Ian Jehn

Research Assistant Professor, Mechanical Engineering

Ian Jehn headshotDr. Ian Jehn is a Research Professor in the Space Resources Graduate Program at Colorado School of Mines. He is also a licensed Professional and Structural Engineer with 10 years of experience in terrestrial building design and structural materials testing in high-seismic areas. He holds degrees in both Civil Engineering and Space Resources, and his research integrates these disciplines to develop lunar surface construction technologies. This includes extensive structural and geotechnical analyses of lunar landing and launch pads, roadways, human habitats, and other related infrastructure. His work also examines ISRU of local materials for processing, manufacturing, and construction of mission assets to support future Artemis infrastructure. He is also actively working on the Lunar Structural Loads section of the upcoming Lunar Infrastructure Engineering Design and Construction guidelines, to be published by the American Society of Civil Engineers.

 

Contact

General Research Lab 234B
1310 Maple St.
808-397-7665
ijehn@mines.edu

Website: https://linktr.ee/ijehn

Education

  • 2012: BS Civil Engineering, University of Oklahoma
  • 2013: MS Civil and Environmental Engineering, Colorado School of Mines
  • 2024: MS Space Resources, Colorado School of Mines
  • 2025: PhD in Space Resources, Colorado School of Mines
    • D. Technical Dissertation: A Geotechnical, Structural, and Characterization Analysis of Lunar Foundation Systems.

Research Areas

  • Regolith Mechanics
  • Lunar Surface Construction
  • Lunar Launch and Landing Pad Systems
  • Moonquake Hazard Quantification and Mitigation Systems
  • Space Resources

Licensure

  • Professional Engineer (PE) in the state of CO
  • Structural Engineer (SE) in the state of HI

Associations

  • American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics: Space Resources Technical Committee
  • American Society of Civil Engineers – Aerospace Division: Space Engineering and Construction Technical Committee

Recent Courses

  • Regolith Properties and Processing (SPRS 508)
  • Senior Capstone Design I and II (EDNS 491 and 492)

Select Publications

  • Jehn, I., Dreyer, C. B., Van Susante, P. J., & Primeau, J. (2023, October 23). Lunar Site Preparation Requirements for Construction of Infrastructure Elements. ASCEND 2023. ASCEND 2023. https://doi.org/10.2514/6.2023-4623
  • Jehn, I. E., & Dreyer, C. B. (2025). A design methodology for flat slab lunar landing and launch pad systems. Acta Astronautica, 231, 175–192. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.actaastro.2025.02.046
  • Jehn, I. E., Casasbuenas Cabezas, Y. I., Bounds, T. D., Houston, G. G. N., Dreyer, C. B., Johnson, C., Murphy, D., Smith, S., Williams, T., Caluk, N., & Lee, P. (2025). Implications of lunar simulant geotechnical properties on testbed experimentation and engineering analysis and reported properties of Colorado School of Mines highland simulant. Space and Planetary Resources, 1(1), 5. https://doi.org/10.1007/s44461-025-00002-7