Features

  • Seniors' star study offers down-to-Earth lessons

    A lot of college students spend late nights in dimly lit spaces searching for celestial bodies. However, for two Academy seniors, the celestial bodies in question are worlds the size of Jupiter that orbit stars hundreds of light-years away.Cadets 1st Class Samantha Latch and Gordon Spahr spent their

  • Rugby on the radar

    Although it's brutal, intense and often bone-breaking, the seniors on the Falcons women's rugby team said it's the physical and psychological challenges of the sport that catapulted their confidence and friendships at the Academy. The team's six lieutenants-to-be have something new to tackle --

  • Heritage, history, honor: Former Otis House owner shares memories in book

    The commandant of cadets, dean of faculty and family members of Hester-Jane Cogswell, previous owner of the Academy's Otis House, attended a presentation on April 30 at the home to honor Cogswell's book, memories and legacy in Pine Valley. Guests gathered to celebrate the history of the commandant's

  • Chemistry instructor brings magic of science to students, teachers

    The first thing you might notice about Dr. Ron Furstenau is his apparel: one of his ties contains chemical symbols for carbon, nitrogen, neon, even ununseptium. American flag, Air Force, smiley face and periodic table pins grace the lapels of his lab coat, along with a three-eyed fish on one of his

  • Puppy love: Therapy dog eases cadets' worries

    There is a friendly new face at the Peak Performance Center. She loves long walks, a competitive game of fetch and might expect a belly rub when you walk through the door.Her name is Lulu, and she is a spunky, eight month old weimaraner-lab mix who adds a playful, canine twist to therapy. She was

  • Capstone UAS project explores land, sea, air possibilities

    At an airfield about a mile and a half north of the B-52 static display here, a much smaller aircraft takes flight from an asphalt landing strip called "Aardvark." The remote-controlled plane, measuring about 5 feet from nose to tail with a wingspan of about 8 feet, leaps off the ground, lurches

  • Applied 'green' research teaches cadets about ins, outs of renewable energy

    A Defense Department-funded initiative in the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department here offers cadets a chance to get their hands dirty by making the environment a little cleaner.The program, which has received $270,000 since 2009 from the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for

  • Academy's command chief reflects on 30-year career

    As Chief Master Sgt. Todd Salzman puts on his uniform and reports for duty for the last time today, he'll reflect on a career that spanned three decades and supported operations on nearly every continent.As the Academy's command chief, Salzman spent the last three years helping to mold future Air

  • Cadets, professors submit patents for next-gen aircraft engines

    An aeronautics professor and cadets may have designed the next generation jet engine. Lt. Col. A.J. Rolling, director of the Academy's Aeronautics Laboratory, and 26 cadets from the aircraft propulsion capstone design course created four hybrid engine cycle designs to increase performance and fuel

  • Academy, local teen come together for biofuel research

    By pre-school she had all of the planets memorized. By kindergarten she had crafted her first science project. Since then, Sara Volz, a junior at Cheyenne Mountain High School, has earned regional, state and international science fair awards and is conducting research at Academy on the exploration