Tag: 2025 ASCEND

2025 ASCEND to Accelerate Our Off-World Future

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

June 9, 2025 – Reston, Va. – AIAA announced today a powerful lineup of speakers who will take the stage at 2025 ASCEND, 22–24 July, Caesars Forum, Las Vegas. The three-day event will address the most important opportunities and mission-critical challenges that come with the growing pace of activity in space.

“We’re thrilled to once again welcome the global aerospace community to ASCEND. It’s the most dynamic time in space in the last 30 years,” said AIAA CEO Clay Mowry. “ASCEND is where we discuss the critical topics today to ensure the ongoing safe, secure, and prosperous uses of space. This year’s program is sure to generate powerful dialogue among the broad spectrum of attendees including space users, investors, policymakers, innovators, and more.”

Powered by AIAA, ASCEND is the world’s premier outcomes-focused, interdisciplinary space event designed to accelerate building our off-world future. Over 200 industry luminaries from across the civil, commercial, and national security space sectors, adjacent industries, and the next-generation workforce are featured as speakers. Confirmed speakers include:

  • Tejpaul Bhatia, Chief Executive Officer, Axiom Space
  • Maj. Gen. Steven “Bucky” Butow, USAF, Military Deputy of the Defense Innovation Unit (DIU), Office of the Secretary of Defense
  • Robert Carlisle, CEO and Co-Founder, Argo Space
  • Dave Cavossa, President, Commercial Space Federation (CSF)
  • Carissa Christensen, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, BryceTech*
  • Tim Crain, Chief Technology Officer, Intuitive Machines
  • Israel Figueroa, Director, National Security Programs, Firefly Aerospace
  • Kelli Furrer, Chief Revenue Officer & Chief Marketing Officer, Firefly Aerospace
  • Mike Gold, President, Civil & International Space Business, Redwire Space
  • Chris Lay, Co-Founding Partner, Leonid Capital Partners
  • Mairead Levison, Deputy Director, Space ISAC
  • Jamie Morin, Vice President, Defense Strategic Space, The Aerospace Corporation
  • Sho Nakanose, Founder and CEO, GITAI
  • Shawna Pandya, Director, Space Medicine Group, International Institute for Astronautical Sciences (IIAS)*
  • John Reed, Chief Rocket Scientist, United Launch Alliance (ULA)*
  • Lee Rosen, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer, ThinkOrbital Inc.
  • Matthew Weinzierl, Senior Associate Dean and Chair, MBA Program, Harvard Business School*
  • Col. Bill Woolf, USAF (Ret.), President and Chief Executive Officer, Space Force Association (SFA)
  • Col. Matthew Wroten, USSF, U.S. Space Command

*Member of the 2025 ASCEND Guiding Coalition

Experts from NASA will provide wide-ranging updates on a number of timely topics including the Human Research Program, future procurement strategies, and exploration missions to the moon, Mars, and deep space.

Deep Technical Content Scheduled

AIAA events are well known for the depth of technical content presented. Over 200 technical presentations and collaborative sessions are scheduled for 2025 ASCEND.

Vital Interactive Learning Planned

Several workshops are scheduled for valuable in-depth learning opportunities. Topics include:

  • Lessons Learned, Forward Path, and Collaboration from the Oxygen from Regolith (O2fR) Collaborative Systems Interface Workshop
  • Empowering the Next Generation: Creating a Circular Space Economy
  • Why Learning the Language of Business Can Increase the Likelihood of Funding Request Approval
  • Cislunar & Lunar Ecosystem and Economics Workshop
  • AstroTactics: Wargaming Space Assets
  • Collaborative Identification of the Foundations, Formats, and Functions in the Emerging Field of Space Science Communication

Early-Bird Registration Rates Available

Registration for the event is open with early-bird rates ending 23 June. Journalists can request a Press Pass online.

Since 2020, ASCEND has promoted the collaborative, interdisciplinary, outcomes-driven community of professionals, students, and enthusiasts around the world who are accelerating humanity’s progress toward our off-world future. Lockheed Martin is the premier sponsor of ASCEND. For the most updated program information, visit ascend.events and follow ASCEND on LinkedIn, Instagram, and X/Twitter.

