WUT doctoral student in the Caltech Space Challenge

Damian Grabowski, an implementation doctorate student at the Warsaw University of Technology collaborating with the Łukasiewicz Research Network – Institute of Aviation, took part in the prestigious Caltech Space Challenge.

The event, organised by the California Institute of Technology, took place on 22–27 March 2026 in Pasadena, United States. Out of more than 500 applicants from around the world, only 32 participants were selected. The doctoral student from the Warsaw University of Technology was the only Polish participant in this edition and only the second person from Poland in the history of the programme.

The Caltech Space Challenge is an initiative in which participants work in teams to develop a concept for a space mission. This year’s edition, held under the theme “Journey Through Blaze and Frost”, involved designing a mission that would first perform a flyby of a comet and then enter orbit around Venus to conduct scientific observations.

The work was carried out in two teams, Voyager and Explorer, under the guidance of mentors from NASA, the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and the academic community. The doctoral student from the Warsaw University of Technology was a member of the Explorer team, where he worked on systems engineering and rocket propulsion. The team’s final outcome was the concept of the PARCHED mission (Planetary Atmospheres and Reservoirs: Compositional History and Escape Dynamics). The final project presentation is available on YouTube on the Caltech Space Challenge channel.

Damian Grabowski among the participants of the Caltech Space Challenge

“When I began my studies at the Warsaw University of Technology, I never imagined that working in the space sector was within my reach. Today, after years of learning and gaining experience through studies, projects, and work, taking part in the Caltech Space Challenge was an opportunity to test my skills in a demanding international environment created by students from the world’s leading universities. This experience confirmed to me that this is the path I want to follow. I hope that the skills, connections, and inspiration I gained will translate into my future work in the Polish space industry,” emphasised Damian.

Taking part in the event gave Damian Grabowski the opportunity to work in an international environment and to learn about NASA’s approach to mission design. It also allowed him to compare these methods with those used in Europe, including by the European Space Agency.

An important part of the experience was the collaboration with students from some of the world’s leading universities, including Stanford University, Harvard University, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Imperial College London. Participants also had the opportunity to meet experts from the space sector, including representatives of SpaceX and Rocket Lab, and to visit laboratories at the California Institute of Technology as well as the Jet Propulsion Laboratory campus.

Damian Grabowski among the participants of the Caltech Space Challenge

Damian Grabowski is a graduate of the Automation and Robotics programme at the Faculty of Power and Aeronautical Engineering of the Warsaw University of Technology. During his studies, he was actively involved in the Student Astronautical Society, taking part in projects such as the Mars rover for the URC competition, the LUSTRO experiment within the REXUS/BEXUS programme, and the GLACiER and SAMPLE projects carried out under the IGLUNA initiative. Since 2020, he has been developing his professional experience at the Space Technologies Centre of the Łukasiewicz Research Network – Institute of Aviation, where he began working as a laureate of the “Space Sector Human Resources Development” programme and continues to this day.