{"656120":{"#nid":"656120","#data":{"type":"news","title":"Home Again, After Coming Back to Earth","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003ETwo standing-room-only crowds welcomed Shane Kimbrough back to his alma mater on March 4, four months after he returned from space.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EThe first was an afternoon question-and-answer session with the Georgia Tech community. Then he went under the lights at a sold-out Russ Chandler Stadium as the Yellow Jackets baseball team hosted the University of Georgia.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EThe day of events marked Kimbrough\u0026rsquo;s first on campus since the Georgia Tech graduate\u0026rsquo;s third mission to space \u0026mdash; which included 199 days and 84 million miles aboard the International Space Station (ISS). \u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EKimbrough\u0026rsquo;s first stop of the day was a morning tour of the \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/ssdl.gatech.edu\/\u0022\u003ESpace Systems Design Lab\u003C\/a\u003E. Nearly two dozen students and research engineers showed Kimbrough the lab space of \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/ae.gatech.edu\/people\/edgar-glenn-lightsey\u0022\u003EGlenn Lightsey\u003C\/a\u003E, a professor in the \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/ae.gatech.edu\/\u0022\u003EDaniel Guggenheim School of Aerospace Engineering (AE School)\u003C\/a\u003E.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EKimbrough watched as the group tested electronics and navigation systems for future CubeSats. Their \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/ssdl.gatech.edu\/research\/projects\/gt-1\u0022\u003EGT-1\u003C\/a\u003E spacecraft \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/twitter.com\/GTssdl\/status\/1489195115696381953\u0022\u003Ewas deployed into orbit in February\u003C\/a\u003E, and the students are currently working on three 10 cm x 10 cm x 10 cm follow-up models for future missions.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EFrom there, Kimbrough visited Mission Operations Center, which is currently being used to track GT-1. He also checked in on \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.gtri.gatech.edu\/newsroom\/lunar-flashlight\u0022\u003ELunar Flashlight\u003C\/a\u003E, which is scheduled for launch this summer and will be the first CubeSat ever to orbit the moon. A Georgia Tech interdisciplinary team built the spacecraft\u0026rsquo;s propulsion system. The AE School and the \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.gtri.gatech.edu\/\u0022\u003EGeorgia Tech Research Institute (GTRI)\u003C\/a\u003E have been assembling and integrating Lunar Flashlight for NASA\u0026rsquo;s Jet Propulsion Lab the last several months.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0026ldquo;I was really inspired by the students I met, and I\u0026rsquo;ve been very impressed by the projects they\u0026rsquo;re working on,\u0026rdquo; said Kimbrough, who received his master\u0026rsquo;s degree in operations research from the\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.isye.gatech.edu\/\u0022\u003EH. Milton Stewart School of Industrial and Systems Engineering (ISyE)\u003C\/a\u003E in 1998. \u0026ldquo;So many people are interested in space, which is great to see.\u0026rdquo;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0026ldquo;Friday was amazing! It was very cool to share the work we do here at the lab and hear about his various experiences, from the military to NASA to being on the ISS,\u0026rdquo; said Ebenezer Arunkumar, GT-1\u0026rsquo;s software team lead and a master\u0026rsquo;s student in aerospace engineering. \u0026ldquo;Being an astronaut has always been a dream of mine, so meeting someone who has accomplished that goal was awe-inspiring.\u0026rdquo;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EThe morning ended with a visit to the \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/ae.gatech.edu\/yang-aero-maker-space\u0022\u003EYang Aero Maker Space\u003C\/a\u003E. The student-led facility in the Weber Space and Science Technology Building allows students to use 3D printers, laser cutters, and more to build prototypes that advance their research and curiosity.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0026ldquo;It was a really great opportunity to talk to an astronaut, something I\u0026rsquo;d only done on Zoom,\u0026rdquo; said Rachel Thomas, a member of the \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/ramblinrocketclub.github.io\/\u0022\u003ERamblin\u0026rsquo; Rocket Club\u003C\/a\u003E who is scheduled to graduate this semester with her undergraduate degree in aerospace engineering. \u0026ldquo;I talked to him about my team, \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/ramblinrocketclub.github.io\/teams\/gtxr\/\u0022\u003EGTXR (Georgia Tech Experimental Rocketry\u003C\/a\u003E), and he was really excited about that. It was a unique experience.\u0026rdquo;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EThe day\u0026rsquo;s main event, a Q\u0026amp;A in the Clough Undergraduate Learning Commons, filled an auditorium. In addition to the 250 or so Yellow Jackets in the room, nearly a thousand K-12 students from around the Atlanta area tuned into the livestream as invited guests, with some submitting questions for Kimbrough.