Meet: Rick Hashimoto

Who I Am

I'm currently assigned to the System Safety and Product Assurance Engineering department of the Boeing's Reusable Space System Division in Downey, California. If there's a traditional title associated with my job, it might be something like a system safety engineer. We make sure that any changes that affect the Shuttle design, process, or procedure don't have an adverse effect on the Shuttle. We also conduct safety hazard analysis on the Shuttle vehicle from the Shuttle's preparation on the ground, launch preparation, lanuch, on-orbit, and landing.

My Career Journey
My first job after college was at the same location, then called North American Rockwell. I was hired as a designer for the mechanical design/crew systems department working on the Apollo Lunar Landing missions. From there, I worked in a similar capacity with the Apollo Command Module used to deliver crew and supplies to the Skylab Space Station. Then followed the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project with the U.S.S.R.

The Next Major Projects

The next major project that I was privileged to work on was the Space Shuttle program during the very early years before the Shuttle's maiden flight. I was then transferred to the Advanced Design Department that reviewed various Space Shuttle and other space vehicle improvements and enhancements.

My next major step was to take a position as a mechanical engineer with a Department of Defense contractor. There, I performed mechanical engineering work in research and development of munition and ammunition programs. A short time later, a vacancy developed in the System Safety and Reliability area of this company which I was able to fulfill. There I developed the reliability mathematical modeling of the various munitions and ammunition systems along with performing various system safety analyses.

Influences

Some influences that contributed to the decision to pursue engineering include interest in astronomy, general science, and mathematics. I also like drawing and art, although I can't draw a straight line without a straight edge, I do enjoy viewing artistic achievements. The combination of liking drawing and liking science/mathematics drove me towards engineering.

Preparation for Career

It was after completing my 9th grade project that I wanted to be an aerospace engineer. A Hollywood rock 'n roll radio station KFWB (now all news) had advertised a brochure called "Discover Education," which listed many vocations with their characteristics, required qualifications, and salary. After reading the brochure, doing additional library research, and completing the 9th grade project, I thought I had found what I wanted to be.

In the 10th grade a personality/psychology test was administered to determine the possible vocational choices. That test reinforced my 9th grade project. About the same time a weekly television series, "My Three Sons," was being broadcast starring Fred MacMurray. Mr. MacMurray's role was an aeronautical engineer - not a glamourous or visible job like doctor, police officer, fire fighter, or teacher. He was able to show the three sons and the audience that his job was just as important as many of the more visible vocations.

Personal Information

I like to take scenic photography. Some years back I used to develop the prints in the bathroom with the windows boarded up to keep the light out. It was a challenge to make just one properly exposed color-balanced print. Due to other commitments or perhaps laziness, I just let the commerical labs develop my prints. I like almost anything. My favorite food might be sushi or Japanese noodles.

My Life from Second to Fifth Grade

I was born in Japan on the Sea of Japan side. I don't remember all the details but it was a completely different world with many natural scenic places within walking distance - the beach, mountains, and streams. I completed only the first grade in Japan. My life from the second grade onwards has been in the Los Angeles area when I moved here with my parents - (which means I have over four decades of Southern California experience). I say moved instead of immigrated because my mother was born in Los Angeles - not too far away from the current civic center. All of my formal education from the second grade has been in the Los Angeles/ Southern California area. Southern California has always been a melting pot of various cultures. Even back in the '50s and '60s we had various mingling of cultures, and we were all minorities where I lived - even if you were a white person-- because no ethnic/cultural group had the majority. As a result, and also because of my heritage, I hope I am tolerant of others' cultures and belief.

Back in the 5th Grade

Back in the 5th grade I had a big thrill being picked in a lottery to attend a concert at a junior college. The thrill was being able to ride the school bus far beyond the end of the street car line. To me the end of the world at that time was where the street car line ended. The location, as it turned out, was no more than five miles beyond the street car end point. Riding the bus going east was like going to a different world. The concert was terrific also - it was held in a huge auditorium beyond anything I had ever attended up to that point.

We lived in an urban region about 2 to 3 miles east of downtown Los Angeles until I was almost out of college. We then moved east for another 7 to 10 miles to more of a suburban home in East Los Angeles. I was kind of disappointed when my parents decided to purchase the home there (we were renting prior to that). The home was basically a two-bedroom, one-bath house. I thought a better home could be purchased if they could wait until I graduated college and started working. As it turned out, my parents are still living there.

My Life Today

I now live in the city of Walnut - an incorporated bedroom community about 25 to 30 miles east of Los Angeles. When we first moved there in 1982, the city's population was less than 10,000. Grazing cows and narrow roads were not uncommon. Now the population is about 30,000 with more 4-lane steets and tract homes than I would care for. However, the city officials there try to keep and maintain the rural atmosphere. There's an equestrian center near our home that was once used as a setting for the filming of National Velvet with the teenage Elizabeth Taylor as the star.

My Two Daughters

I'm married with two daughters. The eldest, Sherry, is in her third year at the University of California at Davis (near Sacramento). She must like music because she took piano lessons from about age three to about seventeen and was in the school band from the fifth grade through high school. The younger one is Starla. She is currently in her first year at Walnut High School. Other than watching TV and sleeping, she likes to exchange e-mail/on-line chat with her friends and surf the World-Wide-Web on the Internet.

The whole family enjoys going shopping at the mall. Thankfully, it's not a weekly thing but once in a while when there's a need such as clothing or gifts, we take a leisurely trip to the mall. We also enjoy overnight/weekend excursions to nearby towns.

Likes/Dislikes About Career

The thing I like best about my job could also be the thing I like least about my job, that is the job is always changing. Trying to figure a faster, better way to do a job results in an ever-changing way of performing one's job.

My Future Plans and Goals

My future plan is to apply the experience and knowledge gained on the Shuttle-Mir program and participate in the International Space Station and perhaps participate in the engineering efforts of various other spacecrafts that will be visiting the Space Station. Another source to spur your thinking is to look over the biographies from the Hubble Space Telescope team: http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/hst/bio-HST.html

Archived Chats

• February 22, 2000