A. Scott Howe is a licensed architect, systems engineer, and robotics engineer who served nearly 17 years as Senior Systems Engineer and Space Architect at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), retiring in 2024. He holds a PhD in architecture from the University of Michigan and a PhD in industrial and manufacturing systems engineering from Hong Kong University.
Dr. Howe spent 10 years in architectural and engineering practice in Tokyo, Japan, and taught for 6 years at Hong Kong University. He has run his own firm, Plug-in Creations Architecture, since 1998, designing remote habitats and digitally fabricated buildings for extreme environments. With over 30 years of experience in robotic construction and habitat design, he continues to support NASA's Artemis Lunar Surface Capabilities Team, contributing to the development of long-duration human habitats for deep space and permanent outposts on the Moon and Mars.
Dr. Howe served on JPL's All-Terrain Hex-Limbed Extra-Terrestrial Explorer (ATHLETE) robotic mobility system team and was the original designer of the Habitat Demonstration Unit (HDU), later renamed the Human Exploration Research Analog (HERA), now used for long-duration analog space missions. He has also worked on Mars Sample Return and the Artemis Lunar Terrain Vehicle, and is the course developer for the Cabin Architecture, Human Factors, and EVA module of the ECLSS curriculum at Tita Global Space Academy.
Dr. Howe's research centers on robotic construction and digital fabrication for human spaceflight: developing mechanisms, automated manufacturing processes, and systematic spatial hierarchies for digitally designed and produced buildings and habitats. A recurring theme across his work is kit-of-parts building systems - grammatical approaches to construction using linear, planar, solid, and time-based deployable elements - applied to both extreme terrestrial environments and space habitats.
His habitat design work addresses the core constraints of spaceflight: mass and volume budgets driven by the rocket equation, pressure vessel geometry, crew accommodation sizing, and life support integration. He has published extensively on modularity and commonality across habitat designs, logistics-to-living reuse strategies, random-access stowage systems, and the psychological and human-factors dimensions of long-duration missions, including habitat layout, virtual windows, and EVA suitlock design.
Selected NASA programs:
Dr. Howe is the author of over a hundred technical papers covering space habitation, robotics, and architecture (full list on ResearchGate), and has co-edited several technical books, including Out of This World: The New Field of Space Architecture (AIAA History of Spaceflight series).
Technical books and science fiction novels by Dr. Howe are available on Amazon.
Howe, A. Scott, Brent Sherwood, Theodore W. Hall, and Damon Landau. "Gateway Gravity Testbed (GGT)." ICES-2019-023, 49th International Conference on Environmental Systems, Boston, Massachusetts, July 2019.
Howe, A. Scott. "Pressurized Adapter for 'Shirt-Sleeves' Transfer and Universal Base Extension (PASSTUBE)." AIAA-2016-5393, AIAA Space 2016 Conference & Exhibition, Long Beach, California, September 2016.
Rucker, M., S. Jeffries, A. Scott Howe, R. Howard, N. Mary, J. Watson, and R. Lewis. "Mars Surface Tunnel Element Concept." IEEE Aerospace Conference 2016, Big Sky, Montana, March 2016.
Howe, A. Scott, Matthew A. Simon, and S. Wald. "Sizing a Common Habitat for Multiple Environments and Mission Durations." AIAA-2016-5455, AIAA Space 2016 Conference & Exhibition, Long Beach, California, September 2016.
Howe, A. Scott. "A Modular Habitation System for Human Planetary and Space Exploration." ICES-2015-4, 45th International Conference on Environmental Systems, Bellevue, Washington, July 2015.
Griffin, B., R. Lepsch, J. Martin, R. Howard, M. Rucker, E. Zapata, C. McCleskey, A. Scott Howe, N. Mary, and P. Nerren. "Small Habitat Commonality Reduces Human Mars Mission Costs." AIAA-2015-4455, AIAA Space 2015 Conference & Exhibition, Pasadena, California, August–September 2015.
Howe, A. Scott. "Workstation Designs for a Cis-lunar Deep Space Habitat." AIAA-2014-4196, AIAA Space 2014 Conference & Exhibition, San Diego, California, August 2014.
Howe, A. Scott, and R. Polit-Casillas. "Random Access Frames (RAF): Alternative to Rack and Standoff for Deep Space Habitat Outfitting." ICES-2014-038, 44th International Conference on Environmental Systems, Tucson, Arizona, July 2014.
Griffin, B. N., D. Smitherman, and A. Scott Howe. "Internal Layout for a Cis-Lunar Habitat." AIAA-2013-5433, AIAA Space 2013 Conference & Exhibition, San Diego, California, September 2013.
Howe, A. Scott, K. Kennedy, T. Gill, et al. "NASA Habitat Demonstration Unit (HDU) Deep Space Habitat Analog." AIAA-2013-5436, AIAA Space 2013 Conference & Exhibition, San Diego, California, September 2013.
Howe, A. Scott, R. L. Howard, N. Moore, and M. Amoroso. "Designing for Virtual Windows in a Deep Space Habitat." AIAA-2013-3529, 43rd International Conference on Environmental Systems, Vail, Colorado, July 2013.
Griffin, B. N., D. Smitherman, K. J. Kennedy, L. Toups, T. Gill, and A. Scott Howe. "Skylab II: A Deep Space Habitat from a Space Launch System Propellant Tank." AIAA2012-5207, AIAA Space 2012 Conference & Exhibition, Pasadena, California, September 2012.
Howe, A. Scott, J. Merbitz, and A. Dokos. "Deployable Extravehicular Activity Platform (DEVAP) for Planetary Surfaces." AIAA2012-5312, AIAA Space 2012 Conference & Exhibition, Pasadena, California, September 2012.
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Platform access opens Q4 2026 with first course in Environmental Control and Life Support System (ECLSS). Express interest here and subscribe for enrollment updates.
Platform access opens Q4 2026 with first course in Environmental Control and Life Support System (ECLSS). Express interest below and subscribe for enrollment updates.
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