Capabilities for the Future An Assessment of NASA Laboratories for Basic Research (2010) / Chapter Skim
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4 Aeronautics Research
4 Aeronautics Research
Pages 20-38
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From page 20... ...
• 3E2. By 2016, develop and demonstrate future concepts, capabilities, and technologies that will enable major increases in air traffic management effectiveness, flexibility, and efficiency, while maintaining safety, to meet capacity and mobility requirements of the Next Generation Air Transportation System.
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NASA's primary research role will be to develop and demonstrate future concepts, capabilities, and technologies that will enable dramatic increases in air traffic management effectiveness, flexibility, and efficiency while maintaining safety. This program is made up of two projects: NGATS Airportal and NGATS Airspace.
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The GRC ATP facilities (the Abe Silverstein 10- by 10-foot Supersonic Wind Tunnel [10×10 SWT] , the 8- by 6-foot Supersonic Wind Tunnel [8×6 SWT]
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The AAPL is uncommon in its ability to do fundamental fluid dynamics and aeroacoustics research, although comparable production-testing commercial facilities do exist at General Electric and the Boeing Company. The IRT is a very well known, historical NASA Glenn facility that supports fundamental research in icing, including technology development, and both in-house and external applications.
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The equipment in these facilities all appeared to be adequate to meet current requirements, though much of it is in need of upgrading. Propulsion and Power The following laboratories and facilities at GRC that the committee visited are associated with propulsion and power: • Intermediate pressure combustion facility, • Combustion control laboratory/fuel actuator dynamic characterization rig, • Plasma flow control facility, • Low-pressure turbine flow control facility, and • Single-stage axial compressor facility.
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Ames's focus is on thermal protection systems, and Langley's is on large structures. Alternative Fuels Two of the laboratories and facilities visited at GRC are associated with alternative fuels: • Alternative fuel research laboratory (AFL)
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However, the available research budgets are insufficient to operate some of these facilities solely for TRL 1-3 activities. Additionally, some of these facilities -- for example, IRT -- will require major equipment upgrades that are unlikely to be funded by the FAP or ATP.
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, congressional augmentation, and ARRA funds make up or constitute the maintenance budgets. Neither of the last two sources is stable or reliable for long-range planning.
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If these processes cannot be streamlined, then more qualified staff will be needed. Aerodynamics and Aeroacoustics The following laboratories and facilities at LaRC that the committee visited are associated with the aerodynamics and aeroacoustics: 9 Cynthia Lee, LaRC, e-mail communication to the committee, February 12, 2010.
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Most of the facilities that support aerodynamics and aeroacoustics research are in the second class. All of the laboratories that the committee visited that support these areas of research rely on support services, such as high-pressure air.
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In some cases the office spaces for personnel supporting these laboratories and facilities were not close by the facility or were second-class space. Materials and Structures The following laboratories and facilities at LaRC that the committee visited are associated with the materials and structures: • Polymers and composites laboratory, • Light alloy laboratory, • Materials research laboratory, • Structures and materials laboratory, • Systems and airframe evaluation testing and integration laboratory, • Fabrication and metals technology development laboratory, and • Non-destructive evaluation sciences laboratory.
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At LaRC low-TRL work in dynamics, navigation and control, and avionics is typically funded through ARMD for the subsonic fixed- and rotary-wing work, integrated resilient aircraft control, and integrated vehicle health management projects. Dynamics, navigation and control, and avionics laboratories appear to be adequate, or, more accurately, the committee was not aware of any specific challenges for these laboratories.
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stations enable human-in-the-loop (HITL) , which can be used for studies with pilot test subjects and confederate air traffic controllers.
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6. The demands of programs in recent years, coupled with a nearly constant total budget, have resulted in a shifting of funds away from low-TRL work to such an extent that NASA might be described as "eating its own seed corn." AMES RESEARCH CENTER The information on ARC is based on presentations to the committee by the deputy director of ARC on September 9, 2009, and by ARC's director of aeronautics at the time of the aeronautics subcommittee's visit to ARC on November 9 to 10, 2009.
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Increases in FY 2007 and FY 2008 funding relative to FY 2006 benefited from congressional augmentation. The FY 2009 ARC aeronautics research budget is about $120 million, which is 24 percent of the NASA aeronautics budget, on top of which there is approximately $10 million more in ATP funding.
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Aerodynamics and Aeroacoustics The following laboratories and facilities at ARC that the committee visited are associated with aerodynamics and acoustics: • Fluid mechanics laboratory, and • Hypervelocity free flight facility. The bulk of the funding for aerodynamics and acoustics at ARC comes from FAP.
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Materials and Structures The following laboratories and facilities at ARC that the committee visited are associated with the materials and structures: • Arc Jet Complex, • TPS materials processing laboratory, • High-temperature TPS processing laboratory, • TPS materials characterization laboratory, • Nanotechnology laboratory, and • Advanced diagnostics and prognostics testbed. The Arc Jet Complex has as its principal mission the testing of TPS materials.
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Intelligent and Autonomous Systems, Operations and Decision Making, Human Integrated Systems, Networking and Communications The following laboratories and facilities at ARC that were visited by the committee are associated with this area of research: • Air traffic management laboratory, • Flight deck display research laboratory, and • Crew vehicle systems research facility. The Airspace Systems Program of NASA has a budget of $100 million per year, $70 million of which is spent at ARC and $30 million at LaRC.
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In many cases the laboratory equipment is only marginally maintained, mainly because there is not enough funding. Exceptions are the air traffic management laboratory and the TPS materials processing laboratory, both of which have up-todate equipment.
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