A former astronaut gave Gator engineering students a chance to shoot for the stars Wednesday evening.
James Donald Halsell Jr., the technical director for advanced space launch systems at Dynetics Inc., spoke about his NASA career at 6 p.m. in the New Physics Building during a recruiting information session for Dynetics.
He piloted two of his five total missions and commanded the other three. He’s logged about 52 days in space.
Halsell showed the group of about 20 students a short video of his experience on a mission to the International Space Station in 2000.
“It was just as exciting as you’d think,” Halsell said. “No matter how many degrees you get at UF, you will still play with your food in space.”
Halsell discussed the tasks he accomplished on board the ISS, including a night-landing mission.
“The 3,000-degree plasma that is generated by air friction as you slam into the Earth’s upper atmosphere… that’s what actually slows the shuttle down,” Halsell said. “It was my first night landing, so I was excited for that.”
Dynetics Inc. is a 1,300-employee company with headquarters in Huntsville, Ala. It covers areas including intelligence, sensors, missile systems and space.
Matt Fidler, a 25-year-old UF computer engineering junior, said he attended the event because he was looking for an internship this summer with Dynetics Inc.
Andrew Mortellaro, a 21-year-old UF electrical engineering senior, interned with the company last summer.
“As the summer progressed, I picked up different skills,” Mortellaro said. “I had to get a security clearance, so I can’t tell you everything I worked on.”
[A version of this story ran on page 3 on 2/27/2014 under the headline "Astronaut launches UF careers"]
James Donald Halsell Jr., the technical director for advanced space launch systems at Dynetics Incorporated, spoke about his NASA career Wednesday evening in the New Physics Building. Read the story on page 3.
