What's it like to be a rocket scientist? OBHS alumnus visits alma mater annually to discuss NASA work BY JESSICA SMITH Staff Writer SCOTT PILLING staff Old Bridge High School alumnus Eric Christian, a NASA solar terrestrial probes scientist, gives a lesson on the solar system and space exploration to students in the school's cooperative satellite learning program Friday. OLD BRIDGE - - It does not take a rocket scientist to figure out why Eric Christian became a rocket scientist. It was his first love. The township native has worked for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) for the past 17 years, and makes yearly visits to his alma mater, the former Cedar Ridge High School, to share his love of space and science with the students there. "It's what I've always wanted to do since I was 9 years old," Christian said. "I get paid to have fun. How bad could that be?" Christian came to OBHS Friday to give a presentation for NASA's Cooperative Satellite Learning Program. Started over 10 years ago, the program extended to eight schools around the country. Today, OBHS is the only remaining school to participate. "I was always interested in space," Eddie Bucior, an OBHS senior, said. "When I found out about this class, I wanted to take it." Sourav Chatterjee, 17, also a senior, was accepted to the New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT), where he plans to study either aerospace or computer engineering. He said he might like to work for NASA someday, and that he developed his fascination with science because of "space, sci-fi movies - the fact that you actually might [someday] be able to go to space on a daily basis." Students from previous years in the program have gone on to work in the fields of astronomy, astrophysics and aerospace engineering, according to instructor Leo Hwang, who is in his second year of teaching for the program. "I'm just getting my feet wet now," Hwang said. In the 1990s when the program first began, it was actively funded by NASA, Christian said. At that time, students would "adopt" a spacecraft and follow it as part of their curriculum. Now, there is a push to get educators interested in NASA's training classes, and they offer lesson plans and movies to help generate interest on the part of students. "NASA spends a fair amount of money on education, and there are lots of us who volunteer our time," Christian said. Christian volunteers his time to visit about 20 schools each year. "I think it's important to convince kids that science and math can be fun," Christian said. "Giving back to the community is an important part of our goal. We're spending taxpayers' dollars, and I think we ought to let them know what we're doing. And we're doing some good things." Among the things Christian does at NASA is run solar terrestrial probes (STPs), which help scientists to better understand the Sun-Earth connection (SEC). "The primary goal of this … is to understand our changing Sun and its effects on the solar system, life and society," NASA's Web site said. As part of Christian's job, he builds hardware to be launched, whether on balloons or on spacecrafts. He has been involved with Voyagers 1 and 2; Trans-Iron Galactic Element Recorder (TIGER); Advanced Composition Explorer (ACE); Solar Terrestrial Relations Observatory (STEREO) and Hinode (Japanese for "sunrise"). April 2008 will see the launch of Interstellar Boundary Explorer (IBEX), a project Christian has also taken part in. His work with NASA also involves research into cosmic rays, which his profile on the NASA Web site defines as "atomic nuclei … and electrons that are observed to strike the Earth's atmosphere with exceedingly high energies." Christian put it more simply. "I study the non-chunky parts of the solar system," Christian said. Four years ago, Christian was promoted to a management position at NASA's Washington, D.C., headquarters. He runs missions at the Heliophysics Division of the Science Mission Directorate. "Management isn't as much fun," Christian said, adding, "There's lots of fun you can have at NASA, even if you're not an astronaut." Becoming an astronaut for NASA is no easy undertaking, Christian said. Aside from needing to have earned a doctorate at the top of one's class, the physical requirements are also extremely demanding. There are about 1,000 to 2,000 applicants for each open position, according to Christian. For those who are not looking to go into space, Christian said, NASA has plenty of positions with varied educational requirements. Although he spent 10 years in college to snag his position, he said there are even hairdressers who work for NASA in an official capacity. As part of NASA's outreach to kindergartners through 12th-graders, the agency is attempting to get more female involvement. While women comprise 50 percent of the employees at Christian's office, they are underrepresented in the fields of engineering and science as a whole. "At high school age, we have to get more women involved," Christian said. "It's not something you can solve overnight. There have been some extremely successful female scientists and astronauts at NASA, and they're terrific role models for the next generation." Christian lives with his wife, Christine Gallant, and children, Stephen, 13, and Lyta, 8, in Columbia, Md. Christian and Gallant were high school sweethearts, attending school together at OBHS when it was known as Cedar Ridge High School. They carried on a long- distance relationship while in college, then married in 1984. The couple's children both have a high aptitude in math and science, Christian said, but it will be up to them as to whether they choose to follow in their father's footsteps. Either way, the kids get the opportunity to enjoy certain perks, like watching the STEREO launch at Kennedy Space Center in October. "I think it's important that mankind continue to learn," Christian said. "I think that's a part of what we are."