Advanced Aircraft Concepts for Environmental Sustainability (AACES) 2050

Advanced Aircraft Concepts for Environmental Sustainability (AACES) 2050 Encyclopedia Updated Jun 2, 2026 Credit: Georgia Tech Advanced Aircraft Concepts for Environmental Sustainability (AACES) 2050 Advanced Aircraft Concepts for Environmental Sustainability (AACES) is a NASA initiative, commissioning industry and academia to develop transformative aircraft designs, propulsion technologies, and sustainability solutions for commercial aviation by 2050. AACES 2050 falls under NASA’s Advanced Air Vehicles Program, which evaluates and develops technologies for new aircraft systems and explores promising air travel concepts.  Resources NASA Advanced Aircraft Concepts for Environmental Sustainability (AACES) 2050: Overview NASA Funds New Studies Looking at Future of Sustainable Aircraft Additional Aviation Sustainability Strategies Boeing/Aurora Flight Sciences Concept aircraft Credit: Boeing Presentations at AIAA Aviation 2026: Advanced Aircraft Concepts for Environmental Sustainability (AACES) 2050 Phase I: Aurora Flight Sciences Study Overview Aurora AACES Technology Identification, Prioritization, and Roadmapping Fleet Level Scenario Assessment of Future Aircraft Concepts Electra Concept aircraft Credit: Electra “Future Scenario Development Framework for Novel 2050 Transport Aircraft,” AIAA 2026-0224, Ara Mahseredjian and Parker Vascik https://arc.aiaa.org/doi/abs/10.2514/6.2026-0224 “Gradient-Based MDAO Framework for Advanced Aircraft Concepts,” AIAA 2026-1302, Shugo Kaneko, Maxfield G. Arnson, Hannah Hajdik, Gokcin Cinar, Joaquim Martins and Alejandra Uranga https://arc.aiaa.org/doi/10.2514/6.2026-1302 Presentations at AIAA Aviation 2026 Future Scenarios and Technology Assessments for Novel 2050-Timeframe Transport Aircraft Aircraft MDAO Framework and Design Space Exploration toward Environmental Sustainability Incorporating Contrail Avoidance in Aircraft Design and Optimization Acoustics Modeling within Multidisciplinary Design and Optimization of Novel Transport Aircraft Battery Modeling To Enable Gradient-based Optimization of Electrified Aircraft Mission and Design Robust Approach to Engine Cycle Modeling to Enable Multidisciplinary Optimization of Advanced Aircraft Thermal Management System Modeling and Architectures for Conceptual Design of Electrified Aircraft Trade-Offs in Ultra-Efficient Aircraft Design: Electrification and Integration Technologies for 2050 Next-Generation Transport Aircraft: Ultra-Efficient Vehicles Enabled by Electrification and Integration Technologies Sessions: Pioneering Novel Aircraft for the Third Era of Aviation: Electra NASA AACES 2050 Constituent models for MDAO of novel aircraft: Electra NASA AACES 2050 Presentation at IGTI TurboExpo 2026 A gas turbine design framework for integrated electrified aircraft using multidisciplinary design optimization Georgia Institute of Technology Athena Concept Aircraft Credit: Georgia Tech Presentations at AIAA Aviation 2026 Advanced Aircraft Concepts for Environmental Sustainability (AACES) 2050 Phase I: Aurora Flight Sciences Study Overview Aurora AACES Technology Identification, Prioritization, and Roadmapping Fleet Level Scenario Assessment of Future Aircraft Concepts JetZero “Stability-Driven Preliminary Blended Wing Body Design With Foresight for Hydrogen Fuel Adoption,” AIAA 2026-1491, Sai Sankalp Shekar, Aidan R. Molloy, Matteo Guidotti and Matthew A. Clarke https://arc.aiaa.org/doi/abs/10.2514/6.2026-1491 Presentations at AIAA Aviation 2026 MDO for Aero Shape & LH2 Tank Integration, Special Cryogenic Fuels Session Pratt & Whitney Hydrogen Steam Injected, Inter-cooled Turbine Engine (HySIITE) Credit: Pratt & Whitney The post Advanced Aircraft Concepts for Environmental Sustainability (AACES) 2050 appeared first on NASA Science.