2008 Annual Report - NASA Airborne Science Program

variety of atmospheric and remote sensing
instruments, including duplicates of those
sensors on orbiting satellites, can be installed
to collect data during flights lasting up to
30 hours. The Suborbital Science Program
uses both manned and unmanned aircraft to
collect data within the Earth’s atmosphere,
complementing measurements of the same
phenomenon taken from space and those
taken on the Earth’s surface.
NASA’s Ikhana has a wingspan of 66 feet
and is 36 feet long. More than 400 pounds
of sensors can be carried internally and over
2,000 pounds in external under-wing pods.
Ikhana is powered by a Honeywell TPE 331-
10T turbine engine and is capable of reaching
altitudes above 40,000 feet.
The Ikhana also was used for research on
the use of fiber-optic wing shape sensors
(FOWSS) located along the top of the Ikhana
wing surface. The sensors provide about 2,000
strain measurements in real time and show
the shape of the aircraft’s wings in flight. Fiber
optic sensors offer weight reduction that has
potential for reducing costs and improving
fuel efficiency.
The potential for weight reduction, however,
is but one small part of the picture. This
technology also opens up new opportunities
and applications that would not be possible
with conventional technology. For example,
the new sensors could enable adaptive wingshape
control - the concept of changing a
wing’s shape in flight to take advantage of
aerodynamics and make the aircraft more
efficient.
Six hair-like fibers located on the top surface
of the Ikhana’s wings provide about the strain
measurements in real time. The fibers are
so small that they have no significant effects
on aerodynamic lift and weigh less than two
pounds. The fiber optic sensors themselves
are so small that they could eventually be
embedded within composite wings in future
aircraft.
There are no funded Earth Science related
support planned for FY2009.
Figure 34
Ikhana during pre-flight checkout at NASA Dryden
Flight Research Center.
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