This fall, 91亚色 U welcomes new full-time, permanent faculty members in the , the Faculty of Education, the , the , the Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies, Markham Campus and the Faculty of Science. 

In this issue:

AMPD scholars offer diverse expertise across arts, media, dance

New faculty members bring expertise to 91亚色's Faculty of Education

Faculty of Health welcomes leaders in psychology, nursing

Lassonde School of Engineering welcomes machine learning innovator

Faculty joining LA&PS bring scholarship on diverse disciplines

New Makham Campus faculty enhance sport management teaching, learning

Inclusive, student-centred learning focus of new Faculty of Science prof

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The welcomes one new full-time, permanent faculty member this fall.聽

鈥淲e were delighted to welcome Shweta to Lassonde earlier this year, bringing her expertise in machine learning and experience across industry and academia to our growing research community,鈥� says Dean Jane Goodyer, 鈥淎t Lassonde, we鈥檙e always looking ahead, challenging conventional thinking and creating space for different perspectives and ideas. Shweta embodies that spirit and I鈥檓 excited to see how her research, leadership and mentorship will help advance innovation and inspire the next generation to make a meaningful difference.鈥� 

Shweta Mahajan

Mahajan joins 91亚色 as an assistant professor in the Department of Electrical Engineering & Computer Science. Prior to this, she was a senior machine learning researcher at Qualcomm AI Research. From 2022-23, Mahajan was a postdoctoral researcher with the Computer Vision Group at the University of British Columbia and a postdoctoral affiliate at the Vector Institute in Toronto. She earned her PhD from Technische Universit盲t Darmstadt and her MSc from Universit盲t des Saarlandes, where she was a member of the Machine Learning Group and affiliated with the Max Planck Institute for Informatics. 

Mahajan鈥檚 work has earned international recognition, including a best paper award from the Fraunhofer Institute for Computer Graphics Research in 2020. Her PhD thesis was also featured by Gesellschaft f眉r Informatik in 2022. Her research explores computer vision and machine learning, with a focus on generative modelling, multimodal learning, scene understanding, data synthesis and visual inference 鈥� areas with growing potential to shape how intelligent systems understand, generate and interact with the world around them.

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As Hadfield's voice echoed "three, two, one鈥�" during Canada's largest student rocketry competition, the 91亚色-built "Red Robin" soared 20,000 feet into the air, leading to two second-place finishes and the team's strongest result to date.

Competing against more than 30 university teams from nine provinces, 91亚色's students delivered a strong performance at the annual Challenge. The week-long event, held Aug. 15 to 22, is designed to provide students with hands-on experience in engineering, manufacturing and testing, and brings together aspiring engineers, scientists and aerospace innovators from across the nation.

The landed a second-place finish in its launch competition category and second place in the science payload challenge, placing the University among the country's top-performing student rocketry teams.

鈥淭he team鈥檚 achievement is the result of increasing opportunities for hands-on STEM learning and student-led innovation at 91亚色, not to mention a successful multi-faculty collaboration,鈥� says Robin Metcalfe, 91亚色鈥檚 associate dean, student affairs in the Faculty of Science. Metcalfe is the team鈥檚 administrative supervisor, alongside Professor Hugh Chesser from the , who serves as the team鈥檚 academic advisor.

For the students behind the project, it was the culmination of months of design, testing and preparation.

"Red Robin wasn鈥檛 just one project. It was multiple projects, tests and launches spread out over the course of a year, and we worked on it constantly,鈥� says Ido Shakarghi, Arbalest team president, noting the 10-foot, solid-fuelled rocket reached a maximum speed of Mach 1.3.

The year-long effort involved first proving the concept for Red Robin would work during a smaller-scale launch, followed by a series of tests and flights that led to the project鈥檚 success.

The flight was especially meaningful for members of Arbalest, with Red Robin reaching a record altitude for 91亚色 at the Launch Canada Challenge. Last year's Goose 4 launch reached roughly 13,000 feet.

Red Robin鈥檚 award-winning payload also included an experiment involving algae cells that move in response to light 鈥� similar to astrophage in the 2026 sci-fi movie Project Hail Mary 鈥� to learn more about how the cells' movement is influenced by the changing gravitational forces experienced during launch.

