#PickoftheWeek | Queens Man Discusses His Role in Landing on Mars
BY QEDC It's In Queens
Here’s more proof that Queens is out of the world!
Rego Park-bred Vishnu Sridhar will discuss his experiences as part of the NASA team that recently realized a successful landing on Mars during a Queens Historical Society stream on April 3 at 2:30 pm. He’ll also talk about his beloved borough and answer questions.
On Feb. 18, 2021, a mechanical rover called “Perseverance” landed in the Jezero Crater on the Red Planet in a tremendous feat of modern day technology. Controlled by NASA employees about 34 million miles away on Earth, it took photos, analyzed soil samples, and inspired the world.
Sridhar works at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory. The 27-year-old was the lead systems engineer for Perseverance’s SuperCam, which can scan rocks from as far away as 20 feet, determine their chemical makeup, and take high-resolution images. Better than anything from a James Bond film, it has built-in lasers and spectrometers, which measure wavelength and life frequency.
Though currently based in Los Angeles, Sridhar has told media outlets that he developed a keen interest in space travel as child, watching planes above LaGuardia and Kennedy airports. (There’s also genetics, as his grandfather was a civil engineer who built the second-largest dam in India.) Sridhar graduated from Long Island City’s Aviation High School in 2011 and then got a Bachelor of Science Degree from Georgia Institute of Technology before eventually landing at NASA a little more than five years ago.
It’s believed that – about 3.5 billion years ago — a huge body of water and river delta existed where Jezero Crater is today. NASA is investigating the 28-mile-wide basin with the hope of finding signs of ancient (or present) life that might unlock secrets about the solar system. Though Martians would really captivate attention, they’re mostly looking for microbes.
The Saturday event is free with a $5 suggested donation. Registration is requested.
Top image: NASA; bottom image: Vishnu Sridhar