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Into the Life of Nasa Engineer Kobie Boykins
Background
Coming up next in Des Moines Performing Arts Explorer Speaker Series, NASA Engineer Kobie Boykins takes the Civic Center stage! This midwestern native has many professional accolades and career accomplishments to his name. He’s going to talk all about Mars and its icy moon and what we can learn from it here on Earth.
Boykins was born in Omaha, NE and went to high school in his home state before taking off for college. Boykins chose to move to upstate New York and attend Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute where he learned more about what his future had in store. He was offered a position at Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) and took a role in the Advanced Mechanical System section.
Photo credit: JPL NASA
All About Mars
Ever since he was a child, Boykins knew when he grew up that he wanted to build outer space vehicles. That’s just what he did.
Boykins may have one of the coolest jobs in the world. He contributed to the Mars Exploration Rovers and the Mars Pathfinder. He was responsible for the design, fabrication, and build of the Solar Arrays for the Rover. Boykins then worked in Assembly, Test, and Launch Operations to build Spirit and Opportunity. When asked about the most extraordinary experience of working for NASA thus far, Boykins answered “Seeing the Solar Arrays deploy for the first time on each vehicle.”
Not only does Boykins find Mars fascinating, but he feels Mars exploration is important as there is a lot of knowledge to be gained from it. As an engineer, Boykins is curious about Mars’ capacity for life after learning the planet once had water on its surface that disappeared from planetary evolution. Understanding why is necessary to ensure the same thing does not happen on our planet. The more we learn, the more we can predict what will happen here on Earth!
Photo credit: NASA
Learn more about Boykins and the path to his career:
Event Information
NASA Engineer, Kobie Boykins will be here for one night only on March 21 at the Des Moines Civic Center. Embark on the opportunity to hear from a real-life NASA employee and even partake in a Q&A session following the program. Get your space questions ready, because there is so much to learn from Boykins.
Tickets start at $15, so bring the whole family and prepare for an enlightening evening at the Civic Center. Get your tickets now to learn more about Mars’ secrets and the future of Earth.
