Research

A prototype spacecraft capable of “hopping” from one asteroid to another effectively transforms water into steam, Embry-Riddle student-researchers have reported. The spacecraft’s steam-powered propulsion system suggests an endlessly renewable fuel that could be ideal for asteroid mining or “space prospecting,” said Aerospace Engineering Senior Ankit Rukhaiyar. Identifying renewable sources of spacecraft fuel has become increasingly important as NASA prepares to send humans to Mars and Earth’s finite supply of minerals keeps shrinking. Embry-Riddle’s steam-powered propulsion system suggests a way to keep spacecraft flying longer – in theory forever.

How old are each of the stars in our roughly 13-billion-year-old galaxy? A new technique for understanding the star-forming history of the Milky Way in unprecedented detail makes it possible to determine the ages of stars at least two times more precisely than conventional methods, Embry-Riddle researchers reported this week at the American Astronomical Society (AAS) meeting. Current star-dating techniques, based on assessments of stars in the prime or main sequence of their lives that have begun to die after exhausting their hydrogen, offer a 20-percent, or at best a 10-percent margin of error, explained Embry-Riddle Physics and Astronomy Professor Dr. Ted von Hippel. Embry-Riddle’s approach, leveraging burnt-out remnants called white dwarf stars, reduces the margin of error to 5 percent or even 3 percent, he said.

A new technology for printing temporary labels on various types of materials – developed by Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University researchers for Zyxogen, LLC, as part of an Airbus-sponsored project – could improve aviation manufacturing efficiency.

Someday soon, a “Drone Net” now under development by Embry-Riddle could provide a cost-effective way to protect small airports, university and corporate campuses, farms or other operations from irresponsible drone operators.

Imagine going through the wreckage of an airliner that has broken apart and burned, looking for clues to determine what caused the accident. Only highly trained investigators ever have a chance to take part in such scenarios. Yet, thanks to the rapidly developing technology of augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR), Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University Worldwide campus students can examine crashed aircraft in a simulated environment, searching for clues with their computers, tablets, smartphones or AR goggles.

In February 2018, a YouTube video revealed a small unmanned aircraft system (sUAS) taking off from a parking lot and climbing more than 1,000 feet as a passenger jet came dangerously close to the drone on approach to McCarran Airport. The irresponsible drone operator then flew upside down to get a better shot of the Frontier Airlines plane. Months earlier, a DJI Phantom 4 drone flying near Staten Island, N.Y., hit a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter, damaging its main rotor blade because the sUAS pilot was deliberately flying beyond his visual line of sight.