DrDavid McKeown

Dr David McKeown is an Assistant Professor at the School of Mechanical and Materials Engineering, University College Dublin (UCD). His research is centred on the modelling and control of large, flexible aerospace structures, as well as the testing and verification of attitude determination and control systems (ADCS) for Nanosatellites. Dr McKeown is the Engineering Manager for EIRSAT-1, a project developing Ireland’s first satellite, which was successfully launched in December 2023.

Dr McKeown is the Principal Investigator for the National Space Subsystems and Payloads Initiative (NSSPI), a UCD-led project, including 6 industrial partners, that secured over €7.9 million in funding through the Disruptive Technologies Innovation Fund (DTIF). This funding, the largest single amount awarded to a project in this latest DTIF round, supports the development of an economically sustainable and expanding space industry in areas such as optical communications for space, autonomous smart satellites, and spacecraft and payload modelling, simulation, and testing.

As an Investigator for the DEAR project (Dusty Environment Application Research), funded by the European Space Agency, Dr McKeown leads efforts to develop and test robotic arm systems aimed at mitigating the effects of lunar dust on various spacecraft components, such as optics and astronaut suits.

Dr McKeown collaborates closely with the School of Physics on two Science Foundation Ireland (SFI)-funded projects. His team is developing an ADCS testbed as part of the NANO-SPACE project and working on the ADCS design for the GIFTS 6U CubeSat project.
As a founding member of the UCD Centre for Space Research (C-Space), he leads the Space Structure Dynamics and Control Theme, driving forward UCD’s engagement with cutting-edge space research and technology.

Dr McKeown holds a two-year SFI Discover grant, which supports the Dublin Maker Festival, a public engagement initiative aimed at promoting science, technology, and creativity.