Share this page :

The 2025 Edmond Brun Prize from the French Academy of Sciences awarded to Annafederica Urbano, professor at ISAE-SUPAERO

Publication Date

29 October 2025

Category

Research

Tag

DCAS

News

Prize

Science

Space

On October 28, 2025, the Academy of Sciences awarded the Edmond Brun Prize to Annafederica Urbano, professor of space launch vehicles at ISAE-SUPAERO. This biennial physics award recognizes her entire body of work in the field of space propulsion.

Recognition of scientific expertise

Annafederica Urbano carries out her research activities in the Advanced Space Concepts team (SaCLaB) of the Aerospace and Space Vehicle Design and Control Department (DCAS). An expert in space propulsion, she has developed a research area at ISAE-SUPAERO dedicated to access to space and propulsion.

Her work focuses in particular on the management of cryogenic propellants in weightlessness and their combustion in rocket engines.

She is developing advanced numerical methods for modelling new-generation rocket engines using methane as a fuel, and is interested in the use of artificial intelligence algorithms and data from numerical simulations for rocket engine injector and combustion chamber design models. It is also studying the behaviour of fluids stored at very low temperatures in launcher tanks.

A remarkable career

She obtained her PhD in 2012 from La Sapienza University in Rome on the cooling system of rocket engines and moved to France in 2013 to specialise in numerical combustion and two-phase flows. Her research at ISAE-SUPAERO is funded by the European Space Agency (ESA), the French National Centre for Space Studies (CNES) and the French National Research Agency (ANR).

Its activities are also supported by Ariane Group and Airbus Defense and Space through the SaCLaB sponsorship chair on advanced space concepts, for which it is responsible. Since 2022, Annafederica has been a member of the Space Propulsion Committee of the International Astronautical Federation. She also leads the ESA topical team on propellant management physics.

"From a personal point of view, this recognition is an immense source of satisfaction and fully rewards my commitment to research. On a professional level, this prize is a fantastic opportunity to highlight my work in the field of space propulsion, a strategic sector for the future of space exploration.

Annafederica Urbano Professor of space launchers

The Edmond Brun Prize

Created in 1984 by the Suzanne Brun Foundation of the Académie des Sciences, this prize is awarded alternately for work in the field of astronautics (2025) and fluid mechanics and thermics (2027).

The Académie des Sciences, founded in 1666, is responsible for scientific expertise, the transmission and dissemination of knowledge, and the international promotion of French science. It encourages, supports and protects the spirit of scientific research, thereby contributing to the progress of science and its applications.

This award is further proof of the excellence of the research carried out at ISAE-SUPAERO and its major contribution to the scientific and technological challenges of access to space.

Related Content

View Other Pages

Pages

Communication and Information Theory (ComiT) Scientific Group

The “Communication and Information Theory” (ComiT) scientific group is involved in the disciplines of digital communications, radar, and channel access techniques. Its fields of application include space systems, civil and military aviation, terrestrial cellular networks and the Internet of Things (IoT).

DEOS

Doctoral program

Doctoral student

Videos

Sylvestre Maurice presents the SUPERCAM / Martian Exploration educational kit

The ‘SUPERCAM - Martian Exploration’ educational kit project was initiated by five partners: ISAE-SUPAERO, the Toulouse Academy, CNRS, CNES and Cité de l'espace. Under the guidance and supervision of astrophysicist Sylvestre Maurice, first-year students at ISAE-SUPAERO developed this educational tool to raise awareness of space exploration in classrooms, from sixth form to final year. This kit is available to middle and high school teachers and can be adapted to offer educational lessons related to this theme.

Diversity program

Equal opportunities

Researcher

Pages

Our Rankings

For over 100 years, ISAE-SUPAERO has been committed to excellence. Forerunners and inventors, our alumni have been at the forefront of many technological innovations in the aerospace industry. True to our mission of training engineers of the highest scientific level who are innovative, committed and capable of mastering the complex challenges of tomorrow's world, we rank among the top engineering schools by many national and international criteria.

Institute

Prize

Ranking

Videos

Orbit Your Thesis: ISAE-SUPAERO in zero gravity with the AIM experiment

Artery In Microgravity (#AIM), the first student scientific experiment designed and developed in collaboration since 2018 by ISAE-SUPAERO and Polytechnique Turin, was launched on 23 November 2022 by Space X's Dragon cargo ship to the International Space Station (ISS)! Selected by the ESA as part of its ‘Orbit your thesis’ programme, AIM aims to study the behaviour of the heart and its arteries in space, in order to determine whether people with heart problems will one day be able to stay there.

Prize

Space

News

ISAE-SUPAERO contributes to the Artemis IV mission with the SPSS seismology instrument

NASA selects the JPL/CNES instrument suite for the Artemis IV mission, paving the way for unprecedented exploration of the Moon’s internal structure at the South Pole.

DEOS

Exploration

Space

News

CASTOR Chair: Liebherr-Aerospace Toulouse and ISAE-SUPAERO, a win-win partnership

The official signing of the industrial chair, called CASTOR, between Liebherr-Aerospace Toulouse and ISAE-SUPAERO took place on Tuesday 9 July at the institute's campus. This research partnership contributes to research into carbon-free aircraft.

Aeronautics

Chair

Company

Pages

Aerospace Summer Programme

Enjoy a unique experience at the heart of aeronautics and space technology with intensive courses, exclusive industrial visits, and an international immersion in Paris, Poitiers and Toulouse.

Aeronautics

Aerospace

Aerospace summer program

Testimonials

Testimony of Giuseppe Cataldo, alumnus of the 2010 Engineer ISAE-SUPAERO programme

Alumni

Space

Testimonial

News

DMSM's SA-I research team wins best poster award at 14th EASN conference

Several DMSM researchers received the best poster award at the 14ᵉ EASN (European Aeronautic Science Network) conference dedicated this year to the theme “Innovation in Aviation & Sace towards sustainability today & tomorrow”!

Conference

Prize

Researcher

News

Training new skills for the future of space: COMETES is launched!

Company

Job

Space

News

Mars hit by meteorites more often than previously thought

Two researchers from ISAE-SUPAERO contributed to new discoveries based on data from the seismometer sent to Mars during the InSight mission, one of whose main objectives was to measure seismic activity on the Red Planet.

Space

Pages

Applied Mathematics (MA) Scientific Group

The “Applied Mathematics” (MA) scientific group covers a wide range of topics: Stochastic processes (especially Markov processes), numerical optimization (especially multidisciplinary optimization) and parallel computing, stabilization, control and numerical solution of partial differential equations, and financial engineering.

DISC

Doctoral student

PhD

Videos

FRENCH SUPERCAM INSTRUMENT RECORDING THE SOUND OF INGENUITY'S 4th FLIGHT

Located 80 meters from the rover at the moment of take-off, the small helicopter rose to 5 meters above the ground before covering a distance of 133 meters before returning to land where it had taken off from. SuperCam's scientific microphone, developed by ISAE-SUPAERO, recorded the sound emitted by the rotation of the Martian drone's blades during its flight. This sound has a characteristic frequency of 84 Hz, equivalent to the low “E” of a piano or the bass voice of a human being. “This is a big surprise for the whole scientific team,” says Naomi Murdoch, a researcher at ISAE-SUPAERO who is studying the data from the microphone. "Tests carried out in a Martian atmosphere simulator to design this instrument, and our theories of sound propagation, indicated that the microphone would have great difficulty picking up the sounds of the helicopter. Indeed, Mars' thin atmosphere strongly attenuates sound transmission. We needed a bit of luck to record the helicopter from such a distance. We're very pleased to have succeeded in obtaining this recording, which is proving to be a goldmine for our understanding of the Martian atmosphere". Developed jointly by ISAE-SUPAERO and a consortium of CNRS laboratories and its partners, coordinated by CNES, SuperCam's microphone is derived from a consumer model adapted to withstand the Martian environment. It pursues 3 substantial scientific and technical objectives of the Mars 2020 mission: Study the sound associated with laser impacts on Martian rocks, to gain a better understanding of their mechanical properties. Improving our understanding of atmospheric phenomena (wind turbulence, dust eddies, wind interactions with the rover, and now with the helicopter). Understanding the sound signature of the rover's various movements (robotic arm and mast operations, driving on normal or uneven ground, pump monitoring, etc.). The microphone was first switched on a few hours after Perseverance landed. It recorded the first Martian sounds generated by turbulence in the atmosphere. It is used daily in conjunction with laser rock ablation for chemical analysis of Mars. ABOUT THE MARS 2020 MISSION: NASA is relying on Caltech's Jet Propulsion Laboratory for the development of the Mars 2020 mission. SuperCam was developed jointly by LANL (Los Alamos National Laboratory, USA) and a consortium of laboratories attached to the CNRS, French universities and research establishments. Several Spanish universities, led by the University of Valladolid, are also contributing to the instrument. CNES is responsible to NASA for the French contribution to SuperCam. The instrument is operated alternately from LANL and the French Operations Center for Science and Exploration (FOCSE) at CNES in Toulouse.

DEOS

Researcher

Space

Pages

Scientific and research integrity

ISAE-SUPAERO is one of the signatories of the National Charter of Ethics for Research Professions, adopted in January 2015 by the Conference of University Presidents (CPU) and all national research organizations, and incorporated into the Institute's internal regulations.

DAEP

DCAS

DEOS

Pages

Our Semester & Short Programmes

Discover ISAE-SUPAERO's academic excellence through our semester and short programmes, open to international students.

Aeronautics

Aerospace

Aerospace summer program

Pages

French Space Defence Academy

In order to drive and implement the ambitions set out in the Space Defence Strategy, the creation of a space defence expertise sector offering attractive programmes is a major challenge. In this regard, the French Space Defence Academy (ASD) offers programmes available within the Armed Forces Ministry and leverages synergies between them to provide a personalised approach to space programmes.

Defence

Education

Partner

News

Mars mission simulation: a scientific experiment, a human adventure

Like nine other ISAE-SUPAERO crews before them, seven students took part in a simulation of life on Mars in the Utah desert in the United States this winter.

Space

Student club

Videos

SUPERCAM Educational Kits / Martian Exploration: Students at the controls of the kits

Follow ISAE-SUPAERO students as they create educational kits, a digital educational tool designed to raise awareness of space exploration that can be used in classrooms from Year 7 to Year 13.

