Also called: Environmental Control & Life Support Engineer
Designs the systems that make air, recycle water (including urine), and remove carbon dioxide on spacecraft.
You troubleshoot a space station water recycler from the ground, test a new oxygen generator in a lab, and plan how a lunar habitat will keep four people breathing for months.
Approximate: anchored on Bureau of Labor Statistics data for a broader job group.
Bachelor's degree (4-year), about 4 years after high school. Bachelor's in chemical, mechanical, or environmental engineering.
Ways in: 4-year college, Graduate school. Training cost: $15k – $60k.
Majors to look at: Chemical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Environmental Engineering.
Growing about average (about 4% over 10 years).
Low risk for 10 years. AI helps model air and water systems; building and testing life support for the Moon and Mars stays hands-on.
Classes: AP Chemistry, AP Biology, AP Physics, Environmental science.
Official data: O*NET occupation 17-2081.
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