Overview: The United States Naval Academy (USNA) SEDS chapter was founded in Fall 2016 in order to educate the United States’ future Naval and Marine Corps Officers about the opportunities, concepts, possibilities, and developments space has to offer. USNA SEDS consists of approximately 100 members with majors including all STEM fields and Humanities/Social Sciences. We meet to discuss conceptual and philosophical ideas concerning the exploration and development of space, invite guest speakers to expose us to leaders in the highly technical field, and take club trips to space related facilities around the DC-MD-VA area. As we are a new chapter, we frequently encourage our members to join the various technical projects around the Yard including, but not limited to, the USNA Rockets Team, the Autonomous Mobile On-orbit Diagnostic System (AMODS) CubeSat project, and the Unrestricted Satellite Motion Simulator.
Past Events: Fall Semester 2016, USNA SEDS invited Mr. Peter Wilhelm, the retired Director of the Naval Center for Space Technology at U.S. Naval Research Laboratory, to speak to our members. He gave us a detailed history of the Naval Center and the profound impact that each project had on the world. Following Mr. Wilhelm’s speech, USNA SEDS was given a private tour of the Naval Center for Space Technology’s laboratory spaces and robotics chamber. It was a fantastic opportunity to learn about the fascinating projects under development and visualize how our undergraduate studies are already equipping us with the tools necessary to make an impact in the innovative space community.
Future Events: For the spring semester, USNA SEDS is organizing a trip to the Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia and would like for members to attend the FAA’s Commercial Space Transportation Advisory Committee (COMSTAC) meetings. We are also inviting multiple guest speakers to come educate our members and spark conversation, inspiring students to research further and learn more beyond our chapter meetings. With each meeting and event, we aim to captivate our members and others with the exciting and unending opportunities in space, fulfilling our chapter’s mission and cultivating future Navy and Marine Corps leaders’ minds with a perspective on space’s vital role in today’s world.
Ad Astra,
USNA SEDS
MIDN Eryn Culton, Founder and President
MIDN Gavin Roser, Vice President
MIDN K Parriott, Treasurer
MIDN Francisco Figueroa, Secretary