LED WITH PASSION, GUIDED BY EXPERIENCE
“The management team is a team of very inspiring, compromised young people that have demonstrated over and over their love and passion for the project, not only by their incredible work but also by the care and support for their teammates. We are thirteen people from diverse backgrounds that have had the opportunity to participate in the project, some even from the very beginning, and we continue united with as much enthusiasm working to see the rover airborne and to promote the globalization of space!” – Ana Paula Alvarado
PROGRAM HEADS
Ana Paula Alvarado
Managment
Ana Paula is an Industrial Production Engineering last year student at TEC in Costa Rica. During her trajectory in Project Polaris, she has worked first as Admin during the Basic Program and then as Director of Hosting and Travel for the Advance Program. She has now joined the team as Head of Management for Polaris Airborne.
John Ramthun
Informatics
John is currently a fourth year Computer Engineering student at Purdue University. He joined Project Polaris as a chief of the Software and Simulation team in the Basic Program. During the Advanced Program, John served as the Head of Informatics for the project while studying abroad in Singapore. He joined other Polarians in attending the International Astronautical Congress and spent most of his time managing the project’s booth presence. For this upcoming Airborne program, John will continue to serve as the Head of Informatics.
Pilar Vega
Funding
Pilar Vega is a industrial engineering student at the University of Buenos Aires in Argentina. Passionate about technology and space, she joined Polaris in 2021, where she worked on the project’s financial team. Her dream is to contribute to the democratization of access to space for all. In her spare time she likes to sail and listen to music.
Jerry Varghese
Systems Engineering
Jerry Varghese is currently a fourth year student studying Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering at Purdue University in the US specializing in Astrodynamics and Space Applications. He joined Project Polaris as a Software and Simulation member in the Basic Program. During the Advanced Program, Jerry served as an administrator of the project. He was able to attend the International Astronautical Congress and present technical conference papers there with other Polarians. For Polaris Airborne, Jerry will be serving as the Head of Systems Engineering.
TEAM LEADS
Dominik Gentner
Structures Lead
Dominik studies Aerospace Engineering at the University of Stuttgart, Germany and has worked with Polaris during the Advanced program as a member of the Dynamics subteam. Additionally, he has been commited to work at HyEnD, a student rocketry team, and has had multiple opportunities to work in an multicultural environment. Technically, he specializes in structures and systems, while having most experience in CAD, FEM simulation and manufacturing. He always appreciates new ideas and perspectives, while welcoming every individuals opinions and experience. He values ones personal boundries and passion.
MARIANA Londoño
GNC Lead
Mariana is a Physics Engineer and she is currently studying Mathematics and M.Sc Physics at Universidad Nacional de Colombia. Mariana joined Project Polaris in 2021 during the Advanced Program as Head of Dynamics subteam and she had the possibility to work on the Star Rover in Costa Rica during the Tropical Space Camp 2022 and to participate in the IAC 2022 in Paris and present a paper. In Airborne program she is going to be GNC Lead, where she is looking for compete the objectives to see the Star Rover flying next summer. As a person she is passionate about physics, space and science fiction lecture and movies.
Diego López
Electronics Lead
Diego is a Colombian senior student at Universidad de La Sabana pursuing a mechanical engineering degree. He is passionate about combining mechanical and electronic approaches to build solutions to problems faced by space and automotive industries. Diego joined Project Polaris in March of 2022 as Instrumentation Head. During summer of the same year he visited Costa Rica where he worked in the development of the instrumentation, power, communication and control of the ESR. Diego contributed to one of the papers presented at the IAC 2022 and was selected to be a speaker.
Alexandre Benoist
Balloon Lead
Passionate about engineering and meeting new people, Alexandre is a French student from ESTACA who didn't hesitate twice before getting involved with Polaris! For two years now, this magnificent project has allowed him to satisfy his aerospace student impulses, while meeting people who are just as wonderful as each other. The perfect fit!
Arnaud Somville
Propulsion Lead
Arnaud is a French student in Aerospace Engineering in 4th year at ESTACA. Present since the first year of the project, he is currently Propulsion Lead. During the second year, he was a member of the Dynamics Team and Hosting & Travel Team. He participated to 2022 Aerospace Summer Camp in Costa Rica and the 2022 IAC in Paris.
Valerie Romero
Hosting & Travel Lead
Valerie is a mechanical Engineering student at Universidad de Costa Rica, previous team member of Hosting and Travel and now fulfilling the position in Project Polaris new stage Airborne as Lead of the Team. Valerie has a curious personality, interested in connecting with people all around the world through similar interest and passions such as the globalization of space and educational grow, highlighting the importance of working and getting to know individuals for different cultures and living the interculturality.
Michelle Lacouture
Content Lead
Michelle is a Industrial Design Engineer with a passion for creating unique experiences, who has been working at Polaris for over three years. She started in our Social Media Group, creating several campaigns to bring awareness to our brand. Today, Michelle is responsible for the Content Team. She is always developing new ways to communicate the Polaris experience through engaging content. Michelle has proven to be an excellent team member with a drive to learn and grow her skill set. Thanks to Polaris, she had the opportunity to represent the project at the 72nd IAC in Paris as a writer of one of the papers presented at the congress.
Brigitte Gómez
Mission Logistics Lead
Brigitte started in Project Polaris as a Hosting and Travel Member during de Basic Program. She became Head of Logistics and Risk Management for the Advanced Program. For Polaris Airborne she has the pleasure to be the Mission Logistics Lead. She is always willing to help her colleagues and loves teamwork.
Gabrielle Witt
Relations Lead
Gabrielle is a graduate student in the SpaceMaster program and has been a part of Project Polaris since the Advanced Program. Previously, they served as an Admin and will now utilize their passion for interculturality as the Lead of the Relations team. They have a variety of international experiences in Europe and in Costa Rica, and will soon travel to Japan to conduct their master thesis.