Mangaluru: A four-member team from the National Institute of Technology Karnataka (NITK), Surathkal, won Aerothon 2026, a national aerospace hackathon organised by HAL and IIT Indore. The team competed against more than 640 teams from across the country. The winning team comprised Omkar Kharade and Shubham Shah, pre-final-year mechanical engineering students; Diya Taneja, a pre-final-year electronics and communication engineering student; and Maxon David Nazareth, a second-year mechanical engineering student.The students were among 20 finalist teams selected for a 24-hour hackathon held at IIT Indore on Aug 7 and 8. They received a cash prize of Rs 50,000. Aerothon 2026 attracted more than 2,300 participants and challenged them to develop data-driven, machine-learning solutions to real-world aerospace engineering problems.The NITK team developed a solution for the problem statement, ‘Physics-Informed Digital Twin for Real-Time Four-Stage Turbojet Health Monitoring’. The system processes real-time sensor data and uses machine learning to predict specific turbojet engine failure modes before they occur.The solution is aimed at improving flight safety and reducing turnaround time for engine manufacturers, maintenance providers and airlines. The team plans to develop the project further for possible commercialisation and is seeking support from NITK alumni and industry experts in aerospace and aviation sectors.
