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NASA Reinstalls Main Mirror …
Engineers and technicians fr …
10/28/08
Description Engineers and technicians from NASA, the German Space Agency and the Deutsches SOFIA Institut recently reinstalled the German-built primary mirror assembly into NASA's Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy, or SOFIA, airborne observatory. Technicians removed the glass mirror from the modified 747SP observatory in April 2008 and transported it to NASA's Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif., where it received its reflective aluminum coating in a vacuum chamber in June 2008. The coating, five one-millionths of an inch thick, will be reapplied as necessary during the 20-year life of the program. "We had completed system tests of our mirror coater but this is the first time we've actually coated SOFIA's mirror. The team and equipment performed flawlessly and the results are magnificent," says Ed Austin, SOFIA science project manager at Ames. The mirror assembly was transported back to NASA's Dryden Aircraft Operations Facility in Palmdale, Calif., mid-September and reinstalled Oct. 8. "The reinstallation of the mirror is a significant program milestone on the path to science observations with the SOFIA observatory in the summer of 2009," said Bob Meyer, SOFIA program manager at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, Calif. &#8250 Read more Photo Description A technician guides SOFIA's primary mirror assembly into the aircraft's telescope cavity completing the mirror reinstallation following its initial coating. October 8, 2008 NASA Photo / Carla Thomas ED08-0262-54
Date 10/28/08
Ikhana
NASA Aircraft Aiding Souther …
7/9/08
Description NASA Aircraft Aiding Southern California Firefighting EffortRelease: 07-57 In response to a request from the California Office of Emergency Services and the National Interagency Fire Center, NASA is flying an aircraft equipped with sophisticated infrared imaging equipment today to assist firefighters battling several of the Southern California wildfires. The Ikhana unmanned aircraft system, a Predator B modified for civil science and research missions, was launched about 8:45 a.m. PDT from its base at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center at Edwards Air Force Base. It is expected to fly over the major blazes burning in the Lake Arrowhead and Running Springs areas and possibly down into San Diego County to image wildfires raging in that area. The aircraft is controlled remotely by pilots in a ground control station at NASA Dryden. The Ikhana is carrying the Autonomous Modular Scanner, a thermal-infrared imaging system developed at NASA's Ames Research Center in Northern California. The system is capable of peering through heavy smoke and darkness to see hot spots, flames and temperature differences, processing the imagery on-board, and then transmitting that information in near real time so it can aid fire incident commanders in allocating their firefighting resources...Read more Photo Description: With smoke from the Lake Arrowhead, CA area fires streaming in the background, NASA's Ikhana unmanned aircraft heads out on a wildfire imaging mission. October 24, 2007 NASA Photo / Jim Ross ED07-0243-37
Date 7/9/08
POLAR STRATOSPHERIC CLOUDS
Polar stratospheric clouds o …
4/5/00
Date 4/5/00
Description Polar stratospheric clouds over Kiruna, Sweden, on Jan. 27, 2000. The colorful appearance of these clouds is due to the small size of their droplets and their high altitude, approximately 21,300 meters (70,000 ft). The small droplets in the clouds result in separation of light of different colors due to refraction of sunlight. Their high altitude allows for full solar illumination for up to 20 minutes following sunset at the ground. These clouds, which have long been called "Mother of Pearl" by Scandinavians, participate in a chain of events that leads to ozone depletion by human-produced chlorine. Between November 1999 and March 2000, the SAGE III Ozone Loss and Validation Experiment (SOLVE) provided scientists with measurements of ozone using a variety of satellite-, airplane-, balloon- and ground-based instruments. Scientists also obtained a comprehensive inventory of numerous other atmospheric gases and information on the physical and chemical properties of polar stratospheric clouds. The SOLVE mission was co-sponsored by the Upper Atmosphere Research Program, Atmospheric Effects of Aviation Project, Atmospheric Chemistry Modeling and Analysis Program, and Earth Observing System of NASA's Earth Science Enterprise as part of the validation program for the SAGE III instrument. Based primarily in Kiruna, Sweden, the campaign included scientists from the United States, Europe, Canada, Russia and Japan. A key aspect to the success of this mission was the permission to fly both NASA research aircraft over Russia. SOLVE was managed by the Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA, with extensive participation by science teams from Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD, Langley Research Center, Hampton, VA, and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA, as well as a number of other government laboratories and universities. The ER-2 and DC-8 aircraft are based at Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, CA, and the U.S. balloon operations in Sweden were conducted by a team from the National Scientific Balloon Facility, Palestine, TX.
HIGH ALTITUDE BALLOON/ARCTIC …
A NASA high-altitude researc …
4/5/00
Date 4/5/00
Description A NASA high-altitude research balloon climbing to study the composition of the Arctic stratosphere from the Esrange Balloon Launch Facility near Kiruna, Sweden. With its helium bubble expanding to the size of a large building while in the stratosphere, the balloon carried a payload of about 450 Kg. (1000 lbs) to an altitude of about 30,500 meters (100,000 ft.). Following flight, the instrument payload lands by parachute and is recovered for subsequent flights. Between November 1999 and March 2000, the SAGE III Ozone Loss and Validation Experiment (SOLVE) provided scientists with measurements of ozone using a variety of satellite-, airplane-, balloon- and ground-based instruments. Scientists also obtained a comprehensive inventory of numerous other atmospheric gases and information on the physical and chemical properties of polar stratospheric clouds. The SOLVE mission was co-sponsored by the Upper Atmosphere Research Program, Atmospheric Effects of Aviation Project, Atmospheric Chemistry Modeling and Analysis Program, and Earth Observing System of NASA's Earth Science Enterprise as part of the validation program for the SAGE III instrument. Based primarily in Kiruna, Sweden, the campaign included scientists from the United States, Europe, Canada, Russia and Japan. A key aspect to the success of this mission was the permission to fly both NASA research aircraft over Russia. SOLVE was managed by the Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA, with extensive participation by science teams from Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD, Langley Research Center, Hampton, VA, and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA, as well as a number of other government laboratories and universities. The ER-2 and DC-8 aircraft are based at Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, CA, and the U.S. balloon operations in Sweden were conducted by a team from the National Scientific Balloon Facility, Palestine, TX.
