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Ericka Koyama
CST 300 Writing Lab
18 January 2019
Earth and Space Research and Exploration

For thousands of years, humans have wondered about the mysteries of the Universe and

about their home in particular, Earth. In modern times, this feeling is still much the same;

furthermore, advances in technology, such as the rise of digital computing and robotics, have

unleashed new opportunities to explore the cosmos in ways that were not previously possible.

The industries involved in exploring space are actually a convergence of multiple industries,

including aerospace, robotics, and defense, as well as other public sector services. The National

Aeronautics and Space Administration Jet Propulsion Laboratory, abbreviated as NASA JPL or

JPL, serves as an excellent example of the aforementioned intersection of industries. Because of

the numerous opportunities to contribute to JPL’s mission via computer science, earning a degree

in the field, as well as seeking relevant extracurricular projects, would be a great way to gain

employment there.

The history of space exploration has its origins in the military. During World War II, the

U.S. military began funding research and development in rocket technology for ballistic missiles.

Afterwards, during the Space Race in the 1950s and 1960s, researchers built upon rocket

propulsion technologies developed earlier to successfully launch a satellite into Earth’s orbit

(JPL, n.d.). The industries involved in space exploration today have a broad range of missions

aside from militaristic ones that include climate monitoring, space tourism, and even colonizing

Mars. Major contributors to the industry generally fall into three categories, defense, Earth-

focused, and space-focused, with some level of category intermixing. Companies well-known for

U.S. defense contracts are Northrop Grumman and Lockheed Martin, who are primarily focused

on global security (Macias, 2019). The companies focused on space exploration are SpaceX and
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JPL. Both SpaceX and JPL share an interest in Mars; however, the mission of SpaceX is to

terraform and colonize Mars, whereas JPL’s mission is geared towards uncovering whether Mars

could have sustained life at some point in its history, and if so, to find evidence of such life (JPL,

n.d.).

About JPL

JPL is a scientific research organization specializing in robotic space missions, located in

Pasadena, CA. While JPL is part of NASA, it is managed by The California Institute of

Technology, abbreviated as Caltech, and is funded by the U.S. Government. According to the

2018 JPL Annual Report, the facility employs roughly 6,000 people with an annual budget of

just under 2.75 billion dollars (JPL, n.d.). JPL is well-known for their robotic missions to Mars,

most recently the Mars rover, Curiosity, whose mission to find signs of ancient life on Mars is

still underway. In addition to robotic interplanetary missions, JPL also maintains a worldwide

network of large radio antennae collectively called the Deep Space Network for communicating

with spacecraft during missions (JPL, n.d.).

Founded in the mid-1930s by a group of Caltech students and employees, JPL was

initially tasked with developing rocket technology for the U.S. Army. Later, in the Space Race of

the 1950s and 1960s, the organization worked on launching satellites into Earth’s orbit. Shortly

after JPL’s satellite Explorer I became the first U.S. satellite to orbit Earth, NASA was formed as

an agency, with JPL under it (JPL, n.d.). Perhaps as a result of its organizational transfer from a

military to a scientific one, JPL began to turns its focus towards building spacecraft and overall

scientific mission planning and execution (JPL, n.d.).

JPL’s leadership is organized into an executive council, with members representing major

departments and is headed by a director, who has been Dr. Michael Watkins since 2016. In his
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role, Dr. Watkins is also the vice-president of Caltech. Dr. Watkins studied aerospace

engineering at the University of Texas at Austin. Prior to being appointed JPL Director, he had a

22-year career at JPL as a scientist and engineer, contributing much to his field in terms of

research and also spearheading multiple JPL missions (JPL, n.d.).

As a national research facility, JPL does not offer products like a traditional, for-profit

company. Instead, JPL receives funding from the U.S. Government. Some notable resources are

robotic space exploration craft, the Deep Space Network, Cold Atom Lab (CAL), and numerous

satellites in Earth’s orbit to collect and monitor data about Earth (JPL, n.d.). According to

surveys on Comparably, JPL employees rate the organization at 63/100, and non-employees at

68/100. Additionally, 100% of Comparably’s JPL respondents are proud to work at JPL and 50%

would recommend working there to others (Comparably, 2019). NASA as a whole is hugely

popular in public opinion, with a favorable and unfavorable rating of 68% and 17%, respectively

(Motel, 2015).

