An engineering technician works in the Experimental Fabrication Branch at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California, on Thursday, March 14, 2023. The branch transforms engineering concepts into hardware for research aircraft and technology development, supporting advances in aviation safety, efficiency, and sustainability.

Credits: NASA/Steve Freeman

At NASA, innovation begins well before an aircraft takes flight. The Experimental Fabrication Branch at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California, transforms engineering concepts into mission‑ready hardware for research aircraft and technology development. This capability helps the agency deliver advancements that benefit the public by improving aviation safety, efficiency, and sustainability.

The branch serves as a full‑service manufacturing, modification, and repair center for NASA Armstrong’s fleet of research and science aircraft. The team specializes in precision machining, sheet‑metal forming, aircraft tubing, welding, additive manufacturing, composite fabrication, and structural repairs and modifications. Their broad expertise allows them to build custom hardware for both aerospace and ground‑based applications.

A man wearing all black and safety googles is working with a fabrication machine. He is holding a round wheel to operate a piece of the machine. In the background there are black tool benches and other tall machines.

Ron Harris, an engineering technician, works in the Experimental Fabrication Branch at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California, on Thursday, March 14, 2023. The branch transforms engineering concepts into hardware for research aircraft and technology development, supporting advances in aviation safety, efficiency, and sustainability.

NASA/Steve Freeman

Engineering technicians in the branch bring decades of experience as master fabricators. They design and build unique components, rapid prototypes, and flight‑critical structures that meet NASA’s rigorous safety and performance standards. Whether shaping composite structures by hand or producing precision‑milled parts, the team builds every component with mission success in mind.

Experimental Fabrication supports a wide range of NASA research efforts. When teams at NASA Armstrong designed the AIRVUE (Airborne Instrumentation for Real‑world Video of Urban Environments) sensor pod to support autonomous‑flight research, the fabrication team converted digital designs into a fully functional structure. They ensured the pod met strict safety requirements before deploying it for test flights.

A person positions a cylindrical metal workpiece into the jaws of a lathe chuck. The shiny metal cylinder is partially inserted into the clamping mechanism with visible textured steel jaws and engraved markings. To the right, a cutting tool is mounted on a tooling block, surrounded by flexible blue coolant hoses with orange nozzles. The scene shows the close-up precision required in machining as the operator aligns the metal piece before cutting.

An engineering technician works in the Experimental Fabrication Branch at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California, on Thursday, March 14, 2023. The branch transforms engineering concepts into hardware for research aircraft and technology development, supporting advances in aviation safety, efficiency, and sustainability.

NASA/Steve Freeman

Beyond mission support, the Experimental Fabrication Branch contributes to NASA’s STEM engagement efforts. During local robotics competitions, technicians use mobile fabrication equipment to repair student‑built robots and demonstrate machining and welding techniques. These demonstrations introduce students to NASA’s technical career paths and show how advanced manufacturing supports aerospace research.

The branch uses modern computer-aided design and computer-aided manufacturing tools, including Pro E/Creo, MasterCam, and SolidWorks, to convert digital models into hardware. This early integration of engineering and fabrication helps shorten development timelines and reduce design‑to‑hardware mismatches. Unlike environments where work transitions between multiple contractors, NASA Armstrong includes the fabrication team from early design through final assembly and aircraft installation. This continuous involvement strengthens coordination with engineering teams and flight operations.

A technician stands at a large metal bending machine, carefully positioning a sheet of aluminum on the central die. Viewed from low angle along the machine’s long metal guide rail, the bending arm stretches into the foreground, emphasizing the scale of the equipment. The technician holds the sheet steady near the press brake while monitoring the alignment. Behind the workstation, a control panel with illuminated buttons and a digital display is visible, along with industrial shop equipment in the background.

Alexis Moreno, an engineering technician, works with a fabrication machine in the Experimental Fabrication Branch at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California, on Monday, Nov. 6, 2023. The branch transforms engineering concepts into hardware for research aircraft and technology development, supporting advances in aviation safety, efficiency, and sustainability.

