Miguel San Martín
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Miguel San Martín
Alejandro Miguel San Martín (January 6, 1959) is an Argentine engineer of NASA and a science educator. He is best known for his work as Chief Engineer for the Guidance, Navigation, and Control system in the latest missions to Mars. His best known contribution is the Sky Crane system, of which he is coinventor, used in the ''Curiosity'' mission for the descent of the rover. In addition to his work as an engineer, he is dedicated to giving presentations about the work he does with his team at NASA. He has participated as a speaker at various events such as Campus Party, Robotics Day, Real Talks Atlanta and TEDx Río de la Plata, among other conferences. He is featured in the NASA video "''Curiosity'' Seven Minutes of Terror" along with other ''Curiosity'' engineers. Early life and career He left Argentina after he graduated from industrial school, moving to the United States to get a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering from Syracuse University College of Engineering ...
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Electrical Engineering
Electrical engineering is an engineering discipline concerned with the study, design, and application of equipment, devices, and systems that use electricity, electronics, and electromagnetism. It emerged as an identifiable occupation in the latter half of the 19th century after the commercialization of the electric telegraph, the telephone, and electrical power generation, distribution, and use. Electrical engineering is divided into a wide range of different fields, including computer engineering, systems engineering, power engineering, telecommunications, radio-frequency engineering, signal processing, instrumentation, photovoltaic cells, electronics, and optics and photonics. Many of these disciplines overlap with other engineering branches, spanning a huge number of specializations including hardware engineering, power electronics, Electromagnetism, electromagnetics and waves, microwave engineering, nanotechnology, electrochemistry, renewable energies, mechatronics/control ...
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NASA Exceptional Service Medal
The NASA Exceptional Service Medal is an award granted to U.S. government employees for significant sustained performance characterized by unusual initiative or creative ability that clearly demonstrates substantial improvement in engineering, aeronautics, space flight, administration, support, or space-related endeavors which contribute to NASA programs. The medal was inherited by NASA from its predecessor organization, the National Advisory Committee on Aeronautics (NACA) and featured the NACA emblem. The original NASA version featured the NASA seal. Notable recipients *Buzz Aldrin (1969) * Robert O. Aller (twice) * Aseel Anabtawi (2007) *Neil Armstrong (1966) *Brandon T. Bailey (2019) * Charles Bolden (thrice) *Frank Borman 1965 * John R. Casani (1965) * Lin Chambers (2009) * Kevin Chilton * Eileen Collins (1998) * Michael Collins (1966) * Lana Couch (1986) * Nagin Cox * William H. Dana * Jean Dickey (1998) * John H. Disher (twice, last in 1980) * Einar Enevoldson (1974 and ...
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NASA Exceptional Engineering Achievement Medal
The NASA Exceptional Engineering Achievement Medal (abbreviated EEAM) was established by NASA in 1981 to recognize unusually significant engineering contributions towards achievement of aeronautical or space exploration goals. This award is given for individual efforts for applications of engineering principles or methods that have resulted in a contribution of fundamental importance in this field or have significantly enhanced understanding of this field or have significantly advanced the state of the practice as demonstrated by an application to aerospace systems. Recent recipients 2006 2006 award recipients include: *Claude A. Bryant *Keyur C. Patel *Frank J. Vaughn *Walter C. Engelund *Donald R. Pettit *Russell A. Wincheski *John P. McManamen *John W. Slater *Russell A. Paielli *James L. Walker (aerospace), James L. Walker 2007 2007 award recipients include: *James Baughman *Kendall Brown (engineer), Kendall Brown *Steven Fredrickson *Charles Harris (aerospace), Charles ...
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National Academy Of Engineering
The National Academy of Engineering (NAE) is an American Nonprofit organization, nonprofit, NGO, non-governmental organization. It is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM), along with the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) and the National Academy of Medicine (NAM). The NAE operates engineering programs aimed at meeting national needs, encourages education and research, and recognizes the superior achievements of engineers. New members are annually elected by current members, based on their distinguished and continuing achievements in original research. The NAE is autonomous in its administration and in the selection of its members, sharing with the rest of the National Academies the role of advising the federal government. History The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine#History, National Academy of Sciences was created by an Act of Incorporation dated March 3, 1863, which was signed by then president of the United ...
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Opportunity (rover)
''Opportunity'', also known as MER-B (Mars Exploration Rover – B) or MER-1, and nicknamed Oppy, is a robotic rover that was active on Mars from 2004 until 2018. ''Opportunity'' was operational on Mars for sols ( on Earth). Launched on July 7, 2003, as part of NASA's Mars Exploration Rover program, it landed in Meridiani Planum on January 25, 2004, three weeks after its twin, '' Spirit'' (MER-A), touched down on the other side of the planet. With a planned 90- sol duration of activity (slightly less than 92.5 Earth days), ''Spirit'' functioned until it got stuck in 2009 and ceased communications in 2010, while ''Opportunity'' was able to stay operational for sols after landing, maintaining its power and key systems through continual recharging of its batteries using solar power, and hibernating during events such as dust storms to save power. This careful operation allowed ''Opportunity'' to operate for 57 times its designed lifespan, exceeding the initial plan by (in Ear ...
