MiMi Aung
Project Manager for Mars Helicopter at the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), California Institute of Technology
Friday, Feb 22 | 12:00 PM | ECCR 265
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Abstract: NASA is sending a helicopter to Mars. The Mars Helicopter, a small, autonomous rotorcraft, will demonstrate the viability of flight in the very thin atmosphere of Mars. It will be the first-time ever flight of a heavier-than-air vehicle outside of Earth’s atmosphere, and promises to add the aerial dimension and open doors to new classes of space exploration, with possibility of opening doors to new classes. Aung will present an overview of this first-of-its-kind flight demonstration at Mars.
Mars Helicopter is scheduled for launch on the Mars 2020 rover mission in July 2020.
Biography: Ms. Aung has a Bachelor of Science degree and a Master of Science degree in Electrical Engineering from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. At JPL, she has applied her Engineering background in multiple areas of space exploration, including Deep Space Autonomous Systems; Spacecraft Guidance, Navigation & Control; multiple-spacecraft Formation Flying; Optical Communications; and Deep Space Signal Processing & Communications. She has worked on space flight projects, Deep Space Network, technology development for autonomous systems, and line management of technical organizations. She is passionate about space exploration, especially to advance the autonomous capability of spacecraft exploring deep space.