LEXINGTON, Ky. (Aug. 8, 2025) — Alexandre Martin, Ph.D., professor in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering (MAE) in the Stanley and Karen Pigman College of Engineering at the University of Kentucky, has been awarded the NASA Exceptional Public Service Medal — one of the highest honors given to individuals outside the agency.
The medal is a prestigious honor awarded to nongovernment individuals who have made outstanding contributions to NASA’s mission. It recognizes sustained excellence across multiple projects, programs or initiatives that have significantly advanced the agency’s goals.
“Receiving the NASA Outstanding Public Service Medal is humbling and also quite meaningful,” Martin said. “It’s a reminder that the work we do with students at universities can contribute to something much larger. I’m honored to be part of the NASA mission and grateful to stand alongside so many dedicated minds, pushing boundaries.”
According to NASA, Martin was awarded the medal for his “exceptional public service in advancing NASA entry systems technologies and fostering a U.S. engineering and technology talent base.”
“Martin’s work reflects not only national impact but also deep, long-term investment in students right here at UK,” said MAE Chair Jesse Hoagg. “As a leader in the department, he has helped shape a program known for innovation, real-world research and opportunities that take students’ work beyond the classroom — and even into space.”
Martin earned a bachelor’s degree in physics from the University of Montréal and a master’s and doctoral degree in mechanical engineering from École Polytechnique Montréal. During his graduate studies, he worked on ablation modeling. After graduation, Martin held a postdoctoral position at the University of Michigan where he applied his knowledge to hypersonic vehicles.
Martin joined UK in 2010, and today, he focuses on the modeling of atmospheric entry vehicles, such as the one used by NASA to deliver the Perseverance rover on Mars. His contributions are primarily in the field of computational modeling, prediction and analysis. Martin has also supervised numerous flight experiments, including the first successful university-developed atmospheric entry capsule, KRUPS.
“The science behind hypersonic and planetary exploration is exciting. It's amazing how much there is to do to ensure that a space vehicle, traveling at thousands of kilometers per hour, can safely land on a planet located millions of kilometers away,” he explained. “It’s also nice to think that the work we do can contribute — even if just a little — to such achievements.”
KRUPS gives students the opportunity to design, build and test small re-entry capsules with thermal protection systems — the materials that keep spacecraft safe as they return to Earth.
The project began with senior design teams, high-altitude balloon flights and suborbital launches. But by 2021, KRUPS had made history. A capsule designed and built by UK students and researchers launched to the International Space Station and returned safely to Earth — becoming the first university-built object to survive atmospheric re-entry from orbital velocity. It also marked another milestone: the first successful re-entry of a 3D-printed heat shield.
In July 2024, Martin led a second successful mission, deploying five KRUPS capsules to test next-generation heat-shield materials — several developed and manufactured at UK. The effort provided critical data that helped NASA qualify these innovations for future spaceflight. A third launch is planned for 2026, set to carry 12 capsules and further advance the program’s cutting-edge impact on re-entry technology.
More than 100 UK students have worked on KRUPS so far, many going on to careers at NASA, the U.S. Air Force, GE Aviation, Raytheon, Blue Origin and top universities across the country. Martin’s leadership is a model of how engineering education can directly contribute to NASA’s goals and to the country’s future in aerospace innovation.
“Martin’s achievements continue to lift the profile of the college, the department and the NASA Kentucky Space Grant and EPSCoR programs,” said Rudolph Buchheit, Ph.D., Rebecca Burchett Liebert Dean of the Pigman College of Engineering. “His work exemplifies the impact of visionary leadership and student-centered research in advancing both aerospace technology and workforce development across UK, Kentucky and beyond.”
Martin is an American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) Associate Fellow, and a Visiting Fellow at St. Catherine’s College, University of Oxford. He has published more than 200 peer-reviewed journal and conference papers. Martin is also regularly invited to give presentations on hypersonic thermal response and ablation.
Martin will receive the NASA Exceptional Public Service Medal at a ceremony on Sept. 11 at Ames Research Center in California.
As the state’s flagship, land-grant institution, the University of Kentucky exists to advance the Commonwealth. We do that by preparing the next generation of leaders — placing students at the heart of everything we do — and transforming the lives of Kentuckians through education, research and creative work, service and health care. We pride ourselves on being a catalyst for breakthroughs and a force for healing, a place where ingenuity unfolds. It's all made possible by our people — visionaries, disruptors and pioneers — who make up 200 academic programs, a $476.5 million research and development enterprise and a world-class medical center, all on one campus.
