D. D. Mazanek
Papers
2
Total Citations
27
H-Index
2
About
Dr. D. D. Mazanek is a leading figure in NASA’s strategic planning for human deep-space exploration, with a primary focus on asteroid mission architecture and sustainable spaceflight. His most influential work, "The Asteroid Redirect Mission and sustainable human exploration" (2015, 20 citations), outlines a pivotal concept for using a captured asteroid as a staging point for future Mars missions, demonstrating how robotic and crewed operations could synergize to lower costs and risks. In his co-authored paper "Human Exploration of Near-Earth Asteroids" (2015, 7 citations), Mazanek argues that sending astronauts to NEAs is a critical stepping stone, providing essential engineering data for long-duration spacecraft operations. His research bridges the gap between robotic precursor missions and human expeditions, emphasizing how asteroid exploration can validate life support, propulsion, and in-situ resource utilization technologies. Mazanek’s contributions have directly shaped NASA’s roadmap for expanding humanity’s presence beyond low-Earth orbit, making him a key architect of the agency’s vision for a sustainable, multi-destination future in space.
Research Focus
Key Achievements
Top Papers
- 1The Asteroid Redirect Mission and sustainable human exploration20 citations · 2015
- 2Human Exploration of Near-Earth Asteroids7 citations · 2015