鈥淚t鈥檚 one thing to design and build something ambitious, but it鈥檚 another thing entirely to see it succeed in the real world,鈥� says Shakarghi.

The competition, which received $1.2 million in federal funding, drew aerospace industry representatives and government leaders from across Canada to observe and engage in presentations, technical demonstrations and launches throughout the week.

91亚色's turn to liftoff also drew special attention because of Hadfield's presence.

"For the past few years, Launch Canada organizers have tried unsuccessfully to arrange a visit by Colonel Hadfield," says Metcalfe, who also serves as a member of the Launch Canada outreach team. "Just by chance, he arrived on the same day as 91亚色's launch and delivered the countdown from the launch control tower. It was an exciting moment."

The project also highlights the growing opportunities available to 91亚色 students interested in aerospace engineering, space technology and applied STEM learning, says Metcalfe.

"Through competitions such as Launch Canada, students gain experience solving real-world engineering challenges while working as part of multidisciplinary teams."

For the 91亚色 students watching their rocket ascend after Hadfield's countdown, the moment was more than a successful launch. It was national recognition for months of work and a chance to showcase 91亚色 talent at one of Canada's largest student aerospace competitions.

鈥淭his current team has always had a lot of heart. They are willing to do whatever it takes to succeed,鈥� says Shakarghi. 鈥淣one of us will forget the countless nights spent in the garage working like our lives depended on it, or the ridiculous drives and last-minute problems we had to solve just to keep moving forward.

鈥淪econd place was an incredible moment for us, but we鈥檙e not done. We proved that we belong here, and now we鈥檙e coming for that grand prize trophy.鈥�

The team continues to work on new developments, including an innovative roll-control system on a series of rockets named Blue Jay, while setting their sights on 91亚色's first liquid-fuelled rocket, the Moose, with their first static firing test early this fall.

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The projects highlight the breadth of undergraduate research taking place at Lassonde, where students are contributing to solutions for challenges in health care, energy systems and future space missions through hands-on research experiences.

More than 70 students participated in summer research projects supported through the Lassonde Undergraduate Research Awards (LURA) and the Natural Sciences & Engineering Research Council of Canada鈥檚 Undergraduate Student Research Awards.

The programs provide opportunities for students to pursue full-time research alongside faculty members. Outcomes of these research initiatives were presented during Lassonde鈥檚 annual Undergraduate Summer Research Conference, which celebrates creativity, innovation and academic excellence.

Projects spanned topics such as wastewater monitoring, satellite technologies and trustworthy AI.

鈥淭he research demonstrates the important role undergraduate students can play in advancing discovery while gaining experience that prepares them to become the next generation of innovators and problem-solvers,鈥� says Suprakash Datta, associate dean academic and students at Lassonde.

Among the projects recognized by judges was the first-place research project by Diego Romero Rincon, an electrical engineering and computer science student. Working in the QUANTIMB Lab, Rincon developed an AI-assisted platform designed to automate the monitoring of brain tumours following radio therapy treatment.

The cloud-based system integrates advanced AI models with MRI imaging analysis tools to help clinicians track tumour changes over time. It is designed to automatically identify and monitor tumours of varying sizes, classify treatment outcomes and generate reports, reducing the time required for assessments while improving consistency in clinical decision-making.

Second place was awarded to mechanical engineering student Simone Ferrara for research focused on improving the measurement of two-phase flows, which play an important role in technologies such as heat pumps and thermosyphons.

Ferrara's project investigated a low-cost, non-intrusive method for estimating void fraction, a key parameter used to predict pressure drop and heat transfer performance. Using near-infrared lasers and photodiode receivers attached externally to a flow channel, the system offers a potential alternative to more complex and expensive measurement techniques, with applications across a range of heat transport systems.

The third-place prize went to Tina Ly, an electrical engineering and computer science student whose research explored advanced manufacturing solutions for space agriculture.

As space agencies plan for longer-duration missions, reliable food production systems are becoming increasingly important. Ly's project examined the feasibility of using commercially accessible 3D-printing technologies to fabricate nutrient-delivery structures for hydroponic plant growth systems. The research demonstrated that customized agricultural components can be manufactured using adapted material systems and standard additive manufacturing processes, supporting future efforts to produce equipment on demand during space missions.

