Research
Research Vision
Our research focuses on mission-level autonomy for spacecraft and constellations operating under uncertainty. We are interested in how autonomous systems perceive their environment, make decisions onboard, exploit environmental dynamics, and remain aligned with human mission intent. This perspective connects our work in constellations, small-force dynamics, human-system integration, autonomy, and simulation into one central question:
How can we define, design, and validate mission capabilities in adaptive space systems?
We approach this question through three tightly connected thrusts: capability-centered mission design, trusted autonomous decision-making, and environmental dynamics as a source of control authority. SpaceAGORA serves as the lab’s core platform for evaluating these ideas in high-fidelity simulation.
Thrust 1
How do we define what an adaptive mission can do?
We study how to define and evaluate what adaptive missions can do as spacecraft and constellations respond to changing conditions.
Thrust 2
How do spacecraft make decisions humans can understand and trust?
We build onboard autonomy that can act under uncertainty while remaining legible to human operators.
Thrust 3
How can missions exploit weak forces and environmental structure to adapt with limited resources?
We use perturbation-aware guidance and control to treat weak forces and environmental structure as part of mission execution.
Enabling Platform
How do we evaluate these ideas in high-fidelity simulation?
SpaceAGORA is the high-fidelity environment where we test mission dynamics, autonomy, and mission behavior before systems fly.
Selected problems and projects show how the thrusts appear in concrete mission settings.