“Pay it Forward”—”Give Back”—those are two phrases that are central to NASA-JPL scientist, Tom Nolan’s life. Tom’s life journey was propelled, and jelled, when he was a kid, attending St. Vincent de Paul’s summer camp back in the early 1960s. This is where the self described poor kid from the big city of LA first experienced nature at its finest. Enamored with the stars, trees, and wildlife, his camp experience propelled his quest to study science and to eventually earn a degree in marine biology from the University of Southern California in 1977. His never flagging enthusiasm, and love of nature led him to study whales, train dolphins, and engage in shipboard marine research from French Polynesia, to Mexico, Hawaii, and the Aleutian Islands.
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His passion for satellite oceanography brought him to NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California in 1998. His current projects include being a “satellite jockey” mapping lunar landing sites. Utilizing the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter’s hi-resolution ASTER camera Nolan also monitors earth’s volcanoes, earthquakes, droughts, floods, tornadoes, glacier ice melt and more. But a parallel quest in Nolan’s life is to give back and share his faith and incredible enthusiasm and love of life with kids. And that’s why Nolan returned to the St. Vincent de Paul Circle V Ranch Camp in the hills above Santa Barbara, California. He brought along eight of his scientist cohorts to lead hands-on Space Camp demonstrations and projects that included piloting underwater robots and launching rockets built by the kids themselves. I had the absolute honor to meet and visit the amazing Tom Nolan at Circle V Ranch Camp. Come along and join us as Nolan shares his spirit driven life, his love of science, and his mission to inoculate kids with a never flagging curiosity about life. Nolan refers to himself as a “wondering wanderer”.
Circle V Ranch Camp campers listen to NASA-JPL Scientist, Tom Nolan. Photo Credit: Tom Wilmer
