Taxonomy Category Summary

This taxonomy category is divided into four areas: infrastructure optimization, test and qualification, assembly, integration and launch, and mission success technologies. Infrastructure optimization focuses on technologies to decrease infrastructure complexity, reduce operations and maintenance costs, increase safety and reliability, and enable multi-customer utilization. This area covers natural and induced environments characterization and mitigation, launch/test/ops site management, commodity conservation and recovery technologies, propellant production, storage and transfer, ground and surface logistics, test, operations, and systems safety, and impact/damage/radiation resistant systems. Test and qualification covers the test and qualifications environment necessary to validate the performance of flight vehicles, components, and ground/surface systems. This includes mechanical/structural integrity testing, propulsion, exhaust, and propellant management, non-destructive inspection, evaluation, and root cause analysis, verification and validation of ground, test, and surface systems, flight and ground testing methodologies, advanced life cycle testing techniques, test instruments and sensors, and environment testing. Assembly, integration, and launch comprises facilities, equipment, processes, and skills that move components through receiving any inspection process, the assembly and test of subsystems, the integration into the final launch configuration, and the final launch sequence activities. Mission success technologies covers technologies that collectively enhance mission success and reduce long-term risk to NASA programs: mission planning, team preparedness and training, high-fidelity simulation, and visualization, autonomous, real-time command and control, operations, health and maintenance for ground and surface systems, and ground analogs for space/surface systems.

Research Affiliates

Below are our faculty affiliates whose research fall under this taxonomy category.