Also called: Spacecraft Cleanliness Engineer
Keeps dust, oils and stray molecules off spacecraft, telescope mirrors and Mars samples.
You set cleanroom rules, wipe-test surfaces, and decide whether a fingerprint on a mirror means a costly cleaning. Even a few specks of dust can blur a telescope or fool a life-detection instrument.
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 chemistry, physics or engineering.
Ways in: 4-year college. Training cost: $15k – $60k.
Majors to look at: Chemistry, Aerospace Engineering, Physics.
Growing faster than average (about 6% over 10 years). Aerospace engineers overall.
Low risk for 10 years. AI helps track particle data; cleanroom checks and protecting sensitive hardware stay hands-on.
Classes: AP Chemistry, AP Physics, Biology, Statistics.
Official data: O*NET occupation 17-2011.
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