SPACE HAUC, UMass Lowell’s first satellite, was successfully released into orbit from the International Space Station.

Asst. Profs. Jay Hoon Park and Davide Masato, along with their team of student researchers, are using thermoplastic manufacturing techniques to design spacesuits that are lightweight and rugged.

Funded by a three-year NASA grant, Assoc. Prof. Alireza Amirkhizi and Dean James Sherwood are conducting research to create a computer model of how parachute canopy fabrics and suspension lines behave during deployment, inflation and descent.

Faculty from the Francis College of Engineering are using integrated computational materials engineering (ICME) to support the design and development of innovative composite materials.

Using computer modeling and 3D printing, Assoc. Prof. Christopher Hansen designed lightweight, energy-absorbing lattice structures that could have applications in shoes, sports helmets and space travel.

Mechanical engineering alumni — Dave Cloutier ’10, Tim Marinone ’12 and Chris Nonis ’13 — conducted dynamic testing of Webb’s telescope structure, ensuring that technical issues were identified and addressed.

Prepared by his education at UMass Lowell, Walter Dawson’s career spanned designing Apollo 11’s guidance computers to practicing intellectual property law.

Joe Blonski ’78, an electrical engineering graduate, led the team that designed the communications module for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and NASA Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES) 16.

Mechanical engineering Ph.D. candidate Catherine Barry's research will help parachutes hit their targets — from delivering supplies to Army personnel in the field to the landing of rovers on Mars.

Roger Boisjoly's courageous efforts to avert the Challenger tragedy came with both accolades and a price.