Principal Investigator
Ryne Beeson
Assistant Professor in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
Received BS, MS, and PhD in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Received MS in Mathematics from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Was Senior Scientist at CU Aerospace L.L.C. prior to joining the faculty at Princeton University in August 2021.
PhD Candidate, MAE
Amlan Sinha
Received BS in Aerospace Engineering from Cornell University
Research Focus: Optimal Low-Thrust Spacecraft Trajectories in Multiple Gravitational Environment; Robust Low-Thrust Trajectory Optimization.
PhD Candidate, ECE
Anjian Li
Received BS in Mathematics from Beijing Normal University
Received MS in Computer Science from Simon Fraser University
Research Focus: Data-Driven (Amortized) Global Search for Optimal Control Problems; Learning High Dimensional Conditional Distributions via Generative Machine Learning Approaches.
PhD Candidate, MAE
Arjun Chhabra
Received BS in Robotics and Intelligent Systems from the University of Toronto
Research Focus: Low Dimensional Modeling for Cislunar Space Sustainability Analysis; Space Policy.
PhD Student, MAE
Jannik Gräbner
Received BS in Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering from University of Stuttgart
Received MS in Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering from the University of Stuttgart, Institute of Space Systems; Thesis completed as Visiting Student Researcher at Princeton University
Research Focus: Optimal Spacecraft Trajectories, Global Solution Structure and Generative Machine Learning.
PhD Student, MAE
Jack Sydney Schwartz
Received BS and MS in Mathematics from McGill University
MS Visiting Student Research Collaborator
ETH Zürich
Theofania Karampela
Received BS in Electrical Engineering from National Technical University of Athens
Received MS from ETH Zürich
Research Focus: Optimal Proposals from Collaborative Optimal Control; Application to Continuous-Discrete Time Particle Filtering of Chaotic Dynamical Systems
Senior Thesis, MAE
Haley Panchal
Degree: BSE MAE ’26
Focus: Hybrid Control Strategy for Low-Thrust Earth-to-Moon Transfers: Integrating Ballistic Lunar Transfer with Q-Law Guidance
Senior Thesis, MAE
Josephine Kwok
Degree: BSE MAE ’26
Focus: Nonlinear Stability Analysis of Lunar Frozen Orbits for Design Considerations of Space Architectures, Debris Propagation, and Lunar Impact Sites
Junior Independent Work
Sonal Bhatia
Degree: BSE MAE ’26
Fall 2025 Focus: Machine Learning for Nonlinear Data Assimilation
Fall 2024 Focus: Optimal Control in Chaotic Systems Using Adaptive Algorithms
Undergraduate Research
Catherine Spence
Degree: BSE MAE ’28
Focus: Long Duration Dynamical Behavior of Spacecraft and Debris in Low Lunar Frozen Orbits (as part of their NASA NSJGC Academic Year Internship Award)
Alumni
Master of Science, Art, or Engineering
Yujing (Bryant) Zhou
Degree: MAE MA ’24
Focus: Particle Flow Filters and Dissipative Chaotic Systems
Next: Cathay Pacific
An-Ya Olson
Degree: MAE MEng. ’23
Focus: Alternative Uranus Orbiter and Probe Mission Architectures
Next: Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory
Niklas Wegmann
Degree: MAE MEng. ’23
Focus: Very Low Earth Orbit Low Thrust Trajectory Design; jointly advised with MAE Prof. Edgar Choueiri
Next: Busek Co. Inc.
