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Subfield · Engineering

Aerospace Engineering research

Aerospace Engineering is a subfield of Engineering. Science Explorer counts 1.2M research works in it since 1950. 30.9% of them reached the world's top 10% most cited for their field and year.

In short: branch of engineering.

Research works
1.2M
fractional, since 1950
In the world top 10%
374k
per year above
Top-10% rate
30.9%
share of its works in the world top 10%
Topics
44
Growth, 2013–17 → 2018–22
+27%
the tick is no change

What is Aerospace Engineering research about, and what is growing?

By the world's output in 2019–23, its most used keywords are Wireless Communications, Unmanned Aerial Vehicles, Design, Air Force, Modernization, Antenna. Gaining share since 2009–13: Energy-Efficient Communication, UAV Networks, Air Force, Modernization, Trajectory Optimization. Losing share: MEMS Sensors, Separation Control, Genetic Algorithms, Optimization.

▲ gaining share of this field◆ holding its share▼ losing share

Size is the world's fractional works in 2019–23 in the topics tagged with each word; colour compares the word's share of this field with 2009–13. Each links to the topic it comes from most.

All 40 words, with their numbers
  1. Wireless Communications29k▲ 1.45×2 topics
  2. Unmanned Aerial Vehicles26k▲ 2.2×2 topics
  3. Design25k▲ 2.1×2 topics
  4. Air Force23k▲ 2.8×1 topic
  5. Modernization23k▲ 2.8×1 topic
  6. Antenna21k◆ 1.11×1 topic
  7. Microstrip21k◆ 1.11×1 topic
  8. Microstructural Evolution20k◆ 0.99×2 topics
  9. Frequency Selective Surfaces18k▲ 1.28×1 topic
  10. Metasurfaces18k▲ 1.28×1 topic
  11. Aerodynamics16k◆ 1.10×3 topics
  12. 3D Mapping16k◆ 1.04×1 topic
  13. SLAM16k◆ 1.04×1 topic
  14. Signal Processing13k◆ 1.09×3 topics
  15. Trajectory Optimization11k▲ 2.6×2 topics
  16. Aerospace Applications10k▼ 0.82×1 topic
  17. Aluminium Alloys10k▼ 0.82×1 topic
  18. Orbit Determination9,714◆ 0.89×2 topics
  19. Gas Turbine Engines9,078▲ 1.31×1 topic
  20. Thermal Barrier Coatings9,078▲ 1.31×1 topic
  21. Large-Eddy Simulation9,026▼ 0.84×2 topics
  22. Genetic Algorithms8,501▼ 0.80×2 topics
  23. Optimization8,501▼ 0.80×2 topics
  24. Molten Salt8,383▼ 0.85×1 topic
  25. Nuclear Reactor8,383▼ 0.85×1 topic
  26. Energy-Efficient Communication7,747▲ 9.1×1 topic
  27. UAV Networks7,747▲ 9.1×1 topic
  28. Antenna Arrays7,104◆ 0.97×1 topic
  29. Particle Swarm Optimization7,104◆ 0.97×1 topic
  30. Detonation Propulsion7,018◆ 1.04×1 topic
  31. Pulse Detonation Engines7,018◆ 1.04×1 topic
  32. Optimal Control6,964▼ 0.82×2 topics
  33. Crosswind6,917◆ 1.01×1 topic
  34. High-Speed Trains6,917◆ 1.01×1 topic
  35. MEMS Sensors6,904▼ 0.68×2 topics
  36. Renewable Energy6,785▲ 1.36×1 topic
  37. Wind Turbine Wakes6,785▲ 1.36×1 topic
  38. Separation Control6,469▼ 0.79×2 topics
  39. Micro-Doppler Effect6,283◆ 1.08×1 topic
  40. Synthetic Aperture Radar6,283◆ 1.08×1 topic

Which countries lead Aerospace Engineering research?

On research quality in 2022–2025, China, the United States and India rank highest in Aerospace Engineering. By volume, China and the United States publish the most (91k and 31k works in 2022–2025).

By research quality, 2022–2025

  1. 1 China · #2 all time 33.5% top 10% · 91k works
  2. 2 United States · #1 all time 20.9% top 10% · 31k works
  3. 3 India · #9 all time 25.4% top 10% · 16k works
  4. 4 United Kingdom · #3 all time 31.8% top 10% · 6.2k works
  5. 5 South Korea · #10 all time 32.0% top 10% · 5.8k works
  6. 6 Italy · #5 all time 32.2% top 10% · 5.5k works
  7. 7 Germany · #4 all time 25.8% top 10% · 7.3k works
  8. 8 Canada · #7 all time 33.1% top 10% · 3.7k works
  9. 9 Australia · #11 all time 34.9% top 10% · 2.3k works
  10. 10 Hong Kong · #20 all time 46.5% top 10% · 1.2k works

The track on each row is that row’s top-10% rate. The ranking itself is the composite score, which the rate is only one part of.

Of 67 countries ranked in Aerospace Engineering. Composite of field-normalised excellence (50%), output (30%) and citations (20%); the bracket is the all-time rank.

All countries ranked in Aerospace Engineering

By volume, 2022–2025

  1. 1 China 91k works
  2. 2 United States 31k works
  3. 3 India 16k works
  4. 4 Japan 8.9k works
  5. 5 Russia 8.3k works
  6. 6 Germany 7.3k works
  7. 7 Ukraine 6.7k works
  8. 8 United Kingdom 6.2k works
  9. 9 South Korea 5.8k works
  10. 10 Italy 5.5k works

How concentrated that is

The same countries as shares of everything the list above accounts for. A node where two countries do two thirds of the work and one spread evenly across twelve read alike as a ranking and not at all alike here.

China: 48.7%United States: 16.5%India: 8.8%Japan: 4.8%6 others listed: 21.2%49%largest
China91k · 48.7%United States31k · 16.5%India16k · 8.8%Japan8,930 · 4.8%6 others listed40k · 21.2%

Shares of the rows listed above, not of the whole node.

Which institutions lead Aerospace Engineering research?

Northwestern Polytechnical University (China) ranks first in Aerospace Engineering on research quality in 2022–2025, followed by National University of Defense Technology and Beihang University.

By research quality, 2022–2025

  1. 1 Northwestern Polytechnical University China · Xi'an · #18 all time 40.1% top 10% · 2.6k works
  2. 2 National University of Defense Technology China · Changsha · #8 all time 37.6% top 10% · 2.3k works
  3. 3 Beihang University China · Beijing · #4 all time 40.7% top 10% · 2.4k works
  4. 4 Harbin Institute of Technology China · Harbin · #17 all time 38.0% top 10% · 2.2k works
  5. 5 Xidian University China · Xi'an · #1 all time 39.3% top 10% · 2k works
  6. 6 Beijing Institute of Technology China · Beijing · #19 all time 35.3% top 10% · 2.2k works
  7. 7 University of Electronic Science and Technology of China China · Chengdu · #7 all time 34.7% top 10% · 2.1k works
  8. 8 Shanghai Jiao Tong University China · Shanghai · #31 all time 38.7% top 10% · 1.6k works
  9. 9 Tsinghua University China · Beijing · #10 all time 40.2% top 10% · 1.3k works
  10. 10 Central South University China · Changsha · #36 all time 46.7% top 10% · 894 works

The track on each row is that row’s top-10% rate. The ranking itself is the composite score, which the rate is only one part of.

Of 795 institutions above the floor of 40 fractional works in Aerospace Engineering.

Top 100 Aerospace Engineering institutions

By volume, 2022–2025

  1. 1 Weatherford College United States 2.9k works
  2. 2 Northwestern Polytechnical University China 2.6k works
  3. 3 Beihang University China 2.4k works
  4. 4 National University of Defense Technology China 2.3k works
  5. 5 Harbin Institute of Technology China 2.2k works
  6. 6 Beijing Institute of Technology China 2.2k works
  7. 7 University of Electronic Science and Technology of China China 2.1k works
  8. 8 Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics China 2.1k works
  9. 9 Xidian University China 2k works
  10. 10 Human Growth Foundation United States 2k works

Who are the leading researchers in Aerospace Engineering?

Among the most productive authors in Aerospace Engineering, David R. Smith, Wolfram Burgard and Robert W. Heath rank highest on the composite score.

  1. 1 David R. Smith United States · #94 worldwide 6.3k citations · 145 works
  2. 2 Wolfram Burgard Germany · #103 worldwide 6.3k citations · 232 works
  3. 3 Robert W. Heath United States · #1,109 worldwide 7.1k citations · 352 works
  4. 4 A. Yamamoto Japan · #1,169 worldwide 3.3k citations · 184 works
  5. 5 Petre Stoica Sweden · #1,382 worldwide 3.8k citations · 215 works
  6. 6 Davide Scaramuzza Switzerland · #2,330 worldwide 2.5k citations · 142 works
  7. 7 Rui Zhang Singapore · #2,460 worldwide 6k citations · 374 works
  8. 8 F. Rocca Italy · #3,262 worldwide 1.8k citations · 105 works
  9. 9 Zhiguo Ding United Kingdom · #3,266 worldwide 4.4k citations · 315 works
  10. 10 Luc Van Gool Switzerland · #4,439 worldwide 8.5k citations · 527 works

Re-ranked on the composite score from the 2,304 highest-output authors in Aerospace Engineering. Identities come from OpenAlex author disambiguation, which occasionally merges or splits people.

Top 100 Aerospace Engineering researchers

Where is Aerospace Engineering research done?

