NASA picks Purdue for new institute researching space habitats

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — A Purdue engineering professor will lead a new research institute dedicated to designing and operating deep space habitats.

NASA announced Shirley Dyke will lead the new Resilient ExtraTerrestrial Habitats institute (RETHi) to be located in West Lafayette. Dyke is a professor of mechanical and civil engineering with a degree in aeronautical and astronautical engineering.

“This is an exciting opportunity for the RETHi research team to play a role in shaping the future smart space habitats,” Dyke said. “Developing resilient space habitats continues Purdue’s legacy of leadership and collaboration in science, engineering and space exploration.”

NASA’s announcement is available at https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-selects-two-new-space-tech-research-institutes-for-smart-habitats.

Purdue’s institute is one of two new Space Technology Research Institutes announced by NASA. The institute will receive as much as $15 million over a five-year period from NASA’s Space Technology Mission Directorate.

RETHi is a multi-disciplinary partnership with the University of Connecticut, Harvard University and the University of Texas at San Antonio.

The institute aligns with a theme of Purdue’s Giant Leaps celebration, “Space: Earth, Exploration, Economics,” acknowledging the university’s global advancements made as part of Purdue’s 150th anniversary. This is one of the four themes of the yearlong celebration’s Ideas Festival, designed to showcase Purdue as an intellectual center solving real-world issues.    

Writer: Brian Huchel, 765-494-2084, bhuchel@purdue.edu 

Source: Shirley Dyke, 765-494-7434, sdyke@purdue.edu