People
Monica Reza
Metallurgist; co-invented Mondaloy, a burn-resistant nickel superalloy for rocket engines (Rocketdyne, 1990s). Led JPL's Materials Processing Group. Vanished 22 Jun 2025 near Mount Waterman, Angeles National Forest, aged 60.
Ties
| To | Role | Years | Verdict | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aerojet Rocketdyne | co-inventor of Mondaloy (used in the AR1 engine) | 1988– | Documented · occurred | en.wikipedia.org |
| Dallis Hardwick | Mondaloy co-inventor; Hardwick later worked under McCasland at AFRL | 1990s | Documented · occurred | en.wikipedia.org |
| William McCasland | programmatic link through Mondaloy and Air Force-funded materials research; no record of direct contact | 2000s | Unproven | forteanwinds.com |
| NASA JPL | director, Materials Processing Group | –2025 | Documented · occurred | en.wikipedia.org |
| Missing scientists pattern | case | 2025 | Documented · occurred | en.wikipedia.org |
Tied from
| From | Role | Years | Verdict | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Missing scientists pattern | case | 2025 | Documented · occurred | en.wikipedia.org |
Mentioned in
Links
- Wikipedia
- LA Mag: family questions the investigation
- LA Mag: geo-profiler suggests possible staging
- Solve the Case file
Notes
- Status (checked 2026-09-26): still missing. Latest coverage (June 2026) asks "why didn't they find her?" No reports of remains recovered. (The 'skeletonized body found' story from June 2026 is Melissa Casias of Los Alamos, a separate case.)
- The McCasland link (NY Post, Mar 2026; NewsNation 'ex-colleague'): Mondaloy was developed under Air Force contract. McCasland ran the AFRL units that funded advanced-materials work. Co-inventor Dallis Hardwick worked under him. Documented in pieces; a direct Reza–McCasland working relationship is inferred, not shown. Two people in that chain are now missing, about 8 months apart.
- Find a Grave oddity: a memorial listing her as dead on 22 Jun 2025, with 'green burial', was created 26 Jun 2025, while the search was still running. Created by a user 'lillian' whose profile is gone. Anyone can create these, so it proves nothing on its own. But who made it, and why so early, is a fair question. (Sentinel; Find a Grave ID 284387277)
- The disappearance: hiking with a companion; about 30 ft behind, she smiled and waved; when he turned around she was gone. Dogs, aircraft and drones found only a beanie.
- House Oversight's 2026 release called her JPL role "unconfirmed public reporting," yet Wikipedia and news say JPL. A small discrepancy to check.
- Her family says the official account "doesn't make sense." A geo-profiler raised possible staging.
- Specialty: alloys that don't burn in high-pressure oxygen are core to staged-combustion rocket engines. That's sensitive in the export-control sense, not exotic.