Nithin Abraham provides thermal coating expertise for NASA spacecraft

Name: Nithin Abraham
Formal Job Classification: Thermal Coatings Engineer and Technologist
Organization: Code 546, Contamination and Coatings Engineering Branch, Mechanical Systems Division, Engineering and Technology Directorate

What do you do and what is most interesting about your role here at Goddard? How do you help support Goddard's mission?

I am a thermal coatings engineer. I provide technical expertise on spacecraft thermal control coatings in support of satellites, instruments, and telescopes for NASA missions.

Thermal coatings allow a spacecraft to operate at desired temperatures. These coatings consist of spray applied paints, vacuum deposited thin films, and other thermal surfaces, such as blankets and tapes. As part of my job, I consult and make recommendations based on mission parameters and requirements. I perform property and performance testing of coatings and coordinate the application efforts on hardware. I support missions at its various phases from design through integration and testing.

I am also a coatings technologist. I provide expertise on spaceflight technology research, development, and testing of coatings and materials in support of NASA missions, strategic technology transfer partnerships, and Goddard's Internal Research and Development (IRAD) programs.

What is your educational background?

I was born in India and immigrated to the United States with my family when I was 3 years old. I am from New York; I grew up in the Bronx earlier in my childhood, and later moved to Westchester County. Growing up, I did not know that I wanted to be an engineer. I was interested in art and enjoyed drawing, painting, and graphic designing.

In school, I excelled in math and science, particularly chemistry. My high school guidance counselor was the first person who encouraged me to pursue engineering because of my academic strengths. I attended Manhattan College in Riverdale, New York, where I received a bachelor's degree and a master's degree in chemical engineering with minors in math and chemistry.

How did you come to Goddard?

While studying for my master's, I attended a national conference hosted by the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE) in Washington, D.C. At this conference, I saw that NASA had an outreach booth at the career fair. Although I was excited about the prospects of possibly working at NASA, I felt that I was not "smart enough" or "good enough." I was also uncertain how my educational background could contribute to the agency.

Regardless, I built up the courage to approach the booth at the career fair. That's where I met Dan Krieger, the friendly NASA recruiter who reviewed my résumé, informed me of the countless career opportunities, and reassured me of the need for all kinds of engineers at NASA, including chemical engineers. Through this interaction, I was able to get my foot in the door and was offered a graduate summer internship at Goddard. After my internship, I was hired as a full-time civil servant in 2010. This past September was my 11-year anniversary at Goddard.

What does a spacecraft thermal coatings engineer think about?

Thermal coatings allow a spacecraft to survive the harsh conditions of space. Space can be really cold, like liquid helium, or really hot, like the Sun. The thermal properties of coatings, such as solar absorptance and emittance, are important because they help passively control the spacecraft temperature to the desired operational range. For example, white thermal coatings are used to radiate heat away from the spacecraft. So to over simplify it, think about how much cooler you feel on a hot summer day when you are wearing a white t-shirt instead of a black t-shirt.

Thermal coatings also need to be made of durable materials that are compatible with the space environment. As part of my job, I need to understand the durability and degradation of coatings to space radiation effects, such as atomic oxygen, ultraviolet, protons, and electrons. Other factors include the vacuum of space, contamination, launch acoustics and vibrations, as well as, ground and on-orbit handling. In addition, thermal coatings may need to have electrically dissipative or conductive properties to mitigate charge build-up on the spacecraft, or optical properties to suppress straylight within instrument cavities. I also need to understand how feasible or complex it will be to apply various coatings to hardware.

What is your current main project as a thermal coatings engineer?

I currently provide thermal coatings support to the Roman Space Telescope. I work closely with the project's thermal engineers and other subsystems, including mechanical, optics, contamination, and quality assurance team members.

I have previously supported Thermal Infrared Sensor 2 (TIRS-2), James Webb Space Telescope, Global Ecosystem Dynamics Investigation Lidar (GEDI), Ionospheric Connection Explorer (ICON), Advanced Topographic Laser Altimeter System (ATLAS), and Deep Space Climate Observatory (DSCOVR).

As a coatings technologist, what is your most famous invention to date?

The Molecular Adsorber Coating (MAC) technology is an invention that was developed as a mitigation tool to address an existing problem. Molecular contaminants are a significant threat to NASA missions. The contaminants come from commonly used spacecraft materials that outgas, meaning that they release molecules during vacuum testing or during spaceflight operations.

For example, when you purchase a new vehicle, they tend to have that "new car smell " because the components of the car are releasing chemicals into the air. Here on Earth, this can affect our health but in space, outgassed contaminants can deposit on critical surfaces and degrade the performance of satellites and instruments.

