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Space Exploration Initiative
Space Exploration Initiative
Dr. Ariel Ekblaw founded the MIT Space Exploration Initiative, a team of 50+ students, faculty, and staff building and flying advanced technology for space exploration; Ariel is also the founding CEO of Aurelia Institute and GP for Aurelia Foundry Fund, a hybrid space architecture research institute and venture incubation studio. Ariel graduated with a B.S. in Physics, Mathematics, and Philosophy from Yale University and designed a novel space architecture habitat for her MIT PhD in autonomously self-assembling space structures. Her research work and the labs she leads build towards future habitats and space stations in orbit around the Earth, Moon, and Mars. Ariel is the author/editor of Into the Anthropocosmos: A Whole Space Catalog from the MIT Space Exploration Initiative (MIT Press 2021) and serves on the NASA Lunar Surface Innovation Consortium (LSIC) Executive Committee. Ariel’s work has been featured in WIRED, Harvard Business Review, the Wall Street Journal, the BBC, CNN, NPR, numerous academic papers, and more.
Dr. Cody Paige is the Director of the Space Exploration Initiative at the Media Lab, a team of students, faculty and staff building and flying advanced technology and innovative ideas for space exploration. Cody began at MIT as a Fulbright Scholar and completed her Ph.D. in Aeronautics and Astronautics in 2023. Her research focused on enabling a permanent human presence on the Moon through the development of wearable radiation shielding material and a virtual reality platform for geological surface exploration of the Moon and Mars. Cody is also completing a Ph.D. in geology, specifically quaternary geochronology, and completed her Master of Applied Science at the University of Toronto in Aerospace Engineering and her Bachelor of Applied Science from Queen’s University in Engineering Physics. She is passionate about student outreach, in particular encouraging girls, and young women in STEAMD (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, Math and Design).
Dr. Sara Seager is a Professor of Planetary Science, Professor of Physics, and a Professor of Aeronautics and Astronautics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology where she holds the Class of 1941 Professor Chair. She has been a pioneer in the research field of exoplanets, with ground-breaking work ranging from the detection of exoplanet atmospheres to innovative theories about life on other worlds, to development of novel space mission concepts. Professor Seager was the Deputy Science Director of the MIT-led NASA Explorer-class mission TESS, was PI of the JPL-MIT CubeSat ASTERIA, and was a lead of the Starshade Mission concepts to find a true Earth analog orbiting a Sun-like star. Her most recent focus its on leading the Morning Star Missions to Venus international consortium. Among other accolades she is a MacArthur Fellow, a member of the National Academy of Sciences, has been awarded the APS Magellanic Premium Medal, the Royal Canadian Geographical Society Gold Medal, is an Officer of the Order of Canada, and has Asteroid 9729 named in her honor. She is the author of the Smallest Lights in the Universe: A Memoir.
Samantha Harvey is the author of five novels and one work of non-fiction. Her latest novel, Orbital, takes place on a space station and is an account of a single 24-hour day in low earth orbit.
Her novels have been shortlisted for the Orange Prize for Fiction, the Guardian First Book Award, the Walter Scott Prize and the James Tait Black Prize, and longlisted for the Man Booker Prize, the Baileys Prize, the Jerwood Fiction Uncovered Prize and the HWA Gold Crown Award. The Western Wind won the 2019 Staunch Book Prize, and The Wilderness was the winner of the AMI Literature Award and the Betty Trask Prize.
She is a Reader in Creative Writing at Bath Spa University in the UK.
Rick Loverd has dedicated his career to inspiring more and better science in stories. He started at Creative Artists Agency, where he worked in Motion Picture Talent and Film Finance. He has worked on Boston Public, Friday Night Lights and numerous projects for studios including Fox, Warners, and NBC/Universal. Since 2009, Rick has directed the flagship communications initiative of the National Academy of Sciences (NAS), The Science & Entertainment Exchange (The Exchange). The Exchange facilitates creative STEM collaborations on mainstream media projects. Rick has had direct input on more than 4,000 films and shows including the Avengers franchise, most of the Marvel Cinematic Universe theatrical and Disney+ projects, and myriad other movies ranging from Frozen and Big Hero Six to the Bourne franchise and Last of Us.
Jason Ning is a successful television writer and producer who is known for his work on “Lucifer,” “Perception, and “The Expanse.” Most recently, he worked on “The Brothers Sun” for Netflix and a science fiction comedy drama “Mrs. Davis” for the Peacock Network about a nun using her faith to combat an omnipotent AI program.
Jason grew up in Albuquerque, New Mexico, before moving to Texas where he earned a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and a Juris Doctorate from Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas. He started his career in Hollywood working as an entertainment attorney for DreamWorks, SKG and then later Sony Pictures Entertainment, until he transitioned to a prolific career in screenwriting. Jason lives in Santa Monica, California with his wife, two kids, and shelter dog Cash who are all wholly-unimpressed by anything he does or says.
Jason is a captivating storyteller whose journey has taken him from the legal intricacies of the entertainment industry to the heart of creative expression through writing for television. With a flair for weaving compelling narratives, and a keen eye for emerging trends, he has a unique perspective on the intersection of artificial intelligence, entertainment, and the commerce of creativity.
