Microgravity
Research
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Our group is interested in the
way materials behave in microgravity, such as might be present on asteroid
surfaces and in the interplanetary medium. By understanding how solids move in
microgravity conditions, and how minerals and phases of different size and
density might be separated, we might better understand the properties of
primitive solar system objects like meteorites. Understanding how dust behaves under
microgravity conditions might also help us to build spacecraft and spacecraft
instruments to explore the dusty regions of space such as the surfaces of
asteroids and comets. |
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Our microgravity
“laboratory” is a special aircraft that NASA operates. This aircraft flies out of Ellington Field,
near the Johnson Space Center, and flies over the Gulf of Mexico. By climbing steeply and then plunging,
it generates about 25 seconds of microgravity inside the plane as it goes
“over the top”, and it can do this about
40 times before it runs out of fuel.
To date, we flown four campaigns, two were flown by teams of
undergraduate students, two were flown by
researchers from our group and engineers from industry. |
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Campaign
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Campaign
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Campaign 2. |
Campaign
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Overview
of campaigns 1-3 with reference to mission operations at asteroids. |
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