About
Mission
Illinois Space Tech Academy’s mission is to encourage and engage students in NASA Space Technology Mission Directorate and familiarize the students with NASA’s plan to explore the Moon, Mars, and beyond.
Vision
Provide a highly accessible online course in space technology to inspire students to seek careers with NASA or in space-related STEM industries.
Background
NASA’s Office of STEM Engagement awarded funding to advance Artemis student challenges. Illinois was awarded the Foundation Enablers theme with the objective of creating a Massive Open Online Course relevant to Artemis. The development of the Illinois Space Tech Academy started in 2020 as a result of this NASA Grant (# 80NSSC20K099).
The material contained in this course is based upon work supported by a National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) grant or cooperative agreement. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of NASA. This work was supported through a NASA grant awarded to the Illinois/NASA Space Grant Consortium.
Our Team

Lead PI
Associate Professor and Director of ISGC
website

STEM Coordinator (Project Manager)

Assessment Writer/Education Expert

Video Editor

Web Developer

Video Editor

Web Developer
Special thanks to our Subject Matter Experts. You can find out more about all of them here.

Josh Adamson
Sr. Principal Thermal Engineer at Northrop Grumman Corporation
website

Program Executive
at NASA Armstrong Flight Research Center
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Principal Technologist at NASA Glenn Research Center
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Systems Capability Leadership Team Lead
at NASA Johnson Space Center
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Professor at Bradley University
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President of CU Aerospace
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Northwestern University
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Principal Investigator at NASA Ames Research Center

Center Chief Technologist of NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center
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Professor and Director of Graduate Studies at the University of Illinois at Chicago
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Director of the Intelligent Robotics Group at NASA Ames Research Center
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Ph.D. Candidate at University of Illinois at Chicago
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Associate Professor
Missouri University of Science & Technology Center
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Manager for the Extravehicular Activity Office at NASA Johnson Space Center

Principal Technologist at NASA Headquarters
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Associate Professor of Practice at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
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Professor and Director at Northern Illinois University
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Principal Technologist at NASA Marshall Space Flight Center

Associate Professor, Assistant Chair at Southern Illinois University, Edwardsville
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System Engineering Manager, XQ-58A Flight Test Lead at 5-D Systems, Inc.
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Chief Architect, Space Technology Mission Directorate
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ARTEMIS developer at NASA

Principal Investigator at NASA Langley Research Center
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Rendezvous & Capture System Capability Lead at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
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Associate Professor at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
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Assistant Chief for Technology of the Electrical Engineering Division at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center

Associate Professor
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
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ISRU System Capability Lead at NASA Johnson Space Center
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Professor at Missouri University of Science & Technology
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Assistant Professor at Northern Illinois University
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Assistant Professor at Northern Illinois University
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Professor at Northwestern University
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Associate Professor at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
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Director of Technology Maturation at NASA
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Director of Advanced Research & Development at Limitless Space Institute website

Mars Science Helicopter Vehicle Systems Lead at NASA Ames Research Center
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We would also like to recognize the Northern Illinois University students who were involved in the project initially.

Mechanical Engineering Senior

Mechanical Engineering Senior

Mechanical Engineering Junior

Electrical Engineering Junior