A Mississauga woman’s work could benefit future space exploration of Mars.
Mississauga resident, Debjani Mukherjee said she has been supporting a NASA-funded project to make Mars habitable for humans.
As lead subject matter expert, Mukherjee said she spearheads a multidisciplinary team dedicated to developing critical technologies required for human Mars exploration. The work is part of an outsourced NASA contract, known as NOIS3. Mukherjee is a contractor with Floor23 Digital LLC, a NOIS3 recipient and NASA service provider.
Mukherjee is a Canadian citizen, so she cannot work for NASA, but NASA regularly puts out calls for open innovation around the world.
The opportunity fulfills a lifelong dream for Mukherjee.
“It was my passion since I was little, I always wanted to be in this stream, but it never happened,” she said. “When I got it, I was over the moon.”
Mukherjee landed the contract in July 2025 after she won a global NASA research initiative competition on polymer (a kind of plastic) recycling on lunar/space missions. Her research looked into technologies to recycle plastic packaging and other objects needed in space travel. A different technology for recycling is needed in space.
“Those (plastics) have to be recycled, otherwise you have pollution in space,” she said.
Mississauga resident Debjani Mukherjee
Mukherjee was born in India but moved to Canada for her studies. She has a doctorate in chemical and biochemical engineering from the University of Western Ontario. She has lived in Mississauga since 2014.
She previously worked as a technical director for Pounds of Plastics Inc., a plastic resin manufacturer in Mississauga. She is a specialized expert on the Canadian government’s Science Advisory Committee on Pest Control Products.
For more information on Mukherjee, see her website here.
Lead photo: SpaceX
INsauga’s Editorial Standards and Policies
Last 30 Days: 31,852 Votes
All Time: 1,254,254 Votes
116 VOTES
Are high gas prices changing your travel routines?
WIN A $100 GIFT CARD
Subscribe to INsauga’s daily email newsletter for a chance to win a $100 Amazon gift card.