A TRIP TO THE AIR AND SPACE MUSEUM in Washington, D.C., as a kid helped point Enakshi Wikramanayake toward some very far-off engineering problems. From moon landers to features on Mars, the idea that people had figured out how to reach space left her in awe.
“It seemed really cool, doing something outside this world,” Wikramanayake said.
Despite the aerospace appeal, she didn’t want to narrow her options too early when selecting a college major. Mechanical engineering offered the range she was looking for: “It was the best option out there in terms of the widest area that it covers,” she said.
The path she chose took her the whole nine yards of the academic route: She earned her bachelor’s, master’s, and Ph.D. in mechanical engineering at The University of Texas at Austin, where her research specialized in condensation heat transfer enhancement for industry applications. During graduate school, a small proof-of-concept project connected her research to the International Space Station (ISS).
“We were working with the NASA team on [the research project] and making it compatible with the ISS,” she said. “To me that was like, I’ve sent something to the ISS and got it tested—that’s pretty cool.”
Her first job after graduate school was in engineering consulting, not space. But a few years in, a former grad school colleague working at Axiom Space reached out. The company was looking for a thermal engineer, and he helped her get her resume in front of the right people.
The opportunity reinforced a lesson Wikramanayake now shares often: networking matters, even for people who may not feel at ease with it. “I’m an introvert. It’s not something I enjoy doing, but I see the value in having your network,” she said. “Whether it’s LinkedIn, whether it’s going for conferences, info sessions, career fairs. Use your network.”
“One thing I learned pretty early on is find your mentors. I’ve always had one or two people who were in my corner and helped me, whether it was technical guidance or professional. It’s important to have those people to bounce ideas off.”
—Enakshi Wikramanayake, Thermal Analysis Engineer, Amentum
Challenges Aplenty
At Axiom, Wikramanayake launched the space career she’d been looking for, designing thermal and fluid systems for human-rated spacecraft, where engineering requirements can become extreme very quickly. Her mentor’s background in oil and gas connected key concepts from offshore pipelines to space systems.
“Offshore pipelines are several miles underground in extreme environments with high salinity, temperature, and pressure,” she said. “On the flip side, in space, you’re thousands of miles away from Earth, and some of your fluid networks are exposed to deep cold when facing space or high heat when facing the sun, and basically zero pressure. So there are a lot of parallels.”
The appeal, she said, is in the challenge: If fluids hazardous to humans are outside the spacecraft, that can mean designing a system that can’t always be accessed or serviced by an astronaut, or finding a fluid that can survive extreme conditions outside while also functioning inside.
To Wikramanayake, space development is an exciting area to follow because it refuses to be easy. “There’s always something new to figure out in making the overall system safe,” she said, adding that as a thermal engineer, “space keeps you on your toes.”
In April 2026, Wikramanayake started a new position as a thermal analysis engineer at Amentum, where she provides engineering and scientific technical services supporting NASA Johnson Space Center. The work builds on her experience with thermal systems, modeling, and spacecraft environments, and continues her growth in the industry.
When asked if she ever misses the slower pace of academia, Wikramanayake said she enjoys the fast rhythm of industry, with multiple projects to work on at the same time. “We actually did a panel exactly on this at ASME’s International Mechanical Engineering Congress and Exposition (IMECE),” she shared. “Going to the workforce, everything’s much faster paced. You need to adapt to that.”
The same way mentorship supported her journey, Wikramanayake gives back to the community. In addition to participating in IMECE and Summer Heat Transfer Conferences, she was a 2024-2025 ECLIPSE intern for the student and early career development sector, on a project helping create opportunities for young engineers to build their networks and grow their professional careers.
“No one does this alone,” she said. “Whether you’re trying to get a promotion or move to a different team, most people are willing to help and want to help you, so seek that out. And as you progress through your career, it’s good to be available to younger engineers to return the favor.”
Sarah Alburakeh is strategic content editor.
If Wikramanayake were selected to go to space, she would gladly go. She’d probably pack a family picture and an extra pair of socks. “I think it gets pretty cold [out there], and I don’t like the cold,” said the thermal engineer.
© 2026 The American Society of Mechanical Engineers. All rights reserved.