AARTI PATEL 
(she/her)

  • Brooke Owens Fellow, Class of 2021

Aarti Patel is a senior at the University of Pittsburgh studying Mechanical Engineering. Originally from Yardley, Pennsylvania, she grew up immersed in her Indian heritage and culture with great support from her parents, sister, and grandpa. As a child, Aarti was naturally very curious and creative. After receiving the gift of a telescope from her dad, she fell in love with the night sky spending most of her summer nights looking at the moon. Her interest for space exploration grew and it inspired her to pursue her dreams for contributing to the advancement of aerospace technology. Her growing interest in space also inspired her to continue pursuing her creative passion through art.

During her 2nd year at the University of Pittsburgh, Aarti was a co-founding member of the Pitt Rocketry Team, which is now called Pittsburgh SOAR. She was the Recovery System lead for the team competing in the NASA Student Launch Competition for the first time. With her growing knowledge and experience working on the recovery system, she took on the leadership role of Vice President and Safety Lead during her junior year. Aarti also served as a Chief Engineer of the NASA Student Launch Team through Fall of 2020 and Spring of 2021 at the University of Pittsburgh.

In addition to her involvement in Pittsburgh SOAR, Aarti has experience as an undergraduate student researcher working in the Department of Mechanical Engineering & Materials Science. During her time as a researcher, Aarti has done work on the Perfusion Stent Research Project and the Solar Rover Computer Vision Project.

Through her time at the University of Pittsburgh, Aarti has had five internship experiences. In the Fall of 2019, she interned with Curtiss Wright as a Generator & Motor Design and Development Co-op supporting various projects for Navy submarines and propulsion units. In the Spring of 2021, Aarti interned with Blue Origin as an Integrated Test Engineering Intern supporting the New Glenn launch vehicle. As a Brooke Owens Fellow, Aarti interned with Airbus U.S. Space & Defense in the Summer of 2021. She was a Satellite Systems Engineering Intern supporting the Arrow Satellite Platform through Model-Based Systems Engineering (MBSE).

Aarti was also a NASA Psyche Inspired Intern for the Nickel Class of 2020-2021. In this year long program, she created meaningful art for the Psyche Mission with the purpose of public engagement and education for the upcoming Psyche asteroid mission. With this unique opportunity, Aarti hopes to continue to create inspiring and educational space art for the public and students.

Outside of her academic interests, Aarti enjoys creative projects, the outdoors, and music. She is also a black belt in Martial Arts and loves taking on new activities and challenges.

Aarti looks forward to graduating in May of 2022 with a Bachelor's Degree in Mechanical Engineering. After graduation she will be starting as a CRONUS Flight Controller trainee at NASA Johnson Space Center supporting ISS Mission Control.