Mars Pathfinder Team Members


 

Sami Asmar

Supervisor of the Radio Science Group

Sami Asmar (class of 1985) is a physicist and the supervisor of the Radio Science Group at NASA's Jet propulsion Laboratory. His interests include studies of planetary and solar atmospheres and gravity fields, as well as the theory of general relativity using radio signals propagating from distant spacecraft. For the Mars Pathfinder project, he was responsible for communication during the landing phase and the communications between the lander and rover.

Personal Journal

I see a weak signal… The Day Pathfinder Landed on Mars

 

Steve Bolin

I supported the Quality Assurance requirements of the Pathfinder Project. Most of my work was connected with the rover where I supported the design and assembly of the cameras and laser strippers and assembly of the supporting electronics. I also worked with manufacturers of the solar cells, flight computer and other electronic components used on the project to resolve manufacturing quality concerns. When Pathfinder completed its flight and the rover rolled off of the lander it was one of the most exciting moments of my life. To think that I had been a part of producing something that was now working on the surface of Mars literally brought tears to my eyes.

I grew up during the beginning of the Space Age. I remember when our first attempts to put something into orbit failed on the launch pad and the pride when we finally put our first satellite in orbit. It seemed like an impossibility bake then that we had put up our own small moon. Today, launches of commercial satellites are an everyday occurence and we enjoy the benefits of that hard won technology every day.

 

 

Gary S. Bolotin

Gary.S.Bolotin@jpl.nasa.gov

Summary

A digital design engineer with demonstrated strengths in the development of electronic systems ranging from ASIC, to board level design and technical management.

Technical Skills

Design: • ASIC / FPGA • System • Digital / Analog Languages: • C / C++ • VisualBasic • LabView Design Tools: • Mentor Version 8 • QuickSim • Verilog Management: • Scheduling • Budgeting • Project Management

Relative Work Experience 1/86 - Pres.

Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA. Avionics Engineer

Lead avionics hardware engineer for Mars Pathfinder Microrover · Task: Design a robotic vehicle that will launch in 12/96 to explore the surface of Mars. · Defined, specified and designed all digital and analog electronics for the prototype and flight hardware of Microrover. Directed the engineers and technicians assigned to hardware development.

Lead avionics engineer for Next Generation Microspacecraft · Task: Design avionics for a 5 kg microspacecraft. · Planned, designed, developed, and demonstrated the required technology for the microspacecraft testbed. · Developed a flexible computer architecture, Space-Cube, based on the 3-D stacking of MCMs, which enables a small set of modules to be easily configured to satisfy the needs of a wide variety of missions.

Cognizant Engineer for the Hardware Command Decoder ASIC. · Task: Design a gate array to interpret the spacecraft communication protocol in hardware. · Designed and developed ASIC · ASIC currently used in the CASSINI and Mars Pathfinder flight hardware and is in the Mission to Pluto design.

9/82-8/84

Argonne National Laboratory, Argonne IL. Research Assistant · Task: Develop supercomputer architecture for high energy physics research applications. · Designed and developed and 8 processor computer utilizing the National Semiconductor 32000.

1/81-9/82

GTE Automatic Electric Laboratory, Northlake, IL. Co-Op · Task: Develop instrument to measuring semiconductor components SPICE model parameters. · Wrote software that allowed LabView to interact with test equipment and automatically obtain component’s SPICE model parameters. · Designed analog board to perform measurements on components.

Education

University of Illinois, Urbana, IL. M.S. Electrical Engineering, 12/85 Illinois Institute of Technology, Chicago, IL. B.S. Electrical Engineering, 5/84

Selected Publications/Patents

Space-Cube: A Flexible Computer Architecture Based on Stacked Modules, Proceedings MCMC 1996, Santa Cruz, CA. Patent pending on design. An Alternative Method For Performing Board Level Simulation Involving Microprocessors, Proceedings 1993 ASIC Conference. Distributed Computing System With Dual Independent Communications Paths Between Computers, U.S. Patent 4,933,936.

 

 

Brian K. Cooper

Mars Pathfinder Rover Driver

Born Sept. 2 1959, Ankara, Turkey to Rosilda D'Andria Cooper and the late Mervin B. Cooper. As an Air Force "brat" he lived in Turkey, Italy, and throughout the United States.

Attended West Torrance High School, Torrance, CA

Graduated from the University of California, Irvine with a BS in Electrical Engineering in 1981. Earned an MS in Computer Engineering from the University of Southern California in 1985.

He served as an officer in the United States Air Force from 1981-1985, stationed at Los Angeles Air Force Station (now LA Air Force Base), El Segundo, CA where he worked on military satellite systems.

He joined JPL on July 5, 1985 as an engineer working on robotic vehicle research, in the area of computer-aided remote driving. He has served as the "rover driver" and developed the user interface and control station for numerous robotic vehicles, leading up to his assignment on Mars Pathfinder.

He is married to Lynne Pucilowski Cooper, originally from Moosic, PA, who also works at JPL as an engineer, is currently assigned to the Develop New Products Reengineering Team. They live in Altadena, CA, have a baby girl and two large dogs. Brian's major hobbies include flying, scuba diving, magic (he's been a member of the Magic Castle in Hollywood, CA for over 20 years), and (most important) building his own full size airplane.

 

 

Ron Dupitas

Pathfinder System Administrator

Sole UNIX System Administrator for both the development and operations networks. Made substantial changes under the "Cheaper, Better, Faster" mandate of NASA. Active in the design and implementation of the network to support the entire mission from start to finish. Support for 90+ computer systems on 5 different UNIX platforms and 400+ users. Support for both the Lab in Pasadena and at Cape Canaveral, Florida. Provide all software and hardware support for computers that included Sun ,HP, Silicon Graphics and IBM workstations and also Macintoshes and PCs.

