To Infinity and Beyond: Baylor aerospace club takes flight

Sometimes we’re told that it can be foolish to have our head in the clouds — but that’s not the case for Baylor’s premier aerospace engineering club, Aero at Baylor. The group introduces aerospace engineering to the next generation of engineers in the Baylor and greater Waco community; they inspire their students to shoot for the stars… or even Mars!

So, who are Baylor’s aerospace-minded students?

“Most of us are mechanical engineers, but not all of us,” says senior Josh Clark, project manager for the club’s 3D Printed Aircraft Team. “We have members who just enjoy aviation, aeronautics, aerospace — that’s what makes Aero at Baylor so unique.”

This summer, the club’s 3D Printed Aircraft Team competed in the 6th Annual 3D Printed Aircraft Competition, hosted by UT Arlington. Baylor pulled off the win, beating out teams that included Stanford, Virginia Tech, San Diego State and others. They also set the record for longest duration flight in the seven-year history of the competition, and won a $1,000 prize to support future club endeavors.

It’s fitting that many Aero students spend time with some of the nation’s most prestigious aerospace companies; many received internships at aerospace companies across the country, including SpaceX, Lockheed Martin, L3Harris, and Boeing. The club’s president, Annika Moser, interned over the summer at SpaceX in nearby McGregor, Texas, and is spending the fall in Florida as a launch operation intern for Falcon 9.

Now, the group has its eyes set on June 2023 as they prepare for the Intercollegiate Rocket Engineering Competition in New Mexico. Aero at Baylor is working toward raising $20,000 to build a 8- to 20-foot-tall rocket with target altitudes of 10,000 feet above ground level.

Sic ’em, Aero at Baylor!