NASA Engineering and Safety Center

The Next Accident: How Do We Prevent It?

By Andrew Chaikin, Independent Space Historian and member of the NESC Human Factors Technical Discipline Team I recently watched NESC Deputy Director Mike Kirsch stand before a roomful of engineers at the Langley Research Center and tell them that with every passing day, NASA breaks a record: the longest stretch without a major accident in […]

Posted March 12, 2024

Operational Modal Analysis of the Artemis I Dynamic Rollout Test

Operational modal analysis (OMA) techniques have been used to identify the modal characteristics of the Artemis I launch vehicle during the Dynamic Rollout Test (DRT) and Wet Dress Rehearsal (WDR) configuration prior to launch. Forces induced during rollout and on the launch pad are not directly measurable, thus necessitating a unique approach.

Posted March 12, 2024

NASA Engineering and Safety Center

Looking Back, Moving Forward

Interview with NESC Director, Tim Wilson Upon reaching its 20th year of operations at NASA in 2023, the NESC is busier than it has ever been. With a portfolio of more than 160 in-progress requests from Agency programs, NESC Director Tim Wilson spends much of his day prioritizing, allocating funds from the organization’s fixed budget […]

Posted March 12, 2024

NASA Engineering and Safety Center

NESC Publications – Based on NESC Assessments

NASA Technical Memorandums (TM), NASA Technical Publications (TP), and NASA Contractor Reports (CR) Technical Papers, Conference Proceedings, and Technical Presentations Avionics Flight Mechanics Loads and Dynamics Software Space Environments Structures Systems Engineering Thermal Control and Protection

Posted March 12, 2024

NASA Engineering and Safety Center

NESC Honor Awards

NESC Honor Awards are given each year to NASA employees, industry representatives, and other stakeholders for their efforts and achievements in engineering, leadership, teamwork, and communication.

Posted March 12, 2024

NASA Engineering and Safety Center

Most Impactful NESC Assessments

After reflecting on the more than 1,200 assessments completed by the NESC over the last 20 years, Director Tim Wilson selected these assessments as his top three. They were selected because they would likely have the greatest and most lasting impact on human life and the furtherance of the NESC mission. He shared why their […]

Posted March 12, 2024

General

NASA Engineering and Safety Center

23-07: Best Practices for Fabrication of Microelectronic Devices

The NESC has released a technical bulletin for the Avionics community. Material degradation during the fabrication of microelectronic devices has plagued the space industry for many years owing to the layering of many dissimilar metals to create these devices.

Posted November 6, 2023

NASA Engineering and Safety Center

NESC Technical Bulletin 23-06:Considerations for Software Fault Prevention and Tolerance

The NESC has released a technical bulletin for the Software Engineering community. Mission or safety-critical spaceflight systems should be developed to both reduce the likelihood of software faults pre-flight and to detect/mitigate the effects of software errors should they occur in-flight.

Posted October 2, 2023