EDUCATION

May, 1997 University of Southern California, MS in Computer Science. May, 1989 California State University, Northridge, BS in Computer Science.

DETAILED HIGHLIGHTS DURING PATHFINDER MISSION

Heavy UNIX experience allowed a staff of one System Administrator to support the entire mission from start to finish ("womb-to-tomb").

Retained same System Administration support during Development, Operational and Post-Mission phases of a mission. In traditional missions, several teams are needed.

Network design promoted file sharing, reduced single point failure and reduced downtime.

Integrated ten Silicon Graphics workstations two weeks before Mars Pathfinder landing due to a late management request.

Setup "quick fix" email system within 48 hours for 50 users at Cape Canaveral after the existing email system failed.

Setup a network connection between Pasadena, California and Cape Canaveral, Florida three days before scheduled installation. Instructed existing Florida personnel to type commands into the Cisco Routers.

One of the first projects at JPL to set up WWW site in 1994.

PERSONAL

I was born in Los Angeles, California and currently live in Moorpark, California with my wife Glenda and son Brandon. Although it is hard to see a bigger challenge than the Pathfinder mission, I am now facing a bigger challenge after Pathfinder - FATHERHOOD! Where do I go to school for that?

 

 

Thanasis Economou

Nuclear Physicist and Planetary Scientist Lab. for Astrophysics and Space Research, Enrico Fermi Institute

University of Chicago

Co-Investigator on the Pathfinder Alpha Proton X-ray Spectrometer (APXS) team.

I am also a Senior Scientist at the Laboratory for Astrophysics and Space Research of the Enrico Fermi Institute at the University of Chicago. I worked on a variety of projects during the past 34 years, but right now I am involved in the exploration of the planet Mars. My background is in experimental nuclear physics and that helped me to design and develop, together with Professor Anthony Turkevich of the University of Chicago, the technique of the Alpha Proton X-ray Spectrometer that it was used to obtain the chemical composition first of the lunar surface some 30 years ago and in 1997 of the Martian soil and rock samples at the Pathfinder landing site.

My Career Journey

I am originally a proud Greek, and I started work in planetary science immidiatelly after ariving in this country in 1964, when I joined a group at the Laboratory for Astrophysics and Space Research of the Univerity of Chicago, just starting to design space instrumentation. I was part of the lunar Surveyor mission team that obtained the first chemical analysis of the Moon in 1967. I also was involved with similar projects on the Soviet Phobos 1 & 2 and the Russian Mars-96 mission to Mars, but both these missions failed prematurely to our big disapointment. In between these missions, I also participated on, and performed, again, together with A. Turkevich, many exotic nuclear physics experiments involving high energy accelerators in Los Alamos, Argonne and Fermilab National Laboratories. One such experiment was the Double Beta Decay of U-238 and determining its half life time. Pathinder successfull landing on 4th of July 1997 and the excellent performance of the APXS in analyzing Martian soil and rocks was the culmination of my career.

The Future

In the near future I will be busy doing the detail analyses of the data that have been returned by the APXS Mars Pathfinder instrument. At the same time I will will also be very busy getting ready for the Mars '01, Mars '03 and MUSES-C missions providing new APXS instruments for these missions. The ultimate goal of the future Martian missions is to bring back to Earth Martian samples for more detailed analyses in terrestrial laboratories and prepare for sending humans to planet Mars. This probably will not happen during my active carier but I have two young grandsons who are very eager to follow the steps of their grandfather, and who knows-- they might be the ones to get there.

 

 

Ken E. Herkenhoff

Jet Propulsion Laboratory

4800 Oak Grove Drive

Pasadena, CA 91109

(818) 354-3539

EDUCATION:

Ph.D., Planetary Science (geology minor) June 1989 California Institute of Technology, Pasadena Thesis: Quantitative Studies of the Martian South Polar Region Using Television Images Advisor: Professor Bruce C. Murray

M.S., Geology June 1985 California Institute of Technology, Pasadena

A.B., Geology June 1981 University of California, Berkeley

EXPERIENCE:

Research Scientist July 1991 to present

Jet Propulsion Laboratory

Mars Surveyor 2001 Descent Imaging team member. Mars Observer/Mars Global Surveyor Participating Scientist with L. A. Soderblom, Interdisciplinary Scientist (geomorphology and surface processes). Principal Investigator, NASA Planetary Geology and Planetary Mapping programs (geologic studies of the Martian polar regions), NASA Mars Surveyor Program Landing Site Studies program (Mars Surveyor 1998 landing site studies), JPL DRD Fund (Miniature Age-Dating Lab). Co-Investigator, NASA Neptune Data Analysis program (Triton photometry), NASA Planetary Geology program (Upheaval Dome impact structure), Mars Surveyor 2001 Integrated Payload (Athena microscopic imager). Analysis of Voyager color mosaics of Io and absolute radiometric calibration of Voyager imaging data. Reduction and analysis of 1990 photometry of Martian satellites. Member, Rover Technology Science Advisory Team, Microinstrument Technology Development Team and In-Situ Surface Science Instrument Working Group. Cassini VIMS Assistant Investigation Scientist. Imager for Mars Pathfinder Investigation Scientist.

NRC Research Associate July 1989 to July 1991

Geologic mapping of two 1:500,000 scale quadrangles in the south polar region of Mars. Comparison of Earth-based and spacecraft observations of the Martian satellites for use in absolute calibration of spacecraft imaging data. Photometric observations of Phobos and Deimos during the 1990 opposition.