OZONE INSTRUMENTS LOADED ON …
Scientists preparing their i …
4/5/00
Date 4/5/00
Description Scientists preparing their instruments for flight on the NASA ER-2 research aircraft inside the Arena Arctica hangar, Kiruna, Sweden. The plane carries dozens of instruments in two pods attached to the wings, in the Q-bay area below the cockpit and in the nose. These pieces of the plane can be detached allowing access to the instruments prior to take-off. Between November 1999 and March 2000, the SAGE III Ozone Loss and Validation Experiment (SOLVE) provided scientists with measurements of ozone using a variety of satellite-, airplane-, balloon- and ground-based instruments. Scientists also obtained a comprehensive inventory of numerous other atmospheric gases and information on the physical and chemical properties of polar stratospheric clouds. The SOLVE mission was co-sponsored by the Upper Atmosphere Research Program, Atmospheric Effects of Aviation Project, Atmospheric Chemistry Modeling and Analysis Program, and Earth Observing System of NASA's Earth Science Enterprise as part of the validation program for the SAGE III instrument. Based primarily in Kiruna, Sweden, the campaign included scientists from the United States, Europe, Canada, Russia and Japan. A key aspect to the success of this mission was the permission to fly both NASA research aircraft over Russia. SOLVE was managed by the Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA, with extensive participation by science teams from Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD, Langley Research Center, Hampton, VA, and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA, as well as a number of other government laboratories and universities. The ER-2 and DC-8 aircraft are based at Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, CA, and the U.S. balloon operations in Sweden were conducted by a team from the National Scientific Balloon Facility, Palestine, TX.
ER-2 USED IN ARCTIC OZONE RE …
The NASA ER-2 high-altitude …
4/5/00
Date 4/5/00
Description The NASA ER-2 high-altitude research plane on the runway of Kiruna, Sweden. The airplane -- a civilian variant of the U-2 reconnaissance plane capable of reaching altitudes as high as 21,330 meters (70,000 feet) -- carried into the stratosphere dozens of scientific instruments that measure the composition of Earth's ozone layer. The only person on board is the pilot, who must wear a pressurized spacesuit to guard against the dangers of high-altitude flight. Between November 1999 and March 2000, the SAGE III Ozone Loss and Validation Experiment (SOLVE) provided scientists with measurements of ozone using a variety of satellite-, airplane-, balloon- and ground-based instruments. Scientists also obtained a comprehensive inventory of numerous other atmospheric gases and information on the physical and chemical properties of polar stratospheric clouds. The SOLVE mission was co-sponsored by the Upper Atmosphere Research Program, Atmospheric Effects of Aviation Project, Atmospheric Chemistry Modeling and Analysis Program, and Earth Observing System of NASA's Earth Science Enterprise as part of the validation program for the SAGE III instrument. Based primarily in Kiruna, Sweden, the campaign included scientists from the United States, Europe, Canada, Russia and Japan. A key aspect to the success of this mission was the permission to fly both NASA research aircraft over Russia. SOLVE was managed by the Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA, with extensive participation by science teams from Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD, Langley Research Center, Hampton, VA, and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA, as well as a number of other government laboratories and universities. The ER-2 and DC-8 aircraft are based at Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, CA, and the U.S. balloon operations in Sweden were conducted by a team from the National Scientific Balloon Facility, Palestine, TX.
NASA TV's This Week @NASA, J …
A NASA-sponsored mission in …
06/25/10
Description A NASA-sponsored mission in Alaska is exploring how changes in the Arctic's sea ice cover may be contributing to global warming.* Now, after years of continuous service to more than a dozen missions, NASA's Tracking and Data Relay Satellite, TDRS 1 is retiring.* The replica Orion crew module used in the highly-successful Launch Abort system Pad Abort-1 flight test in New Mexico May 6 has returned to the Dryden Flight Research Center. * The Glenn Research Center's Plum Brook Station and the Marshall Space Flight Center welcomed members of the STS-131 crew to share highlights from their recent 15-day mission to the International Space Station. * While soccer fans around the world watch and await the winner of the 2010 World Cup, student players from the U.S. and Canada heard scientists and engineers from the Ames Research Center's Fluid Dynamics Laboratory explain the aerodynamics of the “Jabulani'' soccer ball.*
Date 06/25/10
ER-2 Airborne Science Aircra …
Title ER-2 Airborne Science Aircraft
Full Description First acquired in 1981, NASA has been using two ER-2 Airborne Science aircraft as flying laboratories. The aircraft once based at Ames Research Center now fly out of Dryden Flight Research Center in Edwards, California. They collect information about our surroundings, including Earth resources, celestial observations, atmospheric chemistry, and dynamics and oceanic processes. The aircraft are also used for electronic sensor research and development, satellite calibration, and satellite data validation.
Date 1981
NASA Center Dryden Flight Research Center
X-36 on Ramp
Title X-36 on Ramp
Full Description NASA Dryden Flight Fesearch Center, Edwards California is hosting the X-36 program, as well as providing range support for the flight tests. NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, California originated the X- 36 program and is managing the program in a cooperative effort with the McDonnell Douglas Corporation. MDC's responsibilities include flight preparation and testing, data acquisition and analysis. The X-36 is a small, remotely-piloted jet built by MDC and designed to fly without the traditional tail surfaces common on most aircraft. Two 28 percent scale vehicles will be put through fighter aircraft maneuvers during the scheduled 25 flight program. The goal is to gather data on the performance characteristics, especially agility, of tailless, fighter type aircraft. The lack of vertical tails on the X-36 greatly enhances the stealthy characteristics of the airplane, and holds promise for greater agility than is currently available in existing fighter aircraft. The X-36 is 18 feet long with a 10 foot wingspan, is 3 feet high, and weighs 1,270 pounds.
