Umesh Krishna Ponugupati, from Bethpage, New York, is an Aerospace Engineering student at the Georgia Institute of Technology and serves as the Crew Engineer for the Southeast Analog mission. Inspired by deep-space explorers like Voyager and New Horizons, Umesh focuses his technical work on pushing the limits of autonomous exploration and human spaceflight systems.

At Georgia Tech, Umesh serves as an Aerodynamics Teaching Assistant and conducts research at the Aerospace Robotics Laboratory, where he designs motion planning and control systems for autonomous planetary rovers. His background spans structural engineering for rocket programs, safety assurance through NASA's L'SPACE Program, and lunar habitat architecture using Model-Based Systems Engineering. As Crew Engineer, he applies this interdisciplinary foundation to oversee habitat safety, maintenance, and technical systems during analog missions.