Research Assistant October 1982 to June 1989 California Institute of Technology, Pasadena

Investigated mechanisms of formation and evolution of Saturn's E-ring. Studied evidence for impact origin of Upheaval Dome, Utah. Calibrated Mariner 9 television cameras and developed image processing software for use on DEC MicroVAX II. Reviewed absolute photometric measurements of Mars and Phobos and quantified the color and albedo of several units within the south polar layered terrains. Modeled Viking Orbiter observations of atmospheric dust scattering and removed atmospheric component of brightness from Viking and Mariner 9 images. Investigated topography of south polar layered deposits using photoclinometry and stereogrammetry. Research supported in part by a NASA Graduate Student Researchers grant.

Assistant Geologist April 1982 to September 1982 Fluor Mining and Metals, Inc., Redwood City, California FORTRAN programming in geostatistics group.

Laboratory Technician November 1981 to March 1982 University of California, Berkeley

BASIC and FORTRAN programming in theoretical geochemistry laboratory.

PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITIES:

Planetary Cartography and Geologic Mapping Working Group, 1997 to present Mars Science Working Group, 1994-97 Mars Pathfinder Project Science Group Executive Secretary, 1994-95 Lunar and Planetary Geology Review Panel, 1993-96 MESUR Pathfinder Imaging Investigation Science Review Panel, 1993 Mars '94 Oxidant Experiment Design Review Board, 1993 MESUR Science Definition Team Executive Secretary, 1992-93 American Astronomical Society, Division for Planetary Sciences member, 1989 to present American Geophysical Union member, 1984 to present

AWARDS:

University of California Geology and Geophysics Departmental Citation, 1981 JPL Nova Award, 1996 NASA Group Achievement Award, Imager for Mars Pathfinder Development Team, 1997 NASA Group Achievement Award, Science and Instruments Development Team, 1997

 

David B. Lavery

Program Executive, Telerobotics and Solar System Exploration Technology

Mr. Lavery is responsible for the Telerobotics Research and Solar System Exploration Technology programs within the NASA Office of Space Science, which include the development of the Sojourner Mars rover and supporting technologies. These programs conduct research and development of advanced robotic and Mars surface exploration technologies for eventual deployment in space environments. The research topics include areas such as advanced teleoperations systems for augmentation of EVA astronaut capabilities on-orbit, ground processing robotics for check-out and testing of space vehicles, advanced telepresence / telescience systems with a focus on anthropomorphic exoskeleton systems integrated with virtual reality environments, planetary rover research for the development of advanced robotic vehicles for deployment on the moon and Mars, and technologies for in-situ resource utilization (such as propellant production) on the surface of Mars.

Mr. Lavery is responsible for directing the content and direction of the NASA robotics and Mars exploration research efforts, establishing national space robotics technology policy and procedures, developing inter- and intra-agency efforts in space robotics and Mars exploration technology, and integrating and directing national efforts for the development of the space robotics industry.

While in this position, Mr. Lavery has been a participant in the field party for the Mt. Erebus Explorer project, which deployed a robotic rover inside an active volcano in the Antarctic during the winter of 1992-93, and a field party participant in the Dante II/Mt. Spurr project which deployed a robotic rover inside an active volcano in the Alaska ranges during 1994. He has also served at the Lecture Series Director for the NATO/AGARD Lecture Series on Advanced Guidance and Control Aspects in Robotics. During this period, he was the NASA program manager for the Sojourner planetary rover, which was launched to Mars on December 4, 1996 as part of the Mars Pathfinder mission. He also serves as the program manager for the Ranger TFX and AERcam flight experiments.

 

 

Andrew H. Mishkin

Education:

1982 Masters of Science in Systems Engineering from UCLA, Los Angeles, California

1980 Bachelors of Science in Engineering from UCLA, Los Angeles, California

 

Employment:

JPL, 1985 to present

Current Assignment:

System Engineer, Mars Surveyor Program Sample Return Rover, 1997 - present Responsible for mission design, software and operations aspects of the 2003/05 rover system. Responsibilities include: Establishing rover mission and derived requirements; defining software requirements in concert with hardware requirements; defining mission operations scenarios; coordinating vehicle software and control station software development; defining the mission operations architecture; co-chairing of Science Operations Working Group.

Participation in Mars Pathfinder:

Rover Mission Operations Team Lead/Mission Sequence Planner, Mars Pathfinder Rover, 1997 Coordinated the Pathfinder Rover operations team before and during operations on the surface of Mars. Served as the lead rover Mission Sequence Planner, designing and delivering rover command sequences, as well as interfacing with the experiment team to formulate feasible rover scenarios. Responsible for telemetry display design, rover flight rule definition, rover operations scenarios and command sequence development.

Rover System Engineer, Mars Pathfinder Rover, 1996 - 1997 Responsible for interfaces to Pathfinder Ground Data System (GDS) and Mission Operations Team, coordinating uplink and downlink processes. Ensured successful integration of rover software/operations into Pathfinder Mission Operations system.

Control and Navigation Subsystem Engineer, Mars Pathfinder Rover, 1992 - 1996 Oversaw development of rover control software and integration into Pathfinder Ground Data System. Ensured and validated compatibility between rover vehicle software and Rover Control Workstation.

 

 

Sharon Laubach

Education:

1990, B.A. in Physics from University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia

1990, M.A. in Mathematics from University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia

1994, M.S. in Electrical Engineering from California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California

1999 (expected), Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering, specialising in Robotics, from California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California

Employment:

Graduate student at Caltech in Robotics, pursuing research developing practical autonomous path planners for Mars Microrovers in planetary terrain.

Currently working with the Long Range Science Rover Task, developing and implementing a practical autonomous path planner on the Rocky7 Microrover.

