Kinga Wrobel

• B.S., Mechanical Engineering, University of Connecticut (’18)
• M.S., Space Systems Engineering, Johns Hopkins University (’22)

Kinga Wrobel earned her B.S. in mechanical engineering from the University of Connecticut in 2018. As a first-generation immigrant, she was the first in her immediate family to graduate college. She began her career at Pratt & Whitney as a propulsion systems analysis engineer on the F135 program. While serving as lead analysis engineer for the longest-running F135 ground test engine, she simultaneously earned her Master’s in Space Systems Engineering from Johns Hopkins University, laying the foundation for her work in one of aerospace’s most uncharted territories: very low Earth orbit (vLEO).

Now a Space Systems Engineer at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory, Wrobel has spent recent years contributing to NASA and national security space programs. She recently began her doctorate at Johns Hopkins, developing a mission-in-the-loop multidisciplinary design, analysis, and optimization framework for rapid response, expendable vLEO spacecraft.

That doctoral work is the backbone of SPARROW — Scalable Platform for Agile Rapid Response to very lOW earth orbit — a program she spearheaded to address the technology gaps making vLEO one of the most demanding orbital regimes.

As Principal Investigator, Wrobel competed for the Johns Hopkins SURPASS grant and secured $1.28 million to bring SPARROW to life. The program kicked off in January 2026 and has drawn interest from NASA, venture capital investors, and industry partners.

Beyond her technical work, Wrobel has volunteered with outreach programs for underrepresented communities in engineering, mentoring students and professionals from high school through early career since her undergraduate days at UConn.