NASA and Xerox are forming a new technology partnership in which the Stamford, Conn., company will help NASA develop state-of-the-art collaboration and knowledge management systems, while providing new tools and applications to help NASA implement the Vision for Space Exploration.
By collaborating with public companies like Xerox, NASA will be able to save taxpayer dollars on research and development by using proven technology and expertise to advance agency missions. The collaborative effort will benefit NASA scientists and affiliates and the commercial sector through innovations that provide software solutions to large-scale problems in information management.
“This joint venture combines the best software technology from NASA and Xerox,” said G. Scott Hubbard, director of NASA’s Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif.
“Since both partners bring new technology to the project, we will get new tools tailored specifically for NASA needs in a very cost-effective way,” Hubbard said.
“Working with high-tech companies allows NASA to pursue its mission of space discovery in a more collaborative spirit, while taking advantage of the best technology the commercial sector has to offer,” said Craig Steidle, NASA’s associate administrator for exploration systems.
The first result of the partnership is a new system called the NX Knowledge Network. NX incorporates NASA Ames’ Netmark search and recomposition software and content management with collaboration software from Xerox’s global research centers. NX is already used to support collaborative research across the various missions and project teams at Ames.
One pilot application will assist researchers at the NASA Astrobiology Institute (NAI) to sort and quickly analyze data, collaborate and answer questions, such as whether organic life exists on Mars. NAI researchers use NX on a distributed basis across a dozen universities in addition to NASA Ames. NX also will enable applications to help manage project risk, investigate mishaps and analyze anomalies.
“Many of the challenges at NASA mirror those of the global commercial enterprise,” said Xerox chief technology officer Herve Gallaire. “We see this as an excellent opportunity to
partner two highly sophisticated technical teams to address complex, yet real-world information management problems,” Gallaire said.
For information about NASA and other agency programs on the Internet, visit: http://www.nasa.gov
