The Space Systems Design Laboratory (SSDL) was founded within Georgia Tech's Guggenheim School of Aerospace Engineering in 1995 by Dr. John Olds  with the goal of creating a world-class research and educational organization dedicated to the design of advanced space systems.

Research in the lab centers on identification and assessment of new technologies and approaches for human and robotic planetary exploration. Access to space, atmospheric entry and space systems engineering topics are research areas of particular interest and expertise. Our projects rely heavily on computer simulation and analytical prediction techniques to answer “what-if” questions related to next-generation space missions, vehicles, and architecture concepts. Members of the lab have developed new distributed design methods, new disciplinary analysis tools, and multidisciplinary design optimization techniques for robust design in an uncertain environment. The common focus of the lab is the application of these methods and tools to future space systems.

Students graduating from SSDL have found employment at NASA, the FAA, Boeing, Lockheed Martin, Pratt & Whitney, Orbital Sciences, JPL, SpaceWorks Engineering, Ball Aerospace, and the U.S. Air Force.

For more information on the SSDL, please contact.

Dr. Robert Braun

robert.braun@ae.gatech.edu