Contributor: Dr Igle Gledhill
Background
Igle Gledhill
Dr Igle Gledhill was born and grew up in Grahamstown, and discovered the joys of Physics at Rhodes University, obtaining her BSc (Honours) in Physics with distinction in 1977. She went on to complete a PhD in Plasma Physics at the University of Natal in 1983. For the next four years until 1987 she modelled plasma behaviour: gases at the temperatures of the stars, and worked on plasma fusion, why the space shuttle glows (under ordinary conditions), and why galaxies are galaxy-shaped as a postdoctoral research associate at the University of California and Stanford University in the US. Currently she is a Fellow in the Defence Technology business unit (Defencetek) of the CSIR.
Current research interest
Dr Gledhill spends half her time specialising in transonic aerodynamics at Defencetek’s Aeronautics Programme, determining what happens to airflow at the speed of sound, and using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) to gain insight. She is currently working on the aerodynamics of manoeuvre. As a Defencetek Fellow, her primary responsibilities are technical, but she also has a role in some of Defencetek’s strategic initiatives, including technology for peace support, and humanitarian de-mining in regions infested with land mines.
Other relevant information
She is President of the SA Association for Theoretical and Applied Mechanics and Chairs the SA National Committee for International Union of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics. She also holds membership of the Advisory Panel on Control Systems in Competitive Industry for National Research Foundation (NRF) and of the International Panel on Shaping the future of physics in South Africa, a process for review and foresight developed by the SA Institute of Physics (SAIP), the Department of Science and Technology (DST), and NRF. She is a member of the Academy of Science of South Africa.
Contact information
Dr Igle Gledhill, Tel: +27 12 841 2769, Fax: +27 12 349 1152