[ Oran/NASAChatHost - 1 - 10:34:16 ]
Hello to our early arriving Women of NASA chat participants! Women of NASA chat with Yvonne Pendleton from NASA Ames Research Center will begin at 11:00 a.m., Pacific Standard Time. Be sure you have read Yvonne's profile at http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/women/bios/yp.html before joining this chat.

[ Oran/NASAChatHost - 2 - 10:35:19 ]
Once the chat begins, Yvonne will attempt to answer as many of your questions as she can, but please be patient. We may use "moderation" during the chat if Yvonne falls behind with our questions. This means that only a few questions will be posted to the chat room at a time. Don't worry if your questions do not appear on your screen immediately during moderation. They will be held in our chat queue and posted as Yvonne answers those ahead of you.

[ Oran/NASAChatHost - 3 - 10:37:34 ]
As a reminder, remember to enter "Your Handle" in the box provided, before posting questions to the chat room. Once you've done this, please let us know that you have logged on for today's chat.

[ Oran/NASAChatHost - 4 - 10:38:04 ]
At the conclusion of today's chat, we ask that you take a few minutes to let us know what you thought about it. For your convenience, you may use our online feedback forms at http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/qchats/qchat-surveys. We look forward to hearing from you!

[ YvonnePendleton/ARC - 5 - 11:01:04 ]
Hi, I'm online now.

[ SherwoodElementary4thGrade - 6 - 11:04:07 ]
Sherwood Elementary 4th Grade is here!

[ Oran/NASAChatHost - 9 - 11:05:52 ]
Welcome to today's Women of NASA Chat with Yvonne Pendleton from NASA Ames Research Center! Yovonne travels to telescopes around the world, makes observations, develops and uses computer models to analyze the data, and writes papers and presents talks about the results. And now, here is Yvonne Pendleton to answer your questions.

[ SherwoodElementary4thGrade - 7 - 11:04:07 ]
Are you employed directly by NASA?

[ YvonnePendleton/ARC - 10 - 11:06:16 ]
Hi Sherwood Elementary, yes I am a NASA employee. That means I am a civil servant working for the government.

[ YvonnePendleton/ARC - 12 - 11:09:37 ]
RE: [SherwoodElementary4thGrade-Mr.Boyd/SherwoodElementary] From Saundra- How old were you when you knew Astrophysics was the field of Science you wanted to go into?
I was probably about 10 when I knew I wanted to be part of the space program, but it wasn't until grad school that I realized astrophysics was the way to go.

[ YvonnePendleton/ARC - 13 - 11:10:47 ]
Where is Sherwood Elementary, by the way?

[ YvonnePendleton/ARC - 15 - 11:11:56 ]
RE: [SherwoodElementary4thGrade-Mr.Boyd/SherwoodElementary] From Nicole-Are the only girl at NASA that is an Astrophysicist.
There are a few others, but there aren't that many. I don't know the number, but I know it is small. Care to join us?

[ YvonnePendleton/ARC - 17 - 11:13:37 ]
RE: [SherwoodElementary4thGrade-Mr.Boyd/SherwoodElementary] Sherwood Elementary is about 20 miles south of St. Louis, Missouri - very near the Mississippi River. We are a school which has done a lot of NASA projects. We really appreciate NASA and Oran.
That's great! I work with a local elementary and middle school here. We have an astronomy club at the middle school.

[ Oran/NASAChatHost - 20 - 11:14:52 ]
RE: [YvonnePendleton/ARC] That's great! I work with a local elementary and middle school here. We have an astronomy club at the middle school.
Thanks, Sherwood! :-)

[ YvonnePendleton/ARC - 22 - 11:16:00 ]
RE: [SherwoodElementary4thGrade-Mr.Boyd/SherwoodElementary] Do you always use the same telescope?
No, it depends on the project. In recent years I have used the Keck observatory and the United Kingdom Infrared Telescope, both on Mauna Kea on the big island of Hawaii. I have also used the Hubble Space Telescope. I used to go to Kitt Peak in Arizona, but then my project required a higher altitude to get up above more of the atmosphere.

[ YvonnePendleton/ARC - 24 - 11:17:10 ]
RE: [SherwoodElementary4thGrade-Mr.Boyd/SherwoodElementary] From Samantha- Are your kids interested in your job?
Yes, Samantha, my kids really love what I do. They like to come in withme when I work on the weekends sometimes. I am the school astronomer at their schools, so all their friends know me.

