MIT Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics | November 2020

Grad student Daniel Jang snapped a photo of his setup to view Mars during its recent close approach to Earth from the Simmons Hall Terrace with a 10" Dobsonian telescope. Learn more about the Mars Close Approach on Oct. 6, 2020.

A Note from the Department Head Dear AeroAstro Community, Earlier this week, President Reif sent a note expressing his gratitude for the MIT community in light of our response to the Covid-19 pandemic. I wanted to take this opportunity to echo his sentiments for the AeroAstro community. Collectively, we have done our part to embody our values as we continue to navigate the pandemic together, and I am proud of the way our community has stepped up to support each other. I am thankful for you all. After everything we have been through over the past nine months, it isn’t any wonder that we would want to seek out the company of family and friends for comfort during the holidays. But to reiterate MIT’s recently updated holiday travel guidelines and the common refrain among our nation’s health care experts: I would urge you to consider staying home if you can. The uptick in cases we have seen lately can be attributed to increased gatherings and travel, and this number is poised to grow over the coming weeks. As you know, our actions, individually and collectively matter, especially when a global pandemic provides little margin of error in how we can interact safely with the world around us. If you must travel, please familiarize yourself with MIT’s travel policy and safety guidelines and exercise caution. We are at the end of a challenging fall semester that required patience, flexibility, and innovation to enable us to continue on with our education mission in a hybrid learning model. And yet, with the holiday season approaching, Covid-19 will continue to ask difficult things of us. I know we will continue to do what is right, even when it is hard. Please take care and be well. Have a safe and happy Thanksgiving, Daniel Hastings Department Head, MIT AeroAstro Cecil and Ida Green Education Professor Events & Announcements DI&I Events Tuesday, Dec. 1 | 11 a.m.-Noon DI&I Meeting, open to all! Zoom info: https://mit.zoom.us/j/95477540473 Thursday, Dec. 3 | 10-11 a.m. Fireside Chat with Denise Phillips Zoom info: https://mit.zoom.us/j/2992527544 We will discuss, NY Times article Bias Persists for Women of Science, a Study Finds  by Kenneth Chang. Thursday, Dec. 3 | 4-5 p.m. LGBTQIA+ Meeting Zoom info: https://mit.zoom.us/j/92730254633 All members of the AeroAstro department are welcome, allies and the LGBTQ+ community alike.  Save the Date: AeroAstro Community Drawing Sessions Jan. 5 & 7 MindHandHeart and the Division of Student Life are launching a Community Quilt to connect MIT community members scattered across the globe. All MIT students, postdocs, staff, faculty, families, alumni, and families (spouses, partners, and children) are invited to contribute a square drawing answering the question: "Where do you find hope?" In January, the squares will be combined into a digital quilt. At a later date, the squares will be turned into fabric quilts that will be displayed acrossMIT's campus. No drawing skills are necessary and simple designs are welcome. On Jan. 5 & 7, AeroAstro will host community drawing sessions open to all MIT students, postdocs, staff, faculty, families, alumni, and families (spouses, partners, and children) to create your squares. Zoom links will be provided at a later date. Learn more about the MIT Community Quilt.   For faculty: Call for MSRP Faculty Mentors MSRP’s goals include increasing the number of underrepresented minorities (American Indian, African American, Hispanic American, and Native Hawaiian or U.S. women in certain disciplines) and underserved (e.g. low socio-economic background, first generation college, veterans) students in the research enterprise, and to prepare and recruit the best and brightest for graduate education at MIT. Many of the participating interns already have a solid foundation in research; as a faculty mentor, you will have the opportunity to guide an undergraduate in honing their skills, while they explore whether MIT is a great match for their future studies.     Find out more about the virtual commitment June 13 - August 7, 2021. Find out more about the in-person commitment June 6 - August 7, 2021.    Because this effort is a priority of the Institute and the Office of Graduate Education, the OGE and Schools share the budget for intern costs including stipend, housing, and travel; faculty members are not asked to financially contribute.   Please indicate your interest by December 15th. Contact Dr. Noelle Wakefield at msrp@mit.edu for more information. Nominate your colleagues for the 2021 MIT Excellence Awards + Collier Medal by Dec. 7! This year, perhaps more than any other in decades, has created unprecedented challenges for the entire MIT community. Many staff members are balancing working remotely with personal commitments, such as caring for children or other family members and supporting friends and loved ones affected by Covid-19. Nominate your colleagues who have gone above and beyond in extraordinary ways, and nominate them for the 2021 MIT Excellence Awards + Collier Medal. Nominations for the Excellence Awards, the highest honors for Institute staff, can be for teams or individual colleagues, and any member of the MIT community is eligible for the Collier Medal. Background about the awards, including awards criteria, is available on the Human Resources website. The nomination deadline is Monday, Dec. 7. Nominate students, alumni, staff and faculty Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Leadership Award by Nov. 30 MIT alumni/ae, undergraduate and graduate students, staff and faculty are eligible for nomination for this award. Both individuals and groups, including living groups and student and professional associations, may be considered. Service to the community is defined in the broadest sense and includes academic, research, religious and secular contributions in which integrity, leadership, creativity and positive outcomes are apparent. If you wish to nominate a person or organization, please submit your nomination by November 30, 2020. RSVP for the MIT AeroAstro Holiday Party Dec. 11! MIT's Department of Aeronautics & Astronautics would like to invite all department students, staff, faculty, and families to join us for our Annual Holiday Party. The festivities will be held virtually on Friday, December 11th from 3-5pm ET. RSVP for Zoom link and additional information here: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/ZB3ZXBC Noteworthy News, Awards & Honors: Richard Linares is a recipient of a DARPA Young Faculty Award, which provides funding, mentoring and industry and DoD contacts to awardees early in their careers so they may develop their research ideas in the context of national security needs. The goal of the YFA program is to develop the next generation of academic scientists, engineers, and mathematicians who will focus a significant portion of their career on DoD and National Security issues. A formal announcement from DARPA is forthcoming. Nick Roy chaired the Conference on Robot Learning, which was hosted virtually at MIT this year. Chuchu Fan submitted two papers to CoRL that were accepted: Reactive motion planning with probabilistic safety guarantees and Learning Certified Control Using Contraction Metric. Recipients of Spot Appreciation Awards for the month of November include: Pam Fradkin and Beata Shuster. Wes Harris Harris and Jarunee Wonglimpiyarat received the 2020 Emerald Literati Award for their paper, Blockchain platform and future bank competition. The paper discusses the innovation of blockchain banking with regard to the systemic dimension, dynamics of competition and its influence on the level of technology diffusion. The research findings have shown that the future of blockchain banking may need cross-chain interoperability to support a full spectrum of payments and value exchanges on the internet of things.” Kerri Cahoy was featured in a Committed to Caring faculty profile by the Office of Graduate Education. Congratulations to Kaveh Fathian for your promotion to Research Scientist!

