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Aging and durability of aircraft in both the military and civilian sectors are becoming major issues as the existing fleet continues to age. Additionally, the increased use of composite structures in the civilian fleet, such as in the Boeing 787 Dreamliner and the Airbus A380, make the understanding and/or improvement of composite durability, particularly durability of repairs, even more critical ...

Establishing human presence outside the protective cover of earth's atmosphere is a challenge. On earth, the atmosphere does not only present breathing gas, it also acts as a thermal buffer and protects the biosphere from harmful radiation. Shielding of humans from harmful radiation during long-term stays on an extraterrestrial body like the moon is a difficult task. Lunar regolith provides an ...

Any manned missions to extraterrestrial locations will require shelter structures for a variety of purposes ranging from habitat usage to biomass production. Such shelters need to be constructed in such a way to minimize stowed volume and payload weight. The structures must also be very durable and have the ability to survive punctures without collapsing. Ways of increasing available crew-load ...

The proposed Phase I program will demonstrate the feasibility of the in-space production of large aperture antenna structures. The use of a novel open cell foam, previously developed for NASA space antennas, will allow the deployment of reflectors at low cost and very low transport volume compared to currently used technologies like solid metal or mesh reflector. The use of a foam substrate also ...

NASA has identified the need for the development of lightweight structures technologies to support Lunar Lander and Lunar Habitats programs and for the transfer of relevant technology to Crew Exploration Vehicle and Crew Launch Vehicle programs. NASA further calls for revolutionary advances in radiation shielding materials and structures technologies to protect humans from the hazards of space ra ...

With the increasing demands placed on extravehicular activity (EVA) for the International Space Station assembly and maintenance, along with planned lunar and Martian missions, the need for increased human productivity and capability becomes ever more critical. This is most readily achieved by reduction in space suit weight and volume, and increased hardware reliability, durability, and operating ...

As manned-space exploration missions are pursued further beyond low-Earth orbit, such as to the Moon or Mars, crewmembers must be supplied with good quality food to provide a complete diet over a period of three years or more. Current food-packaging materials result in major solid-waste management issues. Novel food packaging materials that will eliminate or reduce solid waste while preserving the ...

Hybrid photovoltaic cells that combine nanostructured inorganic semiconductors with organic conductors such as the cell proposed, show promise for energy generation in technical applications due to the higher efficiencies and significantly lower costs resulting from cheaper materials and easier manufacturing processes. These hybrid solar cells can be tailored to have efficiencies comparable to in ...

The purpose of this Phase I NASA SBIR program is to develop high performance multifunctional nanostructured materials that can be used to fabricate icephobic multifunctional appliqués with enhanced erosion resistance for rotorcraft leading edges. The proposed technology offers integrated multifunctionality that results in reduction of weight, system complexity, maintenance, and cost over current ...