." From my earliest childhood years, flight had actually constantly captivated me. I lived out in the boonies and also the farmlands, so I really did not possess next-door neighbors to go and also have fun with. If I wasn't working, I was actually delegated to my own gadgets, and usually, I would simply be spellbinded by the creatures and especially, the raptorial birds that I would find." To me, they represented a liberty of some kind or even one more. These birds and also the viewpoint they have-- they can easily consume a great deal. Therefore, coming from that factor on, I recognized I wanted to be actually associated with air travel as well as flying." I [enjoyed] all points tour, all points spaceflight. I could not get enough of it. I ended up being a devoted visitor, whereas in the past, I had not been much of an audience. I couldn't receive sufficient product to review my heroes coming from trip and also space. They became my shining example and the course that they took involved, at some time or yet another, a pretty thorough learning and also dedication to accomplish effectively academically, actually, or athletically. Therefore, I threw on my own in to that whole entire form of perspective." When I was benefiting the Air Force, I was able to soar and also service airplane that I would dream approximately, examining in the journals Flying Full week and Space Technology. Here they are actually, appropriate in front of me." ... So, my occupation has been as close as achievable to that of a flight test developer. And after that, right on the heels of being actually captivated through climatic trip, doing work in human spaceflight has actually put me over the Moon.".-- Dr. Donald Mendoza, Principal Developer, NASA Design & Security Facility, NASA's Ames Research Center.Picture Credit Score: NASA/Dominic HartInterviewer: NASA/Thalia Patrinos.Check out several of our other Images of NASA.