48^th AEROSPACE MECHANISMS SYMPOSIUM

May 13 – 15, 2026

Hosted by NASA Marshall Space Flight and Lockheed Martin Space.
Organized by the Mechanisms Education Association.

SYMPOSIUM OBJECTIVES

This symposium is concerned with the problems of design, fabrication, test, and operational use of aerospace mechanisms. Emphasis is on hardware developments. The symposium provides a social and technical forum for personnel active in the field of mechanisms technology, as well as providing a source of information for others interested in this field. The symposium rotates among eight NASA Centers and attracts papers and attendees from all over the world.

SYMPOSIUM LOCATION

The Von Braun Center, Huntsville, Alabama is the site for all technical sessions. Check in and technical sessions will be held in Ballrooms 1 and 2, and lunches and the Wednesday evening reception will be held in Ballrom 4.

The Von Braun Center

700 Monroe Street, Huntsville, Alabama 35801, USA

SYMPOSIUM ACTIVITIES

The planned technical and social activities provide an opportunity for attendees to become professionally and personally acquainted. Dress attire is business casual unless otherwise noted.

MECHANISMS COURSES

On Monday and Tuesday, May 11 and May 12, 2026 three separate courses will be offered at the convention center. Registration for the Aerospace Mechanisms Symposium is not included in any class price and registration for the AMS symposium does not include registration for any of the courses.

Space Mechanisms Course (May 11-12)

Launchspace is providing a special edition of its Space Vehicle Mechanisms course. This course explores the technologies required for successful space mechanisms design and offers a detailed look at many of the key components common to most mechanisms. The materials necessary to achieve high performance are discussed. Examples of the many types of mechanisms are included for illustration. In addition, the mechanisms relationships and interfaces with other vehicle systems are explored. The course includes design and analysis examples to demonstrate principles involved in understanding how mechanisms should work and how design margins should be evaluated during the evolution of a program.
Register at: Space Vehicle Mechanisms
The price for this course is $895 (until April 1).

Compliant Mechanisms Design (May 11-12)

Traditional rigid-body mechanisms consist of rigid links connected at movable joints. A compliant mechanism is a mechanism that gains at least some of its mobility from the deflection of flexible members rather than from movable joints only. This two-day course focuses on the basics of compliant mechanisms, modeling and simulation, materials selection, failure prevention and design.
Register at: Compliant Mechanisms
The price for this course is $895 (until April 1).

Rolling-Element Bearings: Fundamentals and Mechanics (May 11-12)

Examine fundamental geometry, kinematics, Hertzian contact mechanics, internal load distributions, preloading, stiffness and various nonlinear relationships of rolling-element bearings. Explore how system performance characteristics are affected by both internal bearing parameters and various bearing row configurations. Learn about boundary influences, such as fit-ups and relative thermal expansions, and gain knowledge related to the design, sizing, analysis and troubleshooting of rolling-element bearings. A minimum of 10 attendees is required to hold the course. Lunch and refreshments provided.
Register at: www.halpinengineeringllc.com
The price for this course is $1250.

Check-In

On Tuesday evening, May 12, from 6:00-8:00 PM, check in and registration will be in The Von Braun Center, 700 Monroe Street, Huntsville. Symposium materials will be available along with light refreshments.

Reception

On Wednesday evening, May 13, a reception will be held in The Von Braun Center. Supplier displays and poster papers will be exhibited during the evening along with demonstrations by a local school robotics team. A buffet dinner will be served. The reception is open for the enjoyment of all attendees and guests.

