Yool Kim

Yool Kim is a Professor of Policy Analysis at the RAND School of Public Policy and a Senior Engineer at the RAND Corporation, where she serves as Director of the RAND Washington Office. Her expertise spans space policy, defense acquisition, international space cooperation, and space warfare strategy. She previously worked at Orbital Sciences Corporation on civil/commercial space programs and held roles in the U.S. Department of Defense's Space Policy office. Kim holds advanced degrees (M.S. and Ph.D.) in Aeronautics and Astronautics from MIT.

Education:

• Ph.D. in Aeronautics and Astronautics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
• M.S. in Aeronautics and Astronautics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Research Focus: Kim's work addresses critical challenges in space system acquisition, commercial space integration, space mission assurance, and organizational design for the U.S. Space Force. She leads projects analyzing threats to space infrastructure, cybersecurity strategies, and policy frameworks for international collaboration.

Advancing Space Policy: Her recent research emphasizes agile acquisition processes for warfighting capabilities, commercial partnerships for surge capacity needs, and mitigating risks in rapidly evolving space markets. She has advised on topics including cyber resilience, satellite launch modernization, and cross-service coordination.

Labs/Teams: Active contributor to the RAND Space Enterprise Initiative, leading virtual panels on global space launch challenges and collaborative research teams focused on space enterprise architecture.