Interplanetary Astrodynamics

Dr. David Spencer is a Professor Emeritus in the Department of Aerospace Engineering at The Pennsylvania State University, in State College, Pennsylvania. His research areas include: spacecraft dynamics and controls, trajectory optimization, theoretical and applied astrodynamics, space systems engineering, space traffic management, orbital debris dynamics and space technology development.

He began his career as a Member of the Technical Staff in the Astrodynamics Department at The Aerospace Corporation. He then worked for the Air Force Research Laboratory in various positions in the Space Vehicles Directorate. He joined the faculty at The Pennsylvania State University in 1999 and retired as an emeritus professor in 2021. He is now back at The Aerospace Corporation as a Senior Staff member. He is a Full Member of the International Academy of Astronautics, a Fellow of the American Astronautical Society, an Associate Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics and a former Associate Editor for the Journal of Spacecraft and Rockets.

Dr. Spencer received a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Kentucky, an M.S. in Aeronautics and Astronautics from Purdue University, an M.B.A. from Penn State, and a Ph.D. in Aerospace Engineering Sciences from the University of Colorado at Boulder.

Dr. Davide Conte is an Assistant Professor at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, in Prescott, Arizona. His research areas include: trajectory optimization, theoretical and applied astrodynamics, space systems engineering, space mission design, and proximity operations.

Dr. Conte was born in Genova, Italy, where he lived and attended school until the age of seventeen. He then received a scholarship to attend the Altoona Area High School in Altoona, Pennsylvania, as an American Field Service (AFS) scholar. He later returned to his hometown in Italy to complete his high school diploma at Liceo Scientific S. Maria ad Nives, in Genova Pegli, Italy. Dr. Conte then moved to the United States to attend The Pennsylvania State University, where he received a B.S. in Aerospace Engineering, a B.S. in Mathematics, an M.S. in Aerospace Engineering, and a Ph.D. in Aerospace Engineering. He joined the faculty in the Department of Aerospace Engineering at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in 2019, where he has been leading a variety of competition-driven space mission design projects, and where he teaches and does research in astrodynamics and space mission design.

He is a Member of the American Astronautical Society and a Member of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics.