When I first entered the convention hall Sunday evening to get my badge, it was a lot bigger than I thought. That night I went back for “SciTech 101” where some tips for making the most of my time at SciTech were given. I was already excited after traveling for a few hours to Orlando from our AirBnB in Cape Coral, but I will say it took me a while to fall asleep.
On Monday, the first real day of the conference, I went to the plenary session about JPL by JPL’s director, Laurie Leshin. After that, I learned about NASA’s “Roadmap to Mars,” but had to leave early to attend a session where I learned more about making a good first impression. It was at that session that I first met some of my co-panelists! After that session, I met up with someone from the AIAA High School discord- who I learned was presenting a paper on Tuesday! We had a lot in common, so I decided to go to the session (but more on that later!) After we had lunch, I went to the “Meet The Employers” session where I talked with another JPL employee and visited various other employers’ tables. I then headed back to the hotel on the trolley (which was really nice) to restock on business cards for the next session, Meet the Universities! While there I met with some researchers from UAH, as well as MIT, Princeton, Texas A&M, TU Delft, Maryland College Park, Purdue, Embry Riddle, and more! After “Meet the Universities” I headed over to the Castle Hotel for dinner with Michelle and the rest of the panel members- at first I felt a bit out of place with everyone else knowing each other and a good few having made trips with Higher Orbits before- but by the end, I was much less stressed for the panel.
On Tuesday I started out by meeting up with some people from the AIAA North Ohio Section, who ended up being almost all NASA Glenn employees- that was a great networking session! I then went to a session by James Free, NASA’s Associate Administrator, about NASA’s strategy for LEO operations- mostly talking about what will happen post-ISS deorbit. I then rushed to an already-started session about nuclear power for spaceflight, both electrical and propulsive! After a bit of a break, I went to a session about an RF antenna-based method of determining the amount of fuel in a fuel tank in space, which, until now, was a problem I’d never even considered! Sessions like that are one of the reasons I love networking- I meet people who do some really cool stuff that, while it may not be my career focus, is still really cool! After that session, I checked out the student lounge for a bit, but there wasn’t much there at the time. I then checked out the Expo Hall- one of the biggest parts of SciTech! On my first pass, I got a bunch of “swag” as my mom calls it, but I had to cut my exploration short to go to one of my favorite sessions- Fusion Propulsion! While there I met up with someone from another discord I’m in, specifically for the community of TheBeardyPenguin, a Kerbal Space Program and general space YouTuber who created a KSP-based parody of the show “For All Mankind!” We both had similar interests in fusion propulsion, so we exchanged information. I can’t help but wonder if I met a future coworker! Towards the end of the session, I left to watch my friend from the AIAA High School Discord’s presentation, which was a lunar rover she designed along with one other student! It was super cool, but I had to leave after it ended to catch the end of the fusion propulsion session! Once it ended I exchanged business cards with two of the panelists, and realized one of the panelists was one of the researchers from UAH whom I met at Meet the Universities! After that short networking break, I headed out to the main area where I got some dinner and talked for a few minutes with some of my co-panelists about the upcoming panel! It had been a long day, and we had a big morning, so we headed back to our respective hotels.
Wednesday morning I donned my Higher Orbits polo and suit jacket and headed to the conference center, preparing my answers in my head. We arrived a bit before everyone else, so I wrote some stuff down- just to make sure I wouldn't forget anything major. We talked for a bit amongst ourselves, then got up on stage. I was second to last, so I had some time to think about what exactly I’d say. It was a bit stressful at first, but by my turn, I was ready. I said who I was, where I went to school, my Higher Orbits experience, and my aspirations in the field.
I was mentally facepalming for a bit as there were a few big things I forgot, but I ended up being able to work them into my answers to the follow-up questions. We were told in advance of our biggest question, that being what our biggest challenge has been in getting to where we were, and honestly, I forgot my prepared answer. I managed to remember it in time for me to be asked, and from there it all went smoothly. After the panel ended we took pictures, exchanged contact information, and said goodbye to Michelle as she had to head off for Germany! Although before she left, she introduced me to Brian Talbot who is on AIAA’s leadership team. Once all the panel-related things concluded, my mom and I explored the Expo Hall some more. We picked up a TON more swag, and I talked to the people of the Mathworks booth- who were thoroughly impressed with the scorekeeping program I made in MATLAB, as well as my being the first person they’d seen who regularly used the MATLAB playing cards! They were even kind enough to give me two new packs of MATLAB cards and their own “MATLAB Rocks” ribbon for my badge!
By the time we finished talking the hall was closing for the day, but we were able to stop by one last booth- that of Boson Q Psi, where we met Nathan Mason. He, understandably, was heading out- so we decided to meet again on Thursday. Wednesday was a big day, and the panel was definitely a highlight of my day! I’d love to do something similar in the future if the opportunity arises!
On Thursday the conference was starting to wind down. I met Nathan Mason again before the Expo Hall closed, and he was able to connect me to someone in the industry via text with whom I hope to build a professional relationship! Once the Expo Hall closed, I went to two technical sessions about electric propulsion which I found very interesting! I then went to the presentation of the finalists in a satellite interception challenge made in KSP! It was also on Thursday that I, unfortunately, noticed that the phone number on my business card was wrong. Soon after this I noticed that the Aerospace-themed board game night was cancelled too! After those unfortunate occurrences, I decided to raise my spirits by remaking my scorekeeping program using the app designer tool I was told about at the Mathworks booth! By Friday morning, most people had left. I went to the plenary in the morning where my friend from the AIAA HS Discord got an award for her presentation, and then one technical session. I then headed back to the hotel to continue on my MATLAB program, and said goodbye to the convention center. Or so I thought…
My mom had noticed a session at 3:30 PM, with the chair being someone who is very interested in mentoring students. I begrudgingly put my dress clothes back on, headed to the trolley stop, and went to the session. Once the session ended, I talked to the chair who asked me to follow up with him so it definitely ended up being worthwhile. I then headed back to the hotel for the last time- this time for real.
In summary, it was a great first conference. I gained around 40 LinkedIn connections, a box full of business cards, life experience, and a large dining table worth of “swag.”
It was so nice meeting the other Higher Orbits speakers, and I had so much fun. If you have a chance to, I’d highly recommend going to SciTech- although beware- there will be at least one time you feel like the dumbest in the room.
P.S. Most of the room probably feels the same way!
Written by Stellar Student Daniel De Jong