The following companies will be exhibiting during the reception:

Company Name	Address	Product Range	Link
American Motion Systems	Morgan Hill, CA	Motors	American Motion Systems
ARQUIMEA	Madrid, Spain	Mechanisms and actuators	ARQUIMEA
BEI Precision	Maumelle, AK	Optical Encoders	BEI Precision
Castrol	Wayne, NJ	Space lubricants	Castrol
CDA Intercorp	Deerfield Beach, FL	Actuators/Motors	CDA Intercorp
Cerobear	Germany	Ceramic Bearings	Cerobear
Diamond Antenna & Microwave	Littleton, MA	Rotary Joints	Diamond Antenna & Microwave
Eaton ITD	Cleveland, OH	Connectors	Eaton ITD
Ensign-Bickford	Simsbury, CT	Release Mechanisms	Ensign-Bickford
ESI Motion	Simi Valley, CA	Actuators/Motor Control	ESI Motion
Fuchs Lubricants	Harvey, IL	Space lubricants	Fuchs Lubricants
Gurley Precision Instruments	Troy, NY	Encoders, Optics, Instrumentation	Gurley Precision Instruments
Harmonic Drive LLC	Beverly, MA	Actuators	Harmonic Drive LLC
HQW Aerospace	Plymouth, UK	Bearings	HQW Aerospace
Motiv Space Systems	Pasadena, CA	Robotics	Motiv Space Systems
Motor Magnetics, Inc	St. Petersberg, FL	Encoders, Sensors, Motors	Motor Magnetics, Inc
Sensitron	Hauppauge, NY	Motor controller and power	Sensitron
Sensory System, LLC	St. Petersberg, FL	Encoders, Sensors, Motors	Sensory System, LLC
Sierra Space	Louisville, CO	Spacecraft Systems	Sierra Space
Windings	New Ulm, MN	Motors	Windings

Symposium Banquet

On Thursday evening, May 14, the symposium dinner open to all attendees and guests will be in the Space & Rocket Center. The center is home to a Saturn V launch vehicle from the Apollo era. The Symposium Banquet will be served underneath the Saturn V lanch vehicle. Busses will be provided to take delgates and the guests to and from the Space & rocket Center.

Facility Tours

On Friday afternoon, May 15, there will be an opportunity to tour NASA Marshall Space Flight Center or The Signals Museum – www.signals-museum.org. Transportation will be provided with symposium registration.

The NASA Marshall Space Flight Center tour is a private tour open to only U.S. citizens and will be limited to 60 persons; the MSFC tour will close on April 29 irrespective of the number of people indicating they wish to join the tour to allow for additional security checks to be completed.

The tour of the Signals Museum is open to all symposium attendees and guests.

Guest Activities

Huntsville, Alabama, in northern Alabama, is the state’s largest city, nicknamed “Rocket City” for its leadership in U.S. space and defense programs, hosting NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center and Redstone Arsenal. It’s a growing tech hub with Cummings Research Park, diverse attractions like the U.S. Space & Rocket Center and Botanical Garden, and a rich history that briefly made it Alabama’s first capital.

Apart from the space related attractions Huntsville, Alabama, offers other attractions such as Huntsville Botanical Garden and Monte Sano State Park for nature lovers, plus Lowe Mill Arts & Entertainment and Downtown for culture and dining; nearby options include Cathedral Caverns State Park, Cook Museum of Natural Science, and scenic drives around Lake Guntersville.

Presenters’ Meetings

Presenting authors are required to attend a complimentary breakfast on the day of their presentation. (Note – only the presenters, not all authors of the paper.) This gathering gives the session participants an opportunity to meet their Session Chair and each other, and to review the session arrangements. The Symposium AV help will be available to discuss presentation requirements.

SYMPOSIUM INFORMATION

Registration

Advance registration is requested to facilitate planning and commitments. Please register on www.aeromechanisms.com. The registration fee is $775 ($350 for full time educators, $300 for students, $250 for retirees). Registrants will obtain access to the proceedings as soon as they are available. NOTE: If the registration payment is received after 11:59pm CST (GMT-6) April 1, 2026, the registration fee is $875. Also, any registrations started but unpaid before this deadline will also be revised to the full late registration fee of $875. This fee covers all sessions, transportation as noted, reception and banquet and early access to the proceedings.

