1 00:00:00,010 --> 00:00:04,200 [music] >>Sandra: Every time I work on a rocket launch I 2 00:00:04,200 --> 00:00:08,230 get chills. During the count down, I hold 3 00:00:08,230 --> 00:00:12,280 my breath. The count down is so terrifying because the 4 00:00:12,280 --> 00:00:16,380 satellite that I have worked on is going into space on top of a bomb. 5 00:00:16,380 --> 00:00:20,720 This rocket can be delivered safely into orbit, or it can blow up in an instant. 6 00:00:20,720 --> 00:00:24,780 The climax for me, and for everyone working on 7 00:00:24,780 --> 00:00:29,040 this amazing project is the point of liftoff and separation. 8 00:00:29,040 --> 00:00:33,050 I know many of you have watched rockets launch from 9 00:00:33,050 --> 00:00:37,250 NASA on television. The sound is so overwhelming. 10 00:00:37,250 --> 00:00:41,580 When the sound waves travel across the three and a half miles from the launch pad to those 11 00:00:41,580 --> 00:00:45,640 watching the launch, we not only hear the liftoff, we 12 00:00:45,640 --> 00:00:49,890 actually feel it. It is so amazing. 13 00:00:49,890 --> 00:00:54,170 We are completely engulfed in that noise and the sound, it's 14 00:00:54,170 --> 00:00:58,190 just incredible. It is thrilling to realize that this rocket, 15 00:00:58,190 --> 00:01:02,370 with a satellite I have helped build, is heading at 17,600 16 00:01:02,370 --> 00:01:06,760 miles per hour into space. 17 00:01:06,760 --> 00:01:10,850 And guess what, I just finished launching a satellite to Mars. 18 00:01:10,850 --> 00:01:14,910 It is just incredible that a little piece of me and a little piece of 19 00:01:14,910 --> 00:01:18,990 Costa Rica has travelled to Mars and is now orbiting the 20 00:01:18,990 --> 00:01:23,070 Red Planet. We need to understand the processes that contributed 21 00:01:23,070 --> 00:01:27,390 to Mars becoming the dry and arid planet that it is 22 00:01:27,390 --> 00:01:31,740 today. And we want to understand all the issues that we have 23 00:01:31,740 --> 00:01:36,230 with climate change, if any of those processes are occurring here on Earth. 24 00:01:36,230 --> 00:01:40,310 We really want to understand what happened, so we can 25 00:01:40,310 --> 00:01:44,700 prevent all of that from happening on Earth later on. 26 00:01:44,700 --> 00:01:48,750 I am also so amazed at how far I have traveled to get where 27 00:01:48,750 --> 00:01:53,140 I am today. I marvel at my own journey, 28 00:01:53,140 --> 00:01:57,190 and how I came to help probe the mysteries of outer space. 29 00:01:57,190 --> 00:02:01,540 Michelangelo once said, 30 00:02:01,540 --> 00:02:05,620 "The greatest danger for most of us is not that our aim is too high and we miss it, 31 00:02:05,620 --> 00:02:09,630 but that it is too low and we actually reach it." 32 00:02:09,630 --> 00:02:13,810 My story today is how a Costa Rican girl from a poor family 33 00:02:13,810 --> 00:02:17,850 nurtured an improbable dream about space travel and made that dream come 34 00:02:17,850 --> 00:02:22,230 true. My story began a long time ago. 35 00:02:22,230 --> 00:02:26,580 My first years were very full of mistreatment and pain. 36 00:02:26,580 --> 00:02:30,880 My mother was forced to take two jobs, sometimes three, 37 00:02:30,880 --> 00:02:35,030 just to make ends meet. My mother worked most of the time. 38 00:02:35,030 --> 00:02:39,310 Sometimes she would come home in between jobs just to sleep a few hours and then have to turn 39 00:02:39,310 --> 00:02:43,340 around and go back to work. We knew she was dead tired, but 40 00:02:43,340 --> 00:02:47,580 she still took some time to be with us and play with us and talk to us. 41 00:02:47,580 --> 00:02:51,650 For many years, my mother kept food on our table and a roof over our heads. 42 00:02:51,650 --> 00:02:55,670 I was always in awe of her perseverance and determination 43 00:02:55,670 --> 00:02:59,680 to keep on going without complaining. She would not let herself 44 00:02:59,680 --> 00:03:03,910 break under all the pressure that she was under. I continued 45 00:03:03,910 --> 00:03:07,930 to take care of the house chores and my younger brother while going to school. 