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Meet: Jim Peters
Scientist -- Assembly Operations and Launch to Activation Procedures
International Space Station Operations
NASA Johnson Space Center
My
Journals
Chat Archives
Who I am & What I Do
I currently work as an engineer and scientist on the Space Station Program.
My job is to ensure all the hardware and equipment works and fits together
properly before it is launched into space on the shuttle and assembled on
the International Space Station (ISS).
I've worked the last eight years for Boeing on the
Space Station Program, spending four years in Huntsville, Alabama. While
there I worked on ISS thermal and life-support design, thermal vacuum
testing, and external outfitting, as well as testing in the Neutral Buoyancy
Lab. The four years in Houston have been spent in the Payloads Office
leading the Engineering and Integration Team and most recently in Station
Operations where I lead the team responsible for assembly operations and
launch to activation procedures.
 In
addition, I teach graduate aerospace engineering and aviation management
courses as an assistant professor at Embry-Riddle University located at
Ellington Field here in Houston. Prior to joining Boeing, I served four
years active duty with the U.S. Navy as a nuclear submarine officer and
then worked for two years as a lead engineer for E-Systems designing aircraft
mission enhancement modifications for military special operations fixed
and rotary wing aircraft.
I like my job because I get to work on every piece
of flight hardware before it is launched. In addition, I frequently work
with the astronauts who are preparing for their upcoming missions both
at Kennedy Space Center and at the Neutral Buoyancy Lab here at Johnson
Space Center. The thing I least like about my job is all the paper work
and short deadlines due to the constantly changing schedules.
Education
I completed my Ph.D. in engineering management
at the University of Alabama, in Huntsville, in 1997. I have two master's
degrees in mechanical and aerospace engineering from the University of Alabama
(Huntsville) and Maryland respectively. I also earned a bachelor's degree
in aerospace engineering from the U.S. Naval Academy where I earned Academic
All-American honors.
Personal
I am a very active and outgoing person who loves the outdoors and
sports, as well as flying, water skiing, extreme snow skiing, scuba diving,
and parachuting (free-falling).
One fact I'd like you to remember about me is that
I always give my best effort at whatever I do.
Growing Up
I grew up in Oregon, Ohio (a small suburb of Toledo), and lived there
for 16 years before going to college at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis,
Maryland.
I grew up on Lake Erie, which is where I developed
my love of water. In addition, the town (Wapakoneta, Ohio) where Neil
Armstrong grew up is close by, which enabled me to visit the space museum
dedicated in his honor.
When I was in Eisenhower Junior High, I wanted to
be a medical doctor or an astronaut . . . and still do.
One thing I remember most about elementary school
and junior high were the field trips to great places -- Put-in-Bay, Ohio;
Perry's Monument Camp Store in Michigan; and Cedar Point Amusement Park,
where they have the tallest, fastest and steepest roller coasters around.
As a kid, I liked to read sports biographies and
science fiction stories about space travel. I also remember reading all
the Hardy Boys mysteries.
My Family
My parents and one remaining grandmother still live in Oregon, Ohio,
in addition to my older brother and younger sister. I usually get to visit
them two or three times a year.
I now live in Houston, Texas, and love the year-round
warm weather as well as all the fun things to do. People from Texas are
proud of their state and rightfully so. My parents and siblings visit
me during the winter months to get away from all the snow and cold in
Ohio.
Future Plans and Goals
My future plans and goals include continuing work on the Space Station,
teaching at Embry-Riddle University, completing my flight instructor certifications
and trying out for the astronaut program. One day I hope to become an astronaut
and work on the International Space Station.
Archived Chats
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