Caltech Dedicates the Lynn Booth and Kent Kresa Department of Aerospace
On Wednesday, April 8, the Lynn Booth and Kent Kresa Department of Aerospace at Caltech was formally dedicated in a ceremony held outside the north entrance of Guggenheim Aeronautical Laboratory.
Caltech faculty members, students, and staff, gathered alongside the friends and family of Caltech Trustee Lynn Booth and Life Member Kent Kresa, former chair of the Board of Trustees, to mark the occasion.
"Aerospace is now entering a new era of explosive growth: the rise of smart, affordable drones; the renewed exploration of the Moon and of Mars and beyond; the rapid militarization of space; the proliferation of advanced robotics; and above all, the transforming power of artificial intelligence. … Caltech has earned its place in the forefront of all of these developments," Kresa said.
The dedication followed a $50 million gift made in late 2025 by Booth and Kresa, along with Booth and Kresa's family foundations, to support the department's continued leadership in aerospace research and education.
In remarks during the event, Caltech President Thomas F. Rosenbaum, the Sonja and William Davidow Presidential Chair and professor of physics, highlighted how the commitment of Booth and Kresa will strengthen the Institute's leadership in aerospace innovation. "The Booth-Kresa Department of Aerospace is a signature achievement of Caltech now endowed by signature philanthropists. The future prospects literally reach to the heavens," he said.
Harry Atwater, the Otis Booth Leadership Chair of the Division of Engineering and Applied Science and Howard Hughes Professor of Applied Physics and Materials Science, pointed to the "miraculous things" made possible by a group of dedicated faculty and students for the betterment of humanity. Mory Gharib, the Booth-Kresa Leadership Chair of the Center for Autonomous Systems and Technologies (CAST) from 2018 to 2025 and the Hans W. Liepmann Professor of Aeronautics and Medical Engineering, emphasized the department's history and role in shaping future technologies and empowering the next generation of researchers.
Booth and Kresa also shared remarks, reflecting on the origin and motivation behind their gift. Kresa noted that Caltech aims to evolve and grow the footprint of aerospace at Caltech, an ambition which he and Booth ultimately chose to support.
Looking ahead, Sergio Pellegrino, the Joyce and Kent Kresa Professor of Aerospace and Civil Engineering and the head of the Booth-Kresa Department of Aerospace, highlighted how the gift will enable new research directions across the field.
"We have already begun to discuss new directions of research in fluid dynamics, hypervelocity experiments, and new materials for aerospace structures, which will be enabled by this gift," he said. "We also aim to modernize our experimental facilities, leveraging your investment within the Institute, in partnership with Southern California industry and all supporters of Caltech."
The event concluded with a ribbon-cutting ceremony, followed by a private reception and dinner featuring remarks by David Gallagher, director of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