[ Oran/NASAChatHost - 25 - 11:18:11 ]
RE: [SherwoodElementary4thGrade-Mr.Boyd/SherwoodElementary] Should we keep feeding in questions Oran, or cool it for a while?
Looks like Yvonne is keeping up pretty well. We may ask to hold off on questions if she falls behind, though. Thanks so much for your consideration!

[ YvonnePendleton/ARC - 26 - 11:18:29 ]
RE: [SherwoodElementary4thGrade-Mr.Boyd/SherwoodElementary] From Spencer-Where are you right now?
Hi Spencer, right now I am in my NASA office in Mountain View, CA. I have my puppy in here with me, and he is a bit active right now. I have to keep pulling things out of his mouth! He is our astro dog- I take him to the schools with me when I talk to kids.

[ YvonnePendleton/ARC - 29 - 11:20:57 ]
RE: [SherwoodElementary4thGrade-Mr.Boyd/SherwoodElementary] We are trying to find neat Internet sites that let students interact with the telescope via the Internet. Do you know of any of these?
Wow- great idea. Things are usually so busy at the telescope, though, that I don't think they have any interactive sites. You might try going to the http://www.seti.org site and checking out their programs. They do a lot of outreach.

[ Oran/NASAChatHost - 30 - 11:21:06 ]
At the conclusion of today's chat, please take a few minutes to share your thoughts with us about your experience. You may use our online feedback forms at http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/qchats/qchat-surveys for your convenience.

[ YvonnePendleton/ARC - 32 - 11:22:37 ]
RE: [SherwoodElementary4thGrade-Mr.Boyd/SherwoodElementary] Dog story, big chuckles here.
Cody is a great pup. He is a Golden retriever and is about 3 months old. He has been coming to work with me everyday for the past month. He usually sleeps while I am working. In fact, he just decided to nap now, so I won't be distracted.

[ YvonnePendleton/ARC - 34 - 11:23:59 ]
RE: [SherwoodElementary4thGrade-Mr.Boyd/SherwoodElementary] From Megan- Have you ever done one of these chats before?
Hi Megan, yes, I've done a few. If you go to my web site you'll see an archived chat I had with some of my astronomy students the last time I was observing on Mauna Kea. The address is http://www-space.arc.nasa.gov/~yvonne

[ YvonnePendleton/ARC - 36 - 11:25:34 ]
RE: [SherwoodElementary4thGrade-Mr.Boyd/SherwoodElementary] From Daniel-What is the most favorite part of your job?
I really like the fact that I get to decide what to work on and when to do it. As long as you work hard (and all astronomers do), no one is hovering over you telling you to do this or that. The universe is such a wondrous place that I love putting the puzzle pieces together, and you really need the freedom we have to do that.

[ YvonnePendleton/ARC - 38 - 11:27:13 ]
RE: [SherwoodElementary4thGrade-Mr.Boyd/SherwoodElementary] From Tiffany- In your biography you talk about the two asteroids named after you and your husbands. What is the name of his?
Hi Tiffany- Dale's asteroid is 3531 Cruikshank. Thanks for asking! I had to check with him. I had forgotten the number! He works right downstairs from me, so I just called him.

[ YvonnePendleton/ARC - 39 - 11:27:50 ]
RE: [SherwoodElementary4thGrade-Mr.Boyd/SherwoodElementary] We meant husband (singular)
I figured that out! Although, I make it confusing by having had more than one.

[ YvonnePendleton/ARC - 41 - 11:29:32 ]
RE: [SherwoodElementary4thGrade-Mr.Boyd/SherwoodElementary] Do you always work 12 hour days as you mention in our bio?
Oh no- that would really be nuts. When we observe we always work long days (nights), but when we are back hom the hours are much more normal. I pull all nighters when I have deadlines- like proposals that are due- but in general, I have a normal work week.

[ YvonnePendleton/ARC - 43 - 11:31:34 ]
RE: [SherwoodElementary4thGrade-Mr.Boyd/SherwoodElementary] From Ronnie- Was NASA your first employer?
Yes, I was recruited from Georgia Tech during my senior year of college. I didn't think I would stay in one place my entire career, but now it has been nearly 20 years, and I think I will stay here at least another 5-10. Then I might become a teacher!

