers study how people on Earth throughout history have perceived the sun, moon, stars, planets, and universe in order to better understand their beliefs and worldviews, as well as how historical inhabitants used the location and movements of objects in the night sky for navigation, to mark the passage of time, and for other purposes. Astrobiologists use their knowledge of biology, biochemistry, astronomy, and other fields to determine whether life exists beyond Earth. They study life in extreme conditions on Earth to better understand and identify how life might exist in similar or identical conditions on other planets or moons. Some astrobiologists search for radio signals that may be coming from intelligent life somewhere in the universe.

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COOL CAREERS IN SCIENCE: SPACE SCIENTISTS AND ENGINEERS