WBWT Update The WBWT balance arrived on Nov. 16 and is currently undergoing testing in the AeroAstro hangar. New windows are being installed in Building 17 and the interior walls are being laid out. Segments of new tunnel will start to arrive the second week of December for installation. View a time lapse video of the project. Daily work hours for the WBWT construction crew continue from 6 a.m.– 4 p.m. Some Saturday work may be expected. Construction is scheduled to continue through Spring 2021. If you have questions or concerns, email wbwt-info@mit.edu. Diversity, Inclusion, & Innovation (DI&I) DI&I Best Practices A 5-Part Framework for Talking About Racism at Work Brave Conversations About Race by Enrica Ruggs, an Assistant Professor of Management at the University of Memphis, and Derek Avery, the C.T. Bauer Chair of Inclusive Leadership at the University of Houston, Offered by MIT Sloan Management Review Webinar Series Why It Matters: “Workplace conversations on race and racism can be tough. With a willingness to listen and validate, and acceptance that learning can be uncomfortable, those conversations can be easier and productive.” Pamela Newkirk, PhD, presented Doing Diversity: A Road Map to Change on Nov.5. View the presentation. In honor of Veterans Day observed earlier this month, we are thankful for the AeroAstro veterans who served. Successful ~*VIRTUAL*~ Thesis Defenders Congratulations Dr. Tim McGrath! October 29, 2020 “IMU-Based Estimation of Human Lower Body Kinematics and Applications to Extra Vehicular Operations” PI: Leia Stirling Congratulations Dr. Yonatan Tekleab! October 30, 2020 "Design, Characterization and In Vivo Evaluation of a Magnetorheological Fluid as a Hemostatic Agent" PI: Wes Harris Did you successfully defend your graduate thesis? Send a photo to aa-communications@mit.edu to be featured as one of our Successful Defenders! Quoted “I like talking with my students the best. It’s fun to remind them about how awesome they are, to encourage them in being creative and taking risks, seeing what they come up with, and occasionally having to talk some sense into them. But really, it’s a mutual discovery. That’s the best part of the job.” Kerri Cahoy in a profile for MIT News. News & Publications Below are a few highlights of AeroAstro publications and media coverage: John Hansman Boeing Max cleared for takeoff, 2 years after deadly crashes AP David Mindell The robo-job apocalypse is being delayed Axios Arthur Brown & Wes Harris Vehicle Design and Optimization Model for Urban Air Mobility Journal of Aircraft Bianca Giovanardi et al. Morphogenesis and proportionate growth: A finite element investigation of surface growth with coupled diffusion Journal of the Mechanics and Physics of Solids

Conference News: AeroAstro at AIAA ASCEND

Nov. 16-18, 2020 | Website Featured faculty speakers: Kerri Cahoy | View session recording: Big Science with Small Satellites Dava Newman Danielle Wood | View session recording: Designing for Sustainability on Earth and in Space | View MIT Media Lab profile Dan Hastings was a featured ASCEND attendee in a spotlight on the conference blog.

