National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Environmental Spinoffs

hen Apollo 8 astronaut Bill Anders snapped this historic “Earthrise” photo in 1968, he declared that “We came all this way to explore Wthe Moon, and the most important thing is that we discovered the Earth.” NASA’s work over the past 50 years has continued to teach us about our home planet, as the Agency studies Earth from the unique vantage point of space, with 15 Earth observing satellites now in orbit. In addition to this valuable, direct observation, NASA’s missions have brought about some unexpected tools in our efforts to preserve the Earth and its resources. These benefits are in the form of spinoff technologies—innovations finding secondary use outside of their original aerospace applications—and are just some of the over 1,600 such technologies NASA has recorded.

www.nasa.gov Microspheres Clean Oil Spills Remote Sensing Aids Industry scientists worked with NASA Agriculture, Disaster to create a unique oil remediation Management product: microcapsules—tiny balls of NASA satellite data supports a trio of beeswax with hollow centers. Water spinoffs: a service that allows farmers to cannot penetrate the microcapsule’s cell, generate crop prescriptions; educational but oil is absorbed right into the spheres software designed to familiarize young as they float on the surface. The product farmers with geospatial technology; and can also be used on land. a Web-based disaster management tool to help officials make informed decisions in Solar Research Reduces Cost, real-time. Improves Efficiency of Panels Experimental solar-powered aircraft led to Lithium Battery Power Delivers the development of mass-produced, low- Electric Vehicles to Market cost solar cells offering up to 50 percent NASA contributed engineering experi- more power than conventional solar ence to the development of an advanced cells. Homes across the country are now battery management system for electric being outfitted with the energy-saving cars and tested a fleet of the zero-emission technology. vehicles, leading to a series of commer- cially available, purpose-built, lithium electric automobiles aimed at the urban Groundwater Remediation and commuter environments. Cleans Industrial Zones NASA and its partners worked to develop Star Mapping Tools Enable a solvent to remediate the groundwater at Tracking of Endangered Animals Kennedy Space Center launch facilities. Employing a star-mapping algorithm de- The resulting technology uses iron parti- signed for the Hubble Space Telescope, a cles in an environmentally friendly oil and software programmer developed a method water base to neutralize toxic chemicals. for tracking the elusive whale shark using Non-exclusive licenses for the technology the unique spot patterns on the fish’s skin. have been granted to eight companies. The pattern-matching system has been adapted for tracking other rare and endan- Voltage Control Device gered animals, such as polar bears and ocean Conserves Electricity sunfish. Voltage controller technology gradually introduces power to electric motors, elim- Modeling Innovations Advance inating the mechanical stresses of having Wind Energy Industry the device go from dormancy to full activ- NASA scientist Dr. Larry Viterna devel- ity. It also adjusts the power usage accord- oped a model that predicted certain ele- ing to the load. Common applications of ments of wind turbine performance with this device include industrial machinery, great accuracy. The model has become as well as elevators and escalators. the most widely used method of its kind, enabling significant wind energy tech- nologies that are providing sustainable, Nanofiber Filters Eliminate climate friendly energy sources today. Contaminants Efforts to improve water conservation Satellite-Respondent Buoys and filtration for space travel led to the Identify Ocean Debris development of nanofiber filters capable NASA partnered with NOAA and of removing more than 99.99 percent of private industry to develop remote sens- dangerous particles from water. The filters ing technologies for protecting the seas by now purify drinking water on Earth and locating derelict fishing nets. These unat- allow factories to clean and recycle water tended nets damage coral reefs; suffocate for industrial use. marine mammals, sea turtles, and birds; and remain an environmental threat for years.

For more information about NASA spinoffs, please visit spinoff.nasa.gov.

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