Jose Cortez helps keep a trio of mini-satellites floating.
Cortez is System Engineer II working on the Synchronized Position Hold, Engage, Reorient, Experimental Satellites (SPHERES) project at NASA Ames Research Center.
SPHERES are three baskeball-size robotic satellites that have been inside the International Space Station since 2006. See a cool photo of the satellites here.
Cortez has several duties. They include keeping consumables of the satellites well-stocked, supporting test sessions during real-time experiments, and supporting projects that may use the SPHERES for their experiments.
He says that the most surprising twist on his career path has been how much hands-on everything is. He says that includes from getting equipment ready for the satellites to being involved in safety reviews.
“Every little detail has to be noted, analysis must be performed, and a demonstration test must implemented before the hardware/software goes up to the ISS,” he says.
Cortez, a member of the Tripoli Rocket Association, and the National Association of Rocketry, says that the geekiest thing about him is that he likes to launch amateur rockets in the desert. The non-geekie thing is going on long hikes and camping trips.
He earned both his MS and BS degrees in Aerospace Engineering at San Jose State University.
Favorite:
Apps: Google Maps, Instagram, and Flickr
Books: All the Jules Verne novels but especially, From the Earth to the Moon, also biographies about writers, world leaders, and travelers.
Social media: Tumblr, Pinterest, Facebook, and Snapchat
Movies: Interstellar, 2001: A Space Odyssey, There Will be Blood, Mad Max: Fury Road, and Raiders of the Lost Ark
Musical artist: Los Amigos Invisibles, Cafe Tacvba, Moenia, and Cinefue
Dream job: I have my dream job, working with satellites and sending them up to space.
