Dr. Vinay Goyal is a principal director in the Vehicle Systems Division at The Aerospace Corporation. In this role, he leads a team of 120 experts to deliver innovative, high-quality technical solutions to NASA, the United States Space Force, the National Reconnaissance Office, and other government and commercial organizations. Goyal provides strategic leadership, develops technical investment strategies, and ensures responsive, collaborative support across critical aerospace programs.
From 2022 to 2025, Goyal served as an Aerospace Technical Fellow in Enterprise Systems Engineering, advancing machine learning applications for launch systems and pioneering novel acquisition and mission assurance processes. He led the development or modernization of more than 20 aerospace standards and best practice documents, including NASA SP-8007 (Buckling of Thin-Walled Circular Cylinders) and NASA Handbook 5010 (Fracture Control), while contributing to space mobility and logistics, in-space servicing, assembly and manufacturing, and human spaceflight systems. As principal engineer in 2020, he developed the foundational framework for launch vehicle reusability assessments, spearheaded mission assurance process evolution, and led multiple NASA-funded technical activities. Previously, as systems director, he directed the Falcon and OmegA structures assessment teams and supported the first successful national security space launch certification for Falcon. Throughout Goyal’s career, he has made significant contributions to launch vehicles, spacecraft, reentry systems, and hypersonic technologies.
Goyal also serves as deputy Technical Fellow for the NASA Engineering Safety Center Structures discipline; holds joint faculty appointments at the University of California Los Angeles and the University of Southern California in their Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Departments; and is a deputy director of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) Aerospace Design Structures Group.
A prolific writer, Goyal has co-authored three engineering textbooks and has written numerous book chapters and more than 100 technical publications, two of which received Best Paper awards from the AIAA and American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) for "seminal contributions in the advancements of highly coupled interdisciplinary modeling" and "developing digital twins for the fatigue and fracture prediction of additive manufacturing parts."
Education
Goyal earned a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Puerto Rico and a doctorate in aerospace engineering from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University.
Awards and Honors
In recognition of his achievements, Goyal received the NASA Exceptional Public Service Medal in 2022. He was elected an AIAA Fellow and an American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) Fellow.
Affiliations
Goyal has served on multiple independent review boards for NASA, Space Systems Command, and the Federal Aviation Administration.