News
Sat, 08/22/2015
JCATI Collaboration in the Columbia Gorge
On August 20, 2015, a team of UW Engineering Students joined industry partners in the Columbia Gorge to begin work on a new Joint Center for Aerospace Technology & Innovation (JCATI) project focused on developing both hardware and software components necessary to perform seamless UAS operations and monitoring in GPS-denied environments. This system would help maintain aircraft tracking and situational awareness in the event of loss of GPS by an Unmanned Aircraft, allowing for safe integration of UAS into the National Airspace System. The developed set of tools and protocols would increase shared situation awareness between relevant aviation stakeholders such as UAS operators and air-traffic control centers.
This project was awarded by JCATI to UW PI Dr. Christopher Lum and UW Professor Emeritus Juris Vagners in collaboration with Hood Tech Corp, ANPC, Sagetech, and Insitu.
Tue, 08/18/2015
From Ram Accelerator to SpaceX Engineer
Isaac Statnekov’s passion for aerospace began early. His grandfather, who worked on the Saturn Rocket at McDonnell Douglas Corp., encouraged Isaac to pursue engineering. Isaac studied aerospace books as a child, and in high school, wrote a 40 page paper on the history of aeronautics in the twentieth century. He began a research project in his first quarter in A&A, working with Professor Carl Knowlen on the Ram Accelerator, and later on fabrication of a prototype shock wave reactor, work that continued through his senior year. Read more...
Tue, 08/11/2015 | UW Today
$4.8M ARPA-E Awarded to Shumlak
DOE’s Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E) announced $30 million in funding for nine groundbreaking new projects aimed at developing prototype technologies to explore new pathways for fusion power, and one of the recipients is the team led by Uri Shumlak, Associate Chair for Research and Professor in Aeronautics & Astronautics. Prof. Uri Shumlak received $4.8 million for “Development of a Compact Fusion Device based on the Flow Z-Pinch".
Tue, 08/11/2015 | GeekWire
A&A Grad student finalist for the Next MacGyver
Nao Murakami, a PhD student working with Prof. Robert Winglee, reached the finals for selection of pilot scripts for the new show The Next MacGyver.
Over 2000 scripts were submitted, and Nao's was one of 12 to reach the finals. She attended the final competition in LA where five scripts were selected from the 12. You can read about Nao's vision for the show on UW News. The full story was published on Geekwire.
Sat, 07/26/2025 | Live Science
How many people have died in space?
A&A's Professor Jim Hermanson speaks to Live Science on the history of human loss in space.
Sat, 07/26/2025
Ed Connery selected to receive Distinguished Graduate Program Advisor Award
This university-wide award is given annually to a staff member who does an outstanding job serving their graduate program. The criteria for the award are: 1) an effective liaison between the graduate program and the Graduate School, 2) a proactive advisor for students regarding their graduate studies and Graduate School policies and processes and, 3) a proactive advisor for the Graduate Program Coordinators and Chairs regarding Graduate School policies and processes.
Please join us in congratulating Ed on his achievement!