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Andrew Metcalf
"My Purdue education was instrumental in my early career achievement. The rigor of the Purdue curriculum combined with the world-class mentorship I received from Purdue Professors and graduate collogues helped instill in me the value of hard work and determination and it set a high bar for integrity that I follow today. On a more tactical level, I find myself applying the problem solving and technical reasoning skills I honed while working for my Graduate Advisor Prof. Andy Weiner to nearly every technical and non-technical problem I encounter today. Proud to be a Boilermaker!"
Andrew Metcalf | Electrical Engineering
Space Mission Area Lead, United States Space Force / Air Force Research Laboratory
In less than 6 years at the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), Dr. Metcalf has rapidly progressed from a bench level
engineer to the "Second in Command" for all AFRL Space Research. He is a nationally recognized expert and the U.S. Space
Force (USSF) "go-to" technologist in quantum photonics, particularly for solutions addressing positioning, navigation
and timing (PNT), a top USSF priority. His state-of-the-art technologies are also providing solutions in other strategic
systems, including intercontinental ballistic missiles and GPS.
In his current role as the AFRL Space Mission Area Lead, he supports a $2.3B space research portfolio which includes 5
space flight experiments valued at over $347M. These experiments include the $188M Navigation Technology Satellite
(NTS-3) — the first NTS-level PNT on-orbit demonstration in 40 years.
He has served as an effective conduit between the scientific and operational communities through his service on 21 DoD
working groups, panels and other high-level committees. Pre-AFRL, as a NIST research associate, he led the development
of a laser calibration source deployed at the Hobby-Eberly 10m telescope that resulted in the detection of 25 new
planets. This work was recognized with Purdue's Eaton Award in Design Excellence and the IEEE Photonics Society's Laser
Instrumentation Award. He also is the recipient of the Arthur S. Flemming Award for Applied Science and Engineering,
Rotary National Award for Space Achievement, the 2020 DOD PECASE Award and most recently the Purdue Outstanding
Electrical and Computer Engineer Award.