Aerospace Engineer
Current• Provide mission design expertise for space missions at all phases of the development life cycle.• Developed object-oriented C++ code that utilized the direct collocation tool CSALT to solve a multi-phase low-thrust trajectory optimization problem for the Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA) mission.• Conducted Earth to Moon low-thrust trajectory design for the Lunar IceCube mission using EMTG, and the associated trade study tool PEATSA. Created optimal trajectories that satisfied spacecraft operational constraints and were successfully replicated in high-fidelity mission design tools.• Rehearsed early mission operations for the Lunar IceCube mission which required coordination with multiple operations teams and rapid turnaround of updated trajectory solutions.• Served as PI for an internal research and development (IRAD) project that enhanced a C++ based Q-Law tool for low-thrust spiral optimization by increasing model accuracy and implementing an evolutionary algorithm outer loop.• Communicated trajectory design requirements and results to scientists and engineers in other disciplines, in support of proposal formulation for multiple pre-phase-A mission concepts.• Guided technology development efforts, including the maturation and improved documentation of the trajectory optimization tool CSALT, and the formulation of approaches for autonomous spacecraft maneuver planning, which led to the award of IRAD funds for further research.• Utilized GMAT to develop simulations of the Earth Delivery Phase of the Mars Sample Return project; results informed the analysis of GSFC thermal and systems engineers. • Applied concepts from dynamical systems theory to inform the selection of a target Lissajous orbit for the Space Weather Follow On (SWFO) mission. • Maintained academic connections by attending a conference, writing conference papers, and serving as a research collaborator to a NASA Space Technology Graduate Research Opportunity (NSTGRO) student.
