Eureka High School welcomed an old friend to its campus on Friday, Sept. 19 to explore the minds of NASA’s Gateway Program. Several STEM and math students attended the presentation in the small theater with a question-and-answer format.
After 31 years since setting foot in Eureka’s walls, Sean Fuller, Eureka Alumni Class of 1992 and International Partner Manager for NASA’s Gateway Program reveled in Eureka’s recent STEM Building addition.
“[These labs] are government level,” Fuller and his team joked. “This facility is absolutely fantastic. We used to have chemistry experiments outside in the grass.”
Fuller was active in several programs and opportunities during his time at Eureka including Navy JROTC, Eureka’s swimming and water polo teams, and in his rare off-time, getting his pilot’s license. Fuller urged students to search for success.
“Keep an open radar,” Fuller said. “Look for those opportunities. Look for ways to get involved.”
Fuller said he had his mind set on having a career in aeronautical sciences since elementary school.
“I remember sitting in this cafeteria knowing where I wanted to go,” Fuller said.
Fuller majored in Physics at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Dayton, Florida, known for its prestigious influx and outflux of students. With a job at NASA waiting for him, Fuller began his career with the unknown in 1996.
“NASA has a lot fewer aerospace engineers than people think,” Cynthia Cross, Deputy Chief Engineer for the Gateway Program said. “[NASA] has cyber security, accounting, legal teams, etc.”
NASA expects Gateway, about a sixth of the size of the ISS, to be operational and serve as a temporary home for a crew of 4 lunar astronauts by the end of the decade. Gateway has three international partners, the European Space Agency (ESA), the Canadian Space Agency (CSA), and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAEA), the relations of which are managed by Eureka’s very own Sean Fuller.
Fuller emphasized the importance of this program cracking the “unknown unknowns” that will arise in the future.
“Explore possibilities, discover new things,” Fuller said. “There’s no singular goal with this program. [About Eureka’s football game after the presentation] We’re looking for a gateway touchdown.”
