Kshitija Deshpande

Title
Associate Professor
Email
Department
Physical Sciences Department
College
College of Arts & Sciences

Areas of Expertise

plasma physics, inverse problems, high performance scientific computing, optimization, mathematical modeling and simulations, signal processing, data analysis, remote sensing, Global Positioning System (GPS), space weather effects, and upper atmosphere physics

Kshitija Deshpande

In Fall 2016, I joined the Physical Sciences Department as an Assistant Professor of Engineering Physics at ERAU. Before that, I was a postdoctoral research associate with Professor C. Robert Clauer at Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA. I was awarded Ph.D. degree in electrical engineering from Virginia Tech in 2014 for my work in the area of Space Science with Dr. Clauer. I worked closely with Dr. Gary Bust at Johns Hopkins Applied Research Lab (JHUAPL) for my Ph.D. 

My research interests include remote sensing, Global Positioning System (GPS), space weather effects, inverse problems, big data, high-performance scientific computing, mathematical modeling and simulations, signal processing, data analysis, upper atmosphere physics, and magnetosphere-ionosphere interactions.

Before starting my Ph.D., I did my Masters in Radio Astronomy at Virginia Tech. I completed my Bachelor of Technology from the Department of Electronics and Telecommunication at College of Engineering Pune (COEP), India.

I love to sketch and paint. Other hobbies include hiking, traveling, astronomy, photography, and dancing (ballroom, salsa, rumba). 


  • Ph.D. - Doctor of Philosophy in Electrical Engineering, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
  • M.S. - Master of Science in Electrical Engineering, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
  • EP 800: Dissertation

PS160 - Physics for Engineers II (Spring 2018 - Spring 2020)

PS250 - Physics for Engineers III (Fall 2016-Fall 2017)

  1. Deshpande, K. B. and M. D. Zettergren, (2019). Satellite‐beacon Ionospheric‐scintillation Global Model of the upper Atmosphere (SIGMA) III: Scintillation simulation using a physics‐based plasma model, Geophys. Res. Lett., 46, doi:10.1029/2019GL082576.

  2.  Datta-Barua, S., V. Sreenivash, K. B. Deshpande, Y. Su, G. S. Bust, (2019) Auroral E and F Layer Ionospheric Irregularities Sensed by a Kilometer-Spaced GNSS Receiver Array, Proceedings of the 31st International Technical Meeting of the Satellite Division of The Institute of Navigation (ION GNSS+ 2018), Miami, Florida, September 2018, pp. 4134-4143, doi:10.33012/2018.15922.

  3. Su, Y., S. Datta-Barua, G. S. Bust, and K. Deshpande (2017), Distributed sensing of ionospheric irregularities with a GNSS receiver array, Radio Sci., 52, 988–1003, doi:10.1002/2017RS006331.

  4. Chartier, A., B. Forte, K. Deshpande, G. Bust, and C. Mitchell (2016), Three‐dimensional modeling of high‐latitude scintillation observations, Radio Sci., 51, 1022–1029, doi: 10.1002/2015RS005889.

  5. Deshpande, K. B., G. S. Bust, C. R. Clauer, W. A. Scales, N. A. Frissell, J. M. Ruohoniemi, L. Spogli, C. Mitchell, and A. T. Weatherwax (2016), Satellite-beacon Ionospheric-scintillation Global Model of the upper Atmosphere (SIGMA) II: Inverse modeling with high-latitude observations to deduce irregularity physics, J. Geophys. Res. Space Physics, 121, 9188–9203, doi:10.1002/2016JA022943.

