Maruthi Akella Receives 2026 AIAA von Kármán Lectureship Award in Astronautics
Maruthi R. Akella, professor in the Department of Aerospace Engineering and Engineering Mechanics at The University of Texas at Austin, has been named recipient of the 2026 von Kármán Lecture in Astronautics Award from the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA).
The award recognizes an individual who has performed notably and distinguished themself technically in astronautics. Named for aerospace pioneer Theodore von Kármán, this highly prestigious lectureship award in the astronautics field is presented biennially in even-numbered years at the AIAA ASCEND Forum.
Akella, who has served on the UT Austin faculty since 1999, specializes in learning, control, and coordination of complex dynamical systems. He directs the Controls Group for Distributed and Uncertain Systems and conducts research spanning spacecraft guidance and control, cislunar astrodynamics, hypersonic flow-control systems, and cooperative learning within robotic swarms.
He and his students made history in 2024, contributing to the onboard guidance algorithm for the Intuitive Machines IM-1 mission, the first U.S. moon landing in more than 50 years.
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Akella has published more than 260 peer-reviewed papers and is a fellow of AIAA, IEEE and AAS. He provides leadership for many editorial boards including his service as Editor-in-Chief for the Journal of the Astronautical Sciences. The International Astronomical Union designated asteroid number 5376 as “Maruthiakella” in recognition of his contributions to astrodynamics.
Akella will deliver his lecture, titled “Opinion Dynamics, Learning, Trust, and Control for Autonomous Space Systems,” on May 20 in Washington, D.C. The talk will examine emerging challenges in autonomy, distributed decision-making, and intelligent control for next-generation aerospace missions.
The ASCEND forum convenes leaders from industry, government, academia and emerging sectors of the space economy to drive actionable outcomes for the global space enterprise. Delivering the von Kármán Lecture places Akella’s research at the center of conversations shaping future space systems.
Past recipients of the AIAA von Kármán Lecture award include the late Hans Mark, former chancellor of The University of Texas System and a professor in aerospace engineering, who received the honor in 1992.