Hi, I'm Abhi—an Aerospace Engineer driven by an insatiable curiosity and a passion for turning ambitious ideas into reality. From designing and manufacturing jet engines and pioneering in autonomous robotics to building software that bridges the gap between the digital and physical worlds, I am fueled by a love for exploration and self-learning. With every project, I strive to push boundaries and inspire innovation in aerospace and beyond.

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Journey

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Projects

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Résumé

My Journey

Watching scientists juggle colorful chemicals fascinated me as a child, but Mechanix, a toy of bolts and beams, shifted my focus to engineering. Building helicopters and battle-bots sparked my creativity. And the launch of the STS-135 (the last Space Shuttle) finally ignited my passion for flight. This love for aerospace continued strong through my childhood, even when faced with missions that didn't quite seem to go nominally...

Abhi's Space Program didn't quite take off...

Aerospace Engineering

2023 - 2027

Iowa State University has been the launchpad for my aerospace journey, where I'm tackling everything from advanced thermodynamics to structural design. With a GPA of 3.83, I am immersed in projects like designing combustion chambers and modeling avionics.

Cyber Physical Systems

2025 - 2027

As a natural extension of my aerospace passion, I'm pursuing a minor in Cyber-Physical Systems to master the art of integrating software with hardware. I am pursuing cutting-edge technologies like autonomous navigation, simulation design, and embedded systems.

OpenUAS

GitFPGAAnsysSolidWorksC++Python

I designed and built a low-cost, open-source , fixed-wing UAS (~4 ft wingspan) for educational and research use. The aircraft supports modular sensor configurations, FPGA (field programmable gate array) -based health monitoring, and catapult launch designed to be fully 3D-printable with COTS (commercial off-the-shelf) parts. Focused on accessibility, documentation, and reusability, with CAD files, LaTeX manuals, and Git version control (hosted on GitHub). I worked as part of about a 14-person team under the avionics and electronics subteam.

J.E.T.

Advanced ThermodynamicsSolidWorksComputer Fluid DynamicsPython

I designed and manufactured the heart of our jet engine: the combustion chamber. Crafted from rolled stainless steel sheet metal, its dimensions and geometry balance thermal limits, performance requirements, and efficiency.As a member of J.E.T. ("Jet Engine Team", a humorously unexacting name I proudly coined), I frequently go beyond my current coursework. I independently research, implement new ideas, run simulations, and effectively communicate changes with my team to refine our designs.The liner is a simple rolled aluminum cylinder with a 6-inch diameter. The combustor, on the other hand, is more intricate. It begins as a truncated stainless steel cone, with its mouth carefully sized to direct approximately 83% of the incoming air into the liner, leaving the rest for the combustor. At the base of the cone, fuel injectors initiate the flame, which is sustained in the next segment of the combustor.The combustor transitions from the truncated cone into a cylindrical shape featuring a series of carefully positioned holes. These holes are categorized into three groups, following the direction of airflow:

Primary Holes: Sixteen holes consume about 20% of the airflow, sustaining the flame.
Intermediate Holes: Twelve holes use 30% of the airflow to combust any remaining fuel and slightly cool the products.
Dilution Holes: Eight holes consume the remaining airflow, cooling the products further to protect downstream aluminum components.

The geometry is dynamic, with dimensions adjusted daily based on ongoing calculations and simulations. We've developed a Python script using the Pint library to streamline this process to ensure unit consistency. Numerous variables are optimized to achieve our goal of producing 25 pounds of thrust.

Nerdy Birds

Team LeadComputer VisionInertial NavigationJava

I served as the team lead during the 2022-2023 season, taking on additional responsibilities in programming while actively contributing to the design and manufacturing of our robot. Designed for the FTC Robotics Competition, the B-4/B-5 represented our flagship innovation—a culmination of advanced technologies I developed. This effort led us to secure first place at districts and rank among the top third of teams at the state level, marking the best performance in our team's 10-year history.The most impressive feature of our robot was the novel autonomous mode I designed, which surpassed anything we had seen in FTC to date. Operating within the competition's tight 30-second autonomous period, the system used cutting-edge sensors and software to execute tasks precisely. The robot utilized computer vision to identify obstacles, dynamically adapting its behavior based on gameplay elements.At the core of this innovation was a guided A* pathfinding system. It integrated manual route inputs with real-time decisions to guide the robot to scoring elements efficiently, ensuring precise alignment and placement on goals. Additionally, I incorporated color and brightness sensors to recognize floor patterns and infer positional hints. At the same time, the onboard IMU tracked accelerations and forces to maintain an accurate understanding of the robot's orientation and position. Periodic ground-based position checks further refined its spatial awareness.This integration of autonomous functionality and driver-friendly controls transformed our robot into a high-performing machine with innovative features. These advancements were instrumental in achieving our historic success during the competition.

BlitzKit

Large Public ProjectGitHubTypeScriptC#WebGL

BlitzKit is a passion project of mine that documents the armor profiles, ammunition, and statistics of around 700 tanks spanning from World War I to the Cold War. Originally a hobby, I never expected it to involve aerospace engineering concepts—let alone reach half a million monthly views.The flagship feature of BlitzKit is its dynamic armor profile, a real-time rendering system that simulates how shells interact with armor from any given angle and position. This GLSL-based OpenGL renderer models shell penetration behavior in real-time, an incredibly complex problem requiring research into fluid dynamics and shell impact heuristics.

And I dabble with a bit of painting...

Unnamed Doublet2025

Bob Ross-style 30 minute paintings

Carina Nebula2023

Faithful recreation of the iconic James Webb image