National Aeronautics and 

Space Administration

CREATING

CLOUDS

VOLUME 25 | ISSUE 3 | MARCH 2023
Meteorologist

Turned Engineer 

Creates Clouds for 

Icing Research

AeroSpace Frontiers

is an official publication of NASA’s Glenn 

Research Center. It is published the 

second Friday of each month by the Office 

of Communications in the interest of the 

Glenn workforce, retirees, government 

officials, business leaders, and the general 

public. 

Submit short articles and calendar items 

to the editor at doreen.b.zudell@nasa.gov. 

Editor: Doreen B. Zudell, ATS, 

 216–433–5317

Design: Rhys Sampson, ATS

Managing Editor: Kelly R. DiFrancesco

A strong safety culture is vital 

to the principles of mission first, 

people always, and team success.

I want to express my sincere 

thanks to the members of 

the Glenn Research Center 

community who participated in 

the recent Safety Culture Survey. 

The results show continued 

improvements across all five 

areas of the NASA Safety Culture 

since we began the assessments 

in 2010, and the feedback 

received is vital to identify areas 

for further improvement. 

Actions, such as improving 

visibility and awareness for 

reporting, will be incorporated 

into an overall action plan to 

address your feedback. The 

results will be shared with the 

Glenn community soon. 

DIRECTOR’S

SAFETY CORNER

Safety Culture 

Survey

Emily Timko, Aviation Test Branch (JSV), has the power to control the 

temperature, form wispy clouds, create ice crystals, and produce powerful 

gusts of wind. She has a lot in common with Queen Elsa from the movie 

“Frozen,” but she is much cooler. 

Timko is an icing cloud calibration engineer at NASA Glenn and works with 

a team of 14 other engineers and technicians to characterize and produce 

clouds in the Icing Research Tunnel (IRT). This wind tunnel is used to 

simulate natural conditions that can cause ice to form on aircraft during 

flight and test the effects of these conditions on components such as wings, 

tails, and engine inlets.

“I calibrate the clouds we simulate in the IRT,” said Timko. “We can 

produce a light cloud or a heavy cloud so dense you can’t see the other 

side of the tunnel. We’re also able to vary the size of the cloud droplets 

from as small as 15 microns—smaller than the thickness of a hair—to 

about 300 microns.”

Since 1944, aircraft companies have come to the IRT to test flight 

components in a simulated flying environment before taking to the skies. 

“The FAA [Federal Aviation Administration] has requirements for aircraft 

to be certified to fly in different atmospheric conditions,” said Timko. “We 

ensure that when companies come here and take their data, the cloud that 

they want is as close to nature as possible.”

Timko has been working in Glenn’s icing tunnel since 2017 and is an 

internationally known cloud scientist. But she did not always dream of 

becoming an engineer. 

“In second grade, we’d sit on the carpet, and we’d talk about what day of 

the week it was and the date,” said Timko. “I’d talk about the weather, and 

I always knew what it was supposed to be that day. My teacher said I’d 

grow up to be the ‘weather girl,’ and it just clicked.”

On the cover:

Engineer Emily Timko studies how ice builds up on airplane wing sections and other 

components in the Icing Research Tunnel. 

GRC-2022-C-11460 Photo by Bridget Caswell
MARCH 2023

3

GRC-2022-C-11429 Photo by Bridget Caswell

Left to right: Aerospace Engineer Tadas Bartkus (OAI) and Lead Facility Engineer Waldo Acosta work with Timko in evaluating tests. 

Timko studied meteorology at California University of 

Pennsylvania. Upon finishing her degree, she interned as 

a meteorologist with WTAE–TV Pittsburgh Action News 

and as a severe weather forecaster with First Energy. 

“It wasn’t stimulating enough. There just wasn’t enough 

science for me,” said Timko. “But through my college 

career, I did a lot of the same courses as engineers, like 

math, physics, heat transfer, and thermodynamics.”

Eventually, Timko went back to school for a mechanical 

engineering degree. The combination of her meteorology 

and engineering degrees gave Timko the exact 

background and skills needed to fill the role of an icing 

cloud calibration engineer. 

“I use a lot of my meteorology degree for cloud physics, the 

behavior of water droplets, and cloud growth,” said Timko. 

