I have been a member of the Mobility and Robotic Systems Section at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory since 1991. Our section designs the rovers and in-situ surface systems for several planetary missions. My previous studies earned me a PhD in EE (Astronautics Minor) from USC, an ME from Rensselaer and an MS with Specialization in Robotics from USC. My primary interests are developing, testing and deploying architectures for future planetary surface spacecraft in remote extreme environments on Earth.

PhD: USC, Electrical Engineering, Astronautics Minor, May 1998
MS: USC, Computer Science with a Specialization in Robotics, Dec. 1994
MS: RPI, Electrical, Computer & Systems Engineering, May 1992
BS: University of Florida, Computer and Information Engineering Sciences, June 1990
Instrument Rated Pilot
Rescue Scuba Diver
Emergency Medical Technician

NASA , Jet Propulsion Laboratory, 1991-Present
Institute for Space and Astronautical Sciences (ISAS), Tokyo, Japan, 1998-99
National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, MD, 1990
Bell Communications Research, Red Bank, NJ, 1989

Tumbleweed Polar Rover Task
Hydrothermal Vent BioSampler Task
Antarctic Ice Borehole Probe Task
Spiderbot Task
MER Rover Planner (in training)
Mars Odyssey Gamma Ray Spectrometer Investigation Scientist

One NASA Award 2005
Mission Architect Development Program 2002
NOVA Award MUSES-C Electronics Team 2000
JPL Award for Exceptional Technical Excellence, May 2001
NASA Graduate Student Researchers Fellowship at JPL, 1992 - 1996
NASA Group Achievement Award, Mars Science Microrover Demo, 1992
Society for Hispanic Professional Engineers Scholarship, 1991, 1992, 1993