Peter Henson

Experience in the space industry, civil engineering, and agriculture.

Interstate Engineering, Inc. (IE)                                                                                                                Jamestown, ND 

Staff Engineer (EIT)                                                                                                         January 2022 – December 2023

IE provides civil engineering services for civil works projects, including water treatment /distribution, structures, roads, airports, surveying, and waste management, among others. 

• Displayed engineering professionalism, while drafting plans and compiling contract documents for projects with budgets up to multi-million-dollar range
• Demonstrated ability to communicate, through construction site observation, engineer field diaries, quantity reports, quality inspections, monitoring project budget and contractor/client correspondence

NDSU Carrington Research Extension Center (CREC)                                                                            Carrington, ND 

Plant Pathologist Research Assistant                                        July 2011 – August 2013, January 2020 – December 2020

CREC is a research farm, conducting experiments on crop planting, disease control, and harvesting methods. 

• Showed versatility by performing various agricultural research tasks such as constructing irrigation systems, handling chemicals, counting plants, hand-weeding, and inoculating crop rows with diseases
• Demonstrated dependability, allowing professionals to rely on my data collection over 15 acres of crops

NASA’s Kennedy Space Center                                                                                                              Cape Canaveral, FL

NASA Intern                                                                                                                                      June 2019 – August 2019 

Nominated for KSC Intern of the Year, I helped with a project called CO2 Freezer. Its goal is to collect carbon dioxide to generate rocket propellant on Mars. I assisted integration of electrical, mechanical, and software systems,

• Saving NASA time and money, soldering, crimping, and wrench-turning, reducing the load to subcontractors 
• Displaying diligence while editing, testing, and following procedures for delicate instrumentation and components
• Demonstrating leadership, giving a “Lunch N Learn” presentation, participating in KSC’s HAM Radio Club “Field Day,” and being featured on KSC’s social media on National Intern Day 

Inflatable Lunar Martian Analog Habitat (ILMAH)                                                                               Grand Forks, ND 

Mission VII Crewmember                                                                                                                    April 2019 - May 2019

ILMAH is a NASA-funded planetary analog habitat similar to JSC’s HERA or the University of Hawaii’s HI-SEAS programs. I served as a crewmember in a 2-week long closed lunar habitat simulation,

• Learning experiments quickly, involving geologic rock classification, microbiology, biometrics, psychology, personal fitness, and plant care
• Completing 3 EVAs in an NDX-2 (North Dakota Explorer-2) “trainer” space suit for 6 hours
• Working a communications console for a total of 15 hours – an ILMAH record - relaying information to crewmembers on 6 different EVAs

Air Seeder Parts Technologies (ASP)                                                                                                      Grand Forks, ND 

Junior Electrical Engineer                                                                                                               August 2018 – April 2019 

ASP produces parts compatible with John Deere farm equipment. I prototyped electronics for seed-planting technology,

• Testing circuits alongside software engineers, 3D-printing, microcontroller circuits, and C++ programming

LM Wind Power                                                                                                                                   Grand Forks, ND 

Facilities & Maintenance Intern                                                                                                    July 2018 – August 2018 

Here, I performed janitor-type tasks, at a production facility, which produces wind turbine blades, 

• Showing versatility, updating electrical panel labels and AutoCAD drawings, performing dust control (vacuuming & replacing air filters), and operating a waste compactor & cardboard baler 

ND Space Grant Consortium (NDSGC) High Altitude Balloon Program                                              Grand Forks, ND 

Co-Student Lead                                                                                                                              January 2017 – May 2018

NASA-funded STEM-outreach program, we engaged over 100 K-12 students & teachers in a payload design project to be flown on balloons. We led a program, called the “Near-Space Balloon Challenge,” 

• Displaying small-scale systems engineering, reviewing students’ experiments before flight
• Demonstrating ability to write detailed documents, developing a project requirements guidebook 
• Exhibiting teamwork, participating in the nation-wide 2017 NASA Total Solar Eclipse Project

North Dakota Space Grant Consortium (NDSGC) Research Fellowship                                                      Fargo, ND

Undergraduate Research Fellow                                                                                                   January 2016 – May 2016

NDSGC provides funding for students to get hands-on experience in NASA-relevant sciences. This gave me my first experience, working on a small-scale as a scientist and project manager, in a topic called “structural health monitoring.”

• Demonstrated ability to present scientific information, with 2 poster presentations and final report 

Braun Intertec, Corporation                                                                                                                        West Fargo, ND

Construction Materials Testing Technician                                                                                       May 2014 – August 2014

On construction projects, it is a standard for tests to be completed to ensure materials will perform according to design. I worked in a lab and at construction sites for a new housing development, a small bike path, and a Subway restaurant,

• Demonstrated responsibility, completing tests on soils and concrete on my own 

Leadership and Involvement

Dakota Space Society (DSS)                                                                                                                Grand Forks, ND

Chapter President                                                                                                           August 2017 – December 2019 

• Showed organization, planning 2 trips to Lunar Planetary Science Conference with budgets over $2,000 each
• Facilitated digital and in-person meetings with 3 scientists from NASA Ames, JSC, and Headquarters 

American Society of Civil Engineers                                                                                                               Fargo, ND

NDSU Student Chapter Member                                                                                                             Fall 2013 – Fall 2016 

• Displayed aptitude to learn, attending monthly meetings, listening to local civil engineers as public speakers
• Demonstrating teamwork, participating in ASCE Steel Bridge Competition

Volunteer Work

• ILMAH Mission IV, V & VI Mission Control and Support Team Member
• Volunteer Telescope Operator at Space Studies Internet Observatory 
• UND Aerospace’s 2018 & 2019 “Community Day” Volunteer
• Spring 2017 Dakota Elementary Science Fair Judge 

Education 

North Dakota State University’s (NDSU) College of Engineering                                                            Fargo, ND 

Bachelor of Science, Civil & Environmental Engineering                                                                     December 2016 

University of North Dakota’s (UND) School of Aerospace Sciences                                              Grand Forks, ND 

Master of Science, Space Studies                                                                                                                August 2021