Maggie Coblentz is a researcher, adventurer, and storyteller. She is the Head of Field Logistics and Production for the MIT Space Exploration Initiative, leading interdisciplinary fieldwork programs around the world, from volcanoes in Lanzarote to glaciers in the high Arctic. In 2022, Maggie co-founded Satellite Institute, an Arctic research station in Svalbard. Drawn towards the north, Maggie’s work explores a broad range of subjects including, technology, wildlife, and food. Her practice has included Arctic expeditions, zero gravity flights, and an experiment in the International Space Station. Maggie received a Master of Industrial Design from the Rhode Island School of Design. Her work has been exhibited internationally including Ars Electronica (Austria), MIT Media Lab (US), World Expo 2020 Dubai (UAE), and MAXXI (Italy). She has been invited to speak at institutions including Yale, New York University, Parsons School of Design, Basque Culinary Center, and Berklee College of Music. Maggie’s work has been featured in WIRED, MIT The Tech, New Scientist, Canada's National Observer, and more.
Dr. Darlene Lim is a research scientist at the NASA Ames Research Center. She is currently the Deputy Project Scientist for the NASA’s VIPER (Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Rover) Lunar Mission and is also the VIPER Science Operations & Integration Lead. Darlene’s research is focused on how to integrate rapid science input and decisioning into high-intensity operational environments. She has conducted field research around the world, on land and underwater, and has served as the Principal Investigator of the SUBSEA, BASALT and Pavilion Lake research programs, the Deputy PI for the FINESSE program, and as a Co-I on numerous other NASA research and analog programs such as NEEMO, MVP, Desert RATS, and HMP. Darlene was the MEPAG Goal IV (Prepare for Human Exploration) Co-Chair from 2009-2016 and a member of the NOAA Ocean Exploration Advisory Board from 2014-2021.
Dr. Gordon “Oz” Osinski is a Professor in the Department of Earth Sciences at the University of Western Ontario (Western), Canada. He is also the Director of the Canadian Lunar Research Network, Chair of the Planetary Sciences Division of the Geological Association of Canada, the Canadian Ambassador for the MILO Institute, and was the Founding Director of the Institute for Earth and Space Exploration at Western. Dr. Osinski’s research interests are diverse and interdisciplinary in nature, motivated by understanding the evolution of the surface of the Earth and other planetary bodies as well as the origin and evolution of life. He has conducted fieldwork on 6 continents, from Antarctica to Africa, but the Canadian Arctic is where much of his work takes place. Dr. Osinski has received numerous awards for this research, including the W. W. Hutchison Medal of the Geological Association of Canada (2018) and the Barringer Medal of the Meteoritical Society (2021). Dr. Osinski is also involved in several past and ongoing planetary exploration-related activities. He is the Principal Investigator for the Canadian Lunar Rover – Canada’s first ever rover mission to the Moon – and is a Co-Investigator on the PanCam instrument on the European ExoMars mission to Mars. Dr. Osinski has been involved in providing geology training to Canadian and US astronauts for the past decade. He was also recently named to be part of the Geology Team for the Artemis III mission.
Dr. Cody Paige is the Director of the Space Exploration Initiative at the Media Lab, a team of students, faculty and staff building and flying advanced technology and innovative ideas for space exploration. Cody began at MIT as a Fulbright Scholar and completed her Ph.D. in Aeronautics and Astronautics in 2023. Her research focused on enabling a permanent human presence on the Moon through the development of wearable radiation shielding material and a virtual reality platform for geological surface exploration of the Moon and Mars. Cody is also completing a Ph.D. in geology, specifically quaternary geochronology, and completed her Master of Applied Science at the University of Toronto in Aerospace Engineering and her Bachelor of Applied Science from Queen’s University in Engineering Physics. She is passionate about student outreach, in particular encouraging girls, and young women in STEAMD (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, Math and Design).
Dr. Christianna Taylor focuses on Leadership through Strategy and Technology with applications in space, AI, and manufacturing. She received her PhD at the Georgia Institute of Technology and currently serves as Chief Product Officer with G-Space, a technology AI platform focusing on designing without gravity. She also serves as the Chief Architect for Galactiv, which focuses on satellite towing. She sits on the board of the Aurelia Institute which focuses on helping students fly on the Zero-G parabolic flights for testing. Finally, she advises Girl In Space Club and STEAMulating Art to empower youth through technology, fashion, and design to students in the Greater Baltimore Area. When she’s not 3D printing something or working at the intersection of space and AI, she enjoys traveling, reading, and finding exciting challenges. Her earliest memory of space is watching Haley’s comet with her Mom. Her latest is probably watching Star Trek and arguing with her friends if it’s possible.
Dr. Ariel Ekblaw founded the MIT Space Exploration Initiative, a team of 50+ students, faculty, and staff building and flying advanced technology for space exploration; Ariel is also the founding CEO of Aurelia Institute and GP for Aurelia Foundry Fund, a hybrid space architecture research institute and venture incubation studio. Ariel graduated with a B.S. in Physics, Mathematics, and Philosophy from Yale University and designed a novel space architecture habitat for her MIT PhD in autonomously self-assembling space structures. Her research work and the labs she leads build towards future habitats and space stations in orbit around the Earth, Moon, and Mars. Ariel is the author/editor of Into the Anthropocosmos: A Whole Space Catalog from the MIT Space Exploration Initiative (MIT Press 2021) and serves on the NASA Lunar Surface Innovation Consortium (LSIC) Executive Committee. Ariel’s work has been featured in WIRED, Harvard Business Review, the Wall Street Journal, the BBC, CNN, NPR, numerous academic papers, and more.
