Research
Advancing Technology
From Guidance Systems to Green Energy
U of A Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering, with annual research expenditures of $9.2 million, has initiated breakthroughs in areas ranging from microelectromechanical systems to the behavior of objects in space.
AME faculty and students collaborate with researchers across campus and around the world to develop technology and processes for creation of the next aircraft materials, spacecraft guidance systems, autonomous vehicles, implantable medical devices, tissue engineering and renewable energy, for example.
Some of the nation’s top aerospace, defense and high-tech manufacturing companies are in close proximity to the University of Arizona. These industries work with AME on research for technological advancement, and the university’s commercial arm, Tech Launch Arizona, helps ensure inventions get to market.
Primary Research Areas
- Aerospace technology
- Biomechanics
- Computational mechanics
- Fluid mechanics
- Micro- and nanotechnology
- Renewable energy
- Solid mechanics
See research Focus Areas and graduate research labs (PDF) for more information.
Project Highlight
Stars Within Reach
Associate professor Ewan Douglas leads a research team building two of the main viewing instruments on the Lazuli space telescope. Planned for launch in 2028, this would be the first-ever full-scale private space telescope.
"This project represents a convergence of the U of A's decades of expertise in building space instruments and adaptive optics.
Centers and Facilities
AME’s wind tunnels and machine shop rival many in academia and industry. Additionally, the University of Arizona, a Tier 1 research institution, is home to a number of renowned labs, centers and institutes vital to the work of AME researchers.
See U of A College of Engineering-affiliated Research Centers and Institutes.
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Fast Facts
#1
space science research
U.S. public schools, global ranking
(U.S. News @ World Report)
$8.5M
annual research expenditures
(2025)
Mach 5
wind tunnel capabilities