Archivo del Autor: admin

NASA’s X-59 Experimental Supersonic Aircraft Makes Second Flight 

NASA’s quiet supersonic X-59 aircraft made its second flight on Friday, kicking off a series of dozens of test flights in 2026. 

Although the flight duration was abbreviated due to a technical issue, the team was able to collect information that will inform future tests. 

“Despite the early landing, this is a good day for the team. We collected more data, and the pilot landed safely,” said Cathy Bahm, project manager for NASA’s Low-Boom Flight Demonstrator at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center, in Edwards, California. “We’re looking forward to getting back to flight as soon as possible.”  

The aircraft took off at 10:54 a.m. PDT from Edwards Air Force Base, near NASA Armstrong. Several minutes into the flight, pilot Jim “Clue” Less saw a vehicle system warning in the aircraft’s cockpit. Following flight procedures, the aircraft landed at 11:03 a.m. after a return-to-base was called. 

“As we like to say, it was just like the simulator – and that’s what we like to hear,” Less said. “This is just the beginning of a long flight campaign.” 

The X-59 is designed to fly supersonic – or faster than the speed of sound – while generating only a quiet thump instead of a loud sonic boom. The X-59 is the centerpiece of NASA’s Quesst mission, which is working to make commercial supersonic flight over land a reality. 

The aircraft is set to accelerate testing in 2026, demonstrating performance and airworthiness during a process known as envelope expansion, where it will gradually fly faster and higher, on its way to supersonic speeds.  

Powered by WPeMatico

Get The Details…
Jennifer M. Dooren

Hangar One Restoration Project

Editor’s Note: This article was originally published on April 25, 2022 and has been updated to reflect changes including the completion of Hangar One’s restoration.

Restoration has been completed on Hangar One, a historic landmark in the San Francisco Bay Area and a key part of the region’s early aviation history.  

In December 2025, Planetary Ventures completed restoration of the Hangar One landmark at Moffett Federal Airfield, located at NASA’s Ames Research Center in California’s Silicon Valley. Work focused on modernizing the structure while maintaining its original visual characteristics as closely as possible. The restoration work included the remediation, clean-up, and recladding of the siding and roof, as well as a variety of structural upgrades. Hangar One — now more than 90 years old — was restored according to U.S. Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for Rehabilitation of historical buildings.  

This project started years ago when the U.S. Navy removed all the hangar’s roof, siding, windows, doors, and other materials, which were contaminated with toxic chemicals. The Navy then sealed the hangar’s structural frame with epoxy to ensure the chemicals would not pose a health risk, leaving it intact until further work could be completed.  

In 2014, NASA signed a lease with Planetary Ventures to operate Moffett Federal Airfield and rehabilitate Hangar One. 

In 2022, Planetary Ventures removed the remaining toxic chemicals from the hangar. First, working section by section, areas of Hangar One were surrounded with scaffolding and encased to keep contaminated materials inside. Only then were they carefully removed and stored in the vicinity of the hangar until being taken off-site for proper disposal. After the contaminated materials were removed, the steel frame was primed and repainted to protect it from the elements until siding, windows, and doors were added.  

The team also made several structural upgrades — as well as other mechanical, plumbing, electrical, landscape, and hardscape improvements — to ensure the hangar’s long-term operational integrity for generations to come.  

Timeline:

