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Makena Fetzer

  • Brooke Owens Fellow, Class of 2019

  • University of California Berkeley, Astrophysics, '20

  • Host Institution: Spire

  • Mentor: Patricia Cooper

Makena Fetzer is currently studying astrophysics with a concentration in computer science at UC Berkeley. Her fascination with the cosmos began on a childhood road trip to Lake Powell in Arizona. Removed from city lights, she saw her first clear sky exploding with stars of differing color and was forever hooked. Her early questions about what might exist beyond our atmosphere have since shaped her life and studies.

With the desire of one day venturing into space, she has been developing technical skills and experience to probe near-space environments. As the High-Altitude Balloon Team Lead for Berkeley’s student-run club, Space Technologies at Cal, she led a team that successfully designed and flight-tested a novel payload bus and avionics system.

Her internship at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory with the Innovation to Flight Team reinforced her passion and understanding that high-altitude ballooning is a cost-effective platform for performing meaningful near space research. It is her life goal to continue improving the accessibility to space through engineering and outreach.

At Berkeley, Makena participates in a number of other extracurricular endeavors. She is a passionate diver and Vice President of SCUBA at Berkeley. Makena is also an undergraduate student instructor for a lower division astronomy course and operates the 18-inch Treffers Telescope on Berkeley’s campus.

During the Summer of 2019, she worked with Spire’s Launch Team to contribute to their mission of launching data-collecting satellites that provide maritime, aviation, and weather insights. She developed a tool to structure the team’s launch strategy and was lucky enough to spend a few weeks working out of Spire’s Glasgow office for their satellite integration into deployers.

Following her internship, she intends to continue working in mission management and test roles to support the sustainable commercialization of Low Earth Orbit. She will graduate from Berkeley in May 2020.