Georgi Petrov is a practicing architect, structural engineer and space architect. He is a Senior Associate Principal at the New York office of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, where he works on highrises, long span, and specialty structures around the world. He is the leader of SOM’s space architecture endeavors. As a space architect he has over 20 years of experience in both design and advocacy for the field and is the chair of the AIAA’s Space Architecture Technical Committee. He is also an adjunct professor at NYU and MIT where he teaches Design of Tall Buildings.
Brent Sherwood is a retired space architect and consultant. He is Space Domain Lead for AIAA, the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics. From 2019-2023, Brent was Senior Vice President at Blue Origin. He grew a $1B business comprising the lunar Human Landing System, Orbital Reef commercial space station, Blue Alchemist lunar resource technology, and several company-funded flight system programs. From 2005-2019, he was at JPL as founding manager of the JPL Innovation Foundry and Program Manager for Solar System Mission Formulation. From 1988-2005, he was at the Boeing Company leading human and robotic planetary exploration formulation, space station module manufacturing methods, and new business for Sea Launch, the International Space Station, and civil space. He has published over 60 papers about the exploration and development of space and edited Out of This World: The New Field of Space Architecture. The American Society of Civil Engineers 2021 Columbia Medal recipient, he is a corresponding member of the International Academy of Astronautics, Associate Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, former chair of the AIAA Space Architecture Technical Committee, former board member of the American Astronautical Society, and member of Phi Beta Kappa. He holds a Bachelor of Arts from Yale, summa cum laude; Master of Architecture from Yale; and Master of Science in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Maryland.
Guillermo Trotti, president of Trotti & Associates, Inc. (trottistudio.com), he is an architect and industrial designer. His work covers a wide range of fields, from the International Space Station, to the South Pole Station, and Lunar Bases, to sustainable architecture projects from the Caribbean to Japan. He has circumnavigated the Earth in his sailboat, and explored every continent on Spaceship Earth.
Trotti & Associates, Co-Founder and President of EarthDNA (earthdna.org), a non-profit organization founded by leaders in aerospace and design, world-renowned experts in getting humanity to new heights. As we face the greatest collective threat to our home planet, humanity now needs the equivalent of an Earth Operating System. Using cutting edge technology to empower individuals, policy makers, and industries to engage in climate action.
He teaches Space Architecture at the Arizona State University School of Design where he is co-founding a new Master’s degree Program in Space and Extreme Environments Architecture. He co-founded the Sasakawa International Center for Space Architecture at the University of Houston. He has also founded the Space Studio at the Industrial Design Department at Rhode Island School of Design. Trotti has lectured around the globe on Architecture for space and other extreme environments, sustainable design, and advanced structures.
He is a Governing Member of the International Space University. He served in various space committees of the National Academies, National Research Council. His undergraduate thesis “Counterpoint: A Lunar Colony”; is part of the Smithsonian’s Air and Space Museum permanent collection, and his Master’s degree from Rice University was on Space Stations Design. His work has been exhibited in major museums in the USA and Europe.
Melodie Yashar is a space architect, technologist, and researcher. She is the VP of Building Design & Performance at ICON, a construction technologies company focused on large scale additive manufacturing for Earth and in space. Melodie oversees the architectural direction of ICON’s built work as well as the performance of ICON’s building systems to deliver optimally-performing structures that shift the paradigm of homebuilding on Earth and beyond. Collaborating across technology and construction teams, her department supports the design and construction of dignified and resilient terrestrial housing solutions in addition to supporting the development of ICON’s off-world construction systems. In prior roles, Melodie was a Senior Research Associate with the Human Systems Integration Division at NASA Ames within the Human Computer Interaction Lab, a co-founder of Space Exploration Architecture (SEArch+), a research group developing human-supporting designs for space exploration, as well as a Professor within the Architecture department of Pratt Institute. Melodie teaches undergraduate and graduate space architecture studios at Art Center College of Design.
Dr. Dava Newman is the Director of the MIT Media Lab. She’s also the Apollo Program Professor of Astronautics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and a Harvard–MIT Health, Sciences, and Technology faculty member. She served as NASA Deputy Administrator (2015-17), the first female engineer in this role, and was awarded the NASA Distinguished Service Medal. Her research and teaching expertise include aerospace biomedical engineering, human performance, advanced space suit design, AI/ML for climate, design, leadership development, innovation, and technology and policy. Newman has been principal investigator (PI) on four spaceflight missions flown aboard the Space Shuttle, Russian Mir Space Station and the International Space Station, and is best known for her revolutionary BioSuit™ planetary spacesuit. Recently, she co-founded EarthDNA with partner Guillermo Trotti to accelerate solutions for spaceship Earth’s Ocean, Land and Air subsystems by curating satellite data to make the world work for 100% of humanity.
S. Sita Sonty is the Chief Executive Officer of Space Tango. Sita manages the implementation of the corporate mission and vision. Prior to joining Space Tango, Sonty led the space industry practice for the Boston Consulting Group, a global management consulting firm. She also made history as the Head of Human Spaceflight Sales at SpaceX, where she executed the first private spaceflight sale on the Crew Dragon on a Lower Earth Orbit Free Flyer and to the International Space Station while guiding global market strategy for Starlink's expansion.
