Chris Lewicki

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About

Chris Lewicki is a pioneering figure in the commercial space industry, best known for his visionary work in asteroid mining and in-space resource utilization. As the former President and Chief Engineer of Planetary Resources, he helped shape the company’s foundational goal of extracting water and precious metals from near-Earth asteroids, a concept detailed in his most-cited paper (40 citations). His contributions extend beyond resource extraction; he co-authored a key study on the *Synergies of Robotic Asteroid Redirection Technologies and Human Space Exploration* (8 citations), which demonstrated how asteroid-redirection technologies could serve as stepping stones for human missions to Mars. Before his entrepreneurial ventures, Lewicki was a key engineer at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, where he served as the Flight Director for the Mars Exploration Rovers (Spirit and Opportunity) and contributed to the Mars Phoenix Lander. His work bridges robotic exploration, asteroid science, and deep-space infrastructure, earning him recognition as a leader in the emerging space-resources economy. With a career spanning NASA missions and private-sector innovation, Lewicki continues to inspire a new generation of space entrepreneurs.