Space Technology Mission Directorate

Flight Opportunities

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

www.nasa.gov

2016 Annual Report
[Front cover image] 

A high-altitude balloon drop of the Deployable Rigid Adjustable 

Guided Final Landing Approach Pinions (DRAG FLAPs).

Photo credit: Near Space Corporation
1

Contents

Executive Summary 2

Flight Opportunities Impacts 5

Flight Provider Overviews 23

Program Highlights 39

 
2

Thank you for reading the FY2016 Flight Opportunities program annual report. This year has been 

one of growth—new flight providers, enhanced flight capabilities, additional payloads matured 

through flight tests, and exciting expansion of the breadth of Flight Opportunities activities. 

Executive Summary

NASA’s Flight Opportunities program strives 

to advance the operational readiness of 

crosscutting space technologies while also 

stimulating the development and utilization of the 

U.S. commercial spaceflight industry, particularly 

for the suborbital and small launch vehicle 

markets. Since its initiation in 2010, the program 

has provided frequent access to relevant spacelike environments for over 100 payloads across a 

variety of flight platforms. 

Flight Opportunities employs a variety of 

strategies to achieve its objectives, including:

u Leveraging emerging commercial services

As an early adopter of commercial flight 

testing opportunities, the program is now 

an experienced and reliable customer in a 

growing market.

u Providing assistance to other customers

From academia to the private sector, the 

Flight Opportunities program provides 

assistance in the form of grants, customer 

agreements, and public-private 

partnerships.

u Accelerating maturation of 

commercial capabilities

The program offers flight providers access to 

unique NASA expertise and facilities, helping 

them advance their flight test offerings faster.

Maturing Technologies for Spaceflight

The transition of technologies flown with Flight 

Opportunities into NASA missions and other 

programs demonstrates clear program impact. 

For example, technologies demonstrated 

through Flight Opportunities have been selected 

for inclusion in the Mars 2020 mission, longer 

term demonstrations on the International Space 

Station (ISS), and NASA CubeSat missions

—to name just a few. 

T20-02 balloon launch at 

Benson Airport, Tuscon, AZ. 

Photo credit: Southwest 

Research Institute
3

Establishing a Solicitation Cadence

Evidence of the maturity of the Flight 

Opportunities program was apparent throughout 

the course of the year. The robustness of the 

payload pipeline increased as the schedule 

of calls and solicitations became predictable, 

allowing researchers to plan for and respond 

to opportunities. In addition, outreach efforts 

to engage with prospective investigators and 

educate them about how to get involved with the 

program have been highly successful, resulting 

in an increase in both the number and quality of 

proposal submissions. 

Adding MISSE to the Flight 

Opportunities Program

In FY2016, NASA’s Materials International Space 

Station Experiment (MISSE) Flight Facility was 

brought into the Flight Opportunities program. 

MISSE offers researchers extended exposure to 

on-orbit environments for their research payloads 

through a facility on the ISS.

Looking Ahead

We hope you enjoy reading about the 

accomplishments and activities of FY2016. As we 

move forward into FY2017, Flight Opportunities 

is increasing its coordination with other NASA 

programs to further the impact of its efforts, and 

we are excited to continue our work with our 

ever-expanding community. 

Robert Yang

Program Executive 

NASA Headquarters

Ronald Young

Program Manager

NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center

UP Aerospace SpaceLoft 9 launched from 

Spaceport America. Photo credit: NASA
4
5

Flight 

Opportunities 

Impacts

Technology Demonstrations (p. 6)

Small Launch Vehicle Technology Development (p. 18)

Materials International Space Station Experiment (MISSE) (p. 21)

[Photo opposite page] Hybrid ultimate lifting kit (HULK) device 

demonstration on a parabolic flight. Photo credit: NASA
6

Flight Opportunities 

Impacts

Flight Opportunities provided flight testing of new crosscutting space technologies in FY2016 

by enabling frequent access to relevant space-like environments to researchers from academia, 

industry, non-profit research organizations, NASA, and other government agencies. Flight 

Opportunities has made measurable impact on critical space technology maturation for future

spaceflight, with achievements including:

u Helping researchers increase technology 

readiness levels (TRLs) 

u Providing microgravity experiences that 

drive critical design and engineering 

changes to improve the robustness of 

next-generation technologies

Technology Demonstrations

u Accelerating research and technology 

maturation with frequent flight tests on 

multiple types of platforms

u Offering the capability to obtain critical 

experimental data not otherwise measurable 

in ground-based experiments

Microgravity Multi-phase Flow Experiment for Suborbital Testing (MFEST) at 

Ellington Field on NASA’s C-9 aircraft. Photo credit: NASA
7

Flight Opportunities 

Impacts

Test Flights Approximate Planetary Conditions 

for New Mars Landing Technology 

T0137 

allowing the craft to detect its location relative 

to landing hazards, such as boulders and 

outcroppings. The system can then direct the 

craft toward a safe landing at its primary target 

site or divert touchdown toward better terrain 

if there are hazards in the approaching target 

area. These capabilities enable a broad range of 

potential landing sites for Mars missions.

With LVS slated for inclusion on Mars 2020, JPL 

researchers are now focused on building the 

flight system. 

New technology developed by NASA’s Jet 

Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) and tested in part 

through Flight Opportunities is helping address 

previous limitations of Mars landers and will be 

flown on NASA’s upcoming Mars 2020 mission to 

the Red Planet. 

Typically, spacecraft landing on the moon or 

Mars have lacked the ability to detect and 

react to hazards, requiring mission planners 

to select only benign landing sites with mostly 

flat terrain. As a result, landers and rovers were 

limited to areas with relatively simple geological 

features and were unable to access many sites 

of high scientific interest with more complex and 

hazardous surface morphology. JPL’s Lander 

Vision System (LVS) provides new “eyes” for 

NASA’s next Mars rover mission and will enable 

safe landing at these scientifically compelling 

Mars sites.

Flight Opportunities coordinated a flight test with 

Masten Space Systems in 2014, launching LVS 

1,066 feet into the air aboard Masten’s rocketpowered Xombie test platform. LVS helped guide 

the rocket to a precise landing at a predesignated 

target, flying as part of a larger system of 

experimental landing technologies called the 

Autonomous Descent and Ascent Powered Flight 

Testbed (ADAPT).

LVS, a camera-based navigation system, 

photographs the terrain beneath a descending 

spacecraft and matches it with onboard maps, 

An artist’s concept of the 2012 Mars Curiosity Landing. 

Mars 2020 will use a nearly identical landing system but 

with added precision from the Lander Vision System.

Photo credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

“By providing 

funding for 

flight tests, Flight 

Opportunities 

motivated us to 

build guidance, 

navigation, and 

control payloads 

for testing on 

Xombie. In 

the end, we 

showed a closedloop pinpoint 

landing demo 

that eliminated 

any technical 

concerns with 

flying the Lander 

Vision System on 

Mars 2020.”

—Andrew Johnson, 

principal investigator 

for LVS, NASA’s 

Jet Propulsion 

Laboratory
8

Flight Opportunities 

Impacts

Leveraging Test Flights to Mature New Techniques 

for In-Space Manufacturing

Building spacecraft and objects on Earth and 

launching them to space is costly and logistically 

complicated. But new processes to address 

these challenges look promising, as both 

academic and commercial researchers refine 

various methods of in-space manufacturing. Two 

groups of researchers—one from Northwestern 

University and another from Made In Space—

have recently matured their respective processes 

through Flight Opportunities. 

Freeze Casting in Microgravity (T0149)

Northwestern University researchers have 

developed a novel materials-processing 

technique involving the production of titanium 

(metal) foams and titanium-oxide (ceramic) foams 

using a freeze-casting method. 

To better understand the properties of the 

foams manufactured using this technique, the 

university scientists leveraged parabolic flight 

testing through Flight Opportunities in 2014 

and 2015 to mature their process. The flights 

enabled researchers to refine and validate 

hypotheses and assumptions about the freezecasting process. Specifically, the 2014 flight tests 

revealed that gravity had a substantial impact on 

the freeze-casting results. 

u Structures created in near space exhibited 

far more desirable properties than those 

created on Earth (one of the leading 

assumptions guiding the research). 

u Subsequent testing in 2015 allowed the 

researchers to isolate other factors, such as 

convective fluid motion and sedimentation 

of particles in the titanium and titaniumoxide foams. 

Combining these observations helped 

researchers better understand the materials’ 

properties in order to improve their process for 

longer duration testing. Additional parabolic 

testing was conducted in February 2016.

Northwestern University’s work with Flight 

Opportunities has increased the process’s TRL 

to 6, contributing to its selection for a 6-month 

NASA CubeSat mission. It has also been 

selected under the NASA MaterialsLab Open 

Science Campaign for an International Space 

Station (ISS) demonstration expected to launch 

in 2019 or 2020.

