Projects and Missions

The APL designed, developed, and tested Deep Space Advanced Radar Capability (DARC) helped solve the challenge of locating and tracking active satellites in and on the way to geosynchronous orbit, more than 22,000 miles above Earth.

The Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) was NASA’s first planetary defense test mission.

In 2017, APL staff members deployed on U.S. Navy Commander, Task Force 70 (CTF-70) patrols aboard the carrier USS Ronald Reagan—an assignment that allowed our engineers to experience the fleet’s challenges and operational workflows, and gather important data to feed future analyses and technology demonstrations in operationally relevant environments.

Using different types of powerful analytics, the APL-developed REnigma tool enables cyber analysts to quickly review malware.

APL researchers have established new, scalable methods of developing battery- and solar-powered fibers, making it theoretically possible for electrical energy to be harvested from, and stored in, the clothing people wear.

Dragonfly is a NASA New Frontiers mission that will send a rotorcraft lander to explore the prebiotic chemistry and habitability of Saturn’s largest moon, Titan.

APL experts have made significant strides in developing methods for portable production of vaccines and other therapeutics, enabling production on demand in remote locations and during emergency outbreaks.

With the clock ticking down to the first Minuteman III test flight to feature a miniature analog translator (MAT)—developed and built by APL to replace the obsolete full signal translator (FST) used for real-time range tracking and GPS signal data on prior test flights—qualification tests identified a need to change a configuration file in the MAT ground equipment.

Multiple studies have linked PFAS exposure to harmful health effects in humans and animals, and without a natural way to break them down, the chemicals persist in soil and contaminate the environment — including water. APL scientists are developing several technologies to capture and destroy these “forever chemicals.”

APL is uniquely positioned to bolster the Joint Force in their effort to enhance the professional development of military and civilian members.

APL partnered with the undersecretary of defense for acquisition, technology and logistics to design and execute a space wargame based on a rigorous analytical framework.

We continue to strengthen EMAPS, a portable mapping system carried in a backpack, for the Department of Defense’s Chemical and Biological Defense Program.

On behalf of the Office of the Secretary of Defense, APL is merging technical capabilities with acquisition strategy to mitigate adversary threats to command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (C4ISR) in the maritime, terrestrial, air, space, and cyber domains.

A mission to survey Jupiter’s icy moon Europa and determine whether it has conditions suitable to harboring life.

The Electrojet Zeeman Imaging Explorer (EZIE) will characterize the electrojets that flow high in Earth’s atmosphere to reveal the underlying processes that form them.