Ms. Melodie Yashar - AnticipatingLunar SurfaceConstruction & Infrastructure
Melodie Yashar is the VP of Building Design & Performance at ICON, a construction technologies company focused on large scale additive manufacturing for Earth and in space. Melodie oversees the architectural direction of ICON’s built work as well as the performance of ICON’s building systems to deliver optimally-performing structures that shift the paradigm of homebuilding on Earth and beyond. Melodie teaches undergraduate and graduate design studios at Art Center College of Design. In previous roles Melodie was a Senior Research Associate with the Human Systems Integration Division at NASA Ames via San Jose State University Research Foundation (SJSURF), a co-founder of Space Exploration Architecture (SEArch+), a research group developing human-supporting designs for space exploration, as well as a Professor within the Architecture department of Pratt Institute.
Mr. Brand Griffin - Rules of Thumb for Space Habitat Design
Mr. Griffin is the program manager for the Single-Person Spacecraft for Genesis Engineering Solutions Prior to this he supported NASA’s Advanced Concepts Office at the Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) working on deep space habitats and plans for establishing an outposts on the Moon and Mars. He has degrees in Architecture, a Master of Fine Arts and was awarded the Prix de Rome in Architecture. He was the co-chair of the System Architecture and Mission Design Department at International Space University and held certifications for flying power and glider aircraft, space suit neutral buoyancy testing, test operations on NASA’s KC-135 reduced gravity aircraft, and scuba.
Dr. Sandra Haeuplik-Meusburger –
Sandra Haeuplik-Meusburger, currently serving as the chair of the Space Architecture Technical Committee at AIAA, has expertise in both research and architectural practice, with a focus on developing sustainable and compact habitability design solutions for Earth and beyond. She teaches and leads Space Architecture design studios at TU Wien, where she is based, as well as at other universities across Europe, UAE, and China. She is the Academic Director for the Science Academy's Space course in Lower Austria and the Executive MBA in Space Architecture at TU Wien. Sandra is the author of several books, including "Architecture for Astronauts - An Activity Based Approach" (Springer, 2011), "Space Architecture Education for Engineers and Architects - Designing and Planning Beyond Earth" (Springer, 2016, co-authored by O. Bannova), and "Space Habitats and Habitability – Designing for Isolated and Confined Environments on Earth and in Space" (Springer, 2021, co-authored by S. Bishop). She is also a full member of the International Academy of Astronautics (IAA).
Ms. Alma Kugic - X-plor - lunar exploratioan and habitation rover
Alma Kugic is an architecture student at University of Technology in Vienna, Austria. She is currently living and working in her hometown Pula, Croatia and writing her master's thesis in the field of space architecture. She started researching this topic at the university under the mentorship of space architect and professor Dr. Sandra Häuplik-Meusburger, and has so far couple of published research papers related to human habitability in space, architecture and design of maritan and lunar bases, and the same projects applied and presented at international conferences ICES 2022, IAC 2022, ASCEND 2021 and Brijuni Conference 2022. In 2021, she became an active member of the Adriatic Aerospace Association, and in 2022 a member of the Space Architecture Technical Committee.
Dr. Paolo Caratelli - Lunar Oasis – An Educational Collaboration Experience / Paolo Caratelli and Sandra Haeuplik-Meusburger
Paolo Caratelli is Associate Professor at the College of Engineering, Department of Architecture and Design of Abu Dhabi University since 2011. Licensed Architect in Italy (OAPPC, Florence Chapter), researcher on architectural and urban sustainability, and investigator about social and cultural changes in architectural design. He published in several international peer-reviewed journals and conference proceedings. His teaching and research activity is focusing on design and technology integration into habitats in isolated confined extreme (ICE) environments, investigation of complex habitation systems as techno-theoretical resources for buildings in ordinary environments, and psycho- physiological effects of confinement in ICE environments. He is a Board Member of AIAA Space Architecture Technical Committee, and member of MVA for the Architectural Concepts Working Group.
Dr. Barbara Imhof - Designing for Earth by living in Space
Dr. Barbara Imhof is an internationally active space architect and design researcher. She is co-founder and co-managing director of LIQUIFER Vienna - Bremen. The interdisciplinary LIQUIFER team, consisting of scientists, engineers, architects and designers, works on R&D projects within the EU Framework Programme, for the European Space Agency, and with European research institutions and industry. The research projects focus on living in limited and transformable spaces and with resource-efficient systems. Learning from systems and principles in nature and integrating biological systems into architecture describe the second thematic path of LIQUIFER's work. For more than 20 years, Barbara Imhof has taught at various renowned universities, such as ETH-Zurich, Chalmers University - Gothenburg, University of Kassel, the Berlin Weißensee School of Art, the University of Applied Arts and University of Technology, Vienna. She is also part of the adjunct faculty of the International Space University and member of the International Astronautical Academy.
Dr. Olga Bannova - Reality check: How Space Architecture responds to Industry needs
Dr. Olga Bannova is a Research Professor at the University of Houston’s Cullen College of Engineering, Director of the world’s only Master of Science in Space Architecture program and Sasakawa International Center for Space Architecture. She received her architectural degree in Moscow, Master of Architecture and Master of Science in Space Architecture from the University of Houston and PhD from Architecture and Civil Engineering in Chalmers University of Technology in Sweden. Olga conducts research and design studies of orbital and surface habitats and settlements, including inflatable structures, special design influences and requirements for different gravity conditions in space, and habitat concepts for extreme environments on Earth. She is an author of books “Space Architecture: Human Habitats beyond the Planet Earth” (2021) and “Space Architecture Education for Engineers and Architects” (2016), many book chapters and dozens of technical publications. Her book “Space Architecture: Human Habitats beyond the Planet Earth” received the Social Sciences Book Award of the International Academy of Astronautics in 2021.
Mr. Sam Ximenes - Leto Mission for Lunar Settlement at the Marius Hills Lava Tube
Sam Ximenes is a Space Architect with over 30 years’ experience in the aerospace industry with NASA, DoD, and international space programs. He is currently CEO of Exploration Architecture Corporation (XArc), a space architecture consulting firm he founded in 2007. The firm specializes in commercial spaceport development and design, and space systems development for space exploration initiatives for planetary surface systems for habitation and human settlement. He is also Founder and Board Chair of WEX Foundation, a non-profit organization for advancing careers in space exploration through Space-STEM education. His latest venture is CEO of Astroport Space Technologies, Inc., founded in 2020 as a wholly owned subsidiary of XArc to develop lunar construction technologies for emplacement of critical elements of lunar surface infrastructure. In 2023, he was inducted into the San Antonio Aviation and Aerospace Hall of Fame
Mr. Vittorio Netti - XR Testing framework for Human-System Interaction design Validation
Vittorio Netti, born in Bari, Italy, has a Bachelor's and Master of Architecture at IUAV (Venice) Master in Space Architecture at UH (Houston), and is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Aerospace Engineering at Politecnico di Bari. It has published different research on Space Architecture, System Engineering, and Aerospace Engineering topics. He worked as Consultant in Space Architecture for companies and research entities. Acting commander in two different field research missions. and Co-founder of two Aerospace startups. Currently resident in Houston and employed as Researcher at UH.
Dr. Marc Cohen - Innovation and Tradition in Space Architecture
Prof. Madhu Thangavelu -