Now that a solar-powered aircraft has flown across the Pacific Ocean from Japan to Hawaii, are electric planes the future of clean-energy transportation?

On Tuesday, July 14, at NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia, aeronautical engineer Mark Moore will present “The Coming Era of Distributed Electric Propulsion for Aviation and What it Means” at 2 p.m. in the Pearl Young Theater.

Moore will discuss how the largest aerospace technology shift since the invention of the turbine engine is taking place and may very quickly sweep through the shorter-range aviation markets.

Moore will be available to answer questions from the media during a news briefing at 1:15 p.m. that day. Media who wish to do so should contact Chris Rink at 757-864-6786, or by e-mail at chris.rink@nasa.gov, by noon on the day of the talk for credentials and entry to the center.

That same evening at 7:30, Moore will present a similar program for the general public at the Virginia Air & Space Center in downtown Hampton. This Sigma Series event is free and no reservations are required.

For a video preview of Moore’s talk, go to:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LOBkANP15oU

NASA Langley is pioneering the integration of a new propulsion technology that has the potential to transform aircraft, the missions they fly, and the way people interact with aviation. Moore’s presentation will show how advanced concepts that use this technology will be a major change for aircraft designers who – at one point – could only dream about digital aircraft systems.

Moore has worked for NASA for 30 years doing design studies of advanced aircraft concepts and in particular smaller, powered-lift vehicles. He received his master’s degree in aeronautical engineering from Stanford University and is completing his doctorate at Georgia Tech. His research focuses on understanding how to best integrate the emerging technology of electric propulsion to achieve breakthrough vehicle capabilities.

For more information about NASA Langley’s Colloquium and Sigma Series Lectures, visit:

http://colloqsigma.larc.nasa.gov