Parviz Moin holds the distinguished position of Franklin P. and Caroline M. Johnson Professor in the School of Engineering at Stanford University where he has been a faculty member since September 1986. Born in Tehran, Iran and naturalized as a U.S. citizen in 1981, Moin received his Bachelor's degree with High Distinction in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Minnesota in 1974 followed by multiple advanced degrees from Stanford University including a Master's in Mechanical Engineering in 1975, a Master's in Mathematics in 1978, and a Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering with Great Distinction in 1978. Prior to his Stanford appointment, he held significant research positions at NASA Ames Research Center as National Research Council Fellow, Staff Scientist, and Senior Staff Scientist. Moin's career trajectory demonstrates a remarkable transition from foundational academic training to leadership in establishing premier research institutions that have shaped the global landscape of turbulence research.
Professor Moin pioneered the development and application of direct numerical simulation and Large Eddy Simulation techniques which have revolutionized the study of turbulence physics, control mechanisms, and modeling concepts across engineering disciplines. His seminal contributions to understanding the structure of turbulent shear flows have been widely cited with his scholarly work accumulating over 98,500 citations according to Google Scholar, reflecting extraordinary impact in the field. Moin's theoretical frameworks and computational methodologies have become standard approaches for investigating complex fluid phenomena, enabling breakthroughs in aerospace engineering, propulsion systems, and aerodynamic design. The practical applications of his research span critical areas including hypersonic flow dynamics, boundary layer control, aircraft icing prediction, and the interaction of turbulent flows with shock waves, all of which have significantly advanced aerospace technology and safety.
As the founding director of the Center for Turbulence Research established in 1987 as a consortium between NASA and Stanford, Moin created what has become the international focal point for turbulence research, attracting and integrating diverse expertise from engineering, mathematics, and physics worldwide. He further expanded his institutional leadership by founding the Institute for Computational and Mathematical Engineering at Stanford, cementing his role as a visionary architect of interdisciplinary research frameworks. Moin has served in influential editorial capacities including as Editor of the Annual Review of Fluid Mechanics from 2002 to 2024, Associate Editor of the Journal of Computational Physics, and on the editorial board of Physical Review Fluids. His current research continues to push boundaries in computational physics with ongoing investigations into aerodynamic noise, flow control mechanisms, and advanced simulation techniques for next-generation aerospace applications, ensuring his enduring influence on both theoretical understanding and practical implementation in fluid dynamics.
