Hello and thanks for taking the time to looking into my profile. My name is Don Parsons and I am an aerospace engineer with a PhD in mechanical engineering and 10+ years of experience in rocket motor design and manufacturing. I specialize in internal rocket motor ballistics as well as trajectory analysis and missile system optimization. I also have a great deal of experience in numerical analysis, especially computational fluid dynamics (CFD), as well as MATLAB code development, and statistical process control. I have been the recipient of numerous STAR Awards from Northrop Grumman Corporation for outstanding work on a range of development programs.I am currently a Staff Aerospace Engineer at Northrop Grumman Corporation working as a ballistics analyst. My primary responsibility is the prediction of internal rocket motor ballistics however over the past several years I have started to specialize in preliminary rocket motor and missile system optimization. I have completed numerous optimization trade studies for the Army and Air Force across a wide range of missions including ground launched and air to air engagements. I also serve as the primary ballistician on several production programs where my primary responsibility is to monitor the health of the program via statistical quality control. Most recently I have been broadening my ballistics modeling capabilities as I learn how to model highly loaded grain (HLG) rocket motors.The aspect I enjoy the most about my job is that every day presents the opportunity to learn something new. The never-ending prospect of new knowledge is really what drew me to engineering in the first place and the life of a ballistician never disappoints. In my current position I have input into virtually every aspect of the rocket motors we produce and it is a challenge I relish. When completing a preliminary optimization trade study, I have the freedom to change and manipulate hundreds of variables to achieve the best results. Fitting all of the pieces of these endless puzzles together never disappoints. I also really enjoy the social aspect of working with all of my product teams to deliver to best result to each of our customers.I completed my bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Maryland in 2006. I then completed my PhD in mechanical engineering in 2015 while working at Northrop Grumman.Areas of Expertise: Rocket motor design and internal ballistics, missile system optimization, numerical analysis, CFD, MATLAB, Phoenix Model Center, quality control, trajectory analysis, NX, Pro/E