Prior to SpaceX, Sita was Vice President for International Business with the Sierra Nevada Corporation (SNC as well as Director for National Security and International Business Development at Raytheon.
Before joining the space industry, Sita amassed over seventeen years of service as a career U.S. diplomat. Sita led the International Security Advisory Board bringing A&D companies' strategic recommendations to Secretary Kerry; she also served as Chief of Staff for Legislative Affairs and Senior Advisor for Defense Sales to South and Central Asia. Her overseas posts include Croatia, Libya, Syria, the Coalition Provisional Authority in Iraq (2004), and Egypt.)
Dr. Erika Wagner serves as Senior Director of Emerging Market Development for Blue Origin, a developer of vehicles and technologies to enable human space transportation.
Prior to joining Blue Origin, Dr. Wagner worked with the X PRIZE Foundation as Senior Director of Exploration Prize Development and founding Executive Director of the X PRIZE Lab@MlT. Previously, she served at MIT as Science Director and Executive Director of the Mars Gravity Biosatellite Program, a multi-university spacecraft development initiative to investigate the physiological effects of reduced gravity. Erika has previously served as a member of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation's Suborbital Applications Researchers Group, the Board of the American Society for Gravitational and Space Research, and NASA's Planetary Protection Independent Review Board. Today, she serves as a Trustee of the Museum of Flight, as well as a member of the National Academies' Space Studies Board.
Dr. Wagner's interdisciplinary academic background includes a bachelor's in Biomedical Engineering from Vanderbilt University, a master's in Aeronautics & Astronautics from MIT, and a PhD in Bioastronautics from the Harvard/MlT Division of Health Sciences and Technology. Her research spanned both human and mammalian adaptation to microgravity, partial gravity, and centrifugation; as well as organizational innovation and prize theory. She is also an alumna of the International Space University and an Associate Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics.
Marc Weiser is the Founder and Managing Director of RPM Ventures, a venture firm specializing in seed and early-stage investments with $750 million under management, focusing on Fintech and Mobility. He also serves as the Chair of McKinley Inc., a multi-billion-dollar apartment owner and operator.
Beyond RPM, Mr. Weiser contributed six years to the NASA National Advisory Council's Science Committee and was a board member of the James Beard Foundation. He was a founding board member of the Center for Entrepreneurship at the University of Michigan, where he served as an Adjunct Professor and was honored with the College of Engineering’s Alumni Distinguished Service Award. He and his wife are active philanthropists focused on finding a cure for food allergies and supporting a range of non-profits throughout Southeast Michigan.
Before establishing RPM, Mr. Weiser was an entrepreneur, founding QuantumShift, a forerunner among internet SaaS providers. Additionally, he was an early employee at MessageMedia where he pioneered some of the original methods for e-commerce and was instrumental in its IPO, prior to its acquisition by DoubleClick. Mr. Weiser holds a BSE in aerospace engineering and an MBA from the University of Michigan.
Dr. Thomas H. Zurbuchen is a professor and leader of the Space Programs at ETH Zurich, in Switzerland. Known in the space community as “Dr. Z,” he is the longest continually serving head of science at NASA, a post he held from 2016 to 2022. As NASA associate administrator for the Science Mission Directorate, he was responsible for all aspects of NASA leadership in space science. During his tenure, NASA launched 37 science missions and started 54, including the James Webb Space Telescope, two Mars landings, the Ingenuity helicopter, the Parker Solar Probe, and the DART mission. Zurbuchen also conceived and led the Earth System Observatory, an advanced multi-platform observatory that creates a 3D holistic view of the Earth, from bedrock to atmosphere.
He has a MS and PhD of physics/astrophysics from the University of Bern and as a Professor worked at the University of Michigan as a researcher, teacher and innovator for two decades. He was the founder of the award-winning Center for Entrepreneurship there which achieved top rating within the US for their educational and experiential programs. He is a member of the Swiss Academy of Engineering Sciences, recipient of the NASA Outstanding Service Medal, associate fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, and recipient of the Presidential Rank Award, Distinguished Level. He is a winner of the excellence in international cooperation award of the International Astronautical Federation (IAF), and has received multiple honorary doctorates.
Philip Cherner is the lead on the Earth Mission Control project. Phil recently finished his Master's in EECS and was a research assistant at the MIT Media Lab under Prof. Dava Newman, focusing on the intersection of Human Computer Interaction(HCI) and AI. Prior to coming back to MIT after initially receiving his S.B. in EECS, he was at Microsoft for 5 years as a developer and project manager, working on numerous enterprise level AI and VR projects for clients. His current work centers around creating a immersive virtual multi-user climate data visualization platform, translating global and local climate change impacts into relatable, actionable steps for community members and policymakers. He is passionate about shaping the future of HCI through the design of inspiring and innovative digital and tangible human-centered experiences.
Don Derek Haddad is a Planetary Science Software Developer at the Bay Area Environmental Research Institute (BAERI), funded by NASA Ames. He recently earned a PhD from MIT's Responsive Environments Group, exploring the nexus of real, virtual, and imaginary realms through interdisciplinary research in computer graphics, AI, and human-robot interaction. His work includes developing immersive environments and dynamic representations in hybrid spaces, with a focus on sensor-integrated virtual realities. Haddad's significant contributions stem from collaborations with MIT AeroAstro, NASA Ames, and robotics firms like Boston Dynamics. His Master's thesis, "Resynthesizing Reality," was showcased at SIGGRAPH17, highlighting his commitment to advancing scalable presence in digital and physical domains.
