News & Events

05-06-10

Ares J. Rosakis, Theodore von Kármán Professor of Aeronautics and Professor of Mechanical Engineering, has been selected to receive the 2010 Robert Henry Thurston Lecture Award from the American Society of Mechanical Engineers "for pioneering contributions to the field of fracture and failure mechanics of microelectronic, engineering and geological materials and structures, spanning a wide range of length scales; and for visionary leadership in promoting interdisciplinary research and education in mechanical engineering."

Tags: honors research highlights GALCIT MCE Ares Rosakis

05-04-10

Wolfgang G. Knauss, Theodore von Kármán Professor of Aeronautics and Applied Mechanics, Emeritus, has been selected to receive the 2010 Timoshenko Medal from the American Society of Mechanical Engineers "for fundamental contributions to the mechanics of fracture, covering mixed-mode fracture, dynamic fracture, and interface and adhesive fracture; and the characterization of material response and failure at the microscale, with an emphasis on experimental mechanics." The Timoshenko Medal was established in 1957 and is conferred in recognition of distinguished contributions to the field of applied mechanics.

Tags: honors research highlights GALCIT Wolfgang Knauss

04-22-10

Alessandro Spadoni, Postdoctoral Scholar, and Chiara Daraio, Assistant Professor of Aeronautics and Applied Physics, have built a nonlinear acoustic lens that produces highly focused, high-amplitude acoustic signals dubbed "sound bullets." The combination of the acoustic lens and sound bullets have "the potential to revolutionize applications from medical imaging and therapy to the nondestructive evaluation of materials and engineering systems," says Professor Daraio. [Caltech Press Release]

Tags: APhMS research highlights Chiara Daraio GALCIT health Alessandro Spadoni postdocs

04-22-10

Simon R. Sanderson, General Electric, Joseph E. Shepherd, C. L. "Kelly" Johnson Professor of Aeronautics and Professor of Mechanical Engineering, Hans G. Hornung, C. L. "Kelly" Johnson Professor of Aeronautics, Emeritus, and colleagues' paper "Reactant Jetting in Unstable Detonation" has been selected as best paper by the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics Fluid Dynamics Technical Committee. [Read the Paper]

Tags: honors GALCIT MCE Joseph Shepherd Hans Hornung fluid dynamics

04-09-10

Chiara Daraio, Assistant Professor of Aeronautics and Applied Physics, has won the 2010 Office of Naval Research (ONR) Young Investigator Award. The objectives of the Young Investigator Program are to attract to naval research outstanding new faculty members, to support their research, and to encourage their teaching and research careers. Professor Daraio's award is for her experimental study of nonlinear acoustic lenses with dynamically controllable focus. ONR announced 17 new awards in 2010. [View full list of Recipients]

Tags: APhMS honors Chiara Daraio GALCIT

03-26-10

Beverley McKeon, Assistant Professor of Aeronautics, shares her perspectives on controlling turbulence in the March 2010 issue of Science. Professor McKeon states, "more than 100 years after Osborne Reynolds's seminal experiments on the transition of flow through a pipe from a laminar to a turbulent state, the exact physical mechanism that drives this phenomenon still vexes the fluid mechanics community." [Science Magazine Article]

Tags: research highlights GALCIT Beverley McKeon

02-18-10

Anthony Leonard, Theodore von Kármán Professor of Aeronautics, Emeritus, and Richard C. Flagan, Irma and Ross McCollum-William H. Corcoran Professor of Chemical Engineering and Professor of Environmental Science & Engineering; Executive Officer of Chemical Engineering, have been elected members of the 2010 class of the National Academy of Engineering (NAE). NAE membership honors those who have made important contributions to engineering theory and practice, and those who have demonstrated unusual accomplishments in the pioneering of new and developing fields of technology. Election to the NAE is one the highest professional distinctions an engineer can receive. Professor Flagan was elected to the NAE "for leadership in invention, measurement, production, and technology of aerosols" and Professor Leonard was elected "for contributions to simulation of turbulence, new vortex methods of flow simulation, and understanding of flow-induced vibration." [Caltech Today Article]

Tags: honors GALCIT ESE Anthony Leonard Richard Flagan National Academy of Engineering

01-26-10

The dual master's degree program between Caltech and École Polytechnique in Aerospace Engineering or Aeronautics and Fluid Mechanics has won the Institute of International Education Andrew Heiskell Awards for Innovation in International Education, in the category of International Exchange Partnerships. The dual degree program spans two academic years; students spend a year at each institution and completed a six month internship in academic or industrial laboratories. Along with the two partnering institutions the program is also supported by the Partner University Fund. [Program Overview]

Tags: GALCIT MCE Guruswami Ravichandran École Polytechnique

01-04-10

Aeronautics alumni David Barish, who among other accomplishments was the developer the paraglider, passed away on December 15, 2009. [New York Times Article]

Tags: GALCIT EAS history David Barish alumni

01-04-10

The Los Angeles Times magazine has featured Ares Rosakis, EAS Chair; Theodore von Kármán Professor of Aeronautics and Professor of Mechanical Engineering, as a visionary - "someone who has the perception to see past entrenched, received ideas about what is possible and conjure revolutionary concepts." In the article entitled "Information Sage" Chair Rosakis discusses the IST initiative and highlights the interconnectedness of the research being conducted in the EAS division.

Tags: GALCIT MCE Ares Rosakis