UW Aeronautics & Astronautics

10/14/2026

Ready for impact!

Gannets dive into water at 70 mph. New CT scans from UW researchers show how their neck bones survive it. They have an extra contact surface on several vertebrae keeps the neck from buckling and sends the force straight down the spine instead.

It builds on earlier UW Engineering work showing a segmented, spring-like neck absorbs shock — now we know the exact bone feature behind it. Same idea aerospace engineers use for shock-absorbing fuselages and landing gear.

Read the story: https://www.washington.edu/news/2026/10/12/reinforced-vertebrae-allow-plunge-diving-seabirds-to-survive-high-speed-impact/

10/13/2026

Welcome home, Professor Alan Kaptanoglu!

After receiving a Ph.D. in physics here at the UW in 2021, he's back to join our faculty and work on magnets for fusion energy. His work brings together applied math, scientific machine learning and nuclear fusion. He develops computational tools that help researchers model, predict and control plasmas, as well as other complex systems that change over time.

Read more about Professor Kaptanoglu and access his latest papers! https://www.aa.washington.edu/news/article/2026-10-12/alan-kaptanoglu-returns-uw-help-shape-fusions-magnets

09/30/2026

A&A senior Mark Platonov has been named a 2026 Astronaut Scholar, joining a class of 79 scholars from 54 universities across the country!

The Mercury 7 astronauts who were still living in 1984 created the Astronaut Scholarship Foundation to help keep the United States at the forefront of science and technology. Today, the foundation supports juniors and seniors in STEM who plan to go on to research or advance their field. Scholars receive up to $15,000, mentoring and networking with astronauts, alumni and industry leaders.

Mark's research focuses on detecting and characterizing damage in engineered materials, particularly metamaterials, in Professor Charlie Dorn's Dynamic Materials and Structures Lab.

Congratulations, Mark!

Read more: https://www.aa.washington.edu/news/article/2026-09-30/aa-senior-mark-platonov-joins-2026-class-astronaut-scholars

09/25/2026

Real missions are full of either/or choices. Should the drone recharge now or later? Should it inspect this target first or that one? Choices like these can turn a quick calculation into one that takes an hour, which is far too slow for a vehicle in motion.

Samet Uzun (Ph.D. ’26) found a way to rewrite those choices as smooth math that standard solvers handle fast, without losing any of the original rules.

Read more: https://www.aa.washington.edu/news/article/2026-09-24/samet-uzun-sets-math-behind-real-time-autonomy

09/21/2026

Assistant Professor Amirhossein Taghvaei has won a Young Investigator Program award from the Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR) to improve the algorithms behind navigation, tracking and forecasting so that they work even when engineers don't fully understand the system they're tracking.

He joins Associate Professor Justin Little in this AFOSR YIP award-winning club!

Read more about his research here: https://www.aa.washington.edu/news/article/2026-09-10/taghvaei-earns-afosr-young-investigator-program-award

09/18/2026

Vector algebra has carried A&A alum Emmett Lalish (BS ‘05, MS ‘07, Ph.D. ‘09) from UAVs to 3D printing to an Oscar-winning blockbuster. Read about his career and his time as a student as a founding member of UW Design Build Fly and testing those first DBF models in the UW Aeronautical Laboratory (UWAL) with a bonus video of testing!

Aerospace really can take you far!

https://www.aa.washington.edu/news/article/2026-09-15/from-collision-avoidance-to-avatar

(Disney image used with permission for editorial use)

09/18/2026

We are hiring a staff engineer! Spread the word!

The staff engineer will implement and support scientific instrumentation and data acquisition for wind tunnel testing.

For more info and to apply: https://wd5.myworkdaysite.com/recruiting/uw/UWHires/job/Seattle-WA/Staff-Engineer_REQ-0000136470

09/04/2026

We are so proud to share in this propulsion partnership in Professor Carl Knowlen's lab, where CEO Alexis Harroun was first introduced to rotating detonation engine technology as an undergraduate! Excited to follow Juno's progress!

The National Science Foundation has awarded a $1.2 million grant to Juno Propulsion to support work on a non-toxic space propulsion system.

09/02/2026

Take note of this Board Nomination opportunity for JCATI! Help shape Washington State's aerospace capabilities!

Email from Joint Center for Aerospace Technology Innovation Apply for Open Board Positions before Sept 26       Joint Center for Aerospace Technology Innovation (JCATI): Call for Board Nominations JCA

08/24/2026

Structural dynamics workshop September 21-23!
Limited spots left – Register soon!

Register for OpenSD training to accelerate your computational and testing skills in structural vibrations and dynamics in 3 days in a state‑of‑the‑art testing facility at the UW Advanced Composites Center. OpenSD will equip you with the latest computational tools in Python coding and signal processing and smart testing methods using contact and non-contact sensors.

Full details and registration: https://www.uwacc.uw.edu/opensd2026/

What will you gain?

1. Learn advanced data‑driven modeling using Python;
2. Conduct cost‑effective testing and evaluation; and
3. Earn 3.0 CEUs (continuing education credits) upon completing; code and lectures will be provided.

Topics:

1. Computation: numerical methods and signal processing
2. Testing: instrumentation, data acquisition, and control for realistic environments
3. Visualization: contact and image measurement processing

Registration limits and deadlines
Limit: 30 attendees to maximize learning outcomes
Final deadline: Sep 04, 2026