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Thank you for registering for our NASA Quest Women of NASA chat with Gwen Young from NASA Dryden Flight Research Center. This chat is scheduled to begin on Tuesday, March 14 at 9:00 a.m. Pacific Standard Time. Be sure you have read Gwen's profile at http://quest.nasa.gov/women/bios/g.young.html to prepare your questions.

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At the conclusion of the chat, be sure to visit our NASA QuestChat Information Center, at http://quest.nasa.gov/qchats and use our online surveys to send us your feedback. We look forward to hearing from you!

[ Oran/NASAChatHost - 4 - 09:00:29 ]
Hello and welcome to today's Women of NASA chat with Gwen Young from NASA Dryden Flight Research Center!

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Gwen Young has been with NASA for over 16 years, and currently oversees the budget and accounting functions for DFRC's $200 million budget. She is one of three females among the 10 chief financial officers (CFOs) within NASA.

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And now, here is Gwen Young to answer your questions.

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RE: [MrsBrown/EsperanzaHigh] Good Morning. We have seventeen Algebra 1 students from Esperanza High School in Yorba Linda, California here to chat with you.
Welcome Mrs. Brown and students! Please send in your questions for Gwen and we will post them shortly.

[ Oran/NASAChatHost - 13 - 09:04:19 ]
RE: [GwenYoung/DFRC] Good morning. I'm ready for questions whenever you are. Gwen
Thanks, Gwen. We have as few questions in the chat room for you now!

[ GwenYoung/DFRC - 14 - 09:04:41 ]
RE: [Joe/EsperanzaHigh] Hi, my name is Joe and I am doing a group project with my friends so I hope that you don't mind us asking you few questions.
Joe, I'm ready for your questions...

[ GwenYoung/DFRC - 16 - 09:06:13 ]
RE: [david/esperanzahigh] What is the x-33?
X-33 is a flight demonstration program that will help us develop the next generation of launch vehicle...a replacement for the Space Shuttle.

[ GwenYoung/DFRC - 17 - 09:06:41 ]
RE: [Mariel/EsperanzaHigh] Hi, my name is Mariel and I am doing at a group project thing. We're just trying to get some information on you for our project.
Maria, What questions do you have for me?

[ GwenYoung/DFRC - 21 - 09:08:56 ]
RE: [Joe/EsperanzaHigh] The first question that my colleges and I would like to ask you is, if a space shuttle falls out of the sky, who get's the blame?
Joe, That's an unusual question...who gets the blame? The best way for me to answer the question is that whenever we have an accident, NASA does a thorough investigation to determine the cause of the accident, how we can fix the problem and ensure that it doesn't happen again. As far as blame goes, if it is appropriate to identify "blame," the lawyers and other experts will work with the engineers to determine who is responsible.

[ GwenYoung/DFRC - 23 - 09:11:40 ]
RE: [StephanieS/EsperanzaHigh] Did anyone ever treat you differently because of your gender?
Stephanie, You asked about me being treated differently because of my gender or if I've felt at a disadvantage being a woman. I fortunately haven't experienced outright discrimination for being a woman or a minority. I'm very thankful for that. I have on a few minor occasions felt that some people questioned my abilities. However, once I showed them through hard work and determination that I could do the work (and, do it very well), all questions about my capabilities were gone. I believe that some people may judge you based on your appearance which is a shame. They need to judge you based on what you accomplish rather than what you look like as looks are very deceiving.

[ StephanieS/EsperanzaHigh - 25 - 09:13:37 ]
thanks and I totally agree with you

[ GwenYoung/DFRC - 29 - 09:13:50 ]
RE: [Mariel/EsperanzaHigh] I was just wondering, from reading your profile, what exactly is the x-33 and what kind of a ship would this be for years to come?
Marie, Your question was about the X-33--what kind of a ship is this? On the Dryden Flight Research Center home page, you can read a summary of the X-33 program and even see a drawing of the current vehicle. If you've kept up with the news, you'll remember that the X-33 had some problems with its tank design last fall. In fact, they are no longer planning to use composite materials for the tank material and have replaced it with Aluminum Lithium instead. The aluminum lithium material is less complex, less state-of-the-art than the composites.

[ GwenYoung/DFRC - 30 - 09:17:29 ]
RE: [david/esperanzahigh] How will it replace the space shuttle?
David, You asked how the X-33 would replace the Shuttle. The Shuttle is 1970's technology and has been in use since 1981 when we flew STS-1 with John Young and Bob Crippen. It's a fantastic flying machine but it is very old when you look at its technology. The X-33 design, in fact the design for all of our new space vehicles, will be a single-stage-to-orbit (SSTO). Instead of having the orbiter, the 2 solid rocket boosters and the external tank (which the Shuttle does now), the vehicle will be "one piece" and have all of these other components built into the single vehicle. Plus, the Shuttle is getting very old and, as with any vehicle, it was built for only so many miles. Think of your car. Usually, your parents start shopping for a new car after 100,000 miles. The Shuttle is getting old. However, it's still safe to fly and we've been making safety upgrades and other improvements to maximize its capibility.

[ GwenYoung/DFRC - 31 - 09:19:21 ]
RE: [Mariel/EsperanzaHigh] Which Dryden women was the first female crewmember assigned to the SR-71 aircraft?
Marie, Good question. In fact, I had to think for a minute there to remember who was our first female Shuttle astronaut. The first female was Dr. Sally Ride and, if I remember correctly, she flew in either the late 1980's or early 1990s. I can't remember but I know you can find this detail on the NASA home page - probably the Johnson Space Center one since all of the astronauts are based on Houston. Dr. Ride no longer works at NASA and I believe she is a professor at Stanford University in California. (But, don't quote me on that one).

[ GwenYoung/DFRC - 33 - 09:20:43 ]
RE: [stephaniewesperanzahigh] What is your yearly income and is it comperable to a male worker at nasa?? what percentage of the workers at nasa are women??
Stephanie, Hmmm..a very personal question--how much $ do you make? I am a GS 15 and make just under $100,000 a year (including the extra locality pay). Yes, my pay is comparable to a male with the same grade level of GS 15.

[ StephanieW/EsperanzaHigh - 34 - 09:22:00 ]
thank you very much!!!!!

[ GwenYoung/DFRC - 35 - 09:24:26 ]
RE: [Mariel/EsperanzaHigh] What is the main mission of Dryden Flight Research Center?
Marie, Our main mission at Dryden is flight research. You can get a great summary of our main mission and all of the other projects we do here at Dryden at our home page. In a nutshell, flight research is understanding why certain things happen in flight and, if possible, how we can develop new tools or new features on an airplane to make things better (like safer). For instance, we developed a technology here at Dryden called the Propulsion Controlled Aircraft which will enable a pilot to land an airplane without the engines.

[ GwenYoung/DFRC - 38 - 09:26:55 ]
RE: [david/esperanzahigh] How will the X-33 further advance the u.s. over other countries in the field of space travel?
David, That's an unusual question --how will the X-33 advance the US over other countries? Well, no other country has a Space Shuttle that allows them to fly people into space and then return the vehicle to the earth for other flights. So, in my humble opinion, I think we're already ahead of other countries in this aspect. However, we can't rest on our laurels or get too comfortable because everyone wants to get into space. If you read the newspapers, you can see many countries are trying very hard-- the Japanese, etc.

[ GwenYoung/DFRC - 40 - 09:28:17 ]
RE: [Joe/EsperanzaHigh] My friend, Sean Bora, would like to know how long you've been working for NASA.
Joe, I've been working for NASA since 1983, so almost 17 years now. I have thoroughly enjoyed my years with NASA and have seen a lot of fun things. I was at Kennedy Space Center in the fall of 1998 and saw both the John Glenn launch and the first International Space Station launch. They were FABULOUS and I had a ball!

[ GwenYoung/DFRC - 42 - 09:31:10 ]
RE: [Mariel/EsperanzaHigh] Have you ever been in a space ship?
Marie, Have I ever been in a space ship? No, I haven't been inside one but I've been up close to the Space Shuttle. Since I've been at Dryden, the Shuttle has landed here one. I was able to watch the workers service it before we flew it back to Florida on top of our 747 Shuttle Carrier Aircraft. Also, I spent 2 months at Kennedy Space Center in the fall of 1998 where I toured all of the Shuttle facilities. I saw a Shuttle on the launch pad and spent about 3 hours asking millions of questions to the engineer who was my guide. I also saw a Shuttle that had just returned from having major modifications in Palmdale (just next door to Dryden). The Shuttle was in the Orbiter processing facility getting "checked out." It was fabulous. I was so close that I could count all of the thermal protection tiles.

[ GwenYoung/DFRC - 44 - 09:34:36 ]
RE: [Joe/EsperanzaHigh] My friend, Joel Sarmiento, would like to know your favorite music to listen to while working and or relaxing.
Joe, Thanks for the different question - what kind of music do I listen to at work or when relaxing? I don't really listen to music at work because it distracts me (or, it relaxes me too much). While at home, I listen to all types of music - Top 40 (rock & roll), classical, country, Hawaiian & some jazz.

