 | A few years after completing graduate work in aerospace engineering at Wichita State University, former National Institute for Aviation Research employee Paulo Escobar has received a NASA Space Flight Awareness Honoree Award, one of the highest recognitions presented to aerospace industry employees.
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As an engineer with the United Space Alliance, Escobar was presented the SFA award for his demonstrated dedication to quality work and flight safety. In particular, he was nominated for “outstanding technical contributions” to the Anomaly Resolution Team 245 formed after NASA space shuttle mission STS-116 last December.
“When STS-116 film confirmed that the booster separation motor (BSM) exit cone heat shield released debris and impacted orbiter thermal protection tiles, causing serious damage, USA and NASA formed an anomaly resolution team to eliminate the future potential threat,” Escobar said. “I was assigned as a lead analysis engineer for the testing division; I prepared the test plan and coordinated all test activities, then analyzed the test data and presented the results to Level II and IV boards.”
In a SFA Honoree Event held recently at Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla., Escobar and other honorees had the opportunity to view the Oct. 23 space shuttle mission STS-120 launch, attend a reception in their honor and meet with top NASA and industry officials and members of the Astronaut Corps.
Escobar’s job description makes him no stranger to the shuttle launch activities.
“I am responsible for assuring structural integrity of the BSMs located in the aft skirt of the solid rocket boosters (SRBs). I am also responsible for the struts connecting the SRBs to the external tank,” he said. “Finally, I am part of the Debris Analysis Team that provides support during launch activities, assuring that in case of a debris impact to the SRBs during ascent, all components will perform safely.”
In three years, Escobar has received the United Space Alliance Quest Performance Award on three occasions. The award provides instant recognition for outstanding contributions or “quick victories” that result in a significant impact to the company’s goals and objectives.
Escobar’s ambitions are to obtain a master’s degree in engineering management, move into the engineering management field and strengthen his technical knowledge in the aerospace industry. His ultimate goal is to become an aerospace engineering consultant.
After obtaining a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from Los Andes University in Bogota, Columbia, Escobar got his start in aerospace engineering as a graduate student assistant in NIAR’s Composites & Advanced Materials Lab in November 2000. In April 2004, he became a full-time research assistant.
“Dr. (John) Tomblin (NIAR Executive Director) was my teacher of Theory of Elasticity. After a couple of conversations, he gave me the opportunity to start working on a project sponsored by (a local aircraft manufacturer) and the FAA,” he said. “The project was intended to study the capability of adhesively joined structures, using single lap specimens, to study fatigue and creep under different environmental conditions."
Escobar said the time he spent at NIAR was invaluable and he attributes his success as an engineer to the educational base and research experience he gained at WSU and NIAR.
“It gave me the knowledge base and engineering foundations to perform my best at my current job,” he said. “It also provided me with the skill set necessary to be a successful engineer not only in the analytical field, but also in the testing arena and most importantly the mentality of performing every task with the uttermost professionalism."
