PETERSON SPACE FORCE BASE, Colo. -- On this edition of Down to Earth, we’re checking in with Space Delta 7 – Intelligence, Surveillance, Reconnaissance to meet U.S. Space Force Tech. Sgt. Ada Lazuli.
Lazuli grew up in Giles County, Tennessee. While her Tennessee accent has somewhat faded with time, she still misses the smell of the countryside and seeing fields of cattle. Lazuli left her hometown and was the first in her family to join the U.S. Air Force in 2015.
She initially joined the military as a signals intelligence analyst. After obtaining a Bachelor of Science in computer science in 2019, Lazuli decided to transfer into the U.S. Space Force in 2021.
Lazuli now serves at Fort Meade, Maryland as an analyst and lead software developer with the 73rd ISR Squadron, Detachment 6. She extracts, analyzes and identifies foreign activities and communications from electromagnetic emissions. Following initial analysis, an intelligence report is created to inform appropriate commanders of unusual activity or critical situations so DEL 7 can respond with the necessary speed, force and precision.
On top of daily responsibilities as an analyst, Lazuli also works as a Supra Coder. She spends her time computer programming to create tools that assist with data analysis and automating tasks to save man hours.
The Supra Coders are full stack developers who use their knowledge and skills to identify and resolve obstacles at their commands.
To become a Supra Coder, Guardians go through an intensive 12-week training course conducted in a virtual classroom environment. The course is then followed by a 12-week internship with an industry leading software factory.
“I've done a lot of advertising for the program,” Lazuli said. “I’m often explaining coding basics, why it’s important and troubleshooting any code others might share with me.”
Outside of work, Lazuli is working on a Master of Data Analytics. In her free time, she enjoys working on coding projects and learning about coding packages.
“I’m a huge geek,” Lazuli said. “I like to look at publicly available datasets and practice analytical techniques.”
When asked what advice she'd give future generations, Lazuli reflected on the innovative ways she's been able to overcome obstacles, both in her personal and professional life.
“Barriers are an opportunity to get creative," she said. “There have been several times where I didn't have a tool I needed to solve a specific task. I had to think outside of the box or make a brand-new tool altogether. The process of finding a way is incredibly satisfying.”
DEL 7’s mission is to execute global ISR operations to gain and maintain information dominance in the space domain. The ISR Delta provides critical, time sensitive and actionable intelligence for space domain operations to allow for the detection, characterization and targeting of adversary space capabilities.