Michael Nayak

Michael "Orbit" Nayak, CFII, PhD, serves as a Program Manager in the Strategic Technology Office at the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) since May 2022. Previously, Michael held several prestigious positions, including Deputy Chief Flight Test Engineer at the Air Force Test Center, where responsibilities included managing multiple test programs and overseeing a significant flight test budget. Additional notable roles include Principal Investigator for both the Long-duration Antarctic Night and Daytime Imaging Telescope (LANDIT) project with the United States Antarctic Program and for the Dynamic Optical Telescope System (DOTS) at the Air Force Research Laboratory. Michael has extensive experience in aerospace engineering and flight testing, supported by advanced degrees from several universities including a PhD in Earth and Planetary Science from the University of California, Santa Cruz.