Introduction to Atmospheric Flows: Theory, Experiments, and Hands-on Simulation 2026
DATE: 18-20 November 2026
LOCATION: online / on-site: Waterloosesteenweg, 72, 1640 Sint-Genesius-Rode, Belgium - near Brussels
ABOUT THE LECTURE SERIES
This hybrid course (on-site/online) serves as an introduction to basic principles of atmospheric flows, with an emphasis on the atmospheric boundary layer. Topics include the general structure of the atmosphere, atmospheric dynamics, boundary layer meteorology, field and lab scale testing, and numerical modeling (including hands-on weather modeling sessions). This course is continuously updated following the research activities at the VKI.
The course will be delivered by a team of researchers from the VKI, including Project Manager / Senior Test Engineer Gertjan Glabeke, Research Engineer dr. Nicolas Coudou, Research Engineer dr. Simone Gremmo, Research Engineer dr. Sebastiano Stipa, and Prof. dr. Wim Munters (who also serves as coordinator).
Learning outcomes of the course are for the students to understand:
- Energy balances in the atmosphere
- Driving forces and general circulation structure in atmospheric dynamics
- Concepts of atmospheric stability and its role in the atmospheric boundary layer
- Working principles of instruments used for atmospheric measurements, including their strengths, weaknesses, uncertainties and cost
- Scaling rules applied to model the atmospheric boundary layer experimentally in a wind tunnel
- Strategies for modeling atmospheric flows on a range of scales and fidelity
- How to set up and run a weather model
Practical information:
- The course will be held in hybrid form. The VKI Lab Tour and lecturer support during the hands-on sessions are restricted to on-site participants.
- Hands-on sessions II and III on Friday afternoon are optional and meant for participants to work through additional weather modeling tasks.
- Participants are expected to bring their own laptops for the hands-on sessions. Instructions for preparing the sessions will be sent.
PROGRAMME
Wednesday 18 November 2026
08:30 - 09:00 Registration
09:00 - 10:15 Welcome Address and Introduction
Prof. dr. Wim Munters, von Karman Institute for Fluid Dynamics, Belgium
10:15 - 10:45 Coffee Break
10:45 - 12:00 Atmospheric Dynamics 1
Prof. dr. Wim Munters, von Karman Institute for Fluid Dynamics, Belgium
12:00 - 13:00 Lunch
13:00 - 14:15 Atmospheric Dynamics 2
Prof. dr. Wim Munters, von Karman Institute for Fluid Dynamics, Belgium
14:15 - 15:30 Boundary Layer Meteorology 1
Prof. dr. Wim Munters, von Karman Institute for Fluid Dynamics, Belgium
15:30 - 16:00 Coffee Break
16:00 - 17:00 Boundary Layer Meteorology 2
Prof. dr. Wim Munters, von Karman Institute for Fluid Dynamics, Belgium
Thursday 19 November 2026
09:00 - 10:15 Measurements & Instrumentation 1
Ir. Gertjan Glabeke, von Karman Institute for Fluid Dynamics, Belgium
10:15 - 10:45 Coffee Break
10:45 - 12:00 Measurements & Instrumentation 2
Ir. Gertjan Glabeke, von Karman Institute for Fluid Dynamics, Belgium
12:00 - 13:30 Lunch
13:00 - 14:15 Experimental Modeling 1
Dr. Nicolas Coudou, von Karman Institute for Fluid Dynamics, Belgium
14:15 - 15:30 Experimental Modeling 2
Dr. Nicolas Coudou, von Karman Institute for Fluid Dynamics, Belgium
15:30 - 16:00 Coffee Break
16:00 - 17:00 Visit of the VKI Labs (on-site participants only)
Ir. Gertjan Glabeke, Prof. dr. Wim Munters, Dr. Nicolas Coudou, von Karman Institute for Fluid Dynamics, Belgium
Friday 20 November 2026
09:00 - 10:15 Numerical Modeling
Prof. dr. Wim Munters, von Karman Institute for Fluid Dynamics, Belgium
10:15 - 10:45 Coffee Break
10:45 - 11:15 Introduction to the Weather Research and Forecasting model WRF
Dr. Simone Gremmo, von Karman Institute for Fluid Dynamics, Belgium
11:15 - 12:00 WRF Hands-on Session I
Dr. Simone Gremmo, Dr. Sebastiano Stipa, Prof. dr. Wim Munters, von Karman Institute for Fluid Dynamics, Belgium
12:00 - 13:30 Lunch
13:00 - 15:00 WRF Hands-on Session II
Dr. Simone Gremmo, Dr. Sebastiano Stipa, Prof. dr. Wim Munters, von Karman Institute for Fluid Dynamics, Belgium
15:00 - 15:30 Coffee Break
15:30 - 17:00 WRF Hands-on Session II
Dr. Simone Gremmo, Dr. Sebastiano Stipa, Prof. dr. Wim Munters, von Karman Institute for Fluid Dynamics, Belgium
FEE AND REGISTRATION
- Deadline for on-site registration: 6 November 2026
- Deadline for online registration: 13 November 2026
- Discount of 10% in case of online participation*
- Discount of 30% for citizens from NATO countries*
- Discount of 40% for citizens from NATO nations supporting the financing of VKI*
* applicable on the price listed below
Early Bird Registration until 18 September 2026
- Undergraduate students: €180
- PhD students: €540
- Staff from recognized universities / research center: €1080
- Staff from commercial organizations: €1296
Late Registration after 18 September 2026
- Undergraduate students: €200
- PhD students: €600
- Staff from recognized universities / research center: €1200
- Staff from commercial organizations: €1440
Turbomachinery Aeroelasticity
DATE: 01-04 December 2026
LOCATION: online / on-site: Waterloosesteenweg, 72, 1640 Sint-Genesius-Rode, Belgium - near Brussels
ABOUT THE COURSE
This course provides a review of the latest understanding and state-of-the-art research in turbomachinery aeroelasticity. After an introduction to the field, recent research on forced response, flutter and non-synchronous vibration will be presented, including high-fidelity computational fluid dynamics and cutting-edge experimental techniques. In view of more integrated propulsion systems, two lectures will be dedicated to the effects of intake distortions. An introduction into computational methodologies for aeroelasticity in turbomachines, including the latest time-marching and frequency-domain methods, will also be given.
