The birth of the Delfi-PQ mini satellite

Read more The birth of the Delfi-PQ mini satellite

Climate neutral aviation? Now boarding!

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Faculty of Aerospace Engineering

Faculty of Aerospace Engineering

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SpaceX launches TU Delft mini-satellite: will it survive in space?

During the Transporter-3 satellite launch by SpaceX on 13 January from Cape Canaveral a small satellite from Delft will also travel into space. The DelfiPQ is one of the smallest satellites in the world.

TU Delft partner in Clean Aviation Joint Undertaking

TU Delft has become an official member of the European Partnership of Clean Aviation, the world’s most ambitious research and innovation partnership for a sustainable aviation sector.

Irene Dedoussi new member of the Young Academy 2022

The Young Academy is welcoming ten new members. They are researchers who work in a variety of disciplines, have been selected for their scientific achievements, and received their doctorates less than ten years ago. One of them is Dr. Irene Dedoussi, Associate Professor in the field of climate impact of aviation.

Gender diversity at Aerospace Engineering: ‘We hope to set an example at TU Delft'

In this interview, we talk to Henri Werij, Dean of the faculty of AE and Axelle Viré, Faculty Diversity Officer. What are their perspectives on gender equality and inclusion? What are their thoughts and actions on improving gender diversity at the faculty of Aerospace Engineering?

Towards sustainable aviation faster through success SAM|XL and TU Delft in RDM subsidy scheme

This week, it was announced that three proposals had been approved for the RDM subsidy scheme, in which fieldlab SAM|XL and TU Delft (Faculty of Aerospace Engineering) are jointly involved.

Looking between the hidden layers of The Night Watch

TU Delft researchers Andrei Anisimov, Roger Groves and Nan Tao used their special research equipment in the Rijksmuseum last week, to make the invisible structure of The Night Watch visible.

Superbus engineer Antonia Terzi (50) dies

Antonia Terzi died last week in a road accident in Great Britain. She was the driving force behind TU Delft’s Superbus.

Discover (Dutch) meteorites in the Delft Meteorite Lab

On 2 and 3 October the (Dutch) Weekend of Science will take place. Fortunately, this year there are more activities on location. For example, you can learn all about the coronavirus in the Science Centre Delft. But you can also get up close and personal with meteorites and other impact rocks in the online Delft Meteorite Lab.

National Geographic Magazine: 'How Green, How Soon?

National Geographic Magazine's October cover story 'How green, how soon?' is about sustainable aviation. In the spring, top photographer Davide Monteleone visited the faculty to take spectacular photos of the Flying-V and the SmartX-alpha flexible aircraft wing for the magazine.
> More news

Stories of Aerospace Engineering

The birth of the Delfi-PQ mini satellite

Imagine being able to launch a satellite that would fit in your pocket and send it into space. It wouldn't only be cheap, it would also enable whole swarms of satellites to work together. A swarm would give a much clearer picture of the radiation in space and the atmosphere around planet Earth. Early January 2022 the mini satellite of Alessandra Menicucci’s team was launched with a Falcon 9 rocket in the Transporter-3 mission of SpaceX from Cape Canaveral. The team hopes they will be able to breathe life into one of the world’s smallest satellites in space.

Looking over the shoulder of the pilot of a Flying-V

The first scale model test proved last year that the Flying-V is an airworthy, stable and controllable aircraft. In early November, it was time for the next step: the first simulator flight. Test pilot Thibaut Cappuyns had the honour of taking control of the stick of the SIMONA simulator. The pilot's experience of this revolutionary type of aircraft is crucial.

Stronger together: Swarm mini-drones sniff out gas leaks

Developing drones that are smaller and lighter than normal drones but still capable of performing the same tasks – Bart Duisterhof has succeeded in doing just that, and has been named Best Graduate in the Faculty of Aerospace Engineering. For his Master’s thesis, he developed smart mini-drones that can independently detect gas leaks. “If you’re not afraid of thinking outside the box, you can reach solutions that you might not otherwise have thought of.”

