MAE research scientist named AIAA Fellow

By Elizabeth Egan 

The position of AIAA Fellow is awarded to individuals who have made valuable contributions to the arts, sciences, or technology of aeronautics or astronautics. Only one fellow for every 125 associate fellows is chosen each year by a review committee.

The fellow citation noted that Cefola was chosen for “lifetime achievements in astrodynamics and development of the unique product Draper Semi-analytical Satellite Theory (DSST) that significantly improved the state of the art in orbit prediction and determination.”

"Dr. Cefola is an internationally renowned researcher and engineer with over 50 years of experience in the field of astrodynamics,” said John Crassidis, Moog Professor of Innovation and SUNY Distinguished Professor in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering.

Crassidis noted that when he was a postdoctoral fellow at NASA Goddard, he was familiar with the Goddard Trajectory Determination System (GTDS), which was the most frequently used system for orbit prediction and estimation at NASA and other agencies, and that the GTDS manual cited Cefola’s work numerous times.

“He helped save engineers countless hours because they did not need to program their own systems,” said Crassidis.

Cefola and Crassidis have worked together during Cefola’s 15 years as a research scientist with the University at Buffalo. Cefola noted that he is grateful for the support he has received from Crassidis and UB.

Cefola’s work has included modeling of orbital motion, developing semi analytical orbit determination methods, developing astrodynamics software, astrodynamics program management, marketing, preparation of proposals and more. He was a leader in the development of DSST, which has become an industry standard, and in the development of comprehensive astrodynamics software for mission systems and general scientific programs.

Over the course of his career, Cefola has published over 100 research papers and has presented at numerous professional conferences. He is a founding member of the Scientific Computing & Technological Innovation Center at the University of La Rioja in La Rioja, Spain, and served as a member of the Technical Advisory Board for Vyoma GmbH, an aerospace company in Munich.

Cefola also attributed much of his career to his time spent working as a lecturer and research associate at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Drapper Lab. In that role, he had the opportunity to not only work on his own projects but to also work with graduate students, overseeing 6 PhD students and 27 master’s students.

“One thing in my career that I have felt grateful for is the opportunity to work with really great graduate students,” said Cefola. “I found working with them to be very inspiring.”

Throughout his career, Cefola has served as a thesis advisor for nearly 40 PhD and graduate students around the world.

Cefola is also a fellow of the American Astronautical Society (AAS) and is an elected member of the International Astronomical Union. In 2005, he received, along with six of his colleagues, the International Scientific Cooperation Award from the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

Cefola earned his PhD, master’s degree and bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.

The new fellows will be honored at the Class of 2025 Fellows Induction Ceremony on April 29 in Washington, D.C., and at the formal AIAA Awards Gala the following day.