Sana Sharma (she/her) is Co-Founder and Chief Design Officer at Aurelia Institute, a non-profit space architecture R&D lab, and a research affiliate at the MIT Space Exploration Initiative. At Aurelia, Sana leads brand, design strategy, and architecture for the Institute. She's led Aurelia’s first foray into human-scale space architecture through the development of a TESSERAE space habitat mockup — a life-size, modular architectural pavilion that engages the space community and the public with what life in space may look like in the future. At SEI, Sana leads the Astronaut Ethnography Project, which captures and distills the lived experiences of astronauts and cosmonauts to share them broadly with the next generation of space designers, engineers, and policy makers. Her personal space design work includes Fluid Expressions, a novel art and craft system designed exclusively for use in microgravity. Sana earned her BA in Architecture at Yale University, and her MDes, Technology Concentration from Harvard GSD.
Irmandy Wicaksono is a Ph.D. Candidate and Research Assistant at the Responsive Environments Group, MIT Media Lab. He earned his M.Sc. in Electrical Engineering and Information Technology from ETH Zurich and B.Eng. in Electronic Engineering at the University of Southampton. His work involves seamlessly weaving electronic devices into soft materials and the fabric of everyday life, from wearables and spacesuits, to interior and architectural e-textiles, and for applications ranging from health and well-being, biomechanics, human-computer interaction, to interactive arts. His research and installations have been featured in IEEE, CACM, Advanced Materials, Techcrunch, Popular Science, and Domus Magazine, and exhibited in Burning Man, SXSW, MIT Museum, Lexus Intersect Tokyo, and the World Economic Forum. As a transdisciplinary researcher, he is passionate in exploring the synergy and interplay between art, science, and technology, as well as bridging the gap between research and manufacturing.
Larissa Zhou is a food scientist and engineer. She received her PhD in Mechanical Engineering & Materials Science from Harvard University in March 2024. Her research is on developing systems and hardware to improve how humans eat in low-resource environments, with a focus on space travel. During her PhD, she built and tested a prototype for a cooking device that successfully hydrated and heated food in the absence of gravity, collaborated on a Mars greenhouse design that won Most Innovative Award at the NASA BIG Idea Challenge, and developed a tech roadmap for advanced space food systems with NASA researchers. She was a NASA Space Technology Research Fellow from 2019-2023. Previously, Larissa spent 5 years as the food scientist at Modernist Cuisine, where she led technical R&D on the award-winning, extremely heavy, 5-volume book Modernist Bread. She received her AB in physics with a minor in anthropology from Harvard in 2011.
Lita Albuquerque is an internationally renowned multidisciplinary artist and writer. She has developed a visual language that brings the realities of time and space to a human scale and is acclaimed for her ephemeral and permanent art works executed in the landscape and public sites.
She was born in Santa Monica, California and raised in Tunisia, North Africa and Paris, France. In the 1970s Albuquerque emerged on the California art scene as part of the Light & Space movement and won acclaim for her epic and poetic ephemeral pigment pieces created for desert sites. She gained national attention in the late 1970s with her ephemeral pigment installations pertaining to mapping, identity and the cosmos, executed in the natural landscape.
She represented the United States at the Sixth International Cairo Biennale, where she was awarded the Biennale’s top prize. Albuquerque has also been the recipient of the National Science Foundation Artist Grant Program for the artwork, Stellar Axis, which culminated in the first and largest ephemeral artwork created on that continent, three NEA Art in Public Places awards, an NEA Individual Fellowship grant, a fellowship from the Civitella Ranieri Foundation, the 2019 Laguna Art Museum Wendt Artist of the Year Award, and MOCA’s Distinguished Women in the Arts award. Recent major exhibitions include the 2018 Art Safiental Biennial, Switzerland, Desert X 2017, 20/20: Accelerando at USC Fisher Museum of Art, The Getty Museum’s Pacific Standard Time Performance and Public Art Festival, Desert X AlUla 2020, Saudi Arabia, Light & Space at Copenhagen Contemporary, Denmark, Groundswell: Women of Land Art at Nasher Sculpture Center, Dallas, and Lita Albuquerque: Liquid Light presented by bardoLA at 59th La Biennale di Venezia, Biennale Arte 2022. Her work is in the collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Getty Trust, the Whitney Museum of American Art, LACMA and MOCA, among others. The Stellar Axis archive in the collection of the Nevada Museum of Art, Reno. A dedicated educator, Albuquerque has held many teaching appointments during her tenure, and was on the core faculty of the Graduate Art Program at Art Center College of Design 35 years.
Julius von Bismarck was born in 1983 in Breisach am Rhein, Germany, and grew up in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. He currently lives and works in Berlin and Switzerland. He completed his studies at the Universitat der Künste Berlin, Hunter College in New York, USA, and the Institute for Spatial Experiments founded by Olafur Eliasson.
