[meteorite-list] NASA, Partners Solicit Creative Materials Manufacturing Solutions

[Ron Baalke]

April 26, 2013

Joshua Buck 
Headquarters, Washington                                         
202-358-1100 
jbuck at nasa.gov 

RELEASE: 13-123

NASA, PARTNERS SOLICIT CREATIVE MATERIALS MANUFACTURING SOLUTIONS

WASHINGTON -- NASA, the U.S. Agency for International Development 
(USAID), the U.S. State Department and Nike have issued a challenge 
to identify 10 game-changing innovations that could enable fabric 
systems to enhance global economic growth, drives human prosperity 
and replenishes the planet's resources. 

The challenge is open through July 15 and seeks creative innovations 
in the materials from which fabrics are made, with a focus on 
positive social and environmental impact in space and on Earth. Ten 
innovators will be selected to present their fabrics solutions at the 
LAUNCH: System Challenge 2013 forum, which NASA will host Sept. 26-28 
at the agency's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif. 

Fabrics, and the materials from which they are made, are important for 
designing new spacecraft and spacesuits that will protect astronauts 
as they venture to destinations farther than they have been before. 
Innovations presented at the LAUNCH: System Challenge 2013 forum may 
lead to new, stronger, lighter and more affordable fabrics that will 
benefit NASA as it sends humans deeper into our solar system. 

Spacecraft traveling to destinations beyond low-Earth orbit, such as 
an asteroid or Mars, will need stronger materials to protect 
astronauts from galactic radiation. Likewise, when astronauts are 
outside their spacecraft exploring an asteroid or the Martian 
surface, they will need new, stronger, more durable and more flexible 
spacesuits. 

NASA and the LAUNCH Council, which is made up of thought leaders 
representing a diverse and collaborative body of entrepreneurs, 
scientists, engineers, government, media and business, will 
participate in the forum and help guide these innovations forward. 
The selected LAUNCH innovators will receive networking and mentoring 
opportunities from influential business and government leaders, as 
well as portfolio presentations. 

Previous LAUNCH forums have focused on water, health, energy and waste 
management. These forums resulted in innovations, including 
technology that enables irrigation using brackish, saline and 
polluted water; a biodegradable needle that can deliver vaccines or 
medicine under the skin using a pressure device; a tiny holographic 
microscope attached to a cell phone that can detect parasites and 
bacteria in blood and water in remote locations; a handheld 
lab-in-a-box that diagnoses a variety of diseases in a matter of 
minutes; a modular, flexible smart-grid distribution technology to 
provide access to power for those in need; and a simple, affordable 
fuel cell that converts biomass directly to electricity. 

NASA invests in technologies to create a better future, and those 
investments pay off here on Earth, creating new jobs and improving 
lives. LAUNCH was created to identify, showcase and support 
innovative approaches to global sustainability challenges. LAUNCH 
searches for visionaries whose ideas, technologies or programs show 
great promise for making tangible impacts on society in the developed 
and developing worlds. 

For more information about LAUNCH: System Challenge 2013 and how to 
enter the challenge, visit: 

http://www.launch.org/challenges/systems-2013 

For information about NASA and agency programs, visit: 

http://www.nasa.gov 

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