Aeronautical and astronautical engineering

Associate Prof. Zachary Cordero speaks with Live Science reporter Larissa G. Capella about why cold welding—a process in which metals fuse together— can easily occur in space and the hazards it can pose. “If there is cold welding, things can become stuck in place,” says Cordero. “If you have a deployable structure and there's cold welding, you might freeze the mechanism, or a door might become locked, or something might become immobilized, which you don't want.” 

Writing for Forbes, contributor Ron Schmelzer highlights Describe Anything, Anywhere, at Any Moment (DAAAM), a new system developed by MIT researchers that could enable robots to capture details of objects they see while exploring an environment. In the future, the system could allow factory workers to send robotic assistants to find items. DAAAM “lets a robot build a detailed map of a space, attach descriptions to objects in that map, and answer plain English questions later,” Schmelzer explains. 

Prof. Richard Binzel goes interstellar and chats with Boston Globe reporter Nick Stoico about the science behind the meteor that exploded over Cape Cod Bay recently, noting that the event offered a rare opportunity for people to connect with a phenomenon that usually goes unnoticed. “It’s great when people find a connection to the greater universe,” said Binzel. “It’s a great perspective to think beyond the surface of the Earth.”

MIT engineers have developed a “two-in-one propulsion system that can fuel both traditional chemical thrusters and electrical thrusters, combining speed and power with slower, more precise maneuverability for small satellites,” reports Passant Rabie for Gizmodo. “The new propulsion system would allow small satellites to carry both thrusters using the same propellant, opening the door for cheaper, smaller spacecraft to explore beyond Earth orbit,” Rabie explains. 

Prof. Richard Binzel speaks with CBS Boston about the success of the Artemis II mission and the future of space exploration. "It's exciting we have humans back in space again," Binzel shared. "It's a real test of a spaceflight system. Surviving reentry and landing safely. That's the real accomplishment here. Showing we can go to the moon but also come back safely."

Jennifer Eagen of WCVB-TV highlights MIT Space Week, an annual series of events across MIT focused on space exploration and the space industry. Eagan notes that one of the themes for this year’s event is the space economy. "Having humans land on the moon, having built a base on the moon, learning how to operate there so eventually we can go to Mars," said keynote speaker Terry Virts, former commander of the International Space Station. "I would love to see all those things happen that would be a huge success for America and for the world, for all of humanity."

Jasmin Moghbeli '05 is featured in USA Lacrosse’s roundup of women “whose journeys trace back to lacrosse: a sport that taught decisiveness, teamwork, resilience and joy.”  Moghbeli, a “NASA astronaut and former U.S. Marine Corps pilot who completed 150 combat missions, studied aerospace engineering at MIT— where she was also a three-sport athlete in volleyball, basketball and lacrosse.” 

A new study by Prof. Daniel Varon and his colleagues has found that “parts of the U.S. may be emitting much more of one of the most potent greenhouse gases than previously thought,” reports Julia Jacobo for ABC News. “Satellite observations suggest that methane emissions in urban areas may be ‘widely underestimated’ – up to 80% higher than noted in the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Greenhouse Gas Inventory,” explains Jacobo. 

According to the 2026 QS World University Rankings, MIT has been earned a No. 1 global ranking in 12 subject areas, including chemical engineering; chemistry; civil and structural engineering; computer science and information systems; data science and artificial intelligence; electrical and electronic engineering; engineering and technology; linguistics; materials science; mechanical, aeronautical, and manufacturing engineering; mathematics; and physics and astronomy, reports Michael T. Nietzel for Forbes.

Prof. Dava Newman speaks with USA Today reporter Sara D. Wire about NASA’s plans to return to the moon and, hopefully, Mars in the 2030s.  The “moon is a three-day trip," Newman explains. "Mars, you need eight months. Those are very different targets.” 

The Jewish Herald-Voice takes an interstellar journey to the past, spotlighting how thirty years ago Prof. Jeffrey Hoffman set off on an expedition into space on the Space Shuttle Columbia, bringing with him the “first kosher Torah scroll in history to be taken into space.” Hoffman was the “first Jewish-American male astronaut to fly into space and saw the act of bringing religious objects into space as part of bringing his practice of Conservative Judaism with him.” He noted that: “It wasn’t that space made this Torah special; it was more that the Torah made space special.” 

Prof. Danielle Wood speaks with CNBC reporter Laya Neelakandan about NASA’s Artemis III, the United States’ first venture back to the moon in over 50 years, which will carry the first female and first Black astronaut to the Moon. “NASA’s been thinking through this whole process, two decades’ worth, of what we’re going to do is prepare the government to focus on these harder, next-generation missions and be able to do things that are not already demonstrated,” says Wood. 

A study by researchers at MIT has found that high levels of greenhouse gas emissions in the atmosphere is impacting the satellite orbits that typically force objects back to Earth, leading to an increased amount of space junk, reports Sachi Kitajima Mulkey for The New York Times. “[W]e’re losing this cleaning force that we rely on” says William Parker PhD '25. 

A new study by Prof. Sara Seager and her colleagues has found a solar system that contradicts the patterns commonly “seen across the galaxy and in our own solar system,” reports Jacopo Prisco for CNN. The study offers “some of the first evidence for flipping the script on how planets form around the most common stars in our galaxy,” says Seager. “Even in a maturing field, new discoveries can remind us that we still have a long way to go in understanding how planetary systems are built.”  

Prof. Olivier de Weck speaks with Forbes reporter Alex Knapp about the challenges and opportunities posed by building data centers in space. Data centers are “physically secure from intrusion and environmentally friendly once operational,” says de Weck. “Essentially, the three primary resources required on Earth—land, power, and cooling—are available ‘for free’ in space after the initial launch and deployment costs are covered.”