Air Force Research Laboratory to recognize its best and brightest scientists and engineers

  • Published
  • By Derek Hardin
  • Air Force Research Laboratory
Seven outstanding Air Force Research Laboratory scientists and engineers (S&Es) will be honored as AFRL Fellows Oct. 22 for their exceptional contributions to advancing technologies for the warfighter.  This elite professional cadre is comprised of distinguished and exceptional S&Es, representing the top 0.2 percent of AFRL's professional technical staff.

"The distinction of being an AFRL Fellow is the highest honor our people can receive," said AFRL commander Maj. Gen Tom Masiello.  "These S&Es are some of the best brightest of an outstanding workforce that ensures our Air Force is the most technologically advanced in the world."

Five AFRL personnel will also be honored with an Early Career Award which recognizes S&Es for significant research or engineering developments in their young careers.

The 2015 AFRL Fellows are:

Mr. Byron Edmonds, AFRL Materials and Manufacturing Directorate, is the recognized authority in the area of Laser Eye Protection (LEP) for the Department of Defense (DoD).  He has led the advanced development of numerous technologies, and his expertise is sought out by a variety of customers to assist with a broad range of applications.  His vision for laser eye protection has not only produced fielded products, but has established a pathway forward for next generation solutions.

Dr. Moriba Jah, AFRL Directed Energy Directorate, is heavily engaged in Air Force efforts to transition Space Situational Awareness technology to the space warfighter.  He is the inspiration behind the Advanced Sciences &Technology Research Institute for Astronautics (ASTRIA), which is composed of about 35 government, industry and academia members that work to coordinate, and transition advances in Astrodynamics.  ASTRIA is now an official part of Air Force Space Commander's Astrodynamics Innovation Committee (AIC), and serves as the liaison between the government, industry, academic and international partners of AIC.

Dr. Reji John, AFRL Materials and Manufacturing Directorate, is a leader in the field of damage tolerance and mechanical behavior of structural metals. He is regarded as the Air Force and DoD expert in fracture mechanics of high temperature metals for propulsion applications.  His contributions are fundamental to the Air Force's cost avoidance of $1.1B through turbine engine component life extension.

Dr. Raymond Kolonay, AFRL Aerospace Systems Directorate, is an internationally recognized leader in the development and application of Multidisciplinary Analysis and Design Optimization systems for aerospace vehicles.  Dr. Kolonay formed the vision for AFRL development of multidisciplinary analysis and design methods that capture critical behavior early in aerospace vehicle design, eliminating late discovery of critical defects and subsequent costly redesigns.

Dr. Mark Linderman, AFRL Information Directorate, is a recognized expert in information management, tactical information dissemination, and embedded performance computing.  He is nationally and internationally renowned for his significant leadership contributions in the conceptualization, design, development, and demonstration of tactical and enterprise information technologies.

Dr. Robert Murphey, AFRL Munitions Directorate, has been a consistent, recognized leader in the development and spearheading of national research and development programs in autonomy, controls, navigation, and integrated weapons science. He established and now leads an international, multi-disciplinary team to develop the science, tools, and techniques to design a hypersonic terminally guided weapon.

Mr. Kevin Slimak, AFRL Space Vehicles Directorate, initiated the nation's first program in the systematic development of launch vibration isolation systems to protect sensitive satellites from vibrational damage induced by rocket motors, reducing vibrations during launch by 86 percent. His early work on high performance space solar cells and smart structures made major contributions to the Space Tracking and Surveillance System program.  The resulting solar cell technology that his team developed is now in use on every DoD satellite.


The 2015 Early Career Awards honorees are:

Dr. Joshua Hagen, AFRL Human Effectiveness Directorate, has distinguished himself through research and collaboration efforts that have developed a suite of wearable sensors to serve as the equivalent of a dashboard for real-time feedback and assessment of the health and performance of airmen and other warfighters.  His efforts are helping battlefield medical personnel to more efficiently triage patients using an app to monitor up to six patients at the same time.  He is also responsible for the development of Readiness Station, which gives real-time insight into a person's performance level.

Dr. Wellesley Pereira, AFRL Space Vehicles Directorate, has made numerous highly
impactful technical contributions in the area of intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR), particularly in the application of HyperTemporal Imaging (HTI), a new space-based sensing technology for the detection of extremely challenging targets through sunlit clouds. His work is contributing significantly to ISR and targeting solutions for the Air Force, for the Department of Defense, and for the Intelligence Community.

Dr. Rachel Abrahams, AFRL Munitions Directorate, is the primary inventor of a revolutionary, new steel alloy that maintains the material properties of the most advanced steel alloys while drastically reducing the material's cost. This revolutionizes the design of warheads and vehicle armor and provides cost reduction that will forever change the way the Air Force employs its most advanced penetrating weapons against hard targets.  Her research is greatly influencing the weapons industrial base, leading to fundamental changes in how metallurgical material and manufacturing are processed and tested for munitions technologies.

Dr. Adam Pilchak, AFRL Materials and Manufacturing Directorate, has distinguished himself by using advanced methods to couple microstructural information with process parameters and mechanical test data, leading to a far greater understanding of titanium aerospace components and the prediction of cracks that result from fatigue in jet engine turbomachinery. This fundamental understanding is changing how titanium components in both military and commercial jet engines are being designed and managed.

Dr. Joshua Hendrickson, AFRL Sensors Directorate, developed several research programs focused on the investigation of mid plasmonics and metasurfaces for superior optical properties. He demonstrated metasurface perfect light absorption, which will increase efficiency and sensitivity of detectors, and developed anti reflective coatings for high refractive index semiconductors such as those used in detectors. His research breakthroughs have opened the door to new and exciting advances that will impact secured communications and ISR platforms.

"AFRL is truly fortunate to be comprised of a workforce that is overflowing with talent, skill, and knowledge," Masiello said.  "These outstanding S&Es truly deserve the distinction of AFRL Fellow and Early Career Award winner."