Faculty
Prof. Elaine Petro | Lab Director | Assistant Professor
(461 Upson Hall)
Elaine Petro is an Assistant Professor in the Cornell Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering and the Director of the Cornell ASTRA lab. Her research interests include spacecraft electric propulsion, sustainable space exploration through in-situ resource utilization, and plasma science. Petro received her Ph.D. from the University of Maryland, College Park, where she studied water-based plasma propulsion. Prior to joining the faculty in Cornell MAE, she spent time as post-doctoral researcher in the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Space Propulsion Laboratory, studying electrospray thrusters for small satellite propulsion. (Google Scholar, LinkedIn, Email)
Dr. Andrew van Paridon | Visiting Scientist
Andrew van Paridon is a visiting scientist in the Cornell Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering. His research includes spacecraft propulsion, thermal modelling, and system optimization. Dr Van Paridon received his Ph.D. from the University of Oxford, UK, where he studied the effects of thermal control on the fatigue life of turbine discs. His postdoctoral work at the Oxford Thermofluids Institute continued this research, expanding it develop a novel experimental architectures for pressurized, temperature controlled, rotating facilities.(LinkedIn, Email)
Zach Ulibarri is a postdoctoral associate at Cornell University in the ASTRALab. His research interests focus on laboratory experiments to study how complex organics and isotopic ratios may be measured by time-of-flight mass spectrometer systems, especially those utilizing hypervelocity capture or impact ionization of icy dust grains during flybys of icy ocean worlds, and how these measurements can be applied to understanding the origin of terrestrial life and the possibility of life elsewhere. During his doctoral studies at CU Boulder, he was a graduate student affiliate of the Surface Dust Analyzer (SUDA) mass spectrometer instrument on the upcoming Europa Clipper mission. He also received two awards from NASA SSERVI and was the head organizer of the LunGradCon graduate student conference for five years.
Graduate Students
Carl Geiger | Ph.D. Student
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Carl Geiger is a Ph.D. student at Cornell Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering. His research interests include spacecraft propulsion, mission design, and astrodynamics. He received his bachelor’s degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill where he studied Mathematics and Physics. Before coming to Cornell, he worked in the Vibro-Acoustic Systems and Controls Lab at North Carolina State University while taking engineering courses. His current research is in Electrospray Propulsion systems
Rafid Bendimerad | Ph.D. Student
Rafid Bendimerad is a Ph.D. student at Cornell Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering. His research interests include spacecraft propulsion, astronomy, and Scientific Machine Learning. He received his bachelor's degree from Ecole Nationale Polytechnique in Algeria, and his master's degree from Ecole Polytechnique (l'X) in France, where he majored in Mechanical Engineering. His current research is about molecular dynamics simulations of ionic liquids used in electrospray propulsion. (LinkedIn, Google Scholar).
Abu Taqui Md Tahsin | Ph.D. Student
Abu Taqui Md Tahsin is a Ph.D. student at Cornell Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering. His research interests include Spacecraft Propulsion, Molecular Dynamics, and Astrodynamics. He received his bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering from Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology, in Bangladesh. His current research is focused on the Molecular Dynamics simulations of inter-propellant interactions in the electrospray plume. (LinkedIn, ResearchGate, Google Scholar)
Stefan Bell is a Ph.D. student at Cornell Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering. His research interests include spacecraft propulsion and GNC. He received his bachelor's and master's of engineering degrees from Cornell University in mechanical and aerospace engineering. Before ASTRAlab, Stefan has worked on the characterization of compressible turbulence in the Bewley Applied Turbulence lab, the polyhedral rover prototype in the Space Systems Design Studio, and led the 15 pound robot team in Combat Robotics at Cornell. In the summer of 2022, he worked at Turion Space Corp. on the development of a gridded ion thruster. His current research is focused on the development of diagnostic techniques for the detection and quantificatication of trace ion deposition on surfaces.
