Catherine Collins 10-22-96

Catherine_Collins: . . . . Tue, Oct 22, 9:04AM PDT 

Hi everyone. This is Catherine Collins at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in
Pasadena, California. I am the Chief of Opportunity and Outreach for the
Stardust Project.

Catherine - what kind of vehicle will fly into the comet?

We are flying a small spacecraft -- only about 350 kg (do you know how
many pounds that is?). It is the size of what I suspect your teacher's
desk is except for the solar panels which extend out several feet.

What will you find out from taking samples from the comet?

Since comets are thought to be the remnants of the early solar system --
before the formation of the planets and their moons -- we hope to find out
what is the material of our early solar system. The planets have been
changed by weathering, tectonics, etc. But comets are the most unchanging,
or "pristine", bodies in the solar system. 

How come the comets don't change?

Most comets don't change and it is because they are kept in the relative
deep freeze of space -- most comets come from the Kuiper Belt which is
beyond Pluto, far from the sun, where it is cold. When
comets come by the sun they heat up and lose some of their material.

Will the space craft take off vertically like the ones Carol was talking
about?

I'm not sure who asked about the spacecraft taking off vertically. I was
not on-line for Carol's chat but the Stardust spacecraft will launch on a
Delta-2 rocket which is a vertical ascent launch vehicle (i.e. it shoots
straight up!).

What does it mean to be chief of opportunity and outreach do you really
work on the mission itself?

Chief of Opportunity and Outreach means that I handle all of the
opportunities for involvement by people outside of the Stardust mission --
Public Outreach, Educational Outreach, Technology Transfer and Infusion,
and use of small disadvantaged businesses. Yes, I really work on the
Project -- at least that is what my business cards read!

How does your psychology degree help you in your work? Why did you study
that?

My psychology helps with all areas of my life. It helps with my work which
involves a great deal of interaction with people. I studied it because I
find people fascinating and want to know what makes
them work.

What kinds of things do you do with television producers? Do you help make
movies?

I do not make the movies but I support the television producers and
reporters when they come to JPL to find out more about Stardust.

Can you explain how you took the pictures of the Shoemaker Levy comet
crash - do you kow about photography?

I worked on the "sequence" for the imaging team for the Shoemaker-Levy 9
pictures for Galileo. Navigation teams figure out where the spacecraft is
in space (a bigger problem than you might
think) and then give the information to the science teams. We then use
computer programs to design a sequence to look at the object and take
pictures. It involves pointing (geometry), developing exposures (physics),
and a whole number of other skills. No, I do not know much about
photography -- just math, physics, and computers.

Do they hire special kinds of photographers for that?

I wish I had more time to explain this. It's a big process involving lots
of people. No, there are no special photographers. Photgraphy is about
lighting and angles -- in other words, physics and math.
Where a photographer does this by sight, we on space projects do it on the
computer. We cannot "see" the picture until after we have taken it!
Therefore, we rely on what we know about where we are, where the object is
(in this case the comet and Jupiter), where the sun is, etc. We also have
to know how the camera works, what filters it has and so on, and then we
can write the computer sequence to take the pictures. I have to say here
that while I wrote the imaging sequence, many other people were involved
in the whole sequence -- other science teams, engineering teams, the
navigation team, and finally the people who put the whole thing together,
the Sequence team.

Do you think it is more exciting to be involved in the outreach of the
project and do you have to have the science background for that job or is
it more public relations?

Good question! I have to know about math and science for my job so that I
can translate what Stardust is doing to the public. I use it every day.
The public outreach part is fun because I get to tell people about
something that I find really exciting -- space exploration.

Are there any movies or videos that we could see about Stardust? 

We are in the process of making an animation and then, in the spring, a
video. Keep an eye on our Web page - http://stardust.jpl.nasa.gov

How long has this project been going on? 

We were selected from a competition last fall and "kicked off" in January.
Some parts of the spacecraft are being built now. 

Could it also get cut from the budget?

We just went through our Confirmation Review and got the thumbs-up for
moving on -- i.e. we are fully funded.

What kinds of things did you do when you grew up - how come you like to
study so much and now so much?

I liked to do lots of different things growing up. I took up horseback
riding, baton (yes, I was briefly a Majorette in high school), then
running, and to this day I love to dance. Mostly, I have always been a
*big* reader. I don't know why I love to learn so much -- why do people
like anything -- dancing, bikeriding, skiing? I believe that their are a
lot of ways to experience the world and reading is one of them.

