11/6/2025 Debra Levey Larson
Aerospace engineering senior Elliott Valadez answers questions about his minor in astronomy, how he manages the workload and how he hopes to use both aerospace engineering and astronomy in his future career.
Written by Debra Levey Larson
Elliott Valadez is from Chicago. He is majoring in aerospace engineering and minoring in astronomy. We asked him about his experience in juggling the two and how he hopes to use both fields in his future career.
How did you decide to do a minor in astronomy?
I took a class with Professor Leslie Looney during my first year and joined the University of Illinois Astronomical Society, and that's how I realized that I actually enjoyed astronomical imaging a lot, so I decided to do the minor.
Did you do any undergrad research in your AE major or minor?
I have done research in aerospace with the Electric Propulsion Lab since last fall. My work involves optics, spectroscopy, and numerical modeling of plasma to study the performance of ion thrusters!
How do you manage the extra courses and workload that come with your minor?
I technically did an extra semester because I went abroad this summer, so I got several of my aerospace technical electives out of the way outside of the regular school year. I also had some general education requirements met when I entered my first year. But managing my everyday workload is just a matter of keeping good track of everything and setting lots of timers for myself.
How do you hope to use both AE and astronomy in the future?
I'd like to work on missions for both imaging as far as we can see in the known universe and studying the planets in our own solar system. I keep up with missions like Juice, Perseverance and the James Webb Space Telescope. Working on something like those missions—studying gravitational fields, astronomical imaging, or identifying materials on planetary surfaces—all sounds amazing to me.
Whether it's building the spacecraft or studying the data, I'd like to combine my knowledge of propulsion systems and astronomical techniques to aid the next generation of cutting-edge space research.