astronomy

John D. Olivas

John D. Olivas is a astronomy topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand John D. Olivas rather than just read about it. In short: John Daniel "Danny" Olivas (born May 25, 1966 in North Hollywood, California) is an American engineer and a former NASA astronaut. Olivas has flown on two space shuttle missions, STS-117 and STS-128, received two NASA Space Flight Medals, and has been in over 5 spacewalks throughout his career.

Key takeaways

John D. Olivas belongs to astronomy; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect John D. Olivas to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of John D. Olivas from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

John Daniel "Danny" Olivas (born May 25, 1966 in North Hollywood, California) is an American engineer and a former NASA astronaut. Olivas has flown on two space shuttle missions, STS-117 and STS-128, received two NASA Space Flight Medals, and has been in over 5 spacewalks throughout his career. He performed EVAs on both missions, totaling 34hrs 28min. In 2013, Olivas joined the University of Texas at El Paso as Director of the Center for the Advancement of Space Safety and Mission Assurance Research and will oversee space initiatives on campus. Olivas and his wife, Marie, launched the Space for Everyone Foundation in 2020 to help immigrant families with their health and well-being.

Personal life Born in North Hollywood, California, raised in El Paso, Texas, received a Bachelor of Science degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Texas at El Paso in 1989, a Master of Science degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Houston in 1993, and a Ph.D. in mechanical engineering and materials science from Rice University in 1996. Olivas is a descendant of immigrants from the state of Chihuahua in Mexico. In 2006, Olivas was given the highest honor an alumni can receive by being named UTEP's Distinguished Alumni. In 2013 Olivas joined the University of Texas at El Paso as Director of the Center for the Advancement of Space Safety and Mission Assurance Research and will oversee space initiatives on campus. In 2019, he appeared as a contestant on Nickelodeon's revival of Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader?.

NASA career NASA selected Olivas as an astronaut candidate in 1998. His astronaut training included orientation briefings and tours, numerous scientific and technical briefings, intensive instruction in Shuttle and International Space Station systems, physiological training and ground school to prepare for T-38 flight training, as well as learning water and wilderness survival techniques. From 1999 to 2002, he was assigned technical responsibilities within the Robotics Branch as lead for the Special Purpose Dexterous Manipulator Robot and the Mobile Transporter. From 2002 to 2005 he was assigned to the EVA Branch and supported the research effort focused on developing materials, tools and techniques to perform on-orbit shuttle repair. In July 2002, Olivas served as an aquanaut during the NEEMO 3 mission aboard the Aquarius underwater laboratory. In April 2005, he was a crew member on the NEEMO 8 mission. In 2006, Olivas served as lead of the Hardware Integration Section of the Space Station Branch, responsible for ensuring proper configuration and integration of future station modules and visiting vehicles.

Spaceflight experience

STS-117 STS-117 Atlantis (June 8–22, 2007) was the 118th Shuttle mission and the 21st mission to visit the International Space Station, delivering the second starboard truss segment, the third set of U.S. solar arrays, batteries and associated equipment. The mission also entailed the first ever on-orbit EVA repair to the Space Shuttle, Atlantis. During two spacewalks, Olivas accumulated 14 hours and 13 mins of EVA experience. The mission also delivered and returned with an ISS expedition crew member. STS-117 returned to land at Edwards Air Force Base, California, having traveled more than 5.8 million miles in 13 days, 20 hours and 20 minutes.

STS-128 Olivas served as a mission specialist on space shuttle Discovery on the STS-128 mission, which launched on August 28, 2009. Discovery carried the Multi-Purpose Logistics Module filled with science and storage racks to the ISS. The mission included three spacewalks to remove and replace a materials processing experiment outside ESA's Columbus module and return an empty ammonia tank assembly.

Illustrations

John D. Olivas: John D. Olivas checking equipment during crew equipment interface test for STS-117 — John D. Olivas checking equipment during crew equipment interface test for STS-117

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with John D. Olivas

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what John D. Olivas claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In astronomy, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to John D. Olivas before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about John D. Olivas ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of John D. Olivas

In research: John D. Olivas appears in astronomy research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses John D. Olivas in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: John D. Olivas is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1965 births, American astronauts, American people of Mexican descent, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for John D. Olivas outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study John D. Olivas in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what John D. Olivas means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain John D. Olivas out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is John D. Olivas in simple terms?

Why does John D. Olivas matter?

Because it connects several astronomy ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study John D. Olivas?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on John D. Olivas.