Student Presentations: Don’t see yours here? Add it to the full community list. TECHPRES-70, Space Traffic Management and Integration Effectiveness of CubeSat-Based Architectures for Active Removal of On-Orbit Rocket Bodies Chris Clark; Dan Hastings; Becky Masterson  TECHPRES-74, Enabling Technology Development What could we do with a 20 meter tower on the Lunar South Pole? Applications of the Multifunctional Expandable Lunar Lite & Tall Tower (MELLTT) Robert Johanson; Dan Jang; Ekaterina Kononov; Michael Luu; Sarah Morgan; Jessica Todd; Morgan Blevins; Mario Contreras; Daniel Erkel; Axel Garcia; Jessica Holland; Alan Kharsansky; Benjamin Martell; Adriana Mitchell; Thomas Roberts; Justine Schultz; Aaron Sentis; Jack Rockaway; Jeffrey Hoffman https://arc.aiaa.org/doi/10.2514/6.2020-4108 An MBSE Approach Supporting Technical Inheritance and Design Reuse Decisions Alejandro Trujillo, Olivier L. De Weck and Azad M. Madni, AIAA 2020-4167, Session: Model-Based Engineering: Technologies and Methodologies I, Published Online: 2 Nov 2020 https://doi.org/10.2514/6.2020-4167 Optimization of On-Orbit Robotic Assembly of Small Satellites Ezinne Uzo-Okoro, Daniel Erkel, Prakash Manandhar, Mary Dahl, Emily Kiley, Kerri Cahoy and Olivier L. De Weck, AIAA 2020-4195 Session: On-Orbit Servicing, Assembly, and Manufacturing II Published Online: 2 Nov 2020 https://doi.org/10.2514/6.2020-4195 Deployment Strategies for Reconfigurable Satellite Constellations Alexandra N. Straub, Daniel E. Hastings, David W. Miller and Olivier L. De Weck, Session: Surviving and Thriving in Low Earth Orbit Published Online: 2 Nov 2020 https://doi.org/10.2514/6.2020-4246  TECHPRES-74, Enabling Technology Development Autonomously Deployable Tower Infrastructure for Exploration and Communication in Lunar Permanently Shadowed Regions George C. Lordos, Caleb Amy, Becca Browder, Manwei Chan, Charles Dawson, Paula do Vale Pereira, Sydney I. Dolan, Travis Hank, Eric D. Hinterman, Benjamin Martell, Alex Miller, Cormac O'Neill, Natasha Stamler, Jessica Todd, Nieky Wang. TECHPRES-37 On-Orbit Servicing, Assembly, and Manufacturing I Valuation of On-Orbit Servicing in Proliferated Low-Earth Orbit Constellations Michael Luu and Daniel Hastings, ESL. https://arc.aiaa.org/doi/abs/10.2514/6.2020-4127  TECHPRES-71, Surviving and Thriving in Low Earth Orbit Mobile Target Tracking Using a Reconfigurable Low Earth Orbit Constellation Sarah Morgan, Ciara McGrath, Oli de Weck, ESL. The list of Space Enabled Research Group presentations can be viewed here.

Scenes from the ASCEND Conference Submitted by Daniel Jang

Kari Byron from Mythbusters hosts the AIAA ASCEND conference (this is for the National Security and Space Policy panel discussion)

MIT's Tommy Johanson (top left, LGO/AeroAstro student) and Ben Martell (bottom left, AeroAstro grad student) present during the "Enabling Technology Development" session. The session needed a moderator to replace the session chair, so Tommy stepped in for the role!

AeroAstro grad student Michael Luu presents his work during ASCEND.

Teaching Panel Discussion

Department Highlights

🥧 AeroAstro Thankful Gathering 🥧

At the AeroAstro Thankful Gathering on Nov. 19, participants were invited to share what they’re thankful for on our virtual Thankful Wall. This was a wonderful opportunity to share as a community all the things we’re so grateful for as the holidays approach. Please use the link below to also add what you’re thankful for! The board will be open for the next few weeks for everyone to share. Add yours here. Congratulations to the Thankful Gathering Pie Winners: 🥧 M. Regina Apodaca Karen Bruce Hamsa Balakrishnan ~ gifts her pie to a student Becca Browder Katie Carroll Sara Cody Bryce Doerr Paula do Vale Pereira ~ co-organizer ~Thank you pie! Pam Fradkin ~ co-organizer~ Thank you pie! Marie Gentile Jenny Gubner Leah Lovgren Beth Marois ~co-organizer ~Thank you pie! Fran Marrone ~ co-organizer ~ gifts her pie to a grad student Fran Marrone~ gifts her pie to a grad student Danielle Miller Hannah Ovaska ~gifts her pie to a grad student Cadence Payne Danielle Pekka Poe Paul Stegall Marie Stuppard Jessica Todd Carter Waligura

