Name: Paul Racette
Formal Job Classification: Electrical engineer
Organization: Code 555, Microwave Instrument and Technology Branch, Engineering Directorate
What do you do and what is most interesting about your role here at Goddard? How do you help support Goddard’s mission?
I work with scientists and engineers to build science instruments and develop technologies to enable new science measurements.
What made you decide to become an electrical engineer?
I like to make things and the study of math and physics came naturally to me. And so electrical engineering seemed a good field of study for me.
Where did you go to school?
Since I’m from Kansas, I went to the University of Kansas (KU) for a bachelor’s and master’s in engineering. I completed my doctorate at The George Washington University.
Goddard was your first job and you stayed 30 years. What attracted you to Goddard?
While getting my masters from KU, I had a NASA graduate student research program grant to study radar systems and remote sensing. Goddard recruited me in 1990 and I have been here ever since.
What attracted me to Goddard was that the work was interesting and I was given the opportunity to pursue my doctorate while working. I grew up in Kansas and chased thunderstorms. My first assignment took me to Japan to study typhoons. I flew through the eye of Category 5 Typhoon Flo on NASA’s DC-8. How exciting is that!
Why did you stay 30 years at Goddard?
The work is interesting, and the people are talented and highly committed.
I spent the majority of my time working on sensors for Earth science. Understanding our planet Earth is a valuable contribution to society.
Today I am also doing planetary work, which is also exciting, the evolution of Earth and life and Earth’s place in the context of the universe is fascinating.
What are some of your favorite projects over the past 30 years?
I like coming up with ideas, working with the scientists and understanding their measurement needs. I worked a lot with the Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR) program helping small businesses and developing technologies.
Some of my favorite projects over my career are the ones that I am working on currently.
My doctoral research was in modeling calibration of radiometer systems. A radiometer is an instrument that measures electromagnetic emission. Microwave radiometers can measure water vapor, clouds, precipitation, ocean salinity and soil moisture. I am now working on a particular type of radiometer, a spectroradiometer, to measure gases on other planets and the Moon. As part of this effort, we are applying machine learning and artificial intelligence to calibrating radiometers. I believe this area has a lot of potential and am excited by what we’re learning.
I am also working on observation theory. I’ve found that the mathematics used for modeling radiometer systems can be used to model the role of observer in the creation of reality. The theory links our understanding of quantum physics to the macroscopic world we experience. We all perceive reality differently and each produce a realization. Each realization is one of many that form an ensemble that constitutes a collective reality.
How did you become involved with the Native American Advisory Committee? What is your role?
I was a NASA Administrator’s Fellow after I got my doctorate in 2005. I worked a year at Haskell Indian Nation’s University in Lawrence, Kansas, and then I worked a year at NASA Headquarters in Washington, in the Office of Education. In 2007, I returned to Goddard and was a founding member of the Native American Advisory Committee, which was just forming.
We work to improve the representation of Native Americans in Goddard’s work force by recruiting and working with the internship program. For example, we attend some of the American Indian Science and Engineering Society (AISES) conferences to find promising students. AISES has a government relations committee and Goddard has hosted two of their annual meetings. We also help coordinate activities around Native American Heritage month in November.
One challenge in recruiting Native Americans is that many do not want to leave their communities and their communities do not want to lose their best and brightest. In response, NASA developed externships, which allows Native Americans to work for NASA, but remain at home. NASA’s Tribal College and Universities Program developed training programs to prepare students for work in the civilian space sector. Some students later did summer internships at various NASA centers.
Tell us about Earthzine.
Earthzine is an on-line publication associated with the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers. I was the founding editor from 2006 to 2018. We had quarterly themes and added other articles, published as received.
The articles focus on fostering Earth observation and global awareness. We support the Group on Earth Observation and their work towards developing and integrating the Global Earth Observing System of Systems.
What advice do you give the students you mentor?
My advice depends on the circumstances. I tell them to “follow your bliss,” to pursue their interests. I also tell them to “work hard, play hard.” That motto certainly served me well during my younger years. Now I am a little more relaxed. I work hard, rest a lot and try to avoid those unplanned dismounts while riding my mountain bike.
Who is the most inspiring person you have worked with at Goddard?
I worked with many, but the late Jim Weinman, my branch head in the early ’90s, comes to mind. He encouraged me to pursue science and research, to look where other people are not looking. His advice has served me well through the years to think independently and pursue my own course.
Is there something surprising about your hobbies outside of work that people do not generally know?
As a teenager, I started working with wood. I still use a bookshelf I made when I was 16. I now have a wood shop where I like to escape and contemplate solutions to the world’s problems.
One project I’ve taken on is to make what I call peacehearts. My goal is to make and give away 100 peacehearts. I am up to about 38 or so. Some are fairly intricate and explore concepts such as courage, joy and transcendence as they relate to peace and love.
Fighting for what you believe is right does not necessarily translate into a peaceful way of living. I have experienced some of that in my life while trying to find equanimity while being passionate for social justice and adapting to climate change. That is why I started the peace heart project. It gives me a chance to reflect on the balance between passion and peace in my own heart.
What is your “six-word memoir”? A six-word memoir describes something in just six words.
Creative. Passionate. Peace-loving. Committed. Observer. Quiet.
Conversations With Goddard is a collection of question and answer profiles highlighting the breadth and depth of NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center’s talented and diverse workforce. The Conversations have been published twice a month on average since May 2011. Read past editions on Goddard’s “Our People” webpage.