Lyndsey McMillon-Brown was recently honored at a Career Communications Group STEM Conference during Black History Month. She was also featured on NASA's Modern History Makers page. NASA’s Modern History Makers series highlights members of NASA Glenn’s workforce.

McMillon-Brown studied mechanical and manufacturing engineering at Miami University in Ohio and received her master’s and a doctorate in chemical engineering from Yale University. While she was in school, she joined the agency’s Pathways program, where she found her love for photovoltaics, solar cells, and NASA.

According to NASA, McMillon-Brown designs and develops solar cells to be more affordable, efficient, and lightweight for use on Earth and in space.

“Solar cells are important because they’re a green way for us to continue our way of life without having to burn as many fossil fuels or create harmful emissions,” McMillon-Brown told NASA. “When you look at space travel and exploration, they become much more important because there are no outlets on Mars! Fortunately, the sun shines on all the places we visit, so we’re able to harvest the power of the sun and sustain our astronauts, their health and habitat, and our exploration.”

McMillon-Brown is developing a new type of solar cell made from Perovskite. McMillon-Brown and her team are enhancing durability and testing design variations on the International Space Station.

“One of the reasons I love working at NASA is because I think we are enabling exploration and the learning of the environment around us and we’re uncovering knowledge and exploring the next frontier,” McMillon-Brown said in the NASA interview. “But I also love that we are compassionate about the environment and about people. It’s like a guilt-free job for my soul, I feel like I’m helping the world and I love that.”

“I’m working in a field where I’m doing things no one has done before,” said McMillon-Brown. “There’s no answer in the back of the book; we’re laying the path as we walk down it, and that’s challenging. But it’s also very fun and really rewarding.”

When the path you’re on is unpaved and your destination unexplored — you buckle down and focus says @NASA engineer Dr. Lyndsey McMillion-Brown. She designs solar cells to be more efficient for use on Earth and in space. Read her story: https://t.co/YJAlgi7F3P #BlackHistoryMonth pic.twitter.com/RG7j06flO2

— NASA Glenn Research (@NASAglenn) February 13, 2023

Hey, new followers! I’m Lyndsey. I have a BS in MechE & ManufE from @miamiuniversity & a ChemE PhD from @Yale. I’m a @NASA scientist developing solar cells for space. I tweet about everything: space, solar cells, travel, social equity. Read books w/me on #TurningPagesWithDrLMB pic.twitter.com/IVUmuuQMyG

— Lyndsey McMillon-Brown PhD (@DrMcMillonBrown) June 10, 2020