Award Data

The objective of the proposed research is to demonstrate high-power, scalable, and stable laser sources at specific wavelengths with narrow linewidth matched to the single velocity class of mesospheric atomic sodium for guide star application. The operation at tailored wavelengths, 1141 nm and 1178 nm (for 589 nm via frequency doubling) is addressed by the use of bandgap-engineered optically pumpe ...

Fully develop the analytic theory of wavefront reconstruction from measurements made with a three-sided pyramid wavefront sensor (PWFS3), including the effects of variable modulation, photon and camera noise sources, and object angular extent. Carry out performance predictions of the PWFS3 through numerical modeling. Compare the sensitivity of the PWFS3 to a conventional Shack-Hartmann sensor and ...

Design a natural guide star (NGS) adaptive optics (AO) system to operate at the Coude focus of a 1-m telescope with correction capability to D/r0 = 20 and Greenwood frequency fG = 160 Hz. Simulate the performance of the system, quantified by the residual

It is proposed to develop an array feed with amplitude and phase control, which can mitigate the compact antenna test range reflectors edge diffraction, creating desired plane waves with minimal field taper and ripples for antenna testing. The amplitud

The skin is the first line of defense against chemical warfare agents including nerve agents and toxic industrial chemicals, providing a possible barrier or delay to systemic distribution. Some chemicals also can act directly on the skin including the vesicants sulfur mustard and lewisite. Early and rapid skin decontamination is extremely important following exposure to CWAs and TICs because it de ...

MZA partnered with the Michigan Technological University (MTU) proposes to develop an atmospheric characterization sensor which unifies the measurement of atmospheric turbulence and refractivity through target-in-the-loop measurements, requiring no augmentation of the target or equipment on the other end of the path. We image multi-wavelength target illumination and remove atmospheric blurring us ...

We propose to develop a multi-layer tracking framework that integrates feature-based, motion-based, and deep-learning-based tracking. Our proposal consist of two development tasks and two research exploration efforts. Our team proposes to develop the Progressively Expanded Neural Network (PENnet) Tracker, a deep learning based tracker capable of on-the-go training of the target. The PENnet Trac ...

Space situational awareness is vital to space superiority because it enables all other space operations. It requires robust space surveillance, real-time search and targeting-quality information, and many other functions. However, dynamic blurring from

MZA partnered with Kratos/DFI proposes development, optimization, subscale wind tunnel testing/validation, and target engagement simulations for an aircraft pod with forward and aft-looking laser beam directors employing integrated flow control. Using CF

Scene generators are commonly used to create synthetic images of ground targets, such as tanks and battlefield wheeled vehicles, to facilitate seeker algorithm development.These scene generators can produce realistic output for sensor types such as infrared or radar, but are limited by the quality of the target models.Typically, the target models show little or no variation so that the seeker algo ...