Refund Policy

If a registration is cancelled the Mechanisms Education Association will refund all fees paid less $50 if cancelled before April 22, 2026. After April 22, no refunds will be given. Alternatively, a registration may be transferred to another employee at the same company if the original registrant cannot attend and if the request for the transfer is done prior to the start of the symposium by contacting our registration point of contact (Ron Mancini, MEA Treasurer). Any booking on the tour of NASA Marshall Space Center associated with the original booking will be voided irrespective of whether the new delegate is a US citizen or not – please refer to the FAQs page.

Hotels

There is no official symposium hotel; there are numerous hotel choices in Huntsville close to The Von Braun Center. Delegates are reminded that they are responsible for their own accommodation and travel costs – please refer to the FAQs page.

Dr. George Herzl Award

At each symposium, an award is given to the author(s) of the “Best Paper.” The award is based on paper content, presentation delivery, and visual aids. This award was established in honor of Dr. George Herzl of Lockheed Martin, a co-founder of the Aerospace Mechanisms Symposium.

Dr. Charles Coale Grant

Each year the Mechanisms Education Association sponsors high school and junior high school robotics teams in honor of Dr. Charles Coale of Lockheed Martin. Dr. Coale was the leader of the symposium for more than 20 years and had a special interest in helping children.

SYMPOSIUM PROGRAM AND TIMETABLE

Time (CST)	Paper Title	Session Chair / Presenting Author	Affiliation
	Tuesday May 12, 2026
18h00 - 20h00	CHECK-IN AND REFRESHMENTS - South Hall Main Entrance
	DAY-1: Wednesday May 13, 2026 All Sessions are in Ballrooms 1 & 2
07h00	Presenters' Breakfast, Meeting Room 1
08h00	CHECK-IN South Hall Main Entrance
08h10	INTRODUCTORY REMARKS	Jonathan Wood, General Chair	Lockheed Martin Space, Sunnyvale, CA
		David E. Eddleman, Host Chair	NASA Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, AL
		Lisa Bates, Director of Engineering	NASA Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, AL
	Session I: DEPLOYABLES	Ben Nickless	NASA Langley Research Center	Top Of Page
08h30	Deployable Nose Landing Gear for Reusable Orbital Re-Entry Vehicle	Biju Prasad	Indian Space Research Organisation
09h00	Design and Spaceflight Qualification of the Large Area Membrane Deployable Antenna	Trey Quiller	MMA Space
09h30	Lessons Learned from In-Orbit Deployment Dynamics of a Large Solar Array	Amit Kamboj	U R Rao Satellite Centre
10h00	A Tensioning and Deployment Mechanism for Thin Membrane Inflatable Lenticular Reflectors in Space	Aman Chandra	Steward Observatory, University of Arizona
10h30	30 min Break
11h00	Development and Qualification of Deployment Mechanisms for Synthetic Aperture Radar Antennas Onboard Small Satellites	Carlos Ramos Gutiérrez	Arquimea
11h30	Deployable Contamination Cover for the IDEX Dust Mass Spectrometer	Chip Bollendonk	Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics (LASP)
12h00	Lunch: Lunch for AMS Attendees
	Session II: LAUNCH VEHICLES	Lionel Gaillard	ESA/ESTEC	Top Of Page
13h00	Emergency Egress Release and Braking System Testing Lessons Learned	Nicholas Barlow	RS&H
13h30	Compliant One-Way Valve for Payload Fairing Venting	Johann Waesle	Beyond Gravity Switzerland
14h00	15 min Break
	Session III: RELEASE MECHANISMS	Claef Hakun	NASA Goddard Space Flight Center	Top Of Page
14h15	An Analytical Approach to Predicting Separation Kinematics of Linear Shaped Charge Stage Separation System	Grady Lynch	Lockheed Martin Space
14h45	Resolution of the CODEX Aperture Door Anomaly	Jason Budinoff	Visioneering Space Corp
15h15	Performance Issues, Run-In Testing, and Lessons Learned with EBAD Pin Pullers	Charles Fisher	Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics
15h45	30 min Break
	SESSION IV: POSTER SESSION PREVIEW	Mark Balzer	NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory	Top Of Page
		A rapid fire session of poster papers. Each presenter will give their best 5-minute pitch and attendees can follow up at the reception or other time.
16h15	Additive Manufacturing of Flywheel Mass for Reaction Wheels	Dimitri Albert	Rockwell Collins Deutschland GmbH
16h20	Development of a Compact, Planar, Spring Finger Latching Hinge for Small Satellites	Logan Althoff	Lockheed Martin Space
16h25	Development and Qualification of Harmonic Drive® Gears with Customer Specific Ratios for Aerospace Applications: Design Challenges and Performance Assessment	Inigo Ruiz de Velasco Nebot	Harmonic Drive SE
