The Technion’s story has been intertwined with Israel’s for more than a century, from laying the foundations for a new nation to shaping its future.
SpaceX’s Starship megarocket may come into its own in 2025. The 400-foot-tall (122 meters) Starship is the biggest and most powerful rocket system ever built, and it’s designed to be fully and rapidly reusable. SpaceX believes this combination of brawn and efficiency is the key breakthrough that will allow humanity to achieve a variety of spaceflight feats — including the settlement of Mars, a long-held dream of company founder and CEO Elon Musk. That vision may become clearer over the next 12 months or so, for Starship appears poised to make a big leap in 2025. Starship has launched six…
Even matter ejected by black holes can run into objects in the dark. Using NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory, astronomers have found an unusual mark from a giant black hole’s powerful jet striking an unidentified object in its path. The discovery was made in a galaxy called Centaurus A (Cen A), located about 12 million light-years from Earth. Astronomers have long studied Cen A because it has a supermassive black hole in its center sending out spectacular jets that stretch out across the entire galaxy. The black hole launches this jet of high-energy particles not from inside the black hole, but…
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…
On Friday evening, Boeing Co.’s Starliner capsule will undock from the International Space Station, marking another chapter in the saga of the troubled spacecraft. Starliner will return to Earth uncrewed, with Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams — the NASA astronauts it transported to the orbiting space lab in June — forced to wait for a ride home with their rival SpaceX in early 2025. NASA’s decision to choose SpaceX to bring the astronauts home amid Starliner’s problems was a blow to Boeing. So what’s next for the Starliner program? Technion Professor Ehud Behar is quoted in this article.
A.J. searched several jewelry stores to find the perfect wedding ring for his fiancée, but nothing was quite right. So being the Technion student he is, he taught himself 3D modeling, designed it in 3D software, found the stone he wanted, and searched for the perfect jeweler and goldsmith to put it together. That’s before arranging for a friend of a friend to stealthily deliver the ring to him in Vienna, check that the sun would shine in just the right spot in the botanical garden in the Belvedere Palace where he would propose, and cover informational signs in the…
“I’m part of the division that protects civilians in Israel and that makes me very proud,” said Technion alumna Maya Shnur. “Every morning when I go to work, I feel like I’m on a mission.” Shnur works at the vaunted Israeli defense company Rafael Advanced Defense Systems as the deputy general manager of Mergers, Acquisitions, […]
In the late 1970s, when no one thought it could be possible, Dov Raviv, a Technion alumnus, had a fantastical idea for a defensive weapon that could intercept and shoot down long-range incoming missiles. The idea developed into what would become the Arrow Antimissile System, the world’s first missile defense platform, and what would protect […]
Captain (res.) Denis Krokhmalov Veksler z”l was due to begin his studies this year at the Technion, pursuing his dream of becoming an aerospace engineer. But, on January 8, just weeks before the start of the school year, Captain Krokhmalov Veksler tragically fell in battle in the Gaza Strip. His ultimate sacrifice is being memorialized through a collaboration between the Technion and Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) to develop a communications satellite.
When she was 17 years old, Hilla Haddad Chmelnik ’06 decided to pursue engineering at the Technion. An exemplary student from a young age, Hilla participated in the Atuda program, deferring her military service until after completing her studies so that she could bring specialized knowledge to the IDF. She ultimately chose to major in […]
“Every time I’d bring him a project, he’d hand it back full of comments and tell me, ‘You can do better,’” said aerospace engineer Inbal Kreiss ’88, who fondly recalled that lesson learned as a student from Technion Professor Yeshayahu Talmon. And that advice helped shape her career. Kreiss, a graduate of the Wolfson Faculty of Chemical Engineering, is today head of innovation at the Systems Missiles and Space Group of Israel Aerospace Industries Ltd. (IAI), the nation’s prominent aerospace and aviation corporation. Since joining IAI in 2000, she has held leadership positions on projects that have contributed to Israel’s…
This article is part of a special report on the total solar eclipse that will be visible from parts of the U.S., Mexico and Canada on April 8, 2024. CONCAN, Tex.—After months of waiting, planning and anticipating, the eclipse is nearly upon us. This rare heavenly alignment will be a marvel to look at for anyone lucky enough to have clear skies at the time. For a few minutes, the face of the moon will perfectly overlap that of the sun from our perspective on Earth, blocking out most of the light from our star and leaving only the wispy white glow…
Judith Hocherman-Frommer always envisioned an academic career at the Technion. After all, she spent 10 years there. She received a bachelor’s degree (’87) in electrical engineering followed by a master’s (’90) and doctoral degree (’94) in control systems. After a postdoc at Princeton University, she taught as an adjunct lecturer for three years, while working full time at Rafael Advanced Defense Systems. “I thought I would get some real-world experience before immersing myself in academia,” she said. She intended to stay for one year, but 27 years and five promotions later, Hocherman-Frommer is the executive vice president for research and…