USC Master's in Aerospace Engineering working across propulsion test operations, systems integration, and in-space manufacturing: served as Test Conductor on a 1,000 psi cryogenic hot-fire campaign at the USC Liquid Propulsion Lab, architecting AI-driven spacecraft risk models with SpaceTech AI (STAI), and laser-scribing graphene electronics for orbital manufacturing at USC's Center for Advanced Manufacturing.
I work at the intersection of hardware and verification, where a system either proves itself under real conditions or it doesn't.
As Propulsion Engineer on Nomad at the USC Liquid Propulsion Lab, I served as Test Conductor for a 1,000 psi MEOP cryogenic Jet-A/LOx hot-fire campaign "Hodor" — owning abort criteria and real-time data monitoring through a campaign that enabled four hot-fires in a single day at RRS Mojave.
That same test discipline extends into materials, structures, and systems. At USC's Realization of Robotic Systems lab, since May 2026, I've designed and manufactured a payload box, re-engineered a tool-changer locking mechanism, and built robotic-arm testbed hardware for an on-orbit operations demo submitted to the NASA Tech Leap Challenge. At the Center for Advanced Manufacturing, I laser-scribed graphene sensors on 3D-printed PEKK and ran a predictive structural and thermal-transient model in ANSYS Workbench; that compression test was not run. On the systems side, I've led GN&C-adjacent work on a Mars Sample Return entry vehicle's flight computer and descent guidance, architected crewed Mars surface systems, and directed a four-person team building AI-driven spacecraft risk models for SpaceTech AI (STAI), co-authored for IAC Sydney 2025.
I'm looking to bring that same rigor to mechanical/hardware design, environmental test, GN&C, systems integration, or mechanisms AI&T roles on a hardware team working toward flight.
Hands-on depth across the disciplines that decide whether hardware survives the test stand and the mission: test operations, structural/thermal analysis, GN&C, and the systems architecture that ties them together.
Served as Test Conductor for a 1,000 psi MEOP cryogenic Jet-A/LOx hot-fire campaign (Hodor feed system) — abort criteria, real-time monitoring, safety protocol. Enabled four hot-fires in a single day at RRS Mojave.
Propulsion Engineer on Nomad — a 675 lbf metal 3D-printed thrust chamber assembly. Supported the design from concept through CDR, then assembled and integrated the engine for hot-fire.
Hands-on mechanical design and hardware fabrication in two labs: a payload box, tool-changer locking mechanism, and motion-training hardware for a robotic-arm on-orbit ops demo at the Realization of Robotic Systems lab, plus laser-induced graphene sensors on 3D-printed PEKK at the Center for Advanced Manufacturing, with a predictive structural and thermal model in ANSYS Workbench.
Avionics and GN&C work on a Mars Sample Return entry vehicle — built flight computer architecture, descent guidance, and entry trajectory analysis constraining peak structural loads.
Lead Systems Architect for SpaceTech AI's (STAI) AI-powered space risk prediction project, designing how an AI module ingests spacecraft subsystem state to forecast on-orbit anomalies.
End-to-end mission architecture from Earth-Mars crewed transfer and surface systems to interplanetary trajectory design in GMAT.
Designed, manufactured, and validated hardware for a robotic-arm on-orbit ops demo, submitted to the NASA Tech Leap Challenge.
Laser-induced graphene electronics on 3D-printed PEKK substrates for in-space sensing and stress monitoring.
675 lbf metal-3D-printed cryogenic thrust chamber assembly; owned test operations and engine integration.
Systems architecture for an AI module forecasting on-orbit risk from spacecraft telemetry.
Trade studies and technical reporting for a Venus atmospheric habitat mission concept.
Hydraulic systems routing for LCA Tejas Mk-II and AMCA programs.
675 lbf metal-3D-printed thrust chamber assembly, Jet-A/LOx, integrated and hot-fired at RRS Mojave. Supported the design through CDR and served as Test Conductor on the 1,000 psi MEOP feed system, enabling four hot-fires in a day.
Nomad is a 675 lbf thrust chamber assembly developed at the USC Liquid Propulsion Laboratory — a metal 3D-printed engine burning Jet-A and liquid oxygen, taken from concept to hot-fire in a student-led program. I supported the chamber design through CDR, then assembled and integrated the engine itself.
As Test Conductor for the 1,000 psi MEOP cryogenic feed system ("Hodor"), I owned abort criteria, real-time data monitoring, and safety protocol through a campaign that achieved four hot-fires in a single day at RRS Mojave — while also standing up communications and test-bed logistics at the FAR test site.
Designed and manufactured a payload box, re-engineered a tool-changer locking mechanism (6 attachment orientations), and built robotic-arm end-effector and testbed hardware for an on-orbit operations demo, validated over 500 training cycles. Submitted to the NASA Tech Leap Challenge.
At USC's RRoS Lab, I design, manufacture, and validate hardware for a robotic-arm on-orbit operations demonstration submitted to the NASA Tech Leap Challenge. I designed and built a payload box prototype for robotic-arm manipulation, re-engineered a tool-changer locking mechanism to enable six distinct attachment orientations, and manufactured the arm-testbed end-effector and motion-training hardware in Fusion 360.
