Ever since I was a child I have had an avid interest in space. In my elementary school years the space exhibit was my favorite in the natural history museums in Frankfurt, Tokyo, and London. When I became a little older, I ogled Carl Sagan on "Cosmos," read every book and article about space I could find, begged my parents for a telescope, and even wrote my first paper on the theoretical black hole. Learning about space was a passionate hobby of my childhood.
I first began to seriously consider a space-related career field when I was in the tenth grade. That year, I attended a science research seminar where the guest speaker was David Wilkins, Director of Space Flight Operations of the European Space Agency (ESA). He gave a fascinating talk about his involvement with the European joint project to study Halley's Comet on its recent pass by earth.
Part of Image:Planetary society.jpg Original capti...
An image of Halley's Comet taken June 6, 1910.
The nucleus of Halley's Comet, imaged by the Giott...His warm humor and enthusiasm about his work led me to think about studying engineering.
To find out more, I wrote to a number of engineering organizations for information about the field. From studying the materials I received I found that my zeal for math and science would be put to good use in engineering. Therefore, I find it a natural desire to further my lifelong interest in space by pursuing a degree in aerospace engineering.
ESA-ESTEC
Comet P/Halley as taken March 8, 1986 by W. Liller...
English: Observation of Haley's Comet, recorded in...