." Coming from my earliest childhood, flight had actually always spellbinded me. I lived out in the boonies and also the farmlands, so I didn't have next-door neighbors to go as well as have fun with. If I had not been operating, I was delegated to my very own tools, and frequently, I will only be captivated due to the wildlife as well as especially, the raptors that I would view." To me, they represented a flexibility of some kind or another. These birds and also the view they possess-- they may absorb a lot. Therefore, coming from that point on, I understood I desired to be associated with tour and also air travel." I [appreciated] all things trip, all things spaceflight. I couldn't get good enough of it. I came to be a serious reader, whereas in the past, I wasn't a lot of an audience. I couldn't receive enough product to read about my heroes from air travel and also area. They became my good example and also the road that they took entailed, at some point or even yet another, a rather thorough education and learning as well as dedication to accomplish properly academically, actually, or even athletically. So, I threw on my own in to that entire kind of frame of mind." When I was actually working for the Air Force, I managed to soar and also service airplane that I would certainly hope around, considering in the magazines Aviation Full week and Room Innovation. Here they are actually, best in front of me." ... Therefore, my profession has actually been as close as feasible to that of an air travel exam developer. And afterwards, right on the heels of being actually captivated by climatic tour, doing work in human spaceflight has actually put me over the Moon.".-- Physician Donald Mendoza, Principal Engineer, NASA Design & Protection Center, NASA's Ames Research Center.Image Credit Report: NASA/Dominic HartInterviewer: NASA/Thalia Patrinos.Take a look at a number of our various other Faces of NASA.