Aviation & Aerospace News
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SWOT: NASA’s Plan To Map Earth’s Waterways
11/10/2022
NASA's Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) satellite is scheduled to launch in early December. The mission is to make measurements of over 95% of the Earth's lakes, rivers, and reservoirs and the results will help combat global warming, better forecast and respond to hurricanes, and more.
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Bright Ideas — “Optrodes” Could Revolutionize Prosthetics, Luminar Lidar Hits Production
11/9/2022
Bright Ideas presents the most captivating news and innovations in optics and photonics. This week, NASA finally pins down a launch date for Artemis I Moon Mission, Luminar lidar hits the production lines, "optrodes" signal possible shift in development of prosthetic limbs.
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New Optica Community Story Features Native American Physicist
10/28/2022
The latest Optica Community story celebrates a Native American physicist whose life was transformed by a free pizza flyer.
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Bright Ideas — Quantum Inertial Sensors Could Save Communications, China To Open First Photonic Chip Fab
10/26/2022
Bright Ideas presents the most captivating news and innovations in optics and photonics. This week, China is reportedly ready to break ground on the nation's first photonic chip manufacturing facility. And one researcher and his team at Sandia are trying to transform bulky quantum inertial sensors into smaller, more rugged packages to back up lost GPS signals.
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Fast Steering Mirrors For Free Space Optical Communications – New Piezo & Voice-Coil Driven Solutions
10/25/2022
Fast fine steering mirrors keep laser beams stabilized and pointed in the right direction, making sure they reach their targets exactly, over thousands of miles.
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New Way To Make Telescope Mirrors Could Sharpen Our View Of The Universe
10/20/2022
Researchers have developed a new way to use femtosecond laser pulses to fabricate the high-precision ultrathin mirrors required for high-performance x-ray telescopes. The technique could help improve the space-based x-ray telescopes used to capture high-energy cosmic events involved in forming new stars and supermassive black holes.
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VIPC Selects Quantum Computing Inc. As A Partner For Risk-Based Flight Trajectories
10/6/2022
In a newly announced partnership, QCI will apply its quantum photonic systems to a critical risk-management use case involving the selection of flight trajectories for unmanned aerial vehicles.
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Bright Ideas — NASA's DART Deemed A Success, Cockroaches Get Their Comeuppance
10/5/2022
Bright Ideas presents the most captivating news and innovations in optics and photonics. This week, NASA's first attempt at using kinetic force for planetary defense was a success — and it was caught on camera by two of the most reputable space telescopes. Plus, researchers try once and for all to rid the world of cockroaches — with lasers.
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Bright Ideas — Defense Prime CEOs Sanctioned By China, DARPA To Give Small Biz 'Classified' Access
9/21/2022
Bright Ideas presents the most captivating news and innovations in photonics. This week, China sanctioned two defense prime contractors' CEOs, DARPA opens a new program to give small businesses access to classified endeavors, and SPIE Startup Challenge is now accepting applications.
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TRUMPF VCSELs To Fly To Space In Quantum Sensors
8/31/2022
TRUMPF Photonic Components, a global leader in VCSEL and photodiode solutions, develops a high-power, single-mode VCSEL to be implemented in an altitude gyroscope sensor suitable for use in space. In few years the satellite with the quantum-based gyroscope should fly into space to generate highly precise attitude determination.