Four AeroAstro teams won the MIT Intramurals sports competition! Winner of Kan Jam A - Team: Gregoire Chomette (captain), Daniel Pickard Winner of Doubles Tennis A and B - Team: Gregoire Chomette (captain), Harsh Bhundiya, Matt Corrado, Albert Thieu, Alex Cabrales, Katie Carroll, Peter Sharpe, Cadence Payne Winner of Singles Tennis A - Team: Gregoire Chomette

AeroAstro has spoken! Your colleagues have voted, and the results of the virtual Halloween costume contest are in! 🎃 The top three favorite costumes are: 🎃

First Place Peter Sharpe Spooky Zoom Meeting!

Second Place Connor Stehr & Sammy A trainer and his Pokémon sidekick

Third Place Angel Gomez Red is Kinda Sus

Special shoutout to everyone who participated! (Left to right in the image above!)  Adriana Mitchell | Grad Student | Pansy Parkinson (A Slytherin student from Harry Potter series) Cuong Nguyen & family | Research staff | Trick or treating! Peter Sharpe | Grad student | Spooky Zoom Meeting! David von Wrangel | Undergrad | Alien Abduction – round up 2020’s insanity Naylah Canty | Undergrad | Wilma Flintstone Angel Gomez | Undergrad | Red is Kinda Sus Connor Stehr & Sammy | Grad student | A trainer and his Pokémon sidekick Cassandre Pradon | Grad Student | Raccoon lost in snow Laurens Voet & Kanika Gakhar | Grad students | Corona Couple Sara Cody & Eva the Diva | Staff | Leela and Nibbler from Futurama Charlie Hastings (Submitted by Dan Hastings) | Knight of the Round Table Evan Kramer | Grad student | Spooky IRL workspace decor View the full Flickr album:  https://flic.kr/s/aHsmSciyK2.

At a virtual event to kick off Massachusetts STEM Week, Jeff Hoffman discussed NASA’s latest Mars mission and the Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover on “AstroNights: LIVE Mars Mania!” The purpose of Mass STEM Week is to encourages students to see themselves in science and technology careers. Read the full story.

Many members of MIT SSL contributed to the OSIRIS-REx mission since the project began. They gathered on Zoom to watch the touchdown on Asteroid Bennu together with those involved in the REXIS payload. Photo courtesy of Daniel Jang.

GA^3 officially declared the winners of the back-to-school/fall photo contest! 🍁 After a tight race, the top photos are:

First place goes to Grace Wijaya with a beautiful shot of the Boston skyline with classic fall colors in the foreground!

Second place was a tie between two of Evan Kramer's submitted photos: one of a remote, forested river and another of mysterious, fall-colored mountains!

Third place goes to Katie Carroll and her awesome shot of a wooded, autumn creek!

Ed Crawley co-authored a book with Juan Cristobal Garcia Sanchez SM '20, and others that demonstrates how universities can contribute to economic recovery after Covid-19. Read the full story.

🏆 GTL Student Appreciation 🏆

"To maintain our sense of community, the Gas Turbine Lab has been having Friday afternoon Social Hours in which the students have provided interesting multi-person games for lab members: students, staff, and faculty. The games have ranged from long-time standards, such as (Aviation) Pictionary and virtual jigsaw puzzles, as well as innovations such as a quiz about Chinese food, a Trivia game about MIT and the GTL, and a game of Go Fish, with a 68 card deck that had, instead of numbers, items one doesn’t typically see such as “Unified Flying Competition” and “The P-40 Warhawk”, a World War II fighter.  A recent in-home scavenger hunt involved team-initiated lists of items to find within 5 minutes, with one of the items being “something that starts with the letter Z.” That was an easy one, where everyone just pointed to Zolti.      The games are hotly contested, the skill shown by the students is high, and we have to say that generally it is a student who is the winner. For the recent Go Fish game, Ed Greitzer admitted that the level of play was even better than the last game of Go Fish he played (with his 6 year old granddaughter!).    It is a pleasure to recognize the many outstanding ideas our students have been providing each week for this community event. Thanks to their creative takes on virtual games, we’ve had the chance to connect and catch up while having a lot of fun. All the ideas have been entertaining, thought provoking, and very much enjoyed by all.    Thanks again students. We look forward to upcoming Social Hours, and your continued creative ideas!" Submitted by the Gas Turbine Lab

Do you have highlights to include in future editions of the Monthly Roundup? Send them to aa-communications@mit.edu.

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