鈥淭hese projects reflect how undergraduate researchers at Lassonde are applying engineering and scientific expertise to address complex challenges with potential impacts across multiple sectors,鈥� says Datta. 鈥淭hrough hands-on research experiences, students are contributing new knowledge, developing practical solutions and building the skills needed to advance solutions to complex challenges today and in the future.鈥�

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Earlier this year, while updating his CV, Smith realized he had far more to add than expected. More strikingly, unlike previous years, he noticed that every new publication resulted from research led by students in his lab, which explores ice and climate processes on Mars.

In less than seven months, ten papers led by members of Smith's research group have been published. In a typical year, students nearing graduation might publish one or two papers as their projects come together. 鈥淭his year we're doubling that easily,鈥� says Smith, who teaches at the . 鈥淚 thought, 鈥楬oly cow, I鈥檓 not used to this many in such a short amount of time.鈥欌��

The accomplishment reflects both the ambition of Smith's graduate students and his approach to supervision, which emphasizes giving them ownership over their work. That process starts when Smith first interviews prospective students and works to understand what they want to study. He then identifies projects that match those interests as closely as possible.

Helping them find that fit is easier because of the wide range of research questions Smith has pursued. Unlike Earth, Mars has two types of ice, water and carbon dioxide, which behave differently, increasing the number of interesting phenomena to study. Through his lab, Smith has spent years investigating Mars from multiple angles, studying everything from glaciers and polar ice caps to climate processes, ice crystal growth, surface-atmospheric interactions, radar signals and the behaviour of ice under Martian conditions.

Addressing those questions often requires students to develop their own tools and methods through laboratory work, field studies, modelling and the analysis of spacecraft data.

鈥淚've published enough now that I can start picking different lanes,鈥� he says. 鈥淚 really enjoy having students help with that.鈥�

Through this approach, Smith's students have collectively advanced understanding of some of the most significant unknowns surrounding ice on Mars, such as understanding the distribution of buried ice and the history of climate. The published work was led by graduate students and recent graduates, including Ivan Mishev, Kasra Fard, Jamie Isen, Abi Madden, Chimira Andres, Pruthvi Acharya, Akhila Nair and Rushana Karimova, who explored different aspects of the Martian cryosphere.

Their publications investigate how glaciers may have formed and moved across the planet, how polar ice deposits evolved over time, how radar can be used to detect subsurface ice or climate signals and how different forms of ice respond to Martian conditions.  

Smith empowered his students to develop the skills needed to tackle complex scientific questions, whether through modelling, data analysis or laboratory work. But, he says, it was equally important to him that they grow into confident researchers.

It's an approach that students say has helped them find their footing as emerging planetary scientists.

One is Mishev, a PhD candidate, whose recent publication was part of a collaboration with the Canadian Space Agency examining how synthetic aperture radar could be used to detect ice near the Martian surface, a capability that could support future human exploration of the planet.

鈥淗e is always available if I need some guidance or help with motivation,鈥� says Mishev. 鈥淏ut he has also allowed me to work through things independently, which I appreciate.鈥�

Smith gives students room to generate and test ideas, which he considers fundamental to becoming a scientist.

鈥淥ne of my favourite teaching models is to get out of their way,鈥� he says. 鈥淭hey're going to have their own ideas, and I do not stifle that.鈥�

Smith points to one of the first graduate students he supervised, Pruthvi Acharya, now a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Nevada, Reno, as an example of that philosophy in action. Acharya regularly brought new ideas to the lab each day. While many didn't work out, Smith encouraged Acharya 鈥� and his other students 鈥� to continue asking questions and testing possibilities.

Over time, that helped create a culture where experimentation, curiosity and mistakes were viewed as essential parts of scientific discovery.

That mindset has helped shape the environment that led to this year's remarkable run of student-led papers. 鈥淚f you don鈥檛 have good ideas, you鈥檙e not going to have a good research output,鈥� he says.

For the early-stage researchers, the rewards extend beyond the publication achievement.

鈥淚t felt really satisfying to publish my work,鈥� says Mishev. 鈥淭he impact on my confidence and future outlook has been large.鈥�

The study has already strengthened his future prospects. As he explores postdoctoral opportunities, Mishev says having published work has proven invaluable when reaching out to potential supervisors.