46 00:03:07,930 --> 00:03:11,960 hardships, and everything I had to do. During my 47 00:03:11,960 --> 00:03:15,970 elementary school years, I had a very compassionate teacher. Her name 48 00:03:15,970 --> 00:03:20,070 is Leda Espinosa de Valverde. We called her 49 00:03:20,070 --> 00:03:24,120 la Niña Leda. 50 00:03:24,120 --> 00:03:28,250 She was a loving person and demanded a lot of her students. She taught us to take pride in everything 51 00:03:28,250 --> 00:03:32,280 that we did and to pay attention to all of the details. 52 00:03:32,280 --> 00:03:36,300 Our "libros de vida" had to be cleaned, organized, and the letters 53 00:03:36,300 --> 00:03:40,450 had to be perfect. Everything had to be just right. Through la Niña 54 00:03:40,450 --> 00:03:44,500 Leda, I learned to take pride in everything I did and to try to 55 00:03:44,500 --> 00:03:48,670 do it correctly the first time. Sometimes 56 00:03:48,670 --> 00:03:52,990 what I was doing seemed almost impossible. It would have been easy 57 00:03:52,990 --> 00:03:57,150 to just listen to my own thoughts, just to give up, why did I have to study so 58 00:03:57,150 --> 00:04:01,340 much, or how tired I was and go to sleep and not even bother. 59 00:04:01,340 --> 00:04:05,560 But, I would not let my thinking become my 60 00:04:05,560 --> 00:04:09,640 obstacle. I told myself that I had to do better, that 61 00:04:09,640 --> 00:04:13,660 I had to take time to study, that I had to do my homework, even if I didn't get much 62 00:04:13,660 --> 00:04:17,690 sleep. It was important to me to get good grades. 63 00:04:17,690 --> 00:04:22,010 I knew I didn't want the kind of life that I saw 64 00:04:22,010 --> 00:04:26,230 wearing my mother down. I dreamed of escaping the poverty and pain. 65 00:04:26,230 --> 00:04:30,300 I wanted to do something different when I grew up. 66 00:04:30,300 --> 00:04:34,330 The dream that began taking shape in me became my escape from 67 00:04:34,330 --> 00:04:38,510 the only world that I knew. Sometimes we 68 00:04:38,510 --> 00:04:42,900 remember exactly where we were and what we were doing during a significant 69 00:04:42,900 --> 00:04:47,040 historical event. Well, July 20th, 1969 70 00:04:47,040 --> 00:04:51,320 was one such event for me. I was seven years old. 71 00:04:51,320 --> 00:04:55,420 I wanted to watch the first human walk on the Moon. We did not have a 72 00:04:55,420 --> 00:04:59,460 television at home, so we went to a neighbor's house. 73 00:04:59,460 --> 00:05:03,760 All of the kids were clustered around a small black and white television. 74 00:05:03,760 --> 00:05:07,890 There were many people in the room, some were lying on the floor, 75 00:05:07,890 --> 00:05:12,160 while others were standing behind the sofa. We watched in total silence. 76 00:05:12,160 --> 00:05:16,230 We could hear a pin drop in that room. 77 00:05:16,230 --> 00:05:20,420 We were in awe when we saw an American named Neil Armstrong place 78 00:05:20,420 --> 00:05:24,710 his foot on the surface of the Moon for the first time. The TV 79 00:05:24,710 --> 00:05:28,720 crackled out his words: "One small step for 80 00:05:28,720 --> 00:05:32,850 man, one giant leap for mankind." This really was 81 00:05:32,850 --> 00:05:37,140 a giant leap. I walked home that night and looked at the Moon 82 00:05:37,140 --> 00:05:41,200 so far away, and I knew then that I wanted to be part of that adventure. 83 00:05:41,200 --> 00:05:45,390 I would be lying if I said that I knew what NASA was at that moment. 84 00:05:45,390 --> 00:05:49,750 However, I knew that I wanted to work in space. 85 00:05:49,750 --> 00:05:53,870 I wanted to be able to go to the Moon someday. 86 00:05:53,870 --> 00:05:57,890 So I remember saying to my mother, "I want to do that someday, Mom." And Mom 87 00:05:57,890 --> 00:06:01,890 could have said so many things that would have deterred me at that point. 88 00:06:01,890 --> 00:06:06,040 But what she said set in motion my determination to become who I am today. 89 00:06:06,040 --> 00:06:10,340 She said, "Sandra, you never know. Just work hard for what 90 00:06:10,340 --> 00:06:14,340 you want. The world goes around and around, and you never know 91 00:06:14,340 --> 00:06:18,340 what opportunities might present themselves, and you have to be ready to get them." 92 00:06:18,340 --> 00:06:22,750 The world did go round and round and our problems continued. 