Sandia and UNM Collaborate to Build More Efficient Rocket

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dimpled rocket nose
Graham Monroe, left, and Sal Rodriguez display the dimpled rocket nose they built as part of a collaboration between Sandia and the University of New Mexico (photo by Jennifer Plante).

February 5, 2024 | Originally published by Sandia National Laboratory on January 25, 2024

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Sal Rodriguez, a nuclear engineer at Sandia National Laboratories, is forging a rocket revolution with the help of the University of New Mexico and student Graham Monroe.

Their cutting-edge research is propelling the future of aerospace by infusing rocket science with a touch of golf ball magic.

They incorporated dimples similar to those found on golf balls, a key element in Rodriguez’s fluid dynamics and heat transfer research.

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