Michael “Mischa” Steurer, Ph.D., 57, (Senior Member, IEEE) passed away after a brief illness on August 27, 2023. His wife, Maria, was by his side. He was born in Vienna, Austria to parents Johann and Helga Steurer on March 28, 1966. A resident of Crawfordville, Florida, Michael enjoyed spending time in nature with Maria. He was the president of the Tallahassee Underwater Rugby Club. Michael also loved playing bluegrass music in the Coon Bottom Creek Band.
Research also was an integral part of Michael’s life. He received B.S. and M.S. degrees from Vienna Technical University, Vienna, Austria, in 1994, and a Ph.D. from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Zurich, Switzerland, in 2001, all in electrical engineering. Since 2001, he was a Senior Researcher with the Center for Advanced Power Systems, Florida State University, Tallahassee, Florida, USA, where he led the Power Systems Group, primarily with a focus on hardware-in-the-loop real-time simulation and modelling of integrated power and energy systems for all-electric ships and future terrestrial power systems.
He authored and coauthored over 180 technical papers in shipboard power systems, hardware-in-the-loop real-time simulation, fault protection, and superconductivity. In addition, he was a member of the International Council on Large Electric Systems, and the American Society of Naval Engineers. He was the recipient of the 2019 ASNE Solberg Award. He held several patents, such as the invention of an ultra-fast opening mechanical switch and a novel method of ground fault location in converter-powered ungrounded DC systems.
Michael also was involved with IEEE Standards. He was the Working Group Chair, PEL/SC Standards Committee, for P2004: Hardware-in-the-Loop (HIL) Simulation Based Testing of Electric Power Apparatus and Controls.
Colleagues are welcome to sign the Guest Book for Dr. Steurer online.