For Mishev, however, what matters most is the chance to contribute new knowledge to the field.

鈥淭he thing I'm most proud of in this work is the contribution it will make to a potential future synthetic aperture radar mission to Mars,鈥� he says. 鈥淚 hope that it will be pointed to in the future and really contribute to getting this mission to fly. Getting to contribute this early to a potential future mission is really rewarding.鈥�

For Smith, there is a similar sense of satisfaction in seeing students succeed. Reflecting on their accomplishments, he describes his studentsa group of researchers who pursued challenging questions, developed their own ideas and helped advance understanding of Mars.

鈥淚 am very proud of them,鈥� he says.

Learn more about the students and their聽.

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Thakur is the founding engineer and chief technology officer (CTO) of Tally Rewards, a platform that helps small and medium-sized businesses create customer loyalty programs. The platform allows customers to automatically earn rewards through linked payment cards, while providing businesses with data on customer visits, spending and engagement.

Building a company is demanding in its own right, but while helping lead the company's product development and technical strategy, he is also completing a software engineering degree at 91亚色.

Balancing those responsibilities hasn鈥檛 always been easy.

"There have been periods where assignments, exams, product deadlines and company responsibilities have all happened at the same time," he says.

The challenge has grown alongside the company, as his role has expanded beyond engineering to include leadership, team development and long-term planning.

For Thakur, balancing a startup while completing an engineering degree has become an education in itself.

"It has forced me to become much more intentional with how I manage my time and prioritize what actually needs my attention,鈥� he says.

The opportunity to gain that kind of hands-on learning while studying was one of the reasons he chose 91亚色.

"91亚色 stood out to me not only because of the engineering program, but also because of the entrepreneurial support and pathways available to students," he says.

Thakur says the overlap between classroom learning and real-world experience has accelerated his growth. Concepts introduced through his coursework, including software design, testing and large-scale software development, often influence how he approaches challenges at Tally Rewards.

Classroom learning was only part of the experience. 91亚色鈥檚 entrepreneurship programs have also shaped his approach to building a business. In addition to his software engineering coursework, Thakur has pursued opportunities through Lassonde's BEST (Bergeron Entrepreneurs in Science and Technology) program and entrepreneurship courses available through .

Designed to help students develop the skills and understanding needed to launch a startup, these learning opportunities encouraged him to think beyond technology and focus on understanding users, validating ideas and building sustainable businesses.

As a result, Thakur has gained new insights into his role as CTO at Tally Rewards.

"Being a CTO isn't only about being a strong engineer. It's also about helping a team make good decisions and ensuring that what we build actually supports the direction of the business,鈥� he says. 鈥淪ome of the most important work happens before you write any code.鈥�

The combination of technical and venture creation education has been one of the most valuable aspects of Thakur's 91亚色 experience.

"My engineering courses at Lassonde have given me the technical foundation to build reliable systems, while the entrepreneurship experiences have helped me understand why those systems should be built and who they should be built for," he says.

Looking ahead, Thakur hopes to continue growing as both an engineer and entrepreneur while completing his degree.

"University is actually a unique environment to experiment because you're surrounded by people who are learning, building and willing to help," he says.

Despite the challenges of juggling both, Thakur believes students interested in entrepreneurship should take advantage of the opportunities available at 91亚色 and not wait until they feel fully prepared before pursuing an idea.

"A lot of students assume they need to have the perfect idea, a complete skill set or a detailed plan before they can build something," he says. "In reality, a huge part of entrepreneurship is learning as you go."

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For many Indigenous learners, choosing a post-secondary institution involves more than academics. A community of support, culturally responsive spaces and a sense of belonging can influence where students see themselves succeeding.

In partnership with Ontario Federation of Indigenous Friendship Centres, 91亚色's Office of Indigenous Initiatives, the five-day Indigenous Pathways Program helps aspiring Indigenous learners ages 18 and older build meaningful and intentional connections ahead of their academic journeys. The immersive experience introduces participants to 91亚色's academic offerings while connecting them to the University鈥檚 Indigenous-focused spaces, resources, supports, staff and faculty across its three campuses.

