Michigan Engineering researchers check the science behind The Martian, the upcoming film adaptation of Andy Weir’s bestselling sci-fi thriller about an astronaut left behind on the Red Planet. U-M engineers and scientists discuss: how bad the dust storms really are on Mars, how it might be possible to grow food there, and how fast Earth…

For decades robots have been exploring Mars’ atmosphere and surface, forging space science advances and paving the way for future human missions to Mars. While robots have been highly effective, some say only human space travel can inspire. Read: Engineering Newswire 124: Atlas Robot Gets Major Upgrade If given the opportunity, would you want to…

Modern structures are designed to absorb damaged without collapsing, but an event like an earthquake can quickly escalate construction repair costs for aging buildings. Civil and Environmental Engineers at the University of Michigan are looking into materials rarely used in the construction world for retro-fitting older structures and provide a type of affordable earthquake insulation…

Next year’s holiday travelers may see fewer delays thanks to research now being conducted by a team of University of Michigan engineers. They’ve gathered more than ten years of hour-by-hour weather observations and domestic fight data and are using advanced data analytics to spot patterns and help airlines manage more efficiently. Data from the project…

We live above a web of buried utility lines that make modern life possible. Michigan Engineers are developing a revolutionary method for excavator operators to avoid accidentally hitting buried utilities. Using a fast and highly cost effective computer vision system called Smart Dig, they have made incredible strides in creating a safer, cheaper and more…

First of their kind, self-assembling particle chains may serve as muscles for futuristic tiny robots. This breakthrough has Michigan Engineers pumped up. They have demonstrated the ability to extend and retract—flex—nanoscale colloidal fibers in response to an electric field. These shape shifting fibers could one day provide locomotion for microscopic robots in the medical and…

On football Saturdays at Michigan Stadium, 110,000 fans and two teams are exposed to weather that can range from pleasant to potentially dangerous. Forecasts from the National Weather Service provide general information, but not information that’s specific to The Big House. So a small group from Michigan Engineering’s Department of Atmospheric, Oceanic and Space Sciences…

Michigan Engineering professor John Foster is working on a method to purify water with the fourth state of matter – plasma. Foster hopes his new technology, which produces reactive radicals that can attack organic contaminants such as pesticides and pharmaceuticals, will help solve a problem not currently being addressed in conventional treatment methods that rely…

Michigan Engineering researchers are exploring how the process of nudging nanoparticles can help them change their structure — creating order from disorder. By examining matter at the nanoparticle scale, they are exploring how to create materials that can change their shape when needed, allowing for innovations such as flexible steel.

Experts suspect that North Korea’s recent nuclear explosive test was different from the previous two. Michigan Engineering Professor Sara Pozzi explains how air samples could reveal whether the bomb was uranium- or plutonium-based and why a uranium-based weapon would be cause for alarm. For more information visit http://www.engin.umich.edu/alumni.