  6. S. Datta-Barua, Y. Su, K. Deshpande, D. Miladinovich, G. S. Bust, D. Hampton, and G. Crowley (2015). First light from a kilometer-baseline Scintillation Auroral GPS Array. Geophysical Research Letters, 42:3639--3646, May 2015, doi: 10.1002/2015GL063556.
  7. S. Datta-Barua, Y. Su, K. Deshpande, G. Bust, and D. Hampton (2014). Auroral scintillation phase analysis from a short-baseline gps array. In in Proceedings of the 27th International Technical Meeting of The Satellite Division of the Institute of Navigation (ION GNSS 2014), Tampa, FL,, pages 1101--1107, September 2014.
  8. K.B. Deshpande (2014). Investigation of High Latitude Ionospheric Irregularities Utilizing Modeling and GPS Observations. PhD thesis, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, June 2014, http://vtechworks.lib.vt.edu/handle/10919/49507 .
  9. C. R. Clauer, H. Kim, K. B. Deshpande, Z. Xu, D. Weimer, S. B. Musko, G. Crowley, F. Chad, R. Nealy, T. E. Humphreys, and J. A. Bhatti (2014). Autonomous Adaptive Low-Power Instrument Platform (AAL-PIP) for remote high latitude geospace data collection. Geosci. Instrum. Method. Data Syst. Discuss., 4:271--317, 2014.
  10. K. B. Deshpande, G. S. Bust, C. R. Clauer, C. L. Rino, and C. S. Carrano (2014). Satellite-beacon Ionospheric-scintillation Global Model of the upper Atmosphere (SIGMA) I: High latitude sensitivity study of the model parameters. Journal of Geophysical Research (Space Physics), 119:4026--4043, 2014.
  11. H. Kim, C.R. Clauer, K. Deshpande, M.R. Lessard, A.T. Weatherwax, G.S. Bust, G. Crowley, and T.E. Humphreys. Ionospheric irregularities during a substorm event: Observations of ULF pulsations and GPS scintillations. Journal of Atmospheric and Solar-Terrestrial Physics, 114(0):1 -- 8, 2014.
  12. G.S. Bust, S. Datta-Barua, K. Deshpande, S. Bourand, S. Skone, and Y. Su. Correlation properties of a 2-d array of high latitude scintillation receivers. In Proceedings of the 26th International Technical Meeting of The Satellite Division of the Institute of Navigation (ION GNSS 2013), pages 2470--2479, Nashville, TN, September 2013, 2013.
  13. K. B. Deshpande, G. S. Bust, C. R. Clauer, H. Kim, J. E. Macon, T. E. Humphreys, J. A. Bhatti, S. B. Musko, G. Crowley, and A. T. Weatherwax. Initial GPS Scintillation results from CASES receiver at South Pole, Antarctica. Radio Science, 47:RS5009, 2012.
  14. C. D. Patterson, S. W. Ellingson, B. S. Martin, K. Deshpande, J. H. Simonetti, M. Kavic, and S. E. Cutchin. Searching for Transient Pulses with the ETA Radio Telescope. ACM Trans. Reconfigurable Technology & Systems, 1(4):19, January 2009.
  • Reviewer: NASA and NSF proposal reviewer and panelist, NASA Postdoctoral Fellowship program proposal reviewer, Peer journal reviewer of: Scientific Reports Nature, Journal of Geophysical Research (JGR), Radio Science (RS) American Geophysical Union (AGU) journals, Progress in Earth and Planetary Science (PEPS), Astrophysics and Space Science Springer, Science China Technological Sciences (SCST), The Institute of Navigation (ION) GNSS, IEEE Transactions on Aerospace and Electronic Systems (TAES) and GeoResJ an Elsevier open access journal and Astrophysics and Space Science an International Journal of Astronomy.
  • Session Convener: CEDAR Workshop, Santa Fe, NM, June 2012 and “Big Data” session June 2018, “Atmospheric Science and Space Applications” session at ION international meeting, Miami, FL, September 2018, and “Big Data” session at AGU Fall Meeting, Washington, DC, December 2018 (Also  Outstanding Student Presentation Award (OSPA) Liaison). Voted as a Session Chair for National Radio Science Meeting International Union of Radio Science (NRSM-URSI) for Session G5: New Horizons in Active and Passive Radio Techniques for Geospace Remote Sensing, 2019-2020.
  • Executive Secretary: at a NASA review panel, June 2016.
  • ERAU Internal Services: Served faculty search committees (Tenure track Astronomy search 2017, Non-tenure track Astronomy search 2017, initial selection process of Tenure track Chemistry search 2019, Tenure track Engineering Physics search 2019), Canvas Innovation mentor at the Center for Teaching and Learning Excellence 2017, 2018, 2019, Served at many outreach and open house programs, Served at the Chancellor's Focus Group on Campus Communication COAS in 2016, Physical Science Graduate committee member since 2017.

Professional Member of AGU and European Geophysical Union (EGU), ION. 

Appointed as an ex-officio member of the U.S. National Committee of the International Union of Radio Science (USNC-URSI), an AGU representative from May 1, 2019, to December 31, 2019.

Voted as a lifetime individual member of URSI, International URSI Individual Member (MURSI).



  • NSF Grant AGS 1848207: CAREER: Characterization of Sources of Ionospheric Scintillation and Space Weather Prediction through Analytics and Machine Learning ($487,899, Period: 07/15/2019 - 06/30/2024).
  • Faculty Innovative Research in Science and Technology (FIRST) Program, ERAU Internal Grant: Investigating the Ionospheric Irregularities during Substorms observed over Antarctic Plateau ($12,498, Period: 07/01/2018 - 06/30/2019)
  • NSF Grant 1651410: Collaborative Research: CEDAR: Fresnel scale structural properties with a scintillation auroral GPS array in the context of E and F region activity ($118,190, Period: 09/01/2017-08/31/2020)
  • Featured artist in the President's Art Exhibit, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, 2016 and 2019.
  • Selected for Young Scientists Award at URSI 2017 conference in Montreal, Canada August 2017.
  • Electrical and Computer Engineering Department Nominee for Virginia Tech Graduate school's best PhD dissertation award, 2013-14.
  • Honorable mention in the student poster competitions at CEDAR 2013 in Boulder, CO and CEDAR 2014, Seattle, WA.
  • Student award to participate in National Science Foundation (NSF)-sponsored collaborative research project to study the magnetosphere-ionosphere-thermosphere coupling at high latitudes at Poker Flat, Alaska, November-December 2013.
  • American Geophysical Union (AGU) Student travel award for AGU Fall meeting in 2011.
  • Visiting Researcher at the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station under the United States Antarctic Program (USAP) during December 2010- January 2011.
  • Young Scientist award Kishore Vaigyanik Protsahan Yojana (KVPY) Fellow from 2004-2007.
  • Undergraduate Consortium Invitee with travel award (only international student amongst 8 participants), July 2005. Consortium for Undergraduate Research and Education in Astronomy (CUREA), Mount Wilson Observatory, California, USA.
  • National Talent Search Scholarship holder, 2001.