Heading for space to save the Earth

A membrane the size of the European continent. Together with other scientists, TU Delft researcher Jeannette Heiligers is currently exploring the possibilities for positioning a gigantic solar shield in space to combat global warming. A huge intervention which is not without its own issues.

Ir. Koo Siu Ling, the first female Aerospace Engineer in the Netherlands

The first woman to graduate from our faculty, then known as ‘Vliegtuigbouwkunde’ (Aeronautical engineering) was Koo Siu Ling. She was an international student from Indonesia of Chinese descent. When she registered to study ‘Vliegtuigbouwkunde’, it made the newspapers, both in the Netherlands and in Indonesia. She would start her studies in 1956 at the age of 16.

Is hydrogen-powered air travel the future?

Hydrogen is a sustainable alternative to kerosene-powered air travel because there are no CO₂ emissions. But hydrogen is also associated with challenges and risks, such as the danger of explosion. TU Delft scientist Dr. Ivan Langella aims to use mathematical models, high-fidelity computational simulations and experiments to develop a zero-emission hydrogen-powered engine that will enable aircraft to fly safely and efficiently.

Tiny autonomous satellites in hot pursuit

It doesn’t sound very elegant, launching a bunch of satellites into space only to have them plummet back to earth. But, while falling, they will map the density of earth’s atmosphere – our shield against meteoroids and space debris. It also involves a level of autonomy and coordination that are essential for next generation earth observation technology and future deep space missions.

Autonomous robots protect the lives of emergency services in disasters

Search and rescue robots play an important role in rescue missions following disasters. Dr. Jamshidnejad is trying to make these robots even more intelligent so that they can make decisions autonomously in complex situations, thereby relieving rescue workers of life-threatening tasks and making rescue operations more efficient.

Airplanes cross borders, so do their environmental effects

When it comes to the health effects of aviation, reducing total fuel burn may not necessarily be the optimal strategy. And, perhaps even more surprisingly, your flight from Amsterdam to Rome contributes to premature deaths in Asia. Dr. Irene Dedoussi models the global human health impact of air pollution from aviation emissions, helping both airplane designers and policy makers in weighing the various mitigation strategies to make aviation sustainable.

Aerospace students revive Leonardo da Vinci’s aerial screw (and turn it into an electric personal aerial vehicle for today)

In the midst of the corona pandemic, five aerospace engineering students from Delft University of Technology designed a vertical take-off and landing vehicle based on Leonardo da Vinci’s Aerial Screw and demonstrated its feasibility and physics.

‘Making big problems manageable and solving them: that’s what we do as engineers’

Switching to online education in the middle of the semester wasn’t easy for anyone, but how do you do that for a course in which building and testing are so important? Lecturer Michiel Schuurman took it as an opportunity to innovate the production process.

