The subject of this course is aircraft and rocket design. You will learn some of the basics of aerodynamics, structures, stability, propulsion, and performance as applied to flight vehicle design. In other words, you will be exposed to the fundamentals of aerospace engineering. Rather than a deep dive into any one discipline, our focus is understanding tradeoffs amongst multiple disciplines to enable vehicle-level design. The class involves a combination of theory, analytic methods, computational tools, and a hands-on design project.
After we’ve practiced fundamentals through homework assignments, we’ll spend about 3 weeks building gliders in small teams. We’ll then spend a day at the park bungee launching our airplanes to see whose can travel furthest. The project will give us a better feel for aerodynamic tradeoffs and the importance of static stability.
The content of this class is the typical launching point for a mechanical engineer wishing to specialize in aerospace engineering. Subsequent courses provide greater depth on topics that we can only cover at an introductory level in this class. See the aerospace emphasis (catalog will have latest class options) for other classes in this area.
Formally, the listed prerequisites are: ME EN 273, ME EN 312. The latter may be taken concurrently (but you may need to read ahead a bit or ask a classmate to explain if unfamiliar concepts come up). We do not assume any prior exposure to aircraft or spacecraft.
Some of you are from other departments, like physics. You’ll be just fine, though you should ask your classmates for help, as needed, in explaining some engineering concepts or terminology from fluids, dynamics, and structures that are re-used in this class.
Most classes will be oriented around self-discovery. I’d recommend that you read the textbook or watch videos after lectures. The concepts will stick with you better if you wrestle with them before learning the “right way”. To that end, in class I will ask lots of questions, ask you to predict things, draw charts, debate concepts with your neighbor, or solve problems that you haven’t seen before. You should also ask lots of questions!
I’ve developed a text specifically for this class (that you can download here). I’ve created this to save you money and to tailor the content to make our in-class time more effective (there is no one textbook at the appropriate level or with the right mix of topics for this class). The textbook may be updated periodically.
Introduction to Flight by John Anderson (any edition) is a good supplementary text. It is not necessary for the class, but will provide more context for those interested in exploring this topic further. The level of the text is a bit too basic for our needs, but does provide a nice introduction to a broad range of topics.
I’ve also created videos on topics from a prior year: youtube playlist. I emphasize some topics differently, and have added some new material, but most of the content overlaps if you want to review.
There will generally be a weekly assignment due every Wednesday at midnight (actually 11:59pm) via Learning Suite. We will also have weekly quizzes to help you and I gauge understanding and reinforce concepts. Quizzes will be low weight.
Besides the project, there are also two midterm exams and one comprehensive final exam.
Late homework will be accepted with a penalty of 20% per day. Last minute issues often happen in life so be sure to start your work early and submit early! Despite your best planning you will likely have an unexpected event, obligation, or illness pop up. To help with this, I will give you three free late days (total per semester, not per assignment). This policy is designed to help with unexpected issues, so we generally won’t grant other extensions (unless of course there are prolonged/significant disruptions).
We won’t re-open late quizzes (hard to do fairly), but instead will drop two quizzes because we all forget or have occasional emergencies.
Working with others on homework is definitely encouraged, but you must do your own analysis and your own write-ups. When working with classmates, TAs, or AI, it is not appropriate to seek out solutions but rather to reinforce understanding.
In keeping with the principles of the BYU Honor Code, students are expected to be honest in all of their academic work. Academic honesty means, most fundamentally, that any work you present as your own must in fact be your own work and not that of another. Violations of this principle may result in a failing grade in the course and additional disciplinary action by the university. Students are also expected to adhere to the Dress and Grooming Standards. Adherence demonstrates respect for yourself and others and ensures an effective learning and working environment. It is the university’s expectation, and every instructor’s expectation in class, that each student will abide by all Honor Code standards. Please call the Honor Code Office at 422-2847 if you have questions about those standards.
As part of an overall teaching/learning approach to aid student learning, the course instructor may make available to students solutions to some prior coursework. However, outside of this appropriate usage, relying on and/or copying solutions (obtained online or from any source) to assigned coursework represents a clear example of turning in work that is not your own.
All course materials (e.g., outlines, handouts, syllabi, exams, quizzes, PowerPoint presentations, lectures, audio and video recordings, etc.) are proprietary. Students are prohibited from posting or selling any such course materials without the express written permission of the professor teaching this course. To do so is a violation of the Brigham Young University Honor Code.
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Brigham Young University’s devotional and forum assemblies are an important part of your BYU experience. President Cecil O. Samuelson said, “We have special and enlightening series of devotional and forum assemblies…that will complement, supplement, and enrich what will also be a very productive period in your classrooms, laboratories, and libraries. We look forward to being with you each Tuesday…and hope that you will regularly attend and bring your friends and associates with you…A large part of what constitutes the unique ‘BYU experience’ is found in these gatherings where the Spirit has been invited and where we have the opportunity to discuss and consider things of ultimate worth and importance that are not afforded to the academic community on almost any other campus” (from the address “The Legacy of Learning”, 30 August, 2005). Your attendance at each forum and devotional is strongly encouraged.
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The first injunction of the Honor Code is the call to “be honest.” Students come to the university not only to improve their minds, gain knowledge, and develop skills that will assist them in their life’s work, but also to build character. “President David O. McKay taught that character is the highest aim of education” (The Aims of a BYU Education, p.6). It is the purpose of the BYU Academic Honesty Policy to assist in fulfilling that aim. BYU students should seek to be totally honest in their dealings with others. They should complete their own work and be evaluated based upon that work. They should avoid academic dishonesty and misconduct in all its forms, including but not limited to plagiarism, fabrication or falsification, cheating, and other academic misconduct.
Intentional plagiarism is a form of intellectual theft that violates widely recognized principles of academic integrity as well as the Honor Code. Such plagiarism may subject the student to appropriate disciplinary action administered through the university Honor Code Office, in addition to academic sanctions that may be applied by an instructor. Inadvertent plagiarism, which may not be a violation of the Honor Code, is nevertheless a form of intellectual carelessness that is unacceptable in the academic community. Plagiarism of any kind is completely contrary to the established practices of higher education where all members of the university are expected to acknowledge the original intellectual work of others that is included in their own work. In some cases, plagiarism may also involve violations of copyright law. Intentional Plagiarism-Intentional plagiarism is the deliberate act of representing the words, ideas, or data of another as one’s own without providing proper attribution to the author through quotation, reference, or footnote. Inadvertent Plagiarism-Inadvertent plagiarism involves the inappropriate, but non-deliberate, use of another’s words, ideas, or data without proper attribution. Inadvertent plagiarism usually results from an ignorant failure to follow established rules for documenting sources or from simply not being sufficiently careful in research and writing. Although not a violation of the Honor Code, inadvertent plagiarism is a form of academic misconduct for which an instructor can impose appropriate academic sanctions. Students who are in doubt as to whether they are providing proper attribution have the responsibility to consult with their instructor and obtain guidance. Examples of plagiarism include: Direct Plagiarism-The verbatim copying of an original source without acknowledging the source. Paraphrased Plagiarism-The paraphrasing, without acknowledgement, of ideas from another that the reader might mistake for the author’s own. Plagiarism Mosaic-The borrowing of words, ideas, or data from an original source and blending this original material with one’s own without acknowledging the source. Insufficient Acknowledgement-The partial or incomplete attribution of words, ideas, or data from an original source. Plagiarism may occur with respect to unpublished as well as published material. Copying another student’s work and submitting it as one’s own individual work without proper attribution is a serious form of plagiarism.