John Christian

Dr. John Christian is an aerospace engineer with expertise in spacecraft navigation and space systems. He is presently an Assistant Professor in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering (MAE) in the Benjamin M. Statler College of Engineering and Mineral Resources at West Virginia University (WVU). Dr. Christian has experience with navigation system design, flight tests of relative navigation sensor hardware (STORRM experiment on STS-134), parachute drop tests, Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) data processing, system requirements definition, and space systems analysis.

Prior to joining the faculty at WVU, Dr. Christian worked as an engineer in the Guidance, Navigation, and Control (GNC) Autonomous Flight Systems Branch at the NASA Johnson Space Center in Houston, TX. He is active in the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) where he has served as Chairman of the Society & Aerospace Technology Technical Committee and as an associate member of the GNC Technical Committee. Dr. Christian holds a Ph.D. in aerospace engineering from The University of Texas at Austin and a M.S. and B.S. in aerospace engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology. He enjoys hiking and spending time with his family.