I am a Software Systems Specialist for the
Far Ultraviolet Spectroscopic Explorer
(FUSE) Project
in the
Henry A. Rowland Department of Physics and Astronomy
atThe Johns Hopkins University .
Previously, I was the System Manager for the
Hopkins Ultraviolet Telescope(HUT) Project,
also in the
Henry A. Rowland Department of Physics and Astronomy atThe Johns Hopkins University .
 |
I joined the HUT team as a Scientific Programmer in August of 1988. I wrote and maintained several pieces of software for the mission planning phase of the astro-1 mission. By the summer of 1989, I was asked to learn some of the computer system management tasks, and by the summer of 1990 I took the job as HUT System Manager(the pay was better). I provided system management, software support, data flow monitoring and data archiving support for the HUT team at the Payload Operations Command Center(POCC) in Huntsville, Alabama during the Astro-1 space shuttle flight. During this time, I also participated in the development and maintenance of a set of software for post-flight data processing. Specifically, I produced the software to read the binary encoded data tapes provided by NASA after the flight. I also worked on the definition and coding required to produce a database of the engineering data gathered. The final products of this processing have been used in-house and delivered to the National Space Science Data Center for public access. |
 |
I was able to continue on with the Astro-2 HUT team and participate in the Astro-2 flight. Before the flight, I was responsible for several computer hardware upgrades, as well as the software ports for the real-time ground support software associated with those hardware changes. I was also responsible for shipping and setting up the computer equipment needed for the preflight testing and calibration of hut, and for setting up the HUT area in the POCC for the realtime ground support. During the flight, I processed and created the data sets that were uplinked to HUT in preparation for the next shift of observations and supervised the real-time data archiving. I am currently providing system and software support for the astronomers as they begin the data processing phase. This includes porting the postflight software mentioned above to the upgraded computers. |
 |
I joined the
Far Ultraviolet Spectroscopic Explorer (FUSE)
team as a Software Systems Specialist on November 1, 1996.
My long term projects include involvment with the development and maintanance
of the software
that will be used for FUSE mission planning and science data processing.
This includes a SYBASE database, and software that will be ported over from
similar systems at the Space Telescope Science Institute, as well as some software that
will be developed in house. I am also responsible for the purchase and
maintanance of the computers that these software packages will run on.
After launch, in February 1999, I will be responsible for the operation of the data processing software, as well as the maintainance of the mission planning software, the science data processing software, and the SYBASE database, and the computers that they are all running on. |
The HUT computer cluster consisted of the server HUT4, a SUN Microsystems 4/370 running SunOS 4.1.3. There were 10 other SPARCstation computers attached to this group. My job included purchasing, installing, and maintaining the computers, the operating system and several third party software packages. I also provided user support for about 25 scientists and graduate students.
The FUSE science computer cluster consists of the server VIOLET, a SUN Microsystems Ultra 1 140 running Solaris 2.5. There are currently around 30 other SUN computers attached to this group. Included in my responsibilities is the puchase, installation, and maintenance of these computers, the operating system and several third party packages. I also provide user support for about 50 scientists and graduate students.
Karen M. Strom has produced a very interesting html document describing a trip through that part of the country. It is called Voyage to Another Universe --- 1994, and it includes descriptions, pictures and audio files.
I married Fred Romelfanger on May 26, 1984. Our honeymoon was spent driving from New Mexico to Baltimore, MD, where Fred took a job at the Space Telescope Science Institute. We have three children, Jennifer(9), Jonathan(6), and Rebecca (1)
My interests outside of work are many and are varied. I read, crochet, and cross-stich. I am the troop leader for Jennifer's Girl Scout Troop 1314 (Juniors). Fred and I are both working on our family histories. I am a collector. I collect Department 56 Dickens Village and Disney Parks Village. I also collect Cherished Teddies and Longaberger Baskets.
Jennifer and I collect Barbie. This includes the Colonial Barbie set and the StoryTime Barbies. We are also collecting the Barbie Hallmark Ornaments. Jennifer is also a member of the American Girl Historical Society. She is currently working on Molly. Jennifer has been hooked by the Beanie Baby craze. We are still waiting for Erin and Princess to come down to a realistic price.
Jonathan is collecting baseball caps and Trolly Cars. He loves trains and really likes the trolly cars. Jonathan just started the first grade. He is also playing soccer for the first time.
Rebecca is busy child. She never sits still and is always exploring, but she is a happy child, so she is usually lots of fun to be with.
| Thoreau High School | Thoreau, New Mexico | May 1982 |
| United States Naval Academy | Annapolis, Maryland | July-December 1982 |
|
University of New Mexico at Gallup |
Gallup, New Mexico | January-May 1983 |
| Navajo Community College | Tsaile, Arizona | January-May 1983 |
|
New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology |
Socorro, New Mexico | September 1983 - May 1984 |
| Towson State University | Towson, Maryland | September 1984 - May 1986 |
I received a Bachelor of Science degree in May of 1986 from Towson State University (renamed Towson University) in Towson, Maryland. This degree is a double major in Computer Science and Mathematics. Unfortunately, there haven't been enough hours in the day to continue on with my formal education(maybe someday), but in the always changing world of computers you never stop learning.
Last updated September 14, 1998
See the HUT Home Page. I helped design and put together these pages and I am the webmaster for the pages.