By helping learners feel welcomed, supported and able to envision a future at 91亚色, the program fosters belonging and helps build confidence, clarity and purpose leading up to the transition to post-secondary education. It also reflects a broader institutional commitment to Indigenous student success, says Holly LaForme, manager, Indigenous initiatives at 91亚色鈥檚 Division of Equity, People & Culture.

鈥淔or many Indigenous learners, education systems have not always felt safe, welcoming or full of possibility. Arriving at a large urban institution, often far from family, community and familiar supports, can feel overwhelming,鈥� says LaForme, who helped lead the IPP project. 鈥淎t the Centre for Indigenous Student Services, connection and community-building are foundational to the way we support student success. My hope is to bring a sense of care, familiarity and relationality to the university experience so Indigenous learners feel grounded as they adapt to a new environment, explore their identity and define their path forward.鈥�

Throughout the week, participants stayed in residence and engaged with faculty, staff, current students and alumni. In collaboration with the Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies, programming highlighted a range of academic pathways through experiences that included a session with Indigenous scholar, 91亚色 assistant professor and acclaimed author Jesse Thistle; workshops in creative writing and social work; hands-on engineering and AI activities at the ; career-focused programming at the , including an Indigenous alumni panel; and a visit to 91亚色's Markham Campus for a immersive day that concluded with a sacred fire.

For participant Sheena Kitchemokman, meeting other Indigenous students and learning about resources available at 91亚色 were key reasons for joining the program.

"The reason why I signed up for the Indigenous Pathways Program is to see what opportunities are available and to meet other Indigenous students who are going to 91亚色," she says.

That sense of connection is a central focus of the program, says LaForme. By introducing participants to Indigenous faculty, students, alumni and support staff, the program helps learners build relationships and gain a clearer understanding of what life at university can look like.

鈥淩ather than asking students to imagine whether they belong in a post-secondary environment, the program provides a meaningful way for participants to experience that community firsthand,鈥� says LaForme, who notes some learners travelled from northern communities to participate.

Those connections, she adds, extend beyond the classroom. Participants are introduced to Indigenous spaces across 91亚色鈥檚 campuses, including Skennen鈥檏贸:wa Gamig, an Indigenous support centre at 91亚色鈥檚 Keele Campus where Indigenous students can use the space for community and cultural connection. For Kitchemokman, it was a welcoming space that left a lasting impression.

"My favourite space on campus is the native student lounge," she says of Skennen鈥檏贸:wa Gamig. "It really does make me feel at home."

Finding this strong sense of community, as well as a clearer understanding of academic options, strengthened her confidence in choosing 91亚色 for her post-secondary studies. She describes one session she attended as inspiring, noting she had 鈥済oosebumps listening to the panel talk about their life experiences and education stories.鈥�

She says the program would benefit all Indigenous learners 鈥� especially those considering 91亚色.

"Coming to the Indigenous Pathways Program has convinced me that this is the right university for me because of all the love and support you get from faculty and student bodies," she says.

Although the Indigenous Pathways Program spans five days, its impact extends beyond a single week.

鈥淏y helping prospective students explore university life, connect with Indigenous community and experience the care and shared hopes offered by non-Indigenous allies, friends, peers and partners across the 91亚色 U community, the program creates meaningful pathways into post-secondary education,鈥� says LaForme.

鈥淏eing able to physically experience these spaces, build relationships and see oneself at 91亚色 is an important first step in making that future feel real, supported and full of possibility.鈥�

LaForme says the program, which ran July 27 to 31, has already encouraged some of the participants to apply.

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The , published in Transportation Research Part C: Emerging Technologies, shows that municipalities may not need new infrastructure to become 鈥渟marter鈥� and explores how to use the city itself as the sensor.

Urban planners depend on data to support decisions ranging from parking management and road maintenance to traffic operations and environmental monitoring, explains Elham Heydari-Gharaei, the study鈥檚 first author and 91亚色 PhD alum. Collecting that information across an entire city, however, can require expensive networks of fixed sensors.

鈥淚t struck me that while municipalities spend millions installing and maintaining fixed sensors, thousands of vehicles are already travelling through urban streets every day,鈥� says Heydari-Gharaei, who is now an assistant professor at Toronto Metropolitan University. 鈥淭hat made me wonder: What if the city itself could become the sensor?鈥�

By strategically coordinating vehicles equipped as mobile sensors, bicycles, maintenance vehicles, municipal fleets and shared mobility services could gather and share information as they move through urban areas.

