The National Research Council recently announced it has selected Dr. Karen Feigh to serve on its prestigious Aeronautics and Space Engineering Board (ASEB). A former Marshall Scholar who earned her undergraduate and doctoral degrees in aerospace engineering at Georgia Tech, Feigh will be the youngest member ever to serve on this influential board.

Feigh learned of her appointment in early January and will be officially inducted onto the board at the ASEB April meeting in Washington, D.C.

“The most exciting thing about this appointment is the opportunity to work with engineers and industry leaders to advance the impact of aeronautics and aerospace on our world,” said Feigh, an assistant professor whose research has focused on two broad areas: decision support system design and computational cognitive modeling for engineering design.

“I am looking forward to being part of the process to define research agendas in areas like autonomy in civil aviation.”

Founded in 1967, the ASEB provides an independent, authoritative forum for space engineering and aeronautics research within the National Research Council the operating arm of The National Academies. The organization oversees ad hoc committees that recommend priorities and procedures for achieving aerospace engineering objectives, and offers a way to bring engineering and other related expertise to bear on aerospace issues of national importance.

“I can’t imagine a better choice for this important position,” said GT-AE Chair Dr. Vigor Yang. “Dr. Feigh has consistently proven herself to be an assiduous researcher, a thought leader within the field. I have no doubt she will bring that same rigor and creativity to her role with ASEB.”

In the past, ASEB has dug into some very meaty issues, including the research and development aspects of the Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen); the direction of NASA’s aeronautics research program; national aeronautics R&D policy and its implementation; space policy and programs, with a focus on human spaceflight and space operations; commercial space activities; and other aerospace engineering topics.

Feigh previously worked on fast-time air traffic simulation, conducted ethnographic studies of airline and fractional ownership operation control centers, and designed expert systems for air traffic control towers and NextGen concepts. She is also experienced in conducting human-in-the-loop experiments for concept validation. Her research at Georgia Tech has included work on airline operations, air transportation systems, UAV and MAV ground control stations, mission control centers, and command and control centers adaptive automation design.

Feigh is also the recipient of AIAA’s Wilbur and Orville Wright Graduate Award, Zonta International’s Amelia Earhart Fellowship and a five-year National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship.