Jekan Thanga

Jekan Thanga is an Associate Professor in the Department of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering at the University of Arizona’s College of Engineering, with a joint appointment in Electrical and Computer Engineering and status as a Member of the Graduate Faculty. He is the Head of the Space and Terrestrial Robotic Exploration (SpaceTREx) Laboratory and leads the NASA-supported ASTEROIDS Laboratory, focusing on innovative robotic systems for space and planetary exploration.

Dr. Thanga earned his B.A.Sc. in Engineering Science (Aerospace) from the University of Toronto and his Ph.D. in space robotics from the University of Toronto Institute for Aerospace Studies (UTIAS). He completed a postdoctoral fellowship at MIT’s Field and Space Robotics Laboratory (FSRL) and gained industry experience at MDA Space Missions, working on the Canadarm and Orbital Express programs.

His research is centered on autonomous robotic systems, including CubeSats, swarms, and sensor networks, for exploring extreme environments such as asteroids, lava tubes, and planetary surfaces. He employs multi-disciplinary optimization and bio-inspired neuro-evolutionary methods to design high-performance, unconventional robotic systems. His work spans propulsion, power, communications, and control, with applications in interplanetary missions, on-orbit servicing, and lunar/asteroid resource utilization.

The 15 most recent publications highlight a strong trend toward autonomous systems for lunar and planetary construction, swarm-based exploration, inflatable and deployable structures, propulsion innovation (including solar thermal and steam systems), and cislunar surveillance. His team is advancing technologies for the Lunar Ark concept, lava tube exploration, debris avoidance, and in-situ construction using robot swarms and AI-driven design.

• Popular Mechanics Breakthrough Award (2016)
• Tech Briefs Top 5 Award, Aerospace/Defense (2017)
• HeroX CubeSat Challenge Winner (2017)
• MBR Mars Settlement Challenge Winner (2018)
• NASA RASCAL Winner and Finalist (2021)
• NASA BIG Competition Top 10 and Collaboration Award (2020)
• ASEE Teaching Award (2019)
• Subject Matter Expert Fellowship, US Special Forces SOFWERX (2019)
• Multiple Best Student Paper and Presentation Awards (2017–2021)

Dr. Thanga has graduated over 60 students who now hold leadership roles in aerospace, defense, and IT. He is the Engineering PI on two CubeSat missions: the US Air Force-funded SWIMSat and AOSAT-1, a CubeSat centrifuge laboratory. His lab, SpaceTREx, fosters interdisciplinary collaboration and student-centric research, securing significant grants from NASA, NSF, and DoD. The lab is equipped with clean rooms, vacuum chambers, 3D printers, and air tables to support design, integration, and testing for extreme environments.