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003ETopics ranged from the astronaut application process, when he knew he wanted to travel to space (as a young child), and the relevancy of his ISyE degree to his success as an astronaut.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EThe session was moderated by AE School Ph.D. student Naia Butler-Craig, an aspiring astronaut.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0026ldquo;I\u0026rsquo;m so grateful that Shane took his time to pour into the next generation of aerospace engineers,\u0026rdquo; Butler-Craig said. \u0026ldquo;It was such an honor to hear from someone as accomplished and personable as him. I feel motivated to keep going on my own journey in following his footsteps!\u0026rdquo;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EBefore taking a detour and riding in the Ramblin\u0026rsquo; Wreck for the first time, Kimbrough stood before another packed house that night. He threw out the first pitch before Georgia Tech beat Georgia 11-7. Kimbrough grew up attending Yellow Jacket sporting events and nearly enrolled as undergraduate. Instead, he attended the U.S. Military Academy and pitched for its baseball team.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0026ldquo;It was an incredible, perfect day for me. \u0026ldquo;Getting to come back and give back a little bit to the students and faculty was amazing.\u0026rdquo; Kimbrough said. \u0026ldquo;The weather was great. The events were great. I just want to go back to school!\u0026rdquo;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n","summary":null,"format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":[{"value":"Astronaut Shane Kimbrough tours labs, meets with students after third mission to space"}],"field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EA day of events marked Shane Kimbrough\u0026rsquo;s first on campus since the Georgia Tech graduate\u0026rsquo;s third mission to space \u0026mdash; which included 199 days and 84 million miles aboard the International Space Station (ISS). \u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"Astronaut Shane Kimbrough visits campus after returning from space in November of 2021. "}],"uid":"27560","created_gmt":"2022-03-08 16:31:54","changed_gmt":"2022-03-08 16:31:54","author":"Jason Maderer","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","dateline":{"date":"2022-03-08T00:00:00-05:00","iso_date":"2022-03-08T00:00:00-05:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"656115":{"id":"656115","type":"image","title":"Shane Kimbrough listening to students","body":null,"created":"1646756199","gmt_created":"2022-03-08 16:16:39","changed":"1646756199","gmt_changed":"2022-03-08 16:16:39","alt":"Shane Kimbrough listening to students","file":{"fid":"248730","name":"22C2302-P1-003.JPG","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/22C2302-P1-003.JPG","image_full_path":"http:\/\/www.tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/22C2302-P1-003.JPG","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":454748,"path_740":"http:\/\/www.tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/22C2302-P1-003.JPG?itok=u37iUCF3"}},"656114":{"id":"656114","type":"image","title":"Shane Kimbrough with SSDL","body":null,"created":"1646756025","gmt_created":"2022-03-08 16:13:45","changed":"1646756025","gmt_changed":"2022-03-08 16:13:45","alt":"Group of people with Shane Kimbrough","file":{"fid":"248729","name":"22C2302-P1-013.JPG","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/22C2302-P1-013.JPG","image_full_path":"http:\/\/www.tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/22C2302-P1-013.JPG","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":804088,"path_740":"http:\/\/www.tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/22C2302-P1-013.JPG?itok=zchCu1U5"}},"652615":{"id":"652615","type":"image","title":"Shane Kimbrough in the space station\u0027s cupola in August (courtesy: NASA)","body":null,"created":"1636479473","gmt_created":"2021-11-09 17:37:53","changed":"1636479473","gmt_changed":"2021-11-09 17:37:53","alt":"Shane Kimbrough in the ISS","file":{"fid":"247592","name":"Shane_Kimbrough-2.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/Shane_Kimbrough-2.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/www.tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/Shane_Kimbrough-2.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":110732,"path_740":"http:\/\/www.tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/Shane_Kimbrough-2.jpg?itok=HVN3qfH6"}}},"media_ids":["656115","656114","652615"],"groups":[{"id":"1237","name":"College of Engineering"},{"id":"1242","name":"School of Industrial and Systems Engineering (ISYE)"}],"categories":[],"keywords":[],"core_research_areas":[],"news_room_topics":[{"id":"71871","name":"Campus and Community"},{"id":"71881","name":"Science and Technology"}],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EJason Maderer\u003Cbr \/\u003E\r\nCollege of Engineering\u003Cbr \/\u003E\r\n404-276-1643\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n","format":"limited_html"}],"email":["maderer@gatech.edu"],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}