Sustainable aviation starts on the ground

Flying needs to become more sustainable, quieter and more efficient. For this you need to think far beyond the aircraft itself: airports for example, can contribute as well. In the newly launched Airport Technology Lab, TU Delft researchers are testing their ideas, from better weather forecasting models to faster baggage handling. All of these ideas contribute to improved efficiency in aviation, and a more sustainable industry. Already before the current coronavirus crisis, the aviation industry was facing huge challenges in areas such as sustainability, capacity and noise nuisance. The goal of the Airport Technology Lab (ATL) is to contribute to solving these problems. Since recently, it offers a special environment at Rotterdam The Hague Airport, where new services and products can be developed and tested under realistic and “live” conditions. Knowledge institutions as TU Delft, government bodies such as the City of Rotterdam, and the business community such as the airport and its innovation foundation RHIA, are collaborating closely. Fieldlab for aviation innovation “In other words, ATL is a fieldlab for innovations in aviation, where smart technologies are conceived, developed, tested and put into production", says project manager Elise Bavelaar from TU Delft. “We actually embarked on this course back in 2016 with the Innovation Airport initiative launched by Deltas, Infrastructures & Mobility Initiative (DIMI) and the faculty of Aerospace Engineering. This originated from the need to align all airport-related expertise at TU Delft and to link it together smartly. Of course the ultimate goal is to share this knowledge with parties beyond the university. An important part of Innovation Airport is our ambition to create a Fieldlab and the collaboration with the innovation foundation Rotterdam The Hague Innovation Airport.” The sector remains strongly convinced of the need for innovation, to be honest, I think even more than before the corona crisis. Read more Huge puzzle Airport Technology Lab is meeting this ambition and is thus an important follow-up from the Innovation Airport initiative. “All in all it has been a long journey to get the ATL to take off. It has taken us more than 18 months”, says Bavelaar, who has been involved with Innovation Airport from the start. “An important part of the process was our successful application for ERDF (European Regional Development Fund) funding. It was a huge and complex puzzle to coordinate everything and everyone, with on the one hand the many parties and areas of expertise (within TU Delft alone three faculties are involved, AE, EEMCS and IDE, plus the Innovation & Impact Centre), and on the other hand the different aspects that need to be addressed, ranging from financial affairs to legal issues. A key question was for example whether there was any unlawful state aid for the project.” Personal passion This made the ATL a very special environment for Bavelaar, who has a background in technology. She graduated five years ago from the Faculty of Aerospace Engineering at TU Delft. “Yes, it's a completely different job I have now, but I see that it is a considerable advantage to be well up-to-date on advancements in technology and engineering.” “It is precisely the combination of technology with other aspects that appeals to me. I experienced this in Germany during an internship for my Master's degree. I was working for Air Berlin and focused on improving airport processes. During that internship I discovered I like being involved with more than just the technology.” “My personal passion is to translate academic knowledge into practice. It is important that scientific insights can have a quicker impact on the real world.” Improved forecasting Back to ATL, which was officially opened at the end of May 2020. What makes this specific project unique? “For the most part this is because of the access to relevant airport data that we can use to test and develop new innovations. Of course appropriate measures related to privacy issues have been taken.” Meanwhile, the first tangible research projects have kicked off. “We have started working on three topics”, explains Bavelaar. “They all involve technology to make ground and air activities at airports more efficient and more sustainable in the near future. The first project is on expanding and refining the radar system at the airport. An extremely accurate model for current weather forecasting is being developed which will give Air Traffic Control increased insight into the current weather situation. This model can be used to predict possible turbulence between aircraft under changing weather conditions and this will ultimately lead to more efficient take-off and landing procedures. This part of the ATL project primarily involves the faculty of EEMCS.” Pleasant working environment In the second project, researchers are developing a new tool that can predict airside disruptions using machine learning techniques. This information can be used by planners at the airport to help them make tactical and operational decisions which will also lead to more efficient procedures. As part of the first project, the ‘flight-to-gate planning’ module is being tested. And finally, a tool is being developed which can simulate the efficiency, safety and resilience of processes in the airport terminal. Among other things, this tool enables development of applications for a call-to-gate strategy and passenger flow optimisation. In addition, this tool could be used to assess how the baggage drop-off points impact the flow of passengers in the terminal. According to Bavelaar: “The researchers’ initial experiences are positive. The airport has proven to be a pleasant working environment, with good accessibility and opportunities to test innovations. Moreover, the airport staff and the other stakeholders are more than happy to work with us.” The coronavirus situation demanded a great deal from the students’ capacity for improvisation. Nonetheless, in virtually no time at all they made the necessary practical adjustments, as did the other researchers in the project. This is really something to be proud of. Student involvement “So we're making good progress”, concludes Bavelaar. “An important factor is that we continue to reinforce the vision of DIMI within the project and in particular the emphasis on a multidisciplinary and holistic research approach. Of course there is the link with teaching at TU Delft. For example several student groups of the Interactive Technology Design course, at the faculty of Industrial Design Engineering, have already worked on airport assignments.” “The coronavirus demanded a great deal from the students’ capacity for improvisation. However, in no time at all they made the necessary practical adjustments, as did the other researchers in the project. This is really something to be proud of.” Bavelaar is aware that the current times have huge consequences for the aviation sector as a whole. “Yet the impact on the ATL project seems less bad than we feared, and if anything the coronavirus crisis has reinforced the need for innovation.” Read more stories of Aerospace Engineering Project Manager ir. M.E. (Elise) Bavelaar M.E.Bavelaar@tudelft.nl More stories More stories
> All Stories of AE

