Elizabeth Jens (born 1984) is an Australian propulsion engineer who works at the

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research. NASA was established in 1958, succeeding t ...

Jet Propulsion Laboratory The Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) is a federally funded research and development center and NASA field center in the City of La Cañada Flintridge, California, United States. Founded in the 1930s by Caltech researchers, JPL is owned by NASA an ...

Early life and education

Jens is from

Torquay, Victoria Torquay is a seaside resort in Victoria, Australia, which faces Bass Strait, 21 km south of Geelong and is the gateway to the Great Ocean Road. It is bordered on the west by Spring Creek and its coastal features include Point Danger and Ze ...

. She decided at the age of twelve that she wanted to be an astronaut, after seeing a talk from one of the

Apollo Apollo, grc, Ἀπόλλωνος, Apóllōnos, label=genitive , ; , grc-dor, Ἀπέλλων, Apéllōn, ; grc, Ἀπείλων, Apeílōn, label=Arcadocypriot Greek, ; grc-aeo, Ἄπλουν, Áploun, la, Apollō, la, Apollinis, label= ...

astronauts in

Geelong Geelong ( ) (Wathawurrung: ''Djilang''/''Djalang'') is a port city in the southeastern Australian state of Victoria, located at the eastern end of Corio Bay (the smaller western portion of Port Phillip Bay) and the left bank of Barwon River, ...

. She went to school at

Sacred Heart College, Geelong Sacred Heart College is a Roman Catholic secondary school for girls, and is located in Retreat Road, Newtown, Geelong, Victoria in Australia. It is now one of the largest Catholic secondary girls schools in Victoria. The current principal ...

, where she was encouraged to study maths and physics. She studied at the

University of Melbourne The University of Melbourne is a public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in Victoria. Its main campus is located in Parkville, an inner suburb nor ...

, graduating with a bachelor's degree in

mechanical engineering Mechanical engineering is the study of physical machines that may involve force and movement. It is an engineering branch that combines engineering physics and mathematics principles with materials science, to design, analyze, manufacture, and ...

and bachelor's degree in physics in 2008. She attended an introductory course at the

International Space University The International Space University (ISU) is dedicated to the discovery, research, and development of outer space and its applications for peaceful purposes, through international and multidisciplinary education and research programs. ISU was f ...

Ames Research Center The Ames Research Center (ARC), also known as NASA Ames, is a major NASA research center at Moffett Federal Airfield in California's Silicon Valley. It was founded in 1939 as the second National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) laborat ...

. She completed her graduate studies as a

Fulbright scholar The Fulbright Program, including the Fulbright–Hays Program, is one of several United States Cultural Exchange Programs with the goal of improving intercultural relations, cultural diplomacy, and intercultural competence between the people of ...

(sponsored by

BHP BHP Group Limited (formerly known as BHP Billiton) is an Australian multinational mining, metals, natural gas petroleum public company that is headquartered in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. The Broken Hill Proprietary Company was founded ...

) and

Rotary International Rotary International is one of the largest service organizations in the world. Its stated mission is to "provide service to others, promote integrity, and advance world understanding, goodwill, and peace through hefellowship of business, prof ...

Scholar at

Stanford University Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is consider ...

. After her Masters, Jens joined

as an intern, before beginning a PhD in aeronautics and astronautics. Jens was an Amelia Earhart Fellow in 2012 and 2014. She completed her PhD, "Hybrid Rocket Combustion and Applications to Space Exploration Missions" in 2016, under the supervision of Brian Cantwell and Scott Hubbard. Whilst still a student, Jens was recognised as an Emerging Space Industry Leader.

Career

Jens works on a cold-gas subsystem for

Mars 2020 Mars 2020 is a Mars rover mission forming part of NASA's Mars Exploration Program that includes the rover ''Perseverance'', the small robotic, coaxial helicopter '' Ingenuity'', and associated delivery vehicles. Mars 2020 was launched from Ear ...

. She is also designing the propulsion systems for interplanetary

SmallSat A small satellite, miniaturized satellite, or smallsat is a satellite of low mass and size, usually under . While all such satellites can be referred to as "small", different classifications are used to categorize them based on mass. Satellites ca ...

missions. Jens is involved with several initiatives to increase Australia's investment in the space industry. She appeared on Australia's Science Channel as an expert discussing Elon Musk's Mars plan. She took part in the Australia

SXSW South by Southwest, abbreviated as SXSW and colloquially referred to as South By, is an annual conglomeration of parallel film, interactive media, and music festivals and conferences organized jointly that take place in mid-March in Austin, Te ...

Festival. She supports Tech Girls Canada. In 2018 Jens was listed as a Game Changer by

Vogue (magazine) ''Vogue'' is an American monthly fashion and lifestyle magazine that covers many topics, including haute couture fashion, beauty, culture, living, and runway. Based at One World Trade Center One World Trade Center (also known as One Wor ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jens, Elizabeth Space scientists Women space scientists Australian women engineers 21st-century women engineers University of Melbourne alumni Stanford University alumni 1984 births Living people