鈥淭he key challenge is coordinating those vehicles efficiently, so the data remains reliable while keeping costs manageable,鈥� says Heydari-Gharaei. 鈥淏y solving that coordination problem, cities can collect reliable, up-to-date information while making better use of existing resources.鈥�

In response, the research team developed algorithms to help planners evaluate operational scenarios. They assessed factors such as sensing frequency, fleet size and service routes, while scaling solutions for large urban networks.

One finding that stood out emerged from a Toronto case study. Researchers found that only about one-quarter of Toronto鈥檚 Bike Share fleet could monitor the entire permit parking network if equipped with sensors and strategically routed. The result highlights how optimization can significantly reduce the resources needed for city-wide monitoring.

Mehdi Nourinejad, associate professor at the and Heydari-Gharaei's doctoral supervisor, says the implications for mobile sensing systems could enhance data retrieval for infrastructure inspection, environmental monitoring, traffic management and other smart-city applications.

鈥淐ities already have thousands of vehicles moving through their streets every day and the key is to develop optimization methods that determine how those vehicles should be routed and deployed to collect reliable data,鈥� says Nourinejad. 鈥淚f cities can collect reliable information using resources they already operate, they may be able to improve services without major new expenditures.鈥�

The findings could also help address financial barriers experienced by municipalities seeking to expand data collection without making large investments in smart-city infrastructure.

Reliable urban data, says Heydari-Gharaei, supports everyday decisions, from helping drivers find parking to monitoring road conditions, air quality and public infrastructure. Better data, says Heydari-Gharaei, can support better planning, reduced congestion, improved sustainability and more responsive public services.

鈥淎s sensing technologies continue to improve, there is enormous potential to rethink how cities gather information without continuously investing in new infrastructure,鈥� says Heydari-Gharaei.

During the project, 91亚色 researchers collaborated with Professor Matthew Roorda from the University of Toronto, who contributed expertise in freight transportation and urban mobility.

With files from Alex Huls

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Razieh (Neda) Salahandish, an assistant professor at the , is developing a wearable biosensor that uses sweat to track physiological changes in real time. The tool aims to redefine preventative health care, supporting earlier detection of health conditions.

The device combines microfluidic systems and AI to analyze biomarkers found in sweat, which Salahandish says contains valuable information about human health. A small patch collects sweat from the skin, analyzes it for disease biomarkers, and sends results to practitioners anytime a patient scans the device with a specific app.聽

"We believe sweat has the potential to become an important source of health data," says Salahandish. "Because it contains valuable biological information, our goal is to use that data to provide health insights in a way that is continuous, accessible and non-invasive." 

Unlike traditional diagnostic methods that often require blood samples or laboratory testing, wearable sweat-sensing technology offers a non-invasive approach to monitoring physiological changes as they occur. 

To advance the technology, Salahandish worked with 91亚色's YSpace and the IP Innovation Clinic to launch WearDOXX, a health technology company focused on developing biotechnology and AI-enabled health care devices. Through WearDOXX, Salahandish and her collaborators are working to translate years of research into commercially viable health technologies. 

The project has attracted support from investors, industry partners and funding agencies as researchers work to bring the technology from the lab to everyday use. In 2025, the initiative received a $300,000 Ontario Centre of Innovation Collaborate 2 Commercialize grant and a $345,000 Mitacs Business Strategy Internship grant. 

The recent $5-million infusion from investors allows the work to move toward clinical validation and support continued technology development, testing and commercialization efforts. 

"The support we've received reflects growing interest in technologies that make health monitoring more accessible and proactive," says Salahandish. "Our focus now is to continue to build the evidence and infrastructure needed for broader adoption."聽

Over the next two years, Salahandish and her team will refine and test the technology, with plans to bring it to market soon after. While no launch date has been set, she is enthusiastic about its potential impact. 

鈥淭his is about giving people control over their health in ways we haven鈥檛 seen before,鈥� she says. 

