Greenbelt, Maryland · NASA Goddard Space Flight Center

Sheridan Thomas

Spaceflight Systems Engineer·human-centered spaceflight

I help fly NASA's Magnetospheric Multiscale mission — commanding four spacecraft from the Mission Operations Center — while pursuing a master's in Space Systems Engineering at Johns Hopkins. My path runs from neuroscience and emergency medicine to the flight deck, and I bring all of it to the human side of spaceflight.

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About
Sheridan Thomas

I'm a spaceflight systems engineer at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, where I command and safeguard the four spacecraft of the Magnetospheric Multiscale (MMS) mission.

My route to the flight deck wasn't a straight line. I trained as a nationally and state-licensed paramedic, then earned a degree in neuroscience — learning to make calm, precise decisions when people's lives depend on them. That same instinct now goes into monitoring spacecraft health, building command loads, and resolving anomalies in real time.

I care most about the place where engineering meets the human body: aerospace physiology, space health, and the systems that keep crews safe far from home. I'm deepening that work through a master's in Space Systems Engineering at Johns Hopkins, with hands-on focus on satellite design, power management, and telemetry.

ExperienceNASA Goddard · 2023 — present

Oct 2023 — Present

NASA Goddard Space Flight Center

Greenbelt, Maryland

Mission Operations Center

Systems Engineer · Spaceflight Operations

Command and monitor the four Magnetospheric Multiscale (MMS) spacecraft as part of the Mission Operations Center team.

  • Command the four MMS spacecraft while continuously monitoring spacecraft health and safety.
  • Coordinate communication-pass scheduling and build the command loads uplinked to the fleet.
  • Identify, troubleshoot, and resolve spacecraft anomalies as they arise.
  • Spacecraft Command
  • Spacecraft Telemetry
  • Mission Planning
  • Satellite Ground Systems
  • STOL
  • Anomaly Resolution
EducationNeuroscience → space systems

  • 2025 — 2028

    In progress

    Johns Hopkins University · Whiting School of Engineering

    M.S. · Space Systems Engineering

    Satellite design, power management, and telemetry.

  • 2023 — 2024

    Capitol Technology University

    Certificate · Spaceflight Operations

    Space Missions & Operations program — satellite operations, command, and control.

  • 2019 — 2022

    University of Maryland

    B.S. · Neuroscience

  • 2015 — 2019

    Hagerstown Community College

    A.A.S. · Emergency Medical Technology (Paramedic)

SkillsWhat I bring to a mission

Spacecraft Operations

  • Spacecraft Command
  • Spacecraft Telemetry
  • Mission Planning
  • Satellite Ground Systems
  • Spacecraft Simulator
  • STOL
  • Data Flows
  • Trend Analysis
  • Anomaly Resolution

Engineering & Tools

  • Systems Engineering
  • Python
  • MATLAB
  • Linux
  • CAD
  • 3D Modeling
  • Prototyping
  • Quality Assurance
  • Data Analysis

Human Spaceflight & Research

  • Aerospace Physiology
  • Space Health
  • Licensed Paramedic
  • Neuroscience
  • Scientific Research
  • Technical Writing
  • Team Leadership
Selected WorkProjects & research

2023

Harnessing the Sun — Solar Array Simulation

Built a 10-week satellite simulation to train spaceflight-operations students, emulating the EO-1 satellite's solar-array drive and deployment. Wired interconnected command procedures in Galaxy with database mnemonics and a continuously updating display, then hardened it through orbital-cycle debugging.

  • Satellite Simulation
  • Power Management
  • Galaxy / STOL

2022

Space Physiology

Research into how spaceflight reshapes the body — endocrine, nervous, reproductive, and musculoskeletal systems — and how microgravity, radiation, CO₂, and isolation disturb the body's homeostatic rhythms on short and long-duration missions.

  • Aerospace Physiology
  • Human Spaceflight
  • Research

2021

The Microbiome & Space

Studied the microbial ecosystems behind astronaut immunity, musculoskeletal maintenance, and cognitive performance — and how pre- and probiotic countermeasures could protect crew health across long-duration exploration.

  • Space Health
  • Microbiome
  • Countermeasures

2018–2019

4K for Cancer ↗

In dedication to my dad, I fundraised, trained, and ran across America in 49 days with a team of 27 — 4,000 miles of proof that the right team and a clear mission can carry you a very long way.

  • Endurance
  • Fundraising
  • Team

Get in touch

Let’s talk about missions, systems, and the people who fly them.