Subhan ChaudhryMechanical Engineering
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Mechanical Engineering · UMD

SubhanChaudhry.

Hi, I’m a mechanical engineering student at the University of Maryland. I lead airbrake development for the Terrapin Rocket Team and work on aerodynamics for Terps Racing EV. I like turning rough ideas, CAD, and simulations into hardware I can actually test.

UMD · Class of 2029
Rocketry & Formula SAE
Builder & team lead
LinkedInCollege Park · Maryland

I’m an engineer because I get to see what I model and simulate come to life.

Subhan standing beside a rocket on the University of Maryland campus

About me

Hi, I’m a mechanical engineering student at the University of Maryland. I lead airbrake development for the Terrapin Rocket Team and work on aerodynamics for Terps Racing EV.

I enjoy taking rough ideas through CAD, simulation, fabrication, and testing until they become real hardware.

Learn more about me

Selected systems

Designed to perform.

Rocketry, Formula SAE, and personal projects. From first geometry to prototypes, test data, and working hardware.

Flow visualization around a scale model
Flow visualization around a scale model
Wind tunnel CAD assembly
Wind tunnel CAD assembly
Demonstrating the completed wind tunnel
Demonstrating the completed wind tunnel
01

Terps Racing EV · Test equipment

Mini aerodynamic validation wind tunnel

A modular, desktop-scale wind tunnel built to compare aerodynamic designs with physical flow visualization. A honeycomb straightener and 4.23:1 contraction feed the test section, with a PWM-controlled 120 W axial fan drawing air through the system. Steam testing informed a transition to smoke visualization; the tunnel supported evaluation of four undertray iterations.

4.23:1Contraction ratio
120 WAxial fan
4Undertray iterations
Design report
Gear-driven lateral airbrake CAD and cutaway
Gear-driven lateral airbrake CAD and cutaway
02

Rocketry · Personal flight hardware

Alternative L1 Airbrake

A compact alternative to a conventional lead-screw airbrake, developed from iPad sketches through seven prototypes. Three gear-driven flaps deploy radially from a flush 3-inch airframe. The first H100 flight delivered a full ascent dataset—and a clear direction for the next launch.

7Prototypes
80%Less deployment profile area
50%Shorter overall
Explore the project
Complete helmet scanning, meshing, and CFD process composite
Complete helmet scanning, meshing, and CFD process composite
03

Terps Racing IC · Aerodynamics

Aero helmet redesign

I updated a helmet subassembly that had gone nearly a decade without a redesign. An iPhone LiDAR scan became a cleaned and accurately scaled SolidWorks model, then part of the full car assembly for my first STAR-CCM+ simulation.

LiDARScan to mesh
500CFD iterations
8 hSimulation time
Explore the project
OPTML device in its 3D-printed enclosure
OPTML device in its 3D-printed enclosure
04

Personal · Embedded systems

OPTML transit optimiser

Optimal Predictive Transit Module: a Raspberry Pi device that combines WMATA Green Line and Shuttle-UM 104 arrival data to find a good time to leave my dorm. Instead of arriving to a long wait, the goal is to meet a train with one to two minutes of slack.

20 sData refresh
1–2 minArrival slack
104Shuttle-UM route
Explore the project

Technical

Experience.

Here is some of the experience I have gained over the last few years through internships, student teams, and hands-on engineering projects.

May–Aug 2026

Aerolab

Mechanical Design Engineer Intern

  • Designed a compressor stand, contraction cone, and components across three wind tunnel projects using SolidWorks Weldments, Sheet Metal, and Structural Members.
  • Applied GD&T, managed revisions in SolidWorks PDM, and worked directly with the manufacturing team.
  • Completed 70+ hours of shop-floor fabrication and assisted with Haas CNC milling of structural parts.
Aug 2025–present

Terrapin Rocket Team

Airbrake Lead
Previously Airbrake R&D Engineer

  • Lead 45+ engineers across system design, CAD, controls, task coordination, and preliminary design reviews.
  • Designed 25+ mechanical components, updated electronics thermal management, and redesigned the ball screw deployment mechanism; structural changes increased shear strength by 17%.
  • Cross-checked 30+ FEA simulations against Glenn L. Martin Wind Tunnel measurements at 10–110 m/s and flap angles of 0–80°.
  • Developed C++ flight software integrating Blue Raven telemetry into airbrake control, contributing to the team’s ~20,000 ft club altitude record at IREC 2026.
Sep 2025–present

Terps Racing IC & EV

Aerodynamics Technical Engineer

  • Lead TREV27 front-wing development through five design iterations and complex endplate geometry.
  • Conducted 250+ hours of STAR-CCM+ analysis against the season baseline, targeting 175 lb of downforce, approximately 3.5% above baseline.
  • Mentor 10 design engineers across three aerodynamic components, guiding CAD development and reviewing design iterations.
Summer 2024

Sertum Consulting DMCC

Modeling Intern

  • Delivered 20+ CAD models and 2D drawings for client projects.
  • Standardised drawing templates and measurement notation across the team.

Skills.

Here are some of the technical skills I have built through my projects, student teams, and engineering experience.

01

CAD

  • SolidWorks
  • Fusion 360
  • CATIA, Onshape & AutoCAD
  • SolidWorks PDM
  • GD&T & Weldments
02

Simulation

  • STAR-CCM+ CFD
  • SolidWorks FEA
  • Wind tunnel testing
  • Flow visualization
  • OpenRocket
  • XFLR5 airfoils
03

Fabrication

  • FDM 3D printing
  • Laser cutting
  • Composite fabrication
  • CNC machining
  • Mold & jig design
04

Coding & electronics

  • Python and MATLAB
  • Embedded C++
  • Arduino and Teensy
  • Raspberry Pi
  • Control systems & avionics telemetry

College Park, Maryland

Let's build something together.

subway07@umd.edu
Email meLinkedIn