BGR.com by Mike Wehner 9/20/2017
It’s not often that the incredibly bright minds at NASA are forced to look for solutions from the general public, but the agency just launched a new competition that does just that. NASA wants to find a new aerosol detection technology that can be used on Earth and in space, and it’s offering the hefty sum of $100,000 to any individual or group that can develop the best one.
Detecting the presence of aerosols — which are tiny airborne particles that we can’t see but regularly breathe in — is vital to the health and wellbeing of long-haul space travelers. Determining the breathability and potential danger of any air source is of utmost importance, but current technologies that detect aerosols are too bulky to be considered for long space trips. NASA wants something smaller, but just as effective as today’s top-of-the-line tech.
“NASA has identified particulate monitoring as a gap in its technology roadmap to enable future long-term missions,” the competition page explains. “Current technology does not provide the level of sensitivity, the longevity, or the ability to operate in a reduced-gravity environment. The added bonus of this technology demonstration competition is the potential benefit to human health on Earth as well as in space.”
More:
http://bgr.com/2017/09/20/science-news-nasa-earth-and-space-competition/
