Stories
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INSIDER: Photonics/Optics
The James Webb Space Telescope will be the most powerful space telescope ever built. With a 21-foot diameter, the telescope’s primary mirror is six times larger than the one used...
Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
In storage and/or transport of certain items, the ability to detect tampering with a container or compartment for such items can be necessary and valuable. In the transport of hazardous substances or nuclear materials...
Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Asealing device was developed that acts as a high-temperature shutoff valve for pipes and ducts. The device is an annular ring that can be slipped over the outside of the pipe (or built into a flanged...
Briefs: Nanotechnology
Carbon Nanotube Purification
Development of carbon nanotubes (CNTs), including single-wall and multi-wall nanotubes and nanofibers, into useful devices requires fabrication of CNTs that are relatively free from process residues such as amorphous carbon and metallic particles that are not part of a CNT array grown on a (coated) substrate....
Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
An airlock used in space can provide the ability to leave a pressurized volume and enter free space. This is necessary to perform maintenance or make repairs to the pressurized volume or visiting spacecraft,...
Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Low-Power, Lightweight, Ultra-Compact Reverse Water Gas Shift Reactor
Utilizing CO2 to produce H2O and O2 is critical for sustained manned missions in space, and supports both NASA’s cabin Atmosphere Revitalization System (ARS) and ln-situ Resource Utilization (ISRU) concepts. For long-term missions beyond low Earth orbit where resupply of...
Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Aspacecraft thermal control system must keep the vehicle, avionics, and atmosphere (if crewed) within a defined temperature range. Water coolant loops are typically used to transport heat...
Articles: Test & Measurement
Sensors have a key role in industrial production. For example, they can be used for quality and process monitoring or condition-based maintenance. The range of applications is...
Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Researchers at NASA's Armstrong Flight Research Center have developed a new technology to reduce inaccuracies in force/haptic feedback devices and systems. Used at NASA in aircraft...
Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Soldiers, civilians engaged in activities such as hiking, and public safety personnel engaged in search and rescue missions all require reliable systems for the effective carriage of necessary equipment....
Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Heat exchangers are used for the transfer of heat between two or more media. The media may be separated by a solid wall so that they never mix, or they may be in direct contact. Heat exchangers may be used in HVAC systems, power...
Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Fluorocarbon-based fire extinguishing agents are environmentally harmful since they cause depletion of the Earth's ozone layer. Fine Water Mist (FWM)-type systems have very favorable characteristics as...
Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
In many manufacturing and construction activities, it is frequently necessary to remove a protrusion of material from a component or from a substrate surface. These removal operations include clipping the...
INSIDER: Motion Control
A lightweight module for rapid, accurate, and versatile positioning of semiconductor chips features a novel electromechanical actuator that can move objects both linearly and...
INSIDER: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
A team of researchers from the Georgia Institute of Technology has developed a way to use 3D printers to create objects capable of shape change. The objects use tensegrity, a structural system...
Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Compact, Lightweight Trap Vent
This compact, lightweight trap vent is used to minimize the pressure differential of a high-altitude, balloon-borne detector. The vent allows the pressure to equalize rapidly, yet does not allow any light to enter the detector.
Briefs: Motion Control
Advanced Tool Drive System (ATDS) Camera Positioning Mechanism (CPM)
Robotic servicing of a satellite in low earth orbit (LEO) or geosynchronous Earth orbit (GEO) requires advanced systems capable of meeting the harsh environments of space. To support this effort, the Goddard Space Flight Center Satellite Servicing Capabilities Office (SSCO) has...
Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
To measure organics in a fluid sample, one either has to bring the sample in the form of a colloid to the instrument, or extract the organics from the sample and bring the...
Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
The Mars 2020 coring drill will generate a significant amount of dust and debris (known as fines) due to the volume of milled material displaced by the corer's annulus. These cuttings must be removed to ensure that the...
Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Low-Pressure Plasma Cleaning of Aerospace Components Using Breathing/Compressed Air
A method for precision cleaning of aerospace components is needed that does not use hazardous or environmentally harmful commodities. Historically, precision cleaning methods have utilized solvents that have contributed to the depletion of the ozone layer or had...
Articles: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
We use touch, the dominant user interface for years, to tap keyboards on laptops and tablets, to communicate with our car’s portable GPS, and to text friends and take photos from our smartphones.
INSIDER: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Extreme temperatures can severely strain a mechanical component because its material may have trouble enduring the heat without degrading. To address the problem, researchers at MIT developed...
NASA Spinoff: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Spinoff is NASA's annual publication featuring successfully commercialized NASA technology. This commercialization has contributed to the development of products and services in the fields of...
Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Tangential Wrap Rib Deployable Reflector
There is a need for a large deployable reflector of 2-meter diameter or greater so smaller launch vehicles can be used. Common issues with going from a large solid reflector into deployable structures are the structural stiffness and deployable structure complexity.
Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
This technology is a low-cost RFID-based torque and tension sensor for high-performance fasteners, such as bolts, that are used in sophisticated high-tech equipment and systems. It offers the...
Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Low Solidity Vaned Diffuser (LSVD) Design for Improvement of Pressure Recovery
Many pump vaned diffuser designs are based on existing airfoil designs, with little attention given to the vane leading edge. There is a need for a vaned diffuser leading edge that helps resist flow separation and the resultant poor diffuser pressure recovery. Diffusers...
Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Oxygen, water, and fuel are of paramount importance to human life. As a leading concept, the solid-oxide electrolysis cell (SOEC) is a very powerful technology, especially in...
Briefs: Motion Control
The BiBlade sampler has been developed for potentially acquiring samples from the surface of a planetary body. The tool could conceivably be used in both in situ and notional sample return missions to planetary bodies...
INSIDER: Medical
Magnetic Fields Enable New Soft Robots
Researchers from North Carolina State University have a found a new way to control robots. The team used magnetic fields to remotely manipulate microparticle chains embedded in soft robotic devices.
Top Stories
INSIDER: Sensors/Data Acquisition
Aya Durbin of Boston Dynamics on Why Humanoids Are the Future of...
Podcasts: RF & Microwave Electronics
Engineering Spacecraft Components at Scale for Commercial Space Growth
INSIDER: Motion Control
NVIDIA Announces Industry’s First Full-Stack Safety System for Physical...
Blog: Design
NASA Marches Toward Artemis III Mission in 2027
Articles: RF & Microwave Electronics
Blog: Manufacturing & Prototyping
Meet AutoLabs: The New Generative AI Automating Multi-Step Laboratory...
Webcasts
Webinars: AR/AI
From Grid to GPU: Validating Next-Gen AI Data Center Power Infrastructures
Summits: Power
Hydrogen & Alternative Fuels Summit 2026
Webinars: Automotive
Engineering Extended-Range Hybrid Systems
Editorial Webinars: Medical
Design for Miniaturization: Meeting the Demand for Smaller,...
Webinars: AR/AI
Why Your Integration Stack Is Blocking Your AI Roadmap
Editorial Webinars: Automotive
