NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Growing up in Southern California, NASA aeronautics researcher Kathryn Chapman saw firsthand the devastation wildfires can leave behind. She and her team at NASA’s Ames Research Center work on improving firefighting and fire mitigation strategies using advanced aeronautics technologies, like drones. Get to know Chapman and how her work could potentially help minimize loss from wildfires in the latest episode of "Surprisingly STEM." https://lnkd.in/ecpaGcgm

We're seeking proposals from the private sector to land and operate our VIPER rover on the Moon. As part of our Artemis campaign, VIPER will collect scientific data and search for ice on the lunar surface, providing valuable information for both researchers and future astronauts. Responses are due Monday, March 3: https://lnkd.in/dimFFxTy

Predicting the Unpredictable: A New Tool to Enhance Spacecraft Safety Spacecraft are often at risk of particle impacts—debris or small objects—colliding with critical components, potentially causing fire hazards or failure. Scientists at NASA, in collaboration with MIT, are developing a computational tool that uses advanced testing and computer modeling to show how and where these failures could occur. Now in the advanced stages of development, the tool is progressing toward testing and demonstration at the White Sands Test Facility. With numerous spacecraft currently in development, this tool could ultimately help make spacecraft safer for the next generation of space exploration. Learn more about this project, its key partners, and its NASA centers in our TechPort database: https://lnkd.in/epypmVhz

Innovators around the globe are invited to embark on the LunaRecycle Challenge, a $3 million competition to help us revolutionize recycling material waste on deep space missions. This challenge has two separate tracks—individuals, teams, and organizations can participate in one or both: - Digital Twin Track: Design a virtual model of a recycling system that processes at least one type of solid waste on the lunar surface and produce a usable product from it. - Prototype Build Track: Build cutting-edge hardware to recycle one or more types of solid waste directly on the Moon. Ready to be part of humanity’s next giant sustainable leap? Submit your Expression of Interest by March 31: https://lnkd.in/eMmVZJH4

A Tiny Photonic Chip Could Transform Space Telescopes In the search for life beyond Earth, astronomers need telescopes that can look deeper into space and detect subtle signals in a planet’s atmosphere. A new chip could help make space telescopes smaller, lighter, and more precise. A coronagraph is a special instrument in telescopes that blocks out the bright light from stars. AstroPIC, currently being developed by NASA’s Ames Research Center in collaboration with JPL and Stanford, miniaturizes the coronagraphic instrument through a photonic integrated circuit (PIC) chip. Currently in its early stages of development, this chip could potentially make coronagraphs over 100 times lighter and 30 times smaller than current systems, making it easier to observe distant planets. Its flexible design could be adaptable to a variety of future missions. Learn more about this project, its key partners, and its NASA centers at our TechPort database: https://lnkd.in/eK4MeFhh

Remember when we brought pristine asteroid samples back to Earth? The first big science is in! The samples suggest that the early solar system had widespread conditions and ingredients for life. Here's how we know: https://lnkd.in/e-k68nkn

Graduate students, undergrads and faculty advisors: we want you! Here's a "cool" opportunity to compete for a prize purse of $18,000. Our Human Lander Challenge invites teams of students to develop proposals for understanding and developing advanced cryogenic fluid technologies within the next three to five years. Without a strong atmosphere like Earth's, the Moon experiences extreme temperature swings between day and night. Future missions to the Moon will require extremely cold cryogenic fluids—kept at temperatures between -238º and -460ºF—for propulsion and life support systems. Teams can write a five-to-seven-page proposal, in addition to a two-minute video, summarizing the team's proposal concept. Up to 12 finalists will be selected for a $9,250 stipend to participate in the Human Lander Challenge Competition Forum this June. The top three finalist teams will share a prize purse of $18,000. Are you ready to dive into this chill-seeking expedition? Apply by March 3, 2025! https://lnkd.in/ehefng3B

New NASA Material Could Strengthen Solar Sails to Advance Space Travel Last month, NASA’s Parker Solar Probe flew less than 4 million miles (6.4 million km) above the surface of the Sun—nearer to the star than any object in human history. Now, NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center is developing a material that could help spacecraft travel even closer. Current materials for solar sails—lightweight structures that use sunlight to propel spacecraft—struggle in the intense heat and light closer to the Sun, making them more likely to rip or take damage. This new composite material, made from graphene and polyimide, is designed to make solar sails more durable and resistant to heat. Though this material is still in the early stage of development, by harnessing the power of sunlight and taking advantage of the Sun’s gravity assist, future solar sails could allow spacecraft to travel quickly between planets—and possibly even to other star systems. Learn more about this project, its key partners, and its NASA centers on our TechPort database: https://lnkd.in/gg5Fuf8p

Today, we honor the heroes of our program who made the ultimate sacrifice in the name of exploration. Safety remains our cornerstone as their courage continues to inspire our journey to the stars. #NASARemembers

“If you can’t fly, run; if you can’t run, walk; if you can’t walk, crawl; but by all means keep moving.” – Martin Luther King Jr. Inspired by his words, we continue pushing the boundaries of exploration, moving forward for the benefit of all humanity. 🌎