[ Oran/NASAChatHost - 45 - 11:33:39 ]
RE: [SherwoodElementary4thGrade-Mr.Boyd/SherwoodElementary] FYI there are 60 of us here.
Wow! What a large group! We hope we can answer all of your questions today.

[ YvonnePendleton/ARC - 47 - 11:34:14 ]
RE: [SherwoodElementary4thGrade-Mr.Boyd/SherwoodElementary] FYI there are 60 of us here.
Terrific! Is that the entire 4th grade population at Sherwood? Are you all in one classroom around one computer?

[ YvonnePendleton/ARC - 49 - 11:35:22 ]
RE: [SherwoodElementary4thGrade-Mr.Boyd/SherwoodElementary] From Sarah-When you travel do you mostly fly, and if you do is it on regular airlines or does NASA fly you around.
Hi Sarah, when I travel it is on commercial airlines (cattle class). I sure wish NASA would fly me around in those fast little trainer jets the astronauts use.

[ YvonnePendleton/ARC - 52 - 11:36:50 ]
RE: [SherwoodElementary4thGrade-Mr.Boyd/SherwoodElementary] You can answer all of them. Many of us are being timid. (Note from teacher)
My son is a fourth grader and I speak to the fourth graders at Laurelwood once a month. I just love 4th and 5th grade kids. They have the best questions- and so much enthusiasm.

[ YvonnePendleton/ARC - 53 - 11:38:18 ]
RE: [SherwoodElementary4thGrade-Mr.Boyd/SherwoodElementary] From Caroline- did you like math in Elementary school?
Not really, Caroline. I wasn't even a very good student until the 6th grade. Then I suddenly turned around and started making nearly all A's. I didn't make another C until my second year of college (in psychology, I think).

[ YvonnePendleton/ARC - 55 - 11:39:45 ]
RE: [SherwoodElementary4thGrade-Mr.Boyd/SherwoodElementary] This is two of 4 4th grade classes. 120 in all. We are cozy on the carpeted floor around a large computer monitor
I'm curious about how you handle the questions. Is a teacher typing them in or do the students stand in line and take turns? I'd like to get my schools doing this sometime.

[ YvonnePendleton/ARC - 56 - 11:41:39 ]
RE: [SherwoodElementary4thGrade-Mr.Boyd/SherwoodElementary] From Jimmy-What is the difference between an Astronomer and an Astrophysicist?
Hi Jimmy. Not much difference, actually. In the old days, and astronomer made surveys of the sky and built up catalogs of what was where. Today astronomers and astrophysicists both have to figure out the physics behind what they see. Just taking pretty pictures isn't enough anymore. Now we can figure out why the universe behaves the way it does (sometimes).

[ YvonnePendleton/ARC - 58 - 11:43:40 ]
RE: [SherwoodElementary4thGrade-Mr.Boyd/SherwoodElementary] From Anna- If you left NASA would you continue in the same line of work, or retire. You mentioned you might stay 5 ot ten more years.
Well, Anna, if I left NASA it would have to be for a pretty good reason. I would retire from this job to spend more time teaching kids like you. I love research and I love teaching, so I might want a second career teaching.

[ Oran/NASAChatHost - 60 - 11:45:57 ]
We have approximately 15 minutes remaining in today's chat with Yvonne Pendleton. As a reminder please share your thoughts with us about today's chat at http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/qchats/qchat-surveys.

[ YvonnePendleton/ARC - 62 - 11:46:44 ]
RE: [SherwoodElementary4thGrade-Mr.Boyd/SherwoodElementary] From Curtis - what is the farthest object you have ever seen.
Hi Curtis, I study objects in our galaxy ( up to about 30,000 light years away) and in a few nearby galaxies (about 10 million light years away). That's pretty close by when you consider the universe is 15 billion years old, so the light from the "edge of darkness" takes about 15 billion years to get here.

[ YvonnePendleton/ARC - 64 - 11:48:35 ]
RE: [SherwoodElementary4thGrade-Mr.Boyd/SherwoodElementary] From Megan-When you look through a telescope, what do you look for?
We don't really look through telescopes, believe it or not. We look at TV monitors and watch the signals from the light gathered by the telescope. I look for information about the composition of objects in space. That is, what are they made of and how much of it is there. Did you know you are made of stardust?