In-space 

manufacturing 

can help reduce 

launch costs 

for missions 

by enabling 

manufacturing 

of structures 

in space that 

would otherwise 

be too large to 

launch. Testing 

through Flight 

Opportunities 

is bringing 

these research 

goals closer 

to operational 

reality.

QUICK

FACT

Northwestern University student researcher Felicia Teller and 

Bryce Tappan of Los Alamos National Laboratory work with 

the freeze-casting process during a test flight. 

Photo credit: NASA
9

Flight Opportunities 

Impacts

ISS astronaut Barry 

“Butch” Wilmore holds a 

science sample container 

that took 2 hours to 

make. The container 

was the first object to be 

printed with two parts: a 

lid and a container. NASA 

wants to make science 

equipment in space 

rather than launch it. 

Photo credit: NASA

3-D Printing in Space (T0004)

Researchers from Made In Space are focusing on 

the possibility of using additive manufacturing, or 

3-D printing, to enable in-space manufacturing 

in the future. Initial parabolic flights of the 

company’s customized 3-D printer designed 

for use in microgravity were coordinated 

through Flight Opportunities and conducted 

in the summer of 2011. By making in-flight 

observations and modifying both the hardware 

and the software in between flights, the team 

was able to rapidly optimize the technology 

for operation in microgravity. Based in part on 

the validation from the initial parabolic flights, 

Made In Space received a Phase III award from 

the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) 

program to develop a 3-D printer for deployment 

aboard the ISS. In 2013, the prototype performed 

successfully during the microgravity test flights 

and was deployed to the ISS in 2014. And in 

FY2016, a new parabolic test flight helped to 

further mature the technology for future missions. 

The Additive 

Manufacturing Facility 

(AMF) at Made In Space 

headquarters. Photo 

credit: Made in Space.
10

Flight Opportunities 

Impacts

Test Flights Help Validate First Technology to Grow 

Plants on the Moon 

T0140

Researchers at NASA’s Ames Research Center 

have developed a process for growing plants 

on the moon—a method tested successfully in 

the lab and matured in part through the Flight 

Opportunities program. 

Prior to flight tests of Ames’s Lunar Plant 

Habitat, no plant-based biological spaceflight 

experiment had ever hydrated seeds in lunar 

gravity. Scientists had only performed hydration 

of seeds at 1 g because they anticipated that 

the presence of bubbles or of uneven dispersion 

would result in inferior water distribution in lunar 

gravity. Ames’s Lunar Plant Habitat employs 

a direct-pressure pump that works even with 

air bubbles present, passing water to osmosis 

paper to distribute it evenly to plant seeds. The 

technology, which also received a NASA Center 

Innovation Fund (CIF) award, promises to be the 

first method of growing plants on the moon and 

is a direct response to the Decadal Survey calling 

for investigations into the role of plants in longterm lunar life support. 

With the habitat tested successfully in groundbased experiments, researchers turned to Flight 

Opportunities to test whether the technology 

would work as anticipated in lunar gravity—and, 

if not, to determine if the system’s sensors would 

detect the failure. In an experiment sponsored 

by Lockheed Martin, the payload was flown on 

a December 2015 parabolic flight campaign, 

evaluating flight performance of its microfluidics 

systems under lunar gravity as well as camera 

image capture and system performance. The test 

flights increased the habitat’s TRL to 6, and it is 

now flight qualified for microgravity, low-gravity, 

and 1-g ground and spaceflight applications. 

Lunar Plant Habitat 

testing during a parabolic 

flight campaign.

Photo credit: NASA
11

Flight Opportunities 

Impacts

New High-Altitude COA Lays Groundwork for Winged 

Commercial sRLV Flights at the Edge of Space 

T0106

Near Space Corporation (NSC) is taking 

advantage of a new Federal Aviation 

Administration (FAA) High-Altitude Certificate of 

Authorization (COA) that enables a drone flying 

from the edge of space to operate as a surrogate 

testbed for technologies being developed to 

support commercial suborbital reusable launch 

vehicle (sRLV) operations. 

The unmanned flight test in September 2016, 

coordinated through the Flight Opportunities 

program, was designed to help evaluate the 

application of FAA NextGen surveillance 

technologies to the tracking of winged sRLVs 

as they descend from the stratosphere down 

through Class A airspace. It was also the first 

Near Space Corporation’s 

HASS vehicle. Photo credit: 

Near Space Corporation

unmanned aerial system (UAS) flight to be 

conducted under NSC’s High-Altitude COA 

granted by the FAA. Supported by the FAA’s 

Office of Commercial Space Transportation, NSC 

integrated an advanced surveillance payload into 

an unpowered version of its High-Altitude Shuttle 

System (HASS), a winged lifting body glider 

with performance similar to commercial sRLVs 

developed for suborbital flight. The successful 

flight demonstrated basic proof of concept 

for use of the HASS as a “flying testbed” for 

advanced surveillance technologies, as well as 

other safety-enabling technologies in the future, 

for winged commercial sRLVs.
12

Flight Opportunities 

Impacts

Crew-Autonomous Biological Imaging in Parabolic 

and Suborbital Applications 

T0053

University of Florida researchers have made 

considerable inroads in maturing a technology 

designed to image and monitor the biological 

response of a plant, plant tissue, or any small 

biological system to various types of gravity 

and spaceflight environments. Over a series 

of five parabolic flight campaigns with Flight 

Opportunities, the research team has increased 

the system’s TRL from 2 to 9.

The University of Florida’s technology was born 

out of the need to see and record important 

biological phenomena at the molecular level 

during transitions in gravity in spaceflight. 

The technology has considerable implications 

on human health, life support, and habitation 

systems for missions to the moon, Mars, and 

potentially other planets. The insights gained 

during the team’s flight testing may benefit future 

GeneSat and other satellite missions, as well as 

planetary lander applications. 

The course of parabolic flight campaigns 

arranged by Flight Opportunities has helped 

the research team make critical improvements 

to the biological imaging system—specifically 

matching imaging modalities with key biological 

phenomena and engineering the system to work 

in a middeck locker environment for parabolic 

flight. The team’s first flight campaign revealed 

further work needed to mature the system’s 

imager (camera). Subsequent flights provided 

insight into necessary changes to the system’s 

environmental controls and thermal imaging 

capabilities to be compatible with the duration 

of parabolic flight. These iterative improvements 

have positioned the technology for upcoming 

suborbital flight testing in 2017. 

“The ability to be near the aircraft, in the aircraft, see the 

connections, and to see how those affect your experiment and 

your technology during all phases of flight, all of those things 

are extraordinarily instructive. There’s just no substitute for 

it. The amount of information, wonder, and experience you 

gain by being there and doing it is almost immeasurable. It’s 

a very special thing that Flight Opportunities does.”

—Dr. Robert Ferl, principal investigator, distinguished professor, and 

director of the Interdisciplinary Center for Biotechnology Research, 

University of Florida

The plant arabidopsis imaged using technology developed by 

the University of Florida. Photo credit: University of Florida
13

Flight Opportunities 

Impacts

The research team 

ready for flight testing 

their biological 

imaging technology. 

Photo credit: 

University of Florida

The University of 

Florida research 

team conducts 

experiments during 

flight testing. 

Photo credit: 

University of Florida
14

Flight Opportunities 

Impacts

“This flight would 

not be possible if it 

weren’t for the Flight 

Opportunities and 

Game Changing 

Technology 

programs at NASA. 

Demonstrating that 

you can do science 

more cheaply and 

more effectively 

than before is 

very challenging. 

These programs 

help overcome the 

tremendous barrier 

of proving that the 

new approach can 

work; otherwise they 

would be too risky 

to incorporate into 

complete science 

programs. Being 

able to flight-prove 

new instrument 

technologies is 

absolutely critical to 

advancing science 

in the long run.”

—Craig DeForest, 

principal investigator 

for SSIPP, Southwest 

Research Institute
15

Flight Opportunities 

Impacts

[Photo opposite page] The research 

team prepares the SwRI Solar 

Instrument Pointing Platform for 

flight. Photo credit: SwRI

Southwest Research Institute Matures Its Suborbital 

Science Observatory Through Balloon Flights

T0085

Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) has 

made a significant achievement with its Solar 

Instrument Pointing Platform (SSIPP), offering a 

flexible, optical table–based system that locks 

onto a solar limb and delivers an arcsecondgrade pointed beam to an instrument. The 

technology effectively creates a novel suborbital 

science observatory. This unique setup enables 

researchers to test instruments in a space-like 

environment with minimal complexity and effort. 

To make the desired measurements, researchers 

must have arcsecond-class stability—and 

preferably sub-arcsecond stability—of the 

pointing technology in order to resolve features 

that are smaller than 100 miles across. This 

requires an active pointing system to stabilize the 

inherently dynamic test flight. Existing balloon 

gondolas capable of this level of stability come 

at a very expensive price, whereas SSIPP will 

make certain types of investigations available to 

a much wider range of researchers. 