16h30	Design and Testing of an Origami-based Deployable Telescope System	Philip Klocke	Brigham Young University
16h35	Detection of Axis‑of‑Rotation Variations in Spaceflight Mechanisms Using Encoder Alignment Data	John Beasley	Quantic BEI
16h40	Development of a Unit-Level Vibration Qualification Plan for Small Satellite Solar Array Drive Mechanisms	Jeremy Hawke	UTIAS Space Flight Laboratory
16h45	Design and Testing of a Thruster Pointing Mechanism (TPM-250) for Deep Space and IOS Nanosats	Freddie Williams	AVS UK
16h50	Lessons Learned from Designing and Qualifying a Zero-Lever-Arm Deployable Siderostat with a Release Nut HDRM	Guillem Quintana Buil	Dcubed
16h55	Development of a Novel Bistable Kresling Origami Telescope Baffle	Brennan Chung	Sandia National Labs
17h00 - 22h00	RECEPTION - Ballroom 4	Component suppliers display current products and provide tutorials, Poster Papers are displayed, Robotics Team demonstrations, and a buffet meal.
	DAY-2: Thursday May 14, 2026
07h30	Presenters' Breakfast, Meeting Room 1
	Session V: DOCKING	Terry Nienaber	NASA Langley Research Center	Top Of Page
08h30	Design and Development of a Novel Deployable Lever Based Rigidization Mechanism with Self Hold Down Feature for Space Docking Experiment (SPADEX)	Abhishek Kumar	U R Rao Satellite Centre
09h00	Design, Development, and Test of the Advanced Apollo Orbital Assembly System	Marc Jarmulowicz	Dynamic Concepts LLC, an Astrion subsidiary
09h30	The NASA Docking System- Block 2: Changes and Challenges for Lunar exploration	Karl Keiser	Onyx Aerospace
10h00	30 min Break
	Session VI: THE STU LOEWENTHAL TRIBOLOGY SESSION	Lance Lininger	Lockheed Martin Space, Sunnyvale, CA	Top Of Page
10h30	Radiation-Conditioned Ti–hBN Coatings for Space Mechanisms: Bridging Tribology and Irradiation Effects from Laboratory to Low-Earth Orbit	Abhijith Sukumaran	Florida International University
11h00	PFAS-Free Ionic Liquid Lubricants for Space Mechanisms	Román de la Presilla	KTH Royal Institute of Technology
11h30	Development of a Micro-Torque Measurement System for Characterizing Novel Materials in Miniature Space Bearings	Juan Bosch	Akron Engineering Tribology Laboratory
12h00	Lunch: Lunch for AMS Attendees
	Session VII: INSTRUMENTS	Louise Jandura	NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory	Top Of Page
13h00	RSI100-220/60 Qualification Status	Ben Kohnen	Rockwell Collins Deutschland GmbH
13h30	Development of the DrACO Sample Delivery Carousel	David Yu	Honeybee Robotics, a Blue Origin Company
14h00	Development of the MMX P-SMP Sample Return Hold and Release Mechanism	Sherman Lam	Honeybee Robotics, a Blue Origin Company
14h30	30 min Break
	Session VIII: ACTUATORS & GIMBALS	Justin Scheidler	NASA Glenn Research Center	Top Of Page
15h00	Development of 3-Axes Advanced Electrical Propulsion Pointing Mechanisms (APPMAX3)	Paul Janu	Beyond Gravity Austria
15h30	Design and Test of the VIPER Mobility Actuators	Alexander Sobey	NASA Johnson Space Center
16h00	Development and Testing of a Low LoS Disturbance Antenna Gimbal Subsystem: Investigation and Lessons Learned	Andy Keegan	Sierra Space
16h30	SPECIAL PRESENTATION – Returning Humans to the Moon: HLS Program Overview	Kent Chojnacki, HLS Deputy Program Manager	Marshall Space Flight Center
18h00 - 22h30	BANQUET - Space & Rocket Center	Dinner and entertainment under a Saturn V launch vehicle from the Apollo era.
	DAY-3: Friday May 15, 2026
07h30	Presenters' Breakfast, Meeting Room 1
	Session IX: SPACE EXPLORATION	Nicolas Haddad	NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory	Top Of Page
08h30	Orientation Mechanism for the Mars Sample Return Mission Capture and Containment Return System	Walter Smith	NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
09h00	Development and Qualification Testing of the “Beresheet” Lunar Lander Landing Gear	Nadav Zimron-Politi	Israel Aerospace Industries
09h30	ExoMars Landing Leg Mechanism Development and Qualification	Kevin Picton and Aiala Artiagoitia Carlos	Sener
10h00	LISTER Coiled Tubing Deployable Boom and Lunar Pneumatic Drill – Development Challenges and Flight Performance	Peter Ngo	Honeybee Robotics
10h30	30 min Break
11h00	Sample Retrieval Lander VECTOR – Vertically Ejected, Controlled Tip-Off Release	Alex Bielawiec	NASA JPL
11h30	The Return to the Moon: Highlights of the Artemis II mission from an SLS Perspective	John Blevins, SLS Chief Engineer	Marshall Space Flight Center
12h00	TECHNICAL SESSIONS CONCLUSION	Jonathan Wood	Lockheed Martin Space, Sunnyvale, CA
	Herzl Award Presentation
12h30	Lunch: Lunch for AMS Attendees
	TOURS
13h30	Busses depart Convention Center for symposium tours
17h00	Approximate time busses return to Convention Center