Do you think you will stay in this career for a while? What other kinds of
jobs would you like to do or do you think you would be good at with your
background?

I think I will stay in this career for a while. I do not know exactly what
other things my skills are suited to -- I did not even know this job
existed. Mostly, growing up you learn about certain professions -- doctor,
engineer, firefighter, teacher. However, the majority of jobs are not so
easily defined. It is important to find out what kinds of things you like
to do and find a way to do them.

Do you watch tv?

I do not watch very much TV anymore. I find that it is a big time-sink for
me and I am too busy to lose any time. I love movies and will watch a good
TV movie or rent one. Mostly, I watch the news and also Friends, Seinfeld,
and ER which I have to tape because I have a class on Thursday nights.

I am using this chat for a group of teachers and they are so touched by
your bio. they are hoping they can chat again with you with their students
another time. We will however use your profile in class.

Thank you so much for the kind words. I was nervous sending in my bio as I
have not written one before. I look forward to chatting with your group
and their students in the future.

Do you think you will have children and will you work? Did you mom work
when you were growing up?

I would like to have children in the next few years. I will still work,
although hopefully will have a flexible schedule. My mother did not work
until I was in high school, and I was the youngest of 5 children. However,
my mother is different from me. I need to go out and interact with my
peers. My mother loves staying home with children and babysits my nephews
and neice as often as she can. Every
person is different. I know my husband would love to stay home with
children if that is possible.

What does your husband do? Is he as smart as you?

My husband is a vice president of research and development of a small
computer animation company. He is very smart and has a Ph.D. in computer
science in artificial life studies. He also knows a lot about genetics. We
have a lot of interesting talks which is part of the reason why I don't
watch much TV. We also laugh a lot. a lot about genetics

It seems like jobs just come your way. Is this normal for NASA or do
usually have to apply for certain changes? Are there so many opportunities
at NASA still?

 I don't know if jobs just come my way. There is an old saying about how
when the student is ready, the teacher will come. This means that when a
person is ready to be open to something new, an
opportunity will present itself (or she will notice it for the first
time). I moved into outreach when it was time for me to move on. In the
meantime, without knowing it, I was preparing myself by studying and
working hard. There are still many opportunities at NASA and the typical
roles of engineer and scientist are evolving. A broad range of skills is
valued as is a person's dedication to her/his work.

When is the Stardust mission going to take place? Is this a one time shot
or will it continue until you get the results you want? 

The Stardust mission is taking place now -- there is a lot more to a space
mission than just the encounter with the planet or body -- like building
the spacecraft and launching it! Stardust launches in February, 1999,
encounters the comet Wild-2 (pronounced "vilt") in 2004 where it collects
comet dust in the aerogel collectors, and returns the samples to Earth in
January 2006.

What is artificial life studies?

I was afraid someone would ask me that! Seriously, from what my husband
tells me, it is trying to simulate the randomness and patterns of life and
evolution on the computer. Rob's (my husband) work had to do with
simulating very large colonies of ants and their tendencies. He found that
when he did this model, the results turned out very different from other
models which used smaller numbers of ants. More next time...

Do you think genetics or environment played a stronger role in your life?

Ah! The nature versus nuture question. I have no way of knowing. I share a
lot of similarities with my siblings but who knows to which to attribute
them? I suspect that both environment and genetics affect us equally.

Does it take that long for the spacecraft to reach the comet? 5 years?

Stardust has a couple of challenges: needing to encounter the comet at a
relatively low velocity so that the comet particles do not impact the
spacecraft with such force as to destroy all or part of it and how to do
this without a lot of rocket fuel (which is heavy) or nuclear power. The
key to doing this is to use the enormous force of gravity of the planets
to get us there. To do this, we have to comply with the motion of the
planets and their orbits so it takes 5 years to get there.

Okay last question...are your siblings as sucessful as you and were your
parents also highly educated?

Two of my brothers have a brokerage on the floor of the New York Stock
Exchange. My other brother is the VP of purchasing and design for an
import company. After 11 years as a highly successful marketing person for
an industrial computer company my sister "retired" to raise her family,
teach computer classes, and pursue a doctorate in theology. My father has
an MBA and is the only one
in his family with a college degree. My mother, the child of immigrants
from Scotland and Germany, is the only one to have a high school diploma.
For all the community college classes she has taken, she should have a
degree! Can you tell I'm proud?

We have the program SimAnt - does your husband know this? Thank you for
chatting with us. Bye!

I'll ask Rob about SimAnt. I look forward to chatting with you
next time!

Okay, signing off. This was fun! --Catherine Collins