93 00:06:22,750 --> 00:06:26,880 During this time I realized that I had 94 00:06:26,880 --> 00:06:30,920 to take ownership of my actions. My success was up to 95 00:06:30,920 --> 00:06:35,110 me. It was not my mother's or my teacher's responsibility to make me 96 00:06:35,110 --> 00:06:39,360 succeed. It was my responsibility. 97 00:06:39,360 --> 00:06:43,720 I saw how hard my mother worked just to survive, and I tried to learn 98 00:06:43,720 --> 00:06:47,760 by her experiences. That became my goal, 99 00:06:47,760 --> 00:06:52,020 "not to repeat history," and of course "to go to the Moon." 100 00:06:52,020 --> 00:06:56,040 When I was 12 years old, we lost our house 101 00:06:56,040 --> 00:07:00,180 and we started moving from place to place. 102 00:07:00,180 --> 00:07:04,550 Mom would rent a room here and there, but we had to move frequently. 103 00:07:04,550 --> 00:07:08,630 I was determined to graduate from high school and to go to college. 104 00:07:08,630 --> 00:07:12,800 I tried to always find people who would elevate me and not 105 00:07:12,800 --> 00:07:17,080 to get with the wrong crowds. It allowed me to take all these 106 00:07:17,080 --> 00:07:21,140 baby steps that I need toward my very lofty goal to go to the Moon 107 00:07:21,140 --> 00:07:25,270 some day. I wanted to do things differently, 108 00:07:25,270 --> 00:07:29,290 I was always remembering in the back of my head what my mother used to tell me - "Do not 109 00:07:29,290 --> 00:07:33,450 repeat history." So I wanted to do things very very differently. 110 00:07:33,450 --> 00:07:37,780 I talked to my teachers and other people who would give me good advice 111 00:07:37,780 --> 00:07:41,920 and ideas. I tried to recognize all the bad ideas and 112 00:07:41,920 --> 00:07:46,030 separate myself from all of those people who always tried to give you bad advice. 113 00:07:46,030 --> 00:07:50,210 I continued to nurture the dream of space travel 114 00:07:50,210 --> 00:07:54,250 in my mind and in my heart. And it was still pulling me forward. 115 00:07:54,250 --> 00:07:58,310 One of my intermediate goals was to become an electrical engineer. 116 00:07:58,310 --> 00:08:02,480 When I was accepted at the University of Costa Rica, 117 00:08:02,480 --> 00:08:07,030 the counselor said that I could not study electrical engineering because I was 118 00:08:07,030 --> 00:08:11,490 a woman. He recommednded that I study industrial engineering 119 00:08:11,490 --> 00:08:15,570 instead because that was the ladylike engineering. 120 00:08:15,570 --> 00:08:19,720 I spent three and half years studying industrial engineering 121 00:08:19,720 --> 00:08:23,930 at the Univeristy of Costa Rica. Well, 122 00:08:23,930 --> 00:08:31,440 I definitely admit that in that point in my life, I underestimated my own abilities. 123 00:08:31,440 --> 00:08:35,930 I knew that I was capable, but I didn't feel like I was assertive enough. It did not cross my mind 124 00:08:35,930 --> 00:08:40,390 to assert myself and insist that I really wanted to study electrical 125 00:08:40,390 --> 00:08:44,610 engineering rather than industrial. I decided to change majors. 126 00:08:44,610 --> 00:08:49,020 I figured at that point it wouldn't hurt. I finally decided 127 00:08:49,020 --> 00:08:53,100 to study what I always wanted to study which was electrical engineering. 128 00:08:53,100 --> 00:08:57,280 I became a transfer student, and out of the major credits that I had 129 00:08:57,280 --> 00:09:01,610 at the University of Costa Rica, only 31 were recognized, so I had to 130 00:09:01,610 --> 00:09:05,620 start pretty much all over again. There were 131 00:09:05,620 --> 00:09:09,850 many many challenges in front of my still. I spoke almost 132 00:09:09,850 --> 00:09:13,900 no English. I only had the English that I knew from high school. 133 00:09:13,900 --> 00:09:18,040 So it was very hard for me. It took me three and a half more years 134 00:09:18,040 --> 00:09:22,050 to get my degrees. At that point, I was on the seven year 135 00:09:22,050 --> 00:09:26,160 plan to graduation. I finally graduated 136 00:09:26,160 --> 00:09:30,340 with a double major in electrical engineering and physics. 