Biomedical engineer with nine years in medical device and launch vehicle design and six years of human spaceflight physiology research.
In industry: orthopedic implant and surgical instrument design, including a radial head implant developed with Mayo Clinic surgeons and taken from concept to market (U.S. patent); design engineer on SpaceX’s Merlin Vacuum engine for Falcon 9 Block 5, releasing 100+ flight-hardware drawings; author of Virgin Orbit’s Engineering Design Standards Manual.
Left industry for doctoral research in bioastronautics at Dartmouth’s Space Medicine Innovations Lab (Jay Buckey, MD), progressing from contributor to NASA-funded principal investigator, with crew biomedical hardware and protocols flown on SpaceX Polaris Dawn and payload lead for a Dartmouth flight experiment on Blue Origin New Shepard.
Currently a postdoctoral research engineer developing non-invasive continuous blood pressure monitoring, including a TRISH-funded project on spaceflight venous thrombosis.
Esperto Medical
Industry Postdoctoral Researcher — non-invasive continuous blood pressure monitoring (resonance sonomanometry)
- Verification and validation. Developed a complex cardiovascular ultrasound phantom specific to resonance sonomanometry (molds, modular fixtures, embedded instrumentation); developed algorithms to extract the respiration trace from sonomanometry signals.
- Clinical research lead, capnography and non-invasive continuous blood pressure at the distal radius. Protocol development, informed consent, human-subjects data collection, data analysis, and report generation.
- Spaceflight venous thrombosis. Engineering support for a TRISH (Translational Research Institute for Space Health) project on spaceflight-induced jugular venous thrombosis.
Dartmouth College, Thayer School of Engineering
Doctoral research, Engineering Sciences (dissertation defended 2025) — split between the Space Medicine Innovations Lab (Jay C. Buckey, MD) and the Halter Translational Biomedical Research Lab (Ryan J. Halter, PhD)
Saratech
Senior Staff Engineer — engagements at SpaceX, Virgin Orbit, Relativity Space, Edwards Lifesciences, Verb Surgical, Gogo, and Rockwell Collins
SpaceX — Engineer, propulsion design
- Design engineer on the Merlin Vacuum (MVac) second-stage engine for Falcon 9 Block 5: fluid systems, structural components, and tooling; released 100+ flight-hardware drawings, each through multi-department review; contributed to the Block 5 design sprint
- TEA-TEB canister insulation design; TEA-TEB canister fitting clocking tooling design
- Development and maintenance of the NX reuse library; worked as part of the NX admin team to resolve NX issues
Virgin Orbit — Consultant; NX and Teamcenter Instructor
- Wrote the Engineering Design Standards Manual; revised and updated internal documentation
- Developed and taught VO-tailored NX (multiple levels) and Teamcenter courses; also organized and taught NX and Teamcenter courses for Rockwell Collins, Relativity Space, and SpaceX
Relativity Space — Project Engineer
- Created and managed the engineering project schedule to establish the initial top-down vehicle design architecture for rapid design updates of 3D-printed vehicles; managed engineering resources
Edwards Lifesciences — Project Engineer
- Created and managed the engineering project schedule to design medical catheter tooling; managed and mentored engineering resources
Verb Surgical — Onsite Consultant
- Advised Verb Surgical engineers on adopting NX CAD after software implementation
Gogo Inflight Wifi — Designer and Manufacturing Engineer
- Designed and manufactured tooling to install 2Ku radome antennas on Boeing 737 and Airbus A319 aircraft on a compressed schedule: an inside-out templating system with magnetic locators that found bolt patterns around stringers and ribs, cutting aircraft downtime during installation; designed the tooling for both subtractive (CNC-milled) and additive (3D-printed) manufacturing and built both versions, the printed set through an outside additive shop; worked directly with Gogo engineers and aircraft technicians
Rockwell Collins — NX instructor
- Held an onsite five-day training class covering NX beginner, intermediate, and drafting topics
OrthAlign
Product Engineer — surgical navigation systems for hip and knee replacement
OrthAlign 3 Navigation System for Total Hip Replacement (posterior approach)
- Oversaw accelerated tray design, manufacture, and sterility testing
- Conducted instrument testing essential for the 510(k) letter to file
- Conducted a detailed tolerance study of the surgical instrumentation assembly
