Six members of the Texas A&M University faculty, including Dr. Darren Hartl, were honored with the University Professorships for Undergraduate Teaching Excellence (UPUTE). These awards are conferred upon the most accomplished teachers of undergraduates at the university. These professors are not only exceptional instructors, but also are innovators in pedagogy, exploring new teaching methods, and seeking engagement with other educators in pursuit of excellence.
[Read more…] about Hartl granted 2024 University Professorship for Undergraduate Teaching Excellence
Hot or Cold: MAESTRO Researchers Adapt to Lunar Extremes
When imagining what it’s like to be in outer space, many people think of experiencing zero gravity. An aspect that people may not think about is outer space’s extreme temperatures. According to NASA, the average low temperature at the moon’s equator is minus 208 F. For comparison, Earth’s lowest recorded temperature is minus 128.6 F, registered in July of 1983 at the Vostok weather station in Antarctica.
The moon’s equator has a temperature range of minus 208 F to 250 F, an almost 500-degree difference. As lunar exploration and the commercialization of space continue, finding a way to survive these extreme temperatures is a necessity.
Dr. Darren Hartl, associate professor of aerospace engineering at Texas A&M University, has partnered with NASA’s Glenn Research Center and Johnson Space Center to design a radiator that can adapt to the moon’s wide temperature range.
Image: Texas A&M Engineering
[Read more…] about Hot or Cold: MAESTRO Researchers Adapt to Lunar Extremes
Two MAESTRO students awarded prestigious National Defense Science and Engineering Graduate (NDSEG) fellowships
The National Defense Science and Engineering Graduate (NDSEG) fellowship process is highly competitive; any given engineering department may have only a few recipients in a given year. In March of 2024, the MAESTRO Lab found out that two of its own members had been selected. Undergraduate researcher Sarah Kinney and Ph.D. student Mason Ward were both granted support by the United States Air Force under this program. This brings the total number of current MAESTRO-affiliated NDSEG recipients to four (three under the Air Force, one under the Army).
Mason Ward and Sarah Kinney were granted support to study two very different problems. Mason will explore aircraft shape adaptivity for selective cross-section reduction while Sarah will explore more efficient modeling techniques for hypersonic aerodynamic phenomena.
A new shape memory alloy concept for post-fire flood mitigation
A team of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineers from Texas A&M is partnering with the College Station Fire Department (CSFD) to develop a device for reducing the water damage that can occur after fires have been extinguished by sprinklers.
[Read more…] about A new shape memory alloy concept for post-fire flood mitigation
Detailed MAESTRO Research Overview
Engineering Communications at Texas A&M finally released their “Research Spotlight” on the MAESTRO Lab, which is a nice summary of a small piece of the work being performed by our students.
Click on the image below to watch the new video.
Hartl gets a “kick” out of mentoring Aerospace Engineering student Randy Bond
Photo: Texas A&M Athletics
[Read more…] about Hartl gets a “kick” out of mentoring Aerospace Engineering student Randy Bond
New MAESTRO “Hall of Scholars” completed
After weeks of planning and effort, the MAESTRO “Hall of Scholars” has finally been completed. This small and special space features the achievements and honors the origins of our student researchers, past and present. All MAESTRO student defense announcements are proudly featured while a row of portraits places special focus on graduate fellowship winners from throughout the years (NSF, NDSEG, NSTGRO, SMART, and TAMU Fellowships). A pennant flag representing every graduate student’s undergraduate institution is exhibited along with a selection of items (samples and prototypes) from past research projects.
The room was substantially renovated by undergraduate research assistant Kristoffer Saeves, whose efforts and attention to detail are greatly appreciated.
MAESTRO student wins prestigious Sandia fellowship
Hannah Stroud has been awarded the Jill Hruby Fellowship at Sandia National Laboratories. | Image: Texas A&M Engineering
When Hannah Stroud worked at Sandia National Laboratories last summer, she realized the Jill Hruby Fellowship that they offer would give her the freedom and funds to manage exciting projects.
Stroud is an aerospace engineering doctoral candidate and a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship Program Fellow. She received her bachelor’s (‘18) and master’s (‘20) degrees in aerospace engineering from Texas A&M University. She won the Jill Hruby Fellowship on Feb. 2 for proposing methods of surrogate modeling for roughness on reentry vehicles. The fellowship’s mission is to contribute to national security.
[Read more…] about MAESTRO student wins prestigious Sandia fellowship
Happy Valentines Day from the students of the MAESTRO lab
In case you haven’t heard, being an engineering professor at an R1 university is the greatest job on earth.
Hartl interviewed for Daily Beast article on sonic booms
MAESTRO director Darren Hartl was recently interviewed for an article in the Daily Beast addressing the upcoming flights of the NASA X-59 aircraft and the topic of sonic booms in general. The full article can be found here.
