Program Criteria

 

a.   Curriculum: Our program may be viewed as an engineering program combining aeronautical and astronautical engineering.  Our program has an adequate number of courses and credit hours in the following disciplines, and meets or exceeds AIAA criteria that “Aerospace engineering programs or other engineering programs combining aeronautical engineering and astronautical engineering, must demonstrate that graduates have knowledge covering one of the areas --aeronautical engineering or astronautical engineering as described above -- and, in addition, knowledge of some topics from the area not emphasized.”  In many of these courses aeronautics and astronautics concepts are equally emphasized. 

 

Until the fall of 2002, the two-semester long capstone design sequence was on the design of an aircraft from a preliminary design perspective.  Beginning in the fall of 2002, students will have a choice between an aircraft design sequence (two semesters; six credit hours) and a spacecraft design sequence.

 

The folllowing is the list of required courses.  Detailed outlines are given in the appendix.  Our Web site (<http://www.ae.gatech.edu>) contains detailed course material for a majority of these courses.

 

Aerodynamics (8 credit hours): AE 2020 Low Speed Aerodynamics (3-0-3), meaning 3 hours of lecture, 0 hours of lab/recitation, 3 hours of credit; AE 3021 High Speed Aerodynamics (3-0-3); and AE 3051 Experimental Fluid Dynamics (1-3-2).

 

Propulsion (6 semester hours): AE 3450 Thermodynamics & Compressible Flow (3-0-3); and AE 4451 Jet & Rocket Propulsion (3-0-3) .

 

Structures and Materials (13 semester hours): MSE 2001: Principles and Applications of Engineering Materials (3-0-3); AE 2120 Introduction to Mechanics (3-0-3); AE 3120 Introduction to Structural Analysis (3-0-3); AE 3121 Aerospace Structural Analysis (3-0-3); and AE 3145 Structures Laboratory (0-3-1).

 

Structural Dynamics and Aeroelasticity (6 semester hours): AE 2220 Dynamics (3-0-3); and AE 4220 Structural Dynamics and Aeroelasticity (3-0-3) .

 

Flight Mechanics and Control (10 semester hours): AE 3515 System Dynamics & Control (4-0-4); AE 3521 Aircraft & Spacecraft Flight Dynamics (4-0-4); and AE 4525 Control Systems Design Lab (1-3-2).

 

Performance and Design (11 semester hours): AE 1350: Introduction to Aerospace Engineering (2-0-2); AE 3310 Introduction to Aerospace Vehicle Performance (3-0-3); AE 4350 Aerospace Engineering Design Project I (2-3-3); and AE 4351 Aerospace Engineering Design Project II (2-3-3).  

 

b.     Design Content: Our students are required to complete two semesters (AE 4350, AE 4351: 6 hours) of capstone design aimed at designing a complete aircraft system starting with a design specification.  Students are also exposed to preliminary design in the course titled Introduction to Aerospace Engineering (AE 1350).  Beginning in the fall of 2002, the students will have a choice between two capstone design projects – aircraft design, spacecraft/aerospace vehicle design.  Each of these projects will involve two semesters (6 credit hours) of course work.

 

We also offer a number of electives that provide students with the opportunity to participate in national design competitions in the areas of aircraft, engines, space vehicles, unmanned aerial vehicles, and engines.  These electives are available at the freshman (AE1355), sophomore (AE2355), junior (AE 3355), and senior (AE 4355) level.  Credit earned in these courses may be counted towards the free elective hours (9 to 10) available in the program.

 

c.     Faculty: We have sufficient number of faculty members (twenty-eight full-time, three joint professors) to offer a comprehensive educational program.  The student-to-teacher ratio in the spring of 2002 was fifteen.  There are at least four faculty members in each of our six disciplines (aerodynamics, structures and materials, structural dynamics and aeroelasticity, propulsion, flight mechanics and control, and aerospace system design).  The Academic Council, a faculty group made of discipline chairs, is tasked with the development of program objectives in consultation with our faculty and our constituents.  This Council also monitors and coordinates the development of all undergraduate courses.

 

We closely follow and point to industry practices in our coursework.  All of the faculty members teaching upper level courses interact with industries on a routine basis through their sponsored research, publications in professional society meetings, and consulting.  Many of our faculty members have worked in the industry or at a government lab, and are active in AIAA, AHS, IEEE and other professional societies.  A number of our faculty members are Fellows of the AIAA and AHS professional societies.  Two of our faculty members have been inducted into the National Academy of Engineering.