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By NASA
3 min read
Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)
The C-20A aircraft, based at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California, flies over the Sierra Nevada Mountains in California for the Dense UAVSAR Snow Time (DUST) mission on Feb. 28, 2025. The DUST mission collected airborne data about snow water to help improve water management and reservoir systems on the ground.NASA/Starr Ginn As part of a science mission tracking one of Earth’s most precious resources – water – NASA’s C-20A aircraft conducted a series of seven research flights in March that can help researchers track the process and timeline as snow melts and transforms into a freshwater resource. The agency’s Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle Synthetic Aperture Radar (UAVSAR) installed on the aircraft collected measurements of seasonal snow cover and estimate the freshwater contained in it.
“Seasonal snow is a critical resource for drinking water, power generation, supporting multi-billion dollar agricultural and recreation industries,” said Starr Ginn, C-20A project manager at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California. “Consequently, understanding the distribution of seasonal snow storage and subsequent runoff is essential.”
The Dense UAVSAR Snow Time (DUST) mission mapped snow accumulation over the Sierra Nevada mountains in California and the Rocky Mountains in Idaho. Mission scientists can use these observations to estimate the amount of water stored in that snow.
Peter Wu, radar operator from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California, observes data collected during the Dense UAVSAR Snow Time (DUST) mission onboard NASA’s C-20A aircraft on Feb. 28, 2025. The C-20A flew from NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California, over the Sierra Nevada Mountains to collect data about snow water.NASA/Starr Ginn “Until recently, defining the best method for accurately measuring snow water equivalent (SWE) – or how much and when fresh water is converted from snow – has been a challenge,” said Shadi Oveisgharan, principal investigator of DUST and scientist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California. “The UAVSAR has been shown to be a good instrument to retrieve SWE data.”
Recent research has shown that snow properties, weather patterns, and seasonal conditions in the American West have been shifting in recent decades. These changes have fundamentally altered previous expectations about snowpack monitoring and forecasts of snow runoff. The DUST mission aims to better track and understand those changes to develop more accurate estimates of snow-to-water conversions and their timelines.
“We are trying to find the optimum window during which to retrieve snow data,” Oveisgharan said. “This estimation will help us better estimate available fresh snow and manage our reservoirs better.”
The Dense UAVSAR Snow Time (DUST) mission team assembles next to the C-20A aircraft at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California, on Feb. 28, 2025. From left, radar operator Adam Vaccaro, avionics lead Kelly Jellison, C-20A project manager Starr Ginn, pilot Carrie Worth, pilot Troy Asher, aircraft mechanic Eric Apikian, and operations engineer Ian Elkin.NASA/Starr Ginn The DUST mission achieved a new level of snow data accuracy, which is partly due to the specialized flight paths flown by the C-20A. The aircraft’s Platform Precision Autopilot (PPA) enables the team to fly very specific routes at exact altitudes, speeds, and angles so the UAVSAR can more precisely measure terrain changes.
“Imagine the rows made on grass by a lawn mower,” said Joe Piotrowski Jr., operations engineer for NASA Armstrong’s airborne science program. “The PPA system enables the C-20A to make those paths while measuring terrain changes down to the diameter of a centimeter.”
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Last Updated Apr 24, 2025 EditorDede DiniusContactErica HeimLocationArmstrong Flight Research Center Related Terms
Armstrong Flight Research Center Airborne Science C-20A Earth Science Earth's Atmosphere Jet Propulsion Laboratory Science Mission Directorate Explore More
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By NASA
2 min read
Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)
In our modern wireless world, almost all radio frequency (RF) spectrum bands are shared among multiple users. In some domains, similar users technically coordinate to avoid interference. The spectrum management team, part of NASA’s SCaN (Space Communications and Navigation) Program, represents the collaborative efforts across U.S. agencies and the international community to protect and enable NASA’s current and future spectrum-dependent science, exploration, and innovation.
Coordination with Other Spectrum Stakeholders
NASA works to promote the collaborative use of the RF spectrum around Earth, and beyond. For example, NASA coordinates closely with other U.S. government agencies, international civil space agencies, and the private sector to ensure missions that overlap in time, location, and frequency do not cause or receive interference that could jeopardize their success. The spectrum management team protects NASA’s various uses of the spectrum by collaborating with U.S. and international spectrum users on technical matters that inform regulatory discussions.
