Vittorio Colicci

Vittorio Colicci, from Trumbull, Connecticut, is pursuing a PhD in earth and planetary sciences at the Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability. He graduated from MIT with a bachelor’s degree in aerospace engineering and physics, as well as a master’s degree in planetary science. Vittorio hopes to investigate how surface processes on Earth and Mars have evolved through time alongside changes in habitability. Prior to graduate school, he worked largely on spacecraft engineering projects, developing a monodisperse silica ceramic for electrospray thrusters and fabricating high-energy diffraction gratings for space telescopes. As a Presidential Graduate Fellow at MIT, he examined the influence of root geometry on soil cohesion for early terrestrial plants using 3D-printed reconstructions. Outside of research, Vittorio served as co-director of TEDxMIT and propulsion lead for the MIT Rocket Team. He is also passionate about STEM engagement and outreach, having taught educational workshops in Zambia and India.