Nathan Spilker
Degree: MAE MEng. ’22
Focus: Probabilistic Indirect Space Flight Optimal Control
Next: Raytheon Missiles & Defense
Senior Theses
Zoe Koniaris
Degree: BSE MAE ’25
Focus: Direct to the Red Planet? The Viability of Human Mars Missions without Lunar Proving Ground
Next: MEng MAE, Princeton University
Adin Kojic
Degree: BSE MAE ’25
Focus: PLAV: A Python 6 Degree-of-Freedom Flight Simulator with Real-Time Arduino Hardware in Loop Simulation
Mori Ono
Degree: BSE MAE ’25
Focus: Design and Optimization of a Self-Expanding Lunar Factory: System Architecture and Resource Utilization Modeling
Next: Astranis
Fiona Chun
Degree: BSE MAE ’25
Focus: Close Proximity Spacecraft Rendezvous Simulation via Omnicoptor
Next: PhD Student, Georgia Institute of Technology
Jack Amen
Degree: BSE MAE ’25
Focus: Solar Flares and Satellites: Testing the Sensitivity of the Iterative Ensemble Kalman Smoother
Next: MS Student, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (Aerospace Engineering); and Engineer at Kiewit
Benjamin Benjadol
Degree: BSE MAE ’24
Focus: Low-Thrust, Multiple Revolution, Guaranteed Convergence Keplerian Orbital Transfers Using a Lyapunov Function-Based Control Law
Honors: John Marshall II Prize (MAE Excellence in Aerospace Engineering Independent Work)
Next: PhD Student, Georgia Institute of Technology (Aerospace Engineering)
Isabel Kim
Degree: BSE MAE ’24
Focus: Design of an Augmented Reality System to Support Human Extravehicular Activity
Next: Sierra Space
Jordan Bowman-Davis
Degree: BSE ECE ’24
Focus: A Guided Payload for Small Unmanned Aerial Systems; jointly advised with MAE Prof. Aimy Wissa
Next: Naval Officer; US Navy
Kristen Ahner
Degree: BSE MAE ’23
Focus: Robust Trajectory Design; Extending the Stochastic Primer Vector Approach
Honors: The Morgan W. McKinzie ’93 Senior Thesis Prize (Best MAE Senior Thesis) & The Calvin Dodd MacCracken Senior Thesis Award (Best SEAS Senior Thesis)
Next: PhD Student, University of Colorado at Boulder (Aerospace Engineering); Draper Fellow; NASA NSTGRO Fellow
John Gonzales
Degree: BSE MAE ’23
Focus: A Bayesian Algorithm for Multiple Target Tracking via Random Finite Sets
Next: Capital One
An-Ya Olson
Degree: BSE MAE ’22
Focus: On a Technique to Uncover a Sample Distribution for Global Spacecraft Trajectory Optimization
Next: MAE MEng. -> Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory
Bennett Holmes
Degree: BSE MAE ’22
Focus: Machine Learning for Gravitational Assists
Next: Boston Consulting Group
Senior Projects
Evan Alfandre, Mariko Storey-Matsutani, and David Fu
Degree: BSE MAE ’25
Focus: Supplementary Mission Architecture Design to Extend Uranus Flagship Mission
Honors: Donald Janssen Dike Award (MAE Excellence in Undergraduate Research)
Next: MS, Stanford University (Aeronautics & Astronautics), Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and University of Colorado at Boulder (respectively)
Yulissa Cantero, Leonardo Espinoza Zuniga, Izabella Moran, and Mench Julia Santelices
Degree: BSE MAE ’22
Focus: Martian Moons Exploration Excursion Vehicle
Junior Independent Work
Sarah Fry
Degree: BSE MAE ’24
Focus: Uranus Secondary Probe Spacecraft Design
Michelle Ho
Degree: BSE MAE ’23
Focus: Trajectory Optimization for Low Thrust Missions in Cislunar Space
Next: PhD Student, Stanford University (Aeronautics & Astronautics)
Undergraduate Summer Research
Sriram Elango
Degree: BS ME Harvard ’27
Focus: Specialized Diffusion Model for Global Trajectory Search Problems
Tyler Harris
Degree: BSE MAE ’27
Focus: Generation and Analysis of Frozen Lunar Orbits
Esteban Nunez Perez
Degree: BSE MAE ’27
Focus: Service-Based Incentives for Debris Mitigation in Low Lunar Orbit
