PIPER SIGREST 
(they/them)

  • Brooke Owens Fellow, Class of 2017

  • University of Michigan, Aerospace Engineering, PhD

  • Massachusetts Institute of Technology, AeroAstro, ‘18

  • Host Institution: Virgin Orbit

  • Mentor: Indra Hornsby

Piper Sigrest is a PhD student in the Aerospace Engineering department at the University of Michigan. They research avian-inspired morphing structures in the Adaptive Intelligent Multifunctional Structures (AIMS) Lab, and are concurrently pursuing a Graduate Certificate in Russian, East European, and Eurasian Studies. In 2019, Piper was awarded a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship. Piper graduated from MIT in 2018 with a Bachelor's degree in Aerospace Engineering, a minor in Russian and Eurasian Studies, and a MIT-Gordon Engineering Leadership Program certificate.

Growing up in a home full of pilots and space enthusiasts, Piper was drawn to aviation and earned their private pilot’s license on their 17th birthday. In high school, several life-changing opportunities introduced Piper to the wonder and beauty of space: watching the final launch of Atlantis in 2011, talking with astronauts at the 2012 State of STEM Address in D.C., attending Space Camp, and competing in the 2012 International Space Olympics in Korolev, Russia. Piper learned that their love of flight encompassed both atmospheric and space flight.

Throughout high school and undergrad, Piper interned at NASA Langley, Aurora Flight Sciences, SpaceX, Virgin Orbit, and Blue Origin. As a Brooke Owens Fellow, Piper worked at Virgin Orbit as a second stage structures team member, conducting extensive testing of composite coupons. Piper designed several test fixtures and components and produced prototype parts during their internship. Their other internship projects have touched a wide range of areas including fluids systems, propellant management devices, systems engineering, and mission management.

Piper loves sharing their excitement for space with others. They have volunteered at outreach events with the MIT Rocket Team, led STEM workshops in Russia and Kazakhstan, and translated exhibit texts at the Moscow Memorial Museum of Cosmonautics. Piper aspires to promote and normalize human space exploration as both an engineer and an astronaut, and wants to inspire everyone to reach for the stars! When they aren’t building rockets or admiring aircraft, Piper loves crafting, solving Sudoku puzzles, and spending time outdoors.