Sigrid Elschot (born 1971) is a professor in the Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics at

Stanford University Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a Private university, private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth ...

. Her primary research interest is the

space environment Space environment is a branch of astronautics, aerospace engineering and space physics that seeks to understand and address conditions existing in space that affect the design and operation of spacecraft. A related subject, space weather, deals wit ...

with particular focus on

meteoroids A meteoroid ( ) is a small rocky or metallic body in outer space. Meteoroids are distinguished as objects significantly smaller than ''asteroids'', ranging in size from grains to objects up to wide. Objects smaller than meteoroids are classifie ...

meteors A meteor, known colloquially as a shooting star, is a glowing streak of a small body (usually meteoroid) going through Earth's atmosphere, after being heated to incandescence by collisions with air molecules in the upper atmosphere, creating a ...

, and

orbital debris Space debris (also known as space junk, space pollution, space waste, space trash, space garbage, or cosmic debris) are defunct human-made objects in spaceprincipally in Earth orbitwhich no longer serve a useful function. These include dere ...

, and their interaction with

spacecraft A spacecraft is a vehicle that is designed spaceflight, to fly and operate in outer space. Spacecraft are used for a variety of purposes, including Telecommunications, communications, Earth observation satellite, Earth observation, Weather s ...

and spacecraft operations.

Career

Professor Elschot's research at Stanford University explores the effects of space weather on spacecraft and the role of electromagnetic waves in satellite communications. Her work supports space situational awareness by advancing

remote sensing Remote sensing is the acquisition of information about an physical object, object or phenomenon without making physical contact with the object, in contrast to in situ or on-site observation. The term is applied especially to acquiring inform ...

techniques using both satellite-based sensors and ground-based

radar Radar is a system that uses radio waves to determine the distance ('' ranging''), direction ( azimuth and elevation angles), and radial velocity of objects relative to the site. It is a radiodetermination method used to detect and track ...

. She investigates plasma interactions relevant to signal transmission, as well as hypervelocity impacts on spacecraft using experimental methods such as dust accelerators and light-gas guns, complemented by

Particle-In-Cell In plasma physics, the particle-in-cell (PIC) method refers to a technique used to solve a certain class of partial differential equations. In this method, individual particles (or fluid elements) in a Lagrangian frame are tracked in continuous ...

simulations. Additionally, she utilizes radar observations to study space debris and meteoroid populations and examines

hypersonic In aerodynamics, a hypersonic speed is one that exceeds five times the speed of sound, often stated as starting at speeds of Mach 5 and above. The precise Mach number at which a craft can be said to be flying at hypersonic speed varies, since i ...

plasma phenomena associated with atmospheric re-entry. Prior to joining Stanford, she was a technical staff member at

MIT Lincoln Laboratory The MIT Lincoln Laboratory, located in Lexington, Massachusetts, is a United States Department of Defense federally funded research and development center chartered to apply advanced technology to problems of national security. Research and dev ...

and a project leader at

Los Alamos National Laboratory Los Alamos National Laboratory (often shortened as Los Alamos and LANL) is one of the sixteen research and development Laboratory, laboratories of the United States Department of Energy National Laboratories, United States Department of Energy ...

. She was a member of two National Research Council panels, in 2010 examining options for detecting and countering near-Earth objects, and in 2011 assessing

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the federal government of the United States, US federal government responsible for the United States ...

's meteoroid and orbital debris programs. She also has contributed to the

Hoover Institution The Hoover Institution (officially The Hoover Institution on War, Revolution, and Peace and formerly The Hoover Institute and Library on War, Revolution, and Peace) is an American public policy think tank which promotes personal and economic ...

through involvement in panels on national security and as a subject matter expert in space for their Stanford Emerging Technology Review. In 2018 she was selected as a NIAC fellow for her research titled "Meteoroid Impact Detection for Exploration of Asteroids (MIDEA)", and in 2021 she was selected as a NIAC fellow for her research titled "Exploring Uranus through Sustained CubeSat Activity Through Transmitted Electromagnetic Radiation (SCATTER)". These studies explore mission concepts for potential exploration of asteroid composition and ice giant magnetospheres using swarms of small satellites coordinated around a mothership.