NASA/Genaro Vavuris

Recent projects, such as advanced wing‑model fabrication and custom lightweight aircraft floorboards, highlight the branch’s essential role in NASA Armstrong’s mission. Whether supporting experimental aircraft, enabling new technology demonstrations, or guiding students through hands‑on fabrication, the Experimental Fabrication Branch helps advance NASA’s mission for the benefit of all.

Share

Details

Last Updated

Jun 22, 2026

Editor

Dede Dinius

Contact

Sarah Mann

sarah.mann@nasa.gov

Location

Armstrong Flight Research Center

Related Terms

Armstrong Flight Research Center

Keep Exploring

Discover More Topics From NASA

Armstrong Flight Research Center

Aircraft Flown at Armstrong

Armstrong Flight Operations

Armstrong Mission Operations

NASA’s Chandra Finds Possible Supernova Remnant

2026-06-22 17:39

Set against a backdrop packed with distant stars and other specks of light are two distinct, overlapping clouds. The larger, visually dominant cloud, is red and multifaceted. It has an irregular shape, and features patches of different textures, including pockets that resemble wispy smoke, tangles of faint red veins, and clear streaking lines. This large cloud of expanding gas represents radio data from the MeerKAT telescope in South Africa. Overlapping with that red cloud is a cloudy blue blob representing X-ray data from NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory and ESA's XMM-Newton.

Using data from NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory, astronomers may have found a supernova remnant in an intriguing neighborhood in the middle of our galaxy.

X-ray: NASA/CXC/UCLA/Z. Zhu et al.; ESA/XMM-Newton; Optical: PanSTARRS; Radio: MeerKAT; Infrared (JWST): NASA/ESA/CSA/STScI; Image Processing: NASA/CXC/SAO/L. Frattare and P. Edmonds

Using data from NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory, astronomers may have found a supernova remnant – seen in this June 11, 2026, image – in an intriguing neighborhood in the middle of the Milky Way galaxy. Supernova remnants are the expanding remains of exploded stars and provide elements like iron, oxygen, and silicon that are critical for the formation of planets and for life as we know it to form and flourish.

This new supernova remnant, if confirmed, would be one of the closest ever discovered to the supermassive black hole at the central region of our home galaxy, an exotic region crammed with massive stars, long threads of magnetic fields and dense clouds of gas orbiting rapidly around the Galactic Center.

NASA to Cover US Spacewalk 95, Host Preview News Conference

2026-06-22 16:45

NASA astronaut Jessica Meir waves at the camera during a seven-hour, two-minute spacewalk outside the International Space Station on March 18, 2026.

Credit: NASA

NASA astronauts will venture outside the International Space Station on Tuesday, June 30, to replace a wrist joint on the orbital complex’s Canadarm2 robotic arm. The spacewalk is scheduled to begin at approximately 8:35 a.m. EDT.

Experts from NASA and CSA (Canadian Space Agency) will preview the upcoming spacewalk during a news conference at 2 p.m. on Thursday, June 25, on the agency’s YouTube channel. The briefing will take place at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston. Learn how to watch NASA content through a variety of platforms, including social media.

Participants include:

Bill Spetch, operations and integration manager, International Space Station Program, NASA Johnson
Fiona Antkowiak, spacewalk flight director, NASA Johnson
Jason Dyer, deputy liaison manager, CSA

United States-based media interested in attending in person must contact the Johnson newsroom no later than 5 p.m. Wednesday, June 24, at: jsccommu@mail.nasa.gov. Media joining by phone should request dial‑in details by the same deadline. To ask a question, media must dial in no later than 15 minutes before the start of the news conference.

Tuesday, June 30

NASA astronauts Chris Williams and Jessica Meir will exit the station’s Quest airlock to replace a wrist joint that malfunctioned during normal Canadarm2 operations on May 27 after the arm drew elevated motor current and did not move as expected.