SYMPOSIUM ORGANIZING COMMITTEE

General Chairman: Jonathan Wood, Lockheed Martin Space

Deputy Chairman: Lance Lininger, Lockheed Martin Space

Host Chairs:

• David E. Eddleman, NASA MSFC
• Mathew Zwack, NASA MSFC

Mark A. Balzer, JPL
Torin L. Bowman, NASA ARC
Earl Daley, NASA ARC
Adam G. Dokos, NASA KSC
Michael J. Dube, NASA NESC
Carlton L. Foster, NASA MSFC (retired)
Lionel Gaillard, ESA/ESTeC
Nicolas E. Haddad, JPL
Claef F. Hakun, NASA GSFC
Louise Jandura, JPL
Timothy L. Krantz, NASA GRC
Lance R. Lininger, Lockheed Martin Space
Alan C. Littlefield, NASA KSC (retired)
Stuart H. Loewenthal, Lockheed Martin Space (retired)
Ronald E. Mancini, NASA ARC (retired)
Donald H. McQueen, Jr., NASA MSFC (retired)
Landon Moore, NASA JSC
Benjamin J. Nickless, NASA LaRC
Terry Nienaber, NASA LaRC
Brandan Robertson, NASA JSC
Justin J. Scheidler, NASA GRC
Joseph P. Schepis, NASA GSFC
Jason M. Schuler, NASA KSC
Donald R. Sevilla, JPL (retired)

www.aeromechanisms.com