Environmental Research Aircraft and Sensor Technology-New Technologies for Earth Science

摘要

The Environmental Research Aircraft and Sensor Technology (ERAST) project is an Aerospace Technology Enterprise (NASA Headquarters Code R) program designed to provide focus for critical technology development and flight demonstration that reduces the technical and economic risk of using remotely piloted aircraft (RPA) as a means to collect scientific data in a timely and cost-effective manner. A government industry alliance (ERAST) is flying RPA in science missions with 400-pound (lb) (182 kilogram (kg)) payloads to altitudes of 55,000 feet (ft) (16.7 kilometers (km)).