MPF Role:

Sequence Reviewer (later Sequence Planner) on the Mars Pathfinder Microrover Flight Team--i.e. one of Sojourner's "Rover Drivers". As part of my role, worked 13-14 hour shifts daily for the first two & 1/2 weeks after landing. Wrote templates for rover sequences to enable faster sequence turnaround. Provided continuity between team shifts. Reviewed all rover sequences produced during my tenure, excepting those I produced. (A sequence is similar to a computer program, in that it contains an ordered list of commands to be executed by the rover. A typical sequence contained 300-400 commands, covering areas including thermal control to driving instructions, instrument commands, and communications.)

 

Jack Morrison

Jack Morrison designed the software on-board the Sojourner rover, and was one of the primary "rover drivers" during Pathfinder surface operations. He also developed Sojourner's cameras and laser-based hazard avoidance system, and helped implement the 3D rover control station and parts of the ground data system.

Jack is a native of Southern California, with a 1978 BS in Math from UCLA. His career has taken him on adventures in aerospace and commercial development, from air defense systems to video effects boxes; from 8-bit microcontrollers to gigabyte supercomputers; from air force bases to investment firms, and from Venus to Mars. His articles have been published in computer graphics books and his photo with a Cabbage Patch doll published on the Web. His hobbies include virtual air combat and literal equestrian jumping.

 

Susan M. Roberts

Mars Pathfinder Project Information Management Specialist and Project Librarian

I started working on the Mars Pathfinder Project beginning in 1994 when it was still named MESUR (Mars Environmental Survey). I designed and maintained Action Item databases but the work evolved to defining and setting up the MPF Project Library. Working with two software engineers, Jesse Wright and Jeff Saenz, we designed and implemented one of the first electronic, web-based libraries at JPL. JPL's Develop New Products (DNP) Knowledge Management (KM) Re-engineering team adopted this library as a prototype for a Lab-designed and supported electronic library (elib). The result was an electronic library that is now used by more than 20 projects at JPL. This effort contributed to a significant reduction in the time required for setting up a new project library, i.e., from several months to approximately one week. I spent more than a year working half-time with the DNP KM team defining, developing, implementing, and providing training for these libraries.

Other tasks involved in project information management were the maintenance and insurance that the project was following NASA, JPL and Caltech requirements regarding Project documentation. I also wrote and designed the first MPF Fact Sheet and maintained several databases. My support of the project continued until the end of funding in September of 1998. My final tasks included assisting with the shut down and final archival of Mars Pathfinder by databasing and forwarding almost 100 storage boxes of MPF videotapes, documents, personnel memos and chronological files, photos,posters, outreach materials, papers and presentations, and drawings to the JPL Archives. After being logged in, the information is maintained by the Archives and serves as a research source for future projects. The final closure of the MPF electronic Library requires that continued work with the DNP KM team to complete the documentation cycle of an electronic library by including the more than 1000 electronic document files in a CD-ROM. This final archive will become the JPL standard for archival of electronic project libraries.

Since the completion of my work on MPF, I've become responsible for managing the information technology and collaborative environment of two innovative JPL projects - the Mission Data System (MDS) which is comprised of adaptable, multimission software that is used by mission personnel to operate a spacecraft and the X2000 Future Deliveries project which provides the latest technology to future projects in the areas of avionics, mechanical, flight system engineering, propulsion, mission assurance, and integration and test. I work with the members of these projects evaluating and implementing the best tools available for use within their collaborative environment as well as defining and maintaining their electronic libraries and other information resources.

My personal interests include global travel, amateur geology, the history of the American West, hiking, snorkeling, and reading. I celebrate 10 years of working at JPL in February of 1999. I live in the foothills of the San Gabriel mountains about 5 miles froms JPL in the small community of Montrose. My three sons are grown and spread across the country from the Midwest to North Carolina.

EDUCATION

Master of Business Administration (MBA), University of La Verne, 1994.

Certificate of Technical Communications, Golden West College, 1990.

Bachelor of Arts (BA), Communications and Journalism, University of Nebraska, Omaha, 1984.

Jacob R. Matijevic

Manager of the Mars Pathfinder Microrover

Jake Matijevic was the manager of the Mars Pathfinder Microrover Flight Experiment (MFEX) ('Sojourner'), responsible for the implementation, integration, delivery and eventual operation of 'Sojourner' on Mars. He served as a system engineer of the MFEX task prior to being named manager of MFEX. He has served as a task manager and design engineer on several robotics system design activities including the development of the telerobot testbed at JPL. He currently is leading the system design of the rovers planned for sample return missions which are part of the Mars Surveyor Project at JPL. Prior to joining JPL in 1981, he was an assistant professor in mathematics at the University of Southern California and a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Kentucky.

Jake received a BS in mathematics from Illinois Institute of Technology in 1969 and an MS (in 1970) and PhD (in 1973) in mathematics from the University of Chicago.

 

 

Robert D. Braun

As an aerospace engineer at the NASA Langley Research Center (LaRC), Robert D. Braun has been performing design and analysis of atmospheric flight systems for robotic and human planetary exploration since 1987. Dr. Braun was a member of the Mars Pathfinder design team from 1992 to 1997 and was the only non-JPL member of the Pathfinder entry, descent, and landing (EDL) operations team. His Pathfinder contributions, which focused on prediction of the atmospheric entry flight environment, spanned the design, test, operations, and post-flight data reconstruction phases of this mission. His atmospheric flight dynamics simulation was used to statistically assess the expected flight environment and qualify numerous EDL subsystems, including the parachute deployment flight software and heatshield. During Pathfinder operations, as a member of the navigation team, he was responsible for landing site prediction and determination of EDL flight software parameters that controlled the parachute deployment event. Dr. Braun has also contributed to the design of the Mars Microprobe aeroshells for the New Millennium DS-2 mission (scheduled for launch in January 1999). He is currently leading the Mars Surveyor 2001 Atmospheric Flight Team, in which capacity he is responsible for development of precision landing guidance strategies for the Mars Surveyor 2001 Lander and hopes to be involved in the Mars Sample Return mission. Dr. Braun received his B.S. in aerospace engineering from Penn State University in 1987, a M.S. in Astronautics from the George Washington University in 1989, and a Ph.D. in Aeronautics & Astronautics from Stanford University in 1996.