Watch NASA’s live U.S. spacewalk 95 coverage beginning at 7 a.m. EDT on NASA+, Amazon Prime, Netflix, and the agency’s YouTube channel. The spacewalk is expected to last roughly six-and-a-half hours.

NASA worked alongside CSA to understand the issue and determined a spacewalk was required to replace the joint using a spare already aboard the space station. Repairs to robotics, like Canadarm2, are normal and expected after more than 25 years of continuous operations, as the system was designed with replaceable components and planned maintenance in mind.

This spacewalk will be the second for Williams and the fifth for Meir. Williams will serve as spacewalk crew member 1 and will wear a suit with red stripes. Meir will serve as crew member 2 and will wear an unmarked suit. It will be the 280th spacewalk in support of space station assembly, maintenance, and upgrades.

To learn more about International Space Station research, operations, and its crews, visit:

https://www.nasa.gov/station

-end-

Jimi Russell
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1100
james.j.russell@nasa.gov

Sandra Jones
Johnson Space Center, Houston
281-483-5111
sandra.p.jones@nasa.gov

Share

Details

Last Updated

Jun 22, 2026

Location

NASA Headquarters

Related Terms

NASA’s Webb Finds Clues to Ancient, Distant Origin of Comet 3I/ATLAS

2026-06-22 15:00

4 Min Read

NASA’s Webb Finds Clues to Ancient, Distant Origin of Comet 3I/ATLAS

Comparison of three telescope images side by side. They are roughly spherical but pixelated, with more intense color saturation in the center. From left to right: smallest sphere is blue and labeled H2O, orange is larger and labeled CO2, and red is largest and labeled CO. A scale bar at the lower left is labeled 1300 km/1 arcsecond and is about one fourth of each of the three images. A compass at the lower right shows north pointing up to 12 o’clock, east pointing left to 9 o’clock, and a fainter arrow labeled to Sun pointing down to 8 o’clock.

Researchers used the NIRSpec (Near-Infrared Spectrograph) instrument on NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope to map specific chemical contents of comet 3I/ATLAS as it moved away from the Sun. Full image shown below.

Credits:
Image: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, Martin Cordiner (CUA, NASA-GSFC); Image Processing: Alyssa Pagan (STScI)

As interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS began moving away from the Sun in December 2025, astronomers took the opportunity to turn NASA’s powerful James Webb Space Telescope in its direction and capture detailed measurements of its chemical components. The comet was freshly warmed from its closest pass by the Sun, and its ancient ice had been converted to a bright coma of gas ideal for observation.

Webb captured detailed data, including chemical ratios of carbon and deuterium, also known as heavy hydrogen, that are not found in solar system comets. The results surprised researchers. Working backward, astronomers used the components that make up comet 3I/ATLAS to understand the environment in which it formed.

A paper detailing the findings published June 22 in the journal Nature.

Image: Interstellar Comet 3I/ATLAS (NIRSpec IFU)

Researchers used the NIRSpec (Near-Infrared Spectrograph) instrument on NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope to map specific chemical contents of comet 3I/ATLAS as it moved away from the Sun.

Image: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, Martin Cordiner (CUA, NASA-GSFC); Image Processing: Alyssa Pagan (STScI)

The comet’s name comes from its status as the third confirmed interstellar comet, meaning it originated outside the solar system, and the telescope that first spotted it, the NASA-funded ATLAS (Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System).

“This was a unique opportunity to study an ancient object from the distant galaxy, probably pre-dating our Sun and solar system,” said astro-chemist Martin Cordiner of NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, and lead author of the study. “On the one hand, we get direct insight into that distant time and place, and on the other, we learn something about how unusual our own solar system may be.”

Cordiner and the research team joined astronomers from many sub-disciplines in taking the opportunity to get a look at 3I/ATLAS on its journey through the solar system. They received approval to interrupt Webb’s planned schedule of observations to make use of its NIRSpec (Near-Infrared Spectrograph) instrument to study the comet.

