July 30, 2020 - No. 056 In This Issue EHang 216 Obtained Special Flight Operations Certificate from Transport Canada Civil Aviation New Airport Technology Combats Fake IDs -- and COVID-19 NASA X-Plane Provides New Vision Boom Supersonic and Rolls-Royce Agree on New Collaboration for Supersonic Overture Engine Program JetBlue will Test UV Cleaning on Planes Due to Coronavirus FAA Striving For Balance in Supersonic Regs Raytheon Cuts 8,000 Jobs Hitit is the first aviation company to be certificated on IATA's latest NDC schema 20.1 Woolpert to develop UAS response guidebook for US airports Airbus unveils autonomous airplane NASA's Aeronautics Experts Help Prepare Ingenuity to Fly on Mars SpaceX, NASA watch weather for historic astronaut splashdown on Sunday EHang 216 Obtained Special Flight Operations Certificate from Transport Canada Civil Aviation EHang Holdings Limited, the world's leading autonomous aerial vehicle (AAV) technology platform company, today announced that EHang 216 has obtained a Special Flight Operations Certificate (SFOC) issued by the Transport Canada Civil Aviation (TCCA), the civil aviation authority in Canada. This is another milestone in regulatory breakthroughs for EHang 216 and the first of this kind permit for periodic operations of passenger-grade AAVs in North America. With the certificate, trial flights of EHang 216 AAVs can be routinely conducted in Québec province. Last September, EHang was invited to showcase its EHang 216 at the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO)'s 75th Anniversary ceremony in Québec, Canada. The EHang 216 AAV was highly appraised by ICAO and many aviation authorities from different countries. This achievement is an important foundation for future urban air mobility (UAM) operations in Canada. EHang Founder, Chairman and CEO, Huazhi Hu said, "We are pleased to see the EHang 216 receiving such an important certificate from the TCCA, following consecutive flight approvals received from aviation authorities in different countries, including the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration, the Civil Aviation Authority of Norway and the Civil Aviation Administration of China. It conveys a positive signal from global regulators to establish a supportive and sustainable regulatory environment for the UAM industry. As a leader in the industry, EHang will continue to work with our customers and partners to provide safe, autonomous and eco-friendly air mobility solutions to the world." Safe Harbor Statement This press release contains statements that may constitute "forward-looking" statements pursuant to the "safe harbor" provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements can be identified by terminology such as "will," "expects," "anticipates," "aims," "future," "intends," "plans," "believes," "estimates," "likely to" and similar statements. Management has based these forward-looking statements on its current expectations, assumptions, estimates and projections. While they believe these expectations, assumptions, estimates and projections are reasonable, such forward-looking statements are only predictions and involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond management's control. These statements involve risks and uncertainties that may cause EHang's actual results, performance or achievements to differ materially from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. About EHang EHang (Nasdaq: EH) is the world's leading autonomous aerial vehicle (AAV) technology platform company. Our mission is to make safe, autonomous, and eco-friendly air mobility accessible to everyone. EHang provides customers in various industries with AAV products and commercial solutions: air mobility (including passenger transportation and logistics), smart city management, and aerial media solutions. As the forerunner of cutting-edge AAV technologies and commercial solutions in the global Urban Air Mobility (UAM) industry, EHang continues to explore the boundaries of the sky to make flying technologies benefit our life in smart cities. For more information, please visit www.ehang.com. https://uasweekly.com/2020/07/29/ehang-216-obtained-special-flight-operations-certificate-from-transport-canada-civil-aviation/ Back to Top New Airport Technology Combats Fake IDs -- and COVID-19 A new technology implemented at Pittsburgh International Airport can help fight the possible spread of COVID-19 - and make sure you're not flying with a fake ID. U.S. Transportation Security Administration officers have begun using four new mobile credential authentication technology (CAT) units at the Findlay airport's main security checkpoint. The system provides TSA officers with a means of verifying a traveler's identification, such as a driver's license or passport, while also confirming whether that person is scheduled to fly from the