 

 

Keith Novak

Mission Operations Thermal Control Lead Engineer

Keith Novak was born in Oxford, Ohio in 1960 to a young naval officer and his wife, a Spanish professor. Keith (the Navy brat) moved around quite a bit as a child, spending some time in exotic places such as Kenitra, Morocco, but mostly living on Navy bases up and down the Eastern Seaboard of the U.S. (from Groton, Connecticut to Jacksonville, Florida and almost every state in between).

Keith graduated cum laude from Duke University, in Durham NC, with a B.S. in Engineering in 1982. He then headed west to Phoenix, Arizona for graduate training in Mechanical Engineering at Arizona State University, where he received a M.S. degree in 1985. The images of the Mars Pathfinder landing site remind Keith of the terrain outside Phoenix, minus of course, the Saguaro cacti and creosote bushes.

Keith worked for 6 years at Motorola, Inc. in Scottsdale, AZ doing thermal design of electronics boxes. In fact, while at Motorola, Keith helped design the Deep Space Transponder, which is the receiver on the Mars Pathfinder lander.

In 1991, Keith contemplated a move from Arizona to California, at just about the time when the aerospace industry in Southern California hit rock bottom (layoffs, hiring freezes, etc.). As luck would have it, he had one interview (at JPL), one offer (from JPL) and happily accepted the job as a thermal design engineer on the Cassini project (NASA's mission to Saturn). He worked 4 years on Cassini and has worked the last 2 years on Mars Pathfinder.

As a member of the Mars Pathfinder thermal control team, Keith contributed in the design, analysis and testing of thermal aspects of the spacecraft. In the last year of the project, Keith served as the thermal lead on the Mission Operations Team.

Keith lives with his wife, Germaine, and two children in South Pasadena, CA. Keith enjoys music, sailing, bike riding, movies, travel and playing with his kids.

 

 

Robert R. Smith

Mars Pathfinder Flight Control Team Lead

Rob was born and raised on a grape farm in California's central valley in the town of Madera. In 1976, he got his first amateur radio license at age 13. When he was 17 years old, he attended a National Science Foundation summer program in Florida. When he was 18 and 19 he spent his summers in the Dominican Republic and Ecuador working with their ministry's of health giving immunizations and as the group's radio operator for medical communications.

He graduated with a BS degree in Chemistry from Northland College, a small private 4-year college in the northern part of Wisconsin. At college he worked in the physics lab as senior lab instructor and in he is spare time, he learned to ski and ice fish. Before coming to JPL, Rob worked as a chemist at a tire manufacturing plant, environmental chemist, and a research chemical engineer at a facility studying semiconductor crystal growth. Rob came to JPL in 1989 and since then he has worked in Mission Operations on Magellan, Voyager, Mars Global Surveyor, and Pathfinder.

Rob was born in 1962 and enjoys hang gliding and amateur radio.

 

 

 

William M. Folkner

Jet Propulsion Laboratory

4800 Oak Grove Drive, MS 238-600

Pasadena CA 91109

818-354-0443

EXPERIENCE

July 1997 to present: Pre-Project manager for Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA) This is a mission within the Structure and Evolution of the Universe roadmap, for the purpose of observing low-frequency gravitational radiation from galactic binaries and black holes found in the centers of galaxies. Duties include budget proposals and preparation, reporting to the NASA SEU director, management of mission studies, technology development, and organization of the science working group.

August 1988 to present: Member of Technical Staff at Jet Propulsion Laboratory Was Participating Scientist for Mars Pathfinder mission, leading efforts to learn about the Martian interior and climate from analysis of the Pathfinder radio signals. Performed experiments with the Galileo Probe radio signal to determine the wind speed and ammonia content of Jupiter’s atmosphere. Performed research on reference frames and improved tracking measurements and modeling for interplanetary spacecraft navigation. Determined offset between reference frame of planetary ephemerides and extragalactic radio sources. Demonstrated improved orbit determination using differential tracking of Magellan and Pioneer 12 at Venus.

August 1987 to July 1988: Research Associate at University of Maryland Performed initial design and acquisition of laser interferometers for investigations into their suitability for gravity gradiometry and for motion detection of Weber-bar gravitational radiation detectors. Continued efforts to operate Weber-bar gravitational radiation detector with superconducting motion detector.

June 1981 to August 1987: Research Assistant at University of Maryland Member of research group developing cryogenic Weber-bar gravitational radiation detectors. Tested niobium assemblies for audio-frequency electrical losses at cryogenic temperatures. Constructed two-mode niobium motion transducer for 1500 kg aluminum detector. Measured Brownian motion noise of the detector instrumented with the niobium transducer and a DC SQUID magnetometer at 4 Kelvin. Assisted in design of cryostat for 2400 kg detector to be cooled to millikelvin temperatures.

August 1980 to May 1981: Teaching Assistant at University of Maryland.

June 1979 to July 1980: Research Assistant at Los Alamos National Laboratory. Involved in Proton Storage Ring project for the LAMPF linear accelerator. Developed instrumentation to measure the energy of the proton beam using time-of-flight technique. Took part in experiment to measure the ionization rate of hydrogen ions in a magnetic field for neutral beam injection. Performed beam-line design calculations for the storage ring extraction line.

EDUCATION

Ph.D. in Physics, August, 1987, University of Maryland, 4.0 GPA. Thesis title: "Analysis and Development of a Three-Mode Gravitational Radiation Detector"

M.S. in Physics, December, 1983, University of Maryland, 4.0 GPA. Ralph D. Myers award for outstanding first year graduate student in physics.

