Members Can Post Anonymously On This Site
Five Ways to Explore NASA’s Portfolio of Technologies with TechPort 4.0
-
Similar Topics
-
By NASA
2 min read
Explore Our Dynamic Sun!
from NASA’s Heliophysics Education Activation Team (NASA HEAT) and the Astronomical Society of the Pacific/Night Sky Network
Have you ever wondered about what the Sun is made of? Or why do you get sunburned on even cloudy days? NASA’s new Explore the Sun toolkit brings the wonders of solar science to you, offering answers to these questions and more!
Solar images from NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory show different features on the Sun, including sunspots in the visible light spectrum. Filaments and prominences can be seen in hydrogen-alpha, coronal mass ejections in X-ray, and details in ultraviolet light. On the right side of the banner, aurorae observed on Earth by the International Space Station is shown, along with aurorae on other planets as seen by NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope and James Webb Space Telescope. NASA/Astronomical Society of the Pacific A collaboration between NASA’s Heliophysics Education Activation Team (NASA HEAT) and the Astronomical Society of the Pacific’s Night Sky Network program, this resource was developed for informal educators, amateur astronomers, and astronomy enthusiasts alike, providing engaging activities for anyone eager to learn more about our nearest star.
Whether you’re hosting a solar viewing event or an indoor presentation, the Our Dynamic Sun toolkit provides easy-to-use materials designed to spark curiosity. Each card in the set pairs NASA images with clear explanations for each topic:
“What color is the Sun?” (hint: it’s not yellow!) “How does the Sun affect us here on Earth?” “When will the Sun die?” These cards not only answer common questions the public may have, but also highlight how NASA’s solar research helps us understand space weather, solar storms, and their impacts on our daily lives.
Bring the Sun’s story to your community and inspire the next generation of explorers. You can download this free Our Dynamic Sun toolkit here: https://bit.ly/suntoolkit
View the full article
-
By NASA
6 min read
Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)
Advancing new hazard detection and precision landing technologies to help future space missions successfully achieve safe and soft landings is a critical area of space research and development, particularly for future crewed missions. To support this, NASA’s Space Technology Mission Directorate (STMD) is pursuing a regular cadence of flight testing on a variety of vehicles, helping researchers rapidly advance these critical systems for missions to the Moon, Mars, and beyond.
“These flight tests directly address some of NASA’s highest-ranked technology needs, or shortfalls, ranging from advanced guidance algorithms and terrain-relative navigation to lidar-and optical-based hazard detection and mapping,” said Dr. John M. Carson III, STMD technical integration manager for precision landing and based at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston.
Since the beginning of this year, STMD has supported flight testing of four precision landing and hazard detection technologies from many sectors, including NASA, universities, and commercial industry. These cutting-edge solutions have flown aboard a suborbital rocket system, a high-speed jet, a helicopter, and a rocket-powered lander testbed. That’s four precision landing technologies tested on four different flight vehicles in four months.
“By flight testing these technologies on Earth in spaceflight-relevant trajectories and velocities, we’re demonstrating their capabilities and validating them with real data for transitioning technologies from the lab into mission applications,” said Dr. Carson. “This work also signals to industry and other partners that these capabilities are ready to push beyond NASA and academia and into the next generation of Moon and Mars landers.”
The following NASA-supported flight tests took place between February and May:
Suborbital Rocket Test of Vision-Based Navigation System
Identifying landmarks to calculate accurate navigation solutions is a key function of Draper’s Multi-Environment Navigator (DMEN), a vision-based navigation and hazard detection technology designed to improve safety and precision of lunar landings.
Aboard Blue Origin’s New Shepard reusable suborbital rocket system, DMEN collected real-world data and validated its algorithms to advance it for use during the delivery of three NASA payloads as part of NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) initiative. On Feb. 4, DMEN performed the latest in a series of tests supported by NASA’s Flight Opportunities program, which is managed at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California.
During the February flight, which enabled testing at rocket speeds on ascent and descent, DMEN scanned the Earth below, identifying landmarks to calculate an accurate navigation solution. The technology achieved accuracy levels that helped Draper advance it for use in terrain-relative navigation, which is a key element of landing on other planets.
New Shepard booster lands during the flight test on February 4, 2025.Blue Origin High-Speed Jet Tests of Lidar-Based Navigation
Several highly dynamic maneuvers and flight paths put Psionic’s Space Navigation Doppler Lidar (PSNDL) to the test while it collected navigation data at various altitudes, velocities, and orientations.
