This quarter’s featured article for Flow: Applications of Fluid Mecanics is ‘Simulating the urban canopy’s impact on wind-driven natural ventilation‘ by Nicholas Bachand, Hesam Salehipour and Catherine Gorlé and is available to read here: In 2018 the International Energy Agency predicted that energy demand for building cooling would triple in the coming three decades (Dean et al.…
: Recent commercial availability of smart materials has made high-frequency aerodynamic control a major research avenue for improving the efficiency, performance and ride quality of future rotorcraft. This approach is equally applicable to urban air mobility vehicles that demand lower noise and vibration levels than currently used helicopters. Smart materials are also of interest for military aircraft to reduce their noise signature, extend mission range and prolong the service life of components.
The Aeronautical Journal May 2026 Vol 130 No 1347 The aviation industry is currently facing one of the greatest challenges in its history: maintaining global connectivity while significantly reducing its environmental footprint.…
Fully revised and updated, the new edition of Engineering Dynamics provides a comprehensive, self-contained and accessible treatment of classical dynamics. All chapters have been reworked to enhance student understanding, and new features include a stronger emphasis on computational methods, including rich examples using both Matlab and Python; new capstone computational examples extend student understanding, including modelling the flight of a rocket and the unsteady rolling of a disk.…
This is part 2 of Making a Psychologist, a blog series written in part to promote my good new textbook, Fundamentals of Biological Psychology: A Critical Perspective.…
Hazards such as runway incursions, runway excursions, and in-flight loss of control, are appropriately well documented and emphasised within aviation safety literature given their catastrophic potential. Less well known, yet operationally significant, is Abnormal Runway Contact (ARC), a category of hazardous events encompassing tail strikes, nose-wheel-first contacts, and hard landings.
As part of an ongoing series of Q&As with our Cambridge Materials Board Members, Hao-Cheng Yang, Zhejiang University, China a Cambridge Materials: Water Associate Editor discusses their research, recent advances in materials, and perspectives on future challenges and opportunities in the field.
Understanding Modern Warfare has established itself as a leading text in professional military education and undergraduate teaching. This third edition has been revised throughout to reflect dramatic changes during the past decade.…
Associate Professor Vineet Vashista, Indian Institute of Technology Gandhinagar answers our questions about their work and Cambridge University Press’s journal Wearable Technologies.
As part of an ongoing series of Q&As with our Cambridge Materials Board Members, Yan Zeng, Florida State University, USA a Cambridge Materials: Energy Associate Editor discusses their research, recent advances in energy materials, and perspectives on future challenges and opportunities in the field.
In technological applications of jets, such as fuel-air mixing in the combustion chamber, reducing the infrared signature and noise level of the jet, rapid mixing of the jet with the surrounding fluid is required.
Professor Shaoping Bai, Aalborg University, Denmark answers our questions about their work and Cambridge University Press’s journal Wearable Technologies.
The Aeronautical Journal February 2026 Vol 130 No 1344 Modern airline pilots operate in a highly proceduralised, wellregulated environment. It is often said that procedures are clear: if an approach is unstable, a go-around should be flown.…
Liquid hydrogen (LH2) is considered as a cornerstone of a low-carbon aviation future, yet the inevitable formation of hydrogen boil-off gas (BOG) is one of its main drawbacks.
If Virtual Reality (VR) can be such a game-changer in terms of the human experience of learning, then why don’t we see more of it on a daily basis? This was the question that launched our study of its effectiveness in delivering training, and also one that continued to puzzle us throughout its initial phases.
Announcing the launch of Cambridge Materials, a suite of four new journals dedicated to advancing materials science in the service of global sustainability. Each journal focuses on a critical challenge area—Circularity, Energy, Health, and Water—and is aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Together, they will provide a unique platform where science, engineering, and policy intersect to drive real-world impact.
How useful is AI for aeronautical research? ROBERT E JOSLIN, Ph.D., FRAeS Associate Professor, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, asks whether AI - Loss of Critical Thinking (A-LOC) is a rising risk for students, academics and aerospace professionals.
