Biography
Patrick Meagher joined UCF as an assistant professor in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering in August 2025. His research focuses on the deployment of extreme-scale computational fluid dynamics and molecular dynamics simulations to reveal unique physics occurring in the supersonic or hypersonic reacting flows at the micro and nano scale, and to couple these phenomena to the performance of high-speed propulsion systems and vehicles.
Meagher received his doctorate from the School of Mechanical, Aerospace, and Manufacturing Engineering at the University of Connecticut in 2025, with the thesis titled “The Role of Microscopic Transport Phenomena in the Detonation Cell Cycle.” He received his bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering in 2020 from the University of Connecticut, graduating summa cum laude. In 2022, he was awarded the Zeldovich Fellowship by the Air Force Office of Scientific Research for excellence in detonation research. Meagher was also appointed as a visiting student researcher in the NanoEnergy Lab at Stanford University in 2022, and served as a student researcher with Google Research in 2023. In addition to his research, Dr. Meagher is also an active member of the amateur rocketry community and is a certified flyer with the Tripoli Rocketry Association.
Meagher received his doctorate from the School of Mechanical, Aerospace, and Manufacturing Engineering at the University of Connecticut in 2025, with the thesis titled “The Role of Microscopic Transport Phenomena in the Detonation Cell Cycle.” He received his bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering in 2020 from the University of Connecticut, graduating summa cum laude. In 2022, he was awarded the Zeldovich Fellowship by the Air Force Office of Scientific Research for excellence in detonation research. Meagher was also appointed as a visiting student researcher in the NanoEnergy Lab at Stanford University in 2022, and served as a student researcher with Google Research in 2023. In addition to his research, Dr. Meagher is also an active member of the amateur rocketry community and is a certified flyer with the Tripoli Rocketry Association.
Recent Publications
- Meagher, P. A., Zhao, X., Grid resolution considerations for simulating non-ideal cellular detonations, Proceedings of the Combustion Institute (2024), https://doi.org/10.1016/j.proci.2024.105412
- Meagher, P. A., Shi, X., Santos, J. P., Muraleedharan, N. K., Crane, J., Poludnenko, A. Y., Wang, H., Zhao, X., Isolating gasdynamic and chemical effects on the detonation cellular structure: A combined experimental and computational study, Proceedings of the Combustion Institute (2023), https://doi.org/10.1016/j.proci.2022.08.001
- Zhang, P., Meagher, P. A., Zhao, X., Multiplicity for idealized rotational detonation waves, Physics of Fluids (2021), https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0063837
- Krisman, A., Meagher, P., Zhao, X., Park, J., Lu, T., Chen, J. H., A direct numerical simulation of Jet A flame kernel quenching, Combustion and Flame (2021), https://doi.org/10.1016/j.combustflame.2020.11.003
Education
Ph.D. in Mechanical, Aerospace and Manufacturing Engineering, University of Connecticut
B.S. in Mechanical Engineering, University of Connecticut
B.S. in Mechanical Engineering, University of Connecticut
Specialties
- Computational fluid dynamics
- Molecular dynamics simulation
- Explainable artificial intelligence
- Supersonic and hypersonic aerodynamics and propulsion
- High-speed deflagrations and detonations