The full hardware set was validated over 500 training cycles; I also upgraded the lab's 3D printer and managed BOM sourcing for the project.
Laser-induced graphene electronics on 3D-printed PEKK. The custom chamber for the 450 nm laser held 60 Torr. The PEKK/PEEK membrane model in ANSYS Workbench was a prediction; the compression test was not run.
Laser-induced graphene (LIG) offers a path to fabricating sensing electronics directly onto spacecraft structures in orbit. At USC's Center for Advanced Manufacturing, I scribed LIG heaters and thermal sensors onto 3D-printed PEKK substrates with a 450 nm laser and developed an original sensor geometry. A structural and thermal-transient model in ANSYS Workbench predicted how a PEKK/PEEK membrane would behave under compression from room temperature through LEO hot-end ranges. That compression test was not run.
The laser work used a custom vacuum chamber I built and held at 60 Torr. Thermal-conductivity measurements used the 3-omega method in a separate, existing chamber at about 250 Torr.
Systems Architect Lead at SpaceTech AI (STAI): architecture framework for an AI module forecasting on-orbit anomalies from spacecraft telemetry. Leading a team of four.
As Systems Architect Lead in the SpaceTech AI Special Interest Group (STAI), I direct the systems architecture for an AI module that ingests spacecraft subsystem state and telemetry to forecast on-orbit anomalies before they become failures.
I developed the framework governing how the AI layer interacts with each spacecraft subsystem, lead a four-person engineering team through weekly task cycles and reporting, and co-authored the resulting paper — "AI-Powered Space Mission Risk Prediction: Real-Time Failure Detection and Adaptive Contingency Planning" — presented at the 76th International Astronautical Congress, Sydney 2025.
Avionics and GN&C design for an MSR entry vehicle: flight computer architecture (Raspberry Pi 4), thermal/ranging sensor integration, and entry trajectory analysis constraining peak loads to <2g.
Avionics and GN&C design for a Mars Sample Return entry vehicle covering the full entry-descent-landing problem. I architected the flight computer around a Raspberry Pi 4 for entry state monitoring, integrated thermal and ranging sensors, and performed entry trajectory analysis that constrained peak structural loads below a 2g target — supported by aeroshell geometry and ballistic coefficient trade studies.
The flight computer simulation and Monte Carlo analysis code is public on GitHub, and the demo video shows the simulated EDL flight sequence end to end.
Earth-Mars crewed transfer architecture and surface systems design — hybrid Sabatier-CDRA ECLSS, EVA protocols, and a multi-criteria landing site trade study.
An end-to-end architecture study for a crewed Mars surface program: Earth-Mars transfer design, surface systems, and site selection. I designed the ECLSS around a hybrid Sabatier-CDRA loop, developed EVA operational protocols, and ran a multi-criteria landing site trade study weighing science value, terrain, resource access, and risk.
The full report covers mission architecture, mass budgets, and system-level trades.
Arduino-based embedded control system with computer vision (OpenCV) and an embedded LIG load sensor for real-time navigation and payload stability response.
A ground-up autonomous vehicle build combining embedded control and computer vision. The Arduino-based control system fuses OpenCV-driven navigation with an embedded LIG load sensor — connecting my materials research to a working robotics application — for real-time path response and payload stability monitoring.
The demo video shows the vehicle navigating autonomously; CAD, sensor, and software files are available in the project archive.
Python-based nozzle design tool integrating NASA CEA thermochemical data to compute thrust, Isp, and optimal expansion ratio across chamber pressure and altitude.
A Python-based 1-D converging-diverging nozzle analysis tool built on isentropic flow relations and NASA CEA thermochemical data. It computes thrust, specific impulse, and thrust coefficient across chamber pressures and altitudes up to 86 km, locates normal shocks in over-expanded operation, and sizes nozzle geometry for optimal expansion ratio.
Source code is on GitHub with the full project report in the archive.
Interplanetary transfer trajectory design in GMAT: launch-window selection, delta-v budgeting, and orbit insertion analysis.
My B.Tech capstone with Team Phoenix: a complete interplanetary transfer design from Earth to Venus simulated in GMAT — launch-window selection, delta-v budgeting, transfer trajectory, and Venus orbit insertion analysis, with spacecraft characteristics defined across each mission phase.
The project poster summarizes the design, and the team documentary tells the build story.
Astronautical engineering coursework — spacecraft thermal control, low-cost space mission design, space exploration architectures. The Center for Advanced Manufacturing role ended in April 2026. Current research is at USC's Realization of Robotic Systems lab.
Aerospace, aeronautical, and space engineering fundamentals. Capstone and undergraduate projects spanning CubeSat structures, MATLAB-based aircraft design, and an interplanetary mission to Venus.
Co-authored paper · AI-Powered Space Risk Prediction (SpaceTech AI, STAI) · DOI ↗
1,000 psi MEOP cryogenic Jet-A/LOx · RRS Mojave
Systems Engineer, Venus MEON
English · Hindi · Kannada · Telugu
If you're building propulsion hardware, running environmental test campaigns, developing GN&C or flight controls, or working on satellite systems integration and mechanisms AI&T — I'd like to talk.
