BOULDER, Colo., Dec. 13, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Dr. Laura Coyle, an optical engineer at Ball Aerospace, has been selected to serve as one of The Optical Society's (OSA) 2018 Ambassadors. As an ambassador, Coyle will join an international team of 10 other emerging leaders in optics and photonics from both academia and industry to provide career advice, technical knowledge and mentorship to young professionals. They will serve as traveling lecturers for student chapters and local sections, supporting professional development events at local OSA meetings and engaging with their local communities.

"We are thrilled Laura will serve as an OSA Ambassador, as she will be a great role model for students and young professionals," said Debra Facktor, vice president and general manager, strategic operations and commercial aerospace business, Ball Aerospace. "Ball is proud to support our employees as they engage in various technical and science communities of interest to their careers and our customers."  

Coyle joined Ball as an optical engineer in 2014 after completing her Ph.D. in Optical Sciences at the University of Arizona. She works on several flight programs for Civil Space, such as the alignment and performance characterization of the Operational Land Imager-2 (OLI-2) instrument for the Landsat-9 mission, as well as the optical test and on-orbit commissioning team for NASA's James Webb Space Telescope. Coyle is involved in business development and internal research and development activities, primarily aimed at technology development for future NASA flagship missions and accurate, flexible optical metrology systems.

"As an active member of the SPIE and OSA student chapters in graduate school, I gained invaluable insight into what it meant to pursue a career in optics, as well as guidance on how to build that career," said Coyle. "The OSA Ambassador program is a way to continue the cycle of mentorship and share what I have learned in my career at Ball thus far, as well as continue my own development by strengthening connections with OSA."

Coyle joined OSA in 2009 while she was a doctoral student at The University of Arizona where she served on the student chapter's Executive Committee, the International Network of OSA Students North America Conference (IONS-NA2) planning committee, and was a participant of OSA Congressional Visit Days. She will begin her role as an OSA Ambassador in January 2018.

Ball Aerospace pioneers discoveries that enable our customers to perform beyond expectation and protect what matters most.  We create innovative space solutions, enable more accurate weather forecasts, drive insightful observations of our planet, deliver actionable data and intelligence, and ensure those who defend our freedom go forward bravely and return home safely.Go Beyond with Ball.® For more information, visit www.ball.com/aerospace or connect with us on Facebook or Twitter.

Ball Corporation (NYSE: BLL) supplies innovative, sustainable packaging solutions for beverage, food and household products customers, as well as aerospace and other technologies and services primarily for the U.S. government. Ball Corporation and its subsidiaries employ 18,450 people worldwide and 2016 net sales were $9.1 billion. For more information, visit www.ball.com, or connect with us on Facebook or Twitter.

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SOURCE Ball Aerospace