Top engineer from NASA delivers lecture at University of Derby

Dr Ravi Margasahayam (one of NASA’s top engineers), visited the University of Derby yesterday (December 16) as part of a NASA tour.

260 people attended the lecture which explored the challenges of Mars Missions, including a video of life on board the International Space Station (ISS) which British Astronaut Tim Peake will currently be experiencing.

The talk covered off ground safety and NASA’s plans to have man land on one of Mars' moons before landing on Mars itself by 2030.

Dr Margasahayam is a member of NASA's Safety and Mission Assurance team, as well as a resident expert on rocket launch-induced noise and vibration. His research focus is on adapting wireless technologies for vibro-acoustic analysis.

Speaking at the event, Dr Margasahayam said: “In order to make our ambition possible we are researching and developing water recovery, oxygen generation and plant growth technologies.”

The event was organised by The Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE) and Institute of Engineering and Technology (IET) Derby and Nottingham Committees.

Dr Margasahayam added: “I thoroughly enjoyed presenting at the University of Derby it was the last in a series of NASA talks. I would like to say a big thank you to the University of Derby for hosting the event.”

John Redgate, Lecturer in Electrical and Electronic Engineering at the University of Derby, added: “This informative lecture provided an insight into NASA’s extensive Mars programme with an aim to land man on the planet, via one of its moons, in 15 years. The University was pleased to host Dr Margasahayam as part of an ongoing series of prestigious institutional lectures.”