The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) recently invited 61 students from 14 colleges and universities from around the globe to participate in a design competition to create what the next generation of airliners and cargo planes may look like. 14 teams and 2 individual students submitted their designs in the annual competition which was sponsored by NASA’s Fundamental Aeronautics Program, part of the agency’s Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate.

The Spoils Go To Georgia Tech And To Virginia Tech

Atlanta’s Georgia Tech fielded the highest scoring graduate team while Virginia Tech, located in Blacksburg, VA, took undergraduate team honors.

NASA’s contest asked students to create a future subsonic transport aircraft with a load capacity of up to 50,000 pounds, operate on runways between 1,500 and 3,000 feet long, and cruise at speeds between 595 and 625 mph - about the average speed of airliners today. Significantly, the competition stressed that concept planes should use alternative fuels and be quieter and more environmentally friendly than today’s commercial fleet.

The Need For Environmentally Friendly Aircraft

“The nation’s air transportation system is under tremendous pressure to increase performance and capacity without causing additional damage to the environment,” said Juan Alonso, director of the Fundamental Aeronautics Program. “Through competitions such as this, we are nurturing a new generation of engineers who can deliver the solutions we so desperately need.”

Contest judges graded each design on criteria which included creativity and imagination, feasibility and cost analysis, and comprehensive discussion of design concept.

“The invention, imagination and engineering exhibited in these college proposals was extraordinary, and in parts superior to the concepts prevalent in the current professional literature. These entries bode well for the future of civilian aeronautics,” said Dennis Bushnell, chief scientist at NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Va. Bushnell was one of several NASA experts who judged the competition.

What The Winners Received

Six U.S. students received a 10-week paid summer internship at one of four NASA research centers around the country while non-U.S. student winners received an engraved trophy and certificate. Next year’s competition, which is already being planned, will be announced by the end of this summer.

A complete list of winners of the college contest can be found at: http://aero.larc.nasa.gov/

For more information about NASA’s Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate, visit: http://aeronautics.nasa.gov/

For more information about NASA and agency programs, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/

(Source: NASA)

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Tags: aircraft design, competition, contest, Georgia Tech, NASA, Virginia Tech

March Madness is in full swing with the conference tournaments completed, Selection Sunday behind us, and the first game of the 65-team tournament scheduled for today.

What a weird set of circumstances behind this year’s selections — the University of Georgia, which came into the tournament with just four league wins and a 13-16 record — managed to sweep four games and make it to the Big Dance.

A Rare Downtown Atlanta Tornado

Perhaps the oddest part of the Bulldog’s feat was having to play two games on Saturday to make up for the game postponed Friday evening, thanks to an EF2 tornado that ripped through downtown Atlanta, damaging the Georgia Dome where the SEC tournament was being held. The conference moved the remaining games to Georgia Tech’s arena, where the Bulldogs ran off an improbable three straight wins in under 36 hours.

University of North Carolina Tarheels: Top Pick

As expected, the University of North Carolina snagged a #1 seed and has been rated as the team to beat for this year’s tournament. Memphis, UCLA and Kansas earned the three other #1 seeds and will begin to protect their regions later this week.

Georgetown, Wisconsin, Tennessee, and Texas each gained #2 seeds, with Duke, Pittsburgh, Stanford, and Xavier all pulling down #3 seeds.

Perhaps as surprising as the Atlanta Tornado, last year’s finalists - Ohio State and champion Florida — are not in this year’s tourney. Instead, they are the top two seeds in the NIT which is the “also-ran” tournament for NCAA wannabes.

And The Winner Is…

Most years I try to pick the winner, but this year I think it is going to be tough. Although the Tarheels are the favorite, I see enough obstacles enroute to the Final Four to realize that this won’t be easy for them. Although I would personally like to see UNC win it all, if they can’t then I wouldn’t mind seeing a surprise team crowned national champion.

Further Reading

ESPN Bracketology

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Tags: Atlanta Tornado, Georgia Bulldogs, Georgia Dome, Georgia Tech, March Madness, NCAA, North Carolina Tarheels, SEC