Projects.
A selection of programs I've led, built, or architected. Newest at the top. Some on orbit, some on the Moon, some humming in a rack.
Space & flight
Starlab — Flight Software & Systems Integration Lab
Leading flight software discipline for the Starlab commercial space station: man-rated FSW, on-board computer evaluation, BSP and OS selection. Stood up the Systems Integration Lab — simulation system, data capture, and lab control web — funded by the Texas Space Commission and Voyager/Starlab. Drove CMMI Level 3 achievement across 25 engineers.
RAC — Regolith Adherence Characterization (Lunar Payload)
Lunar surface payload. Dual-CPU command & data handling, motor control, photo capture, and lunar-day operations. Leveraged MISSE-heritage electronics for rapid prototyping.
xEVAS — Next-Generation Space Suit
Power, communications, avionics & informatics architecture for the next-gen space suit. Dual rad-hard processors with multiple boot methods for life-critical operation. Standardized CI/CD, static analysis, unit testing, and CMMI-3 development practice across four Collins sites. US Patent 12,047,196, issued July 2024.
MISSE Flight Facility — ISS External Platform
Took over a stalled avionics & software redesign of the Materials ISS Experiment platform; led the team to successful delivery and revenue-generating operations on orbit. NASA ISS interfaces (MIL-1553, MRDL Ethernet, external Wi-Fi); loosely- coupled software allowing dual-CPU cross-checking and multi-path hardware control.
ArgUS · STaARS · Nanoracks External Platform
US payload for the European Bartolomeo external platform on ISS; a biological science platform with centrifuge and thermal control; and an external payload platform built end-to-end at Airbus DS Houston. Power control, data routing to cloud, Raspberry Pi development kits for client labs, USB-over-Ethernet payload comms.
Software & infrastructure
DartNode — AI-Powered Infrastructure & Business Platform
Built ground-up: web platform, billing, monitoring, VPN, backup,
and an AI operations layer running hybrid on-prem + Claude API
inference. Plain-English commands manage infrastructure,
scheduling, CRM, and project budgets through a single AI
prompt. Owns ASN AS399646 with full IPv4 block.
Archer — Autonomous Server Management Agent
Installs, configures, and secures infrastructure across distributed POP sites without requiring SSH access. Phones home, does its job, reports up.
FileWarp — Bulk Distribution with NAT Traversal
Secure file transfer and distribution for bulk deployment across nodes, designed to punch through complex network topologies without operator intervention.
HoloNet Monitor
Real-time infrastructure monitoring across all DartNode POP sites: PDU state, alerts, uptime tracking, anomaly detection.
Speakeasy — Invite-Only Web Gateway
Lightweight self-hosted publishing gateway. Sits in front of any web app and restricts access to invited users via signed, short-lived JWT links. Single static binary, SQLite, no runtime dependencies. github.com/don-pedersen/speakeasy.
RIM — Rig Information Management
Scheduling, logging, document management/workflow, and reporting for the Space Crew Training Facility. 700+ daily users; later deployed to JSL/HSL labs and MSFC for the MDA program. Still in daily use.
Earlier
Pros — Airline Yield Management
Managed 20 senior engineers building airline origin & destination revenue optimization.
Range Standardization & Automation (RSA IIa)
Managed 18 engineers on the USAF RSA IIa contract; led Y2K accreditation for the US Air Force.
ISS Short Term Plan — Graphical Timelines
Space shuttle/station planning and scheduling. Built the graphical timeline views that became the basis for ISS STP, and the resource-optimization algorithms underneath.