Diversity program

Equal opportunities

Space

Videos

ISAE-SUPAERO and Airbus Defence and Space organize an international training course on space systems

Twenty engineers from the Peruvian space agency CONIDA (Comisión Nacional de Investigación y Desarrollo Aeroespacial) attended a training course in Toulouse designed jointly by ISAE-SUPAERO and Airbus Defence and Space! The aim? To develop their skills in space systems and space missions. The entire program was placed under the academic responsibility of AnnaFederica Urbano, a lecturer and researcher in space systems and launchers at ISAE-SUPAERO. The engineers took part in a preliminary satellite design project. At the end of the five-week course, they all obtained the Certificate of Advanced Studies awarded by ISAE-SUPAERO. For ISAE-SUPAERO and Airbus Defence and Space, this experience opens up prospects for future collaborations in training courses of this type for international customers and industrial and institutional partners. For more information: https://www.isae-supaero.fr/fr/actualites/airbus-defence-and-space-et-l-isae-supaero-forment-des-membres-de-l-agence/

Programme

Space

Pages

News

Stay informed with all our news on education, research, and innovation.

News

Pages

DMSM at the Clément Ader Institute (ICA)

The Clément Ader Institute (UMR CNRS 5312) is the solid mechanics research laboratory for Toulouse and its region, under the aegis of the CNRS. It brings together research teams from four institutions and three ministries: the University of Toulouse III Paul Sabatier (National Education), INSA (National Education), ISAE-SUPAERO (Defense), and the École des Mines d'Albi (Industry). These institutions are located in three cities in Midi-Pyrénées: Toulouse, Albi, and Tarbes.

DMSM

Doctoral student

PhD

Pages

Integrated Image Sensors (CIMI) Scientific Group

The “Integrated Image Sensors” (CIMI) scientific group, develops and characterizes active-pixel image sensors (CMOS Image Sensors (CIS)) on silicon for visible and infrared radiation.

DEOS

Doctoral student

PhD

News

Listening to the Martian past: ISAE-SUPAERO at the heart of the ExoMars mission

ESA's ExoMars Rosalind Franklin mission to explore Mars will carry a unique instrument for recording sound and atmospheric data from the planet. The Institute has been selected by ESA and CNES for this major scientific collaboration.

DEOS

Researcher

Science

Events

2025 edition of "La nuit des chercheurs"

Meet ISAE-SUPAERO researchers at the Nuit des Chercheurs de Toulouse, on October 3 at 6pm at the Halles de la Cartoucherie, on the theme of “Intelligence(s)”!

Aerospace

Researcher

Science

News

OPEN SCIENCE ISAE-SUPAERO: ISAE-SUPAERO science in the open air!

ISAE-SUPAERO continues to contribute to the open science movement and has created a new open archive platform called OPEN SCIENCE ISAE-SUPAERO. It provides everyone with access to our theses, publications, scientific instruments and technological platforms.

Science

Scientific publication

Thesis

News

ISAE-SUPAERO announces new partnership with ESA Academy to support future Master in Aerospace Engineering students

Aerospace

Master in Aerospace Engineering

Scholarship

Pages

Our Short Modules

Derived from the Institute's Advanced Master programmes, our short modules are aimed at professionals wishing to develop specific skills in Aeronautics, Space, Project Management, Systems Engineering, or Digital Systems.

Advanced Master

Aeronautics

Aerospace

Pages

Complex Systems Engineering Department (DISC)

Within ISAE-SUPAERO, the Complex Systems Engineering Department (DISC) develops skills in mathematics and computer science for aeronautical and space engineering. In both teaching and research, it focuses on the models, methods, and tools needed to control the behavior and performance of complex systems. This complexity may be induced by the multi-physics or multi-scale nature of the systems studied, their dynamic behavior, or their distributed and communicating structure.

DISC

PhD

Researcher

Videos

Visiting professors at ISAE-SUPAERO: DAN SCHEERES

ISAE-SUPAERO est un établissement d'enseignement supérieur axé sur la recherche et l'innovation, qui s'engage à concilier excellence scientifique, visibilité académique et proximité avec les objectifs industriels. Ses activités de recherche ont contribué à faire de l'école un leader international non seulement en termes de programme d'ingénierie aérospatiale, mais aussi de programmes de troisième cycle, notamment ses masters (MSc) et ses programmes de doctorat en sciences de l'ingénierie. C'est pourquoi de nombreux acteurs internationaux clés de la recherche rendent visite à leurs homologues de l'ISAE-SUPAERO. Nous avons rencontré Dan Sheeres, professeur émérite de l'université du Colorado et titulaire de la chaire A. Richard Seebass au département des sciences de l'ingénierie aérospatiale Ann et H.J. Smead de l'université du Colorado à Boulder. Les recherches de Dan Scheeres couvrent des sujets allant de l'astrodynamique et de la navigation spatiale à la science planétaire et à la mécanique céleste, et il a publié de nombreux articles dans ces domaines. L'astéroïde 8887 a été baptisé « Scheeres » en reconnaissance de ses contributions à la compréhension scientifique de l'environnement dynamique des astéroïdes. Pendant son séjour à l'ISAE-SUPAERO, le professeur Scheeres et l'équipe des systèmes spatiaux pour les applications planétaires ont collaboré à l'analyse des données DART et au développement de concepts visant à étudier la structure interne des astéroïdes lors de futures missions spatiales. De plus, Dan Scheeres et l'ISAE-SUPAERO ont publié conjointement plusieurs articles dans « Nature » sur les astéroïdes et la mission DART.

DEOS

Researcher

Space

Testimonials

Testimony from Alexandre Bouraoui, engineering student by apprenticeship and IAC 2025 Award Winner

Final-year engineering apprentice, specializing in Industrialisation and Methods for Aeronautics and Space, Alexandre Bouraoui was recently honored at the 76th International Astronautical Congress (IAC 2025) in Sydney, where he won the prestigious Hermann Oberth Gold Medal in the Graduate category. We spoke with him about his award and his studies at ISAE-SUPAERO.

Aeronautics

Aerospace

Congress

News

Apply today for a program at ISAE-SUPAERO or ENAC - École Nationale de l'Aviation Civile!

The TSAAE application platform is now open: discover our world-renowned programs and apply online for the 2026 academic year before November 28 at midnight (French time)!

Advanced Master

Aeronautics

Aerospace

News

Meeting with Stéphanie Lizy-Destrez, elected member of the Air and Space Academy

At ISAE-SUPAERO, Stéphanie Lizy-Destrez heads SaCLaB, a research laboratory focusing on future space systems. A professor of space systems engineering, she has just been elected to the French Air and Space Academy.

Award

Space

Teacher researcher

Pages

Design and Operation of Aerospace Vehicles Department (DCAS)

At ISAE-SUPAERO, the Design and Operation of Aerospace Vehicles Department (DCAS) develops methods, simulation tools and experimental platforms for the design and operation of aerospace vehicles.

DCAS

PhD

Researcher

News

CASTOR Chair: ISAE-SUPAERO and Liebherr-Aerospace Toulouse celebrate 1 year of partnership

Aeronautics

Chair

Partnership

Pages

Languages, Arts, Cultures, and Societies Department (LACS)

At the Languages, Arts, Cultures, and Societies Department (LACS), we teach languages, interculturality, geopolitics, general culture, economics, sports, etc. Multidimensional skills that bring out knowledge, interpersonal skills, know-how and the ability to act.

LACS

PhD

Researcher

News

Meteorite impact reveals new insights into Mars

In September 2021, NASA's InSight mission recorded a meteorite impact. Analysis of the data by scientists has revolutionised our understanding of the internal structure of Mars and its evolution. Its mantle is not homogeneous, as previously assumed, but composed of a layer of molten silicates overlying the core. Press release from the IPGP - Institut de Physique du Globe de Paris: ‘The InSight mission reveals a molten layer at the base of the Martian mantle’.

DEOS

Space

News

Landing on Mars: a unique experience for seven students

Seven ISAE-SUPAERO students have been selected to join the Mars Desert Research Station (MDRS) in the United States. This replica of a Martian base will host the crew for four weeks, during which they will live in conditions similar to those found on Mars. The objective is to conduct experiments in situ in collaboration with research partners.

Space

Student club

Student life

News

3 questions to... Ervan Kassarian, S-Cube member from 2015 to 2017

Meet Ervan Kassarian, member of S-Cube - SUPAERO Space Section - ISAE-SUPAERO's experimental rocket club, from 2015 to 2017.

Space

Student club

Student life

Pages

Learning, Decision, Optimisation (ADO) Scientific Group

DISC

Doctoral student

PhD

Videos

The sound of a Martian dust devil captured by the SuperCam microphone on Perseverance

This video and audio show the results obtained by NASA's Perseverance Mars rover and its SuperCam microphone when recording the sounds of a Martian dust devil passing overhead on 27 September 2021, the 215th Martian day or sol of the mission. The dust devil was 25 metres wide and at least 118 metres high, moving at a speed of approximately 19 km/h. This is the first time such a recording has been made, as capturing a dust devil requires a bit of luck. Indeed, it flew over the rover at a time when all of Perseverance's sensors measuring wind, pressure, temperature and dust, plus the NavigationXXX (Navcam) camera, were running. This allowed scientists to combine sounds, images and atmospheric data. The unique combination of this data, along with atmospheric modelling, enabled researchers to estimate the dimensions of the dust devil. Scientists cannot accurately predict when these vortices will occur. Rovers such as Perseverance and Curiosity monitor them regularly. When scientists notice that they are more frequent at a certain time of day or approaching from a certain direction, they focus their monitoring to try to capture a dust devil with all the sensors at their disposal. > To better understand the video, it shows three rows of images: - the row

DEOS

Researcher

Space

News

MMX, Idefix® and cameras to understand Mars' moon

Studying the formation and origin of Mars' moons and bringing back samples: this is the extraordinary, ambitious international mission led by JAXA, in which ISAE-SUPAERO is participating alongside CNES.

DEOS

Researcher

Space

Videos

AeroMAPS: an ISAE-SUPAERO reference tool for exploring the possible futures of aviation

The AeroMAPS tool, developed by two ISAE-SUPAERO researchers, Scott Delbecq and Thomas Planès, can be used to assess the environmental impacts of air transport and the effectiveness or limitations of levers to decarbonize the sector! Initially designed for research and training purposes, the tool is now a multidisciplinary, open-source platform, accessible to experts as well as institutional, industrial and associative decision-makers. Its development has been integrated into the work of the Institute for Sustainable Aviation (ISA), an interdisciplinary research institute headed by Laurent Joly, whose aim is to address the issue of #aviation's ecological transition in all its complexity. By playing on the sector's transition levers, AeroMAPS users can define the scenarios whose impacts they wish to analyze. For example, the introduction of new aircraft types, the use of new fuels or the rate of growth in air traffic. AeroMAPS is the first air transport scenario exploration platform built on an open-source scientific methodology. It was initially designed and developed to enable researchers to explore air transport transition scenarios in detail. It was then rapidly integrated into training programs: first in the ISAE-SUPAERO engineering curriculum, then in continuing education programs. To facilitate use of the tool, a partnership was formed with Sopra Steria. This major tech player built the platform's new web interface to enhance the user experience and make it accessible to decision-makers. Research work recently took on a socio-economic dimension with a PhD prepared by Antoine Salgas, in partnership with TBS Education. Antoine Salgas has also created a traffic and emissions inventory in collaboration with the Dutch Delft University of Technology. These two aspects of his thesis gave rise to an AeroMAPS “satellite” tool, called AeroSCOPE, which enables analyses to be partitioned and regionalized. Today, the comprehensive, multi-disciplinary aspect of AeroMAPS is a decision-making aid for the entire #aeronautics ecosystem. Through its scientific expertise, ISAE-SUPAERO contributes to the debate and to the future of aviation.

DCAS

Decarbonization

Sustainability

Testimonials

Testimony from Axel Coulon, student (class of 2024) of the TAS ASTRO Advanced Master®

Advanced Master

Space

Testimonial

News

Corentin Lefloch, an engineering student, wins first prize at the USAIRE STUDENT AWARDS for his ideas on the future of aviation

Prize

Sustainability

Pages

Navigation, Radar, and Remote Sensing (NAVIR² eS) Scientific Group

The “Navigation, Radar and Remonte Sensing” (NAVIR² eS) scientific group is interested in the theoretical study of information sources and hybridization approaches for autonomous vehicle navigation applications.

DEOS

Doctoral student

PhD

News

The Jupiter system: a unique laboratory for a major scientific breakthrough

Nicolas André, teacher-researcher at ISAE-SUPAERO, co-authors a major discovery in Nature Communications.

DEOS

Exploration

Space

Pages

Our Specialised Studies Certificates

Our specialised studies certificates are designed for professionals. They enable you to develop skills and expertise in the fields of digital, aeronautics, space, project management, systems engineering, and artificial intelligence.

Advanced Master

Aeronautics

Aerospace

News

Researchers at ISAE-SUPAERO have been awarded the Newcomb Cleveland Prize for their article ‘Seismic detection of the Martian core’ published in the journal Science!

The Newcomb Cleveland Prize has just been awarded to our researchers for their article ‘Seismic detection of the Martian core’ published in the journal Science: they have made a major discovery about the size of the Martian core thanks to the InSight mission!

Prize

Pages

Design and Analysis of Critical Systems (CASC) Scientific Group

The “Design and Analysis of Critical Systems” (CASC) scientific group focuses on methods, processes and tools to support System Engineering and Systems Engineering.

DISC

Doctoral student

PhD

News

Valentin LELOUP, quantum and optical telecommunications systems engineer: the quantum and space tandem

Valentin Leloup, R&D engineer at Thales, combines two fields of expertise: quantum physics and space. He holds an engineering degree from ISAE-SUPAERO 2022 and a Master 2 in fundamental physics and applications.

Alumni

News

Research

Pages

Prior Experience Accreditation

The validation of prior experience is an individual right enshrined in the French Labor Code and Education Code. It enables candidates to obtain all - or part - of a professional certification (Diploma, Professional Title, Certificate of Professional Qualification), based on their professional, salaried or non-salaried and/or voluntary experience. This scheme can be used if the candidate is seeking personal recognition, or more generally to support a professional project that he or she wishes to put into practice.

Advanced Master

Aeronautics

Aerospace

Videos

ISAE-SUPAERO and Indian Institute of Space Science & Technology work on student space exploration projects

ISAE-SUPAERO received a visit from Professor Shine S R of the Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology (IIST) on December 7 and 8. ISAE-SUPAERO signed a co #cooperation agreement with the Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology in 2020 and this visit was a perfect opportunity to discuss the deepening of #training and #research collaborations between our two institutions. ISAE-SUPAERO and IIST have already been cooperating for 4 years within the framework of Franco-Indian collaborative academic projects, involving students from ISAE-SUPAERO and IIST on subjects related to space exploration missions and with the participation of experts from CNES, IRAP and the Indian space agency (ISRO)!

Space

Testimonials

Testimonial of Baptiste Sigal, Advanced Master® TAS ASTRO student (class) 2025

Advanced Master

Aerospace

Space

Videos

The Dart mission has hit its target: explanations from Dr Naomi Murdoch, planetary scientist at ISAE-SUPAERO

Researchers from ISAE-SUPAERO are participating in this first planetary defence mission. Dr. Naomi Murdoch, a researcher at ISAE-SUPAERO and scientific member of the #DART and #HERA missions, comments on the objectives of DART and those of the European HERA mission, which will arrive in the area in 2026 to characterise the crater left by DART and study the internal structure of the asteroid #Dimorphos!

DEOS

Researcher

Space

News

DART: ISAE-SUPAERO students publish new scientific findings in Nature Communications

Naomi Murdoch, a planetary science researcher at ISAE-SUPAERO, is actively involved in scientific analysis and data interpretation for NASA's DART mission.

DEOS

Space

News

Ariane 6: at ISAE-SUPAERO, researchers are already working on the future

The European Ariane 6 launcher incorporates major technological innovations such as the Vinci engine, capable of reigniting in space. At ISAE-SUPAERO, researchers are tackling the challenges posed by the rocket engines of tomorrow.

Space

Pages

Our Labels, Accreditations and Certifications

Our Institute is committed to a quality approach, covering both our programmes and our organisation. As a result, ISAE-SUPAERO has numerous labels, accreditations and certifications, demonstrating that our teaching and structures are adapted to the expectations of our future students and recruiters.

Accréditation

Aerospace

Certification

News

Researchers from ISAE-SUPAERO contributed to the success of the first images from ESA's Sentinel 2c observation satellite.

The Sentinel 2c Earth observation satellite, launched on 5 September as part of ESA's Copernicus mission, has delivered its first images. This success is partly due to the image sensor research team (CIMI) at ISAE-SUPAERO, which designed and oversaw the manufacture of the visible image sensors.

DEOS

Space

Videos

Discover... the ISAE-SUPAERO radio anechoic chamber

ISAE-SUPAERO – as a centre for training through research, research training and innovation – has a wide range of research equipment used within its six research departments. Today, we present the radio anechoic chamber! Drones and nanosatellites have many applications in the media, industry, agriculture and telecommunications sectors. These two types of platforms share the common constraint of having to carry complex systems in a small space. One of the key elements of on-board communication systems is the antenna, which must also be compact and lightweight. ISAE-SUPAERO, in collaboration with ENAC and ANYWAVES, is currently developing dielectric antennas made by 3D printing ceramics that meet the demanding criteria for integration on drones and nanosatellites. Thanks to the anechoic chamber available at ISAE-SUPAERO, researchers involved in the development of these original antennas can accurately characterise their radiation properties and thus validate the new technological solutions proposed.

DCAS

DEOS

Videos

Arnaud Prost, ESA reserve astronaut and ISAE-SUPAERO alumnus: “I was incredibly lucky to be here”

Fighter pilot and reserve astronaut with the European Space Agency (ESA), Arnaud Prost returned to his former school on Thursday March 28 to meet 200 secondary school students as part of the ISAE SUPAERO OSE program. It was an opportunity for him to recall the “great memories” of his student experience at ISAE-SUPAERO, his long-standing commitment to the student social outreach program and the “Aquanauts” scheme he set up with OSE l'ISAE-SUPAERO. And in passing, he offers a few words of advice to young people who might dream of following in his footsteps: “Don't let yourself be convinced that one of these paths isn't for you!” A 2017 graduate of ISAE-SUPAERO, Arnaud Prost is among those selected for the ESA Astronaut Class of 2022, alongside Sophie Adenot and Anthea Comellini, both also alumni of the school. They join other illustrious ESA astronauts who have already studied at the school: Thomas Pesquet, Luca Parmitano and Samantha Cristoforetti. Since 1970, ISAE-SUPAERO has contributed to the progress of the space age through its training, research and innovation activities. As the only organization in France to offer degree courses (engineering, master's, specialized master's, doctorate) covering all 22 space-related themes identified by CNES, the Institute offers a royal road to space careers. For Arnaud Prost's full profile: https://www.esa.int/Science_Exploration/Human_and_Robotic_Exploration/Astronauts/A

Alumni

Diversity program

Space

News

Unlocking the secrets of earthquakes with stratospheric balloons

A team of DEOS researchers has achieved a significant milestone in the use of infrasound data captured by stratospheric balloons to understand seismic signals. This breakthrough, published in Earth Planets Space*, opens up new perspectives for the study of earthquakes, both on Earth and on other planets.

DEOS

Researcher

Science

Pages

Research

At ISAE-SUPAERO, we conduct cutting-edge research in the service of innovation, technological sovereignty and the ecological transition of the aerospace sector, thereby affirming our role as a leading player in the scientific and industrial community.

DAEP

DCAS

DEOS

Videos

Sylvestre Maurice, astrophysicist and ISAE-SUPAERO alumnus

Awarded a prize by the Académie des Sciences in 2020, Sylvestre Maurice #astrophysicist at the Institut de Recherche en Astrophysique et Planétologie (IRAP) in Toulouse witnessed the landing of the #Perseverance rover on Mars on February 18, 2021. A historic moment for this enthusiast, who is also the scientific manager of the onboard SuperCam instrument. A 1990 graduate of ISAE-SUPAERO, Sylvestre Maurice tells us about his career.

Alumni

Researcher

Space

News

Airbus Defence and Space and ISAE-SUPAERO train members of the Peruvian space agency

Twenty engineers from the Peruvian space agency attended a training course in Toulouse, jointly designed by ISAE-SUPAERO and Airbus Defence and Space, to develop their skills in the field of space systems and space missions.

DCAS

Short internship

Space

Events

ISAE-SUPAERO will be at the Paris Air Show at Le Bourget from June 16 to 22, 2025

ISAE-SUPAERO will be present at the 55ᵉ Salon International de l'Aéronautique et de l'Espace at Le Bourget from June 16 to 22, 2025!

Aeronautics

Aerospace

Event

News

Campus au féminin: raising girls' awareness of scientific careers

Career

Diversity program

Equal opportunities

Pages

Advanced Space Concepts Laboratory - Airbus DS & ArianeGroup

Created in 2017 and renewed until 2027, this sponsorship partnership brings together Airbus Defense & Space and Ariane Group.

Aerospace

Chair

Company

Pages

Our Ecosystem

Our Institute operates at the heart of a leading academic, scientific, and technological ecosystem. Driven by the strength of the ISAE SUPAERO ENSICA Alumni Association network, supported by the ISAE-SUPAERO Foundation, and enriched by EUROSAE's expertise in executive education, our actions are part of a collective dynamic within the University of Toulouse and the ISAE Group. Committed to the major challenges of tomorrow, we are developing major initiatives within the Institute for Sustainable Aviation for sustainable aviation and the Defense Space Academy to meet the strategic challenges of space.

Aerospace

Partner

Partnership

News

3 questions to... Marie-Bertille Mosnier, S-Cube member from 2018 to 2022

Meet Marie-Bertille Mosnier, member of the S-Cube - SUPAERO Space Section - ISAE-SUPAERO's experimental rocket club, from 2018 to 2022.