Date 07/16/1997
NASA Center Dryden Flight Research Center
M2-F3 with test pilot John A …
Photo Description NASA research pilot John A. Manke is seen here in front of the M2-F3 Lifting Body. Manke was hired by NASA on May 25, 1962, as a flight research engineer. He was later assigned to the pilot's office and flew various support aircraft including the F-104, F5D, F-111 and C-47. After leaving the Marine Corps in 1960, Manke worked for Honeywell Corporation as a test engineer for two years before coming to NASA. He was project pilot on the X-24B and also flew the HL-10, M2-F3, and X-24A lifting bodies. John made the first supersonic flight of a lifting body and the first landing of a lifting body on a hard surface runway. Manke served as Director of the Flight Operations and Support Directorate at the Dryden Flight Research Center prior to its integration with Ames Research Center in October 1981. After this date John was named to head the joint Ames-Dryden Directorate of Flight Operations. He also served as site manager of the NASA Ames-Dryden Flight Research Facility. John is a member of the Society of Experimental Test Pilots. He retired on April 27, 1984.
Project Description A fleet of lifting bodies flown at the NASA Flight Research Center (FRC--later the Dryden Flight Research Center), Edwards, California, from 1963 to 1975 demonstrated the ability of pilots to maneuver and safely land a wingless vehicle designed to fly back to Earth from space and be landed like an aircraft at a pre-determined site. Aerodynamic lift--essential to flight in the atmosphere--was obtained from the shape of their bodies. The addition of fins and control surfaces allowed the pilots to stabilize and control the vehicles and regulate their flight paths. The information the lifting body program generated contributed to the data base that led to development of today's space shuttle program. The success of the FRC's M2-F1 [ http://www.dfrc.nasa.gov/Gallery/Photo/M2-F1/index.html ] program led to NASA's development and construction of two heavyweight lifting bodies based on studies at NASA's Ames and Langley research centers--the M2-F2 and the HL-10, both built by the Northrop Corporation. The "M" refers to "manned" and "F" refers to "flight" version. "HL" comes from "horizontal landing" and 10 is for the tenth lifting body model to be investigated by Langley. The first flight of the M2-F2--which looked much like the "F1"--was on July 12, 1966. Milt Thompson was the pilot. By then, the same B-52s used to air launch the famed X-15 rocket research aircraft were modified to also carry the lifting bodies. Thompson was dropped from the B-52's wing pylon mount at an altitude of 45,000 feet on that maiden glide flight. The M2-F2 weighed 4,620 pounds, was 22 feet long, and had a width of about 10 feet. On May 10, 1967, during the sixteenth glide flight leading up to powered flight, a landing accident severely damaged the vehicle and seriously injured the NASA pilot, Bruce Peterson. NASA pilots and researchers realized the M2-F2 had lateral control problems, even though it had a stability augmentation (control) system. When the M2-F2 was rebuilt by the Northrop Corporation with the help and cooperation of the FRC and redesignated the M2-F3 [ http://www.dfrc.nasa.gov/Gallery/Photo/M2-F3/index.html ], it was modified with an additional third vertical fin--centered between the tip fins--to improve control characteristics. The M2-F2/F3 was the first of the heavy-weight, entry-configuration (i.e., configured for re-entry to the atmosphere from space) lifting bodies. Its successful development as a research test vehicle answered many of the generic questions about these vehicles. NASA donated the M2-F3 vehicle to the Smithsonian Institute in December 1973. It is currently hanging in the Air and Space Museum along with the X-15 aircraft number 1, which was its hangar partner at Dryden from 1965 to 1969.
Photo Date December 20, 1972
M2-F1 in flight
M2-F1 car tow test with 1963 …
Dale Reed's home movie of an …
F-14 Tomcat spin test
Project Description Grumman F-14 Tomcats have been involved in two main projects at NASA Dryden. This 41 second movie clip shows a spin test NASA 991, an F-14 Navy Tomcat designated the F-14 (1X), the 1X signifying that it was Grumman's experimental testbed, was used at Dryden between 1979 and 1985 in extensive high-angle-of-attack and spin-control-and-recovery tests. The NASA/Navy program, which included 212 total flights, achieved considerable improvement in the F-14 high-angle-of-attack flying qualities, improved departure and spin resistance, and contributed to substantial improvements in reducing "wing rock," (i.e., tilting from one side to another), at high angles of attack. The Navy had been experiencing inadvertent spin entries caused by the F-14's aileron rudder interconnect. The NASA/Navy/Grumman team developed and tested 4 different configurations of the aileron rudder interconnect to address the spin problem. These problems prompted the Navy to ask the manufacturer, Grumman, and NASA to investigate the issue. The tail control surfaces on F-14s are known as "rolling tails", in that the aircraft does not have ailerons on the wings to control roll. Roll control is instead provided at low speeds by wing-mounted spoilers and at high speeds by differential horizontal stabilizer deflection. This configuration also produces side force, or yaw, which contributed to the inadvertent spin entries. This large tail configuration is to aid in takeoff from aircraft carriers, by providing more pitch moment. NASA 991 had numerous special additions for high-angle-of-attack and spin-recovery research. These included a battery-powered auxiliary power unit, a flight test nose boom, and a special spin recovery system, consisting of forward mounted, hydraulically actuated canards and an emergency spin chute. NASA's F-14 was first flown by NASA research pilots, but was later flown by Grumman, and by Navy test pilots from Naval Air Station (NAS) Patuxent River. The Navy test flights with the spin research vehicle constituted the first program that incorporated air combat maneuvering in its test flights at Dryden. The Navy brought F-14s from Point Mugu and NAS Miramar in San Diego to test the new spin control laws in combat situations. Although the new control laws proved valuable, the Navy did not incorporate them into production F-14s until the F-14D, nearly 15 years later. Einar Enevoldson, the NASA test pilot on the project, developed a maneuvering technique to aid in testing these new spin