From UAVs
to Avatar
Vector algebra has carried alum Emmett Lalish (BS ‘05, MS ‘07, Ph.D. ‘09) from UAVs to 3D printing to an Oscar-winning blockbuster.
Chart his path
Why Aero & Astro?
We are the only full aerospace engineering program in the Pacific Northwest, and we sit among Boeing, Blue Origin, Stoke Space, Amazon Leo and PrimeAir, and dozens of smaller satellite and launch companies. That proximity puts internships, capstone sponsors, actionable research and employment close by. Here you can run tests in the Kirsten Wind Tunnel or work on fusion propulsion and composite structures alongside the faculty leading that research.
Explore Aero & Astro at UW
News
Alan Kaptanoglu joins A&A faculty
Alan Kaptanoglu returns to the UW where he will study plasma modeling, scientific machine learning and nuclear fusion.
Remembering Walter Christiansen
Walter Christiansen steered A&A through one of the harder stretches in our history as chair from 1992 to 1998.
Mark Platonov is an Astronaut Scholar
Senior student Mark Platonov has been named a 2026 Astronaut Scholar, joining a class of 79 scholars from 54 universities across the country.
Events
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Oct 19, 2026 @ 4:00 pm
A&A Monday Seminar with ISE's Ashis Banerjee
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Oct 26, 2026 @ 4:00 pm
A&A Monday Seminar with Carbon Robotics' Ryan Crompton
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Nov 2, 2026 @ 1:00 pm
A&A Monday Seminar
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Nov 2, 2026 @ 4:00 pm
Community Learning Webinar: Nathan Curtis / A&A Monday Seminar
Controls research
Smooth sailing
Samet Uzun (Ph.D. ‘26) has developed new mathematical methods that allow autonomous systems to handle complex, time-sensitive reasoning quickly enough to be useful.
Check his math
Expanding the future in our labs
Our six research areas span everything that flies, from UAVs to spacecraft. Structures and fluids determine what a craft is made of and how efficiently it moves. Controls and integrated flight sciences govern how it flies. Plasma science and space systems look past the atmosphere. Much of it comes back down to earth, in applications to energy, manufacturing and transportation.
Explore our research
Subscribe to The Highflight magazine
Highflight is the department's alumni newsletter. Published annually, it features stories about students, faculty, research, alumni and more.