Have you ever wondered what Aerospace Engineering was all about?
Some universities have a total of 8 different branches of engineering, and with all those names and degree options it is easy to be overwhelmed and a bit confused. Instead of randomly picking a field of engineering, it is important to understand what each program does. This will help you decide what school to go to and really find your passion for engineering.
Aerospace engineering is offered at 5 universities in Canada, and 2 of those are right here in Ontario. This emerging field, is one of the newest and advancing areas of engineering.
In simple terms, aerospace engineering is designing and building machines –that fly. That’s right, anywhere from drones, airplanes– to even rockets! There are two specialties within this field; aeronautical engineering and astronautical engineering.
Aeronautical Engineering
Aeronautical engineering involves designing air crafts that are categorized as “lighter than air” this includes helicopters, gliders, airplanes and jets.
Astronautical Engineering
Astronautical is just what it sounds like, it is the design of spacecraft. This means that a career in aerospace engineering can look very different depending on which specialty you choose. So, whether you are interested in making an impact on flying technology in this world or in this universe, aerospace engineering has got you covered.
Aerospace engineering is a very specialized and a relatively new field, so there is only a select few universities that offer the program here in Canada. The universities that do offer a bachelors in aerospace engineering include: Ryerson University, Carleton University, Concordia University, École Polytechnique de Montréal and the Royal Military College of Canada.
Careers in Aerospace Engineering
Aerospace engineers can work in the corporate field, for an airline. This would involve designing commercial airplanes, and even change the way they run to adapt to the escalating problem of climate change. Commercial engineers have really had to rethink their design recently, because of climate change. This proves to make their jobs interesting, and of course impactful on the world.
Then, of course, you have the opposite side of the scale which would be spacecraft engineers. These engineers help countries propel into space technology, and research more about outer space to understand the world we live on. Spacecraft engineers often find themselves using supercomputer simulations, because of the danger surrounding their line of work.
The geniuses behind this technology are engineering, science and data processing managers. These process managers make the simulations more efficient and effective to use. This is vital to the spacecraft engineer position, because the ability to try machines before being used by astronauts, will save lives.
Since safety is such an important part of aerospace, there are also compliance officers. These are the engineers that use their knowledge of aerospace to ensure that all rules and regulations are followed to meet safety standards.
Lastly, drafters are engineers that create detailed drawings and specification sheets for the product designed. That can range from commercial airplanes to a spacecraft. either way very specific and detailed drawings are needed.
Aerospace is a branch of engineering that covers everything flying under the sun. Hopefully, you have a better understanding of this branch of engineering. This field of engineering is going to change the world as we know it, and you can be a part of the change. It’s only up from here!