Media Contact: Rebecca Gray, [email protected], 804-397-5270 cell

About AIAA

The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) is the world’s largest aerospace technical society. With nearly 30,000 individual members from 91 countries, and 100 corporate members, AIAA brings together industry, academia, and government to advance engineering and science in aviation, space, and defense. For more information, visit www.aiaa.org, or follow AIAA on X/Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram.

AIAA to Present Prestigious Awards at 2025 AIAA AVIATION Forum and 2025 ASCEND

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

June 25, 2025 – Reston, Va. – The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) is pleased to announce the recipients of technical and management excellence awards to be presented on 22 July during the 2025 AIAA AVIATION Forum and 2025 ASCEND in Las Vegas.

“We are thrilled to celebrate these exceptional individuals who have advanced the aerospace sector,” said AIAA CEO Clay Mowry. “Chosen by their peers, these remarkable professionals exemplify the highest standards of our industry. Their dedicated work consistently drives progress in aerospace innovation.”

Registration for both events is open now. Journalists can request a Press Pass online. For more information about the AIAA Honors and Awards program, contact Patricia A. Carr at [email protected].

2025 AIAA Aerospace Excellence Award
The award acknowledges one or more recent and unique group achievements in the aerospace community that are paving the way for the future of aerospace and inspiring our youth to pursue careers in aerospace.

  • SpaceX
    Nick Cummings, Senior Director of Government Systems Advanced Development
    (Accepting on behalf of SpaceX)
    For demonstrating controlled landings of the Starship Super Heavy booster by catching it with arms on the launch tower and accelerating the development of the space economy through this fully reusable launch vehicle.

2025 AIAA Aeroacoustics Award
This award is presented for an outstanding technical or scientific achievement resulting from an individual’s contribution to the field of aircraft community noise reduction.

  • Anastasios “Tasos” Lyrintzis
    Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University
    For seminal contributions to aeroacoustics, including the introduction of surface integral methods for the extension of CFD results to the far-field.

2025 AIAA Aerodynamics Award
This award is presented for meritorious achievement in the field of applied aerodynamics, recognizing notable contributions in the development, application, and evaluation of aerodynamic concepts and methods.

  • Richard A. Wahls
    NASA Headquarters
    For outstanding leadership and technical contributions advancing high-confidence computational and experimental aerodynamic tools for prediction and analysis of airplane configurations and technologies.

2025 AIAA Aircraft Design Award
This award is presented to an individual or team for an original concept or career contributions leading to a significant advancement in aircraft design or design technology.

  • Isabelle Bloy, Thierry Diez, and Ahmet Kiryaman
    A321XLR Team Airbus
    For contributions to the Airbus A321XLR, a narrowbody aircraft opening long-haul services to airlines, successfully launched in 2019 with an entry into service in 2024.

2025 AIAA Fluid Dynamics Award
This award is presented for outstanding contributions to the understanding of the behavior of liquids and gases in motion as related to need in aeronautics and astronautics.

  • Ari Glezer
    Georgia Institute of Technology
    For groundbreaking contributions to fundamental understanding, application, and invention of actuation strategies for active flow control.

2025 AIAA Ground Testing Award
This award is presented for outstanding achievement in the development or effective utilization of technology, procedures, facilities, or modeling techniques for flight simulation, space simulation, propulsion testing, aerodynamic testing, or other ground testing associated with aeronautics and astronautics.

  • Nicole L. Key
    Purdue University
    For outstanding contributions to the rigorous testing of advanced high-speed compressor and fan technologies, with application of state-of-the-art diagnostic methods.

2025 AIAA Hap Arnold Award for Excellence in Aeronautical Program Management
This award is presented to an individual for outstanding contributions in the management of a significant aeronautical or aeronautical related program or project.

  • Richard A. Rezabek
    Lockheed Martin (retired)
    For outstanding leadership and management of the X-35 throughout the technically innovative, challenging, safe, and successful design, development, and flight test.

2025 AIAA Losey Atmospheric Sciences Award
This award is presented in recognition of outstanding contributions to the atmospheric sciences as applied to the advancement of aeronautics and astronautics.