NIRSpec revealed exceptionally high levels of deuterium, about 30 times more than seen in solar system comets. This implies that 3I/ATLAS may have originated in a very cold system much earlier in the history of our galaxy. During its formation, the material that became incorporated into 3I/ATLAS was likely exposed to plenty of radiation, but not any long-term warmth that would have reprocessed its “heavy water” ice, with deuterium, into the type of H₂O ice we are familiar with on Earth.

Image: 3I/ATLAS Compared to Solar System Comets

Infographic showing differences in measured ratios of heavy carbon and heavy hydrogen between solar system comets and interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS. Title text reads Comet 3I/ATLAS, Composition Compared With Solar System Comets. Top portion of the infographic has headline Heavy Carbon, plus a horizontal scale in increments of 50 ranging from zero to 250 measuring the ratio of Carbon-12 to Carbon-13. Three solar system comets appear just below 100 on the scale, while 3I/ATLAS appears above 150 for carbon monoxide and about 170 for carbon dioxide.
Bottom portion of infographic has headline Heavy Hydrogen and a horizontal scale ranging from 10 to the negative fifth power on the left to approximately 10 to the negative first power on the right, though 10 to the first is not labeled. This scale is labeled Ratio of Heavy Hydrogen Measured in Water. Eleven solar system comets appear on the graph, all falling to the right of 10 to the negative fourth power. Comet 3I/ATLAS appears at 10 to the negative second power.

These graphs lay out the significant difference in composition between the interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS and comets originating in our solar system. This very specific data helps researchers build a picture of the comet’s original planetary system.

Illustration: NASA, ESA, CSA, Martin Cordiner (CUA, NASA-GSFC), Leah Hustak (STScI)

Additionally, NIRSpec showed only traces of carbon-13 compared to lighter-weight carbon-12. This also points to a very old origin for 3I/ATLAS, as stellar systems become enriched with carbon-13 over time as generations of stars are born and die in the galaxy. That is why there are higher levels of carbon-13 in our system, around our Sun, which formed relatively recently, 4.5 billion years ago.

The research team estimates that 3I/ATLAS could have formed as long as 10 to 12 billion years ago, during the universe’s “cosmic noon,” when star formation was at its height. Its young origin system was likely ensconced in a relatively cold, dense cloud. The abundance of heavy water shows that 3I/ATLAS spent its formative years in a deeply frozen state.

A separate study using the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope, led by astronomer Cyrielle Opitom of the University of Edinburgh, complements Webb’s findings with an analysis of 3I/ATLAS’s carbon and nitrogen varieties in the form of the chemical cyanide.

“For us as scientists, finding these rare isotopes is fascinating, but the bigger picture here is looking at the possibilities of prebiotic chemistry elsewhere in the galaxy,” said Stefanie Milam of NASA Goddard and co-author of the study with Cordiner. “So far, we know of only one place in the vast cosmos where chemical ingredients led to life – our solar system, our Earth. Analysis of these interstellar objects is a major step towards learning how common, or uncommon, the conditions for the evolution of life are in the universe.”

The James Webb Space Telescope is the world’s premier space science observatory. Webb is solving mysteries in our solar system, looking beyond to distant worlds around other stars, and probing the mysterious structures and origins of our universe and our place in it. Webb is an international program led by NASA with its partners, ESA (European Space Agency) and CSA (Canadian Space Agency).

To learn more about Webb, visit:

https://science.nasa.gov/webb

Downloads & Related Information

The following sections contain links to download this article’s images and videos in all available resolutions followed by related information links, media contacts, and if available, research paper and Spanish translation links.

Related Images & Videos

Interstellar Comet 3I/ATLAS (NIRSpec IFU)

Researchers used the NIRSpec (Near-Infrared Spectrograph) instrument on NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope to map specific chemical contents of comet 3I/ATLAS as it moved away from the Sun.

3I/ATLAS Compared to Solar System Comets

These graphs lay out the significant difference in composition between the interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS and comets originating in our solar system. This very specific data helps researchers build a picture of the comet’s original planetary system.