• Brooke Owens Fellow, Class of 2021

• Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University - Prescott, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, ‘23

• Host Institution: SpaceX

• Mentor: Vanessa Aponte Williams

• Brookie Mentor: Claire Buff

Zoe Brand is a sophomore at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University - Prescott, pursuing a major in Mechanical Engineering with a specialization in propulsion. She has had an interest in becoming an astronaut and lending a helping hand in space exploration ever since she was a young girl.

Although Zoe has always had a passion for space, it was her experience in FIRST Robotics that kickstarted her journey as an engineer. With her enthusiasm for engineering, she eventually become team lead for robotics and founded an aviation and engineering club called Flight Club.

During Zoe’s time at Embry-Riddle she has been highly active in rocketry. She is currently Vice President of the Rocket Development Lab and is involved with the rocket testing facility on campus. During her summer research she designed testing code for a 200lbf LOX/Ethanol liquid rocket engine to be used in a new rocket testing class on campus. Her experience in the testing facility allowed her to become a Lab Assistant, teaching juniors and seniors about testing liquid and solid rockets.

Zoe is currently leading an undergraduate research team working on ablatively cooled nozzles for a rocket designed to reach the Karman Line and is in the design phase for developing a water-cooled engine. Zoe is also a scholar for NASA’s Arizona Space Grant, researching cooling channel geometries for a regeneratively cooled rocket engine.

When Zoe is not studying or in the lab, she can be found working on hobby rockets, shooting for her Level 2 certification. In her free time, she enjoys climbing and hiking.

As a 2021 Brooke Owens Fellow, she will be joining SpaceX’s propulsion components team this summer.