I work to make the world a better place and advance the frontier of science (especially geoscience) through innovations in aerospace robotics. I strive to make sure people worldwide can:

1. participate in STEM and champion their peers

2. sustainably cope with increasing environmental challenges (especially wildfires at the wildland-urban interface)

3. reliably and safely navigate dense urban areas

4. learn more about Earth through geoscience on our planet and beyond

5. capitalize on next-generation space infrastructures, such as worldwide space-based internet, next-generation positioning systems (PNT), and multi-spectral remote sensing

6. benefit from the socially conscious immersion of autonomous systems into society

I am a Ph.D. candidate in the Navigation and Autonomous Vehicles Laboratory at Stanford's Aeronautics & Astronautics Department. My graduate school research includes ways to form digital twins of urbanized and vegetated environments. We specifically use these 3D maps to make urban GNSS-based localization reliable and ensure livelihood in the wildfire-prone American West. Hopefully, one day (in the not-so-distant future), your smartphones, self-driving cars, or local governments will include algorithmic components that I am currently researching!

In 2021, I graduated from the California Institute of Technology with a degree in Mechanical Engineering and a minor in Planetary Science. My academic advisor was Prof. Melany Hunt, my minor advisor was Prof. Bethany Ehlmann, and my senior thesis advisor was Prof. Soon-Jo Chung.

From 2018 to 2019, I worked at the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory on the Perseverance Rover (currently in Jezero Crater, Mars) and the Europa Lander mission (currently in early development). 

February 2025 - Prescribed Fire Research Convening at Stanford's Jasper Ridge Biological Preserve ('Ootchamin 'Ooyakma)

• My presentation: 3D Reconstruction of Ecosystem Response

• Also featured on: Air Quality from Prescribed Burns by Jessica Yu

November 2024 - GIS Day at Stanford

• My presentation: 3D Digital Twins of Environments: The Big and Small

September 2024 - Institute of Navigation (ION) GNSS+ Conference in Baltimore, MD

• My presentation: Neural City Maps for GNSS Shadow Matching

Hopefully, my recent research can help!

I research ways to improve location services in cities. This research is an interdisciplinary adventure, including concepts from global navigation satellite systems, satellite remote sensing, airborne observations, urban planning, special relativity, algorithm development, machine learning, and decision-making under uncertainty.

Merit: See an overview of my research here.

Broader Impacts: I want to make sure that every city dweller can safely get around cities worldwide. No more getting lost in the city and no more lost rideshare drivers. At the same time, I have an eye toward computational efficiency and scalability for worldwide users. Better yet, can we even make use of near-future satellite technologies to help?

I am who I am in large part due to my family, friends, mentors, and peers, who have made a diverse and inclusive space for me to learn and grow. I hope and endeavor to further develop a diverse, equitable, and inclusive space for those around me. I feel it necessary and vital to pass this forward and improve upon it, whether in building a more equitable course curriculum or ensuring a more inclusive teaching practice.

At Stanford:

• Student member on the AeroAstro Student Advisory Committee

• Student member on the AeroAstro Faculty Search Committee 2023

• Mentorship in the Stanford Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship program in addition to five academic time student researchers

At Caltech:

• Secretary and Representative of the Academics and Research Committee

• Diversity Representative to the Caltech Center for Inclusion & Diversity

• Student Representative to Faculty-Board Committees (University Accreditation, Curriculum, and Core Curriculum Committees)

• Student Equity and Title IX Representative

• Student Representative to Caltech COVID-19 Response