Future mechanical engineerGaziantep, Turkey

ÖmerBurhan.

I'm a senior at TOBB Science High School in Gaziantep. I launch rockets, lead debate as a committee chair, write code in Python, Java and JavaScript, and travel to see how people built things that are still standing two thousand years later.

See my engineering work → Get to know me

Ömer standing in front of the Library of Celsus in Ephesus — FIG. 1 — Library of Celsus, Ephesus37.94°N 27.34°E

Name: Ömer Burhan
Age: 17
School: TOBB Science High School, Şahinbey
Graduating: June 2027
Intended major: Mechanical Engineering
Code: Python · Java · JavaScript

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About me

The short version: I like understanding how things work, and then making them work better.

I think in forces, systems and people. Mechanical engineering is where all three meet.

I grew up in Gaziantep, a city of workshops and factories in southeastern Turkey, and I study at TOBB Science High School, a science-focused public school. Physics and mathematics are the core of my day. Outside class I build and fly model rockets, write software, and spend a lot of time in Model United Nations, where I went from representing China as a delegate to chairing the World Health Organization committee.

When I travel, I end up staring at the structure of a place: how a 17th-century palace in Amsterdam stands on wooden piles, how a Roman library façade carries its load, how the Atomium holds nine steel spheres in the air. This site collects those projects, notes and memories in one place.

Builder

Model rocketry, and writing code to test ideas before building them.

Leader

Committee chair at my school's conference, and a trainer for younger students taking on their first leadership roles.

Explorer

Belgium, the Netherlands and across Turkey, with an eye for the engineering behind each place.

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Engineering

Rocketry, simulation and software: what I have built, how it works, and what each project taught me.

Project 01 · Rocketry

Model rocket launch

Flown · Sept 2024Solid motorParachute recovery

A single-stage model rocket, launched from a rod pad on open ground outside the city. The video shows the full flight: ignition, the boost phase, coast to apogee, ejection, and the parachute bringing the rocket back down in one piece.

Getting a rocket to come back safely is the real engineering problem. The ejection charge has to fire close to apogee. Too early and the parachute opens at high speed and can tear; too late and the rocket is already falling fast. The Launch Lab below lets you explore exactly that trade-off.

Configuration: Single stage, fin-stabilised
Propulsion: Commercial solid-propellant model motor
Launch: Rod-guided, field-built pad stabilised with stones
Recovery: Parachute, deployed by motor ejection charge
Result: Successful flight and recovery

Project 02 · Simulation

Launch Lab

A simplified 2D flight simulator for model rockets. Pick a motor, change the design, and see where it goes. Click the plot to launch again.

Motor

Rocket mass (no motor) 45 g

Ejection delay 4.0 s

Launch angle 5°

Wind 3 m/s

Apogee–metres

Max speed–m/s

Speed at ejection–m/s

Flight time–seconds

Drift–metres downwind

Ready for launch.

Show the physics (integration step)

// Forces each 2 ms: thrust along the rod/velocity, quadratic drag, gravity.
const vRelX = vx - wind, vRelY = vy;           // air-relative velocity
const v = Math.hypot(vRelX, vRelY);
const CdA = chuteOpen ? Cd_body*A_body + Cd_chute*A_chute : Cd_body*A_body;
const D = 0.5 * rho * CdA * v * v;               // drag force, N
const T = t < burnTime ? impulse / burnTime : 0; // average thrust, N
const m = dryMass + motorCase + propellant * (1 - t / burnTime);
ax = (T * dirX - D * vRelX / v) / m;
ay = (T * dirY - D * vRelY / v) / m - 9.81;
vx += ax * dt;  vy += ay * dt;  x += vx * dt;  y += vy * dt;

Software projects

Code that models real things

Simulators, a machine-learning inspection tool and games. Each one has its full code, documentation and results on GitHub.

Toolbox

What I code in

I use code the way engineers use a sketchbook: to model an idea quickly, check the numbers, and show it to someone else.

.pyPython

.javaJava

.jsJavaScript

.html .cssHTML & CSS

Where this is going: combining mechanical design with software, from simulation and control to the machines themselves. I want to study mechanical engineering in the United States and work where machines meet intelligence: AI, robotics and assistive technology.

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Leadership

Most of my leadership so far has happened at Model United Nations, where I went from defending one country's position to running a committee and training the students who will run it next.

Season2024–25

TOBBMUN'25 · Delegate

Delegate of the People's Republic of China

My first conference. Representing China meant arguing positions I had to research deeply and defend under pressure, building coalitions with other delegations, and drafting clauses that could survive a vote. It taught me to prepare thoroughly and to listen before I speak.

DelegateResearchNegotiationResolution drafting

Season2025–26

TOBBMUN'26 · Committee chair & trainer

Chair, World Health Organization

I chaired the WHO committee: setting the agenda, running procedure, keeping debate moving and fair, and guiding delegates toward a resolution. I also trained younger students who were preparing to serve as chairs and co-chairs, passing on what I learned about procedure, preparation and public speaking.

ChairMentor to junior chairsPublic speakingParliamentary procedure

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Travel log

Places I've been, what I noticed as a future engineer, and what I remember. Each number matches a trip below; click one to jump to it.

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What's next

Everything above is a starting point. This is where I'm heading, and this page will keep growing as I get there.

Now · 2026–27

Senior year

Finishing at TOBB Science High School and graduating in June 2027. Building on my rocketry work, staying active in debate and mentoring, and writing about what I learn on the blog below.

Next · from Fall 2027

Mechanical engineering

Studying mechanical engineering at a university in the United States, with the physics, design and hands-on lab work to go further than I can on my own.

Later

Machines that help people

Building where mechanical design meets software and AI: robotics, intelligent machines, and assistive technology that makes everyday life easier for people who need it.

On the drawing board

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Blog

Essays, engineering notes and memories, written by me.