A Legacy of Mentorship

Dr. Thomas Zurbuchen, Associate Administrator for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, and Dr. Len Fisk, former professor and NASA Associate Administrator for Space Science and Applications, share their long history together--and what it takes to be a great mentor.

"I had no idea I'd be working for NASA. I thought they just needed engineers and astronauts!" A conversation with Lovorka Degoricija.

Next Generation Sequencing Scientist Dr. Lovorka Degoricija works on NASA's GeneLab Project where she studies biology that changes in the environment of space. She extracts DNA from spaceflight samples that have been returned to Earth and processes them so sequencing...

“Doing research in space brings a ‘secret’ sauce to the study of biology, physics, and chemistry.” A conversation with Dr. Craig Kundrot.

Studying phenomena in space can lead to scientific breakthroughs. Dr. Craig Kundrot explains how—and also details his own professional journey from science-loving 5th grader to assistant professor and researcher to division director with NASA.

Larry

Me and my grandma’s fiancé talked about his work in NASA. He worked on the Apollo mission that went to the moon.

An oceanographer and chemist working on space missions at NASA. An interview with Tori Hoehler.

Dr. Tori Hoehler is a scientist at NASA Ames, with a background in chemistry and oceanography. He now studies the interaction of microbial communities with their environment, with an emphasis on the habitability of environments beyond Earth and the detectability...

"We look at life in extreme environments and learn about what life can do, how it adapts." An interview with David Smith.

Dr. David Smith is a microbiologist at the NASA Ames Research Center. David led the design, construction, and validation of two NASA Balloon Program payloads carrying biology experiments (E-MIST and MARSBOx) as well as the use of a bio-aerosol collector...

From Planetary Detection to Planetary Protection – Ved’s Journey to Becoming a NASA Scientist and Inventor

Dr. Ved Chirayath is both director and lead research scientist for NASA’s Laboratory for Advanced Sensing (LAS) at NASA Ames in Mountain View, California. His research is focused on inventing new instruments and technologies to map the ocean and planetary...

Community-based Science and Capacity Building with NASA and the Navajo Nation

Dr. Amber McCullum is an Applied Research Scientist for the Bay Area Environmental Research Institute (BAERI) at NASA Ames who is currently co-developing a drought tool with the Navajo Nation Department of Water Resources that includes remote sensing and ground-based...