MIT Department of Aeronautics & Astronautics | December 2023 | |
|
This October, MIT Communications sent photographer Jake Belcher on a walkthrough of AeroAstro. You can explore the photo library here!
A reminder that MIT will be closed for the holiday break from December 25 through January 1.
The monthly roundup will pause during the Independent Activities Period and return in February. Check out the list of IAP offerings from AeroAstro.
The Roundup is a monthly newsletter to keep the AeroAstro community up-to-date on research, community news, and important happenings across the department and MIT.
-
View and submit upcoming events on our Calendar (log-in required).
-
Send us news about your research using this form.
| |
|
Thank you to all who gathered to celebrate at the staff holiday party! Good times, laughs, and more than a few donuts made for a good time had by all. Check out the photos and raise a glass to another great year in AeroAstro.
Special thanks to MaryAnn Carey and her team!
| Karen, Oli, Andy, Peng, and Denise made their own laser-cut snowflakes to celebrate the season at December’s Maker Meeting. The snowflakes were designed in Autodesk Fusion 360 and then cut from different colors of acrylic and wood using a laser cutter. | |
|
Prof. Kerri Cahoy has been appointed as the inaugural Sheila Evans Widnall (1960) Professor of Aeronautics and Astronautics, made possible by the generosity of Sheila and Bill Widnall, to honor the contributions to research, education, leadership, equity, and mentorship that have made her a trailblazer in aerospace.
Andres Garcia Jimenez and Prof. Zachary Cordero received the 2023 AIAA SciTech Propellants and Combustion Best Paper award for their paper titled Frictional Ignition of Metals in High-Pressure Oxygen: A Critical Reassessment of NASA Test Data (AIAA 2023-1489).
The Geneva Centre for Security Policy has awarded PhD student Thomas González Roberts (ARCLab) first place in the 2023 Prize for Innovation in Global Security competition. His project, “Measuring Norms in Outer Space,” features a data-driven tool for understanding how well satellite operators follow the international rules and guidelines that govern the space domain.
Rea Lavi, AeroAstro’s digital education lecturer and curriculum designer, has joined the PLOS One editorial board as Academic Editor.
|  | |
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion | |
|
As we conclude 2023, I write to share my sincere thanks and appreciation for your commitment, action, and engagement in this year’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion committee and events. I encourage you to reflect on lessons learned over the past year and look forward as we think about advancing our efforts in 2024.
On behalf of the DEI Committee, we would like to thank Kristen Ammons and Jessica Todd, AeroAstro’s 2023 Diversity Fellows, the GAAP Leadership and Mentors for their leadership and commitment to advancing Diversity, Equity & Inclusion.
GAAP Leadership & Mentors: Rosemary Davis, Charles Dawson, Annick Dewald, Jessica Todd, Kristen Ammons, and the GAAP Mentors.
As always, submit your feedback to aa-diversity@mit.edu
I wish you a happy holiday season and look forward to our work together in the New Year!
With gratitude,
Denise
| |
ARCLab is thrilled to announce the public beta release of the MIT Orbital Capacity Assessment Tool (MOCAT). The tool enables users to model the long-term future space environment to understand growth in space debris and assess the effectiveness of debris prevention mechanisms. | |
On December 7 AeroAstro alum Dr. John Langford gave a presentation on his newest venture electra.aero, which is developing a certifiable hybrid-electric 9-seater regional aircraft. The original concept was developed in 16.82 with Profs. John Hansman and. Mark Drela. The seminar was presented as part of the new Aerospace Innovation Certificate. | |
Read highlights from Woody Hoburg’s visit via MIT News, featuring his insights and advice on how to be an astronaut. | Prof. Danielle Wood spoke at several events hosted on the margins of the United Nations Climate Change Conference, COP28, held in Dubai. | |
Alum Jasmin Moghbeli wished a Happy Hanukkah from the ISS, featuring a microgravity dreidel spin. Prof. Jeffrey Hoffman was the first to do so during the STS-61 mission to repair the Hubble Space Telescope in 1993, according to the U.S. space agency. | |
CommLab
The AeroAstro Comm Lab provides 1-1 peer coaching sessions for all forms of technical communication. Make an appointment to improve the effectiveness of your next paper, poster, presentation and more!
New Fellow Recruitment
The AeroAstro Comm Lab is seeking new Fellows with a wide diversity of skills to join our team this spring! AeroAstro-affiliated graduate students and postdocs, including international students, who plan to be at MIT through at least Spring 2025 are encouraged to apply to be a Communication Fellow. This paid position (up to $3,000/year!) is a great way to help your peers and to develop your own communication skills.
You do not need to already be an expert in technical communication to apply. This is a great professional development opportunity through trainings, mentoring, resource creation, teaching, and more for anyone interested in improving their communication skills. Applications open in January.
Upcoming workshop
Writing a Master’s Thesis this year? Check out our CommKit on outlining a Master’s Thesis.
| |
|
IEEE Spectrum | Amazon Fires Up Its Space Lasers | Amazon announced that two of its prototype internet satellites equipped with infrared lasers transferred data at 100 gigabits per second over a distance of nearly 1000 kilometers. “The current optical intersatellite links are like building infrastructure where you have nodes that can connect and can relay data across large distances,” explains Prof. Kerri Cahoy.
Washington Post | With few easy solutions to their climate problem, airlines rethink contrails | “Whether they are exactly 20 percent or 30 percent or 50 percent…doesn’t really matter. It’s a big contributor and we need to worry about it,” says LAE research scientist Florian Alroggen.
Space.com | ISS astronauts find tomato that was lost in space for 8 months | The remains of a tiny tomato lost in March finally showed up on the International Space Station (ISS). "Our good friend Frank Rubio, who headed home [already], has been blamed for quite a while for eating the tomato. But we can exonerate him. We found the tomato," NASA astronaut and alum Jasmin Moghbeli.
NDTV | "No Dream Is Too Big": Indian Woman Who Helped NASA Mars Rover Mission Shares Her Journey | "From getting my PhD at MIT to knocking 100s of doors to get hired full-time at NASA, nothing came easy. Today, I work on multiple cool space missions including the Perseverance rover collecting samples to bring back to Earth," said Dr.Akshata Krishnamurthy.
MIT Spectrum | Champions of Student Wellness | Graduate student Joana Nikolova ’23 reflects on her role as a Wellbeing Ambassador at MIT.
Washington Post | Astronomers discover six planets orbiting a nearby sun-like star | “Occasionally, nature reveals an absolute gem,” says Prof. Sara Seager, a co-author of the new paper on the subject. “HD 110067 is an immediate astronomical Rosetta stone — offering a key system to help unlock some mysteries of planet formation and evolution.”
| | | | |
