Rendering of Orion reentering Earth's atmosphere

A NASA spacecraft will soon enter Earth’s atmosphere at nearly 25,000 mph. What will happen next?

Dec. 9, 2022

Sunday at around 10:40 a.m. MT, NASA’s Orion spacecraft will splash down in the Pacific Ocean after its several week-long journey to the moon and back. Space buffs can tune into NASA's livestream to witness some extreme physics—what will be the last leg of the historic Artemis 1 mission, which...

Iain Boyd

Boyd discusses Ukraine, missile defense with Newsweek

Nov. 2, 2022

Professor Iain Boyd discusses Ukraine's missile defenses and hypersonic weapons in a new article in Newsweek. Boyd, who is also the director of the CU Boulder Center for National Security Initiatives , is a leading researcher in hypersonic aerothermodynamics. Hypersonic weapons present major new challenges to national defense systems for...

Israel's Iron Dome Missile Defense System.

A game of numbers: Why Ukraine is eager for more air defense resources

Oct. 20, 2022

What will it take for Ukraine to defend against the ballistic missiles, cruise missiles and explosive drones raining down on the country? The question is not so much what as how many. Iain Boyd has written a new column in The Conversation on missile defense systems, how they work, and...

Iain Boyd

Boyd featured in two national media stories on American technology in China's hypersonics program

Oct. 19, 2022

Iain Boyd was interviewed by the Washington Post and Fox News for related pieces on American technology being used in China's hypersonics program despite export controls designed to prevent sales to foreign entities deemed a threat to U.S. national security. Boyd, a professor in the Ann and H.J. Smead Department...

Iain Boyd

Boyd talks hypersonics in Modern CTO podcast

Oct. 11, 2022

Modern CTO spoke with Iain Boyd on "the Sputnik moment of hypersonics", how hypersonics play a role in defense initiatives around the world, and NASA’s role in supporting the private space industry. Boyd, a professor in the Ann and H.J. Smead Department of Aerospace Engineering Sciences, is also the director...

Iain Boyd

Boyd featured in news podcast on hypersonic weapons

Aug. 8, 2022

Professor Iain Boyd was interviewed by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation for a new podcast on the international race to develop hypersonic weapons. Boyd, a professor in the Ann and H.J. Smead Department of Aerospace Engineering Sciences, is also the director of the CU Boulder Center for National Security Initiatives ...

Iain Boyd

Evaluating the risks of military anti-satellite lasers

July 26, 2022

Iain Boyd is exploring the threats posed by a new ground-based laser facility reportedly being built by Russia to interfere with satellites orbiting overhead. Boyd is the director of the Center for National Security Initiatives at the University of Colorado Boulder and a professor in the Ann and H.J. Smead...

Iain Boyd

Boyd discusses hypersonic weapons with Institution of Mechanical Engineers

June 29, 2022

Professor Iain Boyd was interviewed by the Institution of Mechanical Engineers in a new article on the extreme challenges faced in developing hypersonic weapons. Boyd, a professor in the Ann and H.J. Smead Department of Aerospace Engineering Sciences, is also the director of the CU Boulder Center for National Security...

Iain Boyd

Boyd talks supersonic airliners with the Washington Post

May 31, 2022

Iain Boyd discusses the potential and pitfalls of new supersonic commercial flights in an Washington Post article. Boyd, a professor of aerospace engineering sciences at the University of Colorado Boulder, is an expert on the science and extreme conditions faced in faster-than-sound travel. Read the article at the Washington Post...

Iain Boyd

How hypersonic missiles work and the unique threats they pose – an aerospace engineer explains

April 15, 2022

Iain Boyd discusses the development and use of hypersonic weapons in a new column in The Conversation. Boyd, a professor of aerospace engineering sciences and director of the CU Boulder Center for National Security Initiatives , is a leading national researcher in hypersonic aerothermodynamics. Hypersonic weapons present unique challenges to...

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