By combining visual arts with other fields of research and experimentation, such as natural and social sciences, the results of Julius von Bismarck’s artistic practice can take various forms — from kinetic sculptures and photographs to video installations and landscapes. His works are characterized by the in-depth exploration of phenomena of perception and constructions of reality. The negotiation of nature as a socially constructed fiction is a core focus of his work.
The artist has created numerous solo exhibitions, including at the Berlinische Galerie (2023), Bundeskunsthalle Bonn (2020), and Palais de Tokyo in Paris (2019). He has also participated in various international group shows and biennials.
Sydney Skybetter is a choreographer. Hailed by the Financial Times as “One of the world’s foremost thinkers on the intersection of dance and emerging technologies,” Sydney’s choreography has been performed at such venues as The Kennedy Center and Jacob’s Pillow. He has lectured at SXSW, Yale, Mozilla and the Boston Dynamics AI Institute, and consulted for The National Ballet of Canada, Bloomberg Philanthropies, Hasbro, and The University of Southern California, among others. His work has been supported by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, and a Creative Capital “Wild Futures” Award. He is a Senior Affiliate of metaLAB at Harvard University, a frequent contributor to WIRED and Dance Magazine, the Founder of the Conference for Research on Choreographic Interfaces and Host of the podcast, “Dances with Robots.” Sydney serves as the Deputy Dean of the College for Curriculum and Co-Curriculum, is an Associate Professor of Theatre Arts and Performance Studies, and was the first choreographer at Brown University to receive tenure. He resides in Providence, Rhode Island with his partner, their feral children and a supposedly hypoallergenic cat.
Xin Liu (1991, b. Xinjiang) is a multidisciplinary artist and engineer, who creates sculptures, digital experiences, and films that feature machinery, genetic material, petroleum, and rocket debris, to explore the verticality of space, extraterrestrial explorations, and cosmic metabolism.
She is an artist-in-residence at SETI Institute and works as the Arts Curator in the Space Exploration Initiative at MIT Media Lab. Her recent institutional solo exhibitions include Seedings and Offspring (2023) at Pioneer Works, New York, and At the End of Everything (2023) at ARTPACE, San Antonio. She is an advisor for LACMA Art+Tech Lab and a researcher at Antikythera, Berggren Institute.
Her work has been shown at Shanghai Biennale, Thailand Biennale, M+ Museum, Yuz Museum, MoMA PS1, MAXXI Rome, Sundance Film Festival, Ars Electronica, and Onassis Foundation, Sapporo International Art Festival, among others.
Imelda Alexopoulos is the Director of Exploration Strategy at Fleet Space Technologies, a global space-enabled exploration technology company headquartered in South Australia. Imelda’s role is to guide Fleet’s strategic direction in space and terrestrial exploration, helping to build space-enabled technologies for humanity to explore and connect Earth, Moon and Mars.
Fleet’s technologies are purpose-built for exploring worlds, including our own. From satellite-enabled solutions to interplanetary seismic array technology, Fleet is revolutionizing space exploration, defense, and the search for critical minerals on Earth.
Prior to Fleet, Imelda spent 20 years leading people and teams to deliver exceptional quality products and services. This included 16 years in professional services with 8 years as a Partner at PwC, and specializing in the areas of R&D, Innovation and Commercialisation funding for the space, future industries and technology sectors. Imelda holds a Bachelor of Biomedical Science, a Graduate Certificate of Chartered Accounting and is a Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.
Scarlett Koller completed a BS in Aerospace Engineering at MIT in 2016, then started her career at SpaceX as a Certification Engineer in Crew Dragon Life Support Systems, developing test plans with NASA Commercial Crew to certify Crew Dragon for flight. After leaving SpaceX, she worked at NASA JPL as a Systems Testbed Engineer, directing operations readiness testing for Entry, Descent & Landing of the Perseverance rover mission. With the rover safely on Mars, she returned to MIT as a Leaders for Global Operations Fellow, and considered switching industries for about eight seconds before deciding space was entirely too much fun. She completed an MS in Aerospace Engineering & an MBA in 2023, then co-founded Mithril Technologies with MIT Professor Zack Cordero. Their goal is to spin out a uniquely flexible antenna technology from an MIT lab for game-changing hurricane monitoring as well as improvements in satellite communications & space domain awareness.
Jordan Wachs is the Head of Product and acting CTO for SpaceRake, Inc., a company commercializing miniaturized free-space laser networking technologies developed at MIT. He has a B.S. with majors in Physics, Engineering Mechanics and Astronautics from the University of Wisconsin, a master’s in Electrical Engineering from the University of Colorado, and a master’s in Engineering and Management from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
His first real-world engineering experience was designing and building the inflatable crew habitation module of the Human Exploration Research Analog (HERA) analog habitat at the Johnson Space Center for use at the 2011 Desert Research and Technology Studies (D-RATS). He later worked at Ball Aerospace, where he and another engineer optimized the final flight configuration of the JWST primary mirror. While at Ball, he served as a propulsion engineer for the on-orbit commissioning of a billion-dollar-class weather satellite (JPSS-1) and built a first-of-its kind laser laboratory to create ultra-precise systems designed for use in exoplanet detection for JWST’s eventual successor. He supported development of lunar landing algorithms and other space technologies at the Charles Stark Draper Laboratory from 2019 - 2022, and joined SpaceRake in 2022.