Space

Student club

Student life

News

Henry DE PLINVAL, portrait of ISAE-SUPAERO's new Director of Research and Educational Resources

Henry de Plinval arrived on the ISAE-SUPAERO campus last August, and has taken up his new post as the school's Director of Research and Educational Resources. Portrait of Henry Plinval.

News

Portrait

Research

Videos

3 questions to Marie Delaroche, 3ᵉ year student and MDRS 293 crew commander

Since February 18, seven ISAE-SUPAERO engineering students have been living a simulated Martian life and carrying out experiments in collaboration with CNES and several research laboratories at The Mars Society's Mars Desert Research Station (MDRS) in UTAH (USA)! For the second time, the mission is led by a woman: Marie Delaroche, a passionate #spaceexplorer, who was already part of crew 275 departing in 2023. We asked her 3 questions to find out more about the challenges of this mission and her feelings as #flightcommander! Alongside her, three young women and three young men in their 2ᵉ year of #engineering studies have taken on the roles of astronomer, scientist, botanist, journalist, health worker and onboard engineer. They are all members of the Mars Club ISAE-SUPAERO, a student association for the popularization of science focused on the Red Planet and the missions dedicated to its exploration and study. They are currently experimenting with AI4U, the artificial intelligence that assists astronauts in their daily tasks (environmental measurements, voice recognition, emergency exercises). They are also conducting a science popularization experiment in collaboration with secondary school pupils. Inspired by the film The Martian, in which an astronaut grows potatoes on the Red Planet, the aim of this experiment is to compare plant growth in Martian soil with growth in terrestrial soil! To follow their adventure, click here: https://mars.bde-supaero.fr/

Space

Student club

Student life

News

"Futurs Proches" Festival in October 9: tickets are now available!

ISAE-SUPAERO's CSR department, in partnership with the Toulouse Community of Universities and Establishments (COMUE), invites you to join us on Thursday, October 9 for the 2ᵉ edition of the Festival Futurs Proches, Festival des Campus en transitions!

Corporate responsibility

Decarbonization

Event

News

BROMO: the joint venture project involving major European space industry players presented to ISAE-SUPAERO students

In December 2025, ISAE-SUPAERO welcomed major players in the European space industry (Airbus, Thales and Leonardo) for an exceptional conference on the BROMO project.

Conference

Space

Pages

Space Systems for Planetology and Applications (SSPA) Scientific Group

The “Space Systems for Planetology and Applications” (SSPA) scientific group focuses on one main area of research: The development of missions and associated technologies for geophysical exploration of the solar system.

DEOS

Doctoral student

PhD

News

CIME 2025: Where Science Meets Adventure to Push the Limits of Exploration

At ISAE-SUPAERO, the 2025 Interdisciplinary Congress on Extreme Worlds (CIME) gathers researchers and adventurers determined to push human limits in the planet’s most extreme environments.

Exploration

Innovation

Space

News

“My summer at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory”: Axel’s account, a student on the TAS Astro Advanced Master’s programme

Since May, Axel Coulon has been interning at NASA's famous JPL in Los Angeles. He is working on detecting helicopter landing sites on Mars. A student in the MS TAS Astro programme, he recounts this incredible space adventure that took him from his native Lorraine to California.

Internship

Programme

Space

News

ISAE-SUPAERO acquires an innovative new additive manufacturing equipment

ISAE-SUPAERO and the Institut Clément Ader (ICA) have just acquired a new Wire Arc Additive Manufacturing (WAAM) machine. This cutting-edge equipment opens up new prospects for research, teaching and innovation in the aeronautical field.

Aeronautics

News

Research

News

"Défi Aérospatial Étudiant 2025": Dassault Aviation Prize awarded to an ISAE-SUPAERO student team

As part of the integrated team project of the Institute's TAS ASTRO master's program, a team of student engineers developed the OSIRIS space shuttle, taking part in the Student Aerospace Challenge, an international competition. The team was awarded the Dassault Aviation Prize for the technical quality of its project.

Advanced Master

Aeronautics

Prize

Videos

Training courses: space studies

Find out more about our courses and #information in the field of space! The space dimension is strongly developed within our various training courses, whether in specific streams or dedicated programs. French and international students alike are showing a keen interest in our educational programs in Earth observation and the sciences of the Universe, as well as in the design and operation of space systems. Space research and industry employ many ISAE-SUPAERO engineers. Explore the world of space!

Programme

Space

Pages

Spring Semester in Aeronautical Engineering

Immerse yourself in the world of aerospace in Toulouse, the European aerospace capital, with a semester taught in English combining excellent courses, cultural immersion, and proximity to major industrial players.

Aeronautics

Aerospace

Aerospace summer program

News

Capturing the seismic activity of an asteroid: our Apophis rendezvous

DEOS

Research

Space

News

Mattéo Gouzien: itinerary of an award-winning engineer and PhD student committed to decarbonized aviation!

Mattéo Gouzien, a graduate of ISAE-SUPAERO and currently a doctoral student at IMS Bordeaux and ONERA, has been passionate about science from an early age. His remarkable academic and personal career has been guided by a relentless desire for knowledge and a quest for meaning. Winner of the SEE's André Blanc-Lapierre national prize and of the PEGASUS 2025 student conference, Mattéo talks about his rich career path: from preparatory school to his thesis on reducing aviation emissions.

Aeronautics

Ingénieur généraliste (MSc)

Portrait

Videos

A surprise from elsewhere... from the ISS...?

Hello earth? Thomas Pesquet speaking! Thomas Pesquet, French astronaut and famous ISAE-SUPAERO alumnus (class of 2001), is currently in the ISS as part of his new Alpha mission. He sent our students a personalized message from the European laboratory Columbus...

Alumni

Diversity program

Space

Events

Interdisciplinary Congress on Extreme Worlds - CIME

Do you work in or on extreme environments? Come and take part in the first edition of the Interdisciplinary Congress on Extreme Worlds (CIME)!

Congress

Research

Science

Pages

Aerodynamics, Energetics, and Propulsion Department (DAEP)

At ISAE SUPAERO, the Aerodynamics, Energetics, and Propulsion Department has a staff of 62, 30 research projects including 5 on a European scale, an exceptional fleet of test facilities for teaching and research purposes, and three research groups contributing to a growth strategy focused on 4 themes of current scientific and social-economic challenge, supported by 2 structuring projects: the SAA wind tunnel and the IC3 large-scale simulation code.

DAEP

PhD

Researcher

News

Two Master's students will participate in the world's most prestigious robotics conference

Krishna Murali and Elena Ponce Moreno are second-year students in the Master of Aerospace Engineering programme at ISAE-SUPAERO. They are conducting research on the Mavion, a drone developed at the Institute that takes off vertically and can then fly like an aeroplane.

Conference

DCAS

Master in Aerospace Engineering

News

Best Scientific Paper Award from the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics 2024 Multidisciplinary Design Optimization

Six researchers from ISAE-SUPAERO, EPFL and the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology have been awarded the AIAA Best Scientific Paper Award for their paper “DeepGeo: Deep Geometric Mapping for Automated and Effective Parameterization in Aerodynamic Shape Optimization”.

Prize

Researcher

Scientific publication

News

ISAE-SUPAERO and Spaceflight Institute join forces to train tomorrow's manned flight experts

On July 29, 2025, ISAE-SUPAERO and the Spaceflight Institute signed a partnership agreement for the joint creation of a “Certificate of Advanced Studies in Human Spaceflight”. This new semester-long program aims to train a new generation of space professionals, combining academic excellence with operational expertise.

Certificates of advanced studies

Education

Space

Pages

Institute for Sustainable Aviation

Created in 2021 on the initiative of internationally renowned academic institutions with longstanding academic expertise in aeronautics and air transport, the ISA is an institute dedicated to the challenges of aviation's transition to sustainability.

Aeronautics

Aviation

Decarbonization

Pages

Theory, Modelling, and Systems Engineering (ThéMIS) Scientific Group

The “Theory, Modeling and Systems Engineering” (ThéMIS) scientific group is dedicated to the study and development of advanced methods for the design, modeling and validation of complex systems.

DISC

Doctoral student

PhD

News

Mission Insight: the contribution of researchers from ISAE-SUPAERO

The InSight lander deployed by NASA recorded two earthquakes that occurred on Mars in 2021, providing scientists with exceptional data, the first direct observations ever made of a planet's core.

DEOS

Space

Events

"Les Entretiens de Toulouse - Training through debate”: April 9 & 10, 2025 on the ISAE-SUPAERO campus

"Les Entretiens de Toulouse" has become a must-attend event for the aerospace industry. A forum for the exchange and transmission of skills, this training through debate provides an opening onto subjects with high industrial stakes. The 2025 edition of the Entretiens de Toulouse will take place on April 9 & 10, 2025, in person, at ISAE-SUPAERO!

Aeronautics

Artificial intelligence

Defence

Pages

Job offers

Aeronautics

Aerospace

Pages

Lasbordes Air Operations Center (COAL)

The Department of Design and Operation of Aeronautical and Space Vehicles (DCAS) is part of the Lasbordes Air Operations Center (COAL), located on an airfield a few kilometers from the ISAE-SUPAERO campus. As part of its aeronautical training and research activities, COAL operates a fleet of 8 light aircraft.

DCAS

Doctoral student

PhD

News

The cockpits of the future at the heart of research at ISAE-SUPAERO

Researchers at ISAE-SUPAERO have been studying cognitive airborne systems, the virtual assistants that will help pilots in the cockpits of the future, for many years.

Aeronautics

DCAS

News

SILOE, an experimental drop tower project selected by ESA and an ESPACE grant for Alexia Duchêne

The SILOE experimental drop tower project aims to study the cohesion of planetary surfaces. This student project is supported by ESA as part of its European ‘Academy Experiments’ program. Alexia Duchêne, SILOE project leader, has been awarded a scholarship of excellence from the Fondation des Ailes de France.

DEOS

Space

Pages

Semester Research Projects

Take your studies to the next level by participating in a semester-long research project at ISAE-SUPAERO: immerse yourself in cutting-edge laboratories alongside international experts and contribute to advances in aeronautics and space technology.

Aeronautics

Aerospace

Aerospace summer program

News

Seven ISAE-SUPAERO students set out to conquer Mars in the Utah desert

For four weeks, seven engineering students will experience a simulation of life on Mars in the Utah desert in the United States. From 18th February to 16th March, they will conduct experiments in collaboration with CNES and several research laboratories at the Mars Desert Research Station (MDRS).

Space

Student club

Pages

Innovating in a World of Transition - Safran

The challenges facing the aerospace industry (energy transition, New Space, digitalization) are driving a growing need for professionals with the ability to innovate. Against this backdrop, Safran and ISAE-SUPAERO are creating the Innovating in a World in Transition Chair.

