Talk Title:  AI-Augmented XR for Secure Space Operations: Reducing Cognitive Load and Enhancing Human Decision-Making

Speaker:  Christiana Chamon Garcia, Assistant Professor, Bradley Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Virginia Tech ; Director of the Stochastic Noise and Cyber Innovation Lab (SNACIL)

Location: IRB 4105 and Zoom

Abstract:  The increasing complexity of space exploration requires innovative solutions to address cybersecurity threats, communication latency, and cognitive overload experienced by human operators. This work proposes an AI-augmented framework that integrates explainable AI, immersive augmented/virtual reality interfaces, and resilient machine learning models to enhance threat detection, astronaut training, and operational efficiency in environments such as low Earth orbit satellites and Mars missions. A central element is a virtual reality-based Orbital Cyber Range for simulating cyberattacks, dynamically monitoring cognitive load through eye-tracking and physiological metrics, including pupil dilation and heart rate variability. Initial findings demonstrate the efficacy of machine learning approaches—such as LightGBM with 0.782 AUC—for cognitive load detection, and the value of explainable AI in transparent threat mitigation. Visual Language Models are utilized to process multimodal sensory data, and reinforcement learning is applied to adapt encryption protocols in real time, reducing latency-induced stress. The work discusses current challenges, including AI vulnerabilities to adversarial attacks and the need for scalable datasets, and highlights opportunities for refining models to enable robust, human-centered decision support for future space operations.

Bio: Christiana Chamon Garcia received the B.S. degree in electrical engineering from the University of Houston, Houston, TX, USA, in 2017 and the M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in electrical engineering from Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, USA, in 2020 and 2022, respectively. She is currently an Assistant Professor for the Bradley Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, USA and the director of the Stochastic Noise and Cyber Innovation Lab (SNACIL).

In 2016 she was a Hardware Design Intern and in 2017 a Product Management Intern with Hewlett Packard Enterprise. In 2022, she was an Applications Engineer at Vidatronic Inc, and from 2022 to 2024, she was an Instructional Assistant Professor for the Department of Computer Science and Engineering at Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, USA. Her research interests include stochastic processes, physical unclonable functions, decentralized networks, cyber-physical systems, security in artificial intelligence, engineering education, human-computer interaction, accessibility in engineering and kinesiology, and exercise science.

Dr. Garcia is a 2024 CCI Faculty Fellow, 2023 Future Faculty Diversity Program (FFDP) Fellow, 2023 WISCPROF: Future Faculty in Engineering Workshop Fellow, 2020-2021 Ebensberger Fellow, and a member of ACM, IEEE, Eta Kappa Nu (HKN), and Golden Key International Honor Society.