The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) has selected Israeli researcher Alon Gany to receive its prestigious Wyld Propulsion Award for 2025. Gany was recognized for his “pioneering contributions to the study of propulsion using metal-containing fuels, energetic materials, hybrid rockets, ramjet and scramjet engines, and for excellence in educating generations of propulsion experts.”
“It’s exciting and gratifying to receive this international recognition,” Gany told the Davidson Institute website. Those who have received this award in the past are among the best in the field, and this recognition is truly at the highest level.”
Gany, 80, is Professor Emeritus at the Faculty of Aerospace Engineering at the Technion, where he earned all his academic degrees, completing his doctorate in 1975. Following a postdoctoral fellowship at Princeton University, he began his academic career as a faculty member at the Technion. Over the years, Gany’s research has spanned multiple areas of propulsion, leading to several significant breakthroughs.
Early in his career, Gany focused on solid rocket fuels. Like all fuels, these systems require an oxidizer for combustion. In liquid-fueled rockets—such as SpaceX’s Starship, which runs on methane (CH₄)—the oxidizer is typically liquid oxygen, mixed with the fuel in the combustion chamber. In solid-propellant rockets, the fuel is generally a polymer, with the oxidizer dispersed throughout as an oxygen-containing salt. Aluminum powder is often added to improve combustion.
Early in his career, Gany focused on solid rocket fuels. Like all fuels, these systems require an oxidizer for combustion. In liquid-fueled rockets—such as SpaceX’s Starship, which runs on methane (CH₄)—the oxidizer is typically liquid oxygen, mixed with the fuel in the combustion chamber.
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