Aeronautics

Aerospace

Chair

News

Les Assises du New Space: update of the “Ambition NewSpace 2027” report

In 2022, the Assises du NewSpace collective - a group of players representing the French space industry - published the report “Ambition NewSpace 2027”. Today, the collective is launching another major national consultation to update this report and shape the future of French space!

Conference

Round table

Space

News

Aviation and Climate: an assessment of transition scenarios for sustainable aviation compatible with the Paris Agreement

In 2021, ISAE-SUPAERO researchers Scott Delbecq, Jérôme Fontane, Nicolas Gourdain, Florian Simatos and Thomas Planès published the ‘Aviation and Climate’ report, summarising international scientific publications in order to provide the scientific information needed to understand the challenges of decarbonising air transport.

Aeronautics

DCAS

Decarbonization

News

ISAE-SUPAERO's researchers are working on establishing a sustainable human presence on the Moon.

While last year marked the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 17 mission, the last manned trip to the Moon, the development of ‘New Space’ has revived the space sector's interest in lunar exploration.

DCAS

Space

Pages

Photonics Antenna Microwave PlasmaA (PAMPA) Scientific Group

The “Photonics Antenna Microwave PlasmaA” (PAMPA) scientific group is interested in electromagnetism in the fields of microwaves and photonics, as well as wave-plasma interactions.

DEOS

Doctoral student

PhD

News

Noémie Martin, E2018 engineer, receives €1 million prize from the Jean-Jacques and Félicia Lopez-Loreta Foundation for her FASTE project

Noémie Martin, an ISAE-SUPAERO (ENSICA) engineer who graduated in 2018, was awarded a prize by the Lopez-Loreta Foundation in November 2024 for her project FASTE: Fabrication Additive des Structures performantes multi maTériaux pour utilisation en Environnement sévère.

Diversity program

Prize

Science

News

A National Prize for Open Science Awarded to Paul Saves

On December 1, 2025, at Université Paris-Saclay, our PhD candidate Paul Saves was honored at the Open Science Thesis Award Ceremony – 2025 edition, organized by the French Ministry of Higher Education, Research and Space (MESRI).

Prize

Videos

Discover... ISAE-SUPAERO's P68

ISAE-SUPAERO - as a center for training through #research, research training and innovation - has a wealth of research equipment used within its 6 research departments. Today, we present the #P68! Since 2018, ISAE-SUPAERO's flight operations center has been equipped with a twin-engine Vulcanair P68 Observer 2 to teach ISAE-SUPAERO students flight mechanics, flight test techniques and how to carry out research projects. The aircraft is equipped with a telemetry system, enabling flight parameters to be monitored in real time from the campus classrooms. A versatile aircraft with a large payload, it can carry a variety of sensors via a hatch under the fuselage. It also features unique instrumentation for research activities and sensors for pilot monitoring (remote eye trackers, scene cameras, etc.) synchronized with flight parameters. It enables us to estimate pilots' attentional and cognitive states (fatigue, distraction, inattention, engagement, etc.) in real time during flight.

DCAS

News

AeroMAPS: the go-to tool for exploring the possible futures of aviation

The AeroMAPS tool, developed by researchers at ISAE-SUPAERO, makes it possible to assess the environmental impacts of air transport and the effectiveness or limitations of levers for decarbonising the sector.

Aeronautics

DCAS

Decarbonization

News

ICCAS 2026, jointly organized by ISAE-SUPAERO, the ISAE-SUPAERO Foundation, and Dassault Aviation, will take place on June 11-12, 2026.

Following the success of the 2022 and 2024 editions, we are delighted to announce 𝐈𝐂𝐂𝐀𝐒 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟔, organized jointly by ISAE-SUPAERO, the ISAE-SUPAERO Foundation, and Dassault Aviation!

Aeronautics

Artificial intelligence

Aviation

News

ISAE-SUPAERO back on mission with Hera

The Hera mission, an international planetary defence mission, is on its way to study the asteroid Dimorphos, which will be struck by DART in 2022. ISAE-SUPAERO is actively collaborating in this international planetary defence programme through the research work of Naomi Murdoch and the SSPA team.

DEOS

Space

News

An exceptional scholarship for an innovative project

Naomi Murdoch, a researcher in physics and planetology at ISAE-SUPAERO, has just been awarded the prestigious Consolidator Grant from the European Research Council (ERC) for her planetary body study project called GRAVITE. This ambitious scientific project aims to design a variable gravity machine that will enable the simulation and study of extraterrestrial soils.

DEOS

Scholarship

Space

Pages

Connected Systems (SysCo) Scientific Group

The scientific dynamic of the “Connected Systems” (SysCo) scientific group focuses primarily on network-related issues in aerospace applications, i.e. space communications, embedded networks and certain types of connected systems.

DISC

Doctoral student

PhD

Testimonials

Testimony of Juan-Carlos DOLADO-PEREZ, alumni of the 2008 Master's degree in Aerospace Engineering

Alumni

Space

Testimonial

Pages

Our Newsroom

In our Newsroom, you can access all the information you need to find out more about our brand, our logos, our rankings, our news, our carousels of videos and testimonials, read our press releases and view our main communication media (brochures).

Networks

News

Press

Videos

Sophie Adenot: from ISAE-SUPAERO to space

Meet Sophie Adenot, astronaut at the European Space Agency (ESA) and ISAE-SUPAERO alumna, who answers three questions! 🚀

Alumni

Diversity program

Space

News

3 questions to... Loïc Jecker, S-Cube member from 2011 to 2013

Meet Loïc Jecker, member of S-Cube - SUPAERO Space Section - ISAE-SUPAERO's experimental rocket club, from 2011 to 2013.

Space

Student club

Student life

News

The first Franco-Korean workshop dedicated to the challenges of cryogenic hydrogen

The global aviation industry is facing an urgent challenge: significantly reducing its greenhouse gas emissions. Hydrogen, thanks to its unique properties and considerable energy potential, appears to be a promising solution and could play a key role in the aviation sector's energy transition.

Aeronautics

Decarbonization

News

Pages

An Illustrated History of our School

Hisis will enable you to follow the many transformations that the ISAE-SUPAERO engineering school has undergone. ISAE-SUPAERO was created in October 2007 from the merger of two engineering schools in Toulouse, the École Nationale Supérieure d'Ingénieurs de Constructions Aéronautiques (ENSICA) and the École Nationale Supérieure de l'Aéronautique et de l'Espace (SUPAERO), both under the supervision of the French Ministry of Defence.

Aerospace

History

Institute

News

ISAE-SUPAERO will be at the Paris Air Show from June 16 to 22, 2025!

Aeronautics

Event

Fair

Events

French-Korean workshop: “Cryogenic hydrogen for aviation”.

Event

Research

Science

Events

Les Assises du New Space 2025: discussions and debates on NewSpace!

The 2025 edition of the Assises du New Space will be held this year on July 8-9, 2025 at the Centre des congrès de la Villette - Cité des sciences et de l'industrie in Paris. Aimed at all players in the French space ecosystem, this event is a unique opportunity to exchange ideas and debate around NewSpace, and to discover the latest technological innovations and project financing opportunities. Registration is now open!

Conference

Event

Round table

Testimonials

Testimony from Stéphanie Lizy-Destrez, elected member of the Air and Space Academy

DCAS

Space

Teacher researcher

News

Hera probe captures exceptional images of Mars and its moon Deimos

DEOS

Researcher

Science

Videos

Perseverance collects first Martian sounds: explanation by Dr. Naomi Murdoch & Dr. Alexander Stott

Dr Naomi Murdoch, researcher in space instrumentation and planetary science, and Dr Alexander Stott, post-doctoral fellow, tell us more about the physical characteristics of Mars' atmosphere, in particular the speed of sound and its attenuation. These analyses were published in Nature on April 1, 2022 by an international team led by a teacher-researcher from Toulouse III - Paul Sabatier University, and including scientists from CNRS and ISAE-SUPAERO.

DEOS

Researcher

Space

News

ISAE-SUPAERO hosts ICCAS, an international conference on cognitive airborne systems

• The ICCAS international conference will be held on 16 and 17 May on the ISAE-SUPAERO campus. • It brings together world-renowned scientists working on cognitive airborne systems, the virtual assistants that will help pilots in the cockpits of the future. • The Institute has been involved in the development of these research topics for many years.

Conference

DCAS

Pages

Support for the Development of the ISAE Group - GIFAS

GIFAS (Groupement des Industries Françaises Aéronautiques et Spatiales - French Aerospace Industries Group) supports the development of high-level academic and professional education in aerospace systems at the 6 Grandes Écoles that make up the ISAE Group (ISAE-ENSMA, ISAE-SUPMECA, ESTACA, Ecole de l'Air et de l'Espace, ENAC, ISAE-SUPAERO).

Aeronautics

Aerospace

Chair

Interdisciplinary Congress on Extreme Worlds – CIME

Publication Date

22 September 2025

Category

Tag

Congress

Research

Science

Do you work in or on extreme environments? Come and take part in the first edition of the Interdisciplinary Congress on Extreme Worlds (CIME)!

📅 On 𝟏𝟕 𝐨𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐛𝐫𝐞 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟓 at ISAE-SUPAERO, the CIME congress will bring together researchers, professionals, teachers, and players in the field around the same passion: exploring the most extreme environments on our planet… and beyond.

On the programme for this exceptional day, six inspiring talks given by personalities involved in the field, in polar, underwater, desert or space environments:

🔹Christian Clot: explorer, co-founder and CEO of the Human Adpatation Institute
Stephen Alamo: doctor specializing in space medicine, ESA
🔹Gaëlle Giesen, Ph.D.: doctor of astrophysics, space systems engineer, diver, and skydiver
🔹Alban Michon: polar explorer, guide and diver, founder of Biodusséus and the School of Explorers
🔹Jessica Studer: doctor, researcher for MEDES (CNES) and ESA at Concordia Station (Antarctica)
🔹Geraldine Parodi: scuba diver

These speakers will share their experiences, set out the human, technical and organizational challenges specific to their respective contexts, and present avenues for research and innovation to fuel thinking and inspire new projects.

The CIME conference aims to :

> Lay the foundations for a national network of researchers, engineers, operators, doctors and other professionals working in extreme environments,
> Bring together scientific and operational expertise,
> Encourage collaboration between laboratories, institutions and those working in the field.

Organizing committee: Vsevolod Peysakhovich – Lecturer and researcher in human factors at ISAE-SUPAERO, Safouane HAMDI – Endocrinologist specializing in reproduction, senior lecturer at Toulouse University Hospital, Maëlis Lefebvre – Post-doctoral researcher in human factors at ISAE-SUPAERO.