airport that day. "Now we're using state-of-the-art technology to determine that a form of ID is valid," said TSA spokeswoman Lisa Farbstein. "If someone tried to forge it, this unit will know." As an added bonus, the system is touchless - helping in the fight against spreading COVID-19. Travelers simply place their ID into the CAT unit to be scanned. The system then tells the TSA agent whether the identification is valid. Before the TSA started using the units, travelers had to physically hand their IDs to officers, who then checked them for authenticity. In most cases, travelers won't have to show their boarding passes at the checkpoints, according to the TSA. The exceptions may be those under 18 or where there are issues with the ID. "Credential authentication technology enhances our detection capabilities for identifying altered or fraudulent documents such as driver's licenses and passports at checkpoints and increases efficiency by automatically verifying passenger identification," said Karen Keys-Turner, TSA's federal security director for Pittsburgh International. According to the agency, the units can validate thousands of ID types, including: driver's licenses, passports, military common access cards, retired military ID cards, Department of Homeland Security Trusted Traveler ID cards, uniformed services ID cards, permanent resident cards and U.S. visas. The TSA plans to install 1,500 CAT units at airports throughout the nation by the end of 2022. Pittsburgh International is among the earliest airports to get the units. They are being deployed only at the main security checkpoint in the landside building. They are not being used at the alternate checkpoint on the ticketing level. While the units will accept regular driver's licenses for the time being, they will not do so after Oct. 1, 2021. By then, driver's licenses must be Real ID-compliant. https://www.aviationpros.com/airports/airport-technology/news/21148176/new-airport-technology-combats-fake-ids-and-covid19 Back to Top NASA X-Plane Provides New Vision In addition to testing sound signatures of new supersonic airplanes, NASA's X-59 Quiet Supersonic Technology (QueSST) experimental demonstrator is breaking ground in another area: flight without a forward-facing window. The NASA/Lockheed Martin X-plane will come with an eXternal Vision System (XVS) in lieu of a forward-facing window. The technology already has been tested in NASA's Beechcraft King Air UC-12B in preparation for the X-59's first flight in 2021. XVS uses real-time imagery from two externally mounted cameras that are overlayed with terrain data on a 4K monitor in front of the pilot, NASA said. That monitor will serve as "the central window," the agency noted, adding it enables pilots to safely "see" traffic in the flight path and provides other visual aids for approach, landing, and takeoff. "Our goal is to create an electronic means of vision for the X-59 pilot that provides performance and safety levels equivalent to or better than forward-facing windows," said Randy Bailey, XVS subsystem lead. However, the aircraft does include a traditional canopy and two portal windows so the pilot may see the horizon. But NASA said XVS is one of the technologies to ensure the X-59 shape reduces the sonic boom and "may represent the future architecture of supersonic commercial passenger and cargo aircraft." The technology allows for the slender, contoured aircraft nose design, which then enters supersonic airflow more gently and results in smaller shockwaves, NASA said. XVS hardware was installed in the King Air cabin, enabling a comparison of sight through forward-facing windows and the monitor. Conducted in Hampton, Virginia, tests measured the pilot's ability to detect traffic, even in more challenging offset nose-to-nose trajectories. "I've continued to get more and more comfortable with the XVS through flight tests and our [X-59] flight simulators," Nils Larson, NASA X-59 test pilot, said after the tests that occurred more than a year ago. https://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/business-aviation/2020-07-29/nasa-x-plane-provides-new-vision Back to Top Boom Supersonic and Rolls-Royce Agree on New Collaboration for Supersonic Overture Engine Program Design DENVER, July 30, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Boom Supersonic, an aerospace company building the world's fastest civil aircraft, and leading industrial technology company, Rolls-Royce, today announced an engagement agreement to explore the pairing of a Rolls-Royce propulsion system with Boom's flagship supersonic passenger aircraft, Overture. The goal of the new agreement is to work together to identify the propulsion system that would complement Boom's Overture airframe. The engagement will involve teams from Boom and Rolls-Royce collaborating in engine-airframe matching