Supporting Mission-Driven Space Innovation, For Earth And Beyond

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As spaceflight becomes more affordable and accessible, the story of human life in space is just beginning. Aurelia Institute wants to make sure that future benefits all of humanity - whether in space or here on Earth.

Founded by MIT alumna Ariel Ekblaw and others, the nonprofit serves as a research lab, an education and outreach center, and a policy hub for the space industry.

At the heart of the Aurelia Institute's mission is a commitment to making space accessible to all people. A big part of that work involves annual microgravity flights that Ekblaw says are equal part research missions, workforce training, and inspiration for the next generation of space enthusiasts.

We've done that every year," Ekblaw says of the flights. We now have multiple cohorts of students that connect across years. It brings together people from very different backgrounds. We've had artists, designers, architects, ethicists, teachers, and others fly with us. In our R&D, we are interested in space infrastructure for the public good. That's why we're directing our technology portfolios toward near-term, massive infrastructure projects in low-Earth orbit that benefit life on Earth."

From the annual flights to the Institute's self-assembling space architecture technology known as TESSERAE, much of Aurelia's work is an extension of projects Ekblaw started as a graduate student at MIT.

My life trajectory changed when I came to MIT," says Ekblaw, who is still a visiting researcher at MIT. I am incredibly grateful for the education I got in the Media Lab and the Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics. MIT is what gave me the skill, the technology, and the community to be able to spin out Aurelia and do something important in the space industry at scale."

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