[ YvonnePendleton/ARC - 65 - 11:49:33 ]
RE: [SherwoodElementary4thGrade-Mr.Boyd/SherwoodElementary] From Sean- HOw many comets and meteors have you seen?
I've seen about 6 comets and many meteors. The meteors are bright little bits of comet and asteroid dust that burn up in our atmosphere.

[ YvonnePendleton/ARC - 68 - 11:51:58 ]
RE: [SherwoodElementary4thGrade-Mr.Boyd/SherwoodElementary] From Matthew- What do you mean by "we are made of stardust?
Well, all the elements in the universe heavier than Hydrogen and Helium (and a little Lithium) were made inside of stars. So the basic building blocks that make up you and me came from stars.

[ YvonnePendleton/ARC - 69 - 11:53:23 ]
RE: [SherwoodElementary4thGrade-Mr.Boyd/SherwoodElementary] From Christine- With all the space movies like Armageddon and Deep mpact, is it a real possibility that anything that large would ever come that close to earth?
Hi Christine, yes it is a real possibility. I talk about that a lot with my school groups. It isn't anything to lose sleep over, but we should be actively searching the skies for "Near Earth Objects". Deep Impact was a much more realistic movie, by the way.

[ YvonnePendleton/ARC - 72 - 11:55:42 ]
RE: [SherwoodElementary4thGrade-Mr.Boyd/SherwoodElementary] From Lindsay- Can you tell anthing about the weather on earth by looking through a telescope?
Lindsay, we can't tell anything about the weather if the telescope is pointing out into space. There are satellites that go in orbit around the Earth and look down, however. Those are like telescopes looking at us!

[ Oran/NASAChatHost - 74 - 11:56:31 ]
As we near the end of today's chat, we would like to thank Sherwood Elementary school students for their excellent questions, and say thanks for everyone's patience during our recent network difficulties. As a final reminder, please let us know your thoughts about today's chat at http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/qchats/qchat-surveys.

[ YvonnePendleton/ARC - 75 - 11:56:43 ]
RE: [Oran/NASAChatHost] We have about 5 minutes left in today's chat with Yvonne. Yvonne will answer final questions during our last few minutes.
This has been a terrific group. I hope to see you all online again in the future.

[ YvonnePendleton/ARC - 77 - 11:57:22 ]
RE: [SherwoodElementary4thGrade-Mr.Boyd/SherwoodElementary] From Brian- Have you ever seen a star blow up?
Hi Brian, I've seen the aftermath of a star that blew up. Supernova 1987 was a great one.

[ YvonnePendleton/ARC - 78 - 11:58:03 ]
RE: [Oran/NASAChatHost] We would also like to extend and BIG THANKS to Yvonne Pendleton for sharing her time, experiences, and valuable expertise with us online today!
My pleasure! Keep looking up!

[ Oran/NASAChatHost - 80 - 11:58:16 ]
To find out about upcoming chats with Women of NASA, visit the Women of NASA chat schedule page at http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/women/won-chat.html. Learn about other chats with NASA experts at http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/common/events.

[ YvonnePendleton/ARC - 82 - 11:59:12 ]
RE: [SherwoodElementary4thGrade-Mr.Boyd/SherwoodElementary] From Anna- What is your favorite thing to look at in space?
Hi Anna, I really love the Orion nebula.

[ SherwoodElementary4thGrade-Mr.Boyd/SherwoodElementary - 83 - 11:59:32 ]
Thank you Yvonne! You are great!

[ YvonnePendleton/ARC - 84 - 11:59:41 ]
RE: [SherwoodElementary4thGrade-Mr.Boyd/SherwoodElementary] Thank YOu= visit us at Sherwood in Arnold, Missouri sometime!!
I'd love to! Send me e-mail if you have any future questions.

[ Oran/NASAChatHost - 87 - 12:00:54 ]
RE: [SherwoodElementary4thGrade-Mr.Boyd/SherwoodElementary] Bye- thanks Yvonne and Oran!
You're welcome, Sherwood. Good bye!

[ Oran/NASAChatHost - 86 - 12:00:15 ]
This concludes today's Women of NASA chat with Yvonne Pendleton from NASA Ames research Center. Be sure to join us in January as we continue our chats with the Women of NASA!