SAN DIEGO, May 30, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Northrop Grumman
Corporation (NYSE: NOC) and NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center
extended the NASA Space Act Agreement and will continue sharing
Northrop Grumman-produced Global Hawk unmanned aircraft for science
missions and flight demonstrations, including hurricane
surveillance, atmospheric research and exploration of new mission
capabilities.
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"In the last five years, the Global Hawk has flown over the eye
of hurricanes, examined the effects of greenhouse gasses and
conducted cutting-edge autonomous aerial refueling trials," said
George Guerra, vice president of the
Global Hawk program for Northrop Grumman's Aerospace Systems
sector. "We are thrilled to continue our partnership with NASA and
look forward to more scientific and technological breakthroughs in
the next five years."
The agreement will continue until April
30, 2018, and allows for joint use and shared cost of the
NASA Global Hawks. The initial Space Act Agreement, signed
April 30, 2008, returned two
preproduction Global Hawk aircraft to flight status. Under the
partnership, a permanent ground control station was built at Dryden
Flight Research Center, which is based at Edwards Air Force Base,
Calif.
The high-altitude, long-endurance capabilities of the Global
Hawk are uniquely suited to scientific research. Scientists from
NASA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and
universities have capitalized on the range and dwell time of the
Global Hawk.
"The Global Hawk is an invaluable asset and has changed the way
we collect data and conduct Earth-science missions," said
Chris Naftel, NASA Dryden Global
Hawk project manager.
Access to wide areas and remote locations of the world has
allowed Global Hawk to collect data for a variety of science
research missions, including:
- January 2013: Global Hawk started
collecting atmospheric data in support of the Airborne Tropical
TRopopause Experiment (ATTREX) campaign. Scientists use the data to
study how the composition of the atmosphere affects Earth's
climate.
- Fall 2012: Supported environmental scientists during Hurricane
and Severe Storm Sentinel (HS3) missions. The HS3 missions studied
hurricane formation and intensity change in the Atlantic Ocean.
This was the first joint NASA-Northrop Grumman deployment from the
Dryden Flight Research Center.
- Spring 2011: Flew winter storm missions over the Pacific and
Arctic, observing, among other weather phenomena, an "atmospheric
river" that sometimes causes flooding on the West Coast.
- Fall 2011: Supported ATTREX missions over the Pacific by
climbing and descending between 45,000 feet and 65,000 feet,
gathering information on climate change due to water vapor and
other aerosols.
- September 2010: Supported the
Genesis and Rapid Intensification Processes hurricane surveillance
missions that provided extended monitoring of changes in hurricane
intensity during five storms in the southern Caribbean and western Atlantic.
- April 2010: Completed the first
science research campaign called GloPac, studying the atmosphere
over the Pacific Ocean and Arctic.
The Global Hawk is a fully autonomous, high-altitude,
long-endurance unmanned aircraft system that can fly up to 65,000
feet for 30 hours at a time. Its endurance and range allow for
nonstop flights from NASA Dryden in Southern California to the North Pole and
remaining for up to seven hours over the polar region before
returning to Dryden.
Northrop Grumman is a leading global security company providing
innovative systems, products and solutions in unmanned systems,
cyber, C4ISR, and logistics and modernization to government and
commercial customers worldwide. Please visit
www.northropgrumman.com for more information.
SOURCE Northrop Grumman Corporation