Helicopter operations on offshore platforms represent one of the most safety-critical aspects of maritime and energy sector logistics. In such environments, even small variations in helideck surface conditions can profoundly influence helicopter performance during landing, take-off, and ground handling.
From August 31 to September 2, 2025, Peking University hosted the JFM/FLOW Symposium China: From Fundamentals to Applications in Fluid Mechanics, a landmark event that brought together global leaders in fluid mechanics research.
Deployable structures are a class of structures that can be stowed in a narrow envelope during the rocket launch phase and deployed after the spacecraft enters orbit. Coilable masts are among the most commonly used types of deployable structures because of their high packing coefficient and high strength-to-weight ratio.
Yue Yang – Peking University has recently been appointed as an editorial board member of the Journal of Fluid Mechanics. To celebrate, they participated in a Q&A with the Journal.
Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) is a burgeoning sector of the Aerospace industry exploring new design concepts from multi-passenger vehicles to small uncrewed autonomous systems for observations. These applications also expand operations into airspaces that were not previously engaged in commercial operations. The compounding of these with traditional aerospace vehicles and operations requires accuracy in aerodynamic analyses.
Daniel Chung – University of Melbourne has recently been appointed as an editorial board member of the Journal of Fluid Mechanics. To celebrate, they participated in a Q&A with the Journal.
Hypersonic flight vehicles, capable of flying above Mach 5, represent a key breakthrough for the future aerospace industry. They promise transformative applications in ultra-fast transport, space access, and national defence.
The number of Uncrewed Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) or ‘drones’ in UK skies has increased significantly over the last decade and this trend is set to continue.
Reducing nitrogen oxides emissions from aviation has been an endeavor for the aeronautics industry for several decades along with increasing efficiencies of turbofan engines.
Prof.-Dr. Shijun Liao – Shanghai Jiao Tong University has recently been appointed as an editorial board member of the Journal of Fluid Mechanics. To celebrate, Shijun Liao participated in a Q&A with the Journal.
A major research focus of the Institute of Propulsion Technology at the German Aerospace Center (DLR) is increasing engine compressor efficiency. In this context, the intermediate compressor duct (ICD), which connects the low-pressure compressor (LPC) with the high-pressure compressor (HPC) in a civil jet engine is of eminent significance.
In this paper, “Off-Board Aerodynamic Measurements of Small-UAVs in Glide Flight Using Motion Tracking,” the effectiveness of using motion capture technology for aerodynamic testing of sUAVs is explored.
Metabolism, the intricate web of biochemical reactions that sustain life within cells, serves as the powerhouse driving essential cellular functions. At the heart of metabolism lies the provision of energy and building blocks crucial for the synthesis of macromolecules, vital for cellular structures, growth, and proliferation. This complex network comprises thousands of reactions catalysed by enzymes, involving an array of co-factors and metabolites.
As unmanned aerial systems (UAS) become increasingly central to military and civilian operations, ensuring that their operators maintain optimal mental performance is critical.
Imagine training for a life-or-death situation, only to find that the skills you learnt do not translate when it matters most. This gap in training tragically became a reality in the case of Air France 447, where ineffective responses to an abnormal situation contributed to a fatal crash. While flight simulators have long been a cornerstone of pilot training, their limitations are pushing the industry to explore new technologies. Could virtual reality (VR) revolutionise how pilots are trained?
The Aeronautical Journal December 2024 Vol 128 No 1330 Global air transport is a significant contributor to anthropogenic environmental impact. The use of kerosene for propulsion produces carbon dioxide and water vapour, both greenhouse gases, plus a mixture of nitric oxide and nitrogen dioxide that changes the levels of atmospheric, ozone and methane, also greenhouse gases.…
Frederick W. Lanchester was a well-known automotive engineer in the late 19th and early 20th centuries in England.
2024 JFM-Flow China Symposium: from fundamentals to applied mechanics, was an a landmark event co-hosted by the School of Aeronautic Science and Engineering at Beihang University, Beijing and arttended by 160 local experts and 3000 online viewers in China.
