Body of UCSB graduate student found in Sierra Nevada mountains

Vikram Mubayi, a chemical engineering doctoral candidate at UC Santa Barbara’s Robert Mehrabian College of Engineering, was found deceased on Aug. 3 in Inyo National Forest located in the Eastern Sierra mountains.

According to a Reddit post by Mubayi’s sibling, he had been hiking in the Big Pine Lakes area of Inyo National Forest and last contacted his family on Aug. 1 at 8:37 p.m. Inyo County Search & Rescue was involved in a search for Mubayi, and his body was later found and recovered on Aug. 3 by California Highway Patrol.

Mubayi, who was born and raised in Hong Kong, was described as a “fairly experienced hiker” by his sibling. According to a self-written biography posted on the website of Illini 4000 — a student-led non-profit Mubayi had been involved in — he loved sports and “being outdoors.”

Prior to attending UCSB, Mubayi graduated in 2022 from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) with a Bachelor of Science in chemical engineering.

During his time at UCSB, Mubayi conducted research on bacteria and biological methods for breaking down plant waste and plastics, with the goal of developing sustainable alternatives to petroleum, according to his Linkedin. Additionally, he worked as a teaching assistant for various undergraduate and graduate chemical engineering courses.

According to UIUC’s digitized yearbook, Mubayi had expressed interest in working in chemical engineering to investigate “ways to mitigate global warming” upon graduating from UCSB with a Ph.D.

The Nexus will continue to report on this subject as more information becomes available.