Michelle Parker leads Boeing’s Space Mission Systems team, which designs and delivers next-generation spacecraft and associated ground systems.
Growing up, did you bring math workbooks with you on vacation?
Michelle Parker did.
Parker’s love for math and science led her to earn a PhD in mechanical engineering from the University of Pennsylvania. Her high school physics class showed her how to connect math and science with her interest in space.
“I always had an interest in space and would watch Space Shuttle launches,” said Parker, the daughter of a mechanical engineer father. “I drew solar systems and knew the planets’ names. I wanted to be an astronaut and wrote essays about space exploration.” Surprisingly, Parker didn’t join any space-related clubs while a college student. Her interest in space took off in graduate school, where she wrote a proposal for a Space Shuttle experiment.
After earning her PhD, Parker landed a job as a thermal-analysis engineer at Hughes Space and Communications Co. (acquired by Boeing in 2000) through a newspaper advertisement. At first, the native of Kansas City, Mo., thought she’d stay in California for a year or two. That was nearly 30 years ago.
From enthusiast to executive
Over the years, Parker moved up from thermal engineer to her current role: VP of Space Mission Systems for Boeing Space, Defense & Security. Along the way, she’s contributed to and led engineering teams on numerous satellite designs. “I’ve been fortunate to work on the advancement of space exploration and communications,” she said. Some of her thermal designs, which include thermal coatings, blanket design, and heat pipes, are still used today. Her work went into satellites for Sirius XM Radio, which she often listens to in her car. Other spacecraft incorporating Parker’s work include the Boeing Starliner and the Artemis core-stage rocket. She also served as Boeing Space Launch’s chief engineer during the development of the SES O3b mPOWER satellites — the first two of which launched in December 2022. It was at that launch that I met Parker and, hence, wanted to interview her.
From a heat dissipation perspective, the O3b mPOWER satellite design was one of Parker’s memorable projects. “O3b mPOWER is really a game changer,” she said. “That’s because it’s a software-defined communications satellite. The electrical engineering and the manufacturing were different than anything we’d previously done. The satellites take all the communications payload — waveguides and RF cables that were previously assembled by hand — and put it into a flat pack. That’s analogous to going from a tube TV to a flatscreen TV. All electronic components and interconnects are on PCBs instead of being hand-wired. That let Boeing automate the manufacturing of the satellite’s electronics.”
The problem, however, is dissipating heat. The electronics are now compressed into a smaller volume but at the same power levels as in previous satellites, making heat transfer much more difficult. “Space is a difficult environment because there’s no convection to dissipate heat. We had to invent new thermal-rejection methods, which included additive manufacturing of a cold plate. Conduits have fluid pumped through them to capture heat and reject heat to space. Developing that 3D-printed plate with its conduits presented a new challenge.”
Driving ingenuity through diversity
Designing and building complex systems such as communications satellites requires a multidisciplinary team of engineers and technicians. Parker understands that such teams need various technical skills; people must think creatively to solve problems.
“It’s important to have diverse teams, especially when you’re solving problems that have never been solved before,” said Parker. “People approach problems differently based on their backgrounds. Difference of opinion is important.” Parker recalled a study of two teams — one diverse, one homogenous — that were asked to solve the same problem. The homogenous team reached a resolution faster, and team members all agreed that it was the best solution. In contrast, the heterogeneous team took much longer to solve the problem. There was some debate about whether they had the best solution, but ultimately, it was decided to be better than the one from the homogeneous team. Thus, Parker stresses the importance of having differing opinions, and she tries to implement those opinions in her engineering teams.
Bringing diversity to engineering starts before people attend a university. Unfortunately, convincing young people to study engineering can be a challenge. “We should support and encourage children to pursue their passions, especially if those passions are in math and science,” said Parker. “We’ve often heard that if girls get off the math track in middle school, then it’s over.”
Patching the women-in-engineering pipeline
Parker related a personal experience. Her daughter was in fourth and fifth grade during COVID-19. Prior to the pandemic, she did very well at math — but not so well after returning to the classroom. As a result, Parker’s daughter was pushed to the lower math group. Unconvinced, Parker used her engineering background to advocate for her daughter. That advocacy resulted in her daughter returning to the advanced math class, where she earned straight A’s.
While Parker’s daughter may yet become a third-generation engineer in the footsteps of her mother and grandfather, Parker noted that the engineering community still struggles for diversity more than other STEM-based careers, such as medicine. “When I was in school, about 10% of the class were women.” While that percentage is higher today, Parker noted that it’s still low for electrical and mechanical engineering. She noted that environmental engineering, computer science and industrial engineering fare better. Why?
“I think that with studies such as medical and environmental, you’re more directly helping people,” responded Parker.
“You can’t develop complex systems without a team of people with different talents,” Parker continued. “The human aspect is there in that you’re developing systems that help people every day. It’s important to see how engineering contributes to society. We need to show people that developing new technologies makes a difference in people’s lives.”
Building an engineering team means hiring the right people, which means you need more than technical talent. “The ability to communicate and articulate your ideas is very important. I didn’t realize that early in my career,” said Parker. “You need to communicate your ideas and work on a team. You need to listen to others.”
When building a team, Parker looks for excitement and passion. “If you come in with that, you’ll want to learn everything that you can. Curiosity in knowing how things work is also important. I look for a natural curiosity.”
Parker was drawn to math, science and engineering at a young age. “I studied hard but enjoyed it. Contributing to society through technology is greatly rewarding. In my case, it’s developing systems for space that improves people’s lives. I’m really proud of that.”