“It’s helpful understanding the physics and heat transfer of 

the process of a supercooled droplet impinging on surfaces 

of an aircraft and the damage that it does.”

Over the years, Timko’s career has taken her far outside 

the walls of the wind tunnel. She has traveled to Canada 

to complete studies with the National Research Council of 

Canada as well as Vienna to review a new capability at the 

Rail Tec Arsenal icing facility on behalf of the FAA.

Timko especially enjoys sharing her story and her 

knowledge with the younger generation. She loves giving 

tours of the IRT to Great Lakes Science Center’s Camp 

Curiosity campers.

“I would tell them, I’m like Elsa,” said Timko. “I can also 

make frozen particles and clouds. That helps get them 

excited about it.”

NASA’s real-life Elsa has a passion for what she does 

and knows she has already made an impact on the 

aeronautics industry. 

“I feel that there’s so much responsibility in ensuring the 

safety of air transit,” said Timko. “So, next time you go on 

an airplane, think of the IRT.”

By Jacqueline Minerd
4

Research team members, front row, left to right: Dr. Benafan 

and Bigelow. Back row, left to right: Adrienne Veverka, Alyssa 

Stubbers, and Grant Feichter in the material processing laboratory.

Bigelow, left, and Dr. Benafan observe a RuTa-based shape 

memory alloy undergoing thermomechanical testing at 900°C. 

The specimen and grips glow red at high temperatures.

GRC-2022-C-10220 Photos by Marvin Smith

NASA Glenn researchers have dedicated many years to 

developing shape memory alloys (SMAs) that withstand 

temperatures as high as 500°C. When looking toward future 

applications, however, some devices and structures will need to 

perform at much higher temperatures. Jet engine applications, 

hypersonic systems, and Venus landers are a few examples 

where SMAs are not currently an option due to their limited 

temperature range. This impediment may soon change. 

“We set out to revisit a decade-long question: ‘Can shape 

memory alloys survive temperatures above 500°C?” said

Dr. Othmane Benafan, SMA team lead in Glenn’s High 

Temperature and Smart Alloys Branch. “This time, however,

we are better equipped with knowledge and tools.”

The team began by accessing NASA’s Shape Memory Materials 

Analysis and Research Tool (SM2

ART) Database, which helps 

researchers learn what has been formerly attempted. This 

avoids duplication and focuses on advancing the technology. 

“There are several ultra-high-temperature SMA compositions 

known, but at the end of the day, they must be able to produce 

work outputs at extreme temperatures to be viable,” said 

Materials Researcher Glen Bigelow. 

The team decided to work primarily with at least three SMA 

(NiHf, RuTaNb, and HfPd) candidates that have shown very 

promising results at temperatures above 500°C. The team is 

also building the necessary infrastructure to test these materials. 

Preliminary data show that these alloys can produce actuation 

work output and stabilize at temperatures near 700°C.

While undergoing testing at Glenn, these alloys are also being 

evaluated by the Computational Materials Group at NASA’s 

Ames Research Center and university partners at the Georgia 

Institute of Technology.

This work is funded by the NASA Aeronautics Research Mission 

Directorate’s Transformational Tools and Technologies project.

GRC-2022-C-10211

Turn Up the Heat

Research Could Spur Next

Generation of Functional Materials 

4
GRC-2023-C-00730

Photo by Jef Janis

GRC-2023-CN-00001

Photo by Chris Hartenstine

GRC-2023-C-00836

Photo by Marvin Smith

Honoring Their Legacies 

Amanda Shalkhauser plays “Taps” during Glenn’s Day 

of Remembrance observance, Jan. 26, to recognize 

the lives of the brave men and women who were 

lost in the pursuit of NASA missions. Feb. 1 marked 

the 20th anniversary of the Columbia mishap. The 

observance featured Associate Director Larry Sivic, 

who stressed the lessons learned from the tragedies 

and the importance of supporting a culture of dialogue 

where everyone feels safe speaking up. Space Flight 

Systems Directorate Deputy Director Kathy Schubert, 

and Aircraft Operations Chief James “JD” Demers 

answered questions from employees relating to 

balancing risk and safety. 

Reaching Out to All

Glenn’s Jack Fortner-Monegan, Graphic Visualization 

Lab, helps a student explore zero-gravity virtual 

reality during a demonstration at Great Lakes Science 

Center’s free Martin Luther King Jr. Day event, Jan. 16. 

