Dr. Bonometti has extensive engineering experience in the government, within industry, and in academia over a 25-year career and presently serves as the Director of Engineering for MDA’s Airborne Laser Program. As the NASA Chair Professor at the Naval Post graduate School, he supported a ship systems engineering study that utilized advanced nuclear power derived from thorium as well as teaching aerospace related subjects. Working at NASA for ten years as a technology manager, lead systems engineer, nuclear specialist, and propulsion researcher, he lead several NASA tiger teams in evaluating the Nuclear System Initiative’s fission demonstration vehicle and missions. He managed the Emerging Propulsion Technology Area for in-space systems, the Marshall Air Launch team, the Ares I-Y flight as its Lead Systems Engineer, as well as a variety of other power and propulsion assignments. After earning a Doctorate degree in Mechanical Engineering from University of Alabama in Huntsville, he spent several years as a Research Scientist & Senior Research Engineer at the UAH Propulsion Research Center where he served as a Principal Investigator and manager for the Solar Thermal Laboratory. He has worked as a Senior Mechanical Designer at Pratt & Whitney supporting aircraft engine manufacturing and at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory within the laser fusion program. A graduate from the United States Military Academy, at West Point, where he studied nuclear physics and engineering, he served as an officer in the United States Army Corps of Engineers; both in combat and district engineering management assignments. He is a Registered Professional Engineer and has authored numerous aerospace technical publications, particular ly propulsion and space systems technologies. As an invited Google Tech talk lecturer, Dr. Bonometti’s systems engineering approach to the energy crisis has been widely publicized, exceeding 20,000 downloads. His technical expertise includes nuclear engineering, specialized mechanical & materials research, space plasmas & propulsion, thermodynamics, heat transfer, and systems engineering.