NASA Hallmarks of Success

GATR Technologies worked with NASA to develop innovative satellite antenna systems that provide quick and dependable access to high-bandwidth connections - whenever and wherever communication is critical.

NASA's goal to reduce the size of cameras flying on spacecraft leads to better imagery from cell phones and other devices.

3D video and computer programs might seem to be the "next big thing" on the horizon, but NASA and small businesses have been working on the forefront of the technology for years. With the help of NASA's Small Business Innovation Program, Dimension Technologies developed the world's first 2D/3D switchable desktop display technology – and you don't need 3D glasses to use it!

X-Ray technology isn't just for doctors and patients. A partnership between Digiray and NASA on advanced scanning x-ray systems is helping keep airplanes healthy and safe.

Andrews Space worked with NASA through Small Business Innovation Awards to design, develop, and flight test a variable-drag supersonic ballute for slowing spacecraft down during atmospheric entry. You can think of a ballute as a sort of combination balloon and parachute braking system.

In exploring novel methods to launch and retrieve satellites and spacecraft, NASA has worked with a small firm in Washington to develop space tethers. The tethers could be used as propulsion to get vehicles into higher orbits, as well as to help clean up debris and unused satellites already in orbit.

Zin Technologies, Inc. worked with the researchers Cleveland Clinic and NASA Glenn Research Center to develop BioWATCH, a device to monitor astronaut's health. The technology may one day reduce the burden on post-op patients and medical staff during rehabilitation.

Boulder Colorado firm, SPEC, Inc. (Stratton Park Engineering Company) has partnered with NASA to create a number of tools that are helping researchers better understand what's going on inside the clouds, and improve predictions of the Earth's climate.

NASA and innovative small businesses are working together to build bridges across current technology gaps to fuel the breakthroughs of our future… breakthroughs that will make our world smarter, healthier and safer.

Innovative new rocket propulsion systems designed by Orion Propulsion are leading to more fuel efficient rocket thrusters with flexible fuel capabilities. This provides rocket scientists with more opportunities to move away from some of the toxic and unstable propellants used in today's thrusters. Orion Propulsion was purchased by Dynetics in late 2009

With NASA SBIR funding, a small company in Massachusetts develops MEMs deformable mirror technology that enables astronomers to get a clearer vision of deep space and helps doctors get a clearer view inside their patient's eyes.

NASA-developed sensor used to take vegetation measurements from satellites has found a more down-to-earth application. Spectrum Technologies, Inc. has incorporated the technology into a hand-held meter now used to take chlorophyll readings of crops.

By working with NASA's Langley Research Center, AeroTech Research developed Enhanced Turbulence Mode Radar software, or E-Turb. As part of E-Turb, AeroTech also developed a Turbulence Auto-PIREP(Pilot Report) System, or TAPS. If TAPS is installed on an aircraft that runs into turbulence exceeding established limits, it generates a report for other pilots.

It started with a sketch on a paper napkin in a restaurant. Researchers from NASA and a small firm in New York City design and build a robotic arm. The arm, or Rock Abrasion Tool (RAT), is now on the Martian Rover collecting samples from the planet's surface.

The Future Air Traffic Management Concepts and Evaluation Tool, or FACET, was initially developed by a team at NASA Ames Research Center as a flexible concepts simulation tool. Through a partnership with NASA, the Federal Aviation Administration is developing and using the software for concepts visualization and analysis, and as a real-time operations planning tool. The tool gives traffic flow managers a clearer picture of how delays and reroutes could affect your next flight - and up to 15,000 additional aircraft at the national airspace operations level - all on a single desktop computer.