Like many people, as a child I had dreams of flying into space as an astronaut. That interest in aerospace and space exploration has continued throughout my life.

So when my colleague Tim Foecke, who was working at the National Institute of Standards and Technology at the time, invited me to assist with a research project involving the Apollo space program, I jumped at the chance. Tim has a long history in marine forensics and conservation.

NIST experts helped identify materials of the F-1 rocket engine that was used in the Apollo program—and had been resting on the Atlantic Ocean floor ever since. Credit: NASA/National Air and Space Museum.

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