control laws. This maneuvering technique was later adopted for use in F-18 High Angle-of-Attack Research Vehicle (HARV) spin tests. Among the 212 flights completed for this research project, the F-14 also tested a flush air data system, for gathering data about air speed, provided an updated aeromodel, which is currently in use on Navy F-14 training simulators, created natural laminar flow baseline data for many of NASA's later laminar flow programs, and tested low altitude,, asymmetric thrust. F-14s were later used in laminar flow studies in the Variable Sweep Transition Flight Experiment program (VSTFE) on NASA's F-14 #834. NASA 991 was delivered back to the Navy on September 6, 1985. NASA 834, an F-14 Navy Tomcat, was used at Dryden in 1986 and 1987 in a program known as the Variable-Sweep Transition Flight Experiment. This program explored laminar flow on variable sweep aircraft at high subsonic speeds. Flight transition data applicable to swept wings at high subsonic speeds was needed to make valid assessments of the potential for natural laminar flow or laminar flow control for future transports of various sizes operating at various cruise speeds. NASA initiated the VSTFE program to help establish a boundary-layer transition database for use in laminar-flow wing design. An F-14 aircraft was chosen as the carrier vehicle for the VSTFE program primarily because of its variable-sweep capability, Mach and Reynolds number capability, availability, and favorable wing pressure distribution. The variable sweep outer-panels of the F-14 aircraft were modified with natural laminar flow gloves to provide not only smooth surfaces but also airfoils that can produce a wide range of pressure distributions for which transition location can be determined at various flight conditions and sweep angles. Glove I, installed on the upper surface of the left wing, was a "cleanup" or smoothing of the basic F-14 wing, while glove II was designed to provide specific pressure distributions at Mach 0.7.
F-14 Tomcat dive and pullout
Project Description Grumman F-14 Tomcats have been involved in two main projects at NASA Dryden. This 26 second movie clip shows an F-14 dive and pullout. NASA 991, an F-14 Navy Tomcat designated the F-14 (1X), the 1X signifying that it was Grumman's experimental testbed, was used at Dryden between 1979 and 1985 in extensive high-angle-of-attack and spin-control-and-recovery tests. The NASA/Navy program, which included 212 total flights, achieved considerable improvement in the F-14 high-angle-of-attack flying qualities, improved departure and spin resistance, and contributed to substantial improvements in reducing "wing rock," (i.e., tilting from one side to another), at high angles of attack. The Navy had been experiencing inadvertent spin entries caused by the F-14's aileron rudder interconnect. The NASA/Navy/Grumman team developed and tested 4 different configurations of the aileron rudder interconnect to address the spin problem. These problems prompted the Navy to ask the manufacturer, Grumman, and NASA to investigate the issue. The tail control surfaces on F-14s are known as "rolling tails", in that the aircraft does not have ailerons on the wings to control roll. Roll control is instead provided at low speeds by wing-mounted spoilers and at high speeds by differential horizontal stabilizer deflection. This configuration also produces side force, or yaw, which contributed to the inadvertent spin entries. This large tail configuration is to aid in takeoff from aircraft carriers, by providing more pitch moment. NASA 991 had numerous special additions for high-angle-of-attack and spin-recovery research. These included a battery-powered auxiliary power unit, a flight test nose boom, and a special spin recovery system, consisting of forward mounted, hydraulically actuated canards and an emergency spin chute. NASA's F-14 was first flown by NASA research pilots, but was later flown by Grumman, and by Navy test pilots from Naval Air Station (NAS) Patuxent River. The Navy test flights with the spin research vehicle constituted the first program that incorporated air combat maneuvering in its test flights at Dryden. The Navy brought F-14s from Point Mugu and NAS Miramar in San Diego to test the new spin control laws in combat situations. Although the new control laws proved valuable, the Navy did not incorporate them into production F-14s until the F-14D, nearly 15 years later. Einar Enevoldson, the NASA test pilot on the project, developed a maneuvering technique to aid in testing these new spin control laws. This maneuvering technique was later adopted for use in F-18 High Angle-of-Attack Research Vehicle (HARV) spin tests. Among the 212 flights completed for this research project, the F-14 also tested a flush air data system, for gathering data about air speed, provided an updated aeromodel, which is currently in use on Navy F-14 training simulators, created natural laminar flow baseline data for many of NASA's later laminar flow programs, and tested low, altitude, asymmetric thrust. F-14s were later used in laminar flow studies in the Variable Sweep Transition Flight Experiment program (VSTFE) on NASA's F-14 #834. NASA 991 was delivered back to the Navy on September 6, 1985. NASA 834, an F-14 Navy Tomcat, was used at Dryden in 1986 and 1987 in a program known as the Variable-Sweep Transition Flight Experiment. This program explored laminar flow on variable sweep aircraft at high subsonic speeds. Flight transition data applicable to swept wings at high subsonic speeds was needed to make valid assessments of the potential for natural laminar flow or laminar flow control for future transports of various sizes operating at various cruise speeds. NASA initiated the VSTFE program to help establish a boundary-layer transition database for use in laminar-flow wing design. An F-14 aircraft was chosen as the carrier vehicle for the VSTFE program primarily because of its variable-sweep capability, Mach and Reynolds number capability, availability, and favorable wing pressure distribution. The variable sweep outer-panels of the F-14 aircraft were modified with natural laminar flow gloves to provide not only smooth surfaces but also airfoils that can produce a wide range of pressure distributions for which transition location can be determined at various flight conditions and sweep angles. Glove I, installed on the upper surface of the left wing, was a "cleanup" or smoothing of the basic F-14 wing, while glove II was designed to provide specific pressure distributions at Mach 0.7.