OrthAlign 3 Navigation System for Unicompartmental Knee Replacement
- Assembled and created Design History File documents for 510(k) FDA clearance
- Identified areas of improvement in system design; developed and prototyped the cutting block shape
- Iterated instrument and workflow design with surgeons in cadaver labs; structured usability evaluations under time and sterility constraints
Design controls (both systems)
- Authored and maintained product requirements matrices tying each design input to its verification and validation test, with traceability in the Design History File
- Performed dFMEA risk analyses
Acumed
Product Engineer — orthopedic implants and surgical instrumentation
Anatomic Radial Head Slide-Loc System (implant for proximal radius)
- Worked with team to develop the system from project initiation to market launch
- Coordinated with manufacturing to improve manufacturability and reduce production cost
- Designed and modeled complex anatomic contours of the radial head implant joint surface with Mayo Clinic orthopedic surgeons
- Developed custom surgical instrumentation for implant installation (trial implants, measurement tool, retractor, assembly instrumentation)
- Created models for realistic image renders (marketing material, surgical technique)
Acumed 2.0 Tension Band Pin System (specialized pin implant)
- Engineering lead on the project; organized design control activities
- Carried out mechanical testing and FEA (Creo Simulate) to validate implant strength and evaluate fracture risk
- Designed, organized, and executed simulated use studies to evaluate the design
Other responsibilities
- Performed dFMEA risk analyses as part of design control activities
- Supported device failure analysis and root cause investigation for products that failed in the field
- Attended industry trade shows and live surgeries; facilitated surgeon and sales representative training
- Brainstormed and prototyped new product ideas; conducted cadaver labs for product testing
Patent · US9763792B2 · Radial head prosthesis with rotate-to-lock interface
Textbook illustration
Scientific and textbook illustration — Procreate, Adobe Illustrator
Space Physiology, Oxford University Press — Dr. Jay C. Buckey, Dartmouth College (current)
- Illustrated the concepts of gravitational human physiology and other space medicine topics relevant to long-duration human spaceflight missions
Mechanics of Biomaterials: The Foundation of Medical Device Design — Prof. Pruitt, UC Berkeley (2010)
- Illustrated engineering concepts of tribology using Adobe Illustrator
SpaceX Polaris Dawn
Crew biomedical study — Space Medicine Innovations Lab, Dartmouth
Authored the crew collection protocol and training, and designed, built, tested, and shipped the in-flight urine collection devices, for a kidney stone, bone loss, and muscle atrophy risk study (first-morning-void collection on a commercial orbital mission); oversaw flight qualification testing of all research flight equipment.
Grant · Kidney Stone, Bone Loss, and Muscle Atrophy Risk on Short Duration Flights · graduate student · PD/PI Buckey · lab funded · 32575 (Rapport) · completed
Blue Origin New Shepard
Payload lead — Dartmouth; Creare LLC, prime contractor
Designed, built, programmed, and validated a flight experiment demonstrating a novel volume sensor for the flexible coolant reservoir of the advanced spacesuit; designed the payload to pass vibration testing and execute the experiment in sequence with the flight stages; performed all vibration and environmental testing; shipped the payload and supported three launch attempts on site at Launch Site One (Van Horn, TX); analyzed the post-flight data.
Grant · Volume Sensor for Flexible Fluid Reservoirs in Microgravity · graduate student · PD/PI Phillips · NASA / Creare, LLC (Prime) · 80NSSC18C0223/S627 · completed
NASA-funded research
Space Medicine Innovations Lab, Dartmouth College
- Ultra-compact Urinary Calcium Measurement Device: Refinement and Application (PI; NASA 80NSSC22K0847). In-flight monitor of bone loss and kidney stone risk; refined accuracy, precision, and ease of use; technology demonstration at ISSRDC 2023; final data presented at NASA HRP IWS 2024.
- Nebulized Intranasal Scopolamine for Rapid Treatment of Motion Sickness (Co-PI; NASA). Pharmacokinetics of nebulized intranasal scopolamine as a fast-onset space motion sickness countermeasure; the pharmacokinetic study showed faster intranasal absorption than a gel formulation (NASA HRP IWS 2025; Aerosp Med Hum Perform, in press).