  • Philippe Villedieu
    ONERA
    For distinguished contributions to the advancement of aeronautics through research, leadership, and teaching in the atmospheric science of ice crystal and supercooled liquid icing.

2025 AIAA Plasmadynamics and Lasers Award
This award is presented to an individual who has made outstanding contributions to the understanding of the physical properties and dynamical behavior of matter in the plasma state and lasers as related to aeronautics and astronautics.

  • Mark A. Cappelli
    Stanford University
    For impactful computational and experimental research in plasma flow control, plasma assisted combustion, spacecraft electric propulsion, laser diagnostics, and the mentoring of future aerospace leaders.

2025 AIAA Thermophysics Award
This award is presented for an outstanding singular or sustained technical or scientific contribution by an individual in thermophysics, specifically as related to the study and application of the properties and mechanisms involved in thermal energy transfer and the study of environmental effects on such properties and mechanisms.

  • Deborah Ann Levin
    University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
    In recognition of her pioneering work into deriving new thermo-physical insights into complex, multiscale high-speed flows using particle kinetic simulation approaches.

2025 AIAA von Braun Award for Excellence in Space Program Management
This award gives national recognition to an individual(s) for outstanding contributions in the management of a significant space or space-related program or project.

  • Thomas H. Zurbuchen
    ETH Zurich
    For exemplary leadership of NASA’s science program and its successful civilization-scale science missions, including the James Webb Space Telescope, Mars 2020, and Parker Solar Probe.

Media Contact: Rebecca Gray, [email protected], 804-397-5270 cell

About AIAA
The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) is the world’s largest aerospace technical society. With nearly 30,000 individual members from 91 countries, and 100 corporate members, AIAA brings together industry, academia, and government to advance engineering and science in aviation, space, and defense. For more information, visit www.aiaa.org, and follow AIAA on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and X/Twitter.

2025 AIAA David W. Thompson Lecture in Space Commerce Presented by Jamie M. Morin, The Aerospace Corporation, During 2025 ASCEND

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

June 27, 2025 – Reston, Va. – AIAA is pleased to announce the 2025 AIAA David W. Thompson Lectureship in Space Commerce is awarded to Jamie M. Morin, Vice President, Defense Strategic Space, and Executive Director, Center for Space Policy and Strategy, The Aerospace Corporation. The lecture, “Accelerating Space and Defense Innovation Through Savvy Policy,” will be presented Tuesday, 22 July, 11:45 a.m. PT, during 2025 ASCEND, 22–24 July, Las Vegas. The lecture will be delivered in person, as well as recorded and available on demand at aiaa.org.

Registration for 2025 ASCEND is open now. Journalists can request a Press Pass online.

The ability of the United States to advance its leadership in the space sector depends on harnessing the combined energy of both privately-financed, commercially-oriented firms as well as traditional government-led programs. However, there are significant obstacles to doing this at scale.

In today’s space domain, defining a company as commercial is ambiguous when that entity also serves as a government contractor. Commercial products and services benefit both commercial and government sectors, and income from government partnerships enables commercial players to contribute to important issues like climate change and sustainable agriculture. The democratization of space and unique dynamics of the space environment create risks for commercial actors. Indiscriminate threats to national security systems also pose risks to commercial systems. These factors amplify the need for greater collaboration between commercial actors and the U.S. government. When expanding our presence in space, leveraging the commercial sector is advantageous for addressing rapidly developing challenges.

Building on the research of the Center for Space Policy and Strategy, Morin’s lecture will propose a framework for policy and execution to create this powerful hybrid, which is a timely topic given the rise of commercial space and the emphasis on bringing non-traditional contractors into the defense and space ecosystem.

Morin is vice president of Defense Strategic Space at The Aerospace Corporation. He leads technical support to the senior-most levels of the Department of Defense and Department of the Air Force, including the U.S. Space Force headquarters, as well as to the Army, Navy, Air Force, and terrestrial combatant commands. Morin is an AIAA Associate Fellow.

Morin also is executive director of Aerospace’s Center for Space Policy and Strategy, which provides objective analysis to ensure well-informed, technically defensible, and forward-looking space policy across the civil, military, intelligence, and commercial space sectors. He orchestrates the Center’s extensive series of publications, events, and multimedia products to shape the future of the U.S. space enterprise.