• 1933: The United States Navy built Hangar One at Naval Air Station Sunnyvale for the USS Macon airship and to serve as the West Coast base for the U.S. lighter-than-air aviation program.
• 1935: After the destruction of the dirigible U.S.S. Macon, Hangar One and all of Naval Air Station Sunnyvale was transferred to the U.S. Army, renamed Moffett Field Army Air Corps Base, and was used to house training aircraft.
• 1942: Moffett Field Army Air Corps Base was transferred back to the U.S. Navy and re-commissioned as Naval Air Station Moffett Field.
• 1994: The Navy transferred the hangar to NASA after Moffett Field was decommissioned.
• 1997: During routine stormwater testing, NASA discovered a toxin called polychlorinated biphenyls, or PCBs, specifically Aroclor 1260 and 1268, and other contaminants in the Center’s storm drain settling basin.
• 2002: Sampling programs determine that the composite corrugated material used to make the original external siding of Hangar One was the source of the PCBs as well as asbestos and the paint used to cover both the siding and steel frame of Hangar One contained lead and PCBs.
• 2003: An inspection reveals PCBs, and other contaminants are leaking from the hangar’s metallic exterior. As a result of the high levels of PCBs present in the Hangar One building components, the hangar was closed to human use, as required by the Toxic Substances Control Act.
• 2008: At a Navy public hearing, members of the local community expressed overwhelming support for full restoration of Hangar One.
• June 2010 – June 2013: The Navy addressed contamination at Hangar One by preserving and decontaminating historic artifacts; removing the hangar’s roof, siding, windows, doors, and other exterior components; demolishing the interior structures of the hangar; coating the structure with epoxy; among other activities.
• May 28, 2013: NASA and the U.S. General Services Administration issued a Request for Proposals to obtain lease proposals for the rehabilitation and adaptive reuse of Hangar One, and for the operation, management, and maintenance of Moffett Federal Airfield. 
• February 2014: After a fair and open competition, the U.S. General Services Administration and NASA selected Planetary Ventures, LLC as the preferred lessee and began lease negotiations to manage Moffett Federal Airfield and rehabilitate historic Hangar One.
• Jan. 14, 2020: Engineering Evaluation/Cost Analysis (EE/CA) is approved by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the California Regional Water Quality Control Board (Regional Water Board).
• Nov. 17, 2020: Action Memorandum is approved by the EPA.
• Nov. 18, 2020: Action Memorandum is approved by the Regional Water Board.
• Feb. 3, 2022: Non-Time-Critical Removal Action (NTCRA) Work Plan is submitted to the EPA and the Regional Water Board.
• March 24, 2022: EPA and the Regional Water Board approved the Final Non-Time-Critical Removal Action Work Plan.
• March 2022: Scaffolding and encasement around Hangar One begins. 
• Spring 2022: Removal and disposal of contaminated materials begins. 
• Summer 2022: Repainting of steel frame in the first work area begins. 
• Dec. 1, 2025: Planetary Ventures completed the full remediation and restoration of Hangar One. 

 Fast Facts:

• Hangar One is a very large structure measuring approximately 1,133 feet long, 308 feet wide, and 198 feet high.
• Hangar One is in the Shenandoah Plaza Historic District, which is listed in the National Register of Historic Places at the National level of significance under
  • Criterion A for the association with coastal defense and naval technology that has made a significant contribution to the broad patterns of our history; and
  • Criterion C reflecting the distinctive type, period, method of construction and high artistic values that are represented in the 1933 station plan and buildings.
• Hangar One is designated as a Naval Historical Monument as well as a California Historic Civil Engineering Landmark by the San Francisco section of the American Society of Civil Engineers.

Collaborators: 

• Planetary Ventures, LLC of Delaware

Learn more:

• NASA story: Second Life for Historic Hangar One Wood: Super Bowl 50 Stadium Décor (Feb. 1, 2016)
• NASA video: Second Life for Hangar One Wood (Feb. 3, 2016)
• NASA release: NASA Signs Lease with Planetary Ventures LLC for Use of Moffett Airfield and Restoration of Hangar One (Nov. 10, 2014)

For researchers:

• NASA Ames’ Environmental Divisions’ Federal Facility Agreement Administrative Record webpage
• NASA Historic Preservation Office Hangar One webpage
• 2008 Archive: Hangar One webpage

For news media

• Members of the news media interested in covering this topic should reach out to the Ames newsroom.

Powered by WPeMatico

Get The Details…
Rachel Hoover

NASA Selects University Finalists for Technology Concepts Competition

NASA selected 14 university teams from across the nation as finalists in the 2026 Revolutionary Aerospace Systems Concepts – Academic Linkage (RASC-AL) Competition. This NASA challenge tasks students to design innovative concepts that could further human life and work on the Moon, Mars, and beyond. The competition links academia and the aerospace community, fostering innovation, collaboration, and workforce development in support of NASA’s long-term exploration goals.

