News from CETA

The Connecticut Space Grant Consortium, led by the University of Hartford, marked the 40th anniversary of the rescue of the Apollo 13 mission with three events the week of April 12. Three engineers who worked for Hamilton Sundstrand, which was involved in developing the rescue plan, participated in the events. Dick Wilde, former UTC (United Technologies Corporation) Apollo Program chief systems engineer; Jerry Pasco, UTC Apollo 13 Exhibit Committee chair; and Don Rethke (also known as Dr. Flush for his work on the shuttle bathroom facilities), former NASA life support system technology expert; talked about their experiences during the 1970 mission.

Dr. Flush explains the Apollo missions to school children at the Connecticut Science Center as the Apollo 13 Mission is remembered.

The three events, at the Connecticut Science Center in downtown Hartford on April 13, at the University of Connecticut on April 15, and at the University High School of Science and Engineering on April 16, also included a display of artifacts from NASA’s space program including a space suit and backpack and a replica of an Apollo-era lunar module.

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Dr. Lou Manzione, dean of CETA threw out the first pitch on CETA Day, April 20. The Hartford Hawks played the Quinnipiac Bobcats and won, 10 to 4, spurred by an eight-run third inning.

Dean Manzione coaches a Little League team in West Hartford, so he was well prepared to pitch.

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Dr. Ivana Milanovic, associate professor of Mechanical Engineering and chair of the Department of Mechanical Engineering in CETA, has received a 2010 NASA Fellowship Award. She will be hosted by the Turbomachinery and Propulsion Systems Division at NASA’s Glenn Research Center this summer, where she will investigate wake vortices in a jet in cross-flow. Her work will provide projects for graduate students interested in computational simulation studies.

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Dr. Akram Abu-aisheh, assistant professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering in CETA, will conduct a workshop in Sustainable Energy Sources at Palestine Polytechnic University in Hebron in May (10 to 13). The workshop is orgranized by the Power Electronics and Signal Processing Research Unit (PESPRU) at Palestine Polytechnic with the cooperation and support of the Consulate General of the United States in Jerusalem. The goal of the workshop is to introduce and train Palestinian academic staff and engineers in alternative energy sources, their applications and modeling.

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On April 22, several CETA students were honored to present their projects at the Undergraduate Research and Creativity Colloquium. 

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  Sadie Heald, Dan Luedke, Clay Pipkin, Ellen Skoczenski, and Keith Vaccaro; an interdisciplinary group from the College of Arts & Sciences and CETA; “A Multidisciplinary Approach for Increasing Access to Clean Water, Providing a Sustainable Water Supply, and Improving Sanitation in a Rural Indian Community”; advisor: Dr. David Pines 

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  Neftali Torres; CETA; “Hydrogen Refueling Station Network Development and Analysis”; advisor: Dr. Clara Fang

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  Brad Deschenes and Klaudio Doko; CETA; “The Heat Is On: A Research Project on Microwave Simulation”; advisor: Dr. Patricia Mellodge

CETA congratulates all the students who participated in the Colloquium for their fine research work.