The demo was one of several immersive technologies 

Glenn showcased during the event. While youngsters 

explored technologies, members of Glenn’s Office 

of Diversity and Equal Opportunity talked with teens 

and adults to discover ways to help NASA reach more 

diverse audiences. 

Jeresha Nixon, Office of STEM Engagement, center, 

talks with Lt. Col. LaTia Wickliffe, Cleveland’s Defense 

Contract Management Agency commander, left, and 

other Cleveland Federal Community Leadership 

Institute (CFCLI) members at the Guerin House, 

Feb. 2. NASA Glenn hosted CFCLI for its class 

on federal leadership and mentorship. CFCLI is 

administered through the Cleveland Federal Executive 

Board. Three NASA employees are participating in 

this year’s program—Nixon; Jimi Russell, Office of 

Communications; and Chris Morris, AST Aerospace 

Experimental Facilities and Test Technologies.

MARCH 2023

5

Sharing

Leadership Lessons
More Than a Memory

Loftus

McLaughlin

William F. Loftus, 86, a 1995 retiree with 36 years of service, died Sept. 5, 2022. Loftus began 

his NASA career in 1967 as an electronics technician. He was part of a team that tested the 

200-watt Transmitter Experiment Package aboard the Communications Technology Satellite 

spacecraft in 1976. In 1979 and 1980, Loftus maintained continuous communication with the SERT 

II spacecraft as it completed its 10th year of operation. Later, he worked in the Microwave Systems 

Laboratory testing an advanced antenna. He received several special achievement awards. For his 

online obituary, visit https://go.nasa.gov/3HLA99X. 

Glen E. McDonald, 106, a 1986 retiree with 37 years of service, died Jan. 30. McDonald was a 

researcher who studied flame and smoke propagation of fuels, the design of nuclear fuel elements, 

and coatings for solar cells. He authored dozens of technical reports. He received several awards 

and honors including Tech Brief publications, a cost reduction award for “Salvaging Capsules With 

Failed Blowers,” a group award for thermal barrier coating materials optimization, and an Inventors 

Award for a black chrome coating for solar panels. For his online obituary, visit https://go.nasa.

gov/3RM3QMw.

Hugh M. McLaughlin, 90, a 2016 retiree with 50 years of service, died Feb. 4. He worked as a 

supply management specialist throughout his career, overseeing equipment and supply purchases. 

He earned two NASA Group Achievement Awards (1998 and 2014) and a Space Flight Awareness 

Award (1983). He was part of a White House Closing the Circle Award for energy efficiency in 

transportation (2005). He retired from the Logistics and Technical Information Division. For his 

online obituary, visit https://go.nasa.gov/3lwLq6F.

Leonard J. Westfall, 83, a 1995 retiree with 28 years of service, died Jan. 16. Westfall joined 

NASA in 1966 as a materials research engineer. He earned an IR–100 Award for his work in 

developing a process that produced the highest strength ceramic fibers ever made. Westfall 

invented a metal composite monotype process that was used by Westinghouse, earning an IR–100 

Award and a Federal Laboratory Consortium Special Award. He received an R&D 100 Award for a 

system that allowed researchers to evaluate fibers for high-composite applications. For his online 

obituary, visit https://go.nasa.gov/3Ia5V1W.

Three Named Trailblazers

Three Glenn employees recently received a Space Flight Awareness Trailblazer 

Award. These awards recognize exemplary performance within an employee’s 

first seven years of service. 

Issam Boukabou, Avionics Branch, for contributions to the electrical design 

and integration effort to the Thruster Probe Assembly avionics electronics 

for the Plasma Diagnostics Package Project’s Main Electronics Package flight 

redesign. 

Christopher Heldman, Avionics Branch, for electrical design and integration 

efforts to the Main Electronics Package avionics flight redesign for the Plasma 

Diagnostics Project. 

Dr. Lyndsey McMillon-Brown, Photovoltaic and Electrochemical Systems 

Branch, for support of low-cost, lightweight solar cell technologies to enable 

high powered human exploration of the lunar surface. McMillon-Brown has 

also led efforts to increase diversity and inclusion in the solar cell community.

