Prescott Campus - College of Arts and Sciences

Department of Physics

Space Physics Students

Our students are a diverse, driven group with many different intersts and backgrounds. Read about a few of our students below:

Name: Billy

Hometown: San Diego, CA

Area of Interest: Exotic Propulsion/Astrophysics

My name is Billy, and I’m from San Diego, California. I graduated from Granite Hills High School in 2005. I’ll graduate from Embry-Riddle with a degree in Space Physics in the spring of 2009. I’m very interested in listening to your problems; I also enjoy bringing sarcasm into everyday life.

I grew up working in the shop, making wood projects, working on cars and building anything I could. So when my dad got me started with small model rockets, I naturally began to try out some of my own designs. Soon I was designing and flying large high-power rockets in high school. My buddies and I would go camping in Ocotillo, California almost every weekend in high school. We’d spend a couple days shooting guns, launching rockets, and hanging around the campfire. So when it came time to pick a college education, I knew it had to be something to do with rockets and space. The obvious choice was aerospace engineering; however, upon researching the degree I saw that this included classes on materials, solids, and structures; to keep from vomiting, I looked into an applied physics degree. Upon discovering ERAU’s space physics program, I realized that I could still pursue a future in space exploration without having to endure tragically boring classes. So that’s where I am now, I’m focusing in Exotic Propulsion to quench my thirst for rocketry. Astrophysics is a close second choice, and if the university permits, I will likely attempt a double-focus.

I’m a pitcher on the ERAU baseball team, as well as a compound shooter on the archery team. I wrote for the newspaper for two years before replacing that job with tutoring physics and mathematics. I’m also a Resident Assistant (RA) in Pterodactyl Hall 3. I’ve been an RA for 5 semesters, working on 6. This job allows me to get to know a large majority of students on campus, as well as become the go-to guy for new students. I’ve participated in two research projects on campus. I’ve worked for two semesters with Dr. Marriott on the MagLev Project and for three semesters on the Cavendish Project with Dr. Darrel Smith.

The MagLev project is a collaboration of ERAU, General Atomics, and NASA Dryden. On campus, we’re working on designing a high-speed launch system which can shoot sheets of aluminum up to 600 miles per hour. We’ve been working with a small-scale setup of two small motors hooked up to a low power source for practice. We will soon travel to General Atomics to use their large-power supply to run full-speed tests.

In my other project we’ve designed an experiment to measure impulse on an object from diode lasers. I’m encasing the Cavendish balance in a custom vacuum chamber in order to carry out this experiment. The project is sponsored by a NASA Space Grant, and further financially supported by the universities physics budget.

My favorite aspect of Embry-Riddle is the close relationship with professors. All of my professors know me on a first-name basis; most of them know me before I even have a class with them. I work side-by-side with professors in all of my research projects as an undergraduate, a privilege which I’ve enjoyed since I was a freshman. Many of my friends at other universities can not say they share the same relationship with their professors. ERAU, being such a focused university, offers many clubs that support students interested in aviation, space, and physics. As a freshman I joined the Archery Club, Particle Accelerator Club, Society of Physics Students, Hyperion, and the Rocket Experimental Project.