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By Space Force
Set to take place Dec. 8-9 at Patrick SFB, the third annual Guardian Arena will bring together 35 elite three-person teams from Space Force units across the country.
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By NASA
2 min read
Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)
NASA/Lori Losey
The best way to solve a mystery is by gathering evidence and building a case. That’s exactly what NASA researchers are doing with a series of research flights aimed at advancing a sensor for supersonic parachutes. The clues they find could help make these parachutes more reliable and safer for delivering scientific instruments and payloads to Mars.
These investigative research flights are led by the EPIC (Enhancing Parachutes by Instrumenting the Canopy) team at NASA’s Armstrong Fight Research Center in Edwards, California. During a June flight test, a quadrotor aircraft, or drone, air-launched a capsule that deployed a parachute equipped with a sensor. The flexible, strain-measuring sensor attached to the parachute did not interfere with the canopy material, just as the EPIC team had predicted. The sensors also provided data, a bonus for planning upcoming tests.
“Reviewing the research flights will help inform our next steps,” said Matt Kearns, project manager for EPIC at NASA Armstrong. “We are speaking with potential partners to come up with a framework to obtain the data that they are interested in pursuing. Our team members are developing methods for temperature testing the flexible sensors, data analysis, and looking into instrumentation for future tests.”
The flight tests were a first step toward filling gaps in computer models to improve supersonic parachutes. This work could also open the door to future partnerships, including with the aerospace and auto racing industries.
NASA’s Space Technology Mission Directorate (STMD) funds the EPIC work through its Entry Systems Modeling project at NASA’s Ames Research Center in California’s Silicon Valley. The capsule and parachute system were developed by NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia. NASA Armstrong interns worked with Langley to build and integrate a similar system for testing at NASA Armstrong. An earlier phase of the work focused on finding commercially available flexible strain sensors and developing a bonding method as part of an STMD Early Career Initiative project.
NASA researchers Paul Bean, center, and Mark Hagiwara, right, attach the capsule with parachute system to the Enhancing Parachutes by Instrumenting the Canopy test experiment on June 4, 2025, at NASA’s Armstong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California. NASA researchers are developing technology to make supersonic parachutes safer and more reliable for delivering science instruments and payloads to Mars.NASA/Christopher LC Clark Derek Abramson, left, and Justin Link, right, attach an Alta X drone to the Enhancing Parachutes by Instrumenting the Canopy test experiment on June 4, 2025, at NASA’s Armstong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California. Abramson is NASA chief engineer at the center’s Dale Reed Subscale Flight Research Laboratory, where Link also works as a pilot for small uncrewed aircraft systems. NASA researchers are developing technology to make supersonic parachutes safer and more reliable for delivering science instruments and payloads to Mars.NASA/Christopher LC Clark An Alta X drone is positioned at altitude for an air launch of the Enhancing Parachutes by Instrumenting the Canopy test experiment on June 4, 2025, at NASA’s Armstong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California. NASA researchers are developing technology to make supersonic parachutes safer and more reliable for delivering science instruments and payloads to Mars.NASA/Christopher LC Clark The parachute of the Enhancing Parachutes by Instrumenting the Canopy test experiment deploys following an air launch from an Alta X drone on June 4, 2025, at NASA’s Armstong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California. NASA researchers are developing technology to make supersonic parachutes safer and more reliable for delivering science instruments and payloads to Mars.NASA/Christopher LC Clark The Enhancing Parachutes by Instrumenting the Canopy project team examines a capsule and parachute following an air launch from an Alta X drone on June 4, 2025, at NASA’s Armstong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California. NASA researchers are developing technology to make supersonic parachutes safer and more reliable for delivering science instruments and payloads to Mars.NASA/Christopher LC Clark Share
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Last Updated Jul 29, 2025 EditorDede DiniusContactJay Levinejay.levine-1@nasa.gov Related Terms
Ames Research Center Armstrong Flight Research Center Flight Innovation Langley Research Center Space Technology Mission Directorate Technology Explore More
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By NASA
An aircraft body modeled after an air taxi with weighted test dummies inside is being prepared for a drop test by researchers at NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia. The test was completed June 26, 2025, at Langley’s Landing and Impact Research Facility. The aircraft was dropped from a tall steel structure, known as a gantry, after being hoisted about 35 feet in the air by cables. NASA researchers are investigating aircraft materials that best absorb impact forces in a crash.NASA/Mark Knopp As the aviation industry works to design air taxis and other new electric aircraft, there’s a growing need to understand how the materials behave. That’s why NASA is investigating potential air taxi materials and designs to best protect passengers in the event of a crash.
On June 26, 2025, at NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia, researchers dropped a full-scale aircraft body modeled after an air taxi from a tall steel structure, known as a gantry.
The NASA researchers behind this test and a previous one in late 2022 investigated materials that best absorb impact forces, generating data that will enable manufacturers to design safer advanced air mobility aircraft.
Image Credit: NASA/Mark Knopp
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By NASA
3 min read
Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)
An aircraft body modeled after an air taxi with weighted test dummies inside is shown after a drop test at NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia. The test was completed June 26 at Langley’s Landing and Impact Research Facility. The aircraft was dropped from a tall steel structure, known as a gantry, after being hoisted about 35 feet in the air by cables. NASA researchers are investigating aircraft materials that best absorb impact forces in a crash.NASA/Mark Knopp As the aviation industry works to develop new air taxis and other electric aircraft made from innovative, lightweight materials, there’s a growing need to understand how those materials behave under impact. That’s why NASA is investigating potential air taxi materials and designs that could best protect passengers in the event of a crash.
On June 26 at NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia, researchers dropped a full-scale aircraft body modeled after an air taxi from a tall steel structure, known as a gantry.
The NASA researchers behind this test and a previous one in late 2022 investigated materials that best absorb impact forces, generating data that will enable manufacturers to design safer advanced air mobility aircraft.
“By showcasing elements of a crash alongside how added energy-absorbing technology could help make the aircraft more robust, these tests will help the development of safety regulations for advanced air mobility aircraft, leading to safer designs,” said Justin Littell, test lead, based at Langley.
An aircraft body modeled after an air taxi with weighted test dummies inside is hoisted about 35 feet in the air by cables at NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia. The aircraft was dropped from a tall steel structure, known as a gantry, on June 26 at Langley’s Landing and Impact Research Facility. NASA researchers are investigating aircraft materials that best absorb impact forces in a crash.NASA/Mark Knopp During the June test, the aircraft was hoisted about 35 feet into the air and then released. It swung forward before crashing to the ground. The impact conditions were like the prior test in 2022, but with the addition of a 10-degree yaw, or twist, to the aircraft’s path. The yaw replicated a certification condition required by Federal Aviation Administration regulations for these kinds of aircraft.
After the drop, researchers began to evaluate how the structure and batteries withstood the impact. As expected, the material failures closely matched predictions from computer simulations, which were updated using data from the 2022 tests.
An aircraft body modeled after an air taxi with weighted test dummies inside is being prepared for a drop test by researchers at NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia. The test was completed June 26 at Langley’s Landing and Impact Research Facility. The aircraft was dropped from a tall steel structure, known as a gantry, after being hoisted about 35 feet in the air by cables. NASA researchers are investigating aircraft materials that best absorb impact forces in a crash.NASA/Mark Knopp An aircraft body modeled after an air taxi with weighted test dummies inside is being prepared for a drop test by researchers at NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia. The test was completed June 26 at Langley’s Landing and Impact Research Facility. The aircraft was dropped from a tall steel structure, known as a gantry, after being hoisted about 35 feet in the air by cables. NASA researchers are investigating aircraft materials that best absorb impact forces in a crash.
The aircraft included energy absorbing subfloors, similar to crumple zones in cars, which appeared to crush as intended to help protect the seats inside. The battery experiment involved adding mass to simulate underfloor battery components of air taxis to collect acceleration levels. Once analyzed, the team will share the data and insights with the public to enhance further research and development in this area.
Lessons learned from these tests will help the advanced air mobility industry evaluate the crashworthiness of aircraft designs before flying over communities.
The work is managed by the Revolutionary Vertical Lift Technology project under NASA’s Advanced Air Vehicles Program in support of NASA’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 Jul 28, 2025 EditorDede DiniusContactTeresa Whitingteresa.whiting@nasa.govLocationArmstrong Flight Research Center Related Terms
Armstrong Flight Research Center Advanced Air Mobility Advanced Air Vehicles Program Aeronautics Ames Research Center Drones & You Glenn Research Center Langley Research Center Revolutionary Vertical Lift Technology Explore More
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By Space Force
Vandenberg Space Force Base hosted a mission brief for NASA’s upcoming Tandem Reconnection and Cusp Electrodynamics Reconnaissance Satellites mission.
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