APV-3 Networked UAV Teaming …
XB-70 Valkyrie landing on ru …
XB-70A in flight
XB-70A cockpit view of takeo …
XB-70A in flight
XV-15 takeoff and maneuverin …
XV-15 in flight
YF-12A Coldwall Ground Separ …
YF-12C mid-air refueling
YF-12C approach and landing …
YF-12A landing at Edwards Ai …
YF-12C takeoff from Edwards …
XB-70A during startup and ra …
NASA research pilot Gordon F …
Photo Description NASA research pilot Gordon Fullerton checked out how the PCA software worked in the multi-engine simulator at NASA Ames before fight-testing PCA in an MD-11.
Project Description In landings at NASA Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California, on August 29 and 30, the MD-11 Propulsion-Controlled Aircraft (PCA) demonstrated software used in the aircraft's flight control computer that essentially landed the MD-11 without a need for the pilot to manipulate the flight controls significantly. In partnership with McDonnell Douglas Aerospace (MDA), with Pratt & Whitney and Honeywell helping to design the software, NASA developed this propulsion-controlled aircraft (PCA) system following a series of incidents in which hydraulic failures resulted in the loss of flight controls. This new system enables a pilot to operate and land the aircraft safely when its normal, hydraulically-activated control surfaces are disabled.
Photo Date October 11, 1994
An Air Force C-17 flew a var …
Photo Description An Air Force C-17 flew a variety of landing profiles at Edwards Air Force Base as part of a NASA noise mitigation study conducted Sept. 10, 2005.
Project Description Thirteen aerospace engineering students from California Polytechnic State University at San Luis Obispo spent a Saturday in mid-September 2005 on a lake -- not sailing but helping NASA study aircraft takeoff and landing noise. Trading the classroom for on-site research on Rogers Dry Lake in California's Mojave Desert, each student was armed with a laptop computer and other equipment to participate in the C-17 Noise Mitigation Flight Test. NASA, the United States Air Force and Northrop Grumman Corp. partnered for the test flights. NASA researchers from Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif., and Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, Calif., led the collaborative effort. The C-17 flight experiment was sponsored by the NASA Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate's Vehicle Systems Program (VSP). Seventeen microphones, covering approximately 15 square miles, were positioned on the dry lakebed to record the noise footprint of the Air Force Flight Test Center's C-17 Globemaster III as it attempted various landing approaches. In addition to conventional straight-in landing profiles, a new type of simultaneous and non-interfering (SNI) landing profile was flown. This new approach is similar to a descending spiral over the landing site. Research participants, using laptops connected to GPS receivers and equipped with third-generation sound cards, collected data from the flights to validate a modeling tool for predicting SNI approach noise footprints. The flights also tested the hypothesis that employing this landing approach could help keep aircraft noise within the airport land use zone.
Photo Date September 10, 2005
California Polytechnic State …
Photo Description California Polytechnic State University student Andrew Welborn collects C-17 landing noise data using a laptop with sound card and connected to a GPS receiver.
Project Description Thirteen aerospace engineering students from California Polytechnic State University at San Luis Obispo spent a Saturday in mid-September 2005 on a lake -- not sailing but helping NASA study aircraft takeoff and landing noise. Trading the classroom for on-site research on Rogers Dry Lake in California's Mojave Desert, each student was armed with a laptop computer and other equipment to participate in the C-17 Noise Mitigation Flight Test. NASA, the United States Air Force and Northrop Grumman Corp. partnered for the test flights. NASA researchers from Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif., and Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, Calif., led the collaborative effort. The C-17 flight experiment was sponsored by the NASA Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate's Vehicle Systems Program (VSP). Seventeen microphones, covering approximately 15 square miles, were positioned on the dry lakebed to record the noise footprint of the Air Force Flight Test Center's C-17 Globemaster III as it attempted various landing approaches. In addition to conventional straight-in landing profiles, a new type of simultaneous and non-interfering (SNI) landing profile was flown. This new approach is similar to a descending spiral over the landing site. Research participants, using laptops connected to GPS receivers and equipped with third-generation sound cards, collected data from the flights to validate a modeling tool for predicting SNI approach noise footprints. The flights also tested the hypothesis that employing this landing approach could help keep aircraft noise within the airport land use zone.
Photo Date September 10, 2005
California Polytechnic State …
Photo Description California Polytechnic State University student Abagail Liddle sits on Rogers Dry Lake and uses a laptop to collect noise data of a C-17's landing approaches.
Project Description Thirteen aerospace engineering students from California Polytechnic State University at San Luis Obispo spent a Saturday in mid-September 2005 on a lake -- not sailing but helping NASA study aircraft takeoff and landing noise. Trading the classroom for on-site research on Rogers Dry Lake in California's Mojave Desert, each student was armed with a laptop computer and other equipment to participate in the C-17 Noise Mitigation Flight Test. NASA, the United States Air Force and Northrop Grumman Corp. partnered for the test flights. NASA researchers from Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif., and Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, Calif., led the collaborative effort. The C-17 flight experiment was sponsored by the NASA Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate's Vehicle Systems Program (VSP). Seventeen microphones, covering approximately 15 square miles, were positioned on the dry lakebed to record the noise footprint of the Air Force Flight Test Center's C-17 Globemaster III as it attempted various landing approaches. In addition to conventional straight-in landing profiles, a new type of simultaneous and non-interfering (SNI) landing profile was flown. This new approach is similar to a descending spiral over the landing site. Research participants, using laptops connected to GPS receivers and equipped with third-generation sound cards, collected data from the flights to validate a modeling tool for predicting SNI approach noise footprints. The flights also tested the hypothesis that employing this landing approach could help keep aircraft noise within the airport land use zone.
