David Darmofal is the Jerome C. Hunsaker Professor of Aeronautics and Astronautics at MIT and a director of the MIT Aerospace Computational Science & Engineering (ACSEL) laboratory (known as the MIT Aerospace Computational Design Laboratory until recently) and the MIT Center for Computational Science & Engineering (CCSE). His principal areas of interest are computational methods for partial differential equations, especially fluid dynamics; and engineering education innovation. He has been an author on approximately 130 technical publications in peer-reviewed journals and conferences. He teaches graduate and undergraduate courses in fluid dynamics and computational methods. He also contributes to the MIT Common Ground effort.
In recognition of excellence in teaching and advising, he was honored with the MIT School of Engineering Bose Award for Junior Faculty in 2002, appointed as an MIT MacVicar Faculty Fellow in 2004, and received the MIT Earll M. Murman Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Advising in 2011. In 2012, he received the MIT Bisplinghoff Fellow and the University of Michigan, Department of Aerospace Engineering, Alumni Merit Award in recognition for his contributions in research, teaching, and service. He has also been recognized by the MIT student chapter of the AIAA for excellence in undergraduate teaching (2005, 2013) and undergraduate advising (2017). In 2024, he received the Common Ground Award for Excellence in Teaching (2024). At the beginning of his academic career in 1997, he was the recipient of an NSF CAREER Award. He is an Associate Fellow of the AIAA, and an ASME, ASEE, and SIAM member.
He received his BS in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Michigan (1989), and SM (1991) and PhD (1993) in Aeronautics and Astronautics from MIT. He was an NSF Post-doctoral Fellow in Computational Sciences and Engineering under Prof. Bram van Leer at the University of Michigan (1994-1995). From 1995-1998, he was an assistant professor in the Department of Aerospace Engineering at Texas A&M University. In 1998, he joined the Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics at MIT as an assistant professor, receiving tenure in 2005 and becoming a full professor in 2010. He has served as the department’s associate and interim department head from 2008-2011. Currently, he is the chair of the Undergraduate Committee in the department and the graduate officer for the CCSE PhD program.
He enjoys: listening and performing (piano, mandolin, guitar, voice) music of all kinds; sailing, fishing, birdwatching (they do fly after all), hiking, gardening, and cooking (and eating) food. He’s also a sports fan cheering on the New England Patriots, Boston Red Sox, and Detroit Red Wings.
Since July 2017, David and his wife Claudia have served as the Heads of House at the MIT graduate residence, The Warehouse.
