Dr. Daniele Mortari, professor in the Department of Aerospace Engineering at Texas A&M University, has been awarded the prestigious 2015 Dirk Brouwer Award by the American Astronautical Society.
The award was established to honor significant technical contributions to space flight mechanics and astrodynamics and to recognize Brouwer's outstanding role in celestial mechanics and his widespread influence on workers in space flight and astrodynamics. Brouwer was an inspiring leader in the field of celestial mechanics during a period that saw a revival and flowering of that discipline, from its purely academic and esoteric role to one of widespread development and application in man's exploration of space. He was successful as a researcher, teacher and administrator. He always strove to make the growth of his subject truly international. The Space Flight Mechanics Committee selects the recipient of this award.
Mortari, an IEEE Fellow, holds interests in spacecraft attitude and orbit estimation, satellite constellations design, and attitude sensor data processing. Previous award winners from the department include Dr. Rao Vadali, Dr. John Junkins and Dr. Kyle T. Alfriend.