Psionic licensed NASA’s Navigation Doppler Lidar technology developed at Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia, and created its own miniaturized system with improved functionality and component redundancies, making it more rugged for spaceflight. In February, PSNDL along with a full navigation sensor suite was mounted aboard an F/A-18 Hornet aircraft and underwent flight testing at NASA Armstrong.
The aircraft followed a variety of flight paths over several days, including a large figure-eight loop and several highly dynamic maneuvers over Death Valley, California. During these flights, PSNDL collected navigation data relevant for lunar and Mars entry and descent.
The high-speed flight tests demonstrated the sensor’s accuracy and navigation precision in challenging conditions, helping prepare the technology to land robots and astronauts on the Moon and Mars. These recent tests complemented previous Flight Opportunities-supported testing aboard a lander testbed to advance earlier versions of their PSNDL prototypes.
The Psionic Space Navigation Doppler Lidar (PSNDL) system is installed in a pod located under the right wing of a NASA F/A-18 research aircraft for flight testing above Death Valley near NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California, in February 2025.NASA Helicopter Tests of Real-Time Mapping Lidar
Researchers at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, developed a state-of-the-art Hazard Detection Lidar (HDL) sensor system to quickly map the surface from a vehicle descending at high speed to find safe landing sites in challenging locations, such as Europa (one of Jupiter’s moons), our own Moon, Mars, and other planetary bodies throughout the solar system. The HDL-scanning lidar generates three-dimensional digital elevation maps in real time, processing approximately 15 million laser measurements and mapping two football fields’ worth of terrain in only two seconds.
In mid-March, researchers tested the HDL from a helicopter at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, with flights over a lunar-like test field with rocks and craters. The HDL collected numerous scans from several different altitudes and view angles to simulate a range of landing scenarios, generating real-time maps. Preliminary reviews of the data show excellent performance of the HDL system.
The HDL is a component of NASA’s Safe and Precise Landing – Integrated Capabilities Evolution (SPLICE) technology suite. The SPLICE descent and landing system integrates multiple component technologies, such as avionics, sensors, and algorithms, to enable landing in hard-to-reach areas of high scientific interest. The HDL team is also continuing to test and further improve the sensor for future flight opportunities and commercial applications.
NASA’s Hazard Detection Lidar field test team at Kennedy Space Center’s Shuttle Landing Facility in Florida in March 2025. Lander Tests of Powered-Descent Guidance Software
Providing pinpoint landing guidance capability with minimum propellant usage, the San Diego State University (SDSU) powered-descent guidance algorithms seek to improve autonomous spacecraft precision landing and hazard avoidance. During a series of flight tests in April and May, supported by NASA’s Flight Opportunities program, the university’s software was integrated into Astrobotic’s Xodiac suborbital rocket-powered lander via hardware developed by Falcon ExoDynamics as part of NASA TechLeap Prize’s Nighttime Precision Landing Challenge.
The SDSU algorithms aim to improve landing capabilities by expanding the flexibility and trajectory-shaping ability and enhancing the propellant efficiency of powered-descent guidance systems. They have the potential for infusion into human and robotic missions to the Moon as well as high-mass Mars missions.
To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video
As part of a series of tethered and free-flight tests in April and May 2025, algorithms developed by San Diego State University guided the descent of the Xodiac lander testbed vehicle.Astrobotic By advancing these and other important navigation, precision landing, and hazard detection technologies with frequent flight tests, NASA’s Space Technology Mission Directorate is prioritizing safe and successful touchdowns in challenging planetary environments for future space missions.