He continuously seeks to combine disparate concepts to formulate new ideas, and was awarded a 2018 NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts (NIAC) fellowship and a 2019 Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) Spark grant to combine atomic physics with photonics techniques to create a novel, laser-based exoplanet imaging system concept that has since served as motivation for a Department of the Navy Multidisciplinary University Research Initiative (MURI) program. His thesis at MIT combined concepts from the financial derivatives market with several space-based imaging technologies to create a holistic capability projection for cislunar Space Situational Awareness, and he is currently the Principal Investigator on a National Science Foundation SBIR grant to develop advanced lasercom networking capabilities that will enable remote sensing satellite constellations to better leverage AI and machine learning to maximize the benefits of satellite technologies for industries here on Earth.
Nicole Wagner, Ph.D. is president and CEO of LambdaVision, a biotechnology company developing a protein- based artificial retina to treat patients blinded by retinal degenerative diseases. Dr. Wagner has secured >$10M in funding to accelerate research, development, and commercialization of the technology. Her research has recently involved the production of artificial retinas on the International Space Station (ISS), which is establishing new commercial opportunities to manufacture products in microgravity with direct clinical benefit.
Dr. Wagner obtained her Ph.D. in molecular and cell biology from the University of Connecticut in 2013. During the course of her Ph.D. research, she spent her graduate career working on optimizing light-activated proteins for applications in devices, and she played a critical role in the proof-of-concept experiments which helped to found LambdaVision. Her accolades include the Connecticut Technology Council’s Women of Innovation Award, Connecticut Magazine’s 40 Under 40, the 2020 Women in Aerospace Achievement Award, the 2021 BioCT Rising Entrepreneur of the Year Award, and most recently, Dr. Wagner was listed as one of Healthcare Technology Report’s Top 25 Women Leaders in Biotechnology for 2021 and Hartford Business Journal’s Power 50 in 2022. Dr. Wagner serves on the Board of Directors of the New England Women in Science Executives’ Club, the Connecticut Technology Council, CT Next, the American Society for Gravitation and Space Research, as well as the ISS National Lab User Advisory Committee as the Chair of the Applied R&D Subcommittee.
Van Wagner, Project Manager, and former Mechanical Engineering Team Lead at Lunar Outpost has made significant contributions to lunar exploration technology. A Colorado School of Mines graduate, Mr. Wagner's academic excellence is marked by victories in several national engineering competitions, showcasing his innovative mindset from an early stage.
His rapid ascent to leadership within Lunar Outpost was fueled by his instrumental role in the development and deployment of innovative rover platforms, particularly the flagship MAPP rovers, which are critical to the company's lunar missions. Mr. Wagner's leadership expedited the creation of spaceflight-qualified vehicles, setting new industry benchmarks for development speed without sacrificing quality or performance.
As a recognized "Payload Pioneers 30 Under 30" awardee, Mr. Wagner's influence extends beyond mechanical design and into shaping the trajectory of lunar exploration missions. His pragmatic approach and collaboration with technical teams have enhanced Lunar Outpost's capabilities in government and commercial sectors, firmly establishing the company as a leader in space exploration.
Dr. Katy Croff Bell is the Founder and President of the Ocean Discovery League and a National Geographic Explorer. She is on a mission to break down the barriers to the deep sea by combining low-cost technologies, AI-driven data analysis, and capacity building to make access to the deep sea more efficient and accessible to all, especially those historically excluded in the field. Her background in ocean engineering, maritime archaeology, and geological oceanography, and leadership of dozens of expeditions around the world uniquely position her to create efficient, equitable systems to broaden access to the deep sea. Bell was previously the Founding Director of the Open Ocean Initiative at the MIT Media Lab, Executive Vice President of the Ocean Exploration Trust, and Vice Chair of the Marine Protected Areas Federal Advisory Committee.
John Shoffner, STEAM advocate and business pioneer, served as Pilot of the Axiom Space Ax-2 mission to the International Space Station (ISS) in May 2023, becoming the 598th person to orbit the Earth.
During his mission, Shoffner participated in multiple research activities, hosted live events with schools and produced a series of educational videos to excite the next generation of space enthusiasts.
Shoffner is an accomplished aviator, skydiver, base jumper, racecar driver, whitewater kayaker, hang-glider, cyclist and lifelong space enthusiast. He discovered his love for art and science at an early age, and it never left him.
Shoffner is the Founder of the Perseid Foundation which works to bring world-leading partnerships to develop STEAM curriculum and programs to underserved schools across Appalachia. His work is to help young students recognized their inner vision and find the path to live their most purposeful lives.
Dr. Aleksandra Stankovic is the Executive Director of the Center for Space Medicine Research (CSMR) at the Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School. The mission of the CSMR is to find biomedical solutions to keep humans safe and healthy in long-duration spaceflight, and to translate innovations from the space environment into novel patient care solutions on Earth.
Sandra holds Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees from Harvard University, a PhD in Experimental Psychology from the University of Cambridge, and a Master’s degree in Aeronautics and Astronautics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. She completed her postdoctoral training with the NASA Johnson Space Center’s Behavioral Health and Performance research group. Her research promotes high-level human performance in extreme environments through behavioral health support and improved training, teaming, and cooperation between humans and technology systems. Sandra has conducted extensive research in remote and resource-limited locations, including spaceflight analogs and Antarctic research stations.
