Ray Bemish

Dr. Ray Bemish joined DARPA as a program manager in the Tactical Technology Office in July 2021. His interests are in multiscale modeling and related applications of machine learning (ML) and artificial intelligence (AI) as applied to space domain systems.

Most recently, Bemish ran a variety of research groups at the Air Force Research Labs Space Vehicle Directorate (AFRL/RV), ranging from gas phase collisional dynamics to hypersonic signatures to ionospheric effects on satellite performance. He also managed a series of flight experiments on the X-37B. During his time at AFRL, Bemish was the program manager for the HYPREP hypersonic signature group, developing new chemistry and phenomenology models. This group used AI approaches to codify quantum mechanical behaviors of molecular systems at very high temperatures. He also ran the Space Chemistry group that experimentally measured chemical effects on space systems and developed performance models for novel space propulsion technologies. This led to Bemish’s participation in the development of a new Hall Effect Thruster design that was validated on the X-37B.

Bemish holds a Bachelor of Science in biology and biochemistry from Purdue University. He earned a Masters of Science and a Doctor of Philosophy in physical chemistry from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He continues collaborative efforts with a research group at the University of Basel in Switzerland to develop accurate quantum mechanical models for the interactions of molecules under conditions relevant to hypersonic flight.