Aerospace Studies with a focus on Jet Propulsion

A free four-year aerospace engineering path, from first calculus to a two-semester jet propulsion capstone.

🗺️ Four-year roadmap

Study in order. Heat Transfer comes before Propulsion; the capstone runs two semesters.

Year 1

Fall

  1. Calculus IMATH 110
  2. General Chemistry I + LabCHEM 110 + CHEM 110L
  3. Intro to Aerospace EngineeringAERO 101
  4. Engineering Graphics / CADENGR 120

Spring

  1. Calculus IIMATH 111
  2. Physics I + LabPHYS 110 + PHYS 110L
  3. Intro ProgrammingENGR 130

Year 2

Fall

  1. Calculus IIIMATH 210
  2. StaticsENGR 211
  3. ThermodynamicsENGR 320
  4. Physics IIPHYS 210 + PHYS 210L

Spring

  1. Differential EquationsMATH 220
  2. Linear AlgebraMATH 230
  3. Mechanics of MaterialsENGR 213
  4. DynamicsENGR 212

Year 3

Fall

  1. Aerodynamics IAERO 310
  2. Fluid MechanicsENGR 330
  3. Numerical MethodsMATH 340
  4. Probability & StatisticsMATH 350

Spring

  1. Heat TransferAERO 440
  2. Aircraft PerformanceAERO 320
  3. Aerospace StructuresAERO 330
  4. CircuitsENGR 214 + ENGR 214L

Year 4

Fall

  1. PropulsionAERO 410
  2. Flight Dynamics & ControlsAERO 420
  3. Orbital MechanicsAERO 340
  4. Avionics & Systems EngineeringAERO 450
  5. Capstone (aircraft or CubeSat)AERO 490Part 1 of 2

Spring

  1. Capstone (aircraft or CubeSat)AERO 490Part 2 of 2
  2. Sustainable AviationAERO 470
  3. Spacecraft DesignAERO 430

🧪 About the labs: Labs here are simulation-based (calculators and virtual experiments). They stand in for wind tunnels and engine test stands; they do not replace them.

🌍 How this path helps the planet

Every Saving Planets solution helps both people and nature. Efficient engines cut fuel use and emissions; launch vehicles carry the satellites that watch oceans, forests and ice.

  • Year 1: Chemistry and calculus are the language of combustion and of the air itself: the base for judging cleaner fuels later. See Sustainable Aviation.
  • Year 2: Thermodynamics and fluids decide how much fuel an engine burns for each unit of thrust, so this year is where efficiency, and lower emissions, begin.
  • Year 3: Propulsion and orbits are how Earth-observation satellites reach orbit to watch oceans, forests and ice. See Earth Observation and Upcoming Launches.
  • Year 4: Senior work turns this into design: quieter, lower-emission engines and alternative fuels (Sustainable Aviation), spacecraft for space solutions and missions for planetary defense.

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✈️ Prefer aircraft? See the Aeronautical Engineering track · 🚀 Also see: Aerospace Studies with a focus on Rocket Propulsion

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Sequence informed by published aerospace engineering curricula, including the MIT Course 16 catalog. Independent study guide: no affiliation, credit or endorsement.

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