." Coming from my earliest childhood, trip had actually regularly mesmerized me. I survived in the boonies and the fields, so I failed to possess neighbors to go and have fun with. If I wasn't working, I was actually left to my own devices, and usually, I would certainly simply be captivated by the wildlife and particularly, the beast of preys that I would certainly observe." To me, they embodied a freedom of some kind or even one more. These birds and the perspective they have-- they can consume a lot. Therefore, coming from that point on, I understood I wanted to be associated with flight and also flying." I [enjoyed] all things air travel, all points spaceflight. I could not obtain sufficient of it. I became an enthusiastic viewers, whereas in the past, I had not been a lot of a viewers. I could not get enough product to check out my heroes coming from trip and also space. They became my role models as well as the course that they took included, at some point or even an additional, a pretty rigorous education and learning as well as dedication to accomplish well academically, physically, or athletically. Therefore, I tossed myself into that whole kind of mentality." When I was helping the Flying force, I managed to soar and also deal with aircraft that I would dream around, looking at in the publications Aviation Week and Room Modern Technology. Right here they are, appropriate in front of me." ... So, my career has been actually as close as achievable to that of an air travel exam engineer. And then, precisely the heels of being actually captivated through atmospherical air travel, functioning in individual spaceflight has actually placed me over the Moon.".-- Dr. Donald Mendoza, Chief Designer, NASA Design & Protection Center, NASA's Ames .Graphic Credit Rating: NASA/Dominic HartInterviewer: NASA/Thalia Patrinos.Browse through a few of our various other Images of NASA.