At the forefront of aviation evolution is the concept of the 'Hangar of the Future', a game-changing approach that redefines aircraft maintenance and operations
On the conditions for absolute minimum fuel burn for turbofan powered, civil transport aircraft and a simple model for wave drag
Beyond the Clouds There is Light. This is an appropriate descriptor of our industry. It is now emerging from the dark clouds of the Covid-19 pandemic, stronger and with a primary aim to improve environmental performance.
Fires are increasing in frequency, geographic extent and threat to infrastructure and people. Research described here in The Aeronautical Journal can inform fire fighters to improve the response.
The good, the bad, and the ugly: this article explores improving pilots' tactical decisions in air combat training using the critical decision method and introduces a paper published by Cambridge University Press in The Aeronautical Journal.
The Aeronautical Journal June 2024 Vol 128 No 1324 Over the past 30 years, the atmospheric science community has improved our understanding of how aviation affects the environment.…
Lian-Ping Wang, Southern University of Science and Technology in China has recently joined the Journal of Fluid Mechanics Editorial Board for JFM Rapids. To celebrate, Lian-Ping Wang participated in a Q&A with the Journal.
This recent study enhances the understanding of alternative fuel atomisation characteristics for a more sustainable aviation industry.
Tamer Zaki (Johns Hopkins University) has recently joined the Journal of Fluid Mechanics Editorial Board for JFM Rapids. To celebrate, Tamer participated in a Q&A with the Journal.
An investigation simulating the slice of a small aircraft cabin as an experimental facility, aiming to assess passenger comfort during exposure to high concentrations of volatile organic compounds (VOCs).
Sergio Pirozzoli of Sapienza University of Rome has recently been appointed as an editorial board member of the Journal of Fluid Mechanics. To celebrate, Sergio participated in a Q&A with the Journal.
Professor Yongyun Hwang, Imperial College London has recently been appointed as an editorial board member of the Journal of Fluid Mechanics. To celebrate, Yongyun participated in a Q&A with the Journal.
A Pilot Study on the Awareness of Maintenance Personnel
A ground-breaking aviation evolution is underway, reshaping our approach to airship design. We're entering an era where multi-lobed hybrid airships promise to revolutionize both civil and defence applications.
The 2024 Batchelor Prize has been awarded to Cambridge Author, Professor Charles Meneveau, Johns Hopkins University. Professor Meneveau will receive the plaudit in recognition of his high-impact fundamental contributions to the study of turbulence and wall-bounded flows, and for bringing insightful and rigorous fluid mechanics to the science of wind turbines and wind farms for the benefit of society. …
Introducing the Special Issue of The Aeronautical Journal: a curated selection of peer reviewed papers from AIAC19 and AIAC20 events.
Sharing insight that could prove invaluable for optimizing delta wing configurations in diverse aerospace applications, opening doors to safer and more efficient aviation.
This post introduces the paper 'Establishing best practices in the use of an airborne teaching laboratory'
We were excited to hold the JFM/FLOW 2023 China Symposium in Hefei in July 2023
This post introduces an AER paper that aims to demonstrate the applicability of a machine learning method to identify a nonlinear model of a physical component of interest in the helicopter industry.
presents several applications of object detection networks in a high-power laser system with a peak power reaching the petawatt level and repetition rate at the hertz level, while laser systems with similar specs are emerging worldwide in the past few years.
the optical shaping of gas target profiles for proton laser induced acceleration experiments are studied by numerical simulations, at the Institute of Plasma Physics & Lasers - IPPL of the Hellenic Mediterranean University – HMU
a research group from Shanghai Institute of Optics and Fine Mechanics (SIOM) reports the experimental results in the commissioning phase of the 10 PW laser beamline of Shanghai Superintense Ultrafast Laser Facility (SULF), achieving high-energy proton beams with energies up to 62.5 MeV
A research scheme of a plasma-driven two-color FEL generation based on matching manipulation technology has been proposed by the FEL group in Shanghai Advanced Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, which enables to generate a high brightness two-color FEL with ultra-short pulse duration.
