Prof. Kerri Cahoy

Professor Cahoy's research focuses on using spacecraft to study the atmosphere of the Earth, Solar System planets like Mars, and exoplanets. She leads the MIT Space Telecommunications, Astronomy, and Radiation Laboratory (STAR Lab) in the department of Aeronautics and Astronautics. Her group develops nanosatellites, such CubeSats, for technology and science demonstrations. Current flight projects include instruments for Earth observation, such as imagers and weather sensors. STAR Lab also focuses on ways to get large amounts of science data from these tiny, resource-constrained platforms down to Earth using laser communications. In addition to nanosatellites, STAR Lab research supports using large space telescopes to search for and characterize Earth-like exoplanets.


(summary updated 9/2016)