Over the past 25 years, innovations in aerospace science and technology have influenced the way we live our daily lives. These technologies have transformed how we sleep, eat, communicate, get our news, navigate our environment and engage in local, regional and global commerce.
AeroSpace Ventures facilitates collaboration among campus units, industry and government partners in order to transition academic innovation into industry products and services. AeroSpace Ventures focuses on developing instruments, vehicles, systems and methods that observe, measure and better understand Earth and space.
A highlight of this initiative is AeroSpace Ventures Day. “The AeroSpace Ventures program provides an opportunity to collaborate with CU’s extensive resources and experience in research and development to advance our technologies and have access to the next generation of aerospace professionals,” says Frank Backes, CEO of Braxton Technologies.
This year, CU-Boulder welcomed more than 35 aerospace executives including attendees from Ball Aerospace, Braxton Technologies and Lockheed Martin. Gregg Burgess, the vice president of technology and engineering at Sierra Nevada Space Systems, was the industry keynote speaker. Attendees networked with some of the nation’s leading scientists and researchers and spent the day learning about using small satellites for advanced weather forecasting, remote sensing opportunities, climate variability, and their impact on air travel.
The day also included a technical career fair for students and recruiters. “Currently, our major source of talent is CU-Boulder,” says Steve Jolly, chief engineer for the GOES-R (Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellites) at Lockheed Martin. “This pipeline is dependent on the quality of education and its intersection with industry. Thus, it’s in our best interest to support the CU-Boulder community.”