Biography

Hello, my name is Pablo, and I am currently in my fourth year of a dual-degree program in Mathematics at Dominican University and Mechanical Engineering at the Illinois Institute of Technology, with an expected graduation in May 2027. I am enthusiastic about human spaceflight engineering systems, operations, and engineering in extreme environments. I am currently an intern at the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory in the Instrument Operations Engineering branch working on software for the Sentinel-6 series mission and SWOT. I am working towards scuba diving certifications and continue to improve my strength, endurance, and academic skills, with the goal of participating in scientific and engineering fieldwork.

Background

Academics (I): B.S Mathematics, Dominican University
Academics (II): B.S Mechanical Engineering, Illinois Institute of Technology
Current Position: 398D Instrument Operations Engineering Team, NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Email: pbedollaortiz@my.dom.edu
GPA (DU): 3.8/4.0
GPA (IIT): TBD
Github: link

Internships and Positions Held

NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Maximizing Student Potential Fellowship
Funded through NASA’s Minority University Research and Education Project (MUREP)
Date: September 3rd — December 20th, 2024, Remote

• Continued work from previous on-site internship. Extension.

NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Maximizing Student Potential Fellowship
Date: June 10th — August 16th, 2024, Pasadena, CA

• Worked in the 398D Instrument Operations Engineering branch as an intern.
• Migrated and extensively refactored a Sentinel-6 test-telemetry analysis tool, optimizing directory walks to effectively derive quantities from telemetry documents and streamline data ingestion processes.
• Conducted operational data analysis and visualization for Sentinel-6 instrument operation systems using real operational data to optimize flight operation procedures.
• Modular statistical and graphical tool and in-house framework built using Python, NumPy, and Pandas to analyze and sort binary telemetry data, enabling efficient troubleshooting and monitoring processes.

Intuit Credit Karma, Software Engineer Intern
Date: May 23rd — August 16th, 2023, Ballantyne, NC

• Worked as Software Engineer Intern on the Core Product Experimentation Team.
• Backend Engineer leveraging Node.JS, TypeScript, JavaScript, and YAML. Utilized Mocha, Jest, and Sinon for unit testing and migrating existing testing frameworks.
• Improved testing efficiency, enhanced revenue through data optimization, and contributed to a major app iteration through research and testing.

Columbia College Chicago, Computer Programming Tutor
Date: September 11th — December 15th, 2023, Chicago, IL

• Mentored students in C#, C++, HTML/CSS/JavaScript, and Python.
• Engineered a Python web scraper with Selenium to unveil vulnerabilities in the institution’s social networking system and collaborating with vendors for resolutions.
• Assisted in departmental hardware migrations and oversaw equipment maintenance.

Projects

NASA L’SPACE Academy, Mission Concept Academy, Chief Scientist
Ran through January 2024 — May 2024, Virtual

• Lead the science development of mission milestones for MDR, MCR, PDR, and SRR mission papers.
• Lead mock-simulated scientific research for Mars rover instrumentation and command data handling concept, specializing in science instrumentation.
• Earned certifications for teaming skills, requirements analysis, project

NASA MUREP MINDS, NASA MINDS 2024 Challenge,
Ran through Fall 2023 — Spring 2024, Dominican University

• Lead “Science and Technology Applications for Research in Space” at home institution, a private 10-student, 3-faculty research team for NASA’s Artemis mission.
• Conceptualized fixed LIDAR data collection device prototype for the NASA Artemis mission challenge for slope computation, elevation modeling, and autonomy, emphasizing field-of-view perspective data.
• Secured $1,500 in funding from NASA to support research initiative following a research proposal. Second place in Technical Paper Award.

DCGAN Network, Personal Project
Worked on in Spring 2023, Dominican University

• Implemented DCGAN for dementia simulation with neuroscience professor using Python and TensorFlow.
• Optimized ML model with scientific precision, incorporating diverse training data through web scraping.

UA Safety, Open-Source Project
Participation in Spring 2022, Virtual

• Assistedin in programming and logistics for a website containing vital information for Ukrainian refugees.
• Built by a vast community of developers online.

Mentions & Appearances

Dominican Students Receive Research Funding From NASA

Space to Create

Authentic Health Care Through Artificial Intelligence

Border crossings and missile alerts: Volunteers create website with resources for Ukrainians fleeing the country

Presentations

Final Paper and Presentation from my NASA JPL Summer 2024 work export is TBD.

Awards

Dean’s List — Dominican University, Spring 2024
Distinction for attaining a grade point average of 3.80 on 12 or more graded hours.

Dean’s List — Columbia College Chicago, Fall 2022
Distinction for attaining a grade point average of 3.75 on 12 or more graded hours.

Dean’s List — Columbia College Chicago, Fall 2021
Distinction for attaining a grade point average of 3.75 on 12 or more graded hours.

Keep Moving Forward Scholarship Recipient — Keep Moving Forward, Fall 2021
Distinction for attaining a grade point average of 3.75 on 12 or more graded hours.

Skills

Technologies:

• Python
• C#
• C/C++
• Shell Scripting
• TypeScript
• SQL
• JavaScript
• Git
• Unix
• Linux
• Jupyter

Libraries:

• NumPy
• Pandas
• Plotly
• Matplotlib
• H5PY
• TensorFlow
• Scikit-Image
• Mocha
• Jest
• Sinon
• Dask

Languages:

• English (Fluent)
• Spanish (Fluent)
• Russian (A1)

Personal & Recreational Activites

• Scuba Diving (NAUI 60ft Open Water 4/5 Sessions)
• Weightlifting
• Endruance training
• Strength training
• Hiking
• Swimming
• Rucking
• Photography