The Aeronautical Journal July 2023 Vol 127 No 1313 Separated and vortical flow in aircraft aerodynamics: a CFD perspective1Arthur Rizzi Separated and vortical flow occurs over every aircraft in flight.…
An extensive review paper published in High Power Laser Science and Engineering, takes a tour through time of the four major sectors of UK laser research starting with UK academia where the histories of institutions such as the University of Oxford, Imperial College London, and Queen's University Belfast are detailed
Researchers from University of Rochester, report on MTW-OPAL, a new optical parametric amplifier line (OPAL) that has been activated for ultra-intense laser development and science experiments.
Researchers from National University of Defense Technology, China present an all-optical plasma-based scheme to produce a well-directed multi-MeV γ-ray vortex beam with large beam angular momentum (BAM) and high brilliance. Tags: High Power Laser, HPL, On the Cover
The Aeronautical Journal May 2023 Vol 127 No 1311 The contra-rotating propeller (CRP) is one of the most fascinating propulsion systems in aviation. …
In recent years, the plasma wakefield acceleration driven by ultra-short and ultra-intense laser pulses has become increasingly mature, which can produce electron beams with ultra-high beam density and femtosecond beam duration; By using this electron beam, a new table-top radiation light source with collimation, ultrafast and high brightness can be produced.…
Samaras, or better known as “helicopter seeds”, are common childhood memories of many people. Behind the simplicity of a planar wing and a seed, is a complex mystery of flight mechanics.
The Aeronautical Journal April 2023 Vol 127 No 1310 The paper instils a vanguardist discussion on Safety as Capacity within the context of air operations.…
Understanding how a pilot makes a decision when faced with an information conflict on the flight deck is important to ensure appropriate design of flightdeck information systems and effective pilot training.
At present, uncrewed aircraft (UA) are widely used around the world, in fields including aerial photography, express transportation, emergency rescue, electric power inspection, agricultural plant protection, border monitoring, mapping, fire monitoring and environmental protection.
The work described in this paper is part of the outcome of the MIDAS project, funded by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) of Canada, which intends to optimise novel transport aircraft configurations where drag reduction is assumed as resultant of High Aspect Ratio Wings (HARW).
Professor Lotte N. S. Andreasen Struijk, Aalborg University, Denmark] answers our questions about their work and Cambridge University Press’s new journal Wearable Technologies.
The Aeronautical Journal December 2022 Vol 126 No 1306 Remote sensing allows mapping of climate, vegetation and terrain features over large regions on the ground while repeating taking images consistently over years.…
The Aeronautical Journal November 2022 Vol 126 No 1305 Guided missiles are critical weapon systems with high precision and destructive power.…
This online collection commemorates 75 years of aerospace engineering teaching and research at the University of Bristol. However, interactions with the aircraft industry started long before the Department was formed in 1946 1, for instance when in 1918 the University began teaching a class in Aircraft Manufacturing .
The Aeronautical Journal October 2022 Vol 126 No 1304 In our paper, Safety is emphasised for a simple reason; for conventional fixed and rotary-wing aircraft, accidents linked to adverse aircraft-pilot-couplings (APCs) have continued to occur throughout the history of flight.…
Professor Hyung-Soon Park of KAIST, South Korea, answers our questions about their work and Cambridge University Press’s Open Access journal Wearable Technologies.…
The first 1PW laser was commissioned in the USA in the late 1990s with many systems globally coming on-line throughout the 2000s opening up new and exciting areas of science. In the following years many laboratories strived to increase the power, and hence the focussed intensity, to the 10PW regime, to realise new theoretical thresholds of fundamental science. Several lasers throughout the world, are in the process of construction/commissioning to achieve this goal in China, Romania, Czech Republic, and France with others planned in Japan, USA, Russia and the UK. The first of these systems, ELI-NP in Romania, has recently been the first to demonstrate this landmark achievement.
ISABE started 50 years ago when the ICAS (International Council of Aeronautical Sciences) community identified the need for a bespoke propulsion forum and conference.
We were excited to hold the JFM/FLOW 2022 China Symposium in Xi’an in June 2022. This is the second time Journal of Fluid Mechanics (JFM) has held a symposium in China but the first which included our new journal Flow. …
More than 99% of air molecules on Earth exist below 50km altitude and therefore, there is certainly an upper limit on altitude for an aircraft to reach, while there is a lower limit on an orbit for a spacecraft to operate, as even a low density of air causes large drag due to the high orbit velocity with an unfavourable effect on its operation duration.
