Eric W. Davis, Ph.D., is a leading expert in advanced aerospace and propulsion concepts and applications, bringing approximately four decades of combined aerospace industry and academic experience in astronomy, astrophysics, advanced/breakthrough space propulsion and power engineering-physics; space mission analysis and design disciplines; directed energy weapons and space propulsion; and future and transformation concepts. His unparalleled experience includes nearly 30 years of scientific and technical leadership, program leadership, program office technical subject-matter expert (SME) roles, and national security disciplines. Dr. Davis has additional expertise in leading advanced high-risk/high-payoff research projects for the U.S. government and aerospace industry. Dr. Davis also has practical experience in astronomical and spacecraft systems, instrumentation, and observational techniques, with a proven record in 58 scientific publications, 45 professional presentations, and numerous aerospace professional society public policy activities.

Dr. Davis is currently an aerospace-defense industry and U.S. government consultant. From 2019 to 2024, Dr. Davis was a Senior Project Engineer at The Aerospace Corporation in Huntsville, AL, where he supported NASA, Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), and Office of the Secretary of Defense projects on developing and spaceflight testing of space nuclear propulsion engines and portable, compact space and terrestrial nuclear power systems for commercial and military applications. In 2004-2019, he was the Chief Science Officer and Senior Research Physicist at EarthTech Int’l, Inc. and the Institute for Advanced Studies at Austin in Austin, TX, where he oversaw a research portfolio that included theoretical studies and experimental testing of breakthrough energy and space propulsion concepts; and provided scientific-technical SME support, advising, and oversight, and conducted program tasks for the Advanced Aerospace Weapon System Application Program (DIA), the Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program (DoD/ONI), and the UAP Task Force (ONI). From 2002 to 2010, Dr. Davis was the contract Principal Investigator at the AFRL/Advanced Concepts Office at Edwards AFB, CA, where he supported numerous advanced/breakthrough space propulsion and power concepts studies, development, and experimental testing. From 1996 to 2002, Dr. Davis was the Director of Aerospace Physics and Astrophysics at the National Institute for Discovery Science in Las Vegas, NV. In 2025, he became a Research Professor (Volunteer) in the Department of Physics at the University of Albany in Albany, NY, and continues to co-supervise physics Ph.D. candidates at the Center for Astrophysics, Space Physics and Engineering Research (CASPER), and the Department of Physics at Baylor University in Waco, TX.

Dr. Davis earned a Ph.D. in Astrophysics in 1991 and a B.Sc. in Physics and Mathematics in 1983 from The University of Arizona. In 1981, Dr. Davis earned an A.A. in Liberal Arts from Phoenix College. He is a Full Member of the International Academy of Astronautics (IAA); Fellow of the British Interplanetary Society (BIS); Lifetime Associate Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA). Dr. Davis is also a member of the New York Academy of Sciences; Directed Energy Professional Society (DEPS); the Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE); American Astronomical Society (AAS); and the Association of Former Intelligence Officers (AFIO).