NASA Hallmarks of Success

A man working at his kitchen table in Maine creates a spacesuit glove that bests NASA's own current glove design in competition. The glove competition is one way NASA hopes to spur innovation and is one of six Centennial Challenges managed by the space agency's Innovative Partnership Program.

A small firm called Paragon Space Development Corporation has partnered with NASA and Lockheed Martin to find ways to support human life in space.

Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company is working with NASA's Glenn Research Center through the Innovative Partnerships Program to create innovative tires for new lunar rovers that NASA may one day use on the Moon.

Aspen Aerogels and NASA partner to advance the production of flexible, durable, and affordable forms of insulation products that are up to eight times more effective than traditional insulation materials.

Ice on airplane wings is dangerous, and NASA partnered with Cox and Company to develop a deicing system specifically for general aviation aircraft. The system has been certified by the FAA and is now installed on Raytheon business jets. The firm has also transferred the technology to other areas, including trains.

During the Apollo era, chemicals used to clean space hardware seeped into the ground at Kennedy Space Center. Today, in order to clean the affected areas, Kennedy researchers have worked with GeoSyntec Consultants and the University of Florida to develop a effective method to degrade the contaminants.

Recently, NASA partnered with the Army and several other organizations to enhance small robots, called MARCbots (Multi-Function Agile Remote-Controlled Robots). The robotic platform is saving soldier's lives in the field - and the lessons learned in the process will one day help astronauts explore the moon.

Seatbelts and airbags for cars... Helmets for bicycles and motorcycles... Safety glasses for your eyes... Why not a parachute for your plane? Someday a parachute recovery system for aircraft will be as commonplace as these accepted safety systems.

A NASA power-saving device has led to "E-Save," a green technology that makes motors use electricity more efficiently.

Technologies for NASA's Mars Science Laboratory have been further developed by inXitu, Inc. and the Getty Conservation Institute to create a non-destructive portable unit for cultural heritage research and art restoration here on Earth.

Medical Technologies International (MTI) worked with researchers at NASA and the USC's Keck School of Medicine to apply the space agency's "Video Imaging Communication and Retrieval software", or "VICAR" for biomedical use. The resulting technology, known as "ArterioVision", helps identify patients at risk for the major cause of heart attack and strokes.

NASA Langley Research Center partnered with a small firm called PolyuMAC, Inc. to improve an innovative new class of foam that is flexible, doesn’t burn, and produces little or no smoke when exposed to fire. NASA has successfully licensed this foam technology and continues to offer non-exclusive licenses.