In a remote classroom in the Engineering IV building, Sam Phan
and Robert Lobbia were busy building models of space shuttles and
rockets Monday afternoon.
The mood is more solemn than it was last week, Lobbia said, but
the explosion of the Columbia space shuttle Saturday will not deter
these fifth-year aerospace engineering students, and co-presidents
of the American Institute of Astronautics and Aeronautics, from
pursuing their lifelong dreams of working in the aerospace
industry.
It’s not easy to become an astronaut.
Every two years, only an elite 20 out of over 4,000 applicants,
meet the rigorous academic and physical demands to receive a slot
for the Johnson Space Center astronaut class.
With harsh odds against them and fears about the physical
dangers of venturing out into space ““ fears that resurfaced
with the loss of the Columbia shuttle and crew Saturday ““
only individuals passionate about space exploration seriously
consider becoming astronauts.
People who go into the aerospace industry know the process is
difficult and challenging, and Saturday’s explosion dispelled
any remaining myths about the infallibility of the space program.
Yet, most students remain undeterred from their dreams of going
into the industry.
“You are doing something purely altruistic, and you are
progressing towards this higher ideal, the pursuit of knowledge,
which you believe is bigger than you are,” said Phan, who was
initially inspired to be an astronaut when he saw pilots flying
from a base near his childhood home.
In addition, Phan said he is attracted by the exciting elements
of the aerospace industry ““ including the thrill of possibly
exploring space.
If anything, students say Saturday’s disaster has only
strengthened their desire to make shuttles safer and more reliable
which would improve the space program while maintaining manned
missions.
Lobbia, who wants to someday design methods of taking people
into space, said he hopes to work on improving technology that
would make shuttles safer, such as exploring the benefits of
nuclear propulsion systems over chemical ones to generate power for
moving shuttles.
“This event has made me look at the fact that my research
can really progress to where it can prevent these sorts of
accidents,” Lobbia said.
Lobbia pointed to the numerous benefits that the transportation
revolution ushered into the world, adding that people must continue
to move forward with technological advances, not regress.
But not all students remained steadfast in their goals after
hearing of the shuttle disaster.
Monica Bowers, a fifth-year mechanical engineering student, said
she has wanted to be an astronaut since she was four years old, but
the vision of the Challenger space shuttle exploding on her
television screen served as an early reality-check for her.
The Challenger exploded shortly after take-off in 1986 and was
the last big space shuttle accident before Saturday.
Others, however, saw the Challenger accident in the same way
Phan and Lobbia see the Columbia accident ““ as inspiration
for improving the space program rather than as obstacles to its
progress.
Aerospace Corporation member Todd Mosher said he remembers doing
a lot of soul-searching and rethinking of his major when the
Challenger exploded in his first-year of college.
But he still went on to work for the aerospace industry and even
applied to be an astronaut several times.
Mosher, who taught an aerospace engineering class at UCLA last
spring and currently works at Utah State University, said he will
tell his students to turn this tragedy into a way of making space
flights safer in the future.
But he probably won’t have to convince students who are
already very passionate about being astronauts, he said.
“Things happen,” Phan said as he opened the door to
go back to working on his model. “You can’t stop living
life because of accidents.”