Spinoff: Computer Technology

Archiving Innovations Preserve Essential Historical Records

NASA Technology

The Moon hosts perhaps the most fascinating museum that no one ever visits. From reflectometers to space boots, the lunar module’s descent stage, and...

Spinoff: Computer Technology

Technologies Render Views of Earth for Virtual Navigation

NASA Technology

On a December night in 1995, 159 passengers and crewmembers died when American Airlines Flight 965 flew into the side of a mountain while...

Spinoff: Computer Technology

Content Platforms Meet Data Storage, Retrieval Needs

NASA Technology

Earth is under a constant barrage of information from space. Whether from satellites orbiting our planet, spacecraft circling Mars, or probes...

Spinoff: Computer Technology

Tools Ensure Reliability of Critical Software

NASA Technology

In November 2006, after attempting to make a routine maneuver, NASA’s Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) reported unexpected errors. The onboard software...

Spinoff: Computer Technology

Electronic Handbooks Simplify Process Management

NASA Technology

Getting a multitude of people to work together to manage processes across many organizations —for example, flight projects, research,...

Spinoff: Computer Technology

Software Innovations Speed Scientific Computing

NASA Technology

What causes the Sun to change? And what are the impacts on our planet and our daily lives?

These are some of the top questions that the...

Spinoff: Computer Technology

Controller Chips Preserve Microprocessor Function

NASA Technology

Above the Atlantic Ocean, off the coast of Brazil, there is a dip in the Earth’s surrounding magnetic field called the South Atlantic Anomaly....

Spinoff: Computer Technology

Innovative Techniques Simplify Vibration Analysis

Originating Technology/NASA Contribution

As the launch clock counts down, astronauts in the space shuttle prepare for the fastest ride of their lives. More powerful than any...

Spinoff: Computer Technology

Modeling Tools Predict Flow in Fluid Dynamics

Originating Technology/NASA Contribution

Knowing what will happen before it happens is no easy task. That is why new spacecraft and technology are constantly being tested and...

Spinoff: Computer Technology

Verification Tools Secure Online Shopping, Banking

Originating Technology/NASA Contribution

Much is made of the engineering that enables the complex operations of a rover examining the surface of Mars—and rightly so. But even...

Spinoff: Computer Technology

Toolsets Maintain Health of Complex Systems

Originating Technology/NASA Contribution

Monitoring the health of a machine can be just as tricky as monitoring the health of a human. Like in the human body, a variety of subsystems...

Spinoff: Computer Technology

Framework Resources Multiply Computing Power

Originating Technology/NASA Contribution

For the last 25 years, the NASA Advanced Supercomputing (NAS) Division at Ames esearch Center has provided extremely fast supercomputing...

Spinoff: Computer Technology

Tools Automate Spacecraft Testing, Operation

Originating Technology/NASA Contribution

Using the Spitzer Space telescope, NASA scientists detected light from two Jupiter-sized extrasolar planets for the first...

Spinoff: Computer Technology

GPS Software Packages Deliver Positioning Solutions

Originating Technology/NASA Contribution

To better understand and predict global climate, scientists look to the Earth’s oceans. Natural forces like wind,...

Spinoff: Computer Technology

Solid-State Recorders Enhance Scientific Data Collection

Originating Technology/NASA Contribution

On May 20, 1996, astronauts aboard the Space Shuttle Endeavor watched as a unique structure unfolded in...

Spinoff: Computer Technology

Computer Models Simulate Fine Particle Dispersion

Originating Technology/NASA Contribution

Getting to the Moon is, to say the least, challenging. Being on the Moon, though, is no picnic either. In addition to...

Spinoff: Computer Technology

Telemetry Boards Interpret Rocket, Airplane Engine Data

Originating Technology/NASA Contribution

For all the data gathered by the space shuttle while in orbit, NASA engineers are just as concerned about the information it...

Spinoff: Computer Technology

Programs Automate Complex Operations Monitoring

Originating Technology/NASA Contribution

Kennedy Space Center, just off the east coast of Florida on Merritt Island, has been the starting place of every human space flight in...

Spinoff: Computer Technology

Modeling Languages Refine Vehicle Design

Originating Technology/NASA Contribution

When we watch a space shuttle launch on television, we have only the vaguest sense of the extraordinary amount of work required to make such a...

Spinoff: Computer Technology

Radio Relays Improve Wireless Products

Originating Technology/NASA Contribution

In order to transmit communications through Earth’s atmosphere, satellites and space vehicles need radio equipment that can operate at higher...

Spinoff: Computer Technology

Software Tools Streamline Project Management

Originating Technology/NASA Contribution

Three innovative software inventions from Ames Research Center (NETMARK, Program Management Tool, and Query-Based Document Management) are...

Spinoff: Computer Technology

Integrated Circuit Chip Improves Network Efficiency

Originating Technology/NASA Contribution

Prior to 1999 and the development of SpaceWire, a standard for high-speed links for computer networks managed by the European Space...

Spinoff: Computer Technology

Intelligent Memory Module Overcomes Harsh Environments

Originating Technology/NASA Contribution

Solar cells, integrated circuits, and sensors are essential to manned and unmanned space flight and exploration, but such systems...

Spinoff: Computer Technology

Mars Mapping Technology Brings Main Street to Life

Originating Technology/NASA Contribution

The Red Planet has long held a particular hold on the human psyche. From the Roman god of war to Orson Welles’ infamous Halloween...

Spinoff: Computer Technology

Inductive System Monitors Tasks

Originating Technology/NASA Contribution

The Inductive Monitoring System (IMS) software developed at Ames Research Center uses artificial intelligence and data mining techniques to build...

Spinoff: Computer Technology

Software Simulates Sight: Flat Panel Mura Detection

Originating Technology/NASA Contribution

In the increasingly sophisticated world of high-definition flat screen monitors and television screens, image clarity and the...

Spinoff: Computer Technology

Virtual Reality System Offers a Wide Perspective

Originating Technology/NASA Contribution

Robot Systems Technology Branch engineers at Johnson Space Center created the remotely controlled Robonaut for use as an additional “set...

Spinoff: Computer Technology

Wireless Sensor Network Handles Image Data

Originating Technology/NASA Contribution

To relay data from remote locations for NASA’s Earth sciences research, Goddard Space Flight Center contributed to the...

Spinoff: Computer Technology

Software Analyzes Complex Systems in Real Time

Originating Technology/NASA Contribution

Expert system software programs, also known as knowledge-based systems, are computer programs that emulate the knowledge...

Spinoff: Computer Technology

Software Schedules Missions, Aids Project Management

Originating Technology/NASA Contribution

NASA missions require advanced planning, scheduling, and management, and the Space Agency has worked extensively to develop the...