B.S. in Physics and Mathematics, May 1978, University of New Mexico, 3.9 GPA. Summa cum laude in Physics. National Science Foundation honorable mention.

 

 Kim Peter Gostelow

Born:  Pasadena, California
Education: UCLA Engineering and Computer Scienc BS, MS, and PhD.
Employment:

1972-1980 Assistant/Associate Professor of Computer Science at University of California, Irvine Did research and published several papers on Dataflow computer systems -- a unique view on how to coordinate large numbers of small computers in solving a single problem

1980-1990 Researcher at General Electric Corporate Research and Development Center, Schenectady, NY Did further work on languages for multiple cpu machines

1990-present JPL

Projects  
Cassini: A lead software engineer for the Attitude Control System Mars Pathfinder: Lead software engineer for the Attitude Control System, and responsible for the Spacecraft Control Module MDS: Participant in the engineering group responsible for the "next generation" of spacecraft software
Personal: I have always been interested in space exploration, but my interest in computers and computer science research led me to be a researcher and professor for some time. Eventually, however, I decided that it was possible to do both, so I came back to Pasadena, where I grew up, and managed to find my way into JPL. I live in San Marino, CA, a small city just south of Pasadena, where JPL is located, with my wife Lynn, and our three children Roli, Daniel, and Alexis.

 

Timothy J. Parker

Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Mail Stop 183-501

4800 Oak Grove Dr.

Pasadena, CA 91109

Ph.# (818) 354-2451
Education:

1988-1994

 

 

 

1981-1985

1976-1979

Credential:

Ph.D., Geology: University of Southern California, Los Angeles: Dissertation title: Martian Paleolakes and Oceans. NASA Research Assistantship Support: Martian Surface and Atmosphere Through Time (MSATT): Proposal title: Basin Sediment Transport on Mars (1991-1993). Mars Geologic Mapping 1:500K Program: Proposal title: Geologic Mapping of Argyre Planitia (1993-1994).

M. S. Degree, Geology: California State University, Los Angeles

B. S. Degree, Geology: California State University, Long Beach

State of California Junior College Teaching Credential.

Professional Experience:

1984-Present

 

Past and present JPL projects:

Jet Propulsion Laboratory, 4800 Oak Grove Dr., Pasadena, CA 91109 Geologist, Science Staff: Section 3236.

Mars Global Surveyor Project: MOC image targeting during Science Phasing Orbits

Mars Pathfinder Project: Landing Site Geology.

Mars Geologic Mapping Program (MGM) Principal Investigator: Geologic Mapping of Argyre Planitia, Mars.

Venus Data Analysis Program (VDAP)/Venus Geologic Mapping Program (VMAP) Principal Investigator: Origin of Venusian Channels.

Mars Orbital Laser Altimeter Assistant Experiment Representative.

Magellan Project Scientist Assistant (1990-1993).

CRAF Science Coordinator for Penetrator impact probe (from 1988-1990).

MIPL: Software testing for Galileo and Magellan; Image analyst for Voyager.

Science Support, NASA Planetary Geology and Geophysics Program.

 

 

Alejandro Miguel San Martin

Born:  Rio Negro, Argentina
Education:

1982, B.S. in Electrical Engineering from Syracuse University, Syracuse, New York

1985, M.S. in Aeronautics & Astronautics Engineering from MIT, Cambridge, Massachusetts

Employment:

1985 to Present, Jet Propulsion Laboratory

Currently working on the Champollion/DS4 mission to land a probe on a comet, as Chief Engineer for Precision Guidance & Landing

Projects  
Mars Pathfinder: Was the Technical Lead for the Attitude Control System (ACS). As such, was responsible for the design, testing, and operation of the ACS software. (The Attitude Control System performs the following functions: determines and controls the orientation of the spacecraft, applies corrections to its trajectory, points the lander communication antenna, and points the lander camera). In addition, he tested and modified part of the Entry Descent and Landing software.
Cassini: Was the Technical Lead for the design of the Attitude Determination System
Topex: Design and implemented the Radar pointing calibration software

ALBERT Y. NAKATA

What I did on Mars Pathfinder:

I became a member of the Mars Pathfinder Project during its development phase in June 1993 as the Uplink Engineer. My responsibilities were to develop a streamlined uplink operational concept for how the Flight Team will plan, generate, validate, and radiate sequences and commands for commanding the spacecraft, lander, and the Rover. I also developed and maintained the cruise mission plan which schedules how and when the various activities are to occur on the spacecraft and the staffing support required.

During the operational phase (October 1996 to August 1997) of the Mars Pathfinder Project I was one of several Flight Engineers. My primary responsibilities were to generate the final sequences and real time commands during the 7 month cruise period. I also generated the final sequence of events, Deep Space Network (DSN) keyword files, and the space flight operations schedule. These products were used to coordinate, monitor, and inform all members of the flight team of the daily activities.

My Career Journey:

My first engineering job after graduating from college (June 1963) was at the Martin Marietta Aerospace Corporation in Denver, Colorado where I did the following for eight years: - Mechanical and propulsion testing of the Titan II & III missiles on Test Stand D3. - Conducted launch, orbit trajectory and mission design analyses on Titan IIIs and the NASA Skylab Program with Saturn IV and V launch vehicles. - conducted interplanetary trajectory and orbital analysis on the Viking Mars Mission.

I came to the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in June 1971 to become a member of the Viking Flight Team where we placed two orbiters around Mars and then two landers on the surface. I generated Mars orbit geometry data for the orbiter science team to plan their observations and developed cruise activity sequences for both spacecraft during the cruise and prime orbital mission phases.

