Thanks to CoMFRE undergrad research experience, Olivia Tyrrell shot for the moon… and made it

Olivia Tyrrell (mech engr ‘21) recently landed research on the moon in an area she has worked on since she was an undergrad researcher in the Center for Multiphase Flow Research and Education.  

As a junior, she joined the Multiphase Reacting Flow Lab, working under the mentorship of James Michael, associate professor of mechanical engineering and CoMFRE faculty research.  

“Dr. Michael introduced me to research in the department and encouraged me to get involved with a project in his lab. The work I did in his lab with ultrafast imaging systems and laser-based flow diagnostics was a huge asset for me with obtaining a NASA internship and full-time position in the same research areas,” Tyrrell says.

“In the Multiphase Reacting Flow Lab, I was introduced to more complex and intricate problem-solving than anything I had worked with before. It pushed me to dive deep into literature and other materials to successfully build an experimental setup,” she adds. 

Tyrrell is now a research engineer at NASA Langley Research Center. She recently worked on a project called “Stereo Cameras for Lunar Plume Surface Studies (SCALPSS), an engineering experiment to determine the effects of the lander’s plume on the lunar surface during landings.

SCALPSS comprises a suite of four cameras that will image the plume as the lander reaches the surface and continue through engine shut-off. According to NASA, the images from four different perspectives will allow 3D models of the landing site to be made, before and after landing. 

Learn more about SCALPSS in this NASA video where Tyrrell explains how “how a small array of cameras will capture invaluable imagery during lunar descent and landing, and how that imagery can inform our future missions to the Moon and beyond.”