January

24
Thesis defence

Thesis defence Y. Zahoor
27

Symposium Design/Synthesis Exercise Fall 2021-2022
27

Wind lecture with Prof. Simon Watson (Director of TU Delft Wind Energy Institute)

February

01

e-Refinery Lecture February 1: Hydrogen for our 2030 climate and energy targets
Calendar

Information coronavirus

For information concerning the measures taken by the University and Faculty against the spreading of the coronavirus Covid-19, please consult the following pages:

Coronavirus updates TU Delft Coronavirus updates Faculty of AE

SpaceX launches TU Delft mini-satellite: will it survive in space?

During the Transporter-3 satellite launch by SpaceX on 13 January from Cape Canaveral a small satellite from Delft will also travel into space. The DelfiPQ is one of the smallest satellites in the world.

TU Delft partner in Clean Aviation Joint Undertaking

TU Delft has become an official member of the European Partnership of Clean Aviation, the world’s most ambitious research and innovation partnership for a sustainable aviation sector.

Irene Dedoussi new member of the Young Academy 2022

The Young Academy is welcoming ten new members. They are researchers who work in a variety of disciplines, have been selected for their scientific achievements, and received their doctorates less than ten years ago. One of them is Dr. Irene Dedoussi, Associate Professor in the field of climate impact of aviation.

Gender diversity at Aerospace Engineering: ‘We hope to set an example at TU Delft'

In this interview, we talk to Henri Werij, Dean of the faculty of AE and Axelle Viré, Faculty Diversity Officer. What are their perspectives on gender equality and inclusion? What are their thoughts and actions on improving gender diversity at the faculty of Aerospace Engineering?
More news

Information coronavirus

For information concerning the measures taken by the University and Faculty against the spreading of the coronavirus Covid-19, please consult the following pages:

Coronavirus updates TU Delft Coronavirus updates Faculty of AE

Stories of Aerospace Engineering

The birth of the Delfi-PQ mini satellite

Imagine being able to launch a satellite that would fit in your pocket and send it into space. It wouldn't only be cheap, it would also enable whole swarms of satellites to work together. A swarm would give a much clearer picture of the radiation in space and the atmosphere around planet Earth. Early January 2022 the mini satellite of Alessandra Menicucci’s team was launched with a Falcon 9 rocket in the Transporter-3 mission of SpaceX from Cape Canaveral. The team hopes they will be able to breathe life into one of the world’s smallest satellites in space.

Looking over the shoulder of the pilot of a Flying-V

The first scale model test proved last year that the Flying-V is an airworthy, stable and controllable aircraft. In early November, it was time for the next step: the first simulator flight. Test pilot Thibaut Cappuyns had the honour of taking control of the stick of the SIMONA simulator. The pilot's experience of this revolutionary type of aircraft is crucial.

Stronger together: Swarm mini-drones sniff out gas leaks

Developing drones that are smaller and lighter than normal drones but still capable of performing the same tasks – Bart Duisterhof has succeeded in doing just that, and has been named Best Graduate in the Faculty of Aerospace Engineering. For his Master’s thesis, he developed smart mini-drones that can independently detect gas leaks. “If you’re not afraid of thinking outside the box, you can reach solutions that you might not otherwise have thought of.”

Heading for space to save the Earth

A membrane the size of the European continent. Together with other scientists, TU Delft researcher Jeannette Heiligers is currently exploring the possibilities for positioning a gigantic solar shield in space to combat global warming. A huge intervention which is not without its own issues.

Ir. Koo Siu Ling, the first female Aerospace Engineer in the Netherlands

The first woman to graduate from our faculty, then known as ‘Vliegtuigbouwkunde’ (Aeronautical engineering) was Koo Siu Ling. She was an international student from Indonesia of Chinese descent. When she registered to study ‘Vliegtuigbouwkunde’, it made the newspapers, both in the Netherlands and in Indonesia. She would start her studies in 1956 at the age of 16.