The largest centres of Aerospace Engineering research in 2022–2025 are Beijing (China), Xi'an (China), Nanjing (China) and Shanghai (China). Among places with at least 20 works in it, it is an unusually large share of all research in Henan and Capua.

Largest cities, 2022–2025

  1. 1 Beijing China 21k works
  2. 2 Xi'an China 9.3k works
  3. 3 Nanjing China 7.5k works
  4. 4 Shanghai China 5.7k works
  5. 5 Chengdu China 3.9k works
  6. 6 Changsha China 3.9k works
  7. 7 Harbin China 3.6k works
  8. 8 Wuhan China 3.5k works
  9. 9 Tokyo Japan 3.3k works
  10. 10 Moscow Russia 3.2k works

Where it is the local speciality

  1. Henan23.8 works24×
  2. CapuaIT · 90.5 works24×
← less than its size predicts1×more →

Location quotient: how much more of its research is in Aerospace Engineering than the world average.

See Aerospace Engineering on the map

Aerospace Engineering research by country

The best places for Aerospace Engineering research inside each country, with that country's researchers and world standing.

Where is the best place to study Aerospace Engineering?

Among universities, judged by research, Aerospace Information Research Institute, Xidian University and Beihang University score highest, combining excellence, specialisation, size, growth and international reach. Research strength is one signal when choosing where to study; it does not measure teaching.

0%20%40%mean 37.5%fractional works in this node (log) →share in the world top 10% →Aerospace Information Research Institute: 352, 43.2%Xidian University: 2,036, 39.3%Beihang University: 2,432, 40.7%Northwestern Polytechnical University: 2,581, 40.1%National University of Defense Technology: 2,253, 37.6%Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics: 2,090, 33.9%Space Engineering University: 341, 32.2%University of Electronic Science and Technology of China: 2,100, 34.7%Air Force Engineering University: 717, 38.0%Beijing Institute of Technology: 2,158, 35.3%Aerospace Informatio…Beihang UniversityNorthwestern Polytec…Xidian University
above the meannear itbelow it

One dot per university in the table below. The upper left is the interesting corner: small places doing unusually strong work.

#UniversityScoreTop 10%SpecialisationWorksGrowth
1Aerospace Information Research Institute China 73.543.2%12.5×352 +277.5%
2Xidian University China 71.039.3%11.5×2,036 +19.3%
3Beihang University China 70.040.7%9.1×2,432 +9.3%
4Northwestern Polytechnical University China 69.740.1%9.4×2,581 -9.6%
5National University of Defense Technology China 69.237.6%12.0×2,253 +8.6%
6Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics China 66.733.9%9.7×2,090 +11.2%
7Space Engineering University China 66.032.2%19.4×341 +847.7%
8University of Electronic Science and Technology of China China 64.134.7%7.7×2,100 +40.0%
9Air Force Engineering University China 62.138.0%20.3×717 +5.0%
10Beijing Institute of Technology China 61.735.3%7.5×2,158 +6.1%

Universities only. Score blends excellence (30%), specialisation (25%), size (20%), growth (15%) and international reach (10%), 2015–2022; growth compares 2010–14 with 2015–19.

Is Aerospace Engineering research growing?

Output in 2018–2022 was 27% higher than in 2013–2017, peaking in 2025. The fastest-growing topics are Military Technology and Strategies, Advanced Antenna and Metasurface Technologies and Antenna Design and Analysis.

19801990200020102020
grewheldshrank

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

Which topics inside it are moving

Growth and decline on one axis around a shared zero. Two lists side by side hide the thing that matters: whether the growth dwarfs the decline, or the other way round.

  1. Military Technology and Strategies+315%
  2. Advanced Antenna and Metasurface Technologies+110%
  3. Antenna Design and Analysis+98%
  4. Aerodynamics and Fluid Dynamics Research+95%
  5. Advanced SAR Imaging Techniques+92%
  6. Radar Systems and Signal Processing+82%
  7. Infrared Target Detection Methodologies-6%
← shrinkingno changegrowing →

Growth in output from 2005–09 to 2015–19. Every topic is a page of its own.

What does Aerospace Engineering include?

Antenna Design and Analy…77kAntenna Design and Analysis: 77k fractional worksMilitary Technology and …66kMilitary Technology and Strategies: 66k fractional worksAdvanced Antenna and Metasurface Technologies: 61k fractional worksRobotics and Sensor-Based Localization: 60k fractional worksAluminum Alloy Microstructure Properties: 51k fractional worksNuclear reactor physics and engineering: 51k fractional worksParticle accelerators and beam dynamics: 50k fractional worksSpacecraft and Cryogenic…41kSpacecraft and Cryogenic Technologies: 41k fractional worksHigh-Temperature Coating Behaviors: 34k fractional worksInfrared Target Detection Methodologies: 33k fractional worksAntenna Design and Optimization: 33k fractional worksCombustion and Detonation Processes: 33k fractional works

Area is fractional works in that topic. Every name below is a page of its own.