- Ultra-compact Device for Monitoring Bone Loss and Kidney Stone Risk (graduate researcher; NASA 80NSSC19K1632). Development and validation of the original urinary calcium measurement technology.
Space physiology
Cardiovascular adaptation, SANS, venous thrombosis risk, and human-subjects studies — Space Medicine Innovations Lab, Dartmouth
- Cardiovascular adaptation to weightlessness. First-author papers proposing the mechanism for reduced jugular vein flow in microgravity (Physiological Reports 2021) and characterizing its lateral asymmetry (Acta Astronautica 2022); co-authored theory papers on why central venous pressure falls below supine levels in weightlessness and why SANS develops (J Appl Physiol 2022); lumped-parameter cardiovascular modeling of microgravity and head-down tilt (ICES 2021); re-evaluation of the acute effects of weightlessness versus head-down tilt (AsMA 2023; NASA HRP IWS 2023).
- Spaceflight-associated neuro-ocular syndrome (SANS). Evaluated lower body negative pressure as a countermeasure (AsMA 2022; IAC 2024); co-authored the case for a formal SANS case definition (IAC 2023; NASA HRP IWS 2024); eye length as a predictor of spaceflight-related visual changes (IAC 2023; NASA HRP IWS 2024); different predictors for the components of SANS (JAMA Ophthalmology 2026); extreme BMI reduction as a weightlessness analog for brain volumetric change (AsMA 2024).
- Venous thrombosis risk in spaceflight. Vertebral venous plexus resistance as a contributor to thrombotic conditions in the jugular vein (NASA HRP IWS 2025; AsMA 2025); electrical impedance monitoring of fluid distribution in the neck across postures as a possible in-flight detector of thrombosis risk (IAC 2026).
- Human-subjects studies. IRB protocol development, informed consent, and study execution for physiological and pharmacokinetic studies.
Bioimpedance instrumentation for tissue engineering
Doctoral research in the Halter Translational Biomedical Research Lab — electrical impedance tomography for real-time, non-invasive tracking of cell proliferation
- EIT-instrumented perfusion bioreactor (ARMI W911NF-17-3-0003). Electrical impedance tomography for real-time, non-invasive tracking of cell proliferation on decellularized bone scaffolds; patent pending; technology demonstrations at ARMI 2022–2024 and BMES 2023.
Grant · Monitoring Tissue Growth Attributes with Bioimpedance Imaging · graduate student · PD/PI Halter · Advanced Regenerative Manufacturing Institute, Inc. · W911NF-17-3-0003 · active
Undergraduate research
Two labs during the B.S. in Biomedical Engineering at UC Berkeley
Human Engineering Lab, Prof. Kazerooni, UC Berkeley 2010 – 2011
Undergraduate Research Assistant — medical exoskeleton
- First experience in rapid prototyping: building prototypes from off-the-shelf parts (McMaster-Carr, K&J Magnetics, SparkFun) alongside the graduate team working on control theory, mechanical design, and PCB layout
- Project page on mimilan.org
Biomechanics lab of Jenny Buckley, PhD — UCSF / San Francisco General Hospital 2009 – 2010
Undergraduate Researcher — orthopedic biomechanics
- Testing of orthopedic implants in cadavers
- Cadaver preparation and dissection
- Design of experimental setup
Grants
Two as Principal / Co-Principal Investigator; four as graduate student
Publications
Most recent first
Chen, H.-Y., Lan, M., Geimer, S., Parr, D., Knauss, K. S., Adhikari, M., Knaus, D., Ness, D. B., Lewis, L. D. & Buckey, J. C. Nebulized aqueous intranasal scopolamine provides therapeutic concentrations with rapid absorption. Aerosp. Med. Hum. Perform. (in press; accepted August 2026).