As a founding member of the Space Frequency Coordination Group, NASA works with members of governmental space- and science-focused agencies from more than 35 countries. The Space Frequency Coordination Group annual meetings provide a forum for multilateral discussion and consideration of international spectrum regulatory issues related to Earth, lunar, and deep space research and exploration. The Space Frequency Coordination Group also provides a forum for the exchange of technical information to facilitate coordination for specific missions and enable efficient use of limited spectrum resources in space.
Domestic and International Spectrum Regulators
Creating and maintaining the global spectrum regulations that govern spectrum sharing requires collaboration and negotiation among all its diverse users. The International Telecommunication Union manages the global spectrum regulatory framework to optimize the increasing, diverse uses of the RF spectrum and reduce the likelihood of RF systems experiencing interference. U.S. regulators at the National Telecommunications and Information Administration and the Federal Communications Commission are responsible for developing and administering domestic spectrum regulations. Organizations across the world cooperatively plan and regulate spectrum use. The spectrum management team participates on behalf of NASA at both national and international levels to ensure that the U.S. domestic and international spectrum regulatory framework supports and enables NASA’s current and future missions.
NASA collaborates with domestic and international spectrum stakeholders to provide technical expertise on space spectrum topics to ensure regulations continue to enable space exploration, science, and innovation.NASA Share
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Last Updated Apr 23, 2025 Related Terms
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By NASA
3 min read
Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)
As associate administrator for NASA’s Space Operations Mission Directorate Ken Bowersox puts it, “nothing happens without communications.”
And effective communications require the use of radio waves.
None of NASA’s exciting science and engineering endeavors would be possible without the use of radio waves to send data, communications, and commands between researchers or flight controllers and their flight platforms or instruments.
Reflecting on his time as a pilot, commander, and mission specialist during the Space Shuttle Program, Bowersox says, “If you’re not there physically, you can’t be a part of the team. But if you’re getting the data, whether it’s video, telemetry data with states of switches, or individual parameters on temperatures or pressures, then you can act on it and provide information to the spacecraft team so they can do the right thing in their operation.”
These vital data and communications functions, as well as the gathering of valuable scientific data through remote sensing applications, all use radio frequencies (RF) within the electromagnetic spectrum. NASA centers and facilities also use the RF spectrum to support their everyday operations, including the walkie-talkies used by security guards, air traffic control systems around airfields, and even office Wi-Fi routers and wireless keyboards.
Nothing happens without communications.
Ken Bowersox
NASA Astronaut & Associate Administrator for NASA's Space Operations Mission Directorate
All of NASA’s uses of the RF spectrum are shared, with different radio services supporting other kinds of uses. Service allocation is a fundamental concept in spectrum regulation and defines how the spectrum is shared between different types of applications. A service allocation defines ranges, or bands, of radio frequencies that can be used by a particular type of radio service. For example, a television broadcasting satellite operates in frequency bands allocated to the broadcasting satellite service, terrestrial cellular services operate in bands allocated for the mobile service, and the communications antennas on the International Space Station (ISS) operate in bands allocated to space operations service.
However, an allocation is not a license to operate — it does not authorize a specific system or operator to use particular frequencies. Such authority is granted through domestic and international regulatory processes.
Most frequency bands of the RF spectrum are shared, and each frequency band typically has two or more radio services allocated to it. Careful spectrum regulation, planning, and management aim to identify mutually compatible services to share frequency bands while limiting its negative impacts.
NASA’s Most Notable Spectrum Uses
Many of NASA’s most notable uses of spectrum rely on the following service allocations:
Earth exploration-satellite service Space research service Space operations service Inter-satellite service Note that allocations in the Earth exploration-satellite service and the space research service are designated either for communications links in the Earth-to-space, space-to-Earth, or space-to-space directions or designated for active or passive sensing of Earth or celestial objects (respectively) to differentiate the types of uses within the service and afford the requisite protections.
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Watch the video to learn more about how each kind of system uses the radio frequency spectrumNASA Learn how NASA manages its use of the RF spectrum. Learn about who NASA collaborates with to inform the spectrum regulations of the future. Learn about the scientific principles of the electromagnetic spectrum, including radio waves. Share
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Last Updated Apr 23, 2025 Related Terms
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By NASA
4 min read
Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)
A Massachusetts Institute of Technology Lincoln Laboratory pilot controls a drone during NASA’s In-Time Aviation Safety Management System test series in collaboration with a George Washington University team July 17-18, 2024, at the U.S. Army’s Fort Devens in Devens, Massachusetts. MIT Lincoln Laboratory/Jay Couturier From agriculture and law enforcement to entertainment and disaster response, industries are increasingly turning to drones for help, but the growing volume of these aircraft will require trusted safety management systems to maintain safe operations.
