
THE USC ADVANCED SPACECRAFT PROPULSION AND ENERGY LABORATORY
What We Do
Founded in August 2018, the Advanced Spacecraft Propulsion and Energy
(ASPEN) Laboratory at USC is the nation’s only student-led research group
focused on modeling nuclear-based spacecraft propulsion systems. Initially comprised of eight undergraduate students, and three faculty advisors, Dr. Charles Radovich, Dr. Paul Giuliano, and Dr. Matthew Gilpin, the team has grown to include various undergraduates from across engineering disciplines. We are a multi-disciplinary and driven team with a shared passion for advanced propulsion concepts and nuclear-based propulsion research.
HYPERION-I CAMPAIGN
Hyperion-I is ASPEN’s first engine modeling a solid-core nuclear thermal rocket engine using an inductively heated, additively manufactured metallic core. An overarching view of the development campaign for Hyperion-1 includes three Phases of modeling and hardware testing. Experimental data from each phase will be compared to corresponding linked multiphysics models in ANSYS. Three test articles, starting with a single tube and ending with a full printed core, will be tested with gaseous nitrogen while in an inductive heating environment used to model the nuclear fission that occurs in true solid-core nuclear thermal engines.



PHASE I
Fall 2019
PHASE II
Spring/Fall 2020
PHASE III
Spring 2021
TEAM
Get to Know Us

ARAM
SHAHINYAN
Lab Lead

JACKY
HUANG
Lab Lead

SEBASTIAN MATIAUDA
Hardware Lead

KAYDEN
ELMER-SCHURR
Simulations Lead

JARED
RAMIREZ
Operations Lead and Treasurer

MICAH
PRATT
Technical Advisor

COLIN
COANE
Technical Advisor
General Engineers
Olivia Kukar | Jelly Ren | Nicholas Pardo | Ava Norrell | Colin Spiridonov | Malcolm Eady | Nawaf Abualsaud | Breece Phipps | Robert Schick | Hannah Snow | Josh Zhou | Lucy Shi | Bradley Martin | Abdulah Kahn | Samantha Lynch | Griffin MacRae | Casey Boatman | Eashan Sarkar | Jennah Saqib | Cecil Franklin | Brad Barakat
FACULTY ADVISORS

DR. LUBOS BRIEDA
Lecturer of Astronautical Engineering
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Ph.D., Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, The George Washington University
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M.S., Aerospace and Ocean Engineering, Virginia Tech
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B.S.,Aerospace and Ocean Engineering, Virginia Tech

DR. MATTHEW GILPIN
Senior Lecturer of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering
Ph.D., Aerospace Engineering, University of Southern California
M.S., Aerospace Engineering, University of Southern California
B.S., Aerospace Engineering, University of Southern California

SPONSORS
Valued Partnerships


