At Vandenberg Space Force Base in California, Eric Fernandez stands in front of Building 836, where he performs work as a telemetry engineer for NASA. NASA/Brandon Satterthwaite
Growing up on the central California coast, watching rocket launches with his father was part of Eric Fernandez’s childhood routine. Fernandez had posters of rockets on the wall, but despite being fascinated by them, he never imagined one day this would be his career. Because both of his grandparents had served at Vandenberg Air Force Base (later renamed to Vandenberg Space Force Base), he assumed that the launches from there were for the military. NASA didn’t cross his mind. The space agency seemed very far away from a place like Orcutt, California, a small town situated among rolling hills covered with farms and vineyards.
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