activities for Boom's flagship supersonic passenger aircraft, Overture. The teams will also examine certain key aspects of the propulsion system. The teams will investigate whether an existing engine architecture can be adapted for supersonic flight, while Boom's internal team continues to develop the airframe configuration. "We've had a series of valuable collaborations and co-locations with Rolls-Royce over the past years to lay the groundwork for this next phase of development," said Blake Scholl, Boom founder and CEO. "We look forward to building on the progress and rapport that we've already built with our collaboration as we work to refine Overture's design and bring sustainable supersonic transport to passenger travel." The priorities of this engagement are informed by Boom and Rolls-Royce's shared commitment to sustainability. Both companies recognize that supersonic passenger travel has to be compatible with a net-zero carbon future, and the two teams will work together to address sustainability in Overture design and operations. Overcoming the technological challenges of supersonic flight provides a unique opportunity to accelerate innovation sustainably. "We share a strong interest in supersonic flight and in sustainability strategies for aviation with Boom," said Simon Carlisle, Director of Strategy, Rolls-Royce. "We're now building on our valuable experience in this space as well as our previous work together to further match and refine our engine technology for Boom's Overture." As a result of this collaboration, Boom and Rolls-Royce expect to make significant progress towards finalizing Overture's aircraft configuration and propulsion system. About Rolls-Royce Holdings plc Rolls-Royce pioneers cutting-edge technologies that deliver clean, safe and competitive solutions to meet our planet's vital power needs. Rolls-Royce has customers in more than 150 countries, comprising more than 400 airlines and leasing customers, 160 armed forces, 70 navies, and more than 5,000 power and nuclear customers. Annual underlying revenue was £15.45 billion in 2019, around half of which came from the provision of aftermarket services. In 2019, Rolls-Royce invested £1.46 billion on research and development. We also support a global network of 29 University Technology Centres, which position Rolls-Royce engineers at the forefront of scientific research. About Boom Boom Supersonic is redefining commercial flight by bringing supersonic flight back to the skies with Overture. This historic commercial airliner is designed and committed to industry-leading standards of speed, safety, and sustainability. Boom's vision is to bring families, businesses, and cultures closer together through supersonic travel and make the world dramatically more accessible. Boom is the first commercial airplane manufacturer to commit to a carbon-neutral flight test program and to build sustainability into its entire aircraft program. The company is backed by world-class investors and has 30 aircraft on pre-order. Founded in 2014, Boom has assembled a team of over 140 full-time employees who have made contributions to over 220 air and spacecraft programs. For more information, please visit https://boomsupersonic.com. https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/boom-supersonic-and-rolls-royce-agree-on-new-collaboration-for-supersonic-overture-engine-program-design-301103138.html Back to Top JetBlue will Test UV Cleaning on Planes Due to Coronavirus As coronavirus cases continue to skyrocket, a leading airline plans to test an advanced cleaning technology on its planes. JetBlue Airways says it will try out ultraviolet technology to disinfect its aircrafts as a potential response to the COVID-19 crisis. The airline's president and COO told ABC News that it's important for passengers to know that the aircrafts they're traveling on are safe. "We're going to be looking for how far the UV light can reach," Joanna Geraghty told ABC. "That's one of the benefits of light that can reach into places that spraying and other types of technology may not be able to reach." UV technology is often used to clean hospitals. JetBlue is teaming up with the tech company Honeywell to implement the tests. "It applies UVC light in a very consistent way to all the surfaces inside the airplane - the overhead bins, the seats, the armrest and the window shades," Mike Madsen, Honeywell Aerospace's president and CEO, told ABC. The UV machine's could complete a cleaning job on a plane in about 10 minutes, the company said. UV technology can potentially cause damage to a person's skin and eye, according to ABC contributor Dr. Jay Bhatt, so it's important that only the machine's operators are present during the cleaning process. https://www.aviationpros.com/airlines/news/21148194/jetblue-will-test-uv-cleaning-on-planes-due-to-coronavirus Back to Top FAA