Noam Kaplan

University of Maryland

Noam Kaplan is a first year PhD student at the University of Maryland. His planned research focus is on high advance ratio aeroelastic stability of compound rotor vehicles. Noam attended the University of Maryland College Park for his undergraduate degree in Aerospace Engineering and graduated in 2021. There, he learned about VTOL technologies and worked on quadcopter aeromechanics and flight testing at the Alfred Gessow Rotorcraft Center. Noam’s work as an undergraduate included designing a fire-suppression and surveillance drone during a summer internship at NASA Ames, and working on the design of Garra, an unmanned logistics and natural disaster/pandemic relief helicopter that won first place in the 2021 undergraduate VFS Student Design competition. Noam is passionate about the bigger picture of VTOL work and wants to focus on solving the most pressing problems that impede environmentally friendly and high performance, life-saving VTOL technologies. In particular, Noam is interested in developing a better understanding of aeromechanics and more effective methods for their control. His planned research includes both experimental and analytical work and spans the range of aeromechanics analysis and testing including rotor performance, vibration and controls, aeroelasticity and structures.

Noam lives in Washington DC and likes to spend his free time playing guitar, and out in nature whether it be visiting national parks, hiking locally, skiing, or going on an evening stroll. In the long term, Noam hopes to see his technical contributions to a world where the potential of VTOL technologies are fully realized in urban and rural areas alike, to bring our world closer together, and better protect the health and safety of our communities.