WILBERT RUPERTO-HERNÁNDEZ
Matthew Isakowitz Fellow, Class of 2022
University of Puerto Rico - Mayagüez, Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering
Host Company: Millennium Space Systems
Wilbert Andrés Ruperto-Hernández is a rising senior in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Puerto Rico - Mayagüez (UPRM). He is a three-time NASA intern, a recipient of the USRA Distinguished Undergraduate Student Award - John R. Sevier Scholarship and the SEDS Jeff Bezos Excellence and Innovation Award, and a Zed Factor Fellow. Wilbert has successfully led three design projects as part of the NASA Revolutionary Aerospace Systems Concepts - Academic Linkages (RASC-AL) Space Exploration Design Competition, winning the top awards for three consecutive years with diverse and multidisciplinary teams of undergraduate students. In this competition, he and his team have designed concepts for a fully reusable single-stage lunar lander, a multi-purpose rover, and an end-to-end human and robotic mission to Ceres. He is also an alumnus of the NASA Lucy Student Pipeline Accelerator and Competency Enabler (L’SPACE) Academy and a NASA Lucy Mission Ambassador. Most recently, Wilbert worked as an Engineering Intern at Venturi Astrolab in Hawthorne, California where he designed, built, and tested systems for near-future commercial lunar and Martian rovers. Lastly, he is actively involved in outreach via his The Astrorican Project - a community service initiative to engage Spanish-speaking audiences in space exploration topics and activities.