Spinoff story

Design Software Shapes Future Sonic Booms

A real-world story of NASA technology finding a life beyond the mission.

About this technology

Overview

Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) was hailed as a way to replace costly wind tunnel testing, but the software was time-consuming and itself costly to implement. Michael Aftosmis at Ames Research Center came up with a way to simplify and automate CFD processes. Desktop Aeronautics, now owned by Reno, Nevada-based Aerion Corporation, acquired the commercial license and added features to make it more user-friendly, and they have clients among universities, Government contractors, and commercial aerospace companies.