Exploring Space and Life at MIT
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All the alumni experts have a connection to NASA—as a current or past employee—and all have a great interest in upcoming missions, especially their favorites. Alessondra Springmann SM ’11 leaned towards asteroids, while Allen Chen ’00 SM ’02 had to pick an obvious favorite. Bobak Ferdowsi ‘03 chimed in with why he thinks the Europa Clipper mission is so exciting.
.@MIT_alumni @NASA I'm biased towards M2020 since I'm on it; it's the first step in the Mars Sample Return campaign. #MITAlum— Allen Chen (@icancallubetty) October 7, 2014
I'm stoked for @NASA's asteroid sample return mission @OSIRISREx! Bring home some rocks from space. #MITalum — AlessondraSpringmann (@sondy) October 7, 2014
.@MIT_alumni I like #Europa b/c: water, minerals from rocky core, warm from tidal heating - cld be like life at Earth ocean floor #MITAlum— Bobak Ferdowsi (@tweetsoutloud) October 7, 2014
Mars 2020The Mars 2020 mission will send another rover to the red planet—one with more capabilities than current rover Curiosity. Tamra Johnson ‘01 and Vanessa Thomas ’98 were curious how this newest mission might be different. Chen and Noah Warner ‘01, SM ‘03, PhD ‘07 shared some changes we can look for in 2020.
.@tamrajohnson One of big challenges for @NASAInSight is how to get instruments safely from the deck of the lander to the surface. #MITAlum — Noah Warner (@nzw) October 7, 2014
.@vanessastro Yes - we've just added a parachute range trigger that will allow us to land even more precisely! #MITAlum— Allen Chen (@icancallubetty) October 7, 2014
See You on MarsWarner also shared insight into the future of the Curiosity—one we may never get to see.
.@MIT_alumni Unfortunately most of us will not get to see @MarsCuriosity with our own eyes again. #MITAlum — Noah Warner (@nzw) October 7, 2014
.@MIT_alumni I hope s/he goes to visit @MarsCuriosity -- dust her off and take a selfie together! #MITAlum— Noah Warner (@nzw) October 7, 2014
Mission Moments Caley Burke SM ’10 works in launches and Chen works in landings—both of which can be very stressful. Burke and Chen discussed what it’s like when they can finally breathe again.
Launches = stressful! I definitely have butterflies from liftoff through confirmed separation into required orbit. @MIT_alumni #MITAlum — Caley (@NASA_Caley) October 7, 2014
.@MIT_alumni A little surreal at first… Did this actually just happen? Or was this another practice run? #MITAlum (1/2)— Allen Chen (@icancallubetty) October 7, 2014
NASA and MIT Which AeroAstro class do the alumni keep thinking about? David Oh '91, SM '93, SCD '97 joined in with his favorite.
.@MIT_alumni @MIT Unified Engineering (16.001). Trial by fire. Learned a ton. Glad they have toned it down. #MITAlum — David Oh (@marstimrdad) October 7, 2014
To end the chat, Chen summed up what makes MIT and NASA so similar in his eyes.
.@MIT_alumni @NASA @MIT I feel like @NASAJPL and @MIT are places where it’s not just ok to challenge conventions – it’s expected. #MITAlum— Allen Chen (@icancallubetty) October 7, 2014
This chat was cosponsored by MIT AeroAstro. See a more complete transcript of the chat.