Is hydrogen-powered air travel the future?

Hydrogen is a sustainable alternative to kerosene-powered air travel because there are no CO₂ emissions. But hydrogen is also associated with challenges and risks, such as the danger of explosion. TU Delft scientist Dr. Ivan Langella aims to use mathematical models, high-fidelity computational simulations and experiments to develop a zero-emission hydrogen-powered engine that will enable aircraft to fly safely and efficiently.

Tiny autonomous satellites in hot pursuit

It doesn’t sound very elegant, launching a bunch of satellites into space only to have them plummet back to earth. But, while falling, they will map the density of earth’s atmosphere – our shield against meteoroids and space debris. It also involves a level of autonomy and coordination that are essential for next generation earth observation technology and future deep space missions.

Autonomous robots protect the lives of emergency services in disasters

Search and rescue robots play an important role in rescue missions following disasters. Dr. Jamshidnejad is trying to make these robots even more intelligent so that they can make decisions autonomously in complex situations, thereby relieving rescue workers of life-threatening tasks and making rescue operations more efficient.

Airplanes cross borders, so do their environmental effects

When it comes to the health effects of aviation, reducing total fuel burn may not necessarily be the optimal strategy. And, perhaps even more surprisingly, your flight from Amsterdam to Rome contributes to premature deaths in Asia. Dr. Irene Dedoussi models the global human health impact of air pollution from aviation emissions, helping both airplane designers and policy makers in weighing the various mitigation strategies to make aviation sustainable.

Aerospace students revive Leonardo da Vinci’s aerial screw (and turn it into an electric personal aerial vehicle for today)

In the midst of the corona pandemic, five aerospace engineering students from Delft University of Technology designed a vertical take-off and landing vehicle based on Leonardo da Vinci’s Aerial Screw and demonstrated its feasibility and physics.

‘Making big problems manageable and solving them: that’s what we do as engineers’

Switching to online education in the middle of the semester wasn’t easy for anyone, but how do you do that for a course in which building and testing are so important? Lecturer Michiel Schuurman took it as an opportunity to innovate the production process.