The course is aimed at participants from industry and academia, who wish to develop and deepen their understanding of complex aeroelastic phenomena in turbomachinery to aid design predictions and root cause analysis.
A 2.0 ECTS transfer for university students participating onsite is possible upon request. The evaluation is carried out via an oral examination about two weeks after the lecture series.
The course is directed by Dr. Sina Stapelfeldt from Imperial College and Dr. Riccardo Toracchio from VKI.
Dr. Sina Stapelfeldt
Imperial College London, UK
Adjunct Professor at von Karman Institute for Fluid Dynamics, Belgium
Lecture Series Director and Lecturer
Dr. Riccardo Toracchio
von Karman Institute for Fluid Dynamics, Belgium
Lecture Series Director
Dr. Christoph Brandstetter
Ecole Centrale de Lyon, France
Lecturer
Prof. Roque Corral
Universidad Politécnica de Madrid
Lecturer
Dr. Christian Frey
DLR, Germany
Lecturer
Prof. Nicole Key
Purdue University, USA
Lecturer
Dr. Bharat Lad
Chief of Aeromechanics at Rolls-Royce plc
Lecturer
Dr. Matt Montgomery
Doosan Turbomachinery Services, Texas
Lecturer
PROGRAMME
Tuesday 1 December 2026: Introduction to Turbomachinery Aeroelasticity
08:30 - 09:00 Registration
09:10 - 09:30 Welcome Address & Introduction
Prof. Tom Verstraete, Prof. Jeroen van Beeck, VKI, Belgium
09:30 - 10:45 Introduction to Aeroelasticity in Turbomachinery
Dr. Sina Stapelfeldt, Imperial College London, UK & VKI, Belgium
10:45 - 11:15 Coffee break
11:15 - 12:30 Industry perspective: Aeroelasticity in Gas Turbines
Dr. Matt Montgomery, Doosan Turbomachinery Services, Texas, USA
12:30 - 14:00 Lunch
14:00 - 15:15 Industry perspective: Aeroelasticity in Aero-Engines
Dr. Bharat Lad, Rolls-Royce plc., UK
15:15 - 15:45 Coffee break
15:45 - 17:00 Tour of VKI Facilities
17:00 - 18:00 Reception
Wednesday 2 December 2026: Forced Response & Experimental Methods
09:30 - 10:45 Forced response: Advances in experimental measurements and predictions in multi-stage compressors
Prof. Nicole Key, Purdue University, USA
10:45 - 11:15 Coffee break
11:15 - 12:30 Forced response: Aerodynamic and structural mistuning
Prof. Nicole Key, Purdue University, USA
12:30 - 14:00 Lunch
14:00 - 15:15 Inlet distortions
Dr. Matt Montgomery, Doosan Turbomachinery Services, Texas, USA
15:15 - 15:45 Coffee break
15:45 - 17:00 Experimental methods for aeroelasticity in high-speed machines
Dr. Christoph Brandstetter, Ecole Centrale de Lyon, France
Thursday 3 December 2026: Non-synchronous vibrations & Flutter
09:30 - 10:45 An introduction to non-synchronous vibration in fans and compressors
Dr. Christoph Brandstetter, Ecole Centrale de Lyon, France
10:45 - 11:15 Coffee break
11:15 - 12:30 Aerodynamic and aeroacoustic interactions leading to non-synchronous vibrations
Dr. Christoph Brandstetter, Ecole Centrale de Lyon, France
12:30 - 13:45 Lunch
13:45 - 15:15 Fan flutter
Prof. Roque Corral, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Spain & Dr Sina Stapelfeldt, Imperial College London, VKI, UK
15:15 - 15:45 Coffee break
15:45 - 17:00 Aerodynamic Trends in turbine flutter
Prof. Roque Corral, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Spain
Friday 4 December 2026: Seal Flutter & Numerical Methods
09:30 - 10:45 Seal Flutter
Prof. Roque Corral, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Spain
10:45 - 11:15 Coffee break
11:15 - 12:30 Time-marching methods
Prof. Roque Corral, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Spain
12:30 - 14:00 Lunch
14:00 - 15:15 Frequency domain methods for flutter and forced response analysis
Dr. Christian Frey, DLR, Germany
15:15 - 15:45 Coffee Break
15:45 - 16:00 Advanced topics in frequency domain methods
Dr. Christian Frey, DLR, Germany
16:00 - 17:00 Panel session: Open questions & future directions
17:00 Conclusion of Lecture Series
FEE AND REGISTRATION
- Deadline for on-site registration: 16 November 2026
- Deadline for online registration: 23 November 2026
- Discount of 10% in case of online participation*
- Discount of 30% for citizens from NATO countries*
* applicable on the price listed below
Early Bird Registration until 1 October 2026
- Undergraduate students: €270
- PhD students: €720
- Staff from recognized universities / research center: €1368
- Staff from commercial organizations: €1728
Late Registration after 1 October 2026
- Undergraduate students: €300
- PhD students: €800
- Staff from recognized universities / research center: €1520
- Staff from commercial organizations: €1920
