A cohort of 10 University of Â鶹´«Ã½ at Mānoa undergraduates was selected to participate in the inaugural LUNADS—Lunar Undergraduate/graduate missioN Architecture Design Seminar—a competitive national program run by the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) under NASA to engage university students in lunar science and NASA-style mission design.
The students are engaged in the Space System Science and Technology program undergraduate minors, either the minor in Earth and Planetary Exploration Technology or the minor in Human Space Flight Technology, administered by the (HIGP) in the UH Mānoa (SOEST).
“This program gives our undergraduate students direct access to NASA-style mission design alongside some of the best planetary scientists and engineers in the country—an experience that grows directly from our Earth and Planetary Exploration Technology and Human Space Flight Technology programs and reflects HIGP¡¯s long-standing commitment to preparing the next generation of space scientists and engineers from Â鶹´«Ã½,” said Peter Englert, HIGP professor and LUNADS faculty lead and program coordinator.
Designing a lunar mission concept
One of only four university cohorts chosen nationally, the UH Mānoa students will participate in the program throughout the 2026–2027 academic year. The program includes a Lunar Science Seminar Series, followed by a 10-week Mission Design Seminar in spring 2027 in which they work directly with APL scientists and engineers to design an actual lunar mission concept—the team chooses the science question and builds the mission. The completed mission architecture will be published on Zenodo, an open-access repository, with all student participants listed as co-authors.
The students bring diverse academic backgrounds, with majors spanning mechanical engineering (aerospace concentration), astrophysics and kinesiology and rehabilitation science. HIGP researchers Paul Lucey (lunar remote sensing), Matt Siegler (lunar thermal science and volatiles, such as water, carbon dioxide, and other gases) and Shuai Li (lunar water ice detection) will all serve as faculty advisors.
“The knowledge, skills and hands-on experiences ahead for these students make LUNADS participation a direct and meaningful extension of their academic work within HIGP and UH Mānoa programs,” Englert said. “I look forward to seeing where they take this opportunity.”
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