Striving For Balance in Supersonic Regs The FAA is placing a priority on supporting the emergence of supersonic technologies, but the agency must apply appropriate regulatory and environmental safeguards, said a key agency official. "Our focus...has been how we can support the reemergence of supersonic aircraft from a regulatory perspective to ensure that, as technology advances, the FAA is putting in place the necessary regulatory changes," said Kevin Welsch, executive director of the FAA's Office of Environment and Energy during a recent American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics Aviation Forum. For years, certification projects remained steady and "looked similar," he said. But in the last few years, "all of a sudden that space has exploded in terms of the types of regulations we are doing... It is a lot of work for government agencies to catch up with innovation. That's one of our major focuses," Welsch said. Welsch pointed to the two primary regulatory activities underway on supersonic, one involved with enabling certification fight testing and another establishing certification noise landing and takeoff standards. The agency is now sorting through comments on both proposals as it shapes a final rule The proposals have been in the works for several years, he said, and will mark "a really big step" for supersonic aircraft development. "The challenge was to both provide enough flexibility to this emerging industry and market to allow continued development while also addressing considerations about noise exposure," Welsch said, adding the agency is "trying to find a balance." Assessing environmental tradeoffs against aircraft technologies "is at the core of what my office does," he said. "We spend a lot of resources in modeling those impacts and assessing them." He acknowledged that in the supersonic realm, there will be organizations that simply have the policy to oppose development, and said it is difficult to work through issues with those who are not open to dialog. However, the FAA is looking at how to mitigate effects and hopes to communicate that what is proposed from a noise standpoint is consistent with the majority of aircraft currently in production. "On emissions, it's going to be very difficult," he conceded. "It's going to be something that the industry needs to address very seriously." Regulatory requirements need to address that as well. However, there are options, Welsch added, such as carbon offsets and sustainable fuel use. Those rulemakings must "connect back" to international standards. "Ultimately, any standards that we put in the U.S. are good domestically, but these aircraft...need to be able to fly to other places," he said. The rules must be harmonized, he added, noting the agency is working intensively with the International Civil Aviation Organization on a standards-setting process that could gain global acceptance. "To do this, there's a lot going on. It's a really important piece," he said. https://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/business-aviation/2020-07-29/faa-striving-balance-supersonic-regs Back to Top Raytheon Cuts 8,000 Jobs Due to the adverse impact of COVID-19 on the aviation business, Raytheon Technologies Corp, cut about 8,000 jobs in its commercial aviation business, as reported by Bloomberg News. In a conference call on July 28 with analysts, CEO Greg Hays said that the impact of the virus was " a lot worse" than was originally projected, according to Bloomberg. The company reported sales of $14.1 billion in Q2, with an operating cash flow of $210 million. A $600 million cost reduction was achieved in Q2 as well. "During the quarter, we continued to deliver good performance in our defense business, while we saw challenges in commercial aerospace as expected," Hayes said in a statement. "Looking ahead, we expect the pressures in commercial aerospace to persist as OEM production levels and aftermarket activity remain low. As a result, we are taking difficult but necessary actions to strengthen the business, including achieving the previously announced cost and cash savings this year. At the same time, we continue to deliver cost synergies from the Rockwell Collins acquisition and the Raytheon merger." https://www.industryweek.com/talent/article/21137850/raytheon-cuts-8000-jobs Back to Top Hitit is the first aviation company to be certificated on IATA's latest NDC schema 20.1 ISTANBUL - Hitit has been certified at Level 4 on the International Air Transport Association's (IATA's) 20.1 schema under the New Distribution Capability (NDC) certification program. This is the highest certification level for IT Providers with IATA's latest schema and Hitit is the first player in the aviation industry to adopt NDC 20.1. Hitit, one of the top 4 global airline and travel IT solution providers in the world, has succeeded