“The innovation and technical depth demonstrated this year are exemplary of the next generation of aerospace leaders,” said Daniel Mazanek, RASC-AL program sponsor and senior space systems engineer from NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia. “The strongest teams demonstrated not only creativity, but also the disciplined analysis and systems engineering required to develop credible solutions for space exploration challenges facing the agency.”

The 2026 RASC-AL competition invited university teams to develop technically rigorous proposals addressing one of four mission themes: Communications, Position, Navigation, and Time (CPNT) Architectures for Mars Surface Operations; Lunar Surface Power and Power Management and Distribution (PMAD) Architectures; Lunar Sample Return Concepts; and Lunar Technology Demonstrations Leveraging Common Infrastructure. Each topic reflects relevant areas of exploration technology development aligned with NASA’s Artemis program and long-term human missions to Mars.

The 2026 RASC-AL Finalists are:

CPNT Architectures for Mars Surface Operations

• Massachusetts Institute of Technology
  MELIORA: Mars Exploration Layered Infrastructure for Operations, Research, and Advancement
• University of Texas, Austin
  Project Pharos
• Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
  The Mars Pylon Network (MPN)

Lunar Surface Power and Power Management and PMAD Architectures

• Dartmouth College
  FLORA: Flywheel for Lunar Operations – Redundancy Architecture
• Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Daytona Beach
  Project AUREVO: Advanced Utilization of Resources for Energy & Viability Off-Earth
• Massachusetts Institute of Technology
  Exploration-Class Lunar Integrated Power SystEm (ECLIPSE)
• University of Hawaii, Manoa with University of Hawaii, Hilo
  Project PETAL: Power Energy Transfer Architecture for the Lunar surface

Lunar Sample Return Concept

• South Dakota State University
  SELENE: Sample Extraction of Lunar Elements for Network Entry
• Texas A&M University
  TAMU NOVA Lunar Mission
• University of Michigan
  LASSO – Lunar Autonomous Sample Staging Operations

Lunar Technology Demonstrations Leveraging Common Infrastructure

• Massachusetts Institute of Technology
  CHEESEBURGER: CLPS-enabled Highly-autonomous End-to-End isru-System Evaluations to Build Understanding and Resilient Growth by Experimenting with Regolith
• University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign with Ecole Supérieure d’Ingénieurs Léonard de Vinci
  MATRIX: Mining and Advanced Transformation of Regolith for Infrastructure and eXpansion
• University of Maryland
  Project LILI: Lunar Infrastructure & Landing Innovation
• University of Texas, Austin
  Demonstration of Up-scalable Surface Treatment for Earth-Moon Economy (DUSTEE)

Each team submitted an initial proposal paper and a two-minute video presentation, which were evaluated by a review panel of NASA and aerospace industry experts.

“The RASC-AL competition challenges students to address many of the same technical and operational questions we encounter working on Artemis, from surface infrastructure to mobility and resource utilization,” added Dr. Christopher Jones, RASC-AL program sponsor and chief technologist for the Systems Analysis and Concepts Directorate at NASA Langley.  “The concepts developed through the competition help expand NASA’s thinking as we plan and refine future exploration missions.”

As finalists, each team will further develop their concept into a comprehensive technical paper and oral presentation, culminating in an in-person showcase beginning on June 2 at the 2026 RASC-AL Forum in Cocoa Beach, Florida. During the Forum, students will present their work to NASA leaders, industry professionals, and fellow finalist teams, gaining valuable feedback and professional experience in systems-level mission design. The top-performing teams at the forum will be recognized for technical merit, innovation, and presentation excellence.

NASA’s RASC-AL Competition is administered by the National Institute of Aerospace. The RASC-AL Competition is sponsored by NASA’s Strategy and Architecture Office within the Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate, by NASA’s Space Technology Mission Directorate, and by the Systems Analysis and Concepts Directorate at NASA Langley. The NASA Tournament Lab, part of the Prizes, Challenges, and Crowdsourcing Program in the Space Technology Mission Directorate, manages the challenge.

For more information about RASC-AL, visit RASCAL.nianet.org.

Powered by WPeMatico

Get The Details…
Bailey G. Light