TL;DR
Prime made for students and young adults
- Fast, free delivery for dorm and study essentials
- Prime Video and Amazon Music included
- Member-only deals
NASA intern Malvika Bhardwaj, a Rice University student, is developing analysis tools and simulations related to the U.S. Deorbit Vehicle, which is intended to safely deorbit the International Space Station at the end of its operational life. Johnson Space Center engineer Daniel Cohen mentors her and other interns, pairing technical instruction with exposure to team-based engineering work.
NASA has described how Johnson Space Center engineer Daniel Cohen is mentoring Rice University student Malvika Bhardwaj, whose internship includes developing tools to analyze thruster firings and control-system behavior for the U.S. Deorbit Vehicle. The work connects her technical training to NASA’s plans to safely deorbit the International Space Station at the end of its operational life.
Bhardwaj studies computational and applied mathematics at Rice and interns with Johnson’s Guidance, Navigation and Control team. She is building analysis tools for the vehicle’s thruster firings and running computer simulations to test its control system, including identifying conditions under which the system could fail. NASA’s account says the project contributes to work on the station’s eventual deorbit; it does not describe Bhardwaj’s tools as a complete or operational system.
Cohen sets aside a couple of hours each week to teach interns subjects including orbital mechanics and control systems. He also introduced Bhardwaj to colleagues and included her in conversations and meetings, giving her opportunities to see how engineers share ideas and coordinate work. Her internship culminated in a first project: a set of analysis tools she built from scratch.
Cohen is a Rice alumnus with a master’s degree in mechanical engineering. He began at NASA as a flight operations intern in 2020, completed further internships in docking dynamics, propulsion systems and GN&C analysis, and joined Johnson as a full-time engineer in August 2024. His current assignments include modeling and simulation work on the deorbit vehicle and analysis of Orion docking-camera settings for future Artemis rendezvous activities, according to NASA.
Training Engineers Through Real Missions
The account shows how NASA internships can combine hands-on technical work with guidance from staff who have moved through the agency’s own internship pipeline. Bhardwaj’s assignments give her experience with simulation, debugging and control-system analysis on a program tied to a major future spaceflight task. Mentoring provides a way to help an intern understand not just an individual calculation, but how it fits within a larger engineering effort.
That distinction matters because complex spacecraft projects rely on contributions from people with different specialties. Bhardwaj said she learned that problem-solving is rarely an individual effort and that team members need to understand how their work connects to the wider project. She also worked alongside interns in outreach, social media and digital design, broadening her view of the kinds of roles involved in STEM and space programs.
NASA’s profile is a report about one mentor-intern relationship, not an evaluation of the agency’s internship program or evidence of broad outcomes. Still, it offers a concrete example of how early-career training can expose students to technical tasks, workplace collaboration and possible career paths in aerospace.
Popular right now
Roborock Robot Vacuum and Mop with LiDAR Navigation and 10,000 Pa Suction
Dyson Ball Animal 3 Extra Upright Vacuum
KitchenAid Artisan Series 5-Quart Tilt-Head Stand Mixer, Dried Rose (KSM150PS)
As an affiliate, we earn on qualifying purchases.
From Intern to Johnson Engineer
Cohen’s own route to a full-time NASA position gives the mentoring relationship a specific connection to the experience he now shares with students. After his first flight operations internship in 2020, he gained experience in several technical areas before joining Johnson as an engineer in August 2024. NASA says his current work includes evaluating SpaceX’s U.S. Deorbit Vehicle design at multiple life-cycle reviews, along with studying the vehicle’s guidance, navigation and control performance.
The deorbit work concerns the eventual end of the space station’s operating life. NASA identifies the U.S. Deorbit Vehicle as part of the effort to safely deorbit the station, but the profile focuses on the intern’s analysis tasks and Cohen’s mentorship rather than presenting a new program milestone, launch date or engineering decision. It was published in recognition of National Mentoring Day on Oct. 27.
“You decide what’s important.”
— Daniel Cohen, Johnson Space Center GN&C engineer, as recalled by Malvika Bhardwaj
Project Milestones Remain Unspecified
NASA’s profile does not provide a schedule for the U.S. Deorbit Vehicle, the station’s eventual deorbit or the next engineering milestones. It also does not identify the specific failure conditions Bhardwaj’s simulations test or report results from those analyses. The account describes her work as part of the broader effort, but gives no indication that her tools have been adopted for operational use.
The article presents an individual example of mentorship and internship experience. It does not provide program-wide figures on intern participation, later employment, or the effect of mentoring on student outcomes. The year of the National Mentoring Day publication is also not stated in the supplied source.
Internship Work and Mission Reviews
Bhardwaj’s described work involves continuing to develop analysis tools and use simulations to test the deorbit vehicle’s control system. Cohen’s wider responsibilities include studying its models and GN&C performance, as well as evaluating the design at multiple life-cycle reviews. NASA’s profile does not name the dates or outcomes of those reviews, or state when Bhardwaj’s internship will end.
For students considering similar opportunities, Bhardwaj’s advice is to apply even if they do not feel fully prepared, since much of the learning happens on the job. No further program announcement or project milestone is specified in the source.
Key Questions
What is Malvika Bhardwaj working on at NASA?
She is developing analysis tools for thruster firings on the U.S. Deorbit Vehicle and using simulations to test its control system and examine possible failure conditions.
Who is mentoring her?
Daniel Cohen, a Guidance, Navigation and Control engineer at Johnson Space Center, mentors Bhardwaj and teaches interns subjects such as orbital mechanics and control systems.
How does the work relate to the International Space Station?
NASA says the U.S. Deorbit Vehicle is intended to help safely deorbit the station at the end of its operational life. The profile does not give a date for that event or describe Bhardwaj’s tools as an operational system.
What career advice did Bhardwaj offer students?
She encouraged students to apply even if they do not feel completely ready, saying that much of the learning happens on the job and that applicants should trust their ability to adapt.
Source: nasa.gov
