• Engineers Lend Expertise to Warfighter Power Pack Competition

    The proficiency and resourcefulness of AFRL's technical workforce paid dividends in a contest to develop a portable power capability for warfighters in the field. The engineers were part of a contingent responsible for final testing of the wearable power systems constructed by individual inventors,

  • Solar Mass Ejection Imager Exceeds Expectations

    Greatly surpassing its anticipated 3-year design lifetime, AFRL's Solar Mass Ejection Imager recently completed its sixth year in operation. Throughout this period, the SMEI has compiled an unprecedented dataset of full-sky images (taken every 100 min) and consequently proved that coronal mass

  • Optical Emission Reveals Absolute Density of Energetic Metastable Atoms

    AFRL propulsion researchers optimized a spectral analysis tool that leverages simple optical emission measurements to yield information on absolute argon metastable concentrations in an ionized gas. Metastable atoms are long-lived energetic species of great interest to scientists due to their

  • Nanotube Technology Out-Muscles the Competition

    With primary financial support coming from AFRL, the University of Texas at Dallas is researching a new kind of artificial muscle--one composed of carbon nanotubes--for use in Air Force aerospace and space applications. For more than 20 years, a team of researchers led by Dr. Ray Baughman, director

  • Developmental High Scout Technology Passes the Test

    AFRL conducted successful integration test of a developmental high-altitude technology known as High Scout, a combined unmanned air vehicle/airship configuration. The test involved inflating the contractor-built, 130 ft long and 40 ft diameter airship with helium to simulate stationkeeping at 65,000

  • Enhanced Global Hawk to be rolled out June 25

    Air Force and Northrop Grumman officials will roll out the first Block 40 RQ-4 Global Hawk Thursday, June 25 at Air Force Plant 42 in Palmdale, Calif. The Block 40 carries the Multi-platform Radar Technology Insertion Program (MP-RTIP) enhanced sensor suite. The Air Force plans to purchase 15 of the

  • Freedom's Call Tattoo aims to please the entire family

    The fifth annual Air Force Materiel Command's Freedom's Call Tattoo is scheduled to take place June 26 on the grounds of the National Museum of the United States Air Force with a number of events the whole family can enjoy. Gates open for the free event at 4:30 p.m. allowing plenty of time for

  • Decision identifies jobs at Human Performance Wing

    While the building that will house the 711th Human Performance Wing grows larger every day, a recent personnel decision adds another piece to the puzzle that identifies the exact membership of the Wing. The term "Transfer of Function" gives a rather impersonal face to a decision that affects a lot

  • WPAFB Drinking Water Consumer Confidence Report available online

    Environmental officials have released the Wright-Patterson Air Force Base Consumer Confidence Report which details water quality findings for calendar year 2008. The report contains information on the community's drinking water, including the source of the water, contaminants detected, health