An FMI heat shield being illustrated as it goes through the Mars atmosphere .
FEATURE
INSPIRATION
Alumnus Daniel Godbout ’ 82 Inspires and is Inspired by Space Exploration
Postscripts recently had an opportunity to ask TA alumnus Dan Godbout ’ 82 about his career in high tech and what inspires him for the future .
Daniel Godbout ‘ 82 is a leader at Fiber Materials Inc ., a Maine-based high tech company that manufactures heat shields for the NASA space program .
Q : I understand Fiber Materials Inc . ( FMI ) creates products found in the Mars Rover ' s heat shields and other space program vessels . Could you tell us a little about that ?
Dan : Fiber Materials Inc . designs and manufactures heat shields , or what we call thermal protection systems . These thermal protection systems are designed to protect the payload of a space vehicle as it enters through the atmosphere . Most recently our heat shield played a very important role in supporting the NASA MARS 2020 Perseverance Rover mission which landed another rover on Mars to do research . The heat shield is designed to slow the vehicle down as it descends towards its target . Traveling in excess of 12,000 miles per hour as it enters the Mars atmosphere creates significant heat ( in excess of 4,000 degrees Fahrenheit ) and the heat shield is designed to ablate the heat away , protecting the payload as it is also slowing the vehicle down . We ’ re currently starting work on several new missions requiring a similar type of thermal protection system .
Mars-Earth Entry Mission will be sending a vehicle to Mars to collect a sample of Mars and then return to Earth . We will be supporting both the heat shield to enter Mars and the heat shield when returning to Earth . We will also be making the material used for the propulsion motors for the return vehicles launched from Mars on its mission back to Earth .
Q : And what is your role at FMI ?
Dan : I was hired six years ago as the Director of Global Sales and Marketing . At that time , we were a much smaller company with only 140 employees . The business has grown
6 Story by Joyce Doyle · Photos courtesy of Dan Godbout and Fiber Materials Inc .