A conference in partnership with UNIVERSEH European University – MEDES – Institute for Space Medicine and Physiology – CNES (SpaceShip).

Information and programme

2025 edition of “La nuit des chercheurs”

Publication Date

15 September 2025

Category

Tag

Aerospace

Researcher

Science

Meet ISAE-SUPAERO researchers at the Nuit des Chercheurs de Toulouse, on October 3 at 6pm at the Halles de la Cartoucherie, on the theme of “Intelligence(s)”!

From 6pm to midnight, dive into science!

More than 200 passionate scientists slip away from their labs for an evening to share their discoveries with young and old in the festive, friendly atmosphere of the Halles de la Cartoucherie and its La Cabane theatre.

🔹 Le Grand labo – Experiments, experiments, games
🔹 Speed-searching – A researcher and you: 10 minutes of one-to-one discussion
🔹Dans le noir – Plunge into the dark, your ears won’t believe their eyes!
🔹 Les échappées inattendues du CNRS – Mini conferences
🔹 Bookmakers – Comics, graphic books, stories and tales
🔹Escape game “Research under stress
🔹 Le Bouche-à-oreille – A researcher explains his or her work in 1.30 minutes
🔹 SonIA – Sound and AI show (dance, theatre, video, sound and robotics)
🔹Liquid Light Show on the façades of the Halles de la Cartoucherie

Many researchers and doctoral students from ISAE-SUPAERO will be present ✨

– Nicolas André (teacher-researcher at DEOS),
– Valentin Badefort-Baril (PhD student at DEOS),
– Anaïs Bain (PhD student at DEOS),
– Louison Bocquet-Nouaille (PhD student at DISC),
– Caroline Chanel (teacher-researcher at DCAS),
– Olfa d’Angelo (Post-doctoral student at DEOS),
– Julien Doche (PhD student at DCAS),
– Pierre Giudicelli-Vernet (PhD student at DEOS),
– Yves Gourinat (Lecturer at the DMSM, based in Albi),
– Alexandre Neyret (PhD student at DEOS),
– Jois Shreyank (PhD student at DEOS),
– Christine Tasson (teacher-researcher at DISC),
– Damien Vivet (researcher at DEOS), Maximilian Von Arnim (PhD student at DEOS).

Full programme

French-Korean workshop: “Cryogenic hydrogen for aviation”.

Publication Date

04 September 2025

Category

Tag

Event

Research

Science

Workshop

from 13 to 14 October 2025
in the ISAE-SUPAERO thesis room

“Hydrogen is a breakthrough technology for decarbonizing aviation. Given its high energy content and its ability to propel aircraft without emitting carbon, it represents a key avenue that ISAE-SUPAERO has been exploring for several years.

Given South Korea’s technological lead in this field, the organization of a Franco-Korean workshop on hydrogen for aeronautics represents an opportunity to share best practice and the latest research into the use of hydrogen on board, particularly cryogenic hydrogen”.

Rather than being a forum for discussing the future of air transport, this scientific workshop aims to tackle the technological challenges associated with hydrogen propulsion, by giving the floor to those who are actually doing it, rather than those who are putting forward hypotheses or definitive opinions without any experimental proof.

This is why Korean speakers from the best industrial and research centres, as well as French speakers from the academic and industrial worlds, will come together to share their discoveries.

For ISAE-SUPAERO, committed to training our future engineers in environmentally-friendly techniques, this workshop is a springboard for strengthening our scientific exchanges with Korea and federating the French ecosystem committed to the decarbonization of aviation.

Mattéo Gouzien: itinerary of an award-winning engineer and PhD student committed to decarbonized aviation!

Publication Date

28 July 2025

Category

Alumni

Tag

Aeronautics

Ingénieur généraliste (MSc)

Portrait

Prize

Science

Testimonial

Passionate about science since childhood

Mattéo, who grew up in Lorient, where his passion for science was born: ” I ‘ ve had a passion for science ever since I was a little boy,” he confides. Choosing to do a BAC SSI was ” an obvious choice and an opportunity to take my passion a little further “. His academic career then took another turn, when he was admitted to the Ginette preparatory school (Lycée Sainte-Geneviève), following an application he had made ” without really believing in it “, he admits.

These two years of preparatory classes were a real challenge for him: “I was faced with a difficulty that was quite unprecedented for me. But, buoyed by the spirit of the class and the mutual support between students, I was able to enjoy those years”.

“ The discovery of new disciplines, approached in a very rigorous way, was an essential part of those years “, he adds. He remembers being amazed to unravel the equations explaining how a microwave works, or to discover the Venturi effect.

ISAE-SUPAERO: living your passion

At the end of his two years of preparatory classes and fascinated by the world of aerospace, Mattéo chose ISAE-SUPAERO, attracted by its technical side, its team spirit and its sporting activities (surfing, mountaineering, parachuting): “his preferred choice”, he stresses.

” At ISAE-SUPAERO, my passion for science only grew,” he says. ” I didn’t know where to turn, between fluid mechanics, signal processing, structural dynamics and applied maths. It was there that I finally understood what all those obscure prep school theorems were for – it was a revelation for me.

A gap year rich in knowledge and adventure

In the middle of his second year on the general engineering course at ISAE-SUPAERO, Mattéo began his gap year in two parts, “after three years with his head in the handlebars, to find out in practical terms how the theoretical knowledge he had acquired was being applied “.

He began with a 6-month placement at DGA TA in the Fleet Monitoring department. ” The idea of my placement was to use artificial intelligence algorithms to predict the damage suffered by Mirages 2000 during different flight sequences, and to understand how this damage affected the aircraft’s lifespan “.

Mattéo then went on an academic exchange to Toronto, where he was able to explore new scientific subjects such as robotics, structural dynamics in civil engineering and artificial intelligence, as well as discovering the country. ” I was also able to venture out, during the roaring of the caribou, into vast landscapes that were completely untouched by man ,” he explains.

A trip to South America before returning... by sailboat!

For the remaining six months of his gap year, Mattéo chose to go travelling in South America: ” I think that during these years, travelling, discovering and meeting new people are excellent ways of growing internally, taking a step back and, above all, confronting our way of thinking with reality.

It was an opportunity for him to let himself be carried along by the unexpected, between trekking at high altitude, cycling in the Andes and surfing on the Pacific coast, mostly on his own, “at first with only a rudimentary knowledge of Spanish “.

When it came time to return to France, and considering that his carbon footprint had already been greatly exceeded for his first Atlantic crossing, Mattéo chose to return by sailboat to Lorient.

” I’ve managed to find a sailboat so that I can return to port with three other sailors, heading for Lorient. Here I am, on a voyage lasting more than a month, buffeted by the waves, cut off from the world, in the middle of the ocean“.

It was a hugely formative experience for him, leading him to ” question the notions of progress and the race for profit, and to criticise our Western lifestyle where everything moves at 100 km/h!

A natural choice in^3rd year: “simulations of complex systems” and “signals and systems”.

Back at ISAE-SUPAERO for his 3rdᵉ year, it was natural for Mattéo to choose the “signals and systems” field of expertise and the “simulations of complex systems” field of application.

” It was a natural choice for me. Digital simulation and automatic control are at the crossroads of most of the engineering fields I’m passionate about, ” confides Mattéo.

An award-winning end-of-studies internship

His end-of-studies internship, carried out between ONERA and ISAE-SUPAERO, was a great success.

Mattéo won the regional and then the national André Blanc-Lapierre prize from the SEE for his work on data-based structured identification of the 2D Maxwell equations as a port-Hamiltonian system. His internship also enabled him to take part in the PEGASUS student conference, where he came second. This work also led to participation in an international conference and the publication of a journal article in the COMPEL journal (‘Port-Hamiltonian reduced order modelling of the 2D Maxwell equations’).

Under the supervision of Charles Poussot-Vassal (ONERA) and Denis Matignon (ISAE-SUPAERO), this internship enabled him to discover two fascinating theories: Hamiltonian port systems and the Loewner framework, applied to the 2D Maxwell equations.

” In aerospace engineering, solving Maxwell’s equations is essential for the design and analysis of numerous systems such as antennas, radars and the design of stealth technologies. However, these equations often result in very large models. The calculation time required to solve these systems can be very long (sometimes up to several months of simulation). These models are therefore unusable for iterative design processes.

Model reduction offers a solution for simplifying their complexity while retaining their critical characteristics. To illustrate the capabilities of the method used, the figure shows a snapshot of the results of the time simulations (of the magnetic field H and the electric field E) of the full-order model (FOM) compared with the reduced model, which is 13 times smaller and 100 times faster,” explains Mattéo.

Mattéo was then selected by ISAE-SUPAERO to take part in the PEGASUS student conference, held this year in Prague. This annual event brings together students from Europe’s leading aerospace schools. It was an opportunity for him to meet many students from all over Europe, giving rise to extremely enriching exchanges, both on a scientific and social level.

The conference also included a student competition, based on the evaluation of submitted scientific papers and oral presentations.

Mattéo came second, again in recognition of the work he had carried out during his final year internship.

The award was doubly well deserved, as Mattéo decided to make the return journey from Prague by bike, just as he did when he crossed the Atlantic in a sailing boat!

” Always with a view to reducing my carbon footprint, and given the price of the outward train ticket, I decided to make the return journey by bike. I’d also like to thank the Alumni Association for the grant they awarded me to finance the outward journey.

A thesis to reduce emissions from the aviation sector

A recent graduate of ISAE-SUPAERO, Mattéo has started a thesis between IMS in Bordeaux and ONERA in Toulouse on fault-tolerant active control of the flutter phenomenon.

” The aim is to design commercial aircraft with high aspect ratios in order to reduce fuel consumption and hence carbon emissions in the aviation sector “, he explains.

Mattéo sees this thesis as a new personal challenge, a way of “questioning the differences in expectations and opinions that sometimes arise between the worlds of research and industry”.

Our Ecosystem

Publication Date

13 May 2025

Category

Tag

Aerospace

Partner

Partnership

Science

DCAS

Lasbordes Air Operations Center (COAL)

Publication Date

06 May 2025

Category

Tag

DCAS

Doctoral student

PhD

Post-doctorate

Researcher

Science

Scientific publication

Space

Teacher researcher

Thesis

The ISAE-SUPAERO flight operations center at Lasbordes airfield has a fleet of 8 light aircraft for teaching and research in the fields of flight mechanics and neuroergonomics.

The fleet is comprised of:

4 Aquila two-seater single-engine aircraft dedicated to initial flight instruction
3 single-engine, four-seater DR400s dedicated to initial flight instruction, training ISAE-SUPAERO students, and research activities
1 twin-engine Vulcanair P68 Observer 2, currently being instrumented for student training and research activities

This aircraft is equipped with a telemetry system, enabling a flight to be followed in real time from the institute’s classrooms. It also features sensors capable of recording the pilot’s eye activity (eye trackers), brain activity, and more. Versatile, with a large payload capacity, it can also be fitted with optical sensors via a hatch under the fuselage.

