News Release

AIAA announces International Student Conference 'best paper' winners

Grant and Award Announcement

American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics

January 21, 2009 – Reston, Va. – The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) is pleased to announce the 2008 AIAA Foundation International Student Conference "best paper" winners. Awardees were honored on January 6, 2009 at the awards luncheon of the 47th AIAA Aerospace Sciences Meeting, held in Orlando, Fla. Each of the three winners received a commemorative certificate and a cash award of $1,000.00.

  • Jason Leggett, of the University of Maryland, College Park, Md., won first place in the under-graduate division for his paper "Optimal Stochastic Nonlinear Control of Spacecraft Angular Velocity."

  • James Villarreal, Arizona State University, Tempe, Ariz., won first place in the masters division for his paper "Numerical Modeling of a High Efficiency Low Energy Pulsed Inductive Thruster for Space Applications."

  • In this year's inaugural team competition, the team from the University of Colorado, Boulder, Colo., won first place for its paper "KRAKEN: Kinematically Roving Autonomously Kontrolled Electro-Nautic." Team members included Torin Clark, Peter Klein, Geoffrey Lake, S. Lawrence-Simon, Joshua Moore, Ben Rhea-Carver, Marek Sotola, Steven Wilson, Christina Wolfskill, and Albert Wu.

The AIAA Foundation International Student Conference, which invites undergraduate and graduate AIAA student members who won their regional student conferences to present and discuss their research in a formal setting, provides a forum for the recognition of outstanding student research, and for the strengthening of inter-regional bonds between school engineering departments. For more information on the AIAA Foundation International Student Conference, please contact Lisa Bacon, AIAA program manager of K-12 programs and student conferences, at 703.264.7527 or lisab@aiaa.org

The AIAA Foundation is a nonprofit, tax-exempt organization focused on supporting the education of both practicing and future aerospace professionals, and on recognizing professional achievement. The AIAA Foundation supports educators at university and K-12 levels through scholarships, classroom grants, design competitions, and student conferences, enabling educators and students to improve scientific literacy and advance the arts and sciences of aerospace. For more information, visit www.aiaa.org/foundation.

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AIAA advances the state of aerospace science, engineering, and technological leadership. Headquartered in suburban Washington, D.C., the Institute serves over 35,000 members in 62 regional sections and 79 countries. AIAA membership is drawn from all levels of industry, academia, private research organizations, and government. For more information, visit www.aiaa.org.

American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics
1801 Alexander Bell Drive, Suite 500, Reston, VA 20191-4344
Phone: 703.264.7558 Fax: 703.264.7551 www.aiaa.org


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