Lisha Roubert

School: University of Puerto Rico, Cayey Campus

Major(s): Mathematics

About me: I like to consider myself a multidisciplinary person. I enjoy having the opportunity to learn new things, which has brought me to work at NASA for the third consecutive summer. I have just finished my Bachelor’s in Mathematics at the University of Puerto Rico, Cayey Campus, and will now pursue a Ph.D. in Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences at University of Wisconsin-Madison. I am interested in studying atmospheric sciences in order to apply it to study earth as well as the atmosphere and conditions on other planets. It was my interest in remote sensing and planetary atmospheres that led me to apply for the GSFC Lunar and Planetary Sciences Academy.

This summer I am working with three other teammates on the Lunar Orbiter Laser Altimeter (LOLA) and Laser Ranging (LR) Experiment of the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) mission. We will be using the new data that comes from the LOLA instrument to generate high resolution maps of the moon, which will assist in the determination of future landing sites on the moon. The LRO mission just got launched today, June 18^th 2009!!! Even though I did not get to go to KSC to watch the launch, it was still a heart pounding experience. Never did I think that it would be possible to be so terrified and excited at the same time. Now I know how all the science and engineering teams must feel as they see the missions that they have worked so hard on go into space. However, it is the most rewarding feeling ever to see that the launch was successful! I am very excited to be working on the LRO mission and look forward to the contributions that my research will make to the future of space exploration.