The COAL maintenance unit is responsible for the day-to-day operation of the aircraft, fleet maintenance, and regulatory monitoring of airworthiness.

It also prepares and examines aircraft modification files required for research and training flights.

COAL's Activities

Pilot training on light aircraft, open to engineering cycle and master’s students.
Practical work in flight mechanics and initiation to flight test techniques for students and continuing education.
Research flights in the field of human factors and any other area requiring in-flight sensors.

Vélis électro

Robin DR 400

Neuroergonomics activity

Stéphane Juaneda, pilot & instructor

Neuroergonomics activity

Cockpit

Stéphane Juaneda & Etienne Perrin

Job Offers

Check out the vacancies for scientific staff in the research department

Thesis Offers

Check out the research department's thesis and post-doctorate vacancies

Internship Opportunities

Check out the Research Department's internship opportunities!

DCAS

Design and Operation of Aerospace Vehicles Department (DCAS)

Publication Date

06 May 2025

Category

Tag

DCAS

PhD

Researcher

Science

Scientific publication

Teacher researcher

At ISAE-SUPAERO, the Design and Operation of Aerospace Vehicles Department (DCAS) develops methods, simulation tools and experimental platforms for the design and operation of aerospace vehicles.

Our Research Department

The Department of Aerospace Vehicle Design and Control (DCAS) develops training and research activities to meet the scientific challenges of tomorrow’s air transportation and future space systems. It conducts cutting-edge research and develops advanced technologies, ranging from human-machine interactions to the integrated multidisciplinary design of aircraft or advanced space concepts, via system control and control laws.

Our research incorporates environmental and socio-economic aspects, such as reducing environmental impacts (fuel consumption, noise, emissions), optimising design cycle times and operational costs, increasing the safety of aerospace systems, and improving the efficiency of man-machine systems.

Permanent staff

Doctoral students, post-doctoral students and engineers

Aircraft

Sponsorship chairs

At DCAS, we design the aerospace systems of the future, integrating performance, sustainability and safety. Our research combines advanced technologies, systems intelligence and environmental responsibility to reinvent air and space transport.

Valérie Budinger Head of Department

Our Research Activities

DCAS is structured into 4 scientific groups:

Decision and Control (DC): Dynamic and operational behaviour models, synthesis of control laws and sequential decision algorithms.
Aeronautical Vehicle Design and Flight Dynamics (CADV ): Aircraft design, flight dynamics, aircraft operation and certification, sustainable air transportation
Space Systems Design (CSS): Orbital systems, mission analysis, space systems design and optimisation, space exploration and access to space
Humans, Systems and Interactions (HSI ): Monitoring and optimisation of human performance in contexts of interaction with natural or technological environments

They work collaboratively on the following 3 interdisciplinary themes:

The aims of this theme are to carry out research into the identification and control of degraded flight situations:

Aircraft/drone: Critical flight situations (e.g. departure from flight envelope, inconsistency of complex parameters/pannes, sub-system failures)
Crew/operator: Borderline cognitive states (e.g. attentional tunnelling, perseveration, fatigue)
Guaranteeing control performance that is independent of uncertainties and parametric variations
Defining 'intelligent' control and supervision processes to optimise flight safety
Developing an adaptive control and driving system that is robust to failures

With the help of the many resources made available by the department - DCAS simulators, flying platforms (TB20, etc.), Neuroergo-lab, indoor aviary - this theme enables DCAS to innovate in the field of human factors (with the development of adaptive cockpits) and automation/decision: Fail-safe laws, self-reconfigurable control system for sub-system failures.

Through various fields such as flight mechanics, aircraft design (multiphysics and multi-domain modelling), and automatic control, this theme aims to define methods and algorithms for optimal integrated design, aerodynamic models, structure, propulsion, and environmental models; and study the strong and weak couplings between models.

The resources that are being developed, such as the Multidisciplinary Design Analysis and Optimisation (MDAO) design workshop and the flight demonstrator, are enabling innovation, with applications for the design of the BWB flying wing, distributed propulsion, the design of long-length aircraft, the design of sub-systems (electric de-icing systems, demonstrators), and implementation of a complete Multi-domain Modelling, Simulation, and Analysis workshop under the OpenMDAO framework.

The management of space debris and autonomous missions to asteroids are all issues targeted by this theme, which aims to study future concepts that are typically possible within a timeframe of 15 years or more, such as in-orbit servicing for telecommunications satellites, space traffic management, the architecture of manned bases on the surface of the Moon or Mars, etc.

Through systems engineering and automation, with the help of space systems design software suites integrating the tools already available at DCAS, this theme addresses the following points: Adaptation and/or development of design methods, with particular emphasis on the concept of interface, architecture of large structures for manned exploration missions, formalization of trajectories and attitude control from the launch phases to the rendezvous phases in LEO, GEO and LP orbits.

DCAS is involved in national and European research projects and works with a large number of industrial partners (major groups, SMEs, startups).

Decision and Control Scientific Group - DC

Research Themes

Theme 1: Methods and tools for modelling and controlling aeronautical and space systems and vehicles
- Synthesis of robust control laws for driving vehicles in severe conditions
- Control of aeronautical systems and vehicles meeting flight quality, certification, and energy consumption criteria
- Estimation and control of the flexible modes of high elongation structures
Theme 2: Decision-making under uncertainty, mission planning
- Secure and robust on-line planning for the autonomy of aerospace systems
- Improving the adaptability and safety of multi-agent systems
- Human-centred design of heterogeneous collaborative aerospace systems

Aeronautical Vehicle Design and Flight Dynamics Scientific Group - CADV

Research Themes

Theme 1: Preliminary aircraft design
- Exploration of innovative aerostructure architectures
- Exploring new propulsion architectures
- Operability and maintainability of new architectures
- Safety and certifiability of new architectures
- Design of electromechanical de-icing systems
Theme 2: Modelling and assessment of technologies and scenarios for air transport in the context of decarbonisation and transition
- Modelling the air transport system (fleet renewal, use of alternative fuels, economic models)
- Development of climate models
- Assessment of the environmental impact of decarbonisation solutions for air transport over their entire life cycle

Space Systems Design Scientific Group - CSS

Access to space: physical modelling and design of new-generation liquid rocket engines
Astrodynamics and mission analysis: modelling and optimisation of trajectories in non-Keplerian environments
Robotic and manned space exploration combining systems engineering, space system design, on-board autonomy and human factors
Sustainability of space activities

Human, Systems and Interactions Scientific Group - HSI

Understanding brain function and human performance
Cognitive performance in stressful situations or during ageing
Massive data analysis applied to brain function
Development of brain-machine interfaces
Design of innovative integrated sensors for monitoring the state of the operator in extreme environments

Sustainable Aviation

DCAS has developed AeroMAPS, an open source tool for modelling transition trajectories for the aviation sector, the result of three years of research within the department. Initially designed under the name CAST, this reference tool can be used to assess the climate impact of aviation, by integrating variables such as traffic volume, energy consumption and the type of fuel used.

Innovative and multidisciplinary, AeroMAPS takes into account all the climatic effects of aviation, beyond CO₂ alone, including contrails and nitrogen oxide emissions. Aimed at research, training and experts and decision-makers in the sector, it helps to inform strategic choices in connection with international commitments to combat climate change. With this work, ISAE-SUPAERO is asserting its active role in the public debate on the future of aviation.

Our Research Projects

STOL and VTOL control
Guidance and navigation strategy planning for UAVs in urban environments
Hybrid hydrogen-powered regional aircraft
Aviation carbon trajectories
Design and optimisation of high aspect ratio wings
Low-consumption electromechanical de-icing systems
Mitigation of space debris
Reusable launchers
Real-time monitoring of human performance

DCAS Scientific Publications

Digital Thread-Based Optimisation Framework for Aeronautical Structures: A Vertical Tail Plane Use Case

de Longueville Sébastien, Bouvet Christophe, Bénard Emmanuel, Jézégou Joël, Gourinat Yves, Digital Thread-Based Optimisation Framework for Aeronautical Structures: A Vertical...

10 Jan 2025 Dynamic UAV trajectory optimisation for parcel delivery with integrated third-party risk mitigation

Aldao, Enrique, Veiga-López, Fernando, Ponzoni Carvalho Chanel Caroline, Watanabe Yoko, González-Jorge, Higinio, Dynamic UAV trajectory optimisation for parcel delivery with...

05 May 2025 FIT-SLAM 2: Efficient 3D exploration with Fisher information and traversability-based adaptive roadmap

Saravanan Suchetan, Bains Anaïs, Ponzoni Carvalho Chanel Caroline, Vivet Damien, FIT-SLAM 2: Efficient 3D exploration with Fisher information and traversability-based...

09 Sep 2025 Data-driven multifidelity surrogate models for rocket engines injector design

Zapata Usandivaras Jose Felix, Bauerheim Michaël, Cuenot Bénédicte, Urbano Annafederica, Data-driven multifidelity surrogate models for rocket engines injector design. 2025,...

17 Nov 2025 Modeling and Optimization of the Design of a Robotic Hydroponic System : Selected Proceedings of the 7th Space Resources Conference (SRC 2024)

Marina Mileni Munari, Drougard Nicolas, Gateau Thibault, Modeling and Optimization of the Design of a Robotic Hydroponic System : Selected...

03 Dec 2025

Access OPEN SCIENCE and find all our publications, theses, scientific instruments and technology platforms

Our Resources

The vast majority of these resources are managed by the technical group, which develops and implements a range of hardware platforms and software tools:

Flight simulators (human factors research, flight mechanics training, piloting)
An aeronautical software suite (flight mechanics, aircraft design, flight tests)
A space software suite (orbitography, satellite energy subsystem, launchers, ground stations)
UAVs and UAV systems
Satellite ground segments (rooms and ground stations for satellite projects)

Certain platforms are used/developed in conjunction with other technical teams:

The flight test software platform and the flight management software are developed with the Lasbordes flight operations centre
The autonomous systems room is used and developed with the technical group of the Complex Systems Engineering Department (DISC) at ISAE-SUPAERO

Aeronautical Sector

The DCAS technical group is developing a software suite for teaching and research in the field of aeronautics.

These include tools for simulating aircraft movement (Longisim and Transsim), calculating performance or aiding design (Alcazar), and in-flight training with the TB20 instrumented aircraft (TB20 system). A final piece of software (Activol) provides flight management for the aircraft at the Lasbordes Air Operations Centre.

Flight mechanics: LONGISIM/TRANSIM software

These two software packages are dedicated to the study of the longitudinal and lateral movements of the aircraft. They allow simulations to be carried out according to the type of aircraft and flight characteristics (responses to steps, curves, 3D, etc.).