Mirza, S., Lan, M., Chen, B., Niemczak, C. E. & Buckey, J. C. Different predictors for components of spaceflight-associated neuro-ocular syndrome. JAMA Ophthalmol. 144(6), 561 (2026). doi:10.1001/jamaophthalmol.2026.1054
Buckey, J. C., Lan, M. & Lewis, L. D. Space travel-associated motion sickness and its treatment. Br. J. Clin. Pharmacol. 92(1), 5–10 (2026; published online April 2025). doi:10.1002/bcp.70056
Nguyen, T. et al. Spaceflight Associated Neuro-ocular Syndrome (SANS) and its countermeasures. Prog. Retin. Eye Res. 106, 101340 (2025). doi:10.1016/j.preteyeres.2025.101340
Buckey, J. C., Thamer, S. & Lan, M. Bone loss and kidney stone risk in weightlessness. Curr. Opin. Nephrol. Hypertens. 32(2), 172–176 (2023).
Buckey, J. C. & Lan, M. Why central venous pressure falls below supine levels in weightlessness. J. Appl. Physiol. 133(4), 970–972 (2022). doi:10.1152/japplphysiol.00271.2022
Lan, M., Akin, M. V., Anderson, A. & Buckey, J. C. Microgravity-induced reduced jugular vein flow is more pronounced on the non-dominant side. Acta Astronautica 198, 746–755 (2022). doi:10.1016/j.actaastro.2022.05.048
Buckey, J. C., Lan, M., Phillips, S. D., Archambault-Leger, V. & Fellows, A. M. A theory for why the spaceflight-associated neuro-ocular syndrome develops. J. Appl. Physiol. 132, 1201–1203 (2022).
Lan, M., Phillips, S. D., Archambault-Leger, V., Chepko, A. B., Lu, R., Anderson, A. P., Masterova, K. S., Fellows, A. M., Halter, R. J. & Buckey, J. C. Proposed mechanism for reduced jugular vein flow in microgravity. Physiol. Rep. 9(8), e14782 (2021). doi:10.14814/phy2.14782
Talks & presentations
Invited talk
Conference presentations
Patents
Education
Thayer School of Engineering at Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH 2019 – 2025
University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA June 2011
Teaching, mentoring & outreach
Dartmouth College, Thayer School of Engineering; Hanover, NH 2019 – 2025
- Teaching Assistant — Numerical Methods (2 terms). Hosted office hours, graded homework and exams, and answered student questions
- Research Mentoring. Mentored four undergraduates and one master’s student in the lab: electrical impedance spectroscopy, electrical impedance tomography reconstructions in MATLAB, cell culture basics, fluorescent microscopy, preparing specimens for pathology, CAD design, engineering drafting prints, rapid prototyping (3D printing, laser cutting, thread cutting, heat-set inserts, molding and casting, soldering, vacuum chamber use), lumped-parameter numerical modeling in MATLAB, scientific literature search, and use of the waveform generator and oscilloscope
Volunteer Organizer, 1st Perry Initiative Outreach Program 2010
- Outreach program introducing young women to engineering and orthopedic surgery: led the engineering demonstrations
Skills
- CAD: Expert (10+ years), specializing in Siemens NX (including NX Mechanical Routing); proficient in Creo (including ISDX surfacing), Onshape, and SolidWorks
- PLM: Teamcenter, Windchill
- Engineering drafting & configuration management: 2D and 3D drafting, GD&T per ASME Y14.5, MBD/PMI, BOM management, revision control, ECO workflows
- Design for subtractive and additive manufacturing; hands-on prototyping (machine shop, 3D printing, laser cutting, molding and casting, soldering)
- Understanding of PCB design and fabrication
- Engineering simulation: finite element analysis for structural and electrical design; lumped-parameter simulation of fluid systems
- Programming and analysis: MATLAB, Python, ImageJ; agentic LLM tools integrated into analysis and coding workflows
- Crew-facing flight hardware and procedures: crew protocols and training, design for flight qualification (vibration and environmental testing), payload integration and launch campaign support
- Medical device design controls: requirements and traceability matrices, dFMEA risk analysis, V&V, Design History File, 510(k) support
- Human-subjects research: IRB protocols, informed consent, clinical data collection and analysis
- Biomechanical and surgical studies with cadavers
- Tissue engineering / cell culture
- Experimental design
- Academic paper, presentation, and grant writing (NASA, NIH, and NSF proposals)
- Scientific and textbook illustration: Procreate, Adobe Illustrator
- MS Office and Mac suites: Word/Pages, Excel/Numbers, PowerPoint/Keynote