137 00:09:30,340 --> 00:09:34,460 After graduation, I went to a job fair, which led to an 138 00:09:34,460 --> 00:09:38,820 interview. I never forget being 139 00:09:38,820 --> 00:09:43,250 offered the job on the spot. I had overcome 140 00:09:43,250 --> 00:09:47,380 so many obstacles and now there was a wonderful opporunity to work at 141 00:09:47,380 --> 00:09:51,580 Goddard as a contractor. Three years later, 142 00:09:51,580 --> 00:09:55,840 I was hired by the agency. I finally became a 143 00:09:55,840 --> 00:10:00,120 full-fledged civil servant. and the reason this happened was 144 00:10:00,120 --> 00:10:04,530 because during my three years as a contractor, I worked on 145 00:10:04,530 --> 00:10:09,400 many optical systems working with scientists hand-by-hand 146 00:10:09,400 --> 00:10:13,450 and I was noticed. And when I put in that resume, 147 00:10:13,450 --> 00:10:17,900 they gave me the job, and I was so so happy 148 00:10:17,900 --> 00:10:21,950 that finally after all the years 149 00:10:21,950 --> 00:10:26,370 and all of the challenges, I finally became a NASA employee. 150 00:10:26,370 --> 00:10:30,550 I have been working for NASA now for 151 00:10:30,550 --> 00:10:35,080 23 and a half years as a full-fledged civil servant. 152 00:10:35,080 --> 00:10:39,140 Working at NASA has enabled me to design and 153 00:10:39,140 --> 00:10:43,180 test hardware, work side by side with talented scientists, 154 00:10:43,180 --> 00:10:47,490 and design new missions for space exploration. I work with 155 00:10:47,490 --> 00:10:51,530 so many amazing people who think of things nobody had ever done before, 156 00:10:51,530 --> 00:10:55,800 and they inspire me so much every day. 157 00:10:55,800 --> 00:10:59,930 Our work isn't easy; it's very very hard. And I really love it. 158 00:10:59,930 --> 00:11:04,090 My dream, as you have heard, 159 00:11:04,090 --> 00:11:08,430 was very very lofty and perhaps a bit unrealistic. 160 00:11:08,430 --> 00:11:12,680 My path was very difficult, and at any moment I could have given up. 161 00:11:12,680 --> 00:11:16,920 But I made a conscious choice to move towards a different life 162 00:11:16,920 --> 00:11:20,960 for myself. I made deliberate decisions that put me in 163 00:11:20,960 --> 00:11:25,160 unfamiliar situations. Many of the experiences I 164 00:11:25,160 --> 00:11:29,390 sought out were not only new, but they were very very scary. 165 00:11:29,390 --> 00:11:33,730 I didn't know if I would achive my goal, but I didn't allow 166 00:11:33,730 --> 00:11:38,000 myself to be overcome by doubts or negative thinking. 167 00:11:38,000 --> 00:11:42,030 I was very determined to change my behavior so I didn't have to repeat the past 168 00:11:42,030 --> 00:11:46,240 and repeat history. So continue to bring new 169 00:11:46,240 --> 00:11:50,610 thoughts, ideas, and perceptions into your life, and get to know 170 00:11:50,610 --> 00:11:54,810 different people with different perspectives, different occupations, 171 00:11:54,810 --> 00:11:58,910 cultures, religions. The bottom line is, 172 00:11:58,910 --> 00:12:03,270 that with perseverence and staying true to my dream in life, I was able to 173 00:12:03,270 --> 00:12:07,350 achieve what many people thought I shouldn't have even considered. 174 00:12:07,350 --> 00:12:11,570 Life is never easy. But the circumstances of your birth should not 175 00:12:11,570 --> 00:12:15,720 take the kind of person that you can become. You have control 176 00:12:15,720 --> 00:12:19,770 of your destiny. So, set lofty goals 177 00:12:19,770 --> 00:12:23,800 with intermediate goals along the way. While you many never achieve your 178 00:12:23,800 --> 00:12:27,870 lofty goal, in an effort to reach it, you will always 179 00:12:27,870 --> 00:12:32,150 go very very far. If you reach far enough you 180 00:12:32,150 --> 00:12:36,410 may yet accomplish your dreams. When I was seven years old, I wanted 181 00:12:36,410 --> 00:12:40,850 to go to the Moon. Look where I am today. I have landed among 182 00:12:40,850 --> 00:12:43.130 the stars.