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Government institution · Colorado Springs · United States

United States Air Force Academy

In research, United States Air Force Academy stands highest in Social Sciences (#2,667 of 10,521 worldwide), Physical Sciences (#5,099 of 12,888 worldwide) and Engineering (#3,419 of 6,636 worldwide), 2022–2025. Relative to its size it is most specialised in Aerospace Engineering and Computational Mechanics — Aerospace Engineering is 8.8× its share of world research.

usafa.af.milROR OpenAlex
World rank, 2022–2025
#7,190
of 28,054 · #2,394 all time
Rank in United States
#955
of 4,192
Research works
6k
▲ 62% vs 2013–17
Citations
93k
15.5 per fractional work
Top-10% rate
9.2%
record average 16.5%
Open access
24%
world 28%

What is United States Air Force Academy known for in research?

The fields where it stands highest, 2022–2025, ranked among every institution above the floor in each field.

FieldWorld rankWhere that sitsTop-10% rateWorksAll time
Social SciencesDomain #2,667 of 10,521 14.2%278 #3002
Physical SciencesDomain #5,099 of 12,888 6.8%539 #1526
EngineeringField #3,419 of 6,636 7.2%314 #713
Social SciencesField #3,858 of 6,365 15.6%153 #3068
Computer ScienceField #4,063 of 4,667 7.7%87 #2621
Aerospace EngineeringSubfield #720 of 795 10.9%94 #306

Each strip is that field’s whole ranked pool, with the notch where United States Air Force Academy sits in it, in the colour of the band that rank falls in. The track under the rate is the rate itself: it carries no world mark, because the world rate differs by field (from about 6% to 21% in this record).

Which of those standings moved

The same fields on both windows: where it stood over the whole record, and where it stands in 2022–2025. The distance is the story, and it is the one thing the two rank columns above cannot show.

  1. Social Sciences#3,002 #2,667
  2. Physical Sciences#1,526 #5,099
  3. Engineering#713 #3,419
  4. Social Sciences#3,068 #3,858
  5. Computer Science#2,621 #4,063
  6. Aerospace Engineering#306 #720
all time2022–2025, better2022–2025, worse

A dot further right is a better standing. Fields it was not ranked in over the whole record are left out.

What does United States Air Force Academy specialise in?

Where its research is concentrated relative to its size: Aerospace Engineering takes 8.8× the share of its output that it takes of world research.

  1. Aerospace EngineeringSubfield · 93.6 works8.8×
  2. Computational MechanicsSubfield · 46.0 works8.7×
← less than its size predicts1×more →

Location quotient, a volume reading rather than an impact one. It surfaces small, lopsided specialities.

Field profile

Location quotient across every field it publishes in: outside the ring is more than an institution of this size would be expected to publish, inside it is less.

Agricultural and Biological Sciences: 0.48× its world share, 21 worksAgricultural and Bio…Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology: 0.21× its world share, 10 worksBiochemistry, Geneti…Immunology and Microbiology: 0.16× its world share, 2 worksImmunology and Micro…Neuroscience: 0.77× its world share, 11 worksNeurosciencePharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutics: 1.15× its world share, 4 worksPharmacology, Toxico…Chemical Engineering: 1.59× its world share, 5 worksChemical EngineeringChemistry: 1.18× its world share, 17 worksChemistryComputer Science: 1.22× its world share, 87 worksComputer ScienceEarth and Planetary Sciences: 0.47× its world share, 7 worksEarth and Planetary …Energy: 0.49× its world share, 4 worksEnergyEngineering: 2.28× its world share, 314 worksEngineeringEnvironmental Science: 0.73× its world share, 33 worksEnvironmental ScienceMaterials Science: 0.62× its world share, 20 worksMaterials ScienceMathematics: 1.89× its world share, 20 worksMathematicsPhysics and Astronomy: 1.57× its world share, 32 worksPhysics and AstronomyDentistry: 0.28× its world share, 1 worksDentistryHealth Professions: 0.50× its world share, 12 worksHealth ProfessionsMedicine: 0.19× its world share, 34 worksMedicineNursing: 0.56× its world share, 2 worksNursingVeterinary: 0.63× its world share, 1 worksVeterinaryArts and Humanities: 1.24× its world share, 33 worksArts and HumanitiesBusiness, Management and Accounting: 0.85× its world share, 25 worksBusiness, Management…Decision Sciences: 1.25× its world share, 11 worksDecision SciencesEconomics, Econometrics and Finance: 1.10× its world share, 22 worksEconomics, Econometr…Psychology: 1.25× its world share, 35 worksPsychologySocial Sciences: 1.32× its world share, 153 worksSocial Sciences1×world share
more than its size predictsabout as predictedless