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Spirit (rover)
''Spirit'', also known as MER-A (Mars Exploration Rover – A) or MER-2, is a Mars rover, Mars robotic rover, active from 2004 to 2010. ''Spirit'' was operational on Mars for Timekeeping on Mars#Sols, sols or 3.3 Martian years ( days; '). It was one of two rover (space exploration), rovers of NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Mission managed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). Spirit landed successfully within the impact crater Gusev (Martian crater), Gusev on Mars at 04:35 Ground UTC on January 4, 2004, three weeks before its twin, ''Opportunity (rover), Opportunity'' (MER-B), which landed on the other side of the planet. Its name was chosen through a Sofi Collis, NASA-sponsored student essay competition. The rover got stuck in a "sand trap" in late 2009 at an angle that hampered recharging of its batteries; its last communication with Earth was on March 22, 2010. The rover completed its planned 90-Martian day, sol mission (slightly less than 92.5 Earth days). Aided by cleani ...
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Sojourner (rover)
The robotic ''Sojourner'' Mars rover , rover reached Mars on July 4, 1997 as part of the ''Mars Pathfinder'' mission. ''Sojourner'' was operational on Mars for 92 Timekeeping on Mars#Sols, sols (95 Earth days), and was the first wheeled vehicle to operate on an astronomical body , astronomical object other than the Earth or Moon. The landing site was in the Ares Vallis channel in the Chryse Planitia region of the Oxia Palus quadrangle. The rover was equipped with front and rear cameras, and hardware that was used to conduct several scientific experiments. It was designed for a mission lasting 7 sols, with a possible extension to 30 sols, and was active for 83 sols (85 Earth days). The rover communicated with Earth through the ''Pathfinder'' base station, which had its last successful communication session with Earth at 3:23 a.m. PDT on September 27, 1997. The last signal from the rover was received on the morning of October 7, 1997. ''Sojourner'' traveled jus ...
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Mars Pathfinder
''Mars Pathfinder'' was an American robotic spacecraft that landed a base station with a rover (space exploration), roving probe on Mars in 1997. It consisted of a Lander (spacecraft), lander, renamed the Carl Sagan Memorial Station, and a lightweight, wheeled robotic Mars rover named ''Sojourner (rover), Sojourner'', the first rover to operate outside the Earth–Moon system. The mission terminated in 1998. Launched on December 4, 1996, by NASA aboard a Delta II booster a month after the ''Mars Global Surveyor'', it landed on July 4, 1997, on Mars's Ares Vallis, in a region called Chryse Planitia in the Oxia Palus quadrangle. The lander (spacecraft), lander then opened, exposing the rover which conducted many experiments on the Martian surface. The mission carried a series of scientific instruments to analyze the Martian Celestial body atmosphere, atmosphere, climate, and geology and the composition of its rock (geology), rocks and soil. It was the second project from NASA's D ...
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Cassini–Huygens
''Cassini–Huygens'' ( ), commonly called ''Cassini'', was a space research, space-research mission by NASA, the European Space Agency (ESA), and the Italian Space Agency (ASI) to send a space probe to study the planet Saturn and its system, including its Rings of Saturn, rings and Moons of Saturn, natural satellites. The Large Strategic Science Missions, Flagship-class robotic spacecraft comprised both NASA's ''Cassini'' space probe and ESA's Huygens (spacecraft), ''Huygens'' lander (spacecraft), lander, which landed on Saturn's largest moon, Titan (moon), Titan. ''Cassini'' was the fourth space probe to visit Saturn and the first to enter its orbit, where it stayed from 2004 to 2017. The two craft took their names from the astronomers Giovanni Cassini and Christiaan Huygens. Launched aboard a Titan IV, Titan IVB/Centaur on October 15, 1997, ''Cassini'' was active in space for nearly 20 years, spending its final 13 years orbiting Saturn and studying the planet and its system a ...
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Magellan (spacecraft)
The ''Magellan'' spacecraft was a robotic space probe launched by NASA on May 4, 1989. Its mission objectives were to map the surface of Venus by using synthetic-aperture radar and to measure the planetary gravitational field. The ''Magellan'' probe was the first interplanetary mission to be launched from the Space Shuttle, the first one to use the Inertial Upper Stage booster, and the first spacecraft to test aerobraking as a method for circularizing its orbit. ''Magellan'' was the fifth successful NASA mission to Venus, and it ended an eleven-year gap in U.S. interplanetary probe launches. History Beginning in the late 1970s, scientists advocated for a radar mapping mission to Venus. They first sought to construct a spacecraft named the '' Venus Orbiting Imaging Radar'' (VOIR), but it became clear that the mission would be beyond the budget constraints during the ensuing years. The VOIR mission was canceled in 1982. A simplified radar mission proposal was recommended ...
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Public Radio International
Public Radio International (PRI) was an American public radio organization. Headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota, PRI provided programming to over 850 public radio stations in the United States. PRI was one of the main providers of programming for public radio stations in the U.S., alongside National Public Radio, American Public Media, and the Public Radio Exchange. PRI merged with the Public Radio Exchange in 2018. Background In the United States, PRI distributed well-known programming to public radio stations. Among its programs were the global news program '' The World'', which PRI co-produced with WGBH Boston. Programs on PRI—sometimes mis-attributed to National Public Radio—were produced by a variety of organizations, including PRI in the United States and other countries. PRI, along with NPR and American Public Media, was one of the largest program producers and distributors of public radio programming in the United States. PRI offered over 280 hours of programm ...
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