Awards and honors

* In 2010, she won an NSF Career Award and a Hellman Faculty Fellowship award for her meteor research. * In 2013 she was selected for a DoE Early Career Award for her work on

hypervelocity Hypervelocity is very high velocity, approximately over 3,000 meters per second (11,000 km/h, 6,700 mph, 10,000 ft/s, or Mach 8.8). In particular, hypervelocity is velocity so high that the strength of materials upon impact is v ...

impact plasmas, and also awarded a

Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers The Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE) is the highest honor bestowed by the United States federal government on outstanding scientists and engineers in the early stages of their independent research careers. T ...

. * She was the inaugural Science Guest of Honor at the

ArmadilloCon ArmadilloCon is a science fiction convention held annually in Austin, Texas, USA, since 1979. As the second longest running science fiction convention in Texas, it is sponsored by the Fandom Association of Central Texas and is known for its empha ...

science fiction and fantasy literary convention in 2014. * In 2017 she was recognized by the

American Geophysical Union The American Geophysical Union (AGU) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization of Earth, Atmospheric science, atmospheric, Oceanography, ocean, Hydrology, hydrologic, Astronomy, space, and Planetary science, planetary scientists and enthusiasts that ...

with the Space Physics and Aeronomy

Richard Carrington Richard Christopher Carrington (26 May 1826 – 27 November 1875) was an English astronomer whose 1859 astronomical observations demonstrated the existence of solar flares as well as suggesting their electrical influence upon the Earth and its ...

(SPARC) Education and Public Outreach Award. for significant and outstanding impact on students' and the public's understanding of geophysical science through education and outreach activities. * Asteroid

11009 Sigridclose Eleven or 11 may refer to: *11 (number) * One of the years 11 BC, AD 11, 1911, 2011 Literature * ''Eleven'' (novel), a 2006 novel by British author David Llewellyn *''Eleven'', a 1970 collection of short stories by Patricia Highsmith *''Eleven'' ...

, discovered by astronomer

Schelte Bus Schelte John "Bobby" Bus (born 1956) is an American astronomer and discoverer of minor planets at the Institute for Astronomy of the University of Hawaiʻi and deputy director of NASA's Infrared Telescope Facility (IRTF) at the Mauna Kea Obser ...

at the

Siding Spring Observatory Siding Spring Observatory near Coonabarabran, New South Wales, Australia, part of the Research School of Astronomy & Astrophysics (RSAA) at the Australian National University (ANU), incorporates the Anglo-Australian Telescope along with a coll ...

in 1981, was named in her honor. The official was published by the

Minor Planet Center The Minor Planet Center (MPC) is the official body for observing and reporting on minor planets under the auspices of the International Astronomical Union (IAU). Founded in 1947, it operates at the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory. Funct ...

on 13 April 2017 ().

Television

In 2011, Professor Elschot co-hosted season three of National Geographic Channel's ''Known Universe'' documentary series along with David E. Kaplan, Andy Howell, Michael J. Massimino, and Steve Jacobs. She was interviewed on the Nova ScienceNow ''Can We Make It to Mars?'' episode in 2011 and the

Nova A nova ( novae or novas) is a transient astronomical event that causes the sudden appearance of a bright, apparently "new" star (hence the name "nova", Latin for "new") that slowly fades over weeks or months. All observed novae involve white ...

''Chasing Pluto'' special in 2015.IMDB - "NOVA" Chasing Pluto (TV Episode)
/ref>

References

External links

*
Stanford School of Engineering Faculty Profile

Space Environment and Satellite Systems Laboratory

{{DEFAULTSORT:Elschot, Sigrid Living people 1971 births Northern Lehigh High School alumni Stanford University Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics faculty Recipients of the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers