Technology Highlights

Two satellite images side by side to illustrate flood damage in the midwest.
Novel Software Testbed Helps Prepare Sensors for Future Cooperative Networks
Earth, Climate Change
May 3, 2022
An SMD-sponsored team of researchers has demonstrated a novel software platform that will enable networks of dispersed sensors to share information with each other more efficiently; this capability has the potential to provide a far more comprehensive view of Earth than any single sensor ever could...
Taking the Pulse of NASA’s Robotic Explorers
Solar System, Planets of Our Solar System
Apr 19, 2022
Keeping NASA’s robotic explorers healthy takes smart software, especially in remote and harsh environments. An initial investment by NASA’s Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program led to development of a new technology that may enable robotic exploration of distant destinations in our... Read More
Photo of Jupiter's moon Europa, light grey with brown streaks.
Nanofabricated Diffractive Optics for the Next-Generation of Space Observatories
Universe
Apr 5, 2022
PROJECT Electron-beam Ruled Gratings for Future Ultraviolet/Optical Missions SNAPSHOT Advanced semi-conductor fabrication methods will help improve the performance—and potentially reduce the cost—of the next major ultraviolet/optical space observatory. 
PSU Researcher Professor Fabien Grisé prepares a substrate for the CU-LASP Dual-channel Extreme Ultraviolet Continuum Spectrograph (DEUCE, PI: Brian Fleming) sounding rocket grating prior to employing the new electron-beam lithography technique.
Advanced Satellite System Sets its Sights on Ice Clouds to Improve Weather and Climate Modeling
Earth
Mar 15, 2022
A team of researchers is developing a new instrument that will help scientists better understand the impact high-altitude ice clouds have on weather and climate change on Earth.
Satellite photo of thunderstorms scattered over a blue area on planet earth
Protecting Future Planetary Missions from Extreme Heat
Solar System
Mar 1, 2022
All space missions that involve atmospheric entry of a probe or science payload must utilize a Thermal Protection System (TPS) to protect the payload from the extreme heat experienced during atmospheric entry. 
A Novel Approach to Growing Gardens in Space
Space Experiments
Feb 15, 2022
A NASA-sponsored team is developing soilless nutrient delivery and recovery technologies that will be demonstrated via plant tests aboard the International Space Station.
Photo of a man working on plants under grow lights
NEID: A New, Ultra-Precise Window into Nearby Worlds
Universe
Feb 1, 2022
NEID will be used to characterize exoplanets discovered by NASA’s Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS).
Photo of three lab scientists in white lab gear wearing turquoise gloves and installing a prism into a white metal piece of equipment
Unlocking the Sun’s X-rays
Sun
Jan 18, 2022
NASA has developed a new type of instrument that can provide key information to predict and understand solar flares.
Photo of a large metal instrument in a lab
New Instrument Brings Next-generation Molecular Analysis of Mars into Sharp Focus
Solar System
Jan 4, 2022
To address the growing need for in situ molecular analysis of Mars samples at fine spatial scales, NASA is developing the miniature LITMS instrument, which combines a laser and gas chromatograph mass spectrometer with a precision subsampling system. LITMS executes a powerful search for... Read More
Exploring How Radiation Exposure Will Affect Life Forms on the Way to Mars
Space Experiments
Dec 14, 2021
A NASA-sponsored team has developed a discovery environment that enables researchers to explore information on radiation exposure from numerous spaceflight experiments and extend our understanding of how radiation affects life forms in space.
Photograph of three team members working at a table with a flask containing a yellow-green fluid, a clear canister with a rooted plant and a metal box.
SMARTIE Computer Tiles Could Provide Satellites with Advanced Data Processing Power
Earth
Nov 30, 2021
A team of researchers are working on a novel computer-tile technology that could help space-based remote sensors process data more efficiently.
Photo of 3 cubesats in orbit above the earth taken from the ISS.
Bracewell Nulling Interferometry Enables Astronomers to See the Glow of Alien Stardust
Universe
Nov 9, 2021
The search for and characterization of extra-solar planets (‘exoplanets’) that might host life is one of NASA’s highest ambitions. But observing exoplanets and distinguishing them from the scattered light coming from the stars that they orbit is a difficult challenge.
Surviving the Lunar Night: DRPS Could Enable the Power to Explore
Solar System
Oct 12, 2021
Dynamic Radioisotope Power Systems may enable lunar science payloads to survive and thrive during the harsh lunar night.
Photograph of two men wearing breathing masks and sitting in a lab with blue metal cases holding computer equipment.
Q: How Do You Water Plants in Space? A: Omni-Gravitational Hydroponics
Space Experiments
Sep 28, 2021
NASA is demonstrating that even without the help of gravity, hydroponic plant watering methods can enable plant habitats aboard crewed or robotic space missions.
Photograph of a woman on the ISS next to the hydroponics research experiment with orange fluid in clear boxes connected by tubes.
Using Ultraviolet Light to Suppress Electrostatic Noise in Gravitational Wave Observatories
Universe
Sep 14, 2021
Gravitational waves are minute ripples in space-time caused by the most energetic events in the universe—like the collision of two supermassive black holes. To detect gravitational waves, we will measure the tiny variations in the motion of purely free-falling test masses housed in three Sun-... Read More
Photograph of two women and one man in a testing lab with computers and hardware on the desks