NASA is testing a new software system to create an improved warning system – one that can predict hazards to drones before they occur. The In-Time Aviation Safety Management System (IASMS) will monitor, assess, and mitigate airborne risks in real time. But making sure that it can do all that requires extensive experimentation to see how its elements work together, including simulations and drone flight tests.
“If everything is going as planned with your flight, you won’t notice your in-time aviation safety management system working,” said Michael Vincent, NASA acting deputy project manager with the System-Wide Safety project at NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia. “It’s before you encounter an unusual situation, like loss of navigation or communications, that the IASMS provides an alert to the drone operator.”
The team completed a simulation in the Human-Autonomy Teaming Laboratory at NASA’s Ames Research Center in California’s Silicon Valley on March 5 aimed at finding out how critical elements of the IASMS could be used in operational hurricane relief and recovery.
During this simulation, 12 drone pilots completed three 30-minute sessions where they managed up to six drones flying beyond visual line of sight to perform supply drops to residents stranded after a severe hurricane. Additional drones flew scripted search and rescue operations and levee inspections in the background. Researchers collected data on pilot performance, mission success, workload, and perceptions of the experiences, as well as the system’s usability.
This simulation is part of a longer-term strategy by NASA to advance this technology. The lessons learned from this study will help prepare for the project’s hurricane relief and recovery flight tests, planned for 2027.
As an example of this work, in the summer of 2024 NASA tested its IASMS during a series of drone flights in collaboration with the Ohio Department of Transportation in Columbus, Ohio, and in a separate effort, with three university-led teams.
For the Ohio Department of Transportation tests, a drone flew with the NASA-developed IASMS software aboard, which communicated back to computers at NASA Langley. Those transmissions gave NASA researchers input on the system’s performance.
Students from the Ohio State University participate in drone flights during NASA’s In-Time Aviation Safety Management System test series in collaboration with the Ohio Department of Transportation from March to July 2024 at the Columbus Aero Club in Ohio. NASA/Russell Gilabert NASA also conducted studies with The George Washington University (GWU), the University of Notre Dame, and Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU). These occurred at the U.S. Army’s Fort Devens in Devens, Massachusetts with GWU; near South Bend, Indiana with Notre Dame; and in Richmond, Virginia with VCU. Each test included a variety of types of drones, flight scenarios, and operators.
Students from Virginia Commonwealth University walk toward a drone after a flight as part of NASA’s In-Time Aviation Safety Management System (IASMS) test series July 16, 2024, in Richmond, Virginia. NASA/Dave Bowman Each drone testing series involved a different mission for the drone to perform and different hazards for the system to avoid. Scenarios included, for example, how the drone would fly during a wildfire or how it would deliver a package in a city. A different version of the NASA IASMS was used to fit the scenario depending on the mission, or depending on the flight area.
Students from the University of Notre Dame prepare a small drone for takeoff as part of NASA’s In-Time Aviation Safety Management System (IASMS) university test series, which occurred on August 21, 2024 in Notre Dame, Indiana.University of Notre Dame/Wes Evard When used in conjunction with other systems such as NASA’s Unmanned Aircraft System Traffic Management, IASMS may allow for routine drone flights in the U.S. to become a reality. The IASMS adds an additional layer of safety for drones, assuring the reliability and trust if the drone is flying over a town on a routine basis that it remains on course while avoiding hazards along the way.
“There are multiple entities who contribute to safety assurance when flying a drone,” Vincent said. “There is the person who’s flying the drone, the company who designs and manufactures the drone, the company operating the drone, and the Federal Aviation Administration, who has oversight over the entire National Airspace System. Being able to monitor, assess and mitigate risks in real time would make the risks in these situations much more secure.”
All of this work is led by NASA’s System-Wide Safety project under the Airspace Operations and Safety program in support of the agency’s Advanced Air Mobility mission, which seeks to deliver data to guide the industry’s development of electric air taxis and drones.
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Last Updated Apr 02, 2025 EditorDede DiniusContactTeresa Whitingteresa.whiting@nasa.gov Related Terms
Advanced Air Mobility Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate Airspace Operations and Safety Program Ames Research Center Armstrong Flight Research Center Drones & You Flight Innovation Langley Research Center System-Wide Safety Explore More
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