Education
Public Leadership Credential, John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University
Ph.D., Aerospace Engineering, The University of Texas at Austin
M.S., Aerospace Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology
B.S., Aerospace Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology
Dr. John Christian is a spacecraft navigator, author, and professor. He is director of the Space Exploration Analysis Laboratory (SEAL) and an internationally-known expert in image-based spacecraft navigation and astrodynamics. Dr. Christian is a tenured associate professor at the Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech), where he is also the AE School's Associate Chair for Graduate Programs. Prior to joining the faculty at Georgia Tech, he held previous academic appointments at West Virginia University (Assistant Professor, 2013-2017) and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (Assistant Professor, 2017-2020; Associate Professor, 2020-2021). Prior to his positions in academia, Dr. Christian was an aerospace engineer at the NASA Johnson Space Center (2010-2012) in the GNC Autonomous Flight Systems Branch.
Dr. Christian develops algorithms for extracting information from space sensor data. He is most well-known for his contributions in the use of visible/infrared space imagery, especially for celestial optical navigation (OPNAV), planetary terrain relative navigation (TRN), and star/asterism identification. He has supported navigation activities for the Space Shuttle, International Space Station (ISS), Orion/Artemis, Lunar Flashlight, and other space exploration missions. His algorithms have been incorporated into numerous space exploration missions.
Dr. Christian is an AAS Fellow and an AIAA Associate Fellow. He is an associate editor of the AAS Journal of the Astronautical Sciences. He is is the recipient of many awards, including the 2025 Georgia Tech Outstanding Achievement in Research Innovation Award, the 2015 WVU Statler College New Researcher of the Year, an AFOSR Young Investigator Program award, and numerous NASA Group Achievement Awards.