To solve this problem, I was part of a team at Goddard that developed MAC. The technology is a sprayable zeolite-based coating that passively captures molecular contaminants. Patent applications have been submitted for this invention. I have been working on this technology since I first started at Goddard. I support the development, testing, and application efforts of MAC on NASA missions for ground and flight use.

I have received NASA awards for my contributions. These include the NASA Government Invention of the Year Runner Up Award (2021), the Strategic Partnership Office (SPO) James Kerley Award (2018), the Agency Honor Exceptional Technology Achievement Medal (2017), and the Engineering and Technology Directorate (ETD) Science and Technology Advancement Award (2017).

What is another one of the coolest things you have done at NASA?

One of the coolest things I have done in my career was entering the plenum of Chamber A at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston, in support of cryogenic testing of the Webb telescope.

Chamber A is the largest high vacuum cryogenic optical test chamber in the world. It is 55 feet in diameter and 90 feet tall. The plenum is the hidden area beneath the chamber, and it is not easily accessible. The path to get to the plenum was quite adventurous! The journey involved skillfully navigating through narrow passageways between the helium shroud and chamber walls. I had to climb down a ladder, wear a headlamp and an oxygen sensor, and all while wearing clean room attire. It was exciting to say the least!

I had this opportunity because the MAC technology was used to keep the optics and instrument components of Webb free from outgassed contaminants during cryogenic testing in Chamber A. MAC samples were installed on the plenum walls prior to the start of each test. The coating samples were retrieved after the tests to determine the chemical species that were captured from the chamber environment.

How do the technologies you work on impact others outside of NASA?

NASA technologies that are made for space applications can also benefit us here on Earth. Hair straighteners, temper foam mattresses, baby formula, and heart pumps were created using NASA technologies. This is made possible through the process of technology transfer. Goddard's Strategic Partnership Office works with technologists to collaborate with industry on topics of mutual interest and discover the endless possibilities of technology transfer.

You've also worked with the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History. Would you share what that's like?

I'm not going to lie: It's pretty awesome! NASA is cool, but the Smithsonian is also pretty cool! The Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of Natural History reached out to us after learning about the MAC technology. They are interested in finding out if this coating can help mitigate the museum's molecular contamination issues here on Earth.

My team and I are working with museum conservators to investigate if MAC can be used to protect cultural artifacts and natural science specimens. This partnership was established through a Space Act Agreement with the help of Goddard's Strategic Partnership Office. The collaboration benefits both NASA and the Smithsonian, which is very exciting! It allows us the opportunity to study how MAC works in ambient or non-vacuum conditions, instead of space. We are in the process of analyzing contaminated samples that were exposed at a local museum storage facility.

Please tell us about your involvement with the Women Engineers in Space and Technology Group at Goddard?

Sandra Irish and I were part of a dynamic team of engineers who initiated the formation of the Women Engineers in Space and Technology (WEST) group at Goddard. We created this group with support from the Diversity and Inclusion (D&I) Advisory Committee and the Engineering and Technology Directorate.

Women are still a minority in engineering, and often face challenges. We wanted to establish a supportive group that fosters advocacy, and addresses areas of interest in social, networking, mentoring, training, and outreach aspects. Through my involvement with WEST, I have met so many inspiring women engineers all across Goddard that I normally would not have met or interacted with during my day to day work activities.

My advice to women engineers is to find a mentor who can help guide you and a sponsor who can help advocate for you. In fact, don't just have one! I am grateful to have found several mentors and sponsors at work. I don't believe I would be where I am today in my career without them.

Who are your mentors and what one thing did each say to you?

I am very fortunate to have found people at work who support my professional and personal development. Although I have had many excellent mentors in my career, the two people who stand out and have a continued presence are Nancy Carosso and Eve Wooldridge. They have watched me grow over the last decade and have always been there for work and life challenges. I deeply admire and aspire to be more like them as I continue to progress in my career at NASA.

Is there something surprising about you outside of work that people do not generally know?

I would say that I am passionate about cooking. I especially enjoy trying out and tweaking recipes to new Indian dishes. I feel that I have an eye for art and try to channel it through painting when I get a chance to or apply those skills to graphic designing for presentations or flyers. Gardening is something new that I am also discovering. I find it rewarding and relaxing. While still very much new to it, it is something I would like to continue to explore and get good at.

What is your "six-word memoir"? A six-word memoir describes something in just six words.

Be yourself. Explore. Create. Inspire. Advocate.

Conversations With Goddard is a collection of Q&A profiles highlighting the breadth and depth of NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center's talented and diverse workforce. On average, the Conversations have been published twice a month since May 2011 and are archived on Goddard's "Our People" webpage.

Public link

Please use the above public link if you want to share this noodl on another website.