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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.
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Tara Friesen
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Last Updated Apr 29, 2025 Related Terms
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By NASA
5 Min Read NASA 3D Wind Measuring Laser Aims to Improve Forecasts from Air, Space
3D wind measurements from NASA's Aerosol Wind Profiler instrument flying on board a specially mounted aircraft along the East Coast of the U.S. and across the Great Lakes region on Oct. 15, 2024. Credits: NASA/Scientific Visualization Studio Since last fall, NASA scientists have flown an advanced 3D Doppler wind lidar instrument across the United States to collect nearly 100 hours of data — including a flight through a hurricane. The goal? To demonstrate the unique capability of the Aerosol Wind Profiler (AWP) instrument to gather extremely precise measurements of wind direction, wind speed, and aerosol concentration – all crucial elements for accurate weather forecasting.
Weather phenomena like severe thunderstorms and hurricanes develop rapidly, so improving predictions requires more accurate wind observations.
“There is a lack of global wind measurements above Earth’s surface,” explained Kris Bedka, the AWP principal investigator at NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia. “Winds are measured by commercial aircraft as they fly to their destinations and by weather balloons launched up to twice per day from just 1,300 sites across the globe. From space, winds are estimated by tracking cloud and water vapor movement from satellite images.”
However, in areas without clouds or where water vapor patterns cannot be easily tracked, there are typically no reliable wind measurements. The AWP instrument seeks to fill these gaps with detailed 3D wind profiles.
The AWP instrument (foreground) and HALO instrument (background) was integrated onto the floorboard of NASA’s G-III aircraft. Kris Bedka, project principal investigator, sitting in the rear of the plane, monitored the data during a flight on Sept. 26, 2024. NASA/Maurice Cross Mounted to an aircraft with viewing ports underneath it, AWP emits 200 laser energy pulses per second that scatter and reflect off aerosol particles — such as pollution, dust, smoke, sea salt, and clouds — in the air. Aerosol and cloud particle movement causes the laser pulse wavelength to change, a concept known as the Doppler effect.
The AWP instrument sends these pulses in two directions, oriented 90 degrees apart from each other. Combined, they create a 3D profile of wind vectors, representing both wind speed and direction.
We are measuring winds at different altitudes in the atmosphere simultaneously with extremely high detail and accuracy.
Kris bedka
NASA Research Physical Scientist
“The Aerosol Wind Profiler is able to measure wind speed and direction, but not just at one given point,” Bedka said. “Instead, we are measuring winds at different altitudes in the atmosphere simultaneously with extremely high detail and accuracy.”
Vectors help researchers and meteorologists understand the weather, so AWP’s measurements could significantly advance weather modeling and forecasting. For this reason, the instrument was chosen to be part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) Joint Venture Program, which seeks data from new technologies that can fill gaps in current weather forecasting systems. NASA’s Weather Program also saw mutual benefit in NOAA’s investments and provided additional support to increase the return on investment for both agencies.
On board NASA’s Gulfstream III (G-III) aircraft, AWP was paired with the agency’s High-Altitude Lidar Observatory (HALO) that measures water vapor, aerosols, and cloud properties through a combined differential absorption and high spectral resolution lidar.
Working together for the first time, AWP measured winds, HALO collected water vapor and aerosol data, and NOAA dropsondes (small instruments dropped from a tube in the bottom of the aircraft) gathered temperature, water vapor, and wind data.
The AWP and HALO instrument teams observing incoming data on board NASA’s G-III aircraft over Tennessee while heading south to observe Hurricane Helene. Sept. 26, 2024. NASA/Maurice Cross “With our instrument package on board small, affordable-to-operate aircraft, we have a very powerful capability,” said Bedka. “The combination of AWP and HALO is NASA’s next-generation airborne weather remote sensing package, which we hope to also fly aboard satellites to benefit everyone across the globe.”
The combination of AWP and HALO is NASA's next-generation airborne weather remote sensing package.
kris bedka
NASA Research Physical Scientist
The animation below, based on AWP data, shows the complexity and structure of aerosol layers present in the atmosphere. Current prediction models do not accurately simulate how aerosols are organized throughout the breadth of the atmosphere, said Bedka.
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This visualization shows AWP 3D measurements gathered on Oct. 15, 2024, as NASA’s G-III aircraft flew along the East Coast of the U.S. and across the Great Lakes region. Laser light that returns to AWP as backscatter from aerosol particles and clouds allows for measurement of wind direction, speed, and aerosol concentration as seen in the separation of data layers. NASA/Scientific Visualization Studio “When we took off on this particular day, I thought that we would be finding a clear atmosphere with little to no aerosol return because we were flying into what was the first real blast of cool Canadian air of the fall,” described Bedka. “What we found was quite the opposite: an aerosol-rich environment which provided excellent signal to accurately measure winds.”
During the Joint Venture flights, Hurricane Helene was making landfall in Florida. The AWP crew of two pilots and five science team members quickly created a flight plan to gather wind measurements along the outer bands of the severe storm.
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This video shows monitors tracking the AWP science team’s location in the western outer bands of Hurricane Helene off the coast of Florida with views outside of the aircraft looking at turbulent storm clouds on Sept. 26, 2024. NASA/Kris Bedka “A 3D wind profile can significantly improve weather forecasts, particularly for storms and hurricanes,” said Harshesh Patel, NOAA’s acting Joint Venture Program manager. “NASA Langley specializes in the development of coherent Doppler wind lidar technology and this AWP concept has potential to provide better performance for NOAA’s needs.”
The flight plan of NASA’s G-III aircraft – outfitted with the Aerosol Wind Profiler – as it gathered data across the Southeastern U.S. and flew through portions of Hurricane Helene on Sept. 26, 2024. The flight plan is overlaid atop a NOAA Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite-16 (GOES) satellite image from that day. NASA/John Cooney The flights of the AWP lidar are serving as a proving ground for possible integration into a future satellite mission.
“The need to improve global 3D wind models requires a space-based platform,” added Patel. “Instruments like AWP have specific space-based applications that potentially align with NOAA’s mission to provide critical data for improving weather forecasting.”
A view of the outer bands of Hurricane Helene off the coast of Florida during NASA’s science flights demonstrating the Aerosol Wind Profiler instrument on Sept. 26, 2024.NASA/Maurice Cross After the NOAA flights, AWP and HALO were sent to central California for the Westcoast & Heartland Hyperspectral Microwave Sensor Intensive Experiment and the Active Passive profiling Experiment, which was supported by NASA’s Planetary Boundary Layer Decadal Survey Incubation Program and NASA Weather Programs. These missions studied atmospheric processes within the planetary boundary layer, the lowest part of the atmosphere, that drives the weather conditions we experience on the ground.
To learn more about lidar instruments at NASA visit:
NASA Langley Research Center: Generations of Lidar Expertise
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Charles G. Hatfield
Science Public Affairs Officer, NASA Langley Research Center
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Last Updated Apr 28, 2025 LocationNASA Langley Research Center Related Terms
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By Space Force
USSF and NASA successfully launched the STP-H10 mission carrying six experiments as a part of a resupply mission to the ISS
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By NASA
Jeremy Johnson, a research pilot and aviation safety officer, poses in front of a PC-12 aircraft inside the hangar at NASA’s Glenn Research Center in Cleveland on Thursday, April 17, 2025. Johnson flies NASA planes to support important scientific research and testing.Credit: NASA/Sara Lowthian-Hanna Jeremy Johnson laces his black, steel-toed boots and zips up his dark blue flight suit. Having just finished a pre-flight mission briefing with his team, the only thing on his mind is heading to the aircraft hangar and getting a plane in the air.
As he eases a small white-and-blue propeller aircraft down the hangar’s ramp and onto the runway, he hears five essential words crackle through his headset: “NASA 606, cleared for takeoff.”
This is a typical morning for Johnson, a research pilot and aviation safety officer at NASA’s Glenn Research Center in Cleveland. Johnson flies NASA planes to support important scientific research and testing, working with researchers to plan and carry out flights that will get them the data they need while ensuring safety.
Johnson hasn’t always flown in NASA planes. He comes to the agency from the U.S. Air Force, where he flew missions all over the world in C-17 cargo aircraft, piloted unmanned reconnaissance operations out of California, and trained young aviators in Oklahoma on the fundamentals of flying combat missions.
Jeremy Johnson stands beside a C-17 aircraft before a night training flight in Altus, Oklahoma, in 2020. Before supporting vital flight research at NASA through a SkillBridge fellowship, which gives transitioning service members the opportunity to gain civilian work experience, Johnson served in the U.S. Air Force and flew C-17 airlift missions all over the world.Credit: Courtesy of Jeremy Johnson He’s at Glenn for a four-month Department of Defense SkillBridge fellowship. The program gives transitioning service members an opportunity to gain civilian work experience through training, apprenticeships, or internships during their last 180 days of service before separating from the military.
“I think SkillBridge has been an amazing tool to help me transition into what it’s like working somewhere that isn’t the military,” Johnson said. “In the Air Force, flying the mission was the mission. At NASA Glenn, the science—the research—is the mission.”
By flying aircraft outfitted with research hardware or carrying test equipment, Johnson has contributed to two vital projects at NASA so far. One is focused on testing how well laser systems can transmit signals for communication and navigation. The other, part of NASA’s research under Air Mobility Pathfinders, explores how 5G telecommunications infrastructure can help electric air taxis of the future be safely incorporated into the national airspace. This work, and the data that scientists can collect through flights, supports NASA’s research to advance technology and innovate for the benefit of all.
Jeremy Johnson pilots NASA Glenn Research Center’s PC-12 aircraft during a research flight on Thursday, April 17, 2025.Credit: NASA/Sara Lowthian-Hanna “It’s really exciting to see research hardware come fresh from the lab, and then be strapped onto an aircraft and taken into flight to see if it actually performs in a relevant environment,” Johnson said. “Every flight you do is more than just that flight—it’s one little part of a much bigger, much more ambitious project that’s going on. You remember, this is a small little piece of something that is maybe going to change the frontier of science, the frontier of discovery.”
Johnson has always had a passion for aviation. In college, he worked as a valet to pay for flying lessons. To hone his skills before Air Force training, one summer he flew across the country in a Cessna with his aunt, a commercial pilot. They flew down the Hudson River as they watched the skyscrapers of New York City whizz by and later to Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, where the Wright brothers made their historic first flight. Johnson even flew skydivers part-time while he was stationed in California.
Jeremy Johnson in the cockpit of a PC-12 aircraft as it exits the hangar at NASA’s Glenn Research Center in Cleveland before a research flight on Thursday, April 17, 2025.Credit: NASA/Sara Lowthian-Hanna Although he’s spent countless hours flying, he still takes the window seat on commercial flights whenever he can so he can look out the window and marvel at the world below.
Despite his successes, Johnson’s journey to becoming a pilot wasn’t always smooth. He recalls that as he was about to land after his first solo flight, violent crosswinds blew his plane off the runway and sent him bouncing into the grass. Though he eventually got back behind the stick for another flight, he said that in that moment he wondered whether he had the strength and skills to overcome his self-doubt.
“I don’t know anyone who flies for a living that had a completely easy path into it,” Johnson said. “To people who are thinking about getting into flying, just forge forward with it. Make people close doors on you, don’t close them on yourself, when it comes to flying or whatever you see yourself doing in the future. I just kept knocking on the door until there was a crack in it.”
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By NASA
NASA astronaut and Expedition 72 Flight Engineer Don Pettit sets up camera hardware to photograph research activities inside the International Space Station’s Kibo laboratory module on March 15, 2025.Credit: NASA Media are invited to a news conference at 2 p.m. EDT Monday, April 28, at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston where astronaut Don Pettit will share details of his recent mission aboard the International Space Station.
The news conference will stream live on NASA’s website. Learn how to stream NASA content through a variety of platforms.
To participate in person, U.S. media must contact the NASA Johnson newsroom no later than 5 p.m. Thursday, April 24, at 281-483-5111 or jsccommu@mail.nasa.gov. Media wishing to participate by phone must contact the newsroom no later than two hours before the start of the event. To ask questions by phone, media must dial into the news conference no later than 10 minutes prior to the start of the call. NASA’s media accreditation policy is available online.
Questions also may be submitted on social media during the news conference by using #AskNASA. Following the news conference, NASA will host a live question and answer session with Pettit on the agency’s Instagram. For more information, visit @NASA on social media.
Pettit returned to Earth on April 19 (April 20, Kazakhstan time), along with Roscosmos cosmonauts Alexey Ovchinin and Ivan Vagner. Pettit celebrated his 70th birthday on April 20. He spent 220 days in space as an Expedition 71/72 flight engineer, bringing his career total to 590 days in space during four spaceflights. Pettit and his crewmates completed 3,520 orbits of Earth over the course of their 93-million-mile journey. They also saw the arrival of six visiting spacecraft and the departure of seven.
During his time on orbit, Pettit conducted hundreds of hours of scientific investigations, including research to enhance on-orbit metal 3D printing capabilities, advance water sanitization technologies, explore plant growth under varying water conditions, and investigate fire behavior in microgravity, all contributing to future space missions.
He also spent time aboard the space station sharing his photography, often posting images to his X account. He took more than 670,000 photos during his stay.
Learn more about International Space Station research and operations at:
http://www.nasa.gov/station
-end-
Joshua Finch / Claire O’Shea
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1100
joshua.a.finch@nasa.gov / claire.a.o’shea@nasa.gov
Chelsey Ballarte
Johnson Space Center, Houston
281-483-5111
chelsey.n.ballarte@nasa.gov
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Last Updated Apr 23, 2025 LocationNASA Headquarters Related Terms
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