Lissette Martinez facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Lissette Martinez
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| Born | 1971 (age 53–54) Brooklyn, New York, United States
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| Nationality | Puerto Rican/American |
| Alma mater | University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez (BSE) |
| Occupation | Electronics engineer and scientist |
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Martinez was part of the team that launched a rocket from White Sands, New Mexico to gather information on the Comet Hale–Bopp in 1999.
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Lissette Martinez, born in 1971, is an amazing electrical engineer and rocket scientist. She works for NASA, the United States space agency. Lissette is in charge of the Electrical Engineering Branch at the Wallops Flight Facility (WFF). This facility is part of NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC). She leads the Space Experiment Module program. Her job involves testing equipment that goes into space. She also tests the ground equipment used to control space missions. Lissette is a well-known graduate of the University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez.
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Early Life and Inspiration
Lissette Martinez was born in Brooklyn, New York. Her parents were from Puerto Rico. When she was a child, her family moved to Yauco, Puerto Rico. There, she went to elementary and high school.
When Lissette was in 8th grade, she had a special school project. She had to study the moon. For a whole month, she spent time on her roof every night. She carefully wrote down everything she saw about the moon. Lissette says this project was very important. It made her want to work in space science.
Education and NASA
After high school, Lissette was accepted into the University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez. She studied to become an electrical engineer. In her third year, she joined a special program. It was the NASA Cooperative Education Program. This program let her work with NASA scientists. At the same time, she earned credits for her college classes.
In 1993, Lissette Martinez earned her Bachelor of Science degree in electrical engineering. Right after she graduated, NASA offered her a job.
Career as a Rocket Scientist
Lissette Martinez has been part of many exciting projects at NASA. In 1999, she was on a team that launched a rocket. The rocket took off from White Sands, New Mexico. Its mission was to collect information about Comet Hale–Bopp. This was a very famous comet at the time.
In November 2002, Lissette was featured in Latina magazine. This showed how important her work was.
Today, Lissette provides electrical engineering support for the Space Experiment Module (SEM) program. She makes sure all the electrical parts work correctly. This includes testing both the equipment on the ground and the hardware that flies into space. Lissette also works with students from all over the world. She helps them with their science experiments. Some of these experiments have even flown into space on Space Shuttle missions! Lissette continues her important work at the Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia.
Personal Life
Lissette Martinez lives in Salisbury, Maryland. She lives there with her husband and their two sons.
Images for kids
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Lissette Martinez, an electrical engineer and rocket scientist.
