Technology Highlights 2017

A person in a white lab coat and gloves standing next to rectangular platform that holds the test articles and is attached to the test chamber.
Solar System
Sep 12, 2023
  Projects in NASA’s HOTTech Program are developing technologies that will operate on the surface of Venus for at least 60 days. Since previous Venus landers have only survived for several hours, long-duration operation represents a paradigm shift in landed spacecraft technology. The GEER... Read More
Universe
Aug 29, 2023
A new class of X-ray detector with unprecedented energy resolution and array size could help transform our understanding of the cosmos through unparalleled vision into the otherwise invisible universe.
An octagonal shaped disc composed of copper-colored, gold-colored and silver-colored parts with 6 green circuit chip panels. The disc is mounted on a round silver metal disc
Solar System
Feb 21, 2023
NASA and Advanced Thermal Batteries, Inc. are developing a high-temperature battery system to power a long-lived lander on the Venus surface.
Earth
Feb 7, 2023
A pair of NASA projects will help researchers better understand the relationship between solar radiation and phenomena on Earth like severe weather and climate change.
Photo of 3 people clad in white lab gear and aqua-colored latex gloves working on a large metallic panel of a science instrument
Universe, Exoplanets, Stars
Jan 24, 2023
Multi-star wavefront control technology enables imaging planets in systems with multiple suns (such as Alpha Centauri, the nearest star system to us) and searching them for signs of life.
A dark background with a blurry blue dot on the left and a blurry light red dot on the right
Space Experiments
Jan 11, 2023
Two species of quantum gases have been created to coexist and interact for the first time in space. Accessing resonant interactions among these gases will allow scientists to explore few-body physics, quantum chemistry, and fundamental physics in novel energy regimes—without the perturbing force of... Read More
Photo of two scientists wearing full lab gear (hats, face masks, gloves and bodysuits) working on a white metal module with several cables and cords connected to it.
Earth
Dec 20, 2022
A team of NASA personnel and contractors has prototyped a new set of algorithms that will enable instruments in space to process data more efficiently. Using these algorithms, space-based remote sensors will be able to provide the most important data to scientists on the ground more quickly and may... Read More
Photo of the International Space Station in orbit with the Earth in the background
Universe
Dec 6, 2022
“Are we alone in the universe?” may be one of the most compelling questions of our generation. Direct imaging of planetary systems around other stars to detect and characterize Earth-like planets that could potentially sustain life requires telescopes that are large and extremely stable.
Photo of a lab desk with a hardware set up; a monitor is on above a box with dozen of colored connected cables and a green light emts from a metal box on a nearby desk
Solar System
Nov 22, 2022
Detection of extraterrestrial life would be an incredible discovery, revolutionizing humanity’s perception of life and providing us insight into how life begins and persists in various environments.
Artist concept illustrates a cross-sectional view of a potential ocean world with a surface layer of ice above a thicker layer of ocean water above a thinner layer of ocean floor. 3 thumbnail photos below that illustrate hydrothermal vents, ice fractures and ice blocks.
Earth
Nov 1, 2022
Excess nutrients and pollutants washed off land by rainstorms can degrade water quality and harm marine life and humans. Identifying these problems before they can affect us is a constant challenge for water resource managers.
Satellite image of the Maryland coastline illustrating the wash off of nutrients and pollutants at the coastline with light blue.
Universe
Oct 18, 2022
An SMD-sponsored team has taken major steps towards providing the new detector arrays needed for future far-infrared space missions.
Photo of a woman in protective lab clothing sitting at a computer in a cleanroom with 9 green squares on the screen
Space Experiments
Oct 4, 2022
An advanced temperature control technique developed for future NASA missions can also make charging electric vehicles easier and faster—potentially paving the way for increased adoption of electric cars.
Photo on left is a woman plugging in a red electric vehicle; photo on right is a group of people working with equipment in a lab
Earth
Sep 20, 2022
NASA’s HARP instrument was the first hyper-angular polarimeter to fly in space and pioneered new technologies for observing cloud and aerosol properties—all on a tiny CubeSat!
Photo of three men with smiles on their faces standing in a lab at a table with a full size model of HARP, a black rectangular boxy object on a pedestal
Solar System
Aug 30, 2022
NASA has developed technologies to enable an autonomous lunar surface station that will revolutionize data gathering on the Moon in the same way that scattered ocean buoys revolutionized collection of meteorological data on Earth.
Artist rendering of a monitoring station  on the moon surface with Earth in the background
Universe
Aug 16, 2022
New imaging technology will help enable future large X-ray telescopes to trace the origin and growth of black holes and the ways they’ve shaped the cosmos.
Close up photo of a green and gold image sensor with numbers and text on it.
Earth
Dec 4, 2017
TCIS is a tool that fuses hurricane models and observations within a web-based system to improve forecasting capabilities.
This screen capture from the TCIS tool shows some of the enhancements to interactive region selection, model and data acquisition, statistical comparison, and visualization.
Solar System
Nov 6, 2017
NASA’s future planetary exploration efforts, including missions to Venus, require electronics capable of surviving temperatures of 470° C and above for long durations. Such durable electronics eliminate the need for cooling systems to enable sustained operations. A team at NASA Glenn Research... Read More
photo of planet Venus
Earth, Earth’s Space Environment
Oct 23, 2017
In 2016, scientists at Goddard Space Flight Center produced mirrors with the highest reflectance ever reported in the farultraviolet spectral range. To develop these mirrors, the team developed a new three-step physical vapor deposition process to coat aluminum mirrors with protective magnesium... Read More
The ICON FUV spectrograph.
Universe, Stars
Oct 10, 2017
This blog post originated in the 2016 Science Mission Directorate Technology Highlights Report (20 MB PDF).
Close-up of a Schottky diode, showing the air-bridge that connects the anode
Earth
Sep 25, 2017
This blog post originated in the 2015 Science Mission Directorate Technology Highlights Report (2 MB PDF).
Photo of scientist testing PUFFER on snowy surface
Earth, Ice
Sep 11, 2017
This blog post originated in the 2015 Science Mission Directorate Technology Highlights Report (2 MB PDF). Technology Development: A new instrument, the Ultrawideband Software-Defined Microwave Radiometer (UWBRAD), aims to provide measurements of ice sheet thermal emission to remotely sense... Read More
Photograph of Canadian Rocky mountains, view from airplane
Universe, Stars
Aug 28, 2017
This blog post originated in the 2015 Science Mission Directorate Technology Highlights Report (2 MB PDF).
Photo of dust accelerator setup in laboratory
Earth
Jul 31, 2017
This blog post originated in the 2015 Science Mission Directorate Technology Highlights Report (2 MB PDF). Technology Development: The Radiometer Assessment using Vertically Aligned Nanotubes (RAVAN) CubeSat mission launched on November 11, 2016 as a secondary payload on a United Launch Alliance... Read More
Photo of model of RAVAN with deployed solar panels
Universe
Jul 11, 2017
This blog post originated in the 2015 Science Mission Directorate Technology Highlights Report (2 MB PDF).
illustrated diagram
Earth
Apr 20, 2017
Technology Infused: In March 2015, NASA launched an exciting new mission to investigate how the sun’s and Earth’s magnetic fields connect and disconnect, explosively transferring energy from one field to the other. This process—called magnetic reconnection—influences celestial bodies throughout the... Read More
Artist concept of mission spacecraft flying through magnetic fields around earth
Mars
Apr 13, 2017
This blog post originated in the 2015 Science Mission Directorate Technology Highlights Report (2 MB PDF).
Video still frame of new rover navigating rocky terrain
Universe
Apr 6, 2017
This blog post originated in the 2015 Science Mission Directorate Technology Highlights Report (2 MB PDF).
Artist illustration of LISA pathfinder spacecraft in orbit around earth
Solar System
Mar 31, 2017
This blog post originated in the 2015 Science Mission Directorate Technology Highlights Report (2 MB PDF). Technology Infused: The Lunar polar Hydrogen Mapper (LunaH-Map) mission is a CubeSat that will detect the amount of hydrogen at the moon’s South Pole.
Photo of propulsion system for LunaH-Map
Earth
Mar 23, 2017
Technology Infused: After over 20 years of tests and development, NASA’s Balloon Program team is on the cusp of expanding the envelope in high-altitude, heavylift ballooning with its super pressure balloon (SPB) technology. SMD technology investments that enabled development of SPB, the first... Read More
Photograph of balloon being inflated on airport tarmac