NASA has selected four university-led research teams for nearly $30 million in awards aimed at transforming the future of aviation. The projects will explore advanced supersonic propulsion, artificial intelligence-enabled avionics, quieter urban air mobility routes, and safer aircraft design methods.
The awards are part of NASA’s University Leadership Initiative (ULI), a program that gives undergraduate and graduate students the opportunity to participate in real-world aerospace research supporting NASA’s aeronautics mission.
This ninth round of ULI funding supports research aligned with NASA’s strategic aviation priorities. These include developing commercial high-speed aircraft, creating advanced engineering tools, improving air traffic management, and safely integrating emerging air transportation technologies into the national airspace.
“These four new awards will focus university innovation projects on NASA’s aviation mission priorities,” said Andrew Provenza, project manager at NASA’s Glenn Research Center in Cleveland. “These teams will research new propulsion concepts for supersonic flight, new engineering methodologies that have the potential to revolutionize the design and certification of aerospace systems, and learning-enabled avionics for new advanced and urban air mobility flight vehicle platforms that can enhance air traffic control modernization.”
NASA’s University Leadership Initiative awards provide multi-year funding for universities to form interdisciplinary teams and conduct advanced aviation research. The program also gives students hands-on experience while helping develop the next generation of America’s aerospace workforce.
Each ULI award supports a team of undergraduate and graduate students led by a faculty member. The winning universities will collaborate with industry, other universities, and community colleges. NASA, the Federal Aviation Administration, and additional partner organizations will provide technical expertise, support, and guidance.
The four winning projects are:
Adaptive Supersonic Combined-Cycle Engine for Next-Generation Transportation
Led by Terrence Meyer, this four-year project will develop a fuel-flexible propulsion system for high-speed aircraft. The concept would use conventional jet turbofans during takeoff and subsonic flight before switching to a ramjet engine for supersonic operations. In ramjet mode, the system is designed to cruise at Mach 4, or more than 3,000 miles per hour. The research could support more efficient commercial supersonic transportation and faster-than-sound flight.
Lifecycle Safety for Learning-Enabled Avionics Systems: Safety Data Flywheel
Led by Somil Bansal, this four-year project will develop machine learning-enabled avionics for aircraft communications, navigation, and other electronic systems. The research will focus on continuously improving safety throughout an aircraft’s operational lifecycle. Its findings could help establish a framework for safely introducing artificial intelligence-powered avionics into the national airspace.
Noise-Optimal Trajectory Planning for Urban Air Mobility Operations Including Ambient Noise
Led by Juan Alonso, this project will spend more than four years developing a high-fidelity simulation framework for designing quieter flight paths over cities. Urban air mobility aircraft could eventually transport people and cargo across densely populated areas. By modeling how sound travels through urban environments, the research team aims to create flight trajectories that reduce community noise exposure from emerging air transportation services.
Certification-Driven Aircraft Design Under Uncertainty
Led by Darshan Sarojini, this three-year project will develop new methods for designing and certifying next-generation aircraft. The team will combine model-based systems engineering, multidisciplinary design and optimization, advanced computer modeling, and high-dimensional uncertainty quantification. The goal is to make aircraft development safer, faster, and more efficient while reducing costly redesigns late in the development process.
For more than a decade, NASA’s University Leadership Initiative has supported innovative ideas, collaborative aerospace research, and student-led solutions. The program is part of NASA’s Research and Technology Mission Directorate and continues to strengthen the nation’s aviation research and development pipeline.
Source: www.nasa.gov