Master in Aeronautics and Astronautics

The Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics prepares students for professional positions in industry, government, and academia by offering a comprehensive program of undergraduate and graduate teaching and research. In this broad program, students have the opportunity to learn and integrate multiple engineering disciplines. The program emphasizes structural, aerodynamic, guidance and control, and propulsion problems of aircraft and spacecraft. Courses in the teaching program lead to the degrees of Bachelor of Science, Master of Science, Engineer, and Doctor of Philosophy. Undergraduates and doctoral students in other departments may also elect a minor in Aeronautics and Astronautics.

Requirements for all degrees include courses on basic topics in Aeronautics and Astronautics, as well as in mathematics, and related fields in engineering and the sciences.

The current research and teaching activities cover a number of advanced fields, with emphasis on:

• Aeroelasticity and Flow Simulation
• Aircraft Design, Performance, and Control
• Applied Aerodynamics
• Astrodynamics
• Autonomy
• Computational Aero-Acoustics
• Computational Fluid Dynamics
• Computational Mechanics and Dynamical Systems
• Control of Robots, including Space and Deep-Underwater Robots
• Conventional and Composite Materials and Structures
• Decision Making under Uncertainty
• Direct and Large-Eddy Simulation of Turbulence
• High-Lift Aerodynamics
• Hybrid Propulsion
• Hypersonic and Supersonic Flow
• Micro and Nano Systems and Materials
• Mission Planning and Spacecraft Operations
• Multidisciplinary Design Optimization
• Navigation Systems (especially GPS)
• Optimal Control, Estimation, System Identification
• Sensors for Harsh Environments
• Space Debris Characterization
• Space Environment Effects on Spacecraft
• Space Plasmas
• Space Policy and Economics
• Spacecraft Design and Satellite Engineering
• Spacecraft Guidance, Navigation, and Control
• Turbulent Flow and Combustion

Learning Outcomes (Graduate)

The purpose of the master’s program is to provide students with the knowledge and skills necessary for a professional career or doctoral studies. This is done through course work which provides a solid grounding in the basic disciplines, including fluid mechanics, dynamics and control, propulsion, structural mechanics, and applied or computational mathematics, and course work or supervised research which provides depth and breadth in the student’s area of specialization.