From 1977 to 1982 I generated sequences for one of two Voyager spacecraft, and conducted special studies and established mission design guidelines and constraints for development of the mission profile and sequences for the Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune encounter phases.

As a member of the Mariner Mark II Mission Design Team, I conducted analyses and defined future JPL planetary space flight missions that could be developed and operated between 1990 thru the year 2010.

From 1983 to 1987, I was on a special JPL staff (eventually as the mission design manager) assigned to the Strategic Defense Initiative Program (Star Wars Program) where we: - Analyzed and developed top level requirements for the design and implementation for protection against incoming nuclear missiles. - Managed the development and demonstration of a test article to satisfy the acquisition, tracking, and pointing requirements.

For the next six years, I was on the Magellan Flight Project to map the Venus planet where I held the following positions: - Deputy chief of sequence design team. - Chief of mission planning team. - Deputy manager of the operations planning and analysis office.

My Current Job:

I am the Deputy Manager of the System Engineering and Coordination Element on the Cassini Flight Project. The goals of the Cassini Mission are to perform scientific and engineering observations of Saturn, its moons, atmosphere, and rings in 2004, and to deliver a probe into the atmosphere of Saturn’s largest moon, Titan.

Goals / Education:

I always wanted to do something in space or design aircraft while watching the many military and commercial aircraft fly over as I drove the tractors on our farm in Colorado. So I attended the University of Colorado in Boulder where I received my B.S. and M.S. degrees from the Aerospace Engineering Department.

Personal Information:

I was born and raised on our 80 acre family truck garden farm in Brighton, Colorado which my grandparents and parents owned and operated since 1901.

I have lived in a community called Altadena with my wife Terri since our move from Colorado to California. I have a daughter, Stephanie, who is a Registered Nurse specializing in emergency and intensive care, and a son, Brian, who also graduated from the University of Colorado and is a member of the State Farm Insurance Company National Disaster Team.

 

 

Kathleen Spellman

Experiment Operations Manager

Kathleen Spellman is the Experiment Operations Manager for the Mars Pathfinder Mission. During spacecraft operations, she coordinated the design and development of each Martian day's science activities and was responsible for the management of over 100 participating scientists from around the world. Prior to her role on the science team, Kathleen worked as the uplink system engineer where she designed and implemented the Mars Pathfinder communication system used to operate and control the Mars Pathfinder spacecraft and rover vehicle.

Kathleen joined JPL in 1989. She has worked on several space projects including the Cassini Mission to Saturn, the joint US/French Topex Poseidon Project, currently studying earth's oceans, and the Mars Observer Project. Previously, she conducted astronomical research for Caltech at the Infrared Processing and Analysis Center. Kathleen received her Bachelor of Science degree in Astronomy from the University of Southern California.

Kathleen volunteers for the JPL Speakers Bureau and as a Tour Guide. Her personal interests include hiking, travel, gardening, cooking, reading and looking after her home in altadena which is residence to her menagerie of bunnies & cats.

 

 

John B. Wellman

Mars Pathfinder Science and Instruments Manager

Mars Pathfinder Experiment Operations Team Chief

I have been a Mars explorer from the beginning of my career at JPL, starting with the Viking Mission to Mars, working initially on the design of the organic detection experiment on the lander and subsequently as a member of the Orbiter Imaging Science Team.

During the Mars Pathfinder development phase, I managed the design, implementation, test and integration of the Mars Pathfinder science payload, including a solid-state stereoscopic camera with multispectral capability, an alpha proton X-ray spectrometer, for analysis of the elemental composition of Mars’ soil and rocks, and meteorology experiment that monitors the local weather at the landing site.

During mission operations, I coordinated the efforts of more than one hundred scientists and engineers from institutions spanning the globe as they analyzed the mission data, planned scientific observations with Pathfinder’s instruments and conducted the operations of the rover, Sojourner, on the planet’s surface.

I received a BS and MS in Physics at Purdue University, and later earned an ME in Engineering Management at UCLA. When not exploring Mars, I enjoy performing as a musician with several jazz groups and backpacking in the mountains.

 

Linda S. Robeck

Linda Sophie Robeck (a.k.a. Mrs. Donald Fuhrman) joined JPL in July, 1987, after completing a Bachelor's in Aerospace Engineering at MIT and a Master's in the same subject at Stanford University. Her first three years at JPL were spent working in the Avionic Systems and Tcehnology Division (Division 34) on the Attitude and Articulation Control Subsystems of the Galileo, Cassini, and CRAF spacecraft, and several small Earth Observation instruments. (Galileo is now in orbit around Jupiter, and Cassini is on its way to Saturn). In late 1990, Linda moved to the Mechanical Systems Engineering and Research Division (Division 35) to oversee JPL's Metric Conversion effort. In recent years, her assignments have included mechanical support for Cassini, MISR (Multi-Angle Imaging Spectro-Radiometer), and Mars Pathfinder, most notably as Deputy ATLO Mechanical Engineer in charge of the assembly of the Mars Pathfinder lander, which required a temporary assignment (four months) at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Linda recently worked on the Critical Dynamics in Microgravity (DYNAMX) experiment, a superfluid Helium investigation intended for spaceflight in the early 2000's. Linda has recently been assigned a managerial role as Group Supervisor of the Precision Motion Control Systems Group; the group specializes in the sensors used by robotic spacecraft to navigate and control cameras and other moving parts.

Outside of work, Linda supports the JPL Speaker's Bureau with an emphasis on providing a professional female role model for the youth of the community. She supports environmental conservation by bicycle commuting, gardening, and recycling. Her hobbies also include photography (one of her Mars Pathfinder photos was published in Aviation Week and Space Technology) and reading.

