Live in The Study Living Room: The Dragonfly Mission

Tuesday, May 12, 2026
5:00pm - 6:00pm

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Dr. Luke Becker

“Mission Systems Assurance Manager” is a role you’ve held on several major space missions. What does a Mission Systems Assurance Manager do, and how did you get interested in this line of work?

In the context of a NASA mission, the Systems Assurance Manager is responsible for ensuring the existence of, and adherence to, robust safety and mission assurance processes, procedures, and activities throughout the lifecycle of the project. Basically, we make sure everything is done right, and when it’s not, we have to answer for it. I've always been fascinated with space and pretty technical, and interested in building things and understanding how they work. The Navy gave me an appreciation for attention to detail, so having the job of assuring that complex technical spacecraft are built right was a perfect fit for me.

In your own words, what does the Dragonfly mission entail, and how did it get this name?

Much like in the overall mission description, this is sci-fi come to life. We will be using a nuclear-powered rotorcraft in a search for extra-terrestrial life and to study pre-biotic chemistry taking place on Titan in order to help unlock the mysteries surrounding the formation of life on Earth. The mission got its name because we’ll be a ‘flying creature’ on Titan that lands in different locations. With the early renderings of the lander and development of the logo, Dragonfly became the name.

Dragonfly Mission Overview Image Credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins APL/Steve Gribben

Dragonfly Mission Overview Image Credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins APL/Steve Gribben

Dragonfly Mission Overview Image Credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins APL/Steve Gribben

Dragonfly is heading to Titan, one of Saturn’s moons. For someone hearing about this mission for the first time, what makes Titan worth exploring, and what does the team hope to discover there?

Titan is an ocean world and is the only planetary body in our solar system with a dense atmosphere that supports a methane cycle, much like the water cycle here on Earth. The abundant organic material that is accessible on Titan’s surface make it the perfect location to study the conditions necessary to understand the kinds of chemical interactions that occurred before life developed on Earth.

Artist’s impression of the Dragonfly rotorcraft-lander on the surface of Titan

Artist’s impression of the Dragonfly rotorcraft. Image credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins-lander on the surface of Titan.

Artist’s impression of the Dragonfly rotorcraft. Image credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins-lander on the surface of Titan.

Artist’s impression of the Dragonfly rotorcraft. Image credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins-lander on the surface of Titan.

Dragonfly is a collaboration between NASA and the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory. What is the Applied Physics Laboratory, and what makes Johns Hopkins the right university partner for missions like this?

The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory is one of the only University Affiliated Research Centers (UARC) with the ability to implement NASA missions from end-to-end, meaning. When NASA awards a mission to APL, we have the ability to develop and execute the entire mission throughout its lifecycle. We can build, test, and fly deep space interplanetary NASA discovery missions.

Scientists gather around Dragonfly’s Integrated Electronics Module

Power and functional testing on Dragonfly’s Integrated Electronics Module (IEM) and Power Switching Unit (PSU) in the cleanroom at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory. Image credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins APL/Ed Whitman

Power and functional testing on Dragonfly’s Integrated Electronics Module (IEM) and Power Switching Unit (PSU) in the cleanroom at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory. Image credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins APL/Ed Whitman

Power and functional testing on Dragonfly’s Integrated Electronics Module (IEM) and Power Switching Unit (PSU) in the cleanroom at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory. Image credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins APL/Ed Whitman

What does the day-to-day look like at the Lab?

We have many technical disciplines that are always a part of the engineering development team. Engineering disciplines include thermal, electrical, mechanical, structural, software development, just to name a few. It takes teams of engineers to help design, fabricate, and test their subsystems even before they’re delivered to what we call "Integration & Test" (I&T), where we begin to assembly the flight system.

I&T is the phase of the project that we’re in right now. It’s the phase of the project where ‘planetary launch window’ has to be part of the daily vernacular both at work and at home.

Throughout your career, you’ve also supported school initiatives and innovations that expand access to science and engineering education. Why has that work been important to you, and how do you see it shaping the future of the field?

In my side gigs as both an educator and running a non-profit for education, trying to get as many students exposed to career opportunities in space is really important to me. Our project teams are comprised of a variety of different jobs that require varying skill sets; however, they all require the ability for someone to work as part of a dynamic team. I always try and stress the importance of leadership skills, communication skills, and what it means to be a good team member. The most important trait is someone’s desire to want to show up and do a good job. We can teach and train people to be good at their jobs, but a highly motivated person will be great!

As someone working at the intersection of research, education, and exploration, what does it mean to you to be part of the Johns Hopkins community, particularly as the university celebrates its 150th Anniversary this year?

I don’t ever take my role for granted. I get to do job that a lot of people could only dream about: to wake up every day and work on a deep space mission that has the potential to rewrite history and science textbooks across the globe. Doing this job as part of the Hopkins community means a lot to me. Johns Hopkins is commensurate with excellence. Most people I meet only know about Johns Hopkins from a medical perspective, but when they hear about APL and our Space Exploration Sector, they can see that Johns Hopkins's expertise is very wide ranging.

Titan Chamber Team

Dragonfly team members gather in front of the Titan Chamber. Image credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins APL/Ed Whitman

Dragonfly team members gather in front of the Titan Chamber. Image credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins APL/Ed Whitman

Dragonfly team members gather in front of the Titan Chamber. Image credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins APL/Ed Whitman

For those who want to follow along, how can they stay connected as the mission develops?

The best place to start at APL’s Dragonfly website, where you can dig deep into the mission and the technology, stay up to date with news, browse photos and videos, meet our team, and even pilot the Dragonfly rotorcraft in AR.

You can also follow along on NASA and the APL's social media accounts: @nasasolarsystem and @johnshopkinsapl.

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A rendering of Dragonfly rotorcraft as it prepares to sample and examine the surface of a landing site on Titan.

Image credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins APL/Steve Gribben

Image credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins APL/Steve Gribben

Image credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins APL/Steve Gribben