Chandrashekhar Ganpatrao Sonwane (born May 2, 1972) is an Indian American

scientist A scientist is a person who conducts Scientific method, scientific research to advance knowledge in an Branches of science, area of the natural sciences. In classical antiquity, there was no real ancient analog of a modern scientist. Instead, ...

who works in the fields of space launch, air breathing propulsion and chemical and power industries. Sonwane is known for contributing to several aerospace companies including

Aerojet Rocketdyne Aerojet Rocketdyne is an American manufacturer of rocket, Hypersonic flight, hypersonic, and electric propulsive systems for space, defense, civil and commercial applications. Headquartered in Sacramento, California, the company is owned by Aeroj ...

Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne (PWR) was an American company that designed and produced rocket engines that use liquid rocket propellants, liquid propellants. It was a division of Pratt & Whitney, a fully owned subsidiary of United Technologies Corpo ...

and supported various

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research. NASA was established in 1958, succeeding t ...

's deep space programs including

Artemis 1 Artemis 1, officially Artemis I and formerly Exploration Mission-1 (EM-1), was an uncrewed Moon-orbiting mission. As the first major spaceflight of NASA's Artemis program, Artemis 1 marked the return of the agency to lunar exploration original ...

(Space Launch System). He was Elected as a Fellow of

Royal Aeronautical Society The Royal Aeronautical Society, also known as the RAeS, is a British multi-disciplinary professional institution dedicated to the global aerospace community. Founded in 1866, it is the oldest aeronautical society in the world. Members, Fellows ...

(RAeS) and also an elected member of the

European Academy of Sciences and Arts The European Academy of Sciences and Arts (EASA, la, Academia Scientiarum et Artium Europaea) is a transnational and interdisciplinary network, connecting about 2,000 recommended scientists and artists worldwide, including 37 Nobel Prize laure ...

. Sonwane was the principal investigator at

Masten Space Systems Masten Space Systems was an aerospace manufacturer startup company in Mojave, California (formerly in Santa Clara, California) that was developing a line of vertical takeoff, vertical landing (VTVL) rockets, initially for uncrewed research sub- ...

for

Lunar lander related technologies.

Early life and education

Sonwane graduated with a

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University of ...

in chemical engineering from the

Institute of Chemical Technology Institute of Chemical Technology (ICT) is a state-funded deemed university in Mumbai, India. The institute also has campuses at Bhubaneswar, Odisha and Jalna, Marathwada. It is focused on training and research in the fields of chemical engin ...

, Mumbai. In 1996, he received

Master of Science A Master of Science ( la, Magisterii Scientiae; abbreviated MS, M.S., MSc, M.Sc., SM, S.M., ScM or Sc.M.) is a master's degree in the field of science awarded by universities in many countries or a person holding such a degree. In contrast to ...

in chemical engineering from the

Indian Institute of Technology, Mumbai The Indian Institute of Technology Bombay (IIT Bombay or IITB) is a public research university and technical institute in Powai, Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. It is considered as one of the best engineering universities in India and is top rank ...

, India. He completed a PhD in chemical engineering from the

University of Queensland , mottoeng = By means of knowledge and hard work , established = , endowment = A$224.3 million , budget = A$2.1 billion , type = Public research university , chancellor = Peter Varghese , vice_chancellor = Deborah Terry , city = B ...

in 2000.

Patents and publications

Chandrashkhar has various patents and publications to his credit. Below is the list of few. *''Injector mixer for a compact gasification reactor system'', March 2018,

Gas Technology Institute The Gas Technology Institute is an American non-profit research and development organization which develops, demonstrates, and licenses new energy technologies for private and public clients, with a particular focus on the natural gas industry. GT ...

, Inventors: Chandrashekhar Sonwane, Kenneth M. Sprouse *''Gas generator and process therefor'', April 2016,

, Inventors: Stephen Yows, Chandrashekhar Sonwane *''Flow splitter for a compact gasification reactor system'', May 2011,

, Inventors: Chandrashekhar Sonwane, Kenneth M. Sprouse *''Recuperative supercritical carbon dioxide cycle'', December 2011,

, Inventors: Chandrashekhar Sonwane, Kenneth M. Sprouse, Ganesan Subbaraman, George M. O'Connor, Gregory A. Johnson *''Pump apparatus including deconsolidator'', July 2012,

, Inventors: Chandrashekhar Sonwane, Timothy Saunders, Mark Andrew Fitzsimmons *''Fundamental Studies in Nanoporpous and Mesoporous Materials'', 2000,

The University of Queensland , mottoeng = By means of knowledge and hard work , established = , endowment = A$224.3 million , budget = A$2.1 billion , type = Public research university , chancellor = Peter Varghese , vice_chancellor = Deborah Terry , city = Br ...

Awards and honors

*2020 Stellar Award - Rotary National Award for Space Achievement *Outstanding Section award for very large first place

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sonwane, Chandreshekhar Living people People from Nanded Indian scientists Institute of Chemical Technology alumni IIT Bombay alumni American people of Marathi descent 1972 births Fellows of the Royal Aeronautical Society