Linda was born (in 1964) in Vero Beach, Florida (the spring training home of the Dodgers!) and moved to the Boston area when she was a few months old. She stayed in the Boston area until after finishing her Bachelor's degree in 1986, when she moved to California to attend Stanford for Graduate school.

 

Allen R. Sirota

Chief Systems Engineer and Assembly, Integration, and Test Manager for the Mars Pathfinder Sojourner Rover

Role on Pathfinder Project:

While working on the Pathfinder Sojourner Rover Project I performed several roles. During the early design phase I was responsible for the design and implementation of the system cabling harness which connected all the subassemblies and components together electrically. I then managed the rover assembly and integration process, as well as conducting the test program which included functional and performance testing as well as environmental qualification and field testing. I participated in the launch preparations at the Kennedy Space Center and, in my final role on the project, served on the Pathfinder Mission Operations team processing and interpreting the telemetry data and images from the Rover as it was downlinked from the Pathfinder spacecraft on Mars.

Past Experience:

While at JPL, I have worked on several flight and research projects. I have been technical manager for three previous flight projects which have included the Three Axis Acoustic Levitator (3AAL) which researched the properties of fluids in microgravity, the Remote Manipulator System Force-Torque Sensor (RMS-FTS) which allowed astronauts to observe the forces acting upon the shuttle arm during its operation, and the Lambda-Point Experiment (LPE) which studied the transition of liquid helium to a superfluid state while in space. All three experiments flew aboard the shuttle Columbia between 1986 and 1993. In addition to my flight experience, I have worked on several robotic research projects at JPL including the development of several of the early rover prototypes. Before coming to JPL in 1983, I worked in the aerospace industry for many years, with my most notable contribution being the development of the first digital Antiskid/Autobraking system which was developed for Boeing airliners and which is still in service today.

Personal Information:

I was born in New York City, but moved to Los Angeles when my father, also an aerospace engineer, got a job at North American Aviation (which soon became Rockwell, and now Boeing) working on the X-15 and Apollo programs. I was enthralled with space travel when growing up and followed my father into aerospace engineering. I graduated UCLA with a degree in electrical engineering. I currently live in Northridge, California, with my wife Susie and my two children, Heather and Mark.

Future Plans:

I am currently the Chief Engineer of the MUSES-CN Rover project. This rover, sometimes referred to as the 'nano-rover', is much smaller than Sojourner and will fly aboard a Japanese spacecraft and will land and operate on an asteroid around the year 2003. Beyond that, I would like to continue to develop and send rovers to various destinations in the solar system for as long as I can.

 

 

Robin M. Vaughan Biography November 26, 1997

 

Robin M. Vaughan is currently a senior member of engineering staff in the Navigation and Flight Mechanics Section at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, in Pasadena,California. She has a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering from Tulane University in New Orleans, Louisiana ('81) and master's and Phd degrees in aeronautics and astronautics from M.I.T. in Cambridge, Massachusetts ('83 and '87). She joined JPL in 1987, working with the optical systems analysis group. She worked on optical navigation operations for the Voyager 2 Neptune encounter in 1989 and the Galileo encounter with the asteroid Gaspra in 1991. She spent the next 3 years working on orbit determination analysis and optical navigation issues for the Cassini mission to Saturn. Robin joined the navigation team for the Mars Pathfinder mission in late 1994 and continued as part of the team through its successful landing on Mars on July 4, 1997. Robin has worked part-time on various other tasks over the years, including studies for missions to Pluto and development of navigation software tools. She is currently the navigation system engineer for Advanced Deep Space System Development Program (ADSSDP)/X2000 working on the design of navigation systems for future interplanetary missions such as a Europa orbiter, comet landing and sample return, and Mars sample return.

Robin is a senior member of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA); she has been an officer of the San Gabriel Valley Section for many years and is the current treasurer.

Robin was born and raised in New Orleans, LA. Her hobbies include reading (mostly science fiction), various forms of needlework and other arts and crafts, baking, and playing the piano.

 

 

Charles R. Weisbin

Charles R. Weisbin is JPL Program Manager for Robotics and Mars Exploration Technology. Previously, he was Section Manager for Robotic Systems and Advanced Computer Technology. Prior to this, he was the director of the Robotics and Intelligent Systems Program for the Oak Ridge National Laboratory, as well as director for their Center for Engineering Systems Advanced Research.

Dr. Weisbin was Associate Professor of Computer Science, teaching artificial intelligence at the University of Tennessee. He has served as associate editor for IEEE Expert, and as member of the editorial board of IEEE Robotics and the International Journal of Applied Intelligence. He has also served as proposal referee for the National Science Foundation, Department of Energy, and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

Dr. Weisbin is listed in Who's Who in Technology Today, Who's Who in Science and Engineering, Who's Who in America as well as Who's Who in the World. He was program chairman for the IEEE Second International Conference on Artificial Intelligence Applications. Dr. Weisbin has served as member of the Joint Technology Panel on Robotics (a group advising the military services of all branches regarding technology status and needs in robotics) and as co-chairman of the Robotics and Telepresence Subcommittee of the Space Technology Interdependency Group (STIG). He is a recipient of the 1998 Thomas O Paine Award for Advancement of Human Exploration to Mars and a IEEE Computer Society Golden Core Member award.

He was the co-chairman of the NASA Telerobotics Intercenter Working Group for seven years and recipient of the NASA Exceptional Service Medal, and a consultant to the Oak Ridge National Laboratory robotics research program.

 

Gordon E. Wood

Mission Communications Specialist

Gordon E. Wood is a mission communications specialist in the Telecommunications Science and Engineering Division at JPL. He was the Chief Engineer for Mission Communications for the Mars Pathfinder Project. His 31 years of experience with the design, implementation and operation of deep space communications systems contributed significantly to the successful Pathfinder mission.

 


 

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