Missile defense finite element analysis

A primary project while at Lincoln Labs was to perform FEA to evaluate the time to failure for pressurized oxidizer tanks on missiles. The military's goal was to mount a large YAG laser to the nose of a 747 and have it remain airborne to shoot down intercontinental ballistic missiles over the country of origin. The analysis included basic modeling and thermal transient FEA in ANSYS. More complex algorithms were created to model the dynamic of a missle that could spin around its longitudinal axis during flight, missiles with ablative materials that could shed thermal energy, and other potential countermeasures the team could come up with. Information from my studies was presented in classified briefings.