Industry Trends

Many of the trends in the Earth and space exploration industry are centered around

artificial intelligence, production technology, and sustaining viability by creating products and/or

services that generate income. Amid a changing Earth climate, many organizations that have

access to satellite data are using it to not only form more accurate future climate predictions, but

also to gain actionable, real-time insights from viewing natural and manmade disasters such as

wildfire, hurricanes, and erupting volcanoes, from space. JPL’s 2018 Annual Report mentions

the new JPL Climate Modeling Alliance Consortium, saying, “The goal is to project future

changes in cloud cover, rainfall and the extent of sea ice with half the uncertainty of existing

models.” (JPL, n.d.).

JPL’s Mars 2020 rover will use smart navigation for landing. The rover is equipped with

a system called Terrain Relative Navigation, which will help avoid any dangers encountered

during the landing process (JPL, n.d.). The benefit of the system could be huge since it is a

computer, decisions can be made in a split second based on all the sensor data available, and

could be the difference between a mission failure or success. Improving upon this new

navigation system could also increase future landing site options, since mission planning for

Mars 2020 looked at numerous landing sites and needed to balance the scientific opportunities

present with the terrain safeness of the site (JPL, n.d.). In addition, resources saved by using

smart navigation can be applied to the support of the scientific mission of the rover.

Regardless of whether a facility is a publicly-traded company, or a government-funded

research center, reducing costs is one of the most significant challenges in industry. From a

company perspective, if production costs can be decreased, existing profits can be much higher

and new markets can develop. From a research organization perspective, if costs can be lowered,

then mission scope can be increased, or funding for additional projects may be possible. An

example of private industry working to reduce cost is SpaceX’s mission to colonize planets, by

first working to reduce costs for space access. One of SpaceX’s main goals is to be able to reuse

launch rockets, in order to lower costs (Shanklin, 2013).

Space missions could easily cost billions of dollars over their lifetime. In 2018 alone, JPL

budgeted a little under a half a billion dollars just for Mars exploration (JPL, n.d.). Although the

cost of the Mars rovers is not the only thing to consider in the budget, the rover and all of the

support required are certainly cost factors. In contrast to the more monolithic craft missions of

Voyager and Cassini, JPL has been launching small satellites called CubeSats, that are not much

bigger than a suitcase and have so far been used to orbit Earth and Mars (JPL, n.d.). Since these
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satellites are small, their cost and functionality is less, but their development time can be shorter

and the overall mission risk can be reduced.

The concept of space tourism has been gaining popularity with the rise of companies like

SpaceX, Virgin Galactic, and Blue Origin. As advertised on Blue Origin’s website, a customer

can play astronaut for a day, experiencing the launch process and then weightlessness for a time,

until the capsule falls back to the Earth by parachute (Blue Origin, n.d.). Visiting space is such a

rare opportunity, previously reserved for the most elite, highly-trained astronauts; thus, the idea

that an average person can visit space is incredibly attractive and lucrative if it can be done

economically. Technically anyone can visit space. In fact, the International Space Station has

been open to visitors since 2019 (Sheetz, 2019). Unfortunately, without the lowering of its cost,

space travel will continue to remain a possibility only for the ultra-wealthy. Other than being a

sensational topic, space tourism could be a source of steady revenue for the aerospace industry,

especially if the cost of a single trip to space can be reduced to be a sufficiently profitable

enterprise.

Educational Plan

When applying for a technology job at JPL, a bachelor's degree in a scientific or

engineering field is a firm requirement. Studying computer science fulfills that requirement and

displays a commitment to understanding fundamental concepts in the field. I will complete a

bachelor’s of science degree in Computer Science by the end of 2021. A couple previously taken

courses to highlight were Intro to Operating Systems, taken in fall 2018, and Into to Computer

Architecture, taken in fall 2019. Linux is a known operating system in use at JPL, so being able

to learn about common Linux distributions like CentOS was a great benefit. Also, learning some
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assembly languages was relevant to JPL, as it may be necessary to write programs directly for

processors in case there are system resource constraints.

Multiple courses in the CS Online program at CSUMB will be a great asset to have

learned when applying to JPL. CST 334: Operating Systems, planned in summer 2020, should

reinforce and provide more fundamentals for working on Unix-based systems and at the

hardware/software interface of a computer. CST 311: Introduction to Computer Networking,

planned in fall 2020, will help conceptualize how complex networks like JPL’s Deep Space

Network operates. CST 383: Introduction to Data Science, planned in summer 2021, will teach

how to gain insights from large datasets and will help understanding how to process the huge

amounts of data collected from JPL missions.

