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Aerospace Engineering Sciences

Advisors: Jim Nabity and
Labs: Bioastronautics Laboratory and the

Cabra's research will focus on the handling of lunar dust to support space exploration, specifically methods for dust mitigation and/or in-situ resource��​utilization. ��The dust on the lunar surface gets electrically charged from the solar wind and will mobilize or be lofted, causing it to adhere to various materials like spacesuits or spacecrafts with instruments, solar panels, etc. This then becomes a hazard when trying to carry out space exploration. I will focus on strategies to mitigate this.

She am also interested in in-situ resource utilization and the extraction of local resources on the moon. These steps are crucial for making long-duration space missions more sustainable and affordable by minimizing the need to transport materials from Earth. Her work will focus on advancing methods for extracting volatiles from the lunar regolith like oxygen��to produce materials like propellant or habitats.��

Aerospace Engineering Sciences

Advisor: Iain Boyd
Lab: Nonequilibrium Gas & Plasma Dynamics Laboratory

O'Neal's research will focus on��modeling air-breathing electric propulsion (ABEP) systems for spacecraft operating in very low Earth orbit (VLEO). This research will support the development of sustainable, long-duration VLEO missions by enabling in-situ propellant collection and reducing reliance on onboard fuel.��

Mechanical Engineering

Advisors: Virginia Ferguson and Nicole W. Xu
Lab: Ferguson Biomechanics and Biomimetics Lab

Riley's research will use 3D bioprinting to create innovative materials that help corals recover from the stresses of climate change. As ocean temperatures and salinity rise, coral reefs are at risk of dying. Regenerating these ecosystems depends on successful coral settlement: the process where baby coral larvae attach to surfaces and begin to grow. The goal is to design artificial reefs that do more than provide structure—they create an environment that actively promotes coral survival. Beyond reef restoration, this work could offer valuable insights into how engineered materials can support biological resilience in the face of environmental change.

Mechanical Engineering

Advisor: Debanjan Mukherjee
Lab:

Rovito specializes in computational modeling of biofluid systems, with an emphasis on simulating blood flow, drug transport, and clot dissolution in the brain to improve treatment for acute ischemic stroke. His research approaczh combines high-performance computing with vascular biomechanics.��

Chemical Engineering

Advisors:Jerome Fox and Michael Shirts
Lab: and Shirts Research Group

Thompson's research focuses on better understanding and redesigning the molecular “assembly lines” that cells use to make chemical building blocks, especially fatty acids.��These natural systems rely on helper proteins to guide molecules through a series of enzymatic steps, but how these enzymes selectively interact with their partners is still not well understood.

She use computer-based tools—like simulations that predict how molecules move and interact over time, and models that estimate how changes in enzyme levels and behavior impact final yield—to study these systems and identify engineering targets for controlling product outcomes. By combining computational methods with experimental collaboration, she aims to help create new biotechnologies that can produce a wider range of useful chemicals more efficiently than nature can on its own.