in being the first company in the aviation industry that is certified on IATA's latest NDC schema 20.1, in addition to its current 17.2 schema Level 4 certification. Hitit also provides off-the-shelf support for 19.1 and 19.2 schemas. Hitit is now ready to enable its partner airlines to better differentiate their offers across channels. With the new NDC schema, Hitit can target OTA and travel agencies wanting to integrate their systems to airlines using Hitit's airline software solutions. Nevra Onursal Karaagac, Chief Sales and Marketing Officer at Hitit said: "As active players in the aviation industry, we all have found ourselves in a challenging situation that has highlighted to us how new technologies and digitalization are crucial for airlines. Airlines have had their hands tied by old legacy systems in the retail process. As one of the key players in the industry's drive for transformation of the retail process, we have since 2016, developed NDC services for in-house and online distribution channels. Under the guidance of IATA, we have always followed the new practices, so I am proud to say that Hitit is the first company to be certificated on IATA's latest NDC schema 20.1. Thanks to our new reinforced system, our partners can meet the expectations of passengers' demands for seamless purchasing." Yanik Hoyles, IATA's Director Distribution, said: "Congratulations to Hitit. On becoming the first IT provider to achieve certification on the latest NDC 20.1 schema, Hitit is supporting airlines that are building their distribution strategies around air retailing at the highest level." https://www.traveldailynews.com/post/hitit-is-the-first-aviation-company-to-be-certificated-on-iatas-latest-ndc-schema-201 Back to Top Woolpert to develop UAS response guidebook for US airports The National Safe Skies Alliance has selected Woolpert to develop an unmanned aircraft system (UAS) response guidebook for airports in the US. The National Safe Skies Alliance selected Woolpert through its Program for Applied Research in Airport Security (PARAS). According to the project's RFP, UAS is identified to be a major concern at airports for federal agencies and the US Congress. The guidebook is expected to help airports in working collaboratively to plan for and respond to UAS threats. As part of the contract, Woolpert will develop strategies for planning, identification and threat assessment, response and recovery, in relation to UAS. In addition, it will address detection system considerations and legal, public policy and regulatory considerations, and offer relevant examples and case studies. It will also prepare a plan for community awareness and prevention. Woolpert Aviation project manager and principal investigator Zachary Shuman said: "UAS present a very real incursion threat for airports and introduces multiple unknowns into the airport environment. "This guidebook needs to be innovative and detailed, providing a consistent framework for airports to immediately, safely and effectively respond to UAS threats, and to work with local law enforcement to clearly define how to plan and identify these threats." Woolpert, which specialises in UAS aviation, research and application development, has formed an advisory board to provide additional perspective as part of its research process. The production of this guidebook is currently underway and is expected to be completed next year. Safe Skies is a non-profit organisation that works with airports, government and industry to ensure a safe and effective aviation security system. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is funding the Safe Skies programme. https://www.airport-technology.com/news/woolpert-uas-response-guidebook-for-us-airports/ Back to Top Airbus unveils autonomous airplane Aerospace giant Airbus has unveiled an autonomous airplane the company is using to research and develop pilotless technologies. Following an extensive two-year flight test programme, Airbus says it has "successfully concluded its Autonomous Taxi, Take-Off and Landing (ATTOL) project". In completing this project, Airbus has achieved autonomous taxiing, take-off and landing of a commercial aircraft through fully automatic vision-based flight tests using on-board image recognition technology - a "world-first in aviation", according to Airbus. In total, over 500 test flights were conducted. Approximately 450 of those flights were dedicated to gathering raw video data, to support and fine tune algorithms, while a series of six test flights, each one including five take-offs and landings per run, were used to test autonomous flight capabilities. The ATTOL project was initiated by Airbus to explore how autonomous technologies, including the use of machine learning algorithms and automated tools for data labelling, processing and model generation, could help pilots focus less on aircraft operations and more on strategic decision-making and mission management. Airbus is now able to analyse the potential of these technologies for enhancing future aircraft operations, all the while improving aircraft safety, ensuring today's unprecedented levels are maintained. Airbus will continue research into the application of autonomous technologies alongside other innovations in areas such as materials, alternative propulsion systems and connectivity. By leveraging these opportunities, Airbus is opening up possibilities for creating new business models that will transform how aircraft are developed, manufactured, flown, powered and serviced. Airbus says the "rapid development and demonstration" of ATTOL's capabilities was made possible due to a cross-divisional, cross-functional, global team comprising of Airbus engineering and technology teams, Airbus Defence and Space, Acubed (Project Wayfinder), Airbus China and ONERA (the French Aerospace Lab) under the leadership of Airbus UpNext. https://roboticsandautomationnews.com/2020/07/29/airbus-unveils-autonomous-airplane/34571/ Back to Top NASA's Aeronautics Experts Help Prepare Ingenuity to Fly on Mars So, you want to try flying a helicopter on Mars. You work at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in California and have proven time and again that when it comes to landing and operating robotic probes and rovers on the distant Red Planet you pretty much know what you're doing. But it's never a sure thing when it comes to planetary exploration. Even as smart as you are about designing and building spacecraft, you realize you might need a little extra engineering help to make sure your newly designed helicopter will fly in an alien atmosphere the way you want it to. So, who are you going to call? NASA's aeronautical innovators of course. "When it came to determining if this would work the JPL project team had to learn rotor dynamics, so they came to us for help," said Wayne Johnson, a senior researcher with the rotorcraft aeromechanics group at NASA's Ames Research Center in California. Vertical lift aircraft, which includes helicopters, is something NASA researchers have studied since the earliest days of flight, beginning with NASA's predecessor organization, the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics. "The problems you have to solve to fly a helicopter aren't all that different whether you're talking about Earth or Mars. We were able to help them better understand their design and refine their methods and the tools they used for testing it," Johnson said. Five years later, the Ingenuity helicopter is securely fastened to the Perseverance Mars rover awaiting a launch attempt from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida no earlier than 7:50 a.m. EDT on July 30. The Atlas 5 rocket's launch window that day extends until 9:50 a.m. EDT. "This is so exciting for us. It really is," said Carlos Malpica, an aerospace engineer at Ames who is a rotorcraft flight dynamics and control expert for NASA's Revolutionary Vertical Lift Technology project. "When we started working on the project, we started doing it with a lot of uncertainty about whether it would even be possible to do. There were significant technical challenges to overcome," Malpica said. Among them was to ensure the vehicle could take off in a controlled manner in a thin Martian atmosphere that is equivalent to about 100,000 feet high on Earth - an altitude that no Earth-based helicopter has reached even half that distance. Others had to do with designing the vehicle to survive bitterly cold Martian nights where temperatures plunge to minus 130 degrees Fahrenheit, and to operate largely on its own since direct pilot control isn't possible given the distance between Mars and Earth. "But as we went along and we started realizing this is realistic, this can happen, and that it could work. And when we reached that point it was like wow, this feels like one of those Wright Brothers moments in aviation history," Malpica said. Indeed, if all goes well with the mission after its targeted landing on Mars in February 2021, Ingenuity's inaugural technology demonstration flight will echo the Wright Brothers' 1903 achievement on Earth by making the first powered flight of an aircraft in another planet's atmosphere. The Right Tools Serious ideas for flying over Mars' rusty surface pre-date the official beginning of the Space Age in 1958. Most concepts involved fixed-wing aircraft, including gliders with inflatable wings. Much later, one such prototype flew over Oregon in 2001 while another idea was investigated above the California high desert as recently as 2015. It was around this time that JPL engineers had finished their design of Ingenuity and came to NASA Aeronautics looking for help. Since then, the aeronautics researchers consulted on a