Rings at 0.5×, 1× and 2×. Widest outward: Engineering, 2.3×. Every wedge is a field page.

Who are the top researchers at United States Air Force Academy?

Ranked on the composite score, James J. P. Stewart, John S. Wilkes and Ewart J. de Visser lead among researchers whose main affiliation is United States Air Force Academy.

  1. 1 James J. P. Stewart United States · #40,195 worldwide 2.5k citations · 30 works
  2. 2 John S. Wilkes United States · #47,360 worldwide 469 citations · 31 works
  3. 3 Ewart J. de Visser United States · #71,305 worldwide 428 citations · 28 works
  4. 4 Scott Morton United States · #94,356 worldwide 317 citations · 57 works
  5. 5 Samuel L. Leiter United States · #96,854 worldwide 51 citations · 42 works
  6. 6 Thomas McLaughlin United States · #104,741 worldwide 207 citations · 47 works
  7. 7 Karen Rasler United States · #151,056 worldwide 142 citations · 30 works
  8. 8 Steven Brandt United States · #197,632 worldwide 90 citations · 24 works
  9. 9 Russell M. Cummings United States · #201,453 worldwide 298 citations · 69 works
  10. 10 C. L. Enloe United States · #207,131 worldwide 330 citations · 17 works
All ranked researchers at United States Air Force Academy

Which keywords describe research at United States Air Force Academy?

By fractional works in 2022–2025, weighted toward what it does more of than the world: Large-Eddy Simulation, Heat Transfer, Adaptive Mesh Refinement, High-Order Schemes, Shock-Wave Interactions, Turbulence Modeling, Engineering Education and Innovation.

▲ more of its work than of the world’s◆ about the world’s share▼ less than the world’s

Size is fractional works in 2022–2025 in the topics tagged with each word; colour is the word's share of this institution's work against its share of the world's. The 40 words are chosen for being large and distinctive. Each links to the topic it comes from most.

All 40 words, with their numbers
  1. Machine Learning36▲ 1.19×54 topics
  2. Globalization32▲ 1.81×41 topics
  3. Innovation30▲ 3.2×31 topics
  4. Sustainable Development28▲ 1.95×27 topics
  5. Educational Technology28▲ 2.6×19 topics
  6. Education28▲ 1.78×34 topics
  7. Heat Transfer25▲ 5.5×15 topics
  8. Large-Eddy Simulation24▲ 14×5 topics
  9. E-Learning22▲ 2.4×10 topics
  10. Adaptive Mesh Refinement21▲ 37×2 topics
  11. High-Order Schemes21▲ 37×2 topics
  12. Shock-Wave Interactions21▲ 58×1 topic
  13. Turbulence Modeling21▲ 58×1 topic
  14. Engineering Education20▲ 25×5 topics
  15. Digital Transformation20▲ 4.1×14 topics
  16. Energy Efficiency20▲ 2.3×25 topics
  17. Higher Education19▲ 3.8×14 topics
  18. Online Learning19▲ 2.5×12 topics
  19. Vortex Dynamics18▲ 17×3 topics
  20. Distance Learning18▲ 5.7×8 topics
  21. Pedagogy17▲ 3.8×9 topics
  22. Identity17▲ 2.5×23 topics
  23. Control Systems16▲ 9.5×10 topics
  24. International Relations16▲ 7.3×14 topics
  25. Turbulent Flows15▲ 17×2 topics
  26. Optimization15▲ 3.6×11 topics
  27. Student Engagement15▲ 4.2×12 topics
  28. Cyber-Physical Systems15▲ 6.1×7 topics
  29. Boundary Layer Transition15▲ 23×1 topic
  30. Particle Image Velocimetry15▲ 23×1 topic
  31. STEM Education14▲ 3.5×11 topics
  32. Entrepreneurship14▲ 3.9×9 topics
  33. Flight Control14▲ 52×2 topics
  34. Digitalization13▲ 7.3×7 topics
  35. Unmanned Aerial Vehicles12▲ 6.8×3 topics
  36. Combustion Instabilities11▲ 20×2 topics
  37. Numerical Methods11▲ 14×3 topics
  38. Signal Processing11▲ 8.4×6 topics
  39. Geopolitics10▲ 7.2×10 topics
  40. Hydraulic Systems9▲ 17×2 topics

