Technical Electives
404. Mechanics of Advanced Aerospace Structures. (3-0). Credit 3. I
Advanced analysis techniques for aerospace structures; material
anisotropy, plasticity, fatigue and fracture; laminated materials;
solution of plane elasticity, plate and multi-component structural
configurations; buckling of beams and plates; application of finite
element analysis. Prerequisite: AERO 306.
405. Aerospace Structural Design. (3-0). Credit 3. II
Overall structural integrity of complete aerospace systems; structures
subjected to critical loads; design considerations in aerospace
structures. Prerequisite: AERO 306.
406. Polymer Nanocomposites and their Applications. (3-0). Credit 3.
Recent advances and methodologies in processing and characterization
of nanostructured polymers and nanocomposites, as well as their
commercial applications; investigate polymers filled with nanometer-size
inclusions, including nanoparticles, nanotubes, nanofibers, and nanoclays;
macroscale, microscale and nanoscale characterizations investigated in
relation to properties of interest. Prerequisite: Junior or senior classification, or
approval of the instructor.
417. Aerospace Propulsion. (3-0). Credit 3. I
Air breathing propulsion; design and analysis of inlets, compressors,
combustors, turbines and nozzles; application to aeronautical and ground
transportation. Prerequisite: AERO 351.
419. Chemical Rocket Propulsion. (3-0). Credit 3. II
Nozzles and heat transfer in rockets, liquid and solid propellant
systems; combustion and combustion stability; flight performance
including trajectories, multistaging and exchange rate curves; rocket
testing. Prerequisite: AERO 351.
420. Aeroelasticity. (3-0). Credit 3. II
Classical analysis of fundamental aeroelastic phenomena with application
to aerospace vehicles; flutter, divergence, control effectiveness.
Prerequisites: AERO 303, 306, 310.
422. Active Controls for Aerospace Vehicles. (3-0). Credit 3. I
Introduction to the Theory of Automatic Control specifically applied to
aerospace vehicles; techniques for analysis and synthesis of linear
control systems, stability criteria, systems response and performance
criteria; design studies of active controls to improve aerospace vehicle
performance. Prerequisite: AERO 421.
424. Spacecraft Attitude Dynamics and Control. (3-0). Credit 3.
Introduces students to fundamental concepts of satellite attitude
dynamics and control; includes derivations of environmental disturbances
due to gravity gradient, aerodynamic, and solar radiation pressure; includes
treatments of attitude control subsystems, such as thrusters, reaction
wheels, CMGs, and magnetic torquers, and their designs.
Prerequisites: AERO 421, 423, or approval of instructor.
425. Flight Test Engineering. (2-3). Credit 3. II
Application of performance and stability and control theory to flight
test measurements; standard atmosphere and airspeed equations for
pilot-static system calibrations; flight test methods for evaluating
performance, stability and control, and stall-spin characteristics;
laboratory practice in planning and conducting small flight test
project. Prerequisites: AERO 421 and senior classification.
426. Space System Design. (3-0). Credit 3.
Introduces prevailing practices and processes used in modern space
system design; applies knowledge in component engineering disciplines to
a design challenge of interest to NASA or DoD; utilizes instruction in
systematic methods of design and on dynamics of teamwork; when
possible concludes with detailed design using an engineering design facility.
Prerequisites: AERO 306, 351, 421.
430. Numerical Simulation. (3-0). Credit 3. I
Numerical and analytical simulation of physical problems in science and
engineering using applied methods; developing and using numerical
techniques for physical problems described by nonlinear algebraic
equations, ordinary and partial differential equations. Prerequisite:
AERO 320.
435. Aerothermochemistry. (3-0). Credit 3. I
Composition of chemically reacting gases (air and propellant);
thermodynamic functions based on classical and quantum mechanical
theories; calculation of gas temperatures; equilibrium, frozen and
non-equilibrium flows through nozzles and shock waves. Prerequisite:
AERO 303.
440. Cockpit Systems and Displays. (3-0). Credit 3. I
Design, development, and implementation of cockpit systems and
multi-function displays; cockpit system requirements and specifications;
human-machine interfaces, Flight Management Systems, navigation and
guidance systems; 3-D real-time displays of weather, traffic, and terrain;
characteristics and missions of air vehicles; project design and cost analysis.
Prerequisite: AERO 421, or junior or senior classification in computer science.
445. Vehicle Management Systems. (3-0). Credit 3. I
Introduction to vehicle management systems for manned and unmanned
air and space vehicles; system centric concepts, requirements definition,
specifications, and architectures; reliability analysis, health monitoring,
and mission management; SISO digital design of integrated flight control,
propulsion control and structural control; introduction to vehicle autonomy;
design and analysis methods, industrial examples.
Prerequisites: AERO 422; junior or senior classification.
472. Airfoil and Wing Design. (3-0). Credit 3. I
Subsonic airfoil design and analysis, subsonic wing design and analysis,
swept and delta wings, vortex lift, transonic flow methods, viscous
transonic phenomena, transonic airfoil and wing design, supersonic panel
methods, supersonic wing design, optimization. Prerequisite: AERO 303
