MIT Department of Aeronautics & Astronautics | March 2025 | | |
Join us for SpaceTech 2025 – AeroAstro's annual conference on the present and future of space technology!
This year's theme, "From the Earth to the Moon," encompasses the many ways engineering, cutting-edge technology, and entrepreneurial innovation are influencing our efforts from LEO to the lunar surface and beyond. The conference will include a SpaceTech Expo and Networking hour, along with tables and demos set up all day; student lightning talks with audience judging and awards; panels with academic and industry experts; and exciting keynote speakers.
When: Wednesday, April 23, 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM
Where: Schwarzman College of Computing (45-801)
SpaceTech 2025 is in-person only, so register today!
Upcoming events:
Check out more upcoming events on the AeroAstro events calendar – log-in required.
Certificate Program Seminar: Mike Klinker
Thursday, April 3
12:00-1:00pm
Master’s Thesis Showcase
Wednesday, May 14
3-5pm
Guidance regarding current events
MIT’s Office of General Counsel (OGC) has prepared guidance documents for MIT community members, including students, to assist them in the event they are approached by law enforcement or immigration agents on campus or if they are traveling internationally.
Additionally, the International Students Office (ISO) posts regular immigration updates on their website.
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. Explore past issues of the Roundup on our website.
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Submit upcoming events to the Calendar (log-in required).
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Send us news about your research using this form.
| | When the moon hits your eye, like a big pizza… Pi Day… that’s a lunar eclipse! Christopher Kwon captured the “Blood Moon” eclipse on 3/14. | | And how could Brian Mernoff resist the opportunity to share the moment with his daughter, Lyra? | | The MIT Strategic Engineering Research Group (part of ESL) led by Professor Olivier de Weck had its spring retreat at the "Beast of the East” in Killington, VT. A dozen participants from the lab enjoyed skiing, snowboarding, cooking, wine-tasting and playing board games together. | | |
Awards: Karen Bruce, Suxin Hu, and Karen Bruce received Spot Awards this month. Have someone you would like to recognize? Submit a nomination any time!
SoE staff walking group: Join SoE staff for a weekly walk, wheel, or stroll near MIT campus! If you are interested in being on the group’s listserv, contact jaymat@mit.edu.
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STAR Lab grad students Sophia Vlahakis, Hannah Tomio, Leonardo Gallo, and Leila Freitag won medals in the IEEE Aerospace Conference annual ski/snowboard race.
QS World University Rankings ranked MIT as No. 1 in aeronautical engineering, and has been ranked as the No. 1 university in the world for 13 straight years.
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Preparing for a career at the forefront of the aerospace industry | In the new Advanced Manufacturing for Aerospace Engineers class, students design, build, and test an electric rocket engine turbopump, preparing them for a career at the forefront of the aerospace industry. Watch the full video.
On March 6, the IM-2 lunar mission landed on the surface of the moon carrying three payloads developed by researchers and alumni from the Media Lab and AeroAstro, and collaborators. Alas, the lander touched down in an off-nominal position that prevented it from recharging. Still – some of the research payloads on board were able to collect and transmit data in transit, and HUMANS achieved its goal of getting to the lunar surface!
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AeroAstro students and alumni attended the IAA Space Traffic Management Conference, co-hosted by Prof. Danielle Wood and Prof Moriba Jah, former MIT/AeroAstro MLK Fellow.
In a video for CSAIL’s “Meet the Mind” series, Assistant Prof. Andreea Bobu shares that her favorite thing about MIT is the “intellectual curiosity, the drive, the quirkiness, the camaraderie that everyone around experiences in the pursuit of science.” Watch the video.
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Prof. Danielle Wood performed a choreopoem exploring our view of Earth from space for MIT Artfinity, called "Harriet Jacobs: Journey to Saturn."
Arthur Brown, Andy Eskenazi, Marlene Euchenhofer, Marcos Lograno, Shreya Sharma, and Andrew White taught a class on “An Introduction to Aviation, Energy and the Environment” at Splash, MIT’s largest annual teaching and learning extravaganza.
Prof. Hamsa Balakrishnan was featured in a joint profile with Prof. Emery Brown for her Committed to Caring award.
| | Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion | | |
Best Practices:
Daring to Lead: Bringing Full Diversity to Academic Science and Engineering
Barry Bozeman, Monica Gaughan
March | Women’s History Month
Every year, March is designated Women’s History Month to honor women’s contributions in American history. The celebration began in Santa Rosa, California, when the Education Task Force of the Sonoma County (California) Commission on the Status of Women planned and executed a “Women’s History Week” celebration in 1978. The movement spread across the country as other communities initiated their own Women’s History Week celebrations.
March 31 | Transgender Day of Visibility
TDOV is an annual international celebration of trans pride and awareness, recognizing transgender, gender diverse and non-binary experiences and achievements. To celebrate, join LBGTQ+ Services for Trans Joy in Full Color: A TDOV Celebration. Allies, friends, and chosen family are all welcome—let’s make visibility feel like home.
Monday, March 31st, 4:30 PM – 6:00 PM
Rainbow Lounge 50-250
Next Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Meeting
Tuesday, April 29, 2025, 1:00 PM – 2:00 PM, 33-116
In-person & Zoom
https://mit.zoom.us/j/94121507623
Submit DEI Feedback:
aa-diversity@mit.edu
| | Computational Turbulence Group | | | | |
