Three NASA centers located in California participated in the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) 5th Annual California Aerospace Days in Sacramento, California, Feb. 29 – March 1, 2016.
The event featured panels, exhibits, hearings and discussions highlighting the importance of aerospace. Eugene Tu, director of NASA’s Ames Research Center in Silicon Valley, Lt. Gen. Larry James, deputy director of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, and David McBride, director of NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards met with Governor Jerry Brown to discuss the agency and its wide range of aerospace work in California.
Parimal Kopardekar, manager of NASA’s Safe Autonomous Systems Operations project and principal investigator of NASA’s unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) traffic management (UTM) efforts briefed the legislature on the challenges of integrating UAS in the national airspace
NASA representatives from Ames, Armstrong and JPL engaged approximately 1,000 visitors from area schools and the state legislature. The public viewed displays of aeronautics, satellites and solar system exploration on the grounds of the State Capitol. Ames highlighted next generation air traffic management initiative ATD-2 and the UTM drone traffic management system, as well as several small satellites and robotics projects, including SPHERES.