Which research topics does United States Air Force Academy publish most on?

By volume in 2022–2025: Computational Fluid Dynamics and Aerodynamics, Fluid Dynamics and Turbulent Flows, Rocket and propulsion systems research and Aerospace, Electronics, Mathematical Modeling.

Computational Fluid Dyna…21Computational Fluid Dynamics and Aerodynamics: 21 fractional worksFluid Dynamics and Turbulent Flows: 15 fractional worksRocket and propulsion systems research: 8 fractional worksAerospace, Electronics, Mathematical Modeling: 8 fractional worksGas Dynamics and Kinetic Theory: 8 fractional worksEducational Innovations and Challenges: 7 fractional worksAerospace and Aviation T…7Aerospace and Aviation Technology: 7 fractional worksEngineering Education an…7Engineering Education and Pedagogy: 7 fractional worksAerospace Engineering an…6Aerospace Engineering and Control Systems: 6 fractional worksExperimental Learning in…6Experimental Learning in Engineering: 6 fractional works
Computational MechanicsAerospace EngineeringNature and Landscape ConservationApplied Mathematics3 others

Area is fractional works; colour is the subfield each topic belongs to.

  1. 1 Computational Fluid Dynamics and Aerodynamics Computational Mechanics 21 works
  2. 2 Fluid Dynamics and Turbulent Flows Computational Mechanics 15 works
  3. 3 Rocket and propulsion systems research Aerospace Engineering 8 works
  4. 4 Aerospace, Electronics, Mathematical Modeling Nature and Landscape Conservation 8 works
  5. 5 Gas Dynamics and Kinetic Theory Applied Mathematics 8 works
  6. 6 Educational Innovations and Challenges Information Systems 7 works
  7. 7 Aerospace and Aviation Technology Aerospace Engineering 7 works
  8. 8 Engineering Education and Pedagogy Architecture 7 works
  9. 9 Aerospace Engineering and Control Systems Aerospace Engineering 6 works
  10. 10 Experimental Learning in Engineering Media Technology 6 works

How open and international is its research?

Against the world’s own shares — the tick on each track. Both are shares of its output, so they sit on one scale and can be read against each other as well as against the world.

openly available24.4%not open75.6%

World: 28% of research is openly available.

with international co-authors11.4%domestic only88.6%

World: 19% is written across borders.

How has United States Air Force Academy's research output changed?

Output in 2018–2022 was 62% higher than in 2013–2017.

1990200020102020
grewheldshrank

The same series as a ribbon — one cell per year, darker for more. The line above answers how much; this answers when.

Other research institutions in Colorado Springs

All research institutions in Colorado Springs

Research measures only: rankings here say nothing about teaching, admissions or student experience. Comparable institutions and collaboration partners are in the interactive view on the map.