Learn more: https://www.nasa.gov/space-technology-mission-directorate/
By: Lee Ann Obringer
NASA’s Flight Opportunities program
Facebook logo @NASATechnology @NASA_Technology Explore More
2 min read NASA Langley Uses Height, Gravity to Test Long, Flexible Booms
Article 4 hours ago 3 min read Autonomous Tritium Micropowered Sensors
Article 2 days ago 3 min read Addressing Key Challenges To Mapping Sub-cm Orbital Debris in LEO via Plasma Soliton Detection
Article 2 days ago Keep Exploring Discover More …
Space Technology Mission Directorate
Flight Opportunities
Moon
These two printable STL files demonstrate the differences between the near and far side of Earth’s Moon. The near side…
Technology
Share
Details
Last Updated May 29, 2025 EditorLoura Hall Related Terms
Space Technology Mission Directorate Armstrong Flight Research Center Flight Opportunities Program Technology Technology for Space Travel View the full article
-
By NASA
Sasha Weston, project support, Small Spacecraft and Distributed Systems program, with the Project and Engineering Support Services II contract with NASA, discusses the program with a participant, right, during Ames Partnership Days on April 29, 2025, at NASA’s Ames Research Center in California’s Silicon Valley. Through partnerships, the program advances technologies that enable small spacecraft to achieve NASA missions in faster and more affordable ways.NASA/Brandon Torres Navarrete On April 29, more than 90 representatives from industry, U.S. federal labs, government agencies, and academia gathered at NASA’s Ames Research Center in California’s Silicon Valley to learn about the center’s groundbreaking research and development capabilities. The three-day event provided insight into the many ways to collaborate with NASA, including tapping into the agency’s singular subject matter expertise and gaining access to state-of-the-art facilities at NASA Ames and centers across the country. Partnerships help the agency to advance technological innovation, enable science, and foster the emerging space economy.
Terry Fong, senior scientist for autonomous systems at NASA Ames, summed up the objective of the event when he noted, “I don’t believe anyone – government, academia, industry – has a monopoly on good ideas. It’s how you best combine forces to have the greatest effect.”
Terry Fong, senior scientist at NASA Ames, center, discusses the center’s capabilities in intelligent adaptive systems and potential applications with Jessica Nowinski, chief of the Human Systems Integration division, left, and Alonso Vera, senior technologist, right, on April 29, 2025, at NASA’s Ames Research Center in California’s Silicon Valley.NASA/Brandon Torres Navarrete Author: Jeanne Neal
Share
Details
Last Updated May 13, 2025 Related Terms
Ames Research Center General Get Involved NASA Centers & Facilities Partner With Us Small Business Innovation Research / Small Business Keep Exploring Discover More Topics From NASA
SmallSats and CubeSats
These miniaturized spacecrafts are used to deliver small payloads into space. LTB (Lunar Trailblazer) is an example of a SmallSat…
Technology and Innovation
NASA innovates and tests new technology on satellites and planes, helping commercial and academic partners develop better ways to observe…
Technology Workshops and Events
SBIR/STTR News & Success Stories
View the full article
-
By NASA
Explore This Section RPS Home About About RPS About the Program About Plutonium-238 Safety and Reliability For Mission Planners Contact Power & Heat Overview Power Systems Thermal Systems Dynamic Radioisotope Power Missions Overview Timeline News Resources STEM FAQ 3 min read
NASA Selects Winners of the 2024-2025 Power to Explore Challenge
Ten-year-old, Terry Xu of Arcadia, California; 14-year-old, Maggie Hou of Snohomish, Washington; and 17-year-old, Kairat Otorov of Trumbull, Connecticut, winners of the 2024-2025 Power to Explore Student Writing Challenge. NASA/David Lam, Binbin Zheng, The Herald/Olivia Vanni, Meerim Otorova NASA has chosen three winners out of nine finalists in the fourth annual Power to Explore Challenge, a national writing competition designed to teach K-12 students about the enabling power of radioisotopes for space exploration.
“Congratulations to the amazing champions and all of the participants!
Carl Sandifer II
Program Manager, NASA’s Radioisotope Power Systems Program
The essay competition asked students to learn about NASA’s radioisotope power systems (RPS), likened to “nuclear batteries,” which the agency has used discover “moonquakes” on Earth’s Moon and study some of the most extreme of the more than 891 moons in the solar system. In 275 words or less, students dreamed up a unique exploration mission of one of these moons and described their own power to achieve their mission goals.
“I’m so impressed by the creativity and knowledge of our Power to Explore winners,” said Carl Sandifer II, program manager of the Radioisotope Power Systems Program at NASA’s Glenn Research Center in Cleveland.
Entries were split into three groups based on grade level, and a winner was chosen from each. The three winners, each accompanied by a guardian, are invited to NASA’s Glenn Research Center in Cleveland for a VIP tour of its world-class research facilities this summer.
The winners are:
Terry Xu, Arcadia, California, kindergarten through fourth grade Maggie Hou, Snohomish, Washington, fifth through eighth grade Kairat Otorov, Trumbull, Connecticut, ninth through 12th grade “Congratulations to the amazing champions and all of the participants! Your “super powers” inspire me and make me even more optimistic about the future of America’s leadership in space,” Sandifer said.
