Spinoff: Public Safety

Smart Sensors Assess Structural Health

Originating Technology/NASA Contribution

The materials used to make airplanes and space shuttles do not last forever. That is why NASA frequently inspects launch vehicles, fuel tanks, crew...

Spinoff: Public Safety

Hand-Held Devices Detect Explosives and Chemical Agents

Originating Technology/NASA Contribution

Smaller, with enhanced capabilities. Less expensive, while providing improved performance. Energy efficient, without sacrificing...

Spinoff: Public Safety

Terahertz Tools Advance Imaging for Security, Industry

Originating Technology/NASA Contribution

On January 16, 2003, the Space Shuttle Columbia launched on mission STS-107. At T plus 82 seconds, with the orbiter rocketing upwards...

Spinoff: Public Safety

Sensors Provide Early Warning of Biological Threats

Originating Technology/NASA Contribution

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates there are between 4 and 11 million cases of acute gastrointestinal...

Spinoff: Public Safety

Robots Save Soldiers’ Lives Overseas

Originating Technology/NASA Contribution

NASA intends to return people to the Moon, but this time to stay. Future plans include living quarters, scientific laboratories, a permanent lunar...

Spinoff: Public Safety

Apollo-Era Life Rafts Save Hundreds of Sailors

Originating Technology/NASA Contribution

The space shuttle is unique among spacecraft in that it glides back to Earth and lands like an airplane, usually touching ground near where...

Spinoff: Public Safety

Circuits Enhance Scientific Instruments and Safety Devices

Originating Technology/NASA Contribution

Since its founding in 1958, NASA has pioneered the use of different frequencies on the electromagnetic spectrum—including...

Spinoff: Public Safety

Tough Textiles Protect Payloads and Public Safety Officers

Originating Technology/NASA Contribution

Special textiles have been mission-critical components for successful space missions since the early years of NASA’s first...

Spinoff: Public Safety

Advanced X-Ray Sources Ensure Safe Environments

Originating Technology/NASA Contribution

Successfully sustaining life in space requires closely monitoring the environment to ensure the health of the crew....

Spinoff: Public Safety

Polymer Fabric Protects Firefighters, Military, and Civilians

Originating Technology/NASA Contribution

Insulating and protecting astronauts from temperature extremes, from the 3 K (-455 °F) of deep space to the...

Spinoff: Public Safety

Fiber Optic Sensing Monitors Strain and Reduces Costs

Originating Technology/NASA Contribution

In applications where stress on a structure may vary widely and have an unknown impact on integrity, a common...

Spinoff: Public Safety

Space Suit Technologies Protect Deep-Sea Divers

Originating Technology/NASA Contribution

Working on NASA missions allows engineers and scientists to hone their skills. Creating devices for the high-stress rigors...

Spinoff: Public Safety

Plants Clean Air and Water for Indoor Environments

Although one of NASA's goals is to send people to the far reaches of our universe, it is still well known that people need Earth. We understand that humankind's existence relies on its...

Spinoff: Public Safety

Infrared Imaging Sharpens View in Critical Situations

Originating Technology/NASA Contribution

The Microgravity Combustion Science group at NASA's Glenn Research Center studies how fire and combustible liquids and gasses behave...

Spinoff: Public Safety

Chemical-Sensing Cables Detect Potential Threats

Originating Technology/NASA Contribution

As fleets of aircraft age, corrosion of metal parts becomes a very real economic and safety concern. Corrosive agents like moisture, salt,...

Spinoff: Public Safety

A Brighter Choice for Safety

Emergency exit signs can be lifesavers, but only if they remain visible when people need them. All too often, power losses or poor visibility can render the signs ineffective. Luna Technologies...

Spinoff: Public Safety

Images Revealing More Than a Thousand Words

A unique sensor developed by ProVision Technologies, a NASA Commercial Space Center housed by the Institute for Technology Development, produces hyperspectral images with cutting-edge...

Spinoff: Public Safety

Development Of A Digital Image Measurement System

Originating Technology/NASA Contribution

An unexpected tragedy took place on April 28, 1988, when the roof of an Aloha Airlines 737 aircraft ripped open at 24,000 feet, killing a...

Spinoff: Public Safety

Forecasting Weather With A Wave Of The Hand

Originating Technology/NASA Contribution

Cybernet Systems Corporation, of Ann Arbor, Michigan, originally developed its gesture recognition technology for the U.S. Department of...

Spinoff: Public Safety

Sizing Up The Situation

Originating Technology/NASA Contribution

Hailstorm damage to the Space Shuttle's External Tank inspired a NASA innovation with extensive photography applications. In order to measure the defects caused by...

Spinoff: Public Safety

Leaving A Print On Safety

Originating Technology/NASA Contribution

Pattern-recognition technologies developed by NASA to identify spacecraft and other objects in space have helped in the development of new, biometrics-based...

Spinoff: Public Safety

Superior Sensor Making Sense In Military, Medicine

Originating Technology/NASA Contribution

A fiber-optic voltage sensor developed a decade ago for NASA's aircraft and space power systems has been the building block for a string...

Spinoff: Public Safety

Spreading The Word On Safety

Originating Technology/NASA Contribution

Beginning with the Apollo Program in the early 1960s, the NASA White Sands Test Facility (WSTF) has supported every U.S. human exploration space flight program...

Spinoff: Public Safety

Fighting Corrosion

Originating Technology/NASA Contribution

Reinforced concrete structures such as bridges, parking decks, and balconies are designed to have a service life of over 50 years. All too often, however, many...

Spinoff: Public Safety

Approaching Suspicious Substances Safely

Originating Technology/NASA Contribution

A mineral identification tool that was developed for NASA's Mars Rover Technology Development program is now serving as a powerful tool for U.S....

Spinoff: Public Safety

Understanding Fire Through Improved Technology

Originating Technology/NASA Contribution

By studying fire through the science of combustion physics, scientists and researchers from NASA, academia, and private industry find new...

Spinoff: Public Safety

Secure Networks for First Responders and Special Forces

Originating Technology/NASA Contribution

When NASA needed help better securing its communications with orbiting satellites, the Agency called on Western DataCom Co., Inc.,...

Spinoff: Public Safety

Technology That's Ready and Able to Inspect Those Cables

Originating Technology/NASA Contribution

Attempting to locate a malfunctioning wire in a complex bundle of wires or in a cable that is concealed behind a wall is as...

Spinoff: Public Safety

Lightning Often Strikes Twice

Originating Technology/NASA Contribution

Contrary to popular misconception, lightning often strikes the same place twice. Certain conditions are just ripe for a bolt of electricity to come zapping...

Spinoff: Public Safety

Keeping the Air Clean and Safe—An Anthrax Smoke Detector

Originating Technology/NASA Contribution

Scientists at work in the Planetary Protection division at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) sterilize everything before...