Melissa Wallace
Intern becomes Flight Controller for the International Space Station
Melissa Wallace, former Space Grant intern,
participating in a simulation at
the Attitude Determination Control Officer (ADCO) backroom console
Melissa Wallace graduated in May of 2004 with a degree in Aerospace Engineering. During her time at ASU, she was involved in many of the projects sponsored by Arizona NASA Space Grant. She was a team member of the High-speed Autonomous Rotocraft Vehicle as well as the Moon Devils Moon Buggy team. She was Moon Buggy's co-lead in 2003, when the Moon Devils swept the awards ceremony, winning the Best Engineering Design (awarded by AIAA) and Best Pit Crew. In 2003, she led a team of four students in writing and submitting a proposal to the NASA Reduced Gravity Student Flight Opportunities Program. Their propposal investigating the effects of reduced gravity on the electrical activity of the brain was accepted and in summer of 2003, the students flew their experiment on the NASA KC-135 aircraft, known as the Vomit Comet. Also in 2003, Melissa was Deputy Project Manager of the mARZSat program, a microsatellite program in conjunction with the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, CA. The goal of the project was to design and build a microsatellite to take high resolution images of Mars. In the summer of 2003, Melissa was selected for the Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowshhip (SURF program) offered by CalTech at JPL and participated in the design of a constellation of microsatellites to research the atmosphere of Mars. In the 2003-2004 school year, Melissa was the Program Manager of MIMIC: Magnetic field Investigation of Mars by Interacting Consortia. This project was in conjunction with JPL and involved ten universities across country working to design and build a microsatellite to measure the remnant magnetic fields of Mars.
Melissa also particpated in several Space Grant conferences, presenting the work of the satellite team, was a presenter at annual Sally Ride Science Festivals, and was a panel member at the Exploring Our Place in Space: A Community Forum in April of 2004.
Currently, Melissa is a Flight Controller at NASA Johnson Space Center for the International Space Station and has passed certification to be the 22nd person in the world to be certified to operate the attitude control determination system on ISS.
In Melissa's words, "I believe the technical experience and networking with individuals within the aerospace industry and academia provided an invaluable addition to my engineering education. It is one thing to sit in class, listen, take notes, and complete homework problems, but the opportunity to apply that knowledge, work with esteemed space centers and engineers, and participate in an actual project added a depth and understanding that now allow me to participate confidently in my current endeavors. I cannot sufficiently express how much is gained by participating in these programs and encourage everyone to take their education a step further and apply the knowledge they are learning before they enter the workforce."