Boukabou

Dr. McMillon-Brown

Heldman

6
7

Deadline for small items in the April issue is Wednesday, March 22, noon.

News and feature stories require additional time.

Protect Your 

Technology 

Protect your technology for future 

patent or licensing by filing it 

through NASA’s New Technology 

Reporting System (e-NTR). The 

process captures information 

about technical discoveries, 

improvement, innovations, 

software, and inventions so that 

NASA can disseminate it properly. 

To file a New Technology Report, 

go to the e-NTR system at https://

invention.nasa.gov. It’s vital to the 

future of your technology. 

Glenn raised $250,102 during its 

2022 Combined Federal Campaign!

Do You Know This Person?

Glenn’s Logistics and Technical Information Division needs your 

help identifying people, places, and research from archived 

images. If you recognize a photo placed here, email GRC-ITC@

mail.nasa.gov.

To ensure your email reaches the right individuals, please enter 

“DYKTP” into the subject line. Although we cannot respond to 

individual emails, please know your participation is appreciated!

GRC–2016–C–03581

GRC–1990–C–13805

Attention Employees and Retirees!

Mark your calendar for the FIRST Robotics Competition Buckeye 

Regional from March 29 to April 1, at Cleveland State University’s 

Wolstein Center. The event is an exciting challenge where teams 

(including those sponsored by NASA) work together to design, build, 

and program robots to compete in thrilling, fast-paced matches! 

FIRST Robotics 

Buckeye Regional 

Competition 

MARCH 2023

7
National Aeronautics and Space Administration

John H. Glenn Research Center 

Lewis Field 

21000 Brookpark Road

Cleveland, Ohio 44135 

 

 

 

 Neil A. Armstrong Test Facility 

3597 E. Scheid Road 

Sandusky, Ohio 44870

 

 

www.nasa.gov

Read AeroSpace Frontiers online at https://www.nasa.gov/glenn/aerospacefrontiers.

Emergency and Inclement Weather Lines 

Lewis Field: 216–433–9328 (WEAT) 

Neil A. Armstrong Test Facility: 419–621–3333

Connect With Glenn

Twin Otter’s Most

Important Mission Begins 

NASA Glenn’s Flight Operations Office operates a small fleet 

of aircraft to conduct scientific research and test new aviation 

technologies. While pilots and researchers are essential to these 

missions, the flights only happen after hours of intensive ground 

maintenance conducted by highly skilled Airframe and Powerplantcertified (A&P) technicians.

“Getting your A&P is a rigorous process. For me, aviation is a second 

career, so when I started with Glenn’s flight operations, I spent 

the first 36 months—18 months on airframes and then another 18 

months on powerplant—learning how to work on aircraft properly,” 

said Phil Beck, who spent 15 years as crew chief for Glenn’s recently 

retired Twin Otter. “All that training prepared me to not only pass the 

written and the practical portions, but it gave me the confidence to 

jump right in as crew chief.”

No matter how strong a maintenance team may be, however, an 

aging aircraft like the Twin Otter requires a lot of upkeep and 

scarce parts. When an aircraft’s useful flying life comes to an end, 

the team in Flight Operations works with the General Services 

Administration to find a second life for the aircraft. Fortunately, 

many of Glenn’s aircraft have become training aids for students 

working on their A&P certificates, which is a career path 

currently in high demand among airlines, private operators, and 

maintenance and repair facilities. 

The Twin Otter, which was retired last fall, has made its way to 

Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU), where it is helping 

maintenance management students gain crucial hands-on 

experience and confidence to pass the A&P tests and begin working 

on multimillion-dollar aircraft right out of school.

“What you hope to achieve in training is that you learn not only how 

the book says to do it, but also how the guy who has been teaching 

you does it,” said Beck. “So, by the time you sit for the test and the 

practical portion, you have seen or done whatever they assign you 

enough times that it’s just like any other day in the shop.” 

By Jimi Russell

National Aerotech technicians Jaime Lujano, left, and Carl Dalrymple prepare to remove one of the DHC–6 Twin Otter’s engines before its trip to MTSU.

GRC-2022-C-06846 Photo by Jef Janis

After 40-plus years of service to the country, the Twin Otter’s most important mission begins now—sharpening the next 

generation’s technical proficiency before they head off to address America’s shortage of skilled aircraft technicians.