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About

Christopher D. Karlgaard is a leading aerospace engineer whose research focuses on the critical phases of Entry, Descent, and Landing (EDL)—the most perilous moments of any planetary mission. His work is foundational to understanding how spacecraft safely reach the surfaces of Mars and the Moon. Karlgaard’s most prominent contribution is his leadership in the Advanced Supersonic Parachute Inflation Research Experiment (ASPIRE), where he developed sophisticated preflight trajectory models and postflight reconstruction techniques. This work, detailed in his most-cited paper (20 citations), directly informed the design and validation of supersonic parachutes for robotic Mars landers, building upon the legacy of the Mars Science Laboratory. He has also been instrumental in advancing EDL instrumentation, authoring a key white paper that surveys the state-of-the-art for atmospheric entry vehicles. Most recently, Karlgaard is at the forefront of precision landing technology, demonstrating the Navigation Doppler Lidar (NDL) system aboard the first commercial lunar lander. This compact, cost-effective sensor provides high-performance velocity and altitude measurements, promising to enable safe, soft, and precise landings on the Moon and beyond.