Sustainable aviation starts on the ground

Flying needs to become more sustainable, quieter and more efficient. For this you need to think far beyond the aircraft itself: airports for example, can contribute as well. In the newly launched Airport Technology Lab, TU Delft researchers are testing their ideas, from better weather forecasting models to faster baggage handling. All of these ideas contribute to improved efficiency in aviation, and a more sustainable industry. Already before the current coronavirus crisis, the aviation industry was facing huge challenges in areas such as sustainability, capacity and noise nuisance. The goal of the Airport Technology Lab (ATL) is to contribute to solving these problems. Since recently, it offers a special environment at Rotterdam The Hague Airport, where new services and products can be developed and tested under realistic and “live” conditions. Knowledge institutions as TU Delft, government bodies such as the City of Rotterdam, and the business community such as the airport and its innovation foundation RHIA, are collaborating closely. Fieldlab for aviation innovation “In other words, ATL is a fieldlab for innovations in aviation, where smart technologies are conceived, developed, tested and put into production", says project manager Elise Bavelaar from TU Delft. “We actually embarked on this course back in 2016 with the Innovation Airport initiative launched by Deltas, Infrastructures & Mobility Initiative (DIMI) and the faculty of Aerospace Engineering. This originated from the need to align all airport-related expertise at TU Delft and to link it together smartly. Of course the ultimate goal is to share this knowledge with parties beyond the university. An important part of Innovation Airport is our ambition to create a Fieldlab and the collaboration with the innovation foundation Rotterdam The Hague Innovation Airport.” The sector remains strongly convinced of the need for innovation, to be honest, I think even more than before the corona crisis. Read more Huge puzzle Airport Technology Lab is meeting this ambition and is thus an important follow-up from the Innovation Airport initiative. “All in all it has been a long journey to get the ATL to take off. It has taken us more than 18 months”, says Bavelaar, who has been involved with Innovation Airport from the start. “An important part of the process was our successful application for ERDF (European Regional Development Fund) funding. It was a huge and complex puzzle to coordinate everything and everyone, with on the one hand the many parties and areas of expertise (within TU Delft alone three faculties are involved, AE, EEMCS and IDE, plus the Innovation & Impact Centre), and on the other hand the different aspects that need to be addressed, ranging from financial affairs to legal issues. A key question was for example whether there was any unlawful state aid for the project.” Personal passion This made the ATL a very special environment for Bavelaar, who has a background in technology. She graduated five years ago from the Faculty of Aerospace Engineering at TU Delft. “Yes, it's a completely different job I have now, but I see that it is a considerable advantage to be well up-to-date on advancements in technology and engineering.” “It is precisely the combination of technology with other aspects that appeals to me. I experienced this in Germany during an internship for my Master's degree. I was working for Air Berlin and focused on improving airport processes. During that internship I discovered I like being involved with more than just the technology.” “My personal passion is to translate academic knowledge into practice. It is important that scientific insights can have a quicker impact on the real world.” Improved forecasting Back to ATL, which was officially opened at the end of May 2020. What makes this specific project unique? “For the most part this is because of the access to relevant airport data that we can use to test and develop new innovations. Of course appropriate measures related to privacy issues have been taken.” Meanwhile, the first tangible research projects have kicked off. “We have started working on three topics”, explains Bavelaar. “They all involve technology to make ground and air activities at airports more efficient and more sustainable in the near future. The first project is on expanding and refining the radar system at the airport. An extremely accurate model for current weather forecasting is being developed which will give Air Traffic Control increased insight into the current weather situation. This model can be used to predict possible turbulence between aircraft under changing weather conditions and this will ultimately lead to more efficient take-off and landing procedures. This part of the ATL project primarily involves the faculty of EEMCS.” Pleasant working environment In the second project, researchers are developing a new tool that can predict airside disruptions using machine learning techniques. This information can be used by planners at the airport to help them make tactical and operational decisions which will also lead to more efficient procedures. As part of the first project, the ‘flight-to-gate planning’ module is being tested. And finally, a tool is being developed which can simulate the efficiency, safety and resilience of processes in the airport terminal. Among other things, this tool enables development of applications for a call-to-gate strategy and passenger flow optimisation. In addition, this tool could be used to assess how the baggage drop-off points impact the flow of passengers in the terminal. According to Bavelaar: “The researchers’ initial experiences are positive. The airport has proven to be a pleasant working environment, with good accessibility and opportunities to test innovations. Moreover, the airport staff and the other stakeholders are more than happy to work with us.” The coronavirus situation demanded a great deal from the students’ capacity for improvisation. Nonetheless, in virtually no time at all they made the necessary practical adjustments, as did the other researchers in the project. This is really something to be proud of. Student involvement “So we're making good progress”, concludes Bavelaar. “An important factor is that we continue to reinforce the vision of DIMI within the project and in particular the emphasis on a multidisciplinary and holistic research approach. Of course there is the link with teaching at TU Delft. For example several student groups of the Interactive Technology Design course, at the faculty of Industrial Design Engineering, have already worked on airport assignments.” “The coronavirus demanded a great deal from the students’ capacity for improvisation. However, in no time at all they made the necessary practical adjustments, as did the other researchers in the project. This is really something to be proud of.” Bavelaar is aware that the current times have huge consequences for the aviation sector as a whole. “Yet the impact on the ATL project seems less bad than we feared, and if anything the coronavirus crisis has reinforced the need for innovation.” Read more stories of Aerospace Engineering Project Manager ir. M.E. (Elise) Bavelaar M.E.Bavelaar@tudelft.nl More stories More stories
> All Stories of AE

January

24
Thesis defence

Thesis defence Y. Zahoor
27

Symposium Design/Synthesis Exercise Fall 2021-2022
27

Wind lecture with Prof. Simon Watson (Director of TU Delft Wind Energy Institute)

February

01

e-Refinery Lecture February 1: Hydrogen for our 2030 climate and energy targets
07
Thesis defence

Thesis defence L. Koop
Calendar

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