The tactical systems and operational environment of modern fighter aircraft are becoming increasingly complex.
Professor Huichan Zhao, Tsinghua University answers our questions about their work and Cambridge University Press’s new journal Wearable Technologies
The first edition of The Aeronautical Journal predates the first human powered flight by the Wright brothers by some five years. Even back then it knew that there was to be a rich future for man in flight to come.
Much effort is currently being devoted to reducing the environmental effect of commercial jet aircraft, but this is not simply a case of replacing kerosine with synthetic fuels, batteries or hydrogen propulsion. A great deal of research needs to be focused on new air vehicle designs that will lead to emissions-free (not just C02) flight.
Beyond the dark clouds there is light. Is this a topical description for the past, present and future of our industry? In the past, it was our ambition to travel fast and above the weather that inspired the development of the jet engine by its inventors, Sir Frank Whittle and Dr Hans von Ohain in the late 1930s and early 1940s.
Next in our series introducing the Editorial Board for the new Open Access journal, Biological Imaging, we meet Professor Chrysanthe Preza.…
A new study in the Journal of Fluid Mechanics by an international team of scientists is on the cutting edge of research.
This is the latest of an ongoing series of interviews with the Editorial Board of our new Open Access journal, Biological Imaging.…
This is the latest of an ongoing series of interviews with the Editorial Board of our new Open Access journal, Biological Imaging.…
Dr Faruk Kececi, Abdullah Gul University, Turkey answers our questions about his work and the journal Robotica.
Oncoming Associate Editor Lorenzo Masia Institut für Technische Informatik (ZITI) answers our questions about their work and Wearable Technologies, the first journal dedicated to publishing original research, review articles and industrial developments related to wearable devices.
Associate Professor, Mehmet İsmet Can Dede, İzmir Institute of Technology, Izmir, Turkey answers our questions about his work and the journal Robotica.
The pursue for high peak power is driven by the uncharted territory of knowledge that this may unlock, from basic science to applied one. The optical path towards these phenomenal powers may be one of the natural ones when we observe the critical role that the light is playing in the universe.
The Aeronautical Journal January 2021 Vol 125 No 1283 The Aerospace Education Forum was held in Manchester in July 2019, organised in collaboration with the Xi’an Jiaotong University (XJTU), a C9 League (China’s Ivy League) university and the University of Manchester Aerospace Research Institute (UMARI).…
Ultrashort and broadband laser sources are formidable tools for a wide range of scientific areas. In the field of ultrafast science, laser pulses lasting only a few optical cycles are used to generate secondary sources employed in probing matter at atomic scales. Such sources are also widely adopted in applications in ultrafast spectroscopy, pump-probe in chemistry, and optical coherence tomography among many other fields.
The greatest challenge that we face as a species for our planet’s continued habitability is, ultimately, a rate problem.
Generation of electromagnetic waves was first demonstrated by Heinrich Hertz in 1887 and since then has become a leading subject of research, with an enormous range of applications covering radio communications, electronics, computing, radar technology and multi-wavelength astronomy.…
MRS Bulletin is pleased to announce that Ritu Raman of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) has been selected to receive the 2020 MRS Bulletin Postdoctoral Publication Prize.
The creation of robot athletes is a novel benchmark problem for techniques in artificial intelligence, machine learning, computer vision, and intelligent robotics. The goal is to develop intelligent robot systems that can participate in sports events following the same rules as humans.
Professor Tom Sugar of Arizona State University, USA answers our questions about his work and Cambridge University Press’s new journal Wearable Technologies
Listen to @BBCRadio4's Start the Week, featuring @NineDotsPrize winner @jkkusiak, talking about her book, 'Radically Legal'. Learn how a group of ordinary people inspired the book when they reclaimed over 240,000 apartments back from corporate landlords 🔗
Start the Week - ‘Left behind’, but not forgotten - BBC Sounds
Tom Sutcliffe with Paul Collier, Joanna Kusiak and Matthew Xia.
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