The AIAA University of Minnesota Twin Cities Student Branch hosted the AIAA Region V Student Conference 3–4 April. Lars Erickson, an aerospace engineering student at the University of Minnesota, remarked on the amazing experience and the opportunity “to collaborate with fellow students, [and] exchange ideas,” as well as present his own research and meet with attendees from other universities in the region. Erickson was especially grateful for the “resources, mentorship, and community that make opportunities like this possible.”
Brett Barton, a graduate student at the University of Colorado Boulder, discussed the research presented by his team on “The Daedalus Platform: A Novel Approach to Suborbital Atmospheric Research in the Thermosphere,” which is advancing our understanding of hypersonics, atmospheric reentry, and standardized integration. Barton noted that he enjoyed the opportunity to hear about exciting projects and research across the country.
In addition to the 24 papers presented, the 50 attendees took part in lab tours on 2 April, and heard from Samuel Stanton, Associate Professor, United States Air Force Academy, Department of Aeronautics; Jake Williams, AIAA; and Ryan Caverly, University of Minnesota. Caverly spoke about solar sail research in his address. “The work involves developing robotic solar sail technology that uses photons from the sun to move a spacecraft without fuel.” That research was also on display to learn more about in one of the lab tours.
The conference ended with an awards dinner where cash prizes were given to first-, second-, and third- place winners for each category. All university students had the option to publish their papers with AIAA.
Region V Winners
Undergraduate Category
- First Place: “Modeling Trajectory and Attitude to Optimize Baffle Design for the Optical Navigation System of the Emirates Mission to the Asteroid Belt,” Christopher Michael O’Neill Jr., University of Colorado Boulder (Boulder, CO)
- Second Place: “Predictive Station Keeping of Areostationary Satellites Using Natural Motion Trajectories,” Nathan Gall and Ryan Caverly, University of Minnesota (Minneapolis, MN)
- Third Place: “Machine Learning Optimization of Model Following Control for Resilient Microburst Attenuation on Final Approach,” Nathan Aldridge and Samuel Stanton, United States Air Force Academy (Air Force Academy, CO)
Graduate Category
- First Place: “Long Short-Term Memory Networks to Improve Aerodynamic Coefficient Estimation for Aerocapture,” Dominic Rudakevych and Stephen Becker, University of Colorado Boulder (Boulder, CO)
- Second Place: “Hypersonic Glide Vehicle Trajectory Design Using Constrained Energy Maneuverability,” Sam Jaeger and Maziar Hemati, University of Minnesota (Minneapolis, MN)
- Third Place: “Human Spaceflight Graduate Projects: Recommendations for Project-Based Aerospace Systems Engineering,” Lynnette Wilde and Lynzee Hogger, University of Colorado Boulder (Boulder, CO)
Undergraduate Team Category
- First Place: “Countering Balance Impairments in Microgravity and Earth Environments Using a Reactive Balance System,” Sweta Alla, Maya Mital, and Rishab Pally, University of Colorado Boulder (Boulder, CO)
- Second Place: “Sound of Crickets: Design of Experimental System for Analysis of the Effects of Rocket Launch on Acheta domestitcus Cricket Eggs,” Anna Daetz, Bryson Chittum, Aaron Kerber, and William Kilcrease, University of Colorado Colorado Springs (Colorado Springs, CO)
- Third Place: “Aerodynamic Stability for Optimal CubeSat Drag Sail Operations,” Adrian Bryant, Polly Fitton, Tyler Renken, Shane Billingsley, University of Colorado Boulder (Boulder, CO)
