ABOUT US

In 1958, the same year NASA was formed, the Department of Astronautics was established at the U.S. Air Force Academy. Our cadets are rocket scientists, and our motto is “Learning Space by Doing Space.” We have designed, built, and launched rockets to the edge of space. We have designed and built satellites that are currently in Earth orbit and are fully funded by Air Force Research Laboratory to do the same with two more satellites over the next three years. Our cadets, from fourth year to first year, operate our ground station, controlling satellites that contribute to our national security and our understanding of the space environment. Our graduates are now conducting space-related research, acquiring our next generation of space systems, and operating our current space assets in defense of the nation.

The Aeronautical Engineering and Systems Engineering majors are accredited by the Engineering Accreditation Commission of ABET.