Undergraduate Students
Adiba Sajed | Undergraduate Student
Adiba is a second-year undergraduate student at the Cornell Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering. Her research interests include spacecraft design and space exploration. Prior to joining the lab, she worked at a Technology startup, and a nonprofit organization promoting STEM research in third-world countries
Aastha Bagree | Undergraduate Student
Aastha Bagree is an undergraduate sophomore studying Physics and Mathematics at the College of Arts&Sciences. Her research interests include exoplanet exploration, star formation and dynamics, and rocket propulsion systems. She is also part of the project team CU GeoData. She is also part of Cornell’s Indian Classical Dance Team.
Claudia Pietrus | Undergraduate Student
Claudia Pietrus is an undergraduate student at the Cornell Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering and the Cornell School of Applied and Engineering Physics. Her research interests include spacecraft propulsion, mass spectrometry, and space exploration. She is a cadet in the Air Force Reserve Officers’ Training Corps and was on the Cornell Rocketry Team.
Millie Schwartz | Undergraduate Student
Millie Schwartz is an undergraduate student at the Cornell Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering. Her research interests include satellites and spacecraft design. Before joining ASTRAlab, she worked on the Pathfinder for Autonomous Navigation project for Space Systems Design Studio.
Alumni
Dr. Oliver Jia-Richards | Postdoctoral Associate
Oliver Jia-Richards is currently a Postdoctoral Associate in the ASTRALab working on the application of electrospray emission for on-orbit mass spectrometry. He received his Sc.D. in Space Propulsion and Controls from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics in 2022. His research looks at the application of propulsion systems and propulsion technologies towards space missions, as well as the characterization of electrospray propulsion systems. In August, he will be joining the University of Michigan as an Assistant Professor of Aerospace Engineering.
Johan Sweldens| Undergraduate Student
Johan Sweldens is an undergraduate student at the Cornell Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering and will be graduating in Spring 2022. His research interests are electric propulsion, plasma physics, satellites, and optoelectronics. Before joining the team, Johan was an intern at the Princeton University Electric Propulsion and Plasma Dynamics Laboratory.
Caleb Colucci | Undergraduate Student
Caleb Colucci is an undergraduate student at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, he is pursuing a Bachelors in Space Physics and a minor in Engineering Sciences. His research interests include spacecraft propulsion and light dark matter detection. Caleb came to ASTRAlab through an astrophysics REU program at Cornell.
Swasti Shree | Undergraduate Student
Swasti Shree is a third year undergraduate student at the Cornell Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering. Her research interests include spacecraft technologies and genetic engineering for bacterial therapeutics. She is currently working as a Process Development Co-op at Boston Scientific. Previously, she was Policy & Practices Lead on Cornell iGEM.
Jordan Sandell | Undergraduate Student
Jordan is an undergraduate student in the Cornell Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering. She is a mechanical engineering major with minors in aerospace engineering, business, and fashion studies. Her research interests include spacecraft technologies, aero-vehicle propulsion, and psychology. Jordan is the technical development lead of Cornell WOAA and is on CUAir. Before joining the team, Jordan conducted psychology research at California Polytechnic State University.
Adam Yonas | Undergraduate Student
Adam is a Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Junior at Cornell University. His research interests include spacecraft propulsion and design along with space exploration. After his undergraduate studies, he is going to receive his master's in aerospace engineering. Outside ASTRA lab, he is part of Mars Rover, and the Alpha CubeSat team within Cornell's Space System's Design Studio.
Arthur Chadwick | M. Eng Student
Arthur Chadwick is an M.Eng. student at Cornell Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering. He is also an engineering intern with Northrop Grumman working on the Habitation & Logistics Outpost (HALO). His research interests include space mission design and spacecraft propulsion. He received his Bachelor of Science from Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) where he double majored in Mechanical Engineering and Disruptive Innovation. Before coming to Cornell, Arthur founded and ran Hyperloop at VCU, an electric vehicle design team, while taking courses. His current research is in Electrospray Propulsion systems. (LinkedIn)
Ben Inbar | M. Eng Student
Ben Inbar is an M.Eng student at Cornell's Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering. His research interests include spacecraft propulsion, computational fluid dynamics, and space exploration. He studied Mechanical Engineering as an undergraduate at Cornell University. Prior to joining the ASTRA Lab, Ben has interned with early-stage start-ups at Rev Ithaca and was a member of the Cornell Micro-G Team.
