Out of this World: SpaceX Co-Founder Tom Mueller Speaks at NIC

University of Idaho alum and SpaceX co-founder Tom Mueller visited North Idaho College to speak to NIC and U of I CDA students this Friday.

Students and faculty alike gathered from wall to wall in Seiter Hall to listen to Mueller speak about his origins in St. Maries, ID, his education at the University of Idaho, his career as a rocket engineer, SpaceX, and his own current endeavor in Impulse Space.

In his roughly hour-long presentation, Mueller explained his journey to becoming a rocket engineer. He detailed that, early on, he didn’t have any plans to build rockets- he wanted to be an aircraft mechanic. Mueller said that at one point, a professor asked him if he wanted to be the one working on aircraft, or the one designing them. Obviously, this gave him a change of heart.

Mueller went on to explain how he met Elon Musk, his partner in founding SpaceX, in 2002. He said they met through a mutual connection and began planning the company shortly after.

Over his 19 years with the company that is now a household name, Mueller was behind developments such as the Merlin engine: the world’s most reliable rocket booster, and involved in the iconic Falcon 9, the world’s first orbital class reusable rocket.

“There’s a lot of people that do great things,” said NIC engineering student Daniel Gustavson. “But it’s pretty cool to see someone who’s done something beyond great. The guy’s literally out of this world.”

“And seeing somebody from Idaho, who used to be a logger, it’s inspiring. It makes you think we can do great things too,” Gustavson said.

In 2021, Mueller founded his own company, Impulse Space. The company develops in-space propulsion and transportation technology. Like SpaceX, Impulse is vertically integrated- all of their manufacturing is done in-house, in their facility in Redondo Beach, CA.

Mueller said that he wants for Impulse Space to be the SpaceX of in-space travel- essentially, SpaceX is the best at getting into space. Mueller wants Impulse Space to be the best at getting around space.

The presence of such an accomplished individual was not lost on the attendees of the event. At close, a long line of students hoping to meet Mueller formed. This is typical, according to U of I Engineering Professor Larry Stauffer, who’s known Mueller for around a decade.

“He’s got a great story about what his education did for him in his career, how it’s changed his life,” Stauffer said.

“I think what’s really important to realize for Tom is that when an opportunity presented itself, he didn’t hesitate to take it.”