MIST was founded in October 2014 when Dr. Andrei Hanu, then a researcher at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, developed the concept for the NEUDOSE satellite—McMaster's first space mission—and the CNP-TEPC instrument. You can read more about the inception of this mission here. Dr. Hanu reached out to his former PhD supervisor, Dr. Soo Hyun Byun, and together they launched the NEUDOSE project in 2015. By February of that year, they had assembled a project team of 30 students. Dr. Eric Johnston joined the team during his PhD studies in Medical Physics and became the third PI upon graduating in 2017. Drs. Daniel Tajik and Aaron Pitcher, who were also part of the team during their PhD studies in Electrical Engineering, joined the PI team after completing their degrees in 2023 and 2025, respectively.

MSTRI was founded in September 2024 when the PIs joined to bring this professional research collaboration for pioneering research and development at McMaster. We are a group of professors, researchers, alumni, graduate students, and undergraduate students who aim to break new ground at McMaster University, push the boundaries of space exploration, and leave a lasting legacy.

Thank you for your interest in this extraordinary journey. Your passion, dedication, and curiosity drive us toward new horizons. We hope that you find our projects interesting. If you are interested in finding out more or future collaborations, please reach out.