HYSKY Unveils Award Categories Honoring AI Godfather Alan Turing and Aviation Pioneer Amelia Earhart
- HYSKY Society
- Nov 18
- 7 min read
HYSKY has unveiled its 2025 award categories, celebrating the pioneers whose legacies define both the history and future of innovation. From AI godfather Alan Turing to aviation trailblazer Amelia Earhart, these awards honor the visionaries whose groundbreaking work continues to inspire today’s leaders in hydrogen-powered flight. Designed to spotlight excellence across engineering, safety, education, startups, physics, and more, the HYSKY Awards recognize the people pushing zero-emission aviation toward a cleaner, more ambitious future.
HYSKY Award Categories
Hydrogen Safety Award
The Hydrogen Safety Award recognizes outstanding achievements in ensuring the safe design, handling, storage, and/or operation of hydrogen for aviation.
Aviation is built on safety, and nowhere is that more important than in the emerging field of hydrogen-powered flight. Hydrogen safety remains one of the most critical pillars of the industry, yet it is often shaped by public misunderstanding, lingering myths, and what many call “Hindenburg Syndrome.” Despite hydrogen’s strong safety record in modern applications, outdated fears still influence policy, investment, and public acceptance. Recognizing excellence in hydrogen safety is therefore essential to rebuild public trust and demonstrate that hydrogen aviation is being developed with uncompromising safety at its core.
Amelia Earhart Award
The Amelia Earhart Award honors the top woman leading advancements in hydrogen aviation.
Amelia Earhart was an American aviation pioneer, famous for becoming the first woman to fly solo nonstop across the Atlantic and for setting numerous distance and altitude records. A bestselling author, public advocate for commercial air travel, and co-founder of the Ninety-Nines, she used her global fame to champion women’s rights and expand opportunities for women in aviation. Her mysterious 1937 disappearance during an attempt to fly around the world only strengthened her legacy as a fearless explorer and enduring icon of possibility.
Kelly Johnson Award
The Kelly Johnson Award recognizes excellence in designing and/or developing a hydrogen-powered aircraft.
Clarence “Kelly” Johnson was one of the most influential aircraft designers in history and the legendary leader of Lockheed’s Skunk Works. He created revolutionary aircraft such as the U-2, SR-71 Blackbird, and P-38 Lightning, earning a reputation for engineering elegance, rapid innovation, and visionary leadership. Johnson’s work set the standard for high-performance aircraft design and continues to inspire aerospace engineers worldwide.
Frank Whittle Award
The Frank Whittle Award recognizes innovation in hydrogen propulsion.
Sir Frank Whittle was the British engineer and inventor who created the modern jet engine, igniting the dawn of the jet age. His determination and revolutionary thinking transformed aviation by making high-speed, high-altitude flight possible. Whittle’s pioneering work in propulsion continues to inspire engineers pushing the boundaries of next-generation, zero-emission flight.
Theodore von Kármán Award
The Theodore von Kármán Award honors a lifetime of pioneering achievement in hydrogen aviation.
Theodore von Kármán was one of the most influential aerospace scientists of the 20th century, known for groundbreaking work in aerodynamics, propulsion, and high-speed flight. His research shaped modern aircraft design, helped establish NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and laid the theoretical foundations that still guide aerospace engineering today. His legacy continues to inspire visionary thinkers pushing aviation into its next era.
Frank Piasecki Award
The Frank Piasecki Award recognizes breakthroughs in hydrogen-powered vertical flight.
Frank Piasecki was a pioneering rotorcraft engineer best known for developing the world’s first successful tandem-rotor helicopter. His inventive approach to vertical flight led to iconic aircraft designs and opened new frontiers in helicopter performance, stability, and payload capability. Piasecki’s legacy continues to influence modern VTOL development and inspires today’s innovators reshaping vertical flight with hydrogen.
James Dewar Award
The James Dewar Award honors excellence in hydrogen infrastructure.
Sir James Dewar was a pioneering physicist and chemist best known for inventing the Dewar flask—the precursor to modern cryogenic storage. His groundbreaking work in low-temperature science enabled the safe handling and storage of liquefied gases, including liquid hydrogen. Dewar’s innovations laid the foundation for today’s hydrogen infrastructure and remain central to cryogenic technology worldwide.
William Grove Award
The William Grove Award recognizes the hydrogen startup of the year.
Sir William Grove was a 19th-century scientist who discovered the principle behind the modern fuel cell, demonstrating that hydrogen and oxygen could generate electricity cleanly and efficiently. His groundbreaking invention laid the foundation for today’s hydrogen energy systems. Grove’s early insights continue to power modern advances in fuel cell technology and inspire the startups shaping hydrogen aviation’s future.