Prior to joining Aerospace, Morin served as director of Cost Assessment and Program Evaluation (CAPE) for the Department of Defense. Earlier, he served for five years as the assistant secretary of the Air Force (Financial Management and Comptroller), and for a year as acting under secretary of the Air Force.

This lectureship recognizes a prominent industry leader or senior management team who has created or grown a space-related business and generated substantial economic benefits and market value. It was endowed by Orbital ATK to commemorate the long and distinguished career of commercial space pioneer, David W. Thompson.

Media Contact: Rebecca Gray, [email protected], 804-397-5270 cell

About AIAA
The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) is the world’s largest aerospace technical society. With nearly 30,000 individual members from 91 countries, and 100 corporate members, AIAA brings together industry, academia, and government to advance engineering and science in aviation, space, and defense. For more information, visit www.aiaa.org, and follow AIAA on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and X/Twitter.

About The Aerospace Corporation
The Aerospace Corporation is a leading architect for the nation’s space programs, advancing capabilities that outpace threats to the country’s national security while nurturing innovative technologies to further a new era of space commercialization and exploration. Aerospace’s national workforce of more than 4,600 employees provides objective technical expertise and thought leadership to solve the hardest problems in space and assure mission success for space systems and space vehicles. For more information, visit www.aerospace.org. Follow us on LinkedIn and X: @AerospaceCorp.

SPHEREx Mission: Mapping the Universe in Unprecedented Detail

From the Institute
In the vast expanse of space, a revolutionary observatory no larger than a small car is quietly transforming our understanding of the cosmos. SPHEREx, NASA’s Spectro-Photometer for the History of the Universe, Epoch of Reionization and Ices Explorer, represents a remarkable achievement in astronomical engineering—a mission that delivers extraordinary science from a deceptively modest package.
Full Story (Aerospace America)

Defending Space from Emerging Threats “A Team Sport,” Says USSF

FROM THE INSTITUTE
Every week, the head of U.S. Space Force’s Space Rapid Capabilities Office is briefed on the growing number of capabilities that adversaries like Russia and China are launching in the space domain. “It’s a little discouraging to see the pace and scale in which capabilities are being fielded into a domain that threatens the Space Force posture and our commercial capabilities,” said Kelly Hammett during last month’s ASCEND panel on navigating the evolving threat landscape.
Full Story (Aerospace America)

Podcast: The Evolution of Multi-mission Orbital Vehicles

Space News reports, “In this episode of Space Minds, host Jeff Foust moderates the panel “Evolution of Multi-Mission Orbital Vehicles” recorded live on July 24” at 2025 ASCEND in Las Vegas.  Panelists include Col. Owen Stephens, USSF; Seth Lacy, USSF; Micahel Creech, Firefly Aerospace; and Israel “Fig” Figueroa, Firefly Aerospace.
Full Story (Space News)

Still “A Long Way to Go” for a Lunar Economic Boom

FROM THE INSTITUTE
The grand visions of a bustling lunar economy remain too heavily dependent on government funding, as private investment in moon missions still lags far behind, start-up founders and investors agreed during a panel discussion at 2025 ASCEND.
Full Story (Aerospace America)

The Space Industry Dilemma of Moving from Innovator to Integrator

FROM THE INSTITUTE
Having long tackled the innovators’ dilemma to adjust to technological transformation, the space industry is now poised to tackle the integrators’ dilemma: what to do with all that innovation and how to use it. A panel discussion at 2025 ASCEND explored the theme, tapping experts in academia and industry.
Full Story (Aerospace America)

“Live from the ISS”: 2025 ASCEND Opens with ISS Astronauts, A Sit-Down with Axiom Space CEO

FROM THE INSTITUTE
2025 ASCEND opened Tuesday to a packed room of spellbound space industry members as they watched a live linkup with NASA flight engineers – Lt. Col. Nichole Ayers, USAF, and Col. Anne McClain, USA – onboard the ISS. The conversation, facilitated by Dave Cavossa, president of the Commercial Space Federation (CSF), touched on the ISS’s contributions as an orbiting science laboratory over the last 25 years, and key lessons learned that will benefit future orbiting stations.
Full Story (Aerospace America)