wide range of subjects but ultimately the work fell into two broad areas: demonstrating controllability and improving and verifying computer models used in testing. Larry Young, an aerospace engineer assigned to NASA Ames' aeromechanics branch, was a key player in helping JPL deal with both. "It wasn't only figuring out how to operate Ingenuity so it was stable as it hovered or flew forward, but that we could also figure out how to demonstrate that ability with the test facilities and computer simulation codes we were using," Young said. The primary testing facility available to Ingenuity was a vacuum chamber at JPL that could simulate the actual temperatures and pressures at the Martian surface - but it wasn't set up to be a wind tunnel. For example, airflow created by the spinning rotors would recirculate along the chamber's walls and ceiling and then flow back into the rotors and compromise the test data, something that is better managed in a wind tunnel. "So early on we had a lot of questions about that and how representative this was of actual flight operating conditions," Young said. Through a combination of computer analysis and his own testing and experiment experience, Young was able to come up with the best way to configure the chamber and do system integration testing that demonstrated the helicopter would perform as predicted. "We have a lot of confidence that we've done the work the right way. We've done our due diligence," Malpica said. "Of course, this is something that no one has ever attempted so there's always a risk of something going wrong." If all does go according to plan, after being gently deployed from Perseverance, Ingenuity will make at least five short hops over the Martian surface, flying as high as about 15 feet. Additional flights are not out of the question - NASA's Mars spacecraft tend to enjoy long lives - and the aeronautics researchers are ready to continue helping with advice and engineering insight, although they won't have an active role in the flights as they happen. "We'll be nervous and filled with anticipation. And some of us hope to be at JPL to cheer on Ingenuity, but we're not part of the flight control team. For now, we're just hoping for a safe launch, cruise to Mars, and landing," Johnson said. But even if there is a problem that prevents the actual helicopter flight on Mars, whatever the reason may be, Johnson and his colleagues feel they can already declare success. "Whatever problem may occur on Mars, it won't change the fact that we've already proven with the testing we've done that, yeah, you can fly a helicopter on Mars," Johnson said. A Look Ahead Weighing less than four pounds with a main body the size of a softball, there's no room for any science experiments on Ingenuity. Martian science was never the goal of the helicopter in the first place. "This is just a demonstration of technology to show that flying on Mars is possible, but eventually we'd like to design and fly a helicopter on Mars that actually has a science mission," Johnson said. Already, NASA's aeronautics and space experts are thinking about what a future Mars helicopter might look like and what kind of explorations it could do if loaded with science instruments. It's a dream that Johnson, whose long career at NASA working on helicopters has reached "legendary" status, wholeheartedly embraces. "I've been at this a long time. It's exciting to see how this project might inspire new engineers to be interested in aeronautics. A lot of graduates coming out of school, when they think about NASA, they look at the space side of things," he said. "Well, this is sort of a space thing, but it's really an airplane; and it really does get new engineers excited just for the fact that it is Mars we are talking about flying over," Johnson said. Some of those future aerospace engineers may be among the students who had a hand with Ingenuity. "At Ames we relied a lot on student interns, undergraduate and graduate interns, to help assist us in making Ingenuity a success throughout its five-year development cycle - and they deserve our thanks," Young said. "Hopefully, they will be the ones to take this forward into the future." https://www.nasa.gov/aeroresearch/nasa-aeronautics-experts-help-prepare-ingenuity-to-fly-on-mars Back to Top SpaceX, NASA watch weather for historic astronaut splashdown on Sunday SpaceX is ready to return its first NASA astronaut crew to Earth, but a potential tropical cyclone brewing in the Atlantic could cause delays. The SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft, called Endeavour, is scheduled to splash down off the Florida coast on Sunday afternoon (Aug. 2). Its crew, NASA's Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley, is wrapping up a historic two-month test flight, the first orbital trip by astronauts on a commercial spacecraft. Their