Mohammad Ali Moghaddasi| Undergraduate Student
Mohammad is a Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering senior at Cornell University. His research interests include spacecraft propulsion, spacecraft design, and development of lithium-ion batteries. After his undergraduate studies, he is going to attend PhD school in the field of aerospace engineering. Outside ASTRA lab, he is part of Combat Robotics, and a Teacher Assistant for thermodynamics. Previously, he has done research for development of lithium-ion batteries, and interned at BAE Systems. For more information about his experience, research, and projects, please refer to his portfolio.
Shawn Cogan | M. Eng Student
Shawn Cogan is a visiting M.Eng student completing his master's thesis at Cornell Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering. His research interests include spacecraft propulsion, space mission design, and numerical simulation. He is studying aerospace engineering at the University of Stuttgart, Germany, where he also received his bachelor's degree. Before working in the lab, he interned at Airbus in the satellite mechanical design department, and was a member of the Stuttgart Rocketry Team. (LinkedIn)
Liam Alexis | Ph.D. Student
Liam Alexis is a Ph.D. student at Cornell Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering. His research interests include space communications, plasma physics and spacecraft propulsion. He received his undergrad degree at the University of Michigan Ann Arbor where he majored in Aerospace Engineering with a minor in Physics and worked in the Drake Nuclear Lab studying High energy Plasma Physics. Before joining the team he was an intern at NASA Glenn Research Center in the Quantum communications group. His current research deals with Field Emission Electric Propulsion (FEEP) systems.
Christian Harris
Christian Harris is an Interdisciplinary Computing - Physics student at The University of Kansas School of Engineering. His research interests include trajectory optimization, astrodynamics, and mission design. He recently participated in Cornell’s Astronomy REU program where he focused on low-thrust interplanetary mission design.
Get In Touch // astralab.cornell@gmail.com
Alain Alarco | M. Eng Student
Alain Alarco is an M.Eng student at Cornell's Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering. His research interests include spacecraft propulsion, space mission design, solid mechanics, and tribology. He studied Mechanical Engineering as an undergraduate at Cornell University. Prior to joining the ASTRA Lab, Alain has interned twice at GE Aviation and was a member of the
Cornell Mars Rover project team.
Giuliana Hofheins | Ph.D. Student
Giuliana Hofheins is a Ph.D. student at Cornell Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering. Her research interests include electric space propulsion, space mission design, and design optimization. She received her bachelor's degree from Rhodes College in Memphis, TN where she studied Physics with a minor in mathematics. Prior to Cornell, she worked on the Rhodes College CubeSat program (RHOK-SAT), a 1U CubeSat to characterize space hardiness of novel photovoltaic solar cells. Her current research is in electrospray propulsion systems and diagnostics.
Adler Smith is a Ph.D candidate within the Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering. His research focuses on the development and application of high performance simulation methods for novel electric propulsion systems. He received his bachelors degree from Cornell University and while there was the flight software team lead on various satellite programs working with Dr. Mason Peck - including two that have been launched into orbit! Graduating from Cornell in 2018, he has spent four years in industry as an Advanced Methods & Software Engineer working on the design and optimization of both military and commercial aircraft engines at Pratt & Whitney Aircraft. Returning for an MEng and Doctorate degree, he currently works with the Air Force Research lab on scaling plasma dynamics simulations to sizes relevant to Electrospray Thrusters and Spacecraft-Plume interactions.
Luke D'Cruz | Ph.D. Student
Luke D'Cruz is a Ph.D. student at Cornell Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering and a recipient of the Department of Defense Science, Mathematics, and Research for Transformation (SMART) fellowship. His research interests include spacecraft propulsion, nanofabrication, and space mission design. He received his bachelor's degree and master's degree from Columbia University, where he studied mechanical engineering with a minor in computer science. At Columbia, Luke worked in the Hone Lab, where his research focused on the material characterization of graphene. He also led the development of Columbia's first suborbital payload that launched on Blue Origin's New Shepard rocket in 2021. Luke's current research is focused on the fabrication and testing of ceramic electrospray emitters. (Linkedin)