[ Oran/NASAChatHost - 45 - 09:41:02 ]
As a reminder, at the conclusion of today's chat, please visit our NASA QuestChat Information center at http://quest.nasa.gov/qchats and use our online surveys to send your feedback to us. We hope to hear from you!

[ GwenYoung/DFRC - 48 - 09:46:55 ]
RE: [StephanieS/EsperanzaHigh] How close are you to making it to Mars...like, do you have an estimate of years?
Stephanie, Regarding going to Mars, we are working on various preliminary steps to get us there. However, the cost for going to Mars (with people) is huge...too huge for NASA's budget right now. The priorities of NASA are first: 1) Safety 2) Fly the Shuttle 3) Finish the International Space Station 4) Develop the new Access-to-Space vehicles like X-33 5) Develop science missions and advancements like going to Mars We are, however, working on developing technologies that will help us get to Mars like a new propulsion system that can get us there - after (I think) a 6-month flight. We can't use traditional rocket fuel because the space ship would weigh too much. (Sorry for the delay in responding...I'm getting interrupted by my staff)

[ GwenYoung/DFRC - 49 - 09:50:45 ]
RE: [Mariel/EsperanzaHigh] In your first year of working there at NASA, did you encounter any major difficulties with any of the workers and/or the work?
Marie, You asked about any difficulties I faced during my first year at NASA. The difficulties I had were with learning the NASA language (lots and lots of acronyms - abbreviations) and the NASA culture - how NASA does its business. Also, I had to learn the Federal government's budget process since I'm in that field of work. It was a very, very interesting learning experience and still is a very, very learning experience. Even though I've been with NASA for 17 years, I'm still learning which is why I like my job. I tell the new employees that they'll never be bored here; they'll be tired but they'll never be bored. I especially like NASA because we have the most interesting mission - NASA is an investment in America's future. As explorers, pioneers and innovators, we boldly expand frontiers in air and space to inspire and serve America and to benefit the quality of life on Earth (I took this from our Agency Strategic Plan).

[ MrsBrown/EsperanzaHigh - 51 - 09:53:09 ]
Our class period is almost over, so the students will be saying goodbye. We will check back later for any further responses. Thank you for the chat.

[ StephanieW/EsperanzaHigh - 52 - 09:53:09 ]
my group and i would like to thank you so much for letting us interview you. thank you for your time. but we have to go, because the bell is about to ring. thanks again. bye

[ Mariel/EsperanzaHigh - 53 - 09:53:09 ]
Thanks for the chat! Take care, bye.

[ Joe/EsperanzaHigh - 54 - 09:53:09 ]
Bye, thanks for the chat and the great answers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[ david/esperanzahigh - 55 - 09:53:09 ]
good bye. thank you for taking the time to answer my questions.

[ GwenYoung/DFRC - 56 - 09:53:42 ]
RE: [Mariel/EsperanzaHigh] Are you a Pacific Islander? (Filipino/Hawaiian?)
Marie, I am Hawaiian, Samoan, Chinese and Korean but I look very Filipino (I get stopped all the time and asked if I'm Filipino).

[ GwenYoung/DFRC - 57 - 09:54:38 ]
RE: [Joe/EsperanzaHigh] Sean would like to know, how many people have gone to the moon?
Joe (Sean), That's a good "Who Wants to be a Millionaire" show question. If I remember correctly, I think there have only been 12 but you can check for sure on the NASA home page, I believe the Johnson Space Center (http://www.jsc.nasa.gov) or Kennedy Space Center (www.ksc.nasa.gov) ones.

[ GwenYoung/DFRC - 58 - 09:55:13 ]
RE: [david/esperanzahigh] what is the title for the person in charge of each nasa centers?(two words)
David, The person in charge of each NASA Center has the title of "Center Director."

[ Oran/NASAChatHost - 60 - 10:07:51 ]
This concludes today's NASA Quest Women of NASA chat with Gwen Young from NASA Dryden Flight Research Center. We would like to thank everyone for joining us today, and extend our special thanks to Gwen Young for her thoughtful responses to our questions and sharing her career experience with us today. THANK YOU, Gwen!

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An archive of today's chat will be available soon. Be sure to visit our schedule of upcoming chats at http://quest.nasa.gov/qchats/schedule. Have a great day!