by Danny Giancioppo | Photos by Danny Giancioppo & Kelly Peña
April 9th, 2026 marked the 27th annual Photonics Center symposium, with the subject “Photonics in Space.” Co-Hosted by Professors Joshua Semeter and Brian Walsh, this event brought together hundreds of guests from around the country interested one of the nation’s greatest scientific advancements: astronomy and astrophysics. Following opening remarks from center director Thomas Bifano and co-host Joshua Semeter, six speakers across academia and industry spoke on their latest research involving photonics and optics in space.
In the wake of the Artemis II mission, it was a perfect chance to hear from our six expert speakers and additional graduate student presentations on the latest achievements and projects surrounding our known––and unknown––universe.
“With the Artemis II splashdown occurring the day after our symposium, the event couldn’t have been more timely,” Professor Semeter shared. “It was one year ago that BU arrived on the surface of the moon in the form of the Lunar Environment Heliospheric X-ray Imager (LEXI) instrument. LEXI was developed in the Photonics Center by ME Professor and symposium co-host Brian Walsh. The moon has long been a frontier for humanity, and now it is rapidly becoming an outpost of our planet, where new instruments and experiments can be routinely deployed.”
Official Event Speakers Included:
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Edward Balaban
NASA Ames Research Center
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Kerri Cahoy
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
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Supriya Chakrabarti
UMass Lowell
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Justin Deighan
University of Colorado, Boulder
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Baris Erkmen
Aalyria, 2022 Optica Fellow
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Kirit Karkare
Assistant Professor, Physics
In addition to our presentations, cohost and Associate Professor Brian Walsh spoke on the LEXI lunar mission during the lunch break with his graduate students, and two of Kerri Cahoy’s graduate students spoke on “AstroPIC: Integrated Photonics for Exoplanet Instrumentation.” Other presentation titles included:
- Fluidic Telescope (FLUTE): From Puddles to Giant Space Observatories | Edward Balaban
- AI-In-the-Loop MEMS Optical Control for Space Imaging and Lasercom | Kerri Cahoy
- Development and Validation of High-Contrast Imaging and Spectroscopic Technologies | Supriya Chakrabarti
- Ultraviolet Mars: The Search for More Science | Justin Deighan
- Photonic Data Highways: Engineering Resilient Laser Communication Between Earth and Space | Baris Erkmen
- Probing the Beginning of Time with Superconducting Detectors at the Ends of the Earth | Kirit Karkare
“It was a terrific event,” Semeter said. “Stimulating, interactive, and celebratory. The unifying theme of photonics in the service of both space science and space technology was embraced by the attendees. Many discussions ensued about future collaborations between the Photonics Center and the Center for Space Physics.”
We are so grateful to our wonderful speakers for coming to Boston University, and embracing the convergent nature of the symposium. And thank you to all of our guests who stopped by the event as well! Stay tuned for future events, including out next symposium!