Carolin Frueh Assistant Professor

Carolin Frueh Assistant Professor

MS of Science, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Germany 2006
Ph.D., Physics with Specialization in Astronomy, University of Bern, Switzerland, 2011

Why you chose Aeronautics and Astronautics?

My initial impetus as a freshman was to understand the world, the laws and mechanisms that govern nature and human beings. This is why I started out in Physics and Philosophy. During my studies in both fields, I realized that the information that we are able to obtain about the world, or a systems of interest, the information that we rely on as inspiration, validation of our theories and in our (a posteriori) knowledge are integral to our thinking, decision making and innovation. Following the path of knowledge, learning about epistomology and the origins of the universe, I got intrigued in the topic of astrodynamics, a topic traditionally based in physics and also integral to all space fairing in AAE. In the newly developing field of space situational awareness the constant struggle of sufficient information for decision making and safety is present in a daily basis, affecting many agents, in government, industry and, people in their every day life simply using GPS. The problem and mathematical framework of extracting reliable useful information in a extremely data deprived environment is very challenging, because hardly any lab experiments can be made and information is only passively available in the vast majority of the cases. Single decisions based on the extracted information however, have tremendous consequences, up to the destruction of vast infrastructure or significant damage of the planet earth by asteroid impacts. This is the topic I am burning for and where I together with my students can make a contribution. As a conclusion, I cannot say I chose AAE, but I was simply following my passion.

What makes Purdue AAE special?

There are three things, the legacy, the culture and the people that are carrying both forward from the past to the future. Purdue AAE program has a tremendous legacy to the space fairing in the US in providing the place to foster some of the nation's finest workers, leaders and key figures in the space enterprise. This has been made possible in a culture of modesty and hard work. Purdue is not a place for boasting, but for applying oneself to advance the state of the art. This culture is created and brought forth by the people at Purdue. At the AAE department, I have the pleasure to encounter dedicated intellectually very strong students, great staff, and researchers that belong to the best in their field as very supportive colleagues. This is embedded in a departmental spirit of respect, trust and freedom to be creative, to think outside the box, and to experiment. This spirit allows to recognize that not every idea is great and that setbacks are necessary parts along the path to advance, but ultimately exactly this allows to achieve engineering excellence in ways that have been unthinkable before.