SwRI flew the instrument in 2016 on a highaltitude balloon provided by World View 

Enterprises, offering an avenue to help lower 

barriers to near-space science. The flight 

confirmed that major elements of the SSIPP 

system work as expected. A follow-up flight is 

planned for 2017. 

The SwRI Solar Instrument Pointing Platform 

technology. Photo credit: SwRI

SSIPP 

dramatically 

reduces the 

complexity and 

cost involved 

with testing 

instruments in 

a space-like 

environment. 

QUICK

FACT
16

Flight Opportunities 

Impacts

A high-altitude balloon launch of the Deployable Rigid Adjustable Guided Final 

Landing Approach Pinions (DRAG FLAPs). Photo credit: Near Space Corporation

“Working with NSC was a really 

great experience. We were very 

curious to see how other service 

providers handle their interaction 

with the payload provider, and I 

think both of our companies were 

able to learn a lot from each other. 

And working with NASA was 

incredibly valuable. Our technical 

contact, Paul De León, had so much 

experience to bring to the table from 

his experience with similar tests, 

so we had more resources and were 

set up for a really successful flight 

campaign given everyone involved.” 

—Joey Oberholtzer, principal 

investigator for the DRAG FLAPs 

technology, Masten Space Systems
17

Flight Opportunities 

Impacts

Masten Space Systems Leverages Test Flights from 

a Fellow Flight Provider for Its Advanced Entry, 

Descent, and Landing Technology 

T0064

Deployable Rigid Adjustable Guided Final 

Landing Approach Pinions (DRAG FLAPs), 

developed by Masten Space Systems, are poised 

to enable capabilities for precision entry, descent, 

and landing (EDL) trajectories. The advancement 

enables higher altitudes, engine-off descent, 

and safe and precise landings. With drop tests 

completed in August 2016 by Near Space 

Corporation (NSC), Masten is currently reviewing 

data from the successful flights to assess next 

steps in the technology’s development.

The DRAG FLAPs technology was conceived 

because of Masten’s interest in adding new 

control features to future vehicles it will use 

as a flight provider for the Flight Opportunities 

program. These new features have the potential 

to benefit not only NASA but also all researchers 

testing payloads on Masten vehicles through 

NASA’s program in the future.

The DRAG FLAPs technology is specifically 

designed to augment the aerodynamic 

characteristics of a vehicle during the descent 

phase. Employing such devices provides 

aerodynamic stabilization and control while 

improving landing. It also expands the descent 

timeframe researchers have to accomplish critical 

events and increases the weight of the payload 

that can be flown to the same altitude.

While Masten and Flight Opportunities partners 

stand to benefit from the technology, the 

advantages of the technology extend to planetary 

science missions as well. As plans for these 

missions become more ambitious and complex, 

they demand larger payloads with an emphasis 

on precision landing—exactly what the DRAG 

FLAPs technology is designed to achieve.

Masten’s 2016 flight tests with NSC were a 

success—the drop tests on NSC’s platform 

reached the required altitude of 35 km, and the 

payload release and descent were successful, 

with the majority of collected data recoverable. 

The flight will likely increase the DRAG FLAPs’ 

TRL, and results from the recovered data analysis 

will inform the next steps in the development 

process. The ultimate goal is to make the 

technology available for future Masten flights and 

potentially other NASA missions.
18

Flight Opportunities 

Impacts

Flight Opportunities is helping to support the commercial development of small launch vehicles 

through public-private partnerships. These collaborations provide commercial partners with access 

to NASA’s unique expertise and facilities to address challenges in the development of small satellite 

launch vehicle technologies.

Announcement of Collaborative 

Opportunity Partnerships

Through its Announcement of Collaborative 

Opportunity (ACO) solicitation, “Utilizing PublicPrivate Partnerships to Advance Emerging Space 

Technology System Capabilities,” NASA selected 

five partner companies in FY2016 to receive 

awards related to Flight Opportunities objectives. 

The partnerships cover efforts in two key areas: 

u Nanosatellite and Suborbital Reusable 

Launch Systems Development

u Small, Affordable, High-Performance Liquid 

Rocket Engine Development. 

Through these partnerships, NASA provides 

technical expertise and test facilities to aid 

industry partners in maturing key space 

technologies. Highlights on the progress of each 

of these efforts can be found on pages 19-20.

Tipping Point Technologies

In FY2016, NASA’s Space Technology Mission 

Directorate issued the “Utilizing PublicPrivate Partnerships to Advance Tipping 

Point Technologies” solicitation as part of its 

efforts to identify industry-developed space 

technologies that can foster the development of 

commercial space capabilities and benefit future 

NASA missions. A technology is considered 

at a “tipping point” if an investment in a 

Small Launch Vehicle 

Technology Development

demonstration of its capabilities will result in 

a significant advancement of the technology’s 

maturation. One of the topics for this release, 

“Small Launch Vehicle Technology Development,” 

aims to accelerate the development of 

commercial capabilities to enable frequent 

launches of small spacecraft to low Earth 

orbit (LEO) at a cost per kilogram of payload 

much lower than currently available. Selection 

announcements are expected in early 2017.

SBIR/STTR 2017 Phase I Partnerships

Flight Opportunities partners with other NASA 

programs, including the Small Business 

Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business 

Technology Transfer (STTR) programs, to achieve 

NASA’s Space Technology Mission Directorate 

goals through greater alignment between 

programs focused on technology maturation. 

SBIR/STTR-funded firms are eligible for flight 

testing of key aspects of their research and 

technology development through the Flight 

Opportunities program. Flight Opportunities is 

involved with the following subtopics for the 2017 

SBIR/STTR Program Solicitation: 

u Z9.01 — Small Launch Vehicle Technologies 

and Demonstrations (SBIR Focus Area 21)

u T1.01 — Affordable Nano/Micro Launch 

Propulsion Stages (STTR Focus Area 1)
19

Flight Opportunities 

Impacts

ACO Partnerships

Through ACO partnerships, NASA provides technical expertise and test facilities to aid industry partners 

in maturing key space technologies. The work covered by these partnerships is made possible through 

Non-Reimbursable Space Act Agreements between selected companies and NASA centers. Five ACO 

partnerships advanced forward in FY2016. 

Generation Orbit: Air-Launched 

Liquid Rockets

Generation Orbit has partnered with NASA’s 

Armstrong Flight Research Center to conduct 

a flight test campaign for its GOLauncher 1 

Inert Test Article —a mass properties and 

aerodynamics simulator for the GOLauncher 1 

rocket vehicle. The flight test aims to encompass 

aircraft integration testing, captive-carry flight 

testing, and release testing. Preliminary stress 

analysis was completed, and results are being 

incorporated into flight test plans.

Virgin Orbit: Advancing Emerging 

Space Capabilities

Virgin Orbit’s new dedicated SmallSat launch 

vehicle, LauncherOne, is designed to deliver 

approximately 300 to 500 kg of payload to LEO. 

An expendable two-stage liquid propulsion 

rocket, LauncherOne is designed to be released 

at a high altitude from a modified Boeing 747 

carrier aircraft. In partnership with NASA’s 

Ames Research Center, work has commenced 

on efforts to support critical areas for the 

launcher’s development, including assessment 

of its aerothermodynamics; simulation of the 

aircraft and separation flight profiles; and 

launch vehicle enabling technologies, such as 

precision orbital insertion systems and payload 

accommodation architectures.

Virgin Orbit’s 

LauncherOne vehicle 

in flight. Photo credit: 

Virgin Galactic

GOLauncher 1 is an air-launched single-stage rocket under 

development to serve microgravity, astrophysics, and 

hypersonics researchers. Photo credit: Generation Orbit
20

Flight Opportunities 

Impacts

UP Aerospace’s Spyder: A Dedicated 

CubeSat Launcher

UP Aerospace is leveraging advanced 

manufacturing capabilities through NASA’s 

Marshall Space Flight Center to accelerate the 

timeline and reduce the costs of developing its 

new dedicated SmallSat launcher. These efforts 

will aid in the development of upper-stage motors 

and support ground testing of the new launcher.

Dynetics: Hydrogen Peroxide/Kerosene 

Engine Development

Dynetics is leveraging its partnership with 

Marshall to develop 1,000 lbf peroxide/kerosene 

upper-stage engines. Dynetics is designing, 

fabricating, and providing an engine that will be 

delivered to Marshall, which will design, build, 

and operate a test stand capable of hot-fire 

testing the engine using 90 percent hydrogen 

peroxide and RP-1 as propellant. 

Vector Space Systems: Enhancing a 

Nanosat Launch Vehicle Booster Main 

Engine

Vector Space Systems is working with Marshall 

to develop a propulsion system for the 

company’s two-stage nanosat launch vehicle, 

using an additive manufacturing approach. 

Significant milestones were achieved in FY2016, 

including fabrication of the Phase 1 Injector and 

assembly of water flow test hardware. 

The Marshall additivemanufactured injector 

was successfully hot-fire 

tested by Vector Space 

Systems using liquid 

oxygen/propylene 

propellant. Photo credit: 

Vector Space Systems
21

Flight Opportunities 

Impacts

NASA’s Materials International Space Station 

Experiment (MISSE) Flight Facility offers 

researchers extended exposure to on-orbit 

environments for their research payloads through 

a new external facility on the ISS. In 2016, the 

MISSE-Flight Facility platform was funded by the 

ISS program, and the NASA research payloads 

fell under the Flight Opportunities umbrella. The 

latest call for proposals—MISSE-9—closed in 

August 2016.

Selected payloads are exposed to the relevant 

environment of space—providing a better 

understanding of material durability, which could 

be applied to future spacecraft designs. Since 

2001, more than 4,000 materials specimens 

have been tested through MISSE—including 

composite materials, lubricants, paints, fabrics, 

container seals, and solar cells. 

Flown 220 miles above Earth and fixed to the 

exterior of the ISS for periods of up to 4 years, 

these innovative experiments have endured 

extreme levels of solar and charged-particle 

radiation, atomic oxygen, hard vacuum, 

temperature extremes, micrometeoroids, orbital 

debris, and contamination—giving researchers 

unprecedented insight into developing durable 

materials for spacecraft, flight hardware, and 

even astronaut clothing. Because such research 

is difficult to simulate effectively in groundbased laboratories, the MISSE series provides 

NASA and its partners with crucial insight into 

the challenges of protecting astronaut health 

and establishing a permanent human presence 

in space.

Six experiments selected 

for flight on MISSE-9 are 

expected to launch in 

2017:

u Polymers and 

Composites Experiment

[PI: Kim K. de Groh, NASA’s 

Glenn Research Center]

u Polymeric Materials 

Experiment [PI: Sheila A. 

Thibeault, NASA’s Langley 

Research Center]

u Space Environment Exposure: Tantalum 

Fiber Laminates and Charge Dissipation Film 

[PI: D. Laurence Thomsen, Langley]

u Improved Extravehicular Activity (EVA) Suit 

Micrometeoroid and Orbital Debris (MMOD) 

Protection Using Shear-Thickening Fluid 

(STF) Armor and Self-Healing Polymers 

[PI: Norman J. Wagner, Experimental Program to 

Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR), University of 

Delaware, and NASA’s Johnson Space Center]

u Space Environmental Effects on Additively 

Manufactured Materials [PI: Miria M. Finckenor, 

NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center]

u Ultraviolet Radiation Sensor 

[PI: Miria M. Finckenor, Marshall]

Calls for MISSE experiments are expected 

to be issued every 6 months. In addition, 

Flight Opportunities partnered with NASA’s 

SBIR and STTR programs to make opportunities 

for experiment development available through 

an SBIR subtopic, ISS Utilization and 

Microgravity Research. 

Materials International Space Station Experiment 

Flight Facility. Image credit: NASA

Materials International Space 

Station Experiment
22

Spaceport America, New Mexico. 

Photo credit: NASA
23

Flight 

Provider

Overviews

Flight Opportunities flight providers offer researchers from academia, industry, nonprofit research organizations, NASA, and other government agencies a wide variety 

of capabilities for flight testing their payloads. Suborbital reusable launch vehicles 

(sRLVs), parabolic aircraft, and high-altitude balloons all provide access to relevant 

space-like environments, helping to advance technologies for future missions to 

the International Space Station, the moon, Mars, and beyond.

The following pages include an overview of entities providing flights through 

NASA’s indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity (IDIQ) contracts as well as those 

providing services for technologies selected through the Research, Development, 

Demonstration, and Infusion (REDDI) process. These flight providers either have or 

are making progress toward a commercial license for flight.
24

Flight Provider 

Overviews

UP Aerospace launch pad. 

Photo credit: NASA
Flight Provider 

Overviews

25

Status

u Involved with the Flight Opportunities 

program since 2012

u Highlighted its new payload ejection 

capability with the ejection of the Maraia 

capsule in 2016

u Collaborative efforts continue to aid the 

development of Spyder—a small rocket for 

launching six-unit CubeSat payloads—in 

partnership with NASA’s Marshall Space 

Flight Center (see full story on page 20)

Available Flight Platforms

u SpaceLoft XL

An sRLV for launching experiments and 

commercial payloads for microgravity 

research

 In service since 2006

 Reaches an altitude of 115 km on 

average for commercial flights (160 km 

maximum altitude)

 Achieves typical flight durations 

of 13 minutes, including 4 minutes 

of microgravity

 Optimized for flying payloads of up 

to 36 kg

 Offers the option of payload ejection

UP Aerospace developed its SpaceLoft XL suborbital reusable launch vehicle (sRLV) to help reduce 

the cost and scheduled time of launching experiments and commercial payloads for microgravity 

research. UP Aerospace is also working to develop Spyder, a dedicated CubeSat launcher, adding to the 

company’s flight platform portfolio to benefit research teams seeking to mature promising technologies. 

UP Aerospace

HQ: Denver, CO | Launch: Spaceport America, NM

www.upaerospace.com

“UP Aerospace is 

pleased to work 

with the Flight 

Opportunities 

program, 

providing access 

to a relevant 

environment for 

developing and 

flight testing new 

technologies. This 

access is helping 

researchers save 

development costs 

and provides a 

pathway toward 

orbital flights.”

—Tracey Larson, 

vice president of 

public relations, 

UP Aerospace 

Flights in FY2016

SL-10: November 6, 2015

Several payloads on board SpaceLoft XL 

benefitted from the SL-10 flight test, 

including:

u New Mexico State University’s RoboticsBased Method of In-Orbit Identification 

of Spacecraft Inertia Properties (T0084)

u NASA’s Johnson Space Center’s Entry, 

Descent, and Landing Technology 

Development for the Maraia EarthReturn Capsule (T0115)

u Purdue University’s Zero-Gravity 

Green Propellant Management 

Technology (T0128)

u NASA’s Ames Research Center’s 

Affordable Vehicle Avionics (T0142)
26

Flight Provider 

Overviews

Status

u Joined the Flight Opportunities roster of 

commercial flight providers in 2016

Available Flight Platforms

u New Shepard

A fully reusable VTVL space vehicle

 Reaches an apogee of over 100 km

 Provides payload lockers in two sizes, 

supporting experiments up to 22 kg

 Offers custom solutions for larger 

payloads

 Enables fast turnaround times from launch 

to recovery and potentially reflight

Blue Origin

HQ: Kent, WA | Launch: West Texas 

www.blueorigin.com

One of the newest Flight Opportunities commercial flight providers, Blue Origin has been flying its New 

Shepard vertical takeoff, vertical landing (VTVL) space vehicle since April 2015 in a test flight capacity. 

The company’s engineering, manufacturing, and business teams work in a 420,000 ft2 facility on 

26 acres in Kent, Washington, and the company conducts engine and suborbital flight testing at its 

privately owned and operated launch site 2 hours east of El Paso, Texas. A new orbital launch site and 

750,000 ft2 manufacturing facility are in development in Cape Canaveral, Florida.

“A lasting legacy 

of what we do in 

space is the benefit 

to the research 

community 

and how it can 

impact technology 

development and 

education... 

We can work with 

a researcher on 

a payload and 

then fly it again 

and answer new 

questions and 

really start to do 

science the way 

science is meant to 

be done.” 

—Erika Wagner, 

business 

development 

manager, Blue Origin 

Upcoming Flights

Blue Origin is gearing up for its first flight 

through the Flight Opportunities program 

in 2017.

Blue Origin’s New Shepard VTVL space 

vehicle lifting off the launch pad. 

Photo credit: Blue Origin
Flight Provider 

Overviews

27

EXOS Aerospace Systems & Technologies

HQ: Caddo Mills, TX | Launch: Spaceport America, NM

www.exosaero.com

Status

u Plans underway for the company’s first 

commercial payload flight in 2017

Available Flight Platforms

u Suborbital Active Rocket with 

Guidance (SARGE)

A rocket 0.5 m in diameter by 11 m in height

 Capable of lifting payloads up to 50 kg to 

an altitude of 100 km

 Offers 2 to 4 minutes of microgravity

 Provides proven liquid oxygen/ethanol 

engine technology that allows a soft 

launch (~7 g)

 Enables researchers to communicate with 

experiments throughout flight and retrieve 

their payloads within minutes of landing

EXOS Aerospace Systems & Technologies has developed and tested more than 100 rocket engines and 

dozens of flying vehicles. Under a university grant funded by Flight Opportunities, University of Central 

Florida professor Julie Bissett will conduct SPACE2.0 research in microgravity onboard EXOS SARGE.

The EXOS SARGE provides a zero-gravity environment for scientific payloads. The vehicle can be flown 

multiple times, as soon as the next day, with minimal and low-cost refurbishment time between flights. 

