Houston, TX -- 4 JAN 10
North Carolina State Student Works to Develop New Spacesuit Technologies with NASA USRP Hands-On internship
North Carolina resident Niyati Mody is a Fall 2009 intern with NASA Undergraduate Student Research Program at Johnson Space Center. Mody is currently working in the Spacesuit Systems Branch during her 15 week internship in Houston, TX.
Mody works with a NASA mentor in the Crew and Thermal Systems Division. Her main project is helping to design new and improved spacesuits for NASA’s Constellation Program.
“I am responsible to test a specified suit element that is part of a LEA (Launch, Entry, Abort) spacesuit system. It is by far the greatest “Larger-than-life” experience I have ever done!” comments Mody.
Mody is a senior at North Carolina State University. She plans to graduate with a degree in mechanical engineering with a minor in Physics in May 2010.
“Ever since my parents took me to Kennedy Space Center to see the STS-110 shuttle launch from Cape Canaveral, it has been my dream to work at NASA,” states Mody. “I ended up choosing Mechanical Engineering because it covered a broader range of engineering concepts.”
In the future Mody plans to receive a master’s degree in energy science and technology.
“I hope to continue contributing my knowledge towards the development of space suit and crew survival systems,” adds Mody “It is a great pleasure to work with team members who are professional, strong-willed and exceptionally knowledgeable in their area of expertise.”
NASA USRP has placed 23 mechanical engineering majors for the fall 2009 internship session on-site at NASA centers across the U.S.
Source: Anthony Zippay of the Universities Space Research Association