Photo Date September 10, 2005
NASA research pilots Jim Smo …
Photo Description NASA research pilots Jim Smolka and Frank Batteas fly a variety of landing profiles in an Air Force C-17 during a NASA noise mitigation study.
Project Description Thirteen aerospace engineering students from California Polytechnic State University at San Luis Obispo spent a Saturday in mid-September 2005 on a lake -- not sailing but helping NASA study aircraft takeoff and landing noise. Trading the classroom for on-site research on Rogers Dry Lake in California's Mojave Desert, each student was armed with a laptop computer and other equipment to participate in the C-17 Noise Mitigation Flight Test. NASA, the United States Air Force and Northrop Grumman Corp. partnered for the test flights. NASA researchers from Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif., and Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, Calif., led the collaborative effort. The C-17 flight experiment was sponsored by the NASA Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate's Vehicle Systems Program (VSP). Seventeen microphones, covering approximately 15 square miles, were positioned on the dry lakebed to record the noise footprint of the Air Force Flight Test Center's C-17 Globemaster III as it attempted various landing approaches. In addition to conventional straight-in landing profiles, a new type of simultaneous and non-interfering (SNI) landing profile was flown. This new approach is similar to a descending spiral over the landing site. Research participants, using laptops connected to GPS receivers and equipped with third-generation sound cards, collected data from the flights to validate a modeling tool for predicting SNI approach noise footprints. The flights also tested the hypothesis that employing this landing approach could help keep aircraft noise within the airport land use zone.
Photo Date September 10, 2005
DC-8 Airborne Laboratory in …
Photo Description The DC-8 Airborne Science Laboratroy is shown flying above a solid layer of clouds. The aircraft was transferred from the Ames Research Center to the Dryden Flight Research Center in late 1997. Over the past several years, it has undertaken a wide range of research in such fields as archeology, ecology, hydrology, meteorology, oceanography, volcanology, atmospheric chemistry, and other fields. In this photo, it is shown flying over a bank of clouds.
Project Description NASA used a DC-8 aircraft as a flying science laboratory. The platform aircraft, was based at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, Calif., collected data for many experiments in support of scientific projects serving the world scientific community. Included in this community were NASA, federal, state, academic and foreign investigators. Data gathered by the DC-8 at flight altitude and by remote sensing has been used for scientific studies in archeology, ecology, geography, hydrology, meteorology, oceanography, volcanology, atmospheric chemistry, soil science and biology.
Photo Date February 1999
Kenneth J. Szalai
Photo Date January 8, 1997
Pilot James Barrilleaux with …
Photo Date March 18, 1998
F-8 DFBW with test pilot Gar …
Photo Date June 16, 1972
Mothership Drop Test of an M …
Mothership Drop Test of an M …
AD-1 aircraft in flight
AD-1 wing pivoting in flight
AD-1 during a research fligh …
YO-3A parked on ramp
Photo Description NASA's YO-3A parked on the Dryden ramp.
Project Description The YO-3A aircraft was originally a Schweizer SGS-2-32 sailplane. During the late 1960s Lockheed modified over a dozen of these sailplanes to create ultra-quiet observation aircraft for use over South Vietnam. This particular YO-3A flew combat missions and was later sold to an airframe and powerplant mechanics school. NASA's Ames Research Center at Mountain View, California, acquired the aircraft from the school in 1978. It restored the YO-3A to flight status and fitted it with wing- and tail-mounted microphones as an acoustic research aircraft. Ames operated it at Edwards Air Force Base for noise measurements of helicopters and tilt rotor aircraft. One set of tests in December 1995 obtained free-flight noise data on the XV-15 tilt rotor. NASA also used the YO-3A for sonic boom measurements of a NASA SR-71 assigned to the Dryden Flight Research Center. NASA transferred the YO-3A to Dryden in December 1997 and the aircraft was placed in flyable storage for nearly seven years. It was then restored to flight status in mid-2004. This involved replacing the old hoses, belts, and tires on the aircraft. The YO-3A was then returned to Ames in October 2004, where it will be used for acoustic measurements of helicopters and rotorcraft. The designation YO-3A indicates that this aircraft was a pre-production (Y) observation (O) aircraft. Even though the YO-3A saw operational use, the Y designation was never removed. Its 210-horsepower Continental V-6 was modified to reduce noise. The engine was connected to a propeller through a belt-driven reduction system. This reduced the propeller's rotation speed. The propeller blades themselves were made of birch plywood and were wider than standard propellers. The result of these modifications was an aircraft so quiet that its noise was drowned out by the background sounds.
Photo Date June 27, 1997
Photo Description NASA's converted YO-3A observation plane, now used for acoustics research, touches down at Edwards Air Force Base following a pilot checkout flight.
Project Description The YO-3A aircraft was originally a Schweizer SGS-2-32 sailplane. During the late 1960s Lockheed modified over a dozen of these sailplanes to create ultra-quiet observation aircraft for use over South Vietnam. This particular YO-3A flew combat missions and was later sold to an airframe and powerplant mechanics school. NASA's Ames Research Center at Mountain View, California, acquired the aircraft from the school in 1978. It restored the YO-3A to flight status and fitted it with wing- and tail-mounted microphones as an acoustic research aircraft. Ames operated it at Edwards Air Force Base for noise measurements of helicopters and tilt rotor aircraft. One set of tests in December 1995 obtained free-flight noise data on the XV-15 tilt rotor. NASA also used the YO-3A for sonic boom measurements of a NASA SR-71 assigned to the Dryden Flight Research Center. NASA transferred the YO-3A to Dryden in December 1997 and the aircraft was placed in flyable storage for nearly seven years. It was then restored to flight status in mid-2004. This involved replacing the old hoses, belts, and tires on the aircraft. The YO-3A was then returned to Ames in October 2004, where it will be used for acoustic measurements of helicopters and rotorcraft. The designation YO-3A indicates that this aircraft was a pre-production (Y) observation (O) aircraft. Even though the YO-3A saw operational use, the Y designation was never removed. Its 210-horsepower Continental V-6 was modified to reduce noise. The engine was connected to a propeller through a belt-driven reduction system. This reduced the propeller's rotation speed. The propeller blades themselves were made of birch plywood and were wider than standard propellers. The result of these modifications was an aircraft so quiet that its noise was drowned out by the background sounds.