Salahandish is also earning recognition for her work. She was recently named one of five finalists for the Ontario Centre of Innovation's 2026 Baylis Ontario Life Sciences Innovator Award, with the recipient to be announced in September. She is also the recipient of the 2026 Young Woman Researcher in Biomedical Devices award from the Venus International Women Awards.聽

With files from Deirdre Kelly

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Traditionally, spacecraft components such as satellites, antennas and solar arrays are built on Earth and launched fully assembled. That approach limits their size because everything must fit inside a rocket before launch.

Those constraints, coupled with advances in 3D-printing technology, have fuelled interest in in-space additive manufacturing (ISAM), a process that uses 3D printing to create infrastructure in space rather than on Earth.

However, turning that vision into reality comes with a little-studied engineering challenge.

鈥淢ost existing research focuses on whether materials and components could be manufactured in space,鈥� says Yao. 鈥淢uch less attention had been paid to what happens dynamically as a large flexible structure is continuously printed from a free-floating spacecraft.鈥�

As an object grows during construction, it can begin to move and vibrate in unexpected ways. In space, even small disturbances caused by the printing process can affect both the structure being built and the manufacturing platform building it. Those dynamics could make it harder to manufacture accurately, damage the structure itself or disrupt the spacecraft's position and orientation.

Seeking to better understand those risks, Yao and supervisor Professor George Z.H. Zhu, set out to examine how a growing structure interacts with the spacecraft building it and to identify conditions that could threaten mission stability. The pair say understanding and controlling these vibrations is essential if future missions are to successfully manufacture on a large-scale in space.

To do that, in results , Yao developed two computer models that simulated what happens during the building process. One allowed the team to quickly test different scenarios, while the other provided a more detailed simulation of how the structure and spacecraft interact.

鈥淥ur guiding goal was to develop a model that was detailed enough to capture the changing geometry and rigid鈥揻lexible interaction of the system, while still being practical enough to support engineering analysis and future control-system design,鈥� says Yao.

The team approached the challenge using two complementary computer models. The first allowed them to quickly test how factors such as a structure's size, the spacecraft's mass and different printing conditions affected vibrations. The second provided a more detailed simulation of the ISAM process, continuously updating the project as it grew and allowing the team to study how the structure and spacecraft influenced one another over time.

Using the models, the researchers tested a range of scenarios involving different designs, materials and building conditions. They also explored whether measures such as damping or changes in printing speed could help reduce potential problems.

The simulations suggested that vibration could become a significant challenge for future space-ISAM missions. As a construct expands, the Yao found there are certain points during the manufacturing process when disturbances can become much stronger. When that happened, both the structure and the spacecraft could begin moving more dramatically. In some simulations, those movements became large enough to affect the stability of the entire system.

The team also found that the timing and severity of those vibrations depended on factors such as the size of the structure, the manufacturing process and the spacecraft itself. While some measures helped reduce the vibrations, they did not solve the problem entirely, suggesting that future operations will need additional ways to keep spacecraft stable while large structures are being built.

Together, the findings suggest that managing dynamic motion may become a critical part of future space-manufacturing efforts. As engineers look to build larger and more complex projects in orbit, they will need reliable ways to predict and control how those structures move during construction.

Without effective safeguards, vibrations could affect ISAM accuracy, interfere with spacecraft operations or even threaten the success of a mission. The researchers conclude that future systems will likely need active controls to help keep vehicles stable while construction is underway, along with mission plans that account for vibration-related risks from the outset.

鈥淎s manufactured structures become larger, lighter and more flexible, their vibration and their interaction with the spacecraft will become increasingly important,鈥� says Yao. 鈥淭he spacecraft and the structure being manufactured must be treated as one continuously evolving system rather than as two separate components.鈥�

While the study highlights challenges that future space-manufacturing systems will need to overcome, it also gives engineers a better understanding of when those challenges are likely to arise and how they might be addressed.

Looking ahead, Yao says further research will be needed to combine dynamic modelling, active control systems and experimental testing. Future studies will also need to account for factors such as three-dimensional motion, orbital conditions and more realistic ISAM processes. The team's findings further suggest that future systems may need to monitor vibrations during construction and temporarily pause building when potentially problematic conditions arise.

鈥淲e hope this work will provide a foundation for designing safer and more reliable in-space manufacturing missions,鈥� says Yao.

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