Radostin Mitkov awarded the AWE Best Student Paper Award, one of only three distinctions in the field of computational wind engineering
Radostin Mitkov, a researcher at the GATE Institute of Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski,” has been awarded the prestigious AWE Best Student Paper Award during the 8th International Symposium on Computational Wind Engineering (CWE 2026), held at Western University, Canada.
The award is one of only three distinctions granted for the best scientific publications presented at the symposium. The winning research was selected from more than 100 scientific contributions submitted from around the world. This recognition places the young researcher’s work among the highest-rated contributions in one of the fastest-growing fields of modern engineering.
The CWE Symposium is among the most prestigious international events in the field of computational wind engineering and is held once every four years. It brings together leading scientists, researchers, and industry representatives from across the globe working on key topics such as urban air quality, pollution dispersion, wind comfort, digital twins, machine learning, wind energy, and sustainable urban development.
The award-winning research was developed within the Reliable Computational Modeling Research Group at the GATE Institute and addresses one of the fundamental challenges of modern engineering simulations: how to assess and ensure their reliability when supporting real-world decision-making related to urban environments, infrastructure, air quality, and building design.
Although often overlooked by the general public, the validation and accuracy assessment of computational models are essential prerequisites for developing reliable digital tools capable of supporting the creation of safer, more sustainable, and healthier urban spaces.
This distinction is yet another testament to the high quality of the research conducted at the GATE Institute and to the growing international recognition of the Bulgarian scientific community in the fields of digital technologies and engineering sciences.
About Radostin Mitkov
Radostin Mitkov is a researcher at the GATE Institute—the first Center of Excellence in Big Data and Artificial Intelligence in Eastern Europe. He is a member of the Institute’s Reliable Computational Modeling Research Group. For many years, he has also worked with the Cities of the Future team, which developed one of Bulgaria’s most innovative projects—the Digital Twin of Sofia.
His primary research focus is the study of wind effects and pollutant dispersion in urban environments using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations. This approach helps researchers understand how air “breathes” between buildings, how pollutants accumulate or disperse, and how cities can be planned to become healthier and more comfortable places for their residents.
Before joining GATE, Radostin earned a degree in Aeronautics and Astronautics from the University of Southampton, United Kingdom, where his passion for aerodynamics first emerged. He is currently pursuing a PhD at the Faculty of Mathematics and Informatics of Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski,” under the supervision of Prof. Dessislava Petrova-Antonova and Prof. Andreas Mark from Chalmers University of Technology, Sweden.
Radostin is involved in the development of a tool for simulating urban wind conditions that will help architects and urban planners predict potential wind accelerations and turbulence before new buildings are constructed.
He participates in several international research projects and, in 2024, secured funding through the national programme “Young Scientists and Postdoctoral Researchers – 2” for his project focused on using CFD and machine learning to analyze urban microclimates and pollution.
In 2025, Radostin completed a research specialization at the Von Karman Institute for Fluid Dynamics (Belgium), one of the world’s leading institutions in aerodynamics and fluid mechanics. There, he worked on projects investigating urban wind processes, combining artificial intelligence and computational simulations to enable faster and more accurate analyses. The Von Karman Institute has long collaborated with leading aviation and aerospace companies in the development of aircraft engines, drones, and satellites, placing Radostin’s research within the framework of the highest international standards in engineering science.
The GATE Institute congratulates Radostin Mitkov on this well-deserved achievement and wishes him continued success in his scientific career.