Will “Rocket Scientist” be Automated?

Core Skills & Abilities

• Write technical reports or other documentation, such as handbooks or bulletins, for use by engineering staff, management, or customers.

• Maintain records of performance reports for future reference.

• Evaluate product data or design from inspections or reports for conformance to engineering principles, customer requirements, environmental regulations, or quality standards.

• Design or engineer filtration systems that reduce harmful emissions.

• Diagnose performance problems by reviewing reports or documentation from customers or field engineers or by inspecting malfunctioning or damaged products.

• Evaluate and approve selection of vendors by studying past performance or new advertisements.

• Plan or conduct experimental, environmental, operational, or stress tests on models or prototypes of aircraft or aerospace systems or equipment.

• Design new or modify existing aerospace systems to reduce polluting emissions, such as nitrogen oxide, carbon monoxide, or smoke emissions.

• Formulate conceptual design of aeronautical or aerospace products or systems to meet customer requirements or conform to environmental regulations.

• Direct aerospace research and development programs.

• Formulate mathematical models or other methods of computer analysis to develop, evaluate, or modify design, according to customer engineering requirements.

• Analyze project requests, proposals, or engineering data to determine feasibility, productibility, cost, or production time of aerospace or aeronautical products.

• Direct or coordinate activities of engineering or technical personnel involved in designing, fabricating, modifying, or testing of aircraft or aerospace products.

• Evaluate biofuel performance specifications to determine feasibility for aerospace applications.

• Plan or coordinate investigation and resolution of customers' reports of technical problems with aircraft or aerospace vehicles.

• Develop design criteria for aeronautical or aerospace products or systems, including testing methods, production costs, quality standards, environmental standards, or completion dates.