Name: Samantha Alberts

 

Birthplace: McHenry, IL

 

AAE Major/Minor Concentration: Aerodynamics/Propulsion

 

Student Classification: PhD Student

 

Name and location of company/organization where you are an intern: Blue Origin, Kent, WA

 

What are your job duties?  My project goals include thermally analyzing temperature requirements for the lower section of the New Shepard rocket which contains the BE-3 LH2/LOX engine.  From those requirements, I am designing new insulation that not only maintains the system thermal requirements but eases the insulation installation process.

 

Why did you want to do this internship?  My primary goal is to gain experience working in the Aerospace industry prior to graduating.  In particular, I'm hoping to see the types of positions which are available in industry given my research experience.

 

What did you hope to gain from the experience? The experience I've gained by interfacing with vendors, engineers and manufacturing specialists at Blue Origin has been invaluable and I’m only half done.   I’m excited to see how much I’ll learn from the latter half of my internship. Beyond that, I've had the opportunity to step outside of academia and meaningfully contribute to relevant challenges in the Aerospace industry.

 

What are your ultimate career goals?  Given my research experience, I'll likely continue to work in the area of thermal management of cryogenic fluid systems.