Engaging and collaborating with student colleagues will enrich the overall learning

experience, as well as provide networking relationships that could impact future career

opportunities. Choosing a capstone project that would bolster chances of success in employment

with JPL could be a great way to invest education time that would also yield growth and

experience in solving problems relevant to JPL. Staying active in local software meetups in the

Pasadena area has been beneficial in the past, and making sure some time is spent volunteering

in the community can yield many networking benefits and overall satisfaction from helping out.

Jobs of Interest

In general, it seems that there are many different career paths as a computer science

graduate at JPL. In particular, a software engineer would be a rewarding position because it

would be a creative. Another rewarding position would be as a software engineer for specifically

public-facing applications. Being able to engage the public with interactive experiences and data
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visualization is an impactful method through which JPL communicates their mission to a broader

audience, and continues to inspire generations of science professionals and enthusiasts alike.

Preparation

Although courses like robotics programming and graphics programming will not be

offered during the CS Online program, pursuing extra-curricular projects in these areas will

produce a varied portfolio that demonstrates interest and ability to apply computer science to

solve problems that are relevant to the JPL mission. Apart from the capstone project, for each

course project or lab, if a wide enough prompt is given, it would be a good idea to choose

something always with the strategy of applying to JPL in mind. JPL also offers student

internships and employment opportunities for new graduates. In particular, JPL offers a Summer

internship opportunity for undergrad and graduate STEM field students that could segue into

full-time employment.

In a sea of technology companies each expounding their mission to make the world a

better place, JPL stands out from the crowd because of its unique history, mission, and projects.

As a historical pioneer in rocket propulsion technology and launching satellites, JPL’s history is

unique among other NASA field centers, not only for its management by Caltech, but also for its

existence even before NASA was established. JPL has been present for so many unmanned space

exploration milestones and will most likely continue to do so in the future. JPL’s mission is to

“explore space in pursuit of scientific discoveries that benefit humanity” (JPL, n.d.). It is a lofty

one indeed; however, it also the part about benefiting humanity that is interesting, and reflects

efforts to not only look outwards, but also inwards at our own planet, and to use the facilities to

benefit humans today in this ever-changing world. The unique blend of science and engineering

in their missions would be a great fit for a graduate with a bachelor’s degree in Computer
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Science. Fundamentals of computer science can be found in each of the major missions

underway at JPL, from the Deep Space Network, to the smart navigation systems on the Mars

rover. In studying computer science, it will be important to always think of how the smaller tasks

will support a goal like working at JPL. Above all, the goal of an education in computer science

will be to broaden horizons, an opportunity to set upon what would have otherwise been,

untrodden paths.
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References

Blue Origin. (2019). Become an Astronaut. Retrieved from https://www.blueorigin.com/new-

shepard/become-an-astronaut/

Comparably. (2019). NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory Reputation. Retrieved from

https://www.comparably.com/companies/nasa-jet-propulsion-laboratory/reputation

JPL. (n.d.). Jet Propulsion Laboratory 2018 Annual Report [PDF file]. Retrieved from

https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/report/2018.pdf

JPL. (n.d.). History & Archives. Retrieved from https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/about/history.php

JPL. (n.d.). Faces of Leadership. Retrieved from https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/about/leadership.php

JPL. (n.d.). SIP - Vision. Retrieved from https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/about/strategic-

implementation-plan/vision/

JPL. (n.d.) Deep Space Network. Retrieved from https://deepspace.jpl.nasa.gov/about/

Macias, A. (2019, January 10). American firms rule the $398 billion global arms industry: Here’s

a roundup of the world’s top 10 defense contractors, by sales. CNBC. Retrieved from

https://www.cnbc.com/2019/01/10/top-10-defense-contractors-in-the-world.html

Motel, S. (2015, February 3). NASA popularity still sky-high. Retrieved from

https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2015/02/03/nasa-popularity-still-sky-high/

Shanklin, E. (2013, March 23). Reusability. Retrieved from https://www.spacex.com/reusability-

key-making-human-life-multi-planetary

Sheetz, M. (2019, June 11). A trip to the International Space Station will cost tourists $52

million. CNBC. Retrieved from https://www.cnbc.com/2019/06/11/tourist-cost-to-visit-

international-space-station-with-spacex-is-52m.html