splashdown will also mark the first water landing by American astronauts since the Apollo-Soyuz mission in July 1975. "Everybody remains 'go' for a return, and we cannot wait to get Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley back to Earth, but of course, we have some weather pending," NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine told reporters Wednesday (July 29) from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. "We look forward to seeing if that's going to be within the realm of what is possible." That "weather pending" Bridenstine referenced is from a storm system the National Hurricane Center (NHC) has dubbed Potential Tropical Cyclone Nine. Current forecasts from the NHC place the storm system squarely on Florida on Sunday just ahead of SpaceX's splashdown target time of 2:48 p.m. EDT (1948 GMT). "We're going to watch the weather very carefully," said Steve Stitch, manager of NASA's Commercial Crew Program. "We have a series of [landing] sites and many days in the future, so we'll watch this tropical storm ... we'll kind of take it day-by-day." Currently, Behnken and Hurley are due to undock from the space station on Saturday evening at 7:35 p.m. EDT (2335 GMT) and prepare to head home. If all goes well, the Endeavour capsule will fire its engines to leave orbit on Sunday for an afternoon splashdown. SpaceX has seven potential splashdown sites around the Florida panhandle to choose from. They include drop zones offshore from Cape Canaveral, Daytona and Jacksonville on Florida's east cost, and near Panama City, Pensacola, Tallahassee and Tampa on the west coast. Wave height, wind speeds, lightning, rain conditions and other factors will all determine which splashdown sites SpaceX will pick. "We're really looking for two sites to be go before we undock," Stitch said, adding that the agency will hold off on a final decision until an hour before undocking, or even call of the departure if needed. "The beauty of this vehicle is [that] we can stay docked to the space station." Behnken and Hurley launched May 30 on SpaceX's Demo-2 mission to the International Space Station. The mission is a two-month shakedown cruise to test if SpaceX is ready to fly operational astronaut missions for NASA. SpaceX has launched uncrewed cargo missions for NASA for years and is one of two companies (Boeing is the other) with a multi-billion-dollar contract to fly astronauts to the station. The Crew Dragon spacecraft has performed flawlessly in orbit, NASA and SpaceX officials said. The Demo-2 astronauts have tested its ability to hold up to four astronauts at a time, with the only major unknown ahead: splashdown. "That's a really big deal," said Benji Reed, SpaceX's director of crew management. "It's very important, and it's part of that sacred honor that we have for ensuring that we bring Bob and Doug back home to their families, to their kids and making sure that they're safe." If bad weather looks like it could delay a Sunday splashdown for Crew Dragon, NASA and SpaceX will postpone this weekend's undocking to no earlier than Monday (Aug. 3), with splashdown likely coming a day later, Stitch said. "So we'll have to evaluate the weather each day and just see things how things unfold," Stitch said. "We have plenty of opportunities here in August and we're in no hurry to come home." Even as SpaceX prepares to return Behnken and Hurley to Earth, the company is already gearing up for its first operational mission, called Crew-1. The spacecraft for that mission is nearly complete at the company's headquarters and factory in Hawthorne, California and will be shipped to Cape Canaveral soon, Reed said. The Crew-1 astronauts - NASA's Michael Hopkins, Victor Glover and Shannon Walker, and Japan's Soichi Noguchi - are with the vehicle this week, Reed added. That mission is currently scheduled to launch in late September. Yesterday, NASA also announced the four astronauts to launch on Crew-2, SpaceX's second operational flight, in early 2021. That mission will launch astronauts Shane Kimbrough and Megan McArthur, both of NASA; Akihiko Hoshide of Japan and Thomas Pesquet of the European Space Agency. McArthur is married to Behnken, and her Crew-2 mission will launch on the same Dragon ship Endeavour as her husband, NASA and SpaceX said. Meanwhile, as SpaceX prepares to return the Demo-2 astronauts to Earth, NASA is counting down for another milestone event: a launch to Mars. NASA's Mars 2020 Perseverance rover is poised to launch toward the Red Planet tomorrow (July 30). The mission, which will collect samples of Mars for eventual return to Earth, deploy a helicopter and seek out signs of ancient life, will launch atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. Liftoff is set for 7:50 am. EDT (1150 GMT). https://www.space.com/spacex-crew-dragon-splashdown-weather-demo-2.html Curt Lewis