The Power to Explore Challenge offered students the opportunity to learn about space power, celebrate their own strengths, and interact with NASA’s diverse workforce. This year’s contest received nearly 2,051 submitted entries from all 50 states, U.S. territories, and the Department of Defense Education Activity overseas.
Every student who submitted an entry received a digital certificate and an invitation to the Power Up virtual event held on March 21. There, NASA announced the 45 national semifinalists, and students learned about what powers the NASA workforce.
Additionally, the national semifinalists received a NASA RPS prize pack.
NASA announced three finalists in each age group (nine total) on April 23. Finalists were invited to discuss their mission concepts with a NASA scientist or engineer during an exclusive virtual event.
The challenge is funded by the Radioisotope Power Systems Program Office in NASA’s Science Mission Directorate and administered by Future Engineers under a Small Business Innovation Research phase III contract. This task is managed by the NASA Tournament Lab, a part of the Prizes, Challenges, and Crowdsourcing Program in NASA’s Space Technology Mission Directorate.
For more information on radioisotope power systems visit: https://nasa.gov/rps
Karen Fox / Erin Morton
Headquarters, Washington
301-286-6284 / 202-805-9393
karen.c.fox@nasa.gov / erin.morton@nasa.gov
Kristin Jansen
Glenn Research Center, Cleveland
216-296-2203
kristin.m.jansen@nasa.gov
View the full article
-
By NASA
2 min read
Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)
Nemanja Jovanovic, lead instrument scientist at Caltech, presents at the Emerging Technologies for Astrophysics workshop, held at NASA’s Ames Research Center in California’s Silicon Valley. The workshop brought together experts in astrophysics to discuss how advanced technologies could impact future mission planning.NASA/Donald Richey The future of astrophysics research could unlock the secrets of the universe, and emerging technologies like artificial intelligence, quantum sensing, and advanced materials may hold the key to faster, more efficient discovery. Advancements and implementations of new technologies are imperative for observational astrophysics to achieve the next level of detection.
NASA’s Emerging Technologies for Astrophysics workshop brought together subject matter experts from industry, government, and academia to explore the state of new and disruptive technologies. The meeting was an effort to identify specific applications for astrophysics missions and better understand how their infusion into future NASA space telescopes could be accelerated.
The workshop took place at NASA’s Ames Research Center in California’s Silicon Valley,. supporting the agency’s efforts to make partnership with public and private industry and collaborative mission planning possible.
“The profound questions about the nature of our universe that astrophysics at NASA answers require giant leaps in technology,” explained Mario Perez, chief technologist for the Astrophysics Division at NASA Headquarters in Washington. “Spotting potential in early-stage tech by encouraging discussions between imaginative researchers helps expand the scope of science and lessen the time required to achieve the next generation of astrophysics missions.”
Emerging technologies like artificial intelligence can support the design and optimization of future missions, and participants focused efforts on combining technologies to push research further. “Cross-pollination” of advanced materials like composites with advanced manufacturing, metamaterials, and photonic chips could support advancement in imaging missions beyond existing mechanical stability needs.
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has dubbed 2025 the “International Year of Quantum Science and Technology” in recognition of a century of quantum mechanics. Workshop participants discussed how quantum sensing could enable more precise measurements, achieve “super resolution” by filling in missing details in lower resolution images, and provide greater capabilities in forthcoming space telescopes.
“This gathering of experts was an opportunity to find ways where we can increase the capabilities of future space instrumentation and accelerate technology development for infusion into NASA astrophysics missions,” said Naseem Rangwala, astrophysics branch chief at NASA Ames. “We can speed up the process of how we develop these future projects by using the emerging technologies that are incubated right here in Silicon Valley.”
The findings from this workshop and ongoing discussions will support efforts to study and invest in technologies to advance astrophysics missions with greater speed and efficiency.
About the Author
Tara Friesen
Share
Details
Last Updated Apr 29, 2025 Related Terms
Ames Research Center Astrophysics Astrophysics Division General Science Mission Directorate Explore More
3 min read Help Classify Galaxies Seen by NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope!
NASA needs your help identifying the shapes of thousands of galaxies in images taken by…
Article 2 hours ago 3 min read In the Starlight: Jason Phillips’ Unexpected Path to Johnson Procurement
Article 6 hours ago 2 min read How Are We Made of Star Stuff? We Asked a NASA Expert: Episode 58
Article 20 hours ago Keep Exploring Discover More Topics From NASA
Missions
Humans in Space
Climate Change
Solar System
View the full article
-
-
Check out these Videos
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.