\n<\/p>\n
In June 2024, a new tail number swept the sky above NASA\u2019s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California. Pilots conducted flights of a Gulfstream IV (G-IV) to evaluate its handling characteristics and to familiarize pilots with it before it begins structural modifications. The research plane is joining the center\u2019s fleet serving NASA\u2019s Airborne Science program.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The G-IV will carry the Next Generation Airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (AIRSAR-NG), which sends and receives microwave signals to collect information about Earth\u2019s topographic features and how they change over time. The goal for the team at NASA Armstrong is to modify the G-IV to accommodate three radars simultaneously.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe AIRSAR-NG will be composed of three different Synthetic Aperture Radar antennas in one instrument to provide new insight into Earth\u2019s surface more efficiently,\u201d said Yunling Lou, principal investigator for the instrument at NASA\u2019s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California. \u201cThe capabilities of this new instrument will facilitate new techniques, such as three-dimensional imaging, that will be useful for future space-borne missions.\u201d<\/p>\n
With those and other modifications being made, the G-IV will also be able to accommodate an increased load of science instruments, which could enable NASA to support more dynamic airborne science missions.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThis aircraft will aid Armstrong in continuing our long history of supporting airborne science for the agency and maintain the expertise in conducting successful science missions for years to come,\u201d said Franzeska Becker, the G-IV project manager at NASA Armstrong.<\/p>\n
Transferred in February from NASA\u2019s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia, the G-IV will undergo additional modifications overseen by NASA Armstrong\u2019s team. Their goal is to enrich the agency\u2019s airborne science program by outfitting the aircraft to function as a more capable and versatile research platform.<\/p>\n
The knowledge and expertise of professionals at NASA centers like Armstrong (G-IV, ER-2, C-20) and Langley (777, G-III) will help enable the agency to produce a well-defined and airworthy platform for science instruments and airborne science missions.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n