Aircraft design: “ALCAZAR” software

Alcazar is a software package for the complete study and design of an airliner. Weight estimates, fuselage sizing (number of seats per class, etc.), wing geometry, empennage, thrust settings, etc.

Numerous visualisations allow you to see the results of the design throughout the process.

Flight tests / Flight dynamics: The TB20 System

The “TB20 System” is a software package which, from an instrumented TB20 aircraft (25 parameters in telemetry), enables flight parameters to be displayed in real time or off-line: Flight dynamics teaching (in flight or on the ground), flight tests.

Flight management: ACTIVOL software

ACTIVOL is the software used for the day-to-day management of flights at Lasbordes. Statistics are extracted for the annual activity reports.

In the field of aeronautics, a wide range of equipment is available at the DCAS: Flight simulators (PEGASE, 6MOUV), a drone design workshop, and drone flying platforms.

PEGASE flight simulator

PEGASE: Platform for Experiments on Generic Aircraft Simulation Environment

This simulation platform, halfway between high-end simulation (6-axis training simulators) and individual computer simulation, is ideal for teaching flight mechanics and research into human factors.

This generic simulator can simulate any type of aircraft. The basic model for the activities is the Airbus A300.

Developments are fully managed by the DCAS technical group, which means that the platform can be adapted to any need arising from the scientific teams (research, experimentation, demonstrations, teaching, etc.).

Features

- Controls: Top-of-the-range equipment with pilot/copilot mini-sticks, rudder pedals, A320 throttles + trim wheels, FCU, MCDU.
- EFIS/ECAM A320 cockpit displays: Primary Flight Display, Navigation Display, Engine Warning Display, Flight Control. They are multiplatform and reusable for other projects.
- 3D visualisation: A panoramic 3D visualisation provides a view of the outside world. It comes from the FlightGear open-source simulator, but has been adapted to meet requirements (particularly for the HUD: Head Up Display).
- Movement: A 3-axis hydraulic system reproduces movement (pitch, roll, height).
- Audio server: Alarms, engines, animations (slats and flaps up/down, landing gear, rain, etc.).

6MOUV flight simulator

6MOUV is a single-seat, 3-axis platform, light aircraft (DR400) simulator based on Flight Simulator software.

Drones

Workshop

A workshop dedicated to the final phase of drone design is run at the DCAS.

UAVs

A number of stationary UAVs developed at DCAS have been produced in the workshop (VisionAir, ScolAir, ScanAir). A fixed-wing flying platform is currently being developed (ExpAir, for the ExpeDrone project).

Space Sector

The DCAS technical group is developing a software suite for teaching and research in the space sector.

These include tools for the simulation and design of space systems: SatOrb, SimuSat and SimuLaunch.

SATORB software

SatOrb is a complex multi-satellite, multi-station orbitography and mission analysis software package. It allows 2D and 3D display of satellites and constellations, as well as multiple analyses of access, visibility, coverage, and radio link assessments.

SIMUSAT software

SimuSAT is a software package for simulating a satellite's energy sub-system. The available modules also enable attitude control and simplified simulation of thermal behaviour. This constantly evolving software, combined with Satorb, is a powerful tool for simulating a complete space system.

SIMULAUNCH

Simulaunch is a simulator dedicated to the design of launchers and the study of their trajectory during launch.

DCAS also has space hardware resources: A ground station in Toulouse (UHF/VHF), a ground station in Cayenne (S-band), and a control centre for its nanosatellite projects, which is designed to be simple and generic.

UHF/VHF -T ground station

The ISAE-SUPAERO teams have a ground station for exchanging digital data with the satellite they want, in UHF/VHF, whether in uplink (remote controls) or downlink (telemetry). The station can operate autonomously and collect data from the satellite automatically. A room is dedicated to this ground station in Toulouse.

Ground station (S-band)

ISAE-SUPAERO has had an S-band station since 2000. For technical reasons, it was installed in Cayenne. In cooperation with MIT and RIKEN, it provided a network of ground stations located on the equator to respond to on-board-ground link problems, due in particular to the platform's equatorial orbit.

SCC: Simple Control Center

The control centre manages all the data exchanged between the satellite and the ground segment using lightweight, high-performance software tailored to the university context and state-of-the-art in terms of both data processing and man-machine interface. It is a robust, stable, reusable tool that complies as far as possible with existing European (ECSS) and international (CCSDS) standards.

Job offers

Check out the vacancies for scientific staff in the DCAS research department!

Thesis offers

Check out the DCAS research department's thesis and post-doctorate vacancies!

Internship opportunities

Check out the DCAS research department's internship opportunities!

DISC

Theory, Modelling, and Systems Engineering (ThéMIS) Scientific Group

Publication Date

06 May 2025

Category

Tag

DISC

Doctoral student

PhD

Post-doctorate

Researcher

Science

Scientific publication

Space

Teacher researcher

Thesis

The “Theory, Modeling and Systems Engineering” (ThéMIS) scientific group is dedicated to the study and development of advanced methods for the design, modeling and validation of complex systems.

Our Research Areas

Our mission is to respond to the challenges posed by the design of increasingly integrated, autonomous, and mission-critical systems, by combining theoretical research, modelling methodology, and the implementation of engineering processes.

ThéMIS aims to develop robust and innovative solutions based on an interdisciplinary approach combining modelling, optimisation, and validation. We work with academic and industrial partners to meet the needs of critical sectors and innovate the technologies of tomorrow.

The ThéMIS research group carries out research in the following areas:

Theory

Preliminary design of complex systems and exploration of the design space
Architecture and trade-off analysis
Semantics of models and formal verification and validation (V&V) methods
System resilience (e.g. identification of obsolescence risks)
Technology forecasting and roadmapping

Modelling

Model-based systems engineering (MBSE)
Links with functional safety analysis (MBSA) and multidisciplinary optimisation (MDAO)
Model transformation and integration of validation and verification tools

Engineering Process

Integration of MBSE, product lifecycle management (PLM) and lifecycle analysis (LCA) methodologies

The research carried out by the ThéMIS research group has applications in the following areas:

Space (ground segment, vehicles, satellites)
Autonomous vehicles (drones, robots, intelligent cars)
Complex socio-technical systems (infrastructure management, human-machine interaction)
Critical embedded systems and cyber-physical systems (safety, reliability and performance in constrained environments)

Jonathan : Security evaluation of large distributed and reconfigurable systems
Charles MATHOU: Global methodological framework for safety analysis of UAV systems
Abdoulaye SARR: Multidisciplinary analysis and optimisation of a hydrogen-powered aircraft
Charlotte STROBBE: Design of user-centred systems combining MBSE and HSI
Augustin GALLOIS: Eco-design of a Lunar Habitat
Ariane BEAUDOIN-BUSSIÈRES : Forecasting for dual technological innovation in strategic ecosystems
Haochen GAO: Participatory design tools and systemic methods for multimodal air-rail systems
Valentin MORDEL: Fault tolerance and reliable reconfiguration in an automotive HPC/ZCU architecture
Maisa CIETTO: Identification and modelling of inefficiencies in the air transportation system

Sophie LEMOUSSU : A model-based approach for innovative SMEs in the aeronautics industry
Sébastien SCHWARTZ : Coupling deterministic and non-deterministic simulation for predictive maintenance
Juan José MONTERO JIMENEZ: Knowledge reuse to improve system architecture for predictive maintenance
Eric-Guillaume VIDOT: Towards the certification of avionics systems based on machine learning: using mathematical proofs to guarantee reliability
Anass AKRIM : Prediction of remaining lifetimes of aeronautical components using deep learning approaches
Ombeline AIELLO: Early validation of system designs using a joint engineering approach based on models and optimisation
Sophia SALAS CORDERO: Early phases of complex system design: obsolescence considerations from an MBSE perspective
Eric RAZAFIMAHAZO: A systems engineering approach to the design of multi-use systems on mission inside buildings
Morgan GAUTHIER: Architectural optimisation of automotive applications on MpSoC components
Laetitia BORNES: Interactive systems engineering between design science and design as science

Faculty members

Theses in progress

Theses defended

Our Classes

The members of the ThéMIS group are involved in ISAE-SUPAERO’s educational programmes: the general engineering programme, industrial engineering speciality programme by apprenticeship, Master’s degree in Aerospace Engineering (MAE) and various Advanced Master® (AM) programmes.

The group manages the MAE Systems Engineering major (around 30 students/promotion) and the Systems Engineering AM (around 10 students/promotion).

Members of the group are involved in other activities, in particular directing the Systems Doctoral School at the University of Toulouse.

Our Projects

New design, analysis, and qualification methods to ensure drone certification.

Formal verification methods for space systems. Development of the model-checker integrated into ESA's TASTE development platform (https://taste.tools), in collaboration with UGA/Verimag, GMV, and ESA/ESTEC.

Integrated Air Transport System chair with Thalès Group: this sponsorship, research, and teaching chair draws on ISAE-SUPAERO's expertise in optimising the flight operations and systems approach, and on the Thalès Group's expertise in flight avionics, connectivity, and air traffic control.

Our Permanent Members

Iulian Ober

Head of Themis Group

iulian.ober@isae-supaero.fr +33 5 61 33 80 80

Thémis Group | Members 2025

Our Partners

Industry Partners

Academic Partners

Job Offers

Check out the vacancies for scientific staff in the research department

Thesis Offers

Check out the research department's thesis and post-doctorate vacancies

Internship Opportunities

Check out the Research Department's internship opportunities!

DISC

Learning, Decision, Optimisation (ADO) Scientific Group

Publication Date

06 May 2025

Category

Tag

DISC

Doctoral student

PhD

Post-doctorate

Researcher

Science

Scientific publication

Space

Teacher researcher

Thesis

Our Research Areas

Our work focuses on decision support systems, from the collection of data to its interpretation, in order to make the best decision.

Our common scientific question is: ‘What are the models and algorithms that lead to a learning or decision-making process?’

To answer this question, the ADO group draws on and contributes to the techniques of artificial intelligence (reinforcement learning, evolutionary algorithms, constraint programming) and industrial engineering (operations research, knowledge management, systems engineering).

The applications of the research carried out within the ADO research group are in the following fields:

Aeronautics and Space: Earth Observation and Autonomous Vehicles
Production systems: System configuration and workshop programming
Industry X.0: Preventive maintenance

Doctoral and post-doctoral students

Researchers

Research areas

Teaching modules

Our Classes

Our research group is heavily involved in ISAE-SUPAERO‘s top-quality educational programmes, both in the engineering cycle curriculum and in the Masters programmes. We are fully committed to teaching, offering courses that combine theory and application, to ensure that students receive an education based on the latest scientific and technological advances.

We encourage and promote participation in research projects to enable our students to develop the practical and methodological skills that are essential in the field of decision support systems.

We are involved in the following modules: