Tag: Spinoffs

2 min read Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) NASA uses radio frequency (RF) for a variety of tasks in space, including communications. The Europa Clipper RF panel — the box with the copper wiring near the top — will send data carried by radio waves through the spacecraft between the electronics and eight antennas. Credit: NASA Even before we’re aware of heart trouble or related health issues, our bodies give off warning signs in the form of vibrations. Technology to detect these signals has ranged from electrodes and patches to watches.…

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2 min read Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) The Double Asteroid Redirection Test required extreme precision in mission planning to achieve its mission of impacting an asteroid. The founders of Continuum Space worked on astrodynamics relating to this mission, which they used to inform their product. NASA Planning space missions is a very involved process, ensuring orbits are lined up and spacecraft have enough fuel is imperative to the long-term survival of orbital assets. Continuum Space Systems Inc. of Pasadena, California, produces a cloud-based platform that gives…

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2 min read Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) Test flights help airplane and drone manufacturers identify which parts of the aircraft are creating the most noise. Using hundreds of wired microphones makes it an expensive and time-consuming process to improve the design to meet noise requirements. Credit: NASA Airplane manufacturers running noise tests on new aircraft now have a much cheaper option than traditional wired microphone arrays. It’s also sensitive enough to help farmers with pest problems. A commercial wireless microphone array recently created with help from…

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3 min read Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) Current brake system technology cool disc brakes with air pulled from inside the vehicle’s body to prevent overheating. The channels cut into the exterior of the disc brakes developed by Orbis Brakes draw in external air, which is cooler, ensure the brakes work more efficiently. Credit: Orbis Brakes Inc Just as NASA needs to reduce mass on a spacecraft so it can escape Earth’s gravity, automotive manufacturers work to reduce weight to improve vehicle performance. In the case of…

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3 min read Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) The focus of Airspace Technology Demonstration 2 was IADS, a software that coordinates flight schedules between the ramp, tower, terminal, and center control facilities. This visual representation of data helps minimize delays on the ground. NASA / Jim Banke If every commuter drove the same few roads at the same time every day, the traffic would be unbearable. That’s exactly what’s happening in the skies above the nation, known as national airspace (NAS). Multiple flights from different airlines try…

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2 min read Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) European company apetito uses Neurala’s vision inspection software to ensure the quality of its prepared meals, such as green bean portions pictured here. The software evolved from code Neurala was developing more than a decade ago, with NASA funding, for a rover that could independently learn to traverse Martian terrain. Credit: Neurala Inc. Artificial intelligence software initially designed to learn and analyze Martian terrain is now at the heart of a system to monitor assembly lines on Earth.  The…

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2 min read Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) Farms in California’s Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta face strict reporting requirements for water usage because the delta supplies most of the state’s freshwater. This Landsat image uses infrared wavelengths to depict vegetation. Credit: U.S. Geological Survey The 30-acre pear orchard in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta has been in Brett Baker’s family since the end of the Gold Rush. After six generations, though, California’s most precious resource is no longer gold – it’s water. And most of the state’s…

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2 min read Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) Research into phase-change material (PCM) options for NASA helped one of the researchers find the ideal material to use in a mug that maintains the ideal temperature of a hot beverage for hours. ThermAvant International now offers mugs and tumblers. Credit: ThermAvant International LLC Dr. Hongbin Ma was tired of drinking coffee that had gone cold. Fortunately, Ma, the CEO of ThermAvant Technologies LLC in Columbia, Missouri, was working on a NASA-funded study of phase-change materials, which are used…

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3 min read Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) While astronaut Gene Cernan was on the lunar surface during the Apollo 17 mission, his spacesuit collected loads of lunar dust. The gray, powdery substance stuck to the fabric and entered the capsule causing eye, nose, and throat irritation dubbed “lunar hay fever.” Credit: NASA Credit: NASA Moon dust, or regolith, isn’t like the particles on Earth that collect on bookshelves or tabletops – it’s abrasive and it clings to everything. Throughout NASA’s Apollo missions to the Moon, regolith…

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