Sandra is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, as well as a member of the Bioastronautics faculty in the joint Harvard-MIT Program in Health Sciences & Technology. She is a passionate educator who aims to inspire the next generation of explorers and innovators
Chucho (Jesús) Ocampo Aguilar is a Mexican artist and architect. At the heart of his practice lies the concern of how, through interfaces, workshops, walking, and appropriation of spaces can we misuse, misinterpret, and detour deterministic conceptions of our milieu. Using drifting/erring as a tool, Chucho seeks to challenge preconceptions around scale, use-function, bureaucracy, and our relation to more than human entities. Chucho holds a Science Master in Art, Culture and Technology from MIT, where he cofounded ppppress, a student and alumni run independent press. In parallel, Ocampo works as creative director and partner in dérive LAB: an art, architecture, and urbanism firm with projects related to housing, urban design, public space interventions and cultural management, and is cofounder of BEMA: a cultural center in Queretaro, Mexico. Ocampo has taught and researched in the Art, Culture and, Technology program at MIT, Parsons School of Design, and the Art, Film, and Visual Studies program at Harvard University.
Lunar Research in Lanzarote features research from the MIT Space Exploration Initiative's Lunar analog field program on Spain’s Canary Island of Lanzarote.
Fleet Space Technologies is an Australian space exploration company with a mission to connect Earth, Moon and Mars. Fleet is revolutionizing the search for critical minerals and developing high value applications for defense with its groundbreaking satellite-enabled solutions. Specializing in low-power connectivity, high-performance edge computing and additive manufacturing, Fleet builds space-enabled technologies to solve global challenges and to empower humanity's exploration of new worlds.
Space Tango is an industry leader in automated systems in the pursuit of health and technology manufacturing in space. Since 2017, Space Tango has provided facilities to support iterative R&D and manufacturing in microgravity environments. Through an integrated and intuitive approach, Space Tango works alongside its diverse partner base to embrace pathways to production.
Hosted by Comcast and facilitated by Dr. Don Derek Haddad and Phillip Cherner
Don Derek Haddad is a Planetary Science Software Developer at the Bay Area Environmental Research Institute (BAERI), funded by NASA Ames. He recently earned a PhD from MIT's Responsive Environments Group, exploring the nexus of real, virtual, and imaginary realms through interdisciplinary research in computer graphics, AI, and human-robot interaction. His work includes developing immersive environments and dynamic representations in hybrid spaces, with a focus on sensor-integrated virtual realities. Haddad's significant contributions stem from collaborations with MIT AeroAstro, NASA Ames, and robotics firms like Boston Dynamics. His Master's thesis, "Resynthesizing Reality," was showcased at SIGGRAPH17, highlighting his commitment to advancing scalable presence in digital and physical domains.
Hosted by the Perseid Foundation and facilitated by Dr. Rachel Connolly
Dr. Rachel Connolly is a Research Scientist at the Media Lab where she works as the Systems Integration and Analysis lead for NASA's Science Activation program. Her background is in Astrophysics and her PhD is in Science Education from Columbia University. Her work focuses on designing media and technology-integrated experiences that leverage scientific data for engagement and learning. Prior to joining MIT in 2020, Dr. Connolly was the director of STEM education for WGBH and PBS Learning Media, and before that the Astrophysics Education Manager at the American Museum of Natural History's Hayden Planetarium. She has also been a planetarium director and a high school physics teacher in New York City. She lives in Boston where she plays video games with her son and loves music, cooking, and helping people stargaze.
Hosted by Aurelia Institute and facilitated by Dr. Albert R. Antosca & Dr. Partick Lin
Dr. Albert R. Antosca is one of the founding team members at Aurelia Institute where he serves as COO and leads the institute’s developing initiatives on space ethics & policy. Prior to Aurelia, he served as the program manager for the MIT Space Exploration Initiative at the Media Lab. Before transitioning to academia he enjoyed an early career as a pilot, with flight training starting at age 15, ultimately becoming an airline captain. His academic background includes experience as a professor of humanities at multiple academic institutions and research interests focused on the cultural impacts of emerging technologies. Dr. Antosca holds a BS in Aeronautical Science, MA in International Relations, and PhD in Humanities (spec. philosophy of technology).
Dr. Patrick Lin is the director of the Ethics + Emerging Sciences Group, based at California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, where he is a philosophy professor. He also currently serves on the US National Space Council Users’ Advisory Group and is affiliated with Stanford Law School, Czech Academy of Sciences, World Economic Forum, and other leading orgs. Dr. Lin is also a current Aurelia Institute Fellow. Previous affiliations include the 100-Year Study on AI, Stanford Engineering, US Naval Academy, Dartmouth College, University of Notre Dame, University of Iceland (Fulbright), Center for a New American Security, New America Foundation, UNIDIR, and others.
He is well published in technology ethics—including on frontier development (esp. outer space and the Arctic), AI, robotics, cybersecurity, bioengineering, nanotechnology, security technologies, and more—and is regularly invited to provide briefings on the subject to industry, media, and government.
Currently, Dr. Lin is the principal investigator on two ethics projects funded by the US National Science Foundation, one on outer space cybersecurity (SaTC program) and the other on AI and robot ethics (NRI 3.0 program). He earned his BA in philosophy from UC Berkeley and PhD from UC Santa Barbara, with a background in the biosciences.