Daniel Gestal Email & Phone Number

Región De Darmstadt, Hesse, Alemania

BepiColombo Spacecraft Operations Engineer.Member of the Smart-1 (S1) Flight Control Team “from cradle to grave”. Launched in September 2003 as the first European mission to the Moon with its primary mission goal to demonstrate the use of Solar Electrical Propulsion by orbit raising from GTO to the Moon.Responsible of Thermal, Power and Electrical Propulsion Subsystems. From the beginning up to the launch date -Sep. 27th 2003- active participation in the specification, debugging, test and validation of the S1 ground segment called MCS SCOS 2000, GSIU, NCTRS and spacecraft hybrid simulator (software and hardware simulator).

In parallel with the technical duties, I am currently acting as LSE site manager at ESOC. As such, in charge of the day to day administrative matters of the LSE engineering personnel, as well as, LSE point of contact with ESOC and ESTEC for all the contractual issues and, when new positions become available in the frame of any of the contracts with ESA, organizing, preparing and eventually following up the interviews with potential candidates.

(2000-2002) SAOCOM. - Responsible of the design, development, manufacture of a 25 square meters antenna for the SAR instrument of the SAOCOM mission from Argentina. This responsibility involved structure and mechanisms test; static, dynamic, thermo-elastic and thermal analysis; design, layout and manufacture of CFRP components and its involved manufacturing processes; design and test of the mechanical and thermal ground support equipment. - Manufacture of Si solar cells and lay-down of an eight square meter deployable solar array using high efficiency GaAs solar cells were the main tasks. It included the development of all the manufacturing processes involved (bonding, soldering, welding) and the design, manufacture and test of each panel structure and its related mechanisms.(1997-2000) - QM SAC-C Support. Development of the CONAE procurement procedure of radiation-hardened (Rad-Hard) electronic components.Member of the working group created for evaluation of local certification of high-radiation-tolerance electronic components applying the MIL-STD- 883 to increase reliability, improve performance, and reduce costs. Responsible of the purchase phases (specification, offers evaluation, criteria selection qualification processes and reception) for the SAC-C electronic components as well as AOCS and propulsion subsystem units.Responsible of SAC-C functional and qualification tests performed at INPE (Brazil) and NASA - Goddard Space Flight Center (USA). Designed by NASA GSFC as member of the “Tigger Team” to redesign the restrain and release mechanism of the SAC-C solar arrays, after no-successful vibration tests.Review of the mechanical and thermal test specifications for testing at sub-system, system, proto-flight and flight model levels. Data results analysis.(1994-1997)- Planning department. Analysis of the sustenance and economic benefits of the Space Activities applied to Argentina; Argentine Space Program book.

Education record

Msc. Engineer, Aeronautic

Education record