Martin Cacan

Martin Cacan has extensive experience in guidance and control systems, currently serving as the Chief Pilot of the Ingenuity Helicopter at NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, where responsibilities include developing flight plans and analyzing flight data for mission success. Previously, Martin held the position of Guidance and Controls Analyst, focusing on dynamic modeling and GNC algorithm development across several space missions. Academic accomplishments include a Ph.D. and Master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from Georgia Institute of Technology, where research involved adaptive control of damaged aerial vehicles and nonlinear dynamic modeling of piezoelectric materials. Early research experience includes work at UC Berkeley on piezoelectric energy harvesting and a summer internship at NASA Ames Research Center involving hyperspectral camera calibration for environmental monitoring.