Miguel Rodriguez

• Under a NASA M-STAR Grant, we are conducting research to develop the methodology to extract the oxygen and hydrogen from the Martian regolith based on the theory of electrolysis and develop an instrument to do the extraction on future Mars missions.

• As a Math Engineering Science Achievement Center tutor, I am responsible for aiding students in understanding core concepts in chemistry. We were responsible with creating workshops and presenting them in a lecture-style.

• As a student lab worker, I ensured that all equipment and glassware used in labs were cleaned and stored in their proper place. Several chemicals were handled with care as some were flammable, toxic, and shock-sensitive. I washed glassware and used an autoclave to sterilize lab coats and test tubes from the anatomy labs. I also mixed compounds to prepare materials for future labs.

This internship involved I and a group of students, along with our assigned mentor, Professor Michael Gariety, to track the electromagnetic activity of the sun by tracking its sunspots daily. We then compiled daily images using a web broswer to make a video of the rotation o the sun. With this data, we calculated the rotation of the sun. We also presented this research to faculty and students. This research was then printed onto a poster and displayed in the hallway of the science building.

• In this internship, students were tasked with learning the systems engineering software, LabView in the course of 3 weeks. We presented to a few students and MESA faculty, and then worked on automizing a thermal chamber that simulates extreme temperatures. The objective was to automize the chamber to change from extreme hot and cold without the need of a designated person. This work was done in partnership with an engineering company, Exquadrum, for future aid in testing their small satellites for low-earth orbit. This project was printed onto a poster and was presented by us at SCCUR 2023.

• I guided students with problem-solving in math and general chemistry questions via zoom.