Photo Date October 29, 2004
Photo Description NASA's ultra-quiet YO-3A acoustics research aircraft taxis out from the ramp at the Dryden Flight Research Center before a pilot checkout flight.
Project Description The YO-3A aircraft was originally a Schweizer SGS-2-32 sailplane. During the late 1960s Lockheed modified over a dozen of these sailplanes to create ultra-quiet observation aircraft for use over South Vietnam. This particular YO-3A flew combat missions and was later sold to an airframe and powerplant mechanics school. NASA's Ames Research Center at Mountain View, California, acquired the aircraft from the school in 1978. It restored the YO-3A to flight status and fitted it with wing- and tail-mounted microphones as an acoustic research aircraft. Ames operated it at Edwards Air Force Base for noise measurements of helicopters and tilt rotor aircraft. One set of tests in December 1995 obtained free-flight noise data on the XV-15 tilt rotor. NASA also used the YO-3A for sonic boom measurements of a NASA SR-71 assigned to the Dryden Flight Research Center. NASA transferred the YO-3A to Dryden in December 1997 and the aircraft was placed in flyable storage for nearly seven years. It was then restored to flight status in mid-2004. This involved replacing the old hoses, belts, and tires on the aircraft. The YO-3A was then returned to Ames in October 2004, where it will be used for acoustic measurements of helicopters and rotorcraft. The designation YO-3A indicates that this aircraft was a pre-production (Y) observation (O) aircraft. Even though the YO-3A saw operational use, the Y designation was never removed. Its 210-horsepower Continental V-6 was modified to reduce noise. The engine was connected to a propeller through a belt-driven reduction system. This reduced the propeller's rotation speed. The propeller blades themselves were made of birch plywood and were wider than standard propellers. The result of these modifications was an aircraft so quiet that its noise was drowned out by the background sounds.
Photo Date October 29, 2004
Photo Description The slow-speed wooden propeller and long wings are evident as NASA's YO-3A acoustics research aircraft performs a low-level flyover at Edwards Air Force Base.
Project Description The YO-3A aircraft was originally a Schweizer SGS-2-32 sailplane. During the late 1960s Lockheed modified over a dozen of these sailplanes to create ultra-quiet observation aircraft for use over South Vietnam. This particular YO-3A flew combat missions and was later sold to an airframe and powerplant mechanics school. NASA's Ames Research Center at Mountain View, California, acquired the aircraft from the school in 1978. It restored the YO-3A to flight status and fitted it with wing- and tail-mounted microphones as an acoustic research aircraft. Ames operated it at Edwards Air Force Base for noise measurements of helicopters and tilt rotor aircraft. One set of tests in December 1995 obtained free-flight noise data on the XV-15 tilt rotor. NASA also used the YO-3A for sonic boom measurements of a NASA SR-71 assigned to the Dryden Flight Research Center. NASA transferred the YO-3A to Dryden in December 1997 and the aircraft was placed in flyable storage for nearly seven years. It was then restored to flight status in mid-2004. This involved replacing the old hoses, belts, and tires on the aircraft. The YO-3A was then returned to Ames in October 2004, where it will be used for acoustic measurements of helicopters and rotorcraft. The designation YO-3A indicates that this aircraft was a pre-production (Y) observation (O) aircraft. Even though the YO-3A saw operational use, the Y designation was never removed. Its 210-horsepower Continental V-6 was modified to reduce noise. The engine was connected to a propeller through a belt-driven reduction system. This reduced the propeller's rotation speed. The propeller blades themselves were made of birch plywood and were wider than standard propellers. The result of these modifications was an aircraft so quiet that its noise was drowned out by the background sounds.
Photo Date October 29, 2004
Photo Description Joel Sitz is the project manager of the X-43 experimental aircraft [ http://www.dfrc.nasa.gov/Gallery/Photo/X-43A/index.html ] at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California, a position he has held since July 1998. Sitz is responsible for the overall flight research element of the Hyper-X Program, managed by the NASA Langley Research Center, Hampton, Va. The X-43A vehicle will feature the first free flight of an airframe-integrated, hypersonic Supersonic Combustion RamJet (SCRAMJET) engine. Before assuming his present assignment, Sitz was deputy program manager at Dryden for NASA?s Aviation Safety Program from 1997 to 1998. He was also the project manager of the F-18 Systems Research Aircraft (SRA) and the L-1011 Adaptive Performance Optimization (APO) Project. His responsibilities included the development and flight evaluation of several advanced aircraft sensors and systems technologies that will be used to improve both the safety and performance of future military and commercial transport aircraft. Previous to joining NASA in 1989 as an aerospace engineer, Sitz was employed by Honeywell Military Avionics Division. At NASA he became a software systems engineer on the X-29 Forward Swept Wing Project, responsible for real-time flight control software design, development and test. At Dryden, Sitz has developed and performed research in advanced automated test tools to support flight control system validation for flight research projects including the X-29, F-18 High Angle of Attack and X-31 flight research programs. He was the deputy project manager for the F-16XL #2 Supersonic Laminar Flow Control Project. He was also the project manager responsible for transfer of Dryden business system operations from NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif., to NASA Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, Ala., when Dryden became an independent NASA center in 1994. As a member of Dryden?s Procedures and Policies Committee from 1990 to 1997, Sitz was responsible for updating Dryden?s Basic Operations Manual. Sitz graduated from the University of North Dakota in 1982 with a bachelor of science degree in computer science. He received a master of science degree in engineering management in 1989 from Golden Gate University of San Francisco, Calif.
