PASADENA, Calif., April 20, