By Alaina O’Regan
March 25, 2025
Ryne Beeson has won the Young Investigator Program award from the Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR) to lead a project that will enable better localization and tracking of spacecraft operating between Earth and the Moon, where the gravitational environment is complex and hard to predict.
Rising interest in lunar exploration has driven a surge in Moon-related missions. But the region of space between Earth and the Moon presents a complex gravitational environment. Spacecraft here are influenced by both Earth’s and the Moon’s gravity, leading to chaotic movement with inherent uncertainty. This is significant for missions like the upcoming Lunar Gateway, a multinational space station that will orbit near the Moon, serving as a science laboratory, a communications hub for lunar missions, and a staging point for deep space exploration.
Gaining a deeper understanding of the gravitational environment in this region is crucial to support United States leadership in space exploration, advance scientific research on the Moon and safeguard current and future missions.
Beeson, an assistant professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering, investigates questions related to space flight, weather and policy using a range of theoretical and computational tools. In this project, his group will develop new mathematical theories and algorithms to efficiently locate, predict and track the movement of objects in this region of space. This research aims to improve spacecraft navigation, reduce collision risks and enhance orbital debris management.
The Air Force Office of Scientific Research Young Investigator Program (YIP) awards funding each year to early-career scientists who show exceptional promise in exploring innovative ideas. The program aims to foster creative research in science and engineering, support early-career development and address key challenges related to the Air Force’s mission.
Beeson joined the Princeton faculty in 2021. He earned a Ph.D. and M.S. in aerospace engineering and a master’s degree in mathematics in 2020 from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Before joining Princeton, he was a senior scientist for CU Aerospace L.L.C., where he directed research and development on numerical optimization algorithms and spacecraft trajectory software.