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Measurements from the Cassini satellite indicate an underground ocean of water and ammonia in Saturn's moon Titan. Scientists from NASA and TU Delft have made a new analysis of precise measurements of the satellite's velocity as it flew past Titan. The speed is affected by small changes in the moon's oblateness. It was then deduced from the calculated flattening that the ocean has a lower density than previously thought and may contain a small proportion of ammonia. The antifreeze effect of ammonia may explain why the ocean is not yet frozen. The work is based partly on an internship and graduation theses by two now-graduated former Aerospace Engineering students at TU Delft. Today the research paper on the work is published in Nature Astronomy.

During the VSV symposium: ‘Defying the dark’ in March 2024, two students were honored with awards for their exceptional master's theses. Juan Garcia Bonilla received the Heinz Stoewer Space award 2024 for his research on solar sails, while Elise Scheers received the NVvL Hans Wittenberg Prize 2024 for her work on integrating hybrid-electric aircraft design with strategic airline planning. Both students receive a certificate and €1000 in recognition of their achievements.

A Dutch collaboration comprising TNO, Shell, TU Delft, Suzlon, Tarucca and Fibersail has started the ReliaBlade2-NL project supported by the GROW-programma. The project aims to significantly enhance the reliability of wind turbine blades by monitoring their structural health throughout their lifespan.

The European Research Council (ERC) has announced that Daniele Ragni will receive an ERC Consolidator Grant for his research on noise caused by the interaction of rotors with airframe components. The ERC Consolidator grant is aimed at researchers with 7 to 12 years of post-PhD experience and spans a duration of five years, providing ample support for groundbreaking research endeavors.

Materials made by living organisms have remarkable mechanical properties. For example, wood can exhibit stiffness predominantly along one direction, yet it remarkably resists fracture, especially at intricate interfaces such as those with branches. Scientist Caroline Houriet from TU Delft has found an approach to replicate the complex microstructures found in nature using 3D printing techniques. This opens up new possibilities for designing and fabricating lightweight parts with high mechanical performance while also being recyclable. The team present their new insights in Advanced Materials.

The Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO) has awarded Vici funding of up to 1.5 million euros to three Delft scientists. Two of them are colleagues from the Faculty of Aerospace Engineering: Prof Guido de Croon and Prof Marios Kotsonis.

The European Research Council (ERC) has announced that Marios Kotsonis and Coen de Visser will receive an ERC Consolidator Grant. The ERC Consolidator grant is aimed at researchers with 7 to 12 years of experience since their PhD, promising results and an excellent research proposal and has a duration of 5 years.

‘People living near an airborne wind energy test site in Germany experience noise, ecological and safety impacts from the airborne wind energy system similar to those from the nearest regular wind farm. The airborne system did score better on visual impacts.’ These are the main conclusions from a pioneering study into the social impacts of airborne wind energy conducted by Helena Schmidt, a PhD candidate at TU Delft in collaboration with Medical School Hamburg.

“With floating wind energy technology tested in hybrid labs we can radically scale up and speed up the use of offshore wind energy in the energy transition,” says Axelle Viré, Full Professor of Floating Wind Energy at TU Delft in her inaugural speech on 16 February 2024.

With a reputation for an open, interactive teaching style and incorporating fun and innovative ways to learn, Dr. Alessandro Bombelli was named TU Delft Educator of the Year 2023.