NASA - Research at Ames

Virtual Institutes

NASA Astrobiology Institute

Astrobiology, an interdisciplinary science catalyzed by NASA, brings together researchers in a wide variety of fields, including astronomy and astrophysics, Earth and planetary sciences, microbiology and evolutionary biology, and cosmochemistry.

Astrobiology is the study of the origins, evolution, distribution and future of life in the universe. The NAI is a virtual, distributed organization of competitively-selected astrobiology teams.

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NASA Lunar Science Institute

The NLSI brings together competitively selected research teams to focus on questions of fundamental importance in understanding the moon.

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NASA Aeronautics Research Institute

This titanium lattice block casting, extremely high strength yet lightweight, is a new structural concept with smart materials for aircraft.

Through aeronautical research solicitations and hosting future challenges, the NARI promotes innovation across a broad spectrum of aeronautical challenges.

› Click here for a fact sheet about NARI [pdf] →

Areas of Ames Ingenuity

Entry systems: Safely delivering spacecraft to Earth & other celestial bodies
Supercomputing: Enabling NASA's advanced modeling and simulation
NextGen air transportation: Transforming the way we fly
Airborne science: Examining our own world & beyond from the sky
Low-cost missions: Enabling high value science to low Earth orbit & the moon
Biology & astrobiology: Understanding life on Earth -- and in space
Exoplanets: Finding worlds beyond our own
Autonomy & robotics: Complementing humans in space
Lunar science: Rediscovering our moon
Human factors: Advancing human-technology interaction for NASA missions
Wind tunnels: Testing on the ground before you take to the sky