Geoffrey Ballard Award
The Geoffrey Ballard Award honors a rising star in hydrogen aviation.
Dr. Geoffrey Ballard was a visionary scientist and entrepreneur widely regarded as a modern pioneer of the hydrogen fuel cell. As founder of Ballard Power Systems, he helped transition fuel cell technology from laboratory curiosity to real-world applications in transportation and energy systems. His leadership accelerated global interest in hydrogen solutions and continues to inspire new generations of innovators.
Jack Parsons Award
The Jack Parsons Award celebrates fearless experimentation in hydrogen aviation.
Jack Parsons was an early rocketry pioneer whose daring, unconventional experiments helped lay the foundation for modern spaceflight. A co-founder of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, he blended visionary imagination with hands-on engineering that pushed propulsion science forward. His extraordinary and dramatic life later inspired the CBS television series, Strange Angel, further cementing his status as one of aerospace’s most fascinating figures. Parsons’ legacy continues to inspire those who aren’t afraid to test limits in pursuit of innovation.
Chien-Shiung Wu Award
The Chien-Shiung Wu Award recognizes breakthroughs in hydrogen physics.
Chien-Shiung Wu was a groundbreaking experimental physicist whose precision and brilliance reshaped modern physics. Her famous 1956 “Wu experiment” disproved a fundamental assumption about particle behavior, transforming the field and earning her global acclaim. Often called the “First Lady of Physics,” Wu’s legacy of scientific rigor and discovery continues to inspire researchers pushing the boundaries of hydrogen science today.
Mária Telkes Award
The Mária Telkes Award honors excellence in hydrogen storage.
Dr. Mária Telkes, known as the “Sun Queen,” was a pioneering physical chemist whose breakthroughs in thermal energy storage and materials science helped shape the modern clean-energy landscape. Her inventive approach to harnessing and storing energy laid foundational principles still used in advanced systems today. Telkes’ legacy continues to guide innovators tackling the critical challenge of storing hydrogen for aviation.
Marie Maynard Daly Award
The Marie Maynard Daly Award recognizes outstanding graduate-level research in hydrogen aviation.
Dr. Marie Maynard Daly was the first African American woman in the United States to earn a PhD in chemistry and a pioneering biochemist whose research transformed our understanding of human health. Her work on molecular structure, cardiovascular science, and chemical pathways set new standards for scientific rigor. Daly’s legacy of excellence, determination, and barrier-breaking achievement continues to inspire graduate researchers pushing the frontiers of hydrogen aviation.
George Robert Carruthers Award
The George Robert Carruthers Award recognizes the hydrogen aviation educator of the year.
Dr. George Robert Carruthers was an inventive astrophysicist and engineer whose creations expanded humanity’s view of the universe—including the iconic far-ultraviolet camera/spectrograph used during the Apollo 16 mission, the first Moon-deployed telescope. A passionate mentor and STEM education advocate, he dedicated his career to uplifting young scientists and broadening access to high-level scientific learning. Carruthers’ legacy continues to shape educators who ignite curiosity and guide the future.
Alan Turing Award: Honoring AI in Hydrogen Aviation
The Alan Turing Award honors innovators leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) to accelerate hydrogen aviation.
Alan Turing was a British mathematician, cryptanalyst, and computer science pioneer whose ideas laid the foundation for modern AI. During World War II, Turing led codebreaking efforts at Bletchley Park, famously cracking the German Enigma machine—a story later dramatized in the acclaimed film The Imitation Game. His groundbreaking concept of the “Turing machine” established the basis of computation, while the “Turing Test” remains a defining thought experiment in artificial intelligence. Despite facing persecution in his lifetime, Turing’s legacy has grown into one of the most influential in science and technology, inspiring generations of innovators.
Volunteer of the Year Award
One of HYSKY’s most prestigious and sought-after honors, the Volunteer of the Year Award recognizes the individual whose dedication, impact, and service have gone above and beyond. This award celebrates the volunteer who contributed the most time, energy, and passion toward advancing HYSKY’s mission throughout the year.
Closing
HYSKY has unveiled its 2025 award categories, celebrating the pioneers whose legacies define both the history and future of innovation. From AI godfather Alan Turing to aviation trailblazer Amelia Earhart, these awards honor the visionaries whose groundbreaking work continues to inspire today’s leaders in hydrogen-powered flight. Designed to spotlight excellence across engineering, safety, education, startups, physics, and more, the HYSKY Awards recognize the people pushing zero-emission aviation toward a cleaner, more ambitious future.
Nominations for 2025 are open now through December 10, 2025.
Nominate a colleague, a leader you admire, or even yourself using the official form:
Help us celebrate the innovators transforming hydrogen aviation.
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