A no-spin rocket with a gimbaled engine, SARGE lands within 50 to 200 m of the launch site, and 

payloads may be recovered within 15 to 30 minutes of launch. EXOS aims to use this capability to lower 

costs and decrease wait times through reliability, recoverability, and reusability.

Upcoming Flights

The EXOS team is working toward a Federal 

Aviation Administration (FAA) Office of 

Commercial Space Transportation license, 

expected to be issued in 2017 and is 

preparing to fly the University of Central 

Florida’s Suborbital Particle Aggregation and 

Collision Experiment-2 (T0156) in 2017 under 

a university grant.

An EXOS rocket at liftoff.

Photo credit: EXOS 

Aerospace Systems & 

Technologies
28

Flight Provider 

Overviews
Flight Provider 

Overviews

29

[Photo opposite page] Virgin Spaceship 

Unity glides over the Mojave Desert. 

Photo credit: Virgin Galactic

While Virgin Galactic continues its ventures into space tourism, the company also serves as a flight 

provider for testing scientific payloads in relevant microgravity environments. In 2016, the FAA issued a 

launch license to Virgin Galactic to continue flight testing of its suborbital space plane, Virgin Spaceship 

Unity (VSS Unity). Under this license, the company is able to begin commercial payload flights for hire.

Virgin Galactic

HQ: Mojave, CA | Launch: Spaceport America, NM 

www.virgingalactic.com

Upcoming Flights

Virgin Galactic is scheduled to fly its first 

“full manifest” indefinite delivery/indefinite 

quantity (IDIQ)–contracted VSS Unity 

research flight in 2017.

Status

u Plans underway for the company’s first 

research flight for Flight Opportunities 

in 2017

Available Flight Platforms

u VSS Unity

An air-launched suborbital space plane

 Typical flights are mated to a carrier 

aircraft and take off from a conventional 

runway, releasing from the carrier aircraft 

once appropriate altitude is reached

 Capable of providing 3 to 4 minutes of 

high-quality microgravity for payloads 

per flight

 Suborbital spaceflight payload capacity of 

450+ kg
30

Flight Provider 

Overviews

Masten’s Xodiac main engine 

start and liftoff. Photo credit: 

Masten Space Systems
Flight Provider 

Overviews

31

Status

u Has been performing flight campaigns for 

Flight Opportunities since 2011

u Currently focused on lowering barriers 

to space access through flight testing 

technologies that focus on precision EDL

Available Flight Platforms

Although Xombie has been retired, the company 

has two other vertical takeoff, vertical landing 

(VTVL) platforms currently in service:

u Xodiac

 Primarily used for terrestrial demonstrations

 Ideal for lunar and Martian landing 

technologies

u Xaero

 Focused on cradle landing technology

As one of Flight Opportunities’ first commercial flight providers, Masten is currently focused on flight 

testing entry, descent, and landing (EDL) technologies that help ensure precise and safe landings on 

future missions to the moon and potentially other planetary bodies. Masten is also a partner in NASA’s 

Lunar Cargo Transportation and Landing by Soft Touchdown (Lunar CATALYST) initiative, which assists 

in the development of commercial capabilities to deliver payloads to the moon.

For Flight Opportunities, Masten’s Xombie vehicle has been used for seven flight campaigns, notably:

u Successful testing in 2015 of Astrobotic Technology’s lunar landing system, garnering the company 

its third Milestone Prize in the Google Lunar XPrize competition

u Critical testing in 2015 to prepare Carnegie Mellon University’s flyover mapping and modeling 

technology for a potential future lunar mission

u Successful demonstration of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory’s (JPL’s) Fuel Optimal and 

Accurate Landing System (FOALS) for real-time terrain-relative navigation along with fuel-optimal 

large-divert guidance

Now entering retirement, the Xombie vehicle is being replaced by Masten’s Xaero and Xodiac platforms. 

Masten Space Systems

HQ and Launch: Mojave, CA

www.masten.aero

Notable Flights

In 2014, NASA tested new “eyes” for its 

next Mars rover mission on a rocket built by 

Masten Space Systems, thanks in part to the 

Flight Opportunities program. JPL’s Terrain 

Relative Navigation (TRN) technology was a 

component of the FOALS payload flown on 

Masten’s Xombie. The TRN system, which 

can direct a craft toward a safe landing at 

its primary target site or divert touchdown 

toward better terrain, was recently selected 

to be part of the Mars 2020 rover’s Lander 

Vision System, representing a significant 

accomplishment for this innovation (see full 

story on page 7). 
32

Flight Provider 

Overviews

Status

u Has been performing flight campaigns for 

Flight Opportunities since 2013

u Specializes in increasing payload TRLs 

through extended-duration balloon flights in 

stratospheric conditions

Available Flight Platforms

u High-Altitude Shuttle System (HASS)

Ideal for payload providers needing 

enhanced flight path control or the ability 

to make iterative payload changes between 

frequent high-altitude flight tests

 Includes a special high-altitude unmanned 

shuttle for payload recovery, enabling 

rapid payload turnaround for reflight

 Accommodates payloads of up to 10 kg or 

5 kg per payload slot

 Reaches altitudes of up to 28 km for 

flights of up to 6 hours

u Nano Balloon System (NBS)

Aimed at payloads with minimal integration 

requirements

 Accommodates payloads up to 40 kg or 

3 kg per payload slot (10 slots available 

per flight)

 Reaches altitudes of up to 30 km for 

flights of up to 6 hours 

Near Space Corporation

HQ: Tillamook, OR | Facilities: Tillamook, OR; Madras, OR; and South Point, HI 

www.nsc.aero

Near Space Corporation (NSC) specializes in stratospheric balloon flights for payload testing. The 

company operates from facilities at the former Naval Air Station in Tillamook, Oregon. NSC also offers 

access to the Tillamook Unmanned Aerial System (UAS) Test Range for UAS testing up to 130,000 feet. 

The company has also established balloon launch locations in central Oregon and Hawaii.

“Near Space 

Corporation is 

pleased to have 

been a part 

of the Flight 

Opportunities 

program over the 

past several years 

and looks forward 

to continuing to 

provide access to 

flight platforms 

and services that 

help advance 

the development 

of payloads.”

—Tim Lachenmeier, 

president, Near 

Space Corporation

Flights in FY2016

SBS10: August 3, 2016

NSC used its SBS to fly Masten Space 

Systems’ Deployable Rigid Adjustable 

Guided Final Landing Approach Pinions 

(DRAG FLAPs) technology. (See full story on 

page 17.)

HASS-03: September 26, 2016

NSC used its HASS to fly the Low-Cost 

Suborbital Reusable Launch Vehicle (sRLV) 

Surrogate to Test Automatic Dependent 

Surveillance Broadcast (ADS-B) technology. 

(See full story on page 11.)

u Small Balloon System (SBS)

Aimed at small satellites and other 

compact payloads

 Includes a parachute payload 

recovery system

 Accommodates payloads of up to 40 kg 

or 20 kg per payload slot

 Reaches altitudes of up to 30 km for 

flights of up to 6 hours

Non-standard services are available for 

these balloon systems as well, including 

longer durations, higher altitudes (up tp 40 

km), higher payload masses, and custom 

payload configurations.
Flight Provider 

Overviews

33

NSC demonstrates 

enabling communications 

technologies for future 

low-cost, small Earthreturn vehicles.

Photo credit: NSC
34

Flight Provider 

Overviews

Status

u Has been performing flight campaigns for 

Flight Opportunities since 2015

u Currently specializes in innovative, 

high-altitude balloon flight platforms for 

payload testing

Available Flight Platforms

u Stratollite

Provides navigable high-altitude balloon 

flights for uncrewed payload missions over 

specific areas of interest for long durations 

(days, weeks, etc.)

u Tycho

A two-vehicle family of flight platforms 

(Tycho-20 for payloads up to 20 kg and 

Tycho-285 for payloads up to 285 kg)

providing stratospheric access

 Both vehicles share the same avionics, 

balloon envelope technology, and 

recovery systems

 Reach altitudes of up to 43 to 46 km 

 Carry payloads for flight durations of 

5 minutes to 12 hours

World View Enterprises

HQ and Launch: Tucson, AZ 

www.worldview.space

World View Enterprises aims to provide affordable options for small payloads while also offering proven 

heavy-lift capabilities in near-space environments. The company has spent the last several years refining 

its technology, with plans to also eventually carry researchers and private citizens to the edge of space 

inside a pressurized spacecraft suspended by a high-altitude balloon. 

“We’re thrilled 

to be part of 

NASA’s Flight 

Opportunities 

program—

helping drive 

innovation and 

increasing access 

to space, while 

at the same time 

fueling industry 

growth in the 

commercial 

space sector.”

—Jane Poynter, 

chief executive 

officer, World View 

Enterprises

Flights in FY2016

T20-02: September 3, 2016

Southwest Research Institute’s Solar 

Instrument Pointing Platform (SSIPP) 

technology was flown on World View’s 

Tycho-20 balloon, with a second flight 

planned for 2017 (see full story on page 15).
Flight Provider 

Overviews

35

Tycho-20 launch in Tucson, AZ. Photo 

credit: World View Enterprises 
36

Flight Provider 

Overviews

Status

NASA’s Reduced Gravity Office (RGO) continued 

service of Johnson’s C-9 aircraft in FY2016 

beyond the vehicle’s planned decommissioning. 

While commercial parabolic providers worked 

to advance their capabilities, the C-9 provided 

parabolic flight testing for Flight Opportunities. 

NASA has now divested from microgravity flight 

operations, and the C-9 was decommissioned 

from NASA’s inventory in March 2016.

NASA’s Reduced Gravity Office (vehicle decommissioned)

HQ: Johnson Space Center, Houston, TX 

www.nasa.gov/centers/johnson

Parabolic flight evaluation of a hermetic 

surgery system for reduced gravity. 

Photo credit: NASA

Flights in FY2016

RGO22: November 18, 2015

RGO22R: January 12-14, 2016

RGO23: December 15-18, 2015

Several payloads flew on the RGO22, 

RGO22R, and RGO23 flight campaigns:

u Made In Space’s Printing the Space 

Future (T0004) (see full story on page 9)

u NASA’s Johnson Space Center’s 

Microgravity Multi-Phase Flow 

Experiment for Suborbital Testing 

(MFEST) (T0020)

u University of Puerto Rico’s 

Nanocatalyst-Based Direct Ammonia 

Alkaline Fuel Cell (T0059)

u Texas A&M University’s Demonstration 

of Variable Radiator (T0081)

u Fermi Institute’s Sintering of Composite 

Materials Under Reduced-Gravity 

Conditions (T0044)

u NASA’s Glenn Research Center’s 

Evaporative Heat Transfer Mechanisms 

Within a Heat Melt Compactor 

Experiment (T0045)

u University of Louisville’s Parabolic 

Flight Evaluation of a Hermetic Surgery 

System for Reduced Gravity (T0049)

u NASA’s Ames Research Center’s Lunar 

Plant Growth Experiment (T0140) (see 

full story on page 10)

NASA Johnson’s C-9 

aircraft. Photo credit: NASA
Flight Provider 

Overviews

37

Status

u Began flying payloads for Flight 

Opportunities in 2008

u Currently specializing in reduced-gravity 

operations

Available Flight Platforms

u G-FORCE ONE

A Boeing 727-200F three-engine aircraft 

modified for reduced-gravity environments

 Contains up to 36 seats for researchers 

and crew

 Includes an open research area 

approximately 67 feet long

 Accommodates small experiments in the 

rear of the cabin

 Provides flight durations of approximately 

2 hours

Zero Gravity Corporation (ZERO-G) enables 

researchers to achieve a reduced-gravity 

environment for research payloads. G-FORCE 

ONE, its specially modified 727 aircraft, does 

this by flying through a series of parabolic 

maneuvers, resulting in short periods of 

microgravity. The length of these reduced-gravity 

periods depends on the g level required for the 

specific test. Typical missions on G-FORCE ONE 

consist of 30 parabolic maneuvers and offer the 

reduced gravity needed to achieve a near-space 

environment. ZERO-G is slated to fly additional 

payloads in 2017 and beyond. 

Zero Gravity Corporation 

HQ: Arlington, VA | Facility: Orlando Sanford International Airport, FL

www.gozerog.com

Flights in FY2016

P0001: February 25–27, 2016

P0002: June 14, 2016

Several payloads flew on the P0001 and 

P0002 flight campaigns:

u Purdue University’s Low-Gravity 

Flow Boiling on Modern Textured 

Surfaces (T0145)

u Purdue University’s Advancing 

Diaphragm Modeling Technology for 

Propellant Management (T0150)

u Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute’s 

Droplet Pinning in Microgravity (T0146)

u Carthage College’s Modal Propellant 

Gauging in Microgravity (T0147)

u Northwestern University’s Microgravity 

Fabrication of Freeze-Cast Titanium 

Foams (T0149) (see full story on page 8)

u Orbital Technologies Corporation’s 

Zero-Gravity Mass Measurement Device 

(ZGMMD) Parabolic Flight Test (T0158)

ZERO-G’s G-FORCE ONE aircraft.

Photo credit: ZERO-G
38

Program 

Highlights

Sintering of composite materials 

under reduced-gravity conditions during 

a parabolic flight. Photo credit: NASA
39

Program

Highlights

The Flight Opportunities program has continued to expand its breadth and reach, 

demonstrating considerable impact. FY2016 saw an expansion of program activities, 

a carefully planned and executed solicitation and call schedule, and positive progress 

toward strategic goals for both the program and NASA.

 Program Progress (p. 40)

 Expanding Program Breadth, Increasing Impact (p. 41)

 Flight Campaigns

 Technology Impact Areas

 Research Organizations

 Geographic Impact

 Technology Solicitation Schedule (p. 45)

 Budget (p. 46)

 Multi-Year Data (p. 46)
40

Program 

Highlights

Program Progress

FY2016 saw the completion of 9 flight campaigns as well as enhancements in technology 

and payload demonstrations and new collaborations that increase the program’s capabilities. 

Specific achievements included:

u Broader collaboration across NASA 

organizations, including: 

 Space Technology Mission 

Directorate (STMD)

 Human Exploration and Operations 

Mission Directorate (HEOMD)

 Space Launch Systems Program (SLSP)

 Advanced Exploration Systems (AES)

 Science Mission Directorate (SMD)

 Other government agencies such as the 

Defense Advanced Research Projects 

Agency (DARPA) and the Federal Aviation 

Administration (FAA)

 Examples include:

 A collaboration with DARPA for a future 

flight demonstration on Blue Origin’s 

New Shepard vehicle

 A collaboration with SMD to provide 

suborbital flight demonstrations for 

5 payloads that are part of NASA’s 

Undergraduate Student Instrument 

Project (USIP)

u 21 new technologies added to the Flight 

Opportunities portfolio, bringing the total of 

new technologies to 164 since the program’s 

inception

u Commercial provider progress spurring 

further commercial suborbital flight 

interest and lowering costs through 

competition, including: 

 The addition of Blue Origin to the 

commercial flight provider list, which 

now includes 6 suborbital flight providers 

with indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity 

(IDIQ) contracts

 The initial payload flights for Research, 

Development, Demonstration, and 

Infusion (REDDI) grantees on Zero Gravity 

Corporation flights

u Completion of 2 SpaceTech-REDDI-F1 

solicitations and 2 NASA internal calls, 

with both opportunities running smoothly on 

regular intervals

u More Flight Opportunities outreach and 

program awareness through conference 

presence, community networking, and 

publications

STRATEGYAn integral part of NASA’s strategy in FY2016, the Flight Opportunities program continued to address 

NASA’s strategic goals and objectives.

The program accomplishments fall under NASA Strategic Goal #1, which is to expand the frontiers of knowledge, 

capability, and opportunity in space.

Flight Opportunities is helping to advanced this goal by addressing one of NASA’s strategic objectives: To transform 

NASA missions and advance the nation’s capabilities by maturing crosscutting and innovative space technologies.
41

Program 

Highlights

Parabolic CampaignsBalloon CampaignssRLV Campaigns

15 3 7

4 3 2 

Expanding Program Breadth, Increasing Impact 

From the variety of flight campaigns conducted and the range of technologies matured to the 

diverse array of research organizations and the geographic reach of program involvement, the 

breadth of the Flight Opportunities program demonstrated its significant impact.

A Variety of Flight Campaigns 

All aspects of the Flight Opportunities program were in play in FY2016. The 9 flight campaigns and 

25 payload-flights covered the full spectrum of suborbital flight demonstration capabilities.

 9 Flight Campaigns in FY2016

25 Payload-Flights

“We’re excited 

about what’s 

in store for the 

program as we 

see the number 

of commercial 

flight campaigns 

continue to 

increase. We’re also 

seeing an increase 

in the number 

of high-quality 

technologies 

in the Flight 

Opportunities 

payload pool. 

There’s a lot to 

look forward 

to in the Flight 

Opportunities 

future.” 

— Ron Young, 

program manager, 

NASA’s Armstrong 

Flight Research 

Center
42

Program 

Highlights

Thermal 

Management 

Systems



Flight Date Flight Provider & Platform Flight 

Type 

Nov 6, 2015 UP Aerospace

SpaceLoft XL

Nov 18, 2015

Jan 12–14, 2016

NASA’s Reduced Gravity Office

C-9B

Dec 15–18, 2015 NASA’s Reduced Gravity Office

C-9B

Feb 25–27, 2016 Zero Gravity Corporation

G-Force One

Mar 7, 2016 NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility

Terrier-Orion

Jun 14, 2016 Zero Gravity Corporation

G-Force One

Aug 3, 2016 Near Space Corporation

Small Balloon System (SBS)

Sep 3, 2016 World View Enterprises

Tycho-20

Sep 26, 2016 Near Space Corporation

High-Altitude Shuttle System (HASS)

A Wide Range of Technology Impact Areas

Propulsion

Information 

Technology



Communications 

and Surveillance

Robotics

Avionics and 

Navigation



Entry, Descent, 

and Landing

Fluid 

Physics



Space Power and 

Energy Storage



Human Health, 

Life Support, and 

Habitation Systems



In-Space 

Manufacturing



Technologies Flight Tested in FY2016

Flights in FY2016 helped to mature technologies 

in a wide range of research areas. 
43

Program 

Highlights

Payload Organization Principal 

Investigator

T0084 - Suborbital Test of a Robotics-Based Method for In-Orbit Identification of Spacecraft Inertia Properties New Mexico State University Ou Ma

T0115 - Entry, Descent, and Landing (EDL) Technology Development for the Maraia Earth-Return Capsule NASA’s Johnson Space Center Alan Strahan

T0128 - Zero-Gravity Green Propellant Management Technology Purdue University Steven Collicott

T0142 - Affordable Vehicle Avionics (AVA) NASA’s Ames Research Center Jim Cockrell

T0004 - Printing the Space Future Made In Space Jason Dunn

T0020 - Microgravity Multi-Phase Flow Experiment for Suborbital Testing (MFEST) NASA’s Johnson Space Center Kathryn Hurlbert

T0059 - On the Performance of a Nanocatalyst-Based Direct Ammonia Alkaline Fuel Cell (DAAFC) 

 Under Microgravity Conditions for Water Reclamation and Energy Applications

University of Puerto Rico Carlos Cabrera

T0081 - Demonstration of Variable Radiator Texas A&M University Richard “Cable” 

Kurwitz

T0044 - Sintering of Composite Materials Under Reduced-Gravity Conditions Fermi Institute Carmelo 

Mandarino

T0045 - Evaporative Heat Transfer Mechanisms Within a Heat Melt Compactor (EHeM HMC) Experiment NASA’s Glenn Research Center Eric Golliher

T0049 - Parabolic Flight Evaluation of a Hermetic Surgery System for Reduced Gravity University of Louisville George Pantalos

T0140 - Lunar Plant Growth Experiment (LPX) NASA’s Ames Research Center Chris McKay

T0145 - Low-Gravity Flow Boiling on Modern Textured Surfaces Purdue University Steven Collicott

T0146 - Droplet Pinning in Microgravity Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Amir Hirsa

T0147 - Modal Propellant Gauging in Microgravity Carthage College Kevin Crosby

T0149 - Microgravity Fabrication of Freeze-Cast Titanium Foams Northwestern University David Dunand

T0158 - Zero-Gravity Mass Measurement Device (ZGMMD) Parabolic Flight Test Orbital Technologies Corp. John Wetzel

T0075 - Exo-Atmospheric Aerobrake NASA’s Ames Research Center Marc Murbach

T0077 - Facility for Microgravity Research and Submicroradian Stabilization Using sRLVs Controlled Dynamics Inc. Scott Green

T0088 - A Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA)–Based, Radiation-Tolerant Reconfigurable Computer 

 System with Real-Time Fault Detection, Avoidance, and Repair

Montana State University Brock LaMeres

T0145 - Low-Gravity Flow Boiling on Modern Textured Surfaces Purdue University Steven Collicott

T0150 - Advancing Diaphragm Modeling Technology for Propellant Management Purdue University Steven Collicott

T0064 - Deployable Rigid Adjustable Guided Final Landing Approach Pinions (DRAG FLAPs) Masten Space Systems Joey Oberholtzer

T0085 - SwRI Solar Instrument Pointing Platform Southwest Research Institute Craig DeForest

T0106 - Low-Cost Suborbital Reusable Launch Vehicle (sRLV) Surrogate to Test Automatic 

 Dependent Surveillance Broadcast (ADS-B)

GSSL Inc. Tim Lachenmeier
44

Program 

Highlights

A Diverse Array of Research Organizations

Research payloads flown in FY2016 were led by principal investigators and research 

teams from a wide range of organizations.

6 payloads from NASA 

12 payloads from universities

 5 payloads from commercial organizations

 1 payload from a non-profit research organization



A Significant Geographic Impact

The geographic reach of the Flight Opportunities program continues to expand, with involvement from 

flight providers and research organizations across nearly half of the U.S. since the program’s inception. 

Flight Opportunities looks forward to expanding the geographical reach of the program in coming years.

Technologies currently or 

previously in the Flight 

Opportunities pool 4 1

9

8

10 4

33

2

3

1

4

1

2 6 8

2 4

16

4

3 13

2

14

2

4

Active flight 

providers’ 

HQ locations Puerto Rico

Number of payloads 

in each state

#

Four technologies were from 

international locations.
45

Program 

Highlights

Technology Solicitation Schedule

In FY2016, the schedule of Space Technology Research, Development, Demonstration, and 

Infusion (SpaceTech-REDDI) solicitations and internal calls became regular, with REDDI Appendix 

F1 solicitations issued twice per year and NASA internal calls issued four times annually. 

SpaceTech-REDDI Solicitations NASA Internal Calls

REDDI-2015 F1(B)

Nov 2015

25 Proposed

8 Selected

REDDI-2016 F1

Jul 2016

29 Proposed

13 Selected

REDDI-2016 F1(B)

Dec 2016

26 Proposed

5 Selected

3 Proposed

1 Selected

NTRNL-Mar-16

Mar 2016

7 Proposed

2 Selected

NTRNL-Jul-16

Jul 2016

10 Proposed

2 Selected

NTRNL-Oct-16

Oct 2016

REDDI-2017 F1(A)

Mar 2017

NTRNL-Mar-17

Mar 2017

FY2016 FY2017
46

Program 

Highlights

FY2014 FY2015 FY2016

Solicitations/Calls 2 1 4

Technologies Selected 19 7 21

Technologies Completed 22 29 10

Active Technologies at Year-End 60 61 52

Budget

FY2016 saw an expansion in the Flight Opportunities 

budget. This increase corresponds to expansions in the 

program, in particular the integration of Announcement 

of Collaborative Opportunity (ACO) and Materials 

International Space Station Experiment (MISSE) 

under the Flight Opportunities umbrella.

Flight Opportunities 

FY2014–FY2016 Budget

FY2014 FY2015 FY2016

$10M $10M $15M

Multi-Year Data

FY2014 FY2015 FY2016

sRLV

UP Aerospace 1 1 1

NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility 1 1

Masten Space Systems 2 3

Balloon

Near Space Corporation 4 2 2

World View Enterprises 1 1

Parabolic

Zero Gravity Corporation 3 2

NASA’s Reduced Gravity Office 2 5 2

TOTAL 12 13 9

Campaigns

Technology Portfolio Status

Technologies selected for the 

fiscal year are based on the date 

of solicitation. In some cases, 

solicitation and selection may not 

occur in the same year.
47

Program 

Highlights

Teams from the University of Colorado Boulder and Masten Space Systems 

flew a set of tethered flights with a 26-inch starshade mounted to the Xaero 

vehicle. The campaign investigated using Masten Space Systems’ vertical 

takeoff, vertical landing rocket as a stable platform to conduct high-contrast 

astronomy with an external occulter. Photo credit: NASA
48

Program 

Highlights

Active Technologies

The following table shows all payloads that were matured in FY2016, have upcoming test flights planned, 

or were otherwise in an active status with the program as of the end of FY2016. Refer to the far right 

column for page numbers in which these payloads are mentioned. 

Tech 

Number Title PI Organization Origin 

(Key page 51) Page

T0001 Suborbital Flight Environment Monitor (SFEM) Steve Ord NASA Ames Directed —

T0003 On-Orbit Propellant Storage Stability Sathya 

Gangadharan

Embry-Riddle 

Aeronautical University

AFO1 —

T0004 Printing the Space Future Jason Dunn Made In Space AFO1 9, 36

T0015 Electromagnetic Field Measurements on sRLV H. Todd Smith Johns Hopkins 

University

AFO1 —

T0020 Microgravity Multi-Phase Flow Experiment for 

Suborbital Testing (MFEST)

Kathryn M. 

Hurlbert

NASA Johnson AFO2 6, 36

T0021 Application of Controlled Vibrations to MultiPhase SystemsRicard GonzalezCincaUniversity of Alabama, 

Huntsville

AFO2 —

T0022 Environment Monitoring Suite on Suborbital 

Reusable Launch Vehicle (sRLV)

H. Todd Smith Johns Hopkins 

University

AFO2 —

T0023 Measurement of the Atmospheric Background 

in the Mesosphere

Sean Casey Silicon Valley Space 

Center

AFO2 —

T0035 Near-Zero Gravity Cryogenic Line Chilldown 

Experiment in a Suborbital Reusable Launch 

Vehicle

Jacob Chung University of Florida AFO2 —

T0036 Collisions into Dust Experiment on a 

Commercial Suborbital Vehicle

Josh Colwell University of Central 

Florida

AFO3 —

T0045 Evaporative Heat Transfer Mechanisms 

Within a Heat Melt Compactor (EHeM HMC) 

Experiment

Eric Golliher NASA Glenn AFO3 —

T0050 Flight Demonstration of an Integrated Camera 

and Solid-State Fine Steering System

Eliot Young Southwest Research 

Institute

AFO3 —

T0052 Collection of Regolith Experiment (CORE) on a 

Commercial Suborbital Vehicle

Josh Colwell University of Central 

Florida

AFO3 —

T0053 Validating Telemetric Imaging Hardware 

for Crew-Assisted and Crew-Autonomous 

Biological Imaging in Suborbital Applications

Rob Ferl University of Florida AFO3 12

T0054 Stratospheric Parabolic Flight Technology Steven Collicott Purdue University AFO3 —

T0061 Flight Testing of a Universal Access Tranceiver 

(UAT) Automatic Dependent Surveillance 

Broadcast (ADS-B) Transmitter Prototype 

for Commercial Space Transportation Using 

Reusable Launch Vehicles

Richard 

Stansbury

Embry-Riddle 

Aeronautical University

AFO4 —
49

Program 

Highlights

Tech 

Number Title PI Organization Origin 

(Key page 51) Page

T0064 Deployable Rigid Adjustable Guided Final 

Landing Approach Pinions (DRAG FLAPs)

Joey Oberholtzer Masten Space 

Systems

AFO4 17, 32

T0075 Exo-Atmosperic Aerobrake Marc Murbach NASA Ames AFO5 —

T0077 Facility for Microgravity Research and 

Submicroradian Stabilization Using sRLVs

Scott Green Controlled Dynamics 

Inc.

AFO5 —

T0081 Demonstration of Variable Radiator Richard "Cable" 

Kurwitz

Texas A&M Engineering 

Experiment Station

Directed 36

T0083 Design and Development of a Micro Satellite 

Attitude Control System

Manoranjan Majji State University of New 

York - Buffalo

NRA1 GCD 

Appx A —

T0085 Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) Solar 

Instrument Pointing Platform

Craig DeForest Southwest Research 

Institute

NRA1 GCD 

Appx A

15, 34

T0086 Saturated Fluid Pistonless Pump Technology 

Demonstrator

Ryan Starkey University of Colorado 

Boulder

NRA1 GCD 

Appx A —

T0088 A Field Programmable Gate Array 

(FPGA)–Based, Radiation-Tolerant 

Reconfigurable Computer System with RealTime Fault Detection, Avoidance, and Repair

Brock LaMeres Montana State 

University

NRA1 GCD 

Appx A —

T0095 Test of Satellite Communications Systems 

On-board Suborbital Platforms to Provide 

Low-Cost Data Communications for Research 

Payloads, Payload Operators, and Space 

Vehicle Operators

M. Brian Barnett Satwest Consulting 

LLC

NRA1 GCD 

Appx A —

T0098 Navigation Doppler Lidar Sensor 

Demonstration for Precision Landing on Solar 

System Bodies

Farzin 

Amzajerdian

NASA Langley NRA1 GCD 

Appx A —

T0106 Low-Cost Suborbital Reusable Launch Vehicle 

(sRLV) Surrogate to Test Automatic Dependent 

Surveillance Broadcast (ADS-B)

Tim Lachenmeier GSSL Inc. NRA1 GCD 

Appx A

11, 32

T0115 Entry, Descent, and Landing (EDL) Technology 

Development for the Maraia Earth-Return 

Capsule

Alan Strahan NASA Johnson NRA1 GCD 

Appx A

25

T0119 Inductively Coupled Electromagnetic (ICE) 

Thruster System Development for Small 

Spacecraft Propulsion

John Slough MSNW LLC NRA1 GCD 

Appx A —

T0128 Zero-Gravity Green Propellant Management 

Technology

Steven Collicott Purdue University AFO6 25

T0129 Testing of a Microgravity Rock Coring Drill 

Using Microspines

Aaron Parness JPL AFO6 —

T0137 Fuel Optimal and Accurate Landing System 

(FOALS) Test Flights

Andrew Johnson JPL AFO6 7, 31

T0139 Adaptable Deployable Entry and Placement 

Technology (ADEPT)

Paul Wercinski NASA Ames AFO6 —

T0142 Affordable Vehicle Avionics (AVA) Jim Cockrell NASA Ames NRA2 GCD 

Appx E

25
50

Program 

Highlights

Tech 

Number Title PI Organization Origin 

(Key page 51) Page

T0143 Bi-Static Radio Frequency (RF) Imager Charles L. Finley Air Force Research 

Laboratory

NRA2 GCD 

Appx E —

T0144 Programmable Ultra Lightweight System 

Adaptable Radio (PULSAR)

Arthur Werkheiser NASA Marshall NRA2 GCD 

Appx E —

T0145 Low-Gravity Flow Boiling on Modern Textured 

Sufaces

Steven Collicott Purdue University NRA2 GCD 

Appx E

37

T0146 Droplet Pinning in Microgravity Amir Hirsa Rensselaer Polytechnic 

Institute

NRA2 GCD 

Appx E

37

T0147 Modal Propellant Gauging in Microgravity Kevin Crosby Carthage College AFO8 37

T0149 Microgravity Fabrication of Freeze-Cast 

Titanium Foams

David Dunand Northwestern 

University

AFO8 8, 37

T0150 Advancing Diaphragm Modeling Technology 

for Propellant Management

Steven Collicott Purdue University AFO8 37

T0153 Mars Electric Reusable Flyer David D. North NASA Langley AFO8 —

T0154 PRIME-4.0: Miniaturized and Reusable 

Asteroid Regolith Microgravity Experiment for 

Suborbital and Orbital Use

Josh Colwell University of Central 

Florida

Directed —

T0155 Suborbital Evaluation of an Aqueous 

Immersion Surgical System for Reduced 

Gravity

George Pantalos University of Louisville Directed —

T0156 Suborbital Particle Aggregation and Collision 

Experiment-2 (SPACE2.0)

Julie Brisset University of Central 

Florida

Directed 27

T0157 Global Positioning System (GPS) Fading Nick Demidovich FAA Comm'l Space 

Transportation Office 

(FAA/AST)

Directed —

T0158 Zero-Gravity Mass Measurement Device 

(ZGMMD) Parabolic Flight Test

John Wetzel Orbital Technologies 

Corporation

REDDI-2014 37

T0159 1090 MHz ADS-B Demo Nick Demidovich FAA Comm'l Space 

Transportation Office 

(FAA/AST)

REDDI-2014 —

T0160 Microgravity Propellant Gauging Using Modal 

Analysis: Phase II

Kevin Crosby Carthage College REDDI-2014 —

T0162 Evolved Medical Microgravity Suction Device C. Marsh Cuttino Orbital Medicine Inc. REDDI-2014 —

T0163 MOJO-Micro: Multi-Orthogonal Jaunting rObot 

in Microgravity

Neil Gershenfeld Massachusetts Institute 

of Technology

REDDI-2014 —

T0164 Microgravity Testing of Comet Surface Sample 

Return (CSSR) Sample Verification System

Risaku Toda JPL REDDI-2014 —
51

Origin Key

Directed: Flight Opportunities was directed to provide flight testing for the 

technology by a manager within the Flight Opportunities program and/

or NASA’s Space Technology Mission Directorate (STMD).

AFO1 through AFO8: The technology was selected from submissions to an Announcement of 

Flight Opportunity (AFO) solicitation. A total of eight AFO solicitations 

were offered.

NRA1 GCD Appx A These technologies were selected by NASA’s Game Changing Division 

(GCD) under the first NASA Research Announcement (NRA1). Appendix 

A (Appx A) of the solicitation assigned specific technologies to the 

Flight Opportunities pool. 

NRA2 GCD Appx E These technologies were selected by NASA’s Game Changing Division 

(GCD) under the second NASA Research Announcement (NRA2). 

Appendix E (Appx E) of the solicitation assigned specific technologies 

to the Flight Opportunities pool. 

REDDI-2014 These technologies were selected through the 2014 Research, 

Development, Demonstration, and Infusion (REDDI) solicitation.
52

Use this space to jot down notes about your technology plans and proposals.

Have a question, idea, or feedback for Flight Opportunities? Write them down here, and then get in touch 

at NASA-FlightOpportunities@mail.nasa.gov or 650-604-5876.
53
National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Armstrong Flight Research Center

Edwards, California 93523

www.nasa.gov/centers/armstrong

www.nasa.gov

NP-2016-10-41-AFRC

NASA/SP-2017-631

Commercial Flight Opportunities for the

Testing and Maturation of new Space Technologies

UP Aerospace launch pad at 

Spaceport America, New Mexico. 

Photo credit: NASA