Aerospace Students Win in RASC-AL Competition

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RASC-AL undergraduate and graduate teams with advisor Dr. Dave Akin

Clark School aerospace engineering students won in the undergraduate category and placed second in the graduate category at this year's NASA Revolutionary Aerospace Systems Concepts – Academic Linkage (RASC-AL) student design competition. The goal of this year's contest was to design a lunar flying vehicle. Undergraduate students Bree McNerney, Alex Janas, Nitin Sydney, Adam Halperin and Nick D'Amore attended the competition in Cocoa Beach, Fla., representing the 28 students of ENAE 484 (co-taught by Dr. Dave Akin and Dr. Mary Bowden) in the undergraduate competition with Project Alshain. Students Madeline Kirk, Scott Weinberg, Andrew Ellsberry, Andrew Becnel, and Nick D'Amore developed a detailed design of the life support and habitability aspects for a lunar habitat and rover combination as part of ENAE 697 for the graduate category. The RASC-AL forum provides an opportunity for student design teams to present revolutionary design projects to peers and representatives from NASA and industry. The student teams were led by Professor Dave Akin. Teams from Georgia Tech, Virginia Tech, Arizona State, Worcester Polytechnic Institute and Notre Dame also competed.

Published June 16, 2009