Student's zero-gravity work leads to NSF Fellowship

He preferred conducting his experiments in space, where he could achieve zero gravity—the perfect environment for his boiling water experiment. However, because flying to the International Space Station was not financially feasible, Justin Koeln used the next best thing—NASA's "Weightless Wonder."

Koeln, a second-year masters student at Illinois, boiled water on the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) zero gravity simulator as an undergraduate at Utah State University. The hollowed-out plane flies in parabolic trajectories, providing nearly 30 seconds of free fall. In free fall, the plane provided Koeln and his research team with the zero gravity environment he needed for his study.

"NASA Reduced Gravity Student Flight Opportunities Program provides students with the opportunity to submit proposals to do their research on this plane," Koeln said. "My research team submitted a proposal and then we built our own boiling experiment that we then performed on the plane."

The team consisted of interdisciplinary students from business, computer science, and engineering majors with a shared interest in space research. Koeln joined the organization as a freshman and made funding proposals for the experiment in his junior year. So far, the team has successfully completed three experiments on the "Weightless Wonder."

"I got involved early and was interested in the research side of it; I became the technical lead," Koeln said. "I made sure that the experiments we were designing were of interest and value to the scientific community and society."

Although Koeln reflects upon his undergraduate college career and microgravity research with nostalgia, he said that his experience with NASA and his research advisors at Utah State helped him get where he is today.

"The project came with a lot of leadership opportunities as well as opportunities to work with NASA and the space industry," Koeln said. "But without my research advisors, I probably wouldn't have many of these opportunities, especially so early in my education."

While still at Utah State, Koeln applied for the National Science Foundation (NSF) Fellowship to fund his graduate research. He received the fellowship his junior year of undergraduate study. The following year, he majored with a degree in Mechanical Engineering. He started using the fellowship when he came to Illinois for graduate school.

At Illinois, Koeln explores controls research. He now works with heating and air conditioning systems, hoping to improve the performance and efficiency of the systems.

"They (the systems) are used everywhere," Koeln said. "Their energy use and performance have a huge impact on our society."

However, he still manages to combine his current studies with his undergraduate research interests. In the summer of 2012, Koeln worked at the Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton, Ohio. He and his co-workers helped to understand and control the cooling systems on jet fighters.

As for his future in engineering, Koeln hopes to pursue a PhD at Illinois. While he understands that a PhD is a great commitment, he hopes it will provide him the education and skills needed to achieve his life-time career goals.

Beyond school, Koeln is thinking about becoming a professor or working at a national lab.