Kristina Wang is a BS/MS student and is currently in her 5th year at CU-Boulder.
For the summer of 2009, I have been lucky enough to pursue an internship at Blue Origin. Blue Origin is a small aerospace company with the goal of lowering the cost of spaceflight to further enable human presence and progress in space exploration. Their main facility is in Kent, Washington (where I am for the summer), and they also have a launch facility in West Texas. Founded by Jeff Bezos (also known for his other business, Amazon.com), the company culture is well described by the company motto of “Gradatim Ferociter”: the team members at Blue Origin are taking small, but frequent and aggressive steps towards their milestones. The atmosphere here has been fun, fast-paced, and full of learning! A spot as an intern here is very competitive, as hundreds from across the country apply, and only six are accepted. I am accompanied here by five other interns and two returning co-op students in varying stages of their educations (undergrads to PhD students). They are students from some of the top engineering schools around, including Stanford, USC, Texas A&M, Georgia Tech, Olin, and U of Washington.
For the duration of my 10-week internship, my project has been to design, build, and test a water tunnel that models unknown behavior inside of a rocket engine thrust chamber. The work has been challenging and rewarding. I have been guided through this project by a Blue Origin propulsion engineer with about 20 years of experience in the aerospace industry. I have found my time at CU and Blue Origin to be complimenting each other very well, and I am thrilled to have had this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity this summer!
Me in front of Blue Origin and View of Seattle from Kerry Park:
Outside of work, I have been spending a lot of time exploring the Pacific Northwest. I’ve been spending a lot of time outdoors with the other interns, and our activities have included bike rides, hiking, a cabin trip by Mt. Rainier, and rock climbing. We’ve also taken advantage of our proximity to the city, and have spent a few weekends in downtown Seattle. I’ve also been to several museums, including the Museum of Flight and the Experience Music Project/Science Fiction Museum.
Interns at Mt. Ranier and at the Museum of Flight:
Me at a rock climbing gym & taking a flying lesson:
Summer 2008 was also a great year for me. I spent three weeks in May in Europe: one week visiting a friend in London, and the last two on a Maymester class in Rome (HUEN 3700). I was able to do it without checking any bags, either! Following my time in Europe I spent 9 weeks in Wichita, KS (quite the change) working for Cessna Aircraft Company. There, I worked for the McCauley Propeller Division learning about structures and materials. I also began training for my pilot’s license, which was an incredible experience.
Me on a rooftop in London, overlooking Oxford Street (one of the busiest in the city) & a photo I took in London that snagged me a title in “Top 25” for the CU Study Abroad Photo Contest!
My roommate from my Rome trip and me in Orieto, Italy & CU students in front of the Trevi Fountain in Rome.
I got to meet the Pope’s Astronomer & Me and the other Cessna interns with a rocket piñata (it was someone’s birthday) before a Drive-In movie
THE Apollo 13 command capsule, in the Cosmosphere museum in Hutchinson, KS, and a photo of me in a plane
