秘密直播

Projects and Missions

Below is a sampling of APL鈥檚 critical contributions to critical challenges. Projects and missions are displayed in alphabetical order. 

Filter projects and missions by area of impact, mission area, or both.

DARC Satellite

DARC Demonstration

The APL designed, developed, and tested Deep Space Advanced Radar Capability (DARC) helped solve the challenge of locating and tracking active satellites in and on the way to geosynchronous orbit, more than 22,000 miles above Earth.
Learn more about DARC Demonstration
DART impact

DART

The Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) was NASA鈥檚 first planetary defense test mission.
Learn more about DART
USS Ronald Reagan (Credit: US Navy / Jason Tarleton)

Deployed with the Fleet

In 2017, APL staff members deployed on U.S. Navy Commander, Task Force 70 (CTF-70) patrols aboard the carrier USS Ronald Reagan鈥攁n assignment that allowed our engineers to experience the fleet鈥檚 challenges and operational workflows, and gather important data to feed future analyses and technology demonstrations in operationally relevant environments.
Learn more about Deployed with the Fleet
Malware detection (Credit: Bigstock)

Detecting Malware

Using different types of powerful analytics, the APL-developed REnigma tool enables cyber analysts to quickly review malware.
Learn more about Detecting Malware
Researchers cut and assembled tiny solar cells on thin, flexible circuit boards before sealing them in a protective polymer to create a fiber-like strand that was woven with nylon into a small textile.

Developing Battery- and Solar-Powered Fibers

APL researchers have established new, scalable methods of developing battery- and solar-powered fibers, making it theoretically possible for electrical energy to be harvested from, and stored in, the clothing people wear.
Learn more about Developing Battery- and Solar-Powered Fibers
Jay Brett and Jennifer Sleeman

Discovering Climate Tipping Points

Artificial intelligence experts and oceanographers are integrating AI with traditional climate modeling methods to enable scientific researchers to better understand climate tipping points, critical thresholds that, once crossed, could 鈥渢ip鈥 a natural climate system into an entirely different state.
Learn more about Discovering Climate Tipping Points
Artist's rendering of Dragonfly

Dragonfly

Dragonfly is a NASA New Frontiers mission that will send a rotorcraft lander to explore the prebiotic chemistry and habitability of Saturn鈥檚 largest moon, Titan.
Learn more about Dragonfly
Flu vaccine

Durable and Portable Therapeutics Production

APL experts have made significant strides in developing methods for portable production of vaccines and other therapeutics, enabling production on demand in remote locations and during emergency outbreaks.
Learn more about Durable and Portable Therapeutics Production
An unarmed Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile launches during an operational test Sept. 5, 2016, at Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif. (U.S. Air Force photo/Michael Peterson)

Dynamic Simulation

With the clock ticking down to the first Minuteman III test flight to feature a miniature analog translator (MAT)鈥攄eveloped and built by APL to replace the obsolete full signal translator (FST) used for real-time range tracking and GPS signal data on prior test flights鈥攓ualification tests identified a need to change a configuration file in the MAT ground equipment.
Learn more about Dynamic Simulation
James Johnson and Danielle Nachman in APL鈥檚 PFAS research laboratory.

Eliminating Forever Chemicals

Multiple studies have linked PFAS exposure to harmful health effects in humans and animals, and without a natural way to break them down, the chemicals persist in soil and contaminate the environment 鈥 including water. APL scientists are developing several technologies to capture and destroy these 鈥渇orever chemicals.鈥
Learn more about Eliminating Forever Chemicals
Military personnel in MOC at 秘密直播 APL

Enabling the Next Generation of Space Operator

APL is uniquely positioned to bolster the Joint Force in their effort to enhance the professional development of military and civilian members.
Learn more about Enabling the Next Generation of Space Operator
Collaborative Analysis Center

Engaging Senior Decision-Makers

APL partnered with the undersecretary of defense for acquisition, technology and logistics to design and execute a space wargame based on a rigorous analytical framework.
Learn more about Engaging Senior Decision-Makers
EMAPS technology allows operators to map areas and confined spaces that GPS cannot "see."

Enhanced Mapping and Positioning System (EMAPS)

We continue to strengthen EMAPS, a portable mapping system carried in a backpack, for the Department of Defense鈥檚 Chemical and Biological Defense Program.
Learn more about Enhanced Mapping and Positioning System (EMAPS)
Hayley DeHart, a genomics research scientist at APL, loads water samples into a sequencer while on board a ship during the team鈥檚 trip to Monterey Bay.

Enlisting eDNA to Understand Ecosystems

APL researchers are using genetic information to observe animals, plants, and microbes in their natural environments, and pioneering environmental DNA (eDNA) analysis methods to study marine ecosystems that the world relies on as the foundation of global food webs.
Learn more about Enlisting eDNA to Understand Ecosystems
Illustration of a globe (Credit: Bigstock)

Ensuring Resilient Enabling Capabilities in Denied Environments

On behalf of the Office of the Secretary of Defense, APL is merging technical capabilities with acquisition strategy to mitigate adversary threats to command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (C4ISR) in the maritime, terrestrial, air, space, and cyber domains.
Learn more about Ensuring Resilient Enabling Capabilities in Denied Environments