Fazle Hussain, a fluid dynamicist who specializes in aerodynamics, vortex dynamics and turbulence, long has focused on the search for “order within disorder” in fluid turbulence.

As director of the University of Houston’s Institute of Fluid Dynamics and Turbulence, he is one of the leading experts in the field. He has published more than 250 scientific papers on it and related topics and is one of the most decorated fluid dynamicists, winning four of the field’s most coveted awards.

Hussain was one of the first to recognize that the organized motion underlying the seemingly random motion of turbulence is the key to understanding turbulence and to controlling turbulent flows for technological benefit. Through his Aerodynamics and Turbulence Laboratory at UH, he is constantly placing together pieces of the puzzle to find significant applications for advances in the field.

Hussain earned his doctoral and master’s degrees in mechanical engineering from Stanford University and his bachelor’s degree, also in mechanical engineering, from Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology. He joined the University of Houston in 1971.

Hussain was elected to the National Academy of Engineering in 2001, and he plays an active role in the Academy of Engineering, Medicine and Science of Texas.