Jonathan Osborne, aeronautical engineer for Mira Facilities, has been selected as a recipient of the Best Paper Award presented by the Airbreathing Propulsion Subcommittee (APS) of the Joint Army Navy NASA Air Force (JANNAF) Interagency Propulsion Committee.
The award recognizes the technical paper he co-authored, Morphing Ceramic Components for Hypersonic Ground Test Facilities, which was first presented at the JANNAF 34th APS meeting in Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA.
Osborne leads the MORPH project at Arnold Engineering Development Complex, which aims to validate morphing ceramic materials for high speed/hypersonic ground test applications including variable Mach number nozzles and direct-connect distortion generation devices.
“The ultimate goal of this project is to provide a stepping stone on the path to being able to ‘fly the mission’ during ground tests when developing hypersonic propulsion technologies,” Osborne said.
“It’s exciting that the MORPH project team is being recognized for this important contribution to the hypersonic community.”
According to Ed Tucker, executing agent and AEDC branch chief for the High Speed Systems Test (HSST) program, the construction of the MORPH device has been completed and the project team is now installing it for validation testing in March. He noted that upon successful demonstration of the technology, the MORPH hardware will be moved to a Department of Defense test and evaluation facility for use with scramjet propulsion development.
Tucker applauds Osborne on his recent recognition and for the success of the MORPH project: “This is a revolutionary new T&E capability enhancement and Jon has contributed greatly toward its development.”
Osborne added, ‘I look forward to putting the hardware through its paces… in the very near future, so stay tuned for the results.’
March 10, 2016