Project Description unknown
Photo Date March 19, 2004
Photo Description Two identical RnR Products APV-3 aircraft validated cooperative flight control software in the Networked UAV Teaming Experiment at NASA Dryden in early 2005.
Project Description Engineers and technicians from NASA's Ames Research Center and Dryden Flight Research Center conducted flight tests over a 'virtual' forest fire in early 2005 to evaluate new flight-control software that will allow UAVs the ability to autonomously react to obstacles as they fly pre-programmed missions. The tests were conducted over a remote area of Edwards Air Force Base, California, to investigate cooperative flight strategies for airborne monitoring and surveillance of natural disasters and for atmospheric sampling. Several novel approaches for providing assistance to wildfire suppression crews using a team of two small UAVs were flown, using a combination of rules from nature and robotics to cooperatively transit and search a virtual forest fire. The experiment used several principles derived from studies of fish and bird motions to simultaneously guide the inexpensive robotic UAVs around obstacles such as simulated smoke plumes. The two autopilot-equipped, 12-foot wingspan aircraft flew along computer-generated paths and demonstrated the ability to avoid obstacles in a cooperative and synchronized manner, all without the help of flight personnel. The aircraft and software also demonstrated an ability to complete more complex navigation and surveillance tasks. For this portion of the tests, the software created waypoints on a rectangular grid of the search area, automatically developed individual flight plans and transmitted them to each vehicle. After passing their first few waypoints, one of the aircraft was commanded to begin orbiting over the virtual fire. The remaining search points were then transmitted to the second aircraft which incorporated these points into its flight plan and completed the mission. This technology may one day enable swarms of aircraft to move safely from one area to another as a flock or group, 'stacked' in a vertical column with instruments to collect air samples on future science missions or help ground personnel monitor forest fires and other natural disasters. The Networked UAV Teaming Experiment was sponsored by NASA's Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate's Aeronautics Systems Analysis Project.
Photo Date November 20, 2004
Photo Description One of two small APV-3 aircraft flown in the joint Ames-Dryden Networked UAV Teaming Experiment flares for landing on a roadway on a remote area of Edwards AFB.
Project Description Engineers and technicians from NASA's Ames Research Center and Dryden Flight Research Center conducted flight tests over a 'virtual' forest fire in early 2005 to evaluate new flight-control software that will allow UAVs the ability to autonomously react to obstacles as they fly pre-programmed missions. The tests were conducted over a remote area of Edwards Air Force Base, California, to investigate cooperative flight strategies for airborne monitoring and surveillance of natural disasters and for atmospheric sampling. Several novel approaches for providing assistance to wildfire suppression crews using a team of two small UAVs were flown, using a combination of rules from nature and robotics to cooperatively transit and search a virtual forest fire. The experiment used several principles derived from studies of fish and bird motions to simultaneously guide the inexpensive robotic UAVs around obstacles such as simulated smoke plumes. The two autopilot-equipped, 12-foot wingspan aircraft flew along computer-generated paths and demonstrated the ability to avoid obstacles in a cooperative and synchronized manner, all without the help of flight personnel. The aircraft and software also demonstrated an ability to complete more complex navigation and surveillance tasks. For this portion of the tests, the software created waypoints on a rectangular grid of the search area, automatically developed individual flight plans and transmitted them to each vehicle. After passing their first few waypoints, one of the aircraft was commanded to begin orbiting over the virtual fire. The remaining search points were then transmitted to the second aircraft which incorporated these points into its flight plan and completed the mission. This technology may one day enable swarms of aircraft to move safely from one area to another as a flock or group, 'stacked' in a vertical column with instruments to collect air samples on future science missions or help ground personnel monitor forest fires and other natural disasters. The Networked UAV Teaming Experiment was sponsored by NASA's Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate's Aeronautics Systems Analysis Project.
Photo Date January 12, 2005
Photo Description NASA Dryden Operations co-op student Shannon Kolensky holds one of the APV-3 UAVs flown in the Networked UAV Teaming Experiment steady during an engine runup.
Project Description Engineers and technicians from NASA's Ames Research Center and Dryden Flight Research Center conducted flight tests over a 'virtual' forest fire in early 2005 to evaluate new flight-control software that will allow UAVs the ability to autonomously react to obstacles as they fly pre-programmed missions. The tests were conducted over a remote area of Edwards Air Force Base, California, to investigate cooperative flight strategies for airborne monitoring and surveillance of natural disasters and for atmospheric sampling. Several novel approaches for providing assistance to wildfire suppression crews using a team of two small UAVs were flown, using a combination of rules from nature and robotics to cooperatively transit and search a virtual forest fire. The experiment used several principles derived from studies of fish and bird motions to simultaneously guide the inexpensive robotic UAVs around obstacles such as simulated smoke plumes. The two autopilot-equipped, 12-foot wingspan aircraft flew along computer-generated paths and demonstrated the ability to avoid obstacles in a cooperative and synchronized manner, all without the help of flight personnel. The aircraft and software also demonstrated an ability to complete more complex navigation and surveillance tasks. For this portion of the tests, the software created waypoints on a rectangular grid of the search area, automatically developed individual flight plans and transmitted them to each vehicle. After passing their first few waypoints, one of the aircraft was commanded to begin orbiting over the virtual fire. The remaining search points were then transmitted to the second aircraft which incorporated these points into its flight plan and completed the mission. This technology may one day enable swarms of aircraft to move safely from one area to another as a flock or group, 'stacked' in a vertical column with instruments to collect air samples on future science missions or help ground personnel monitor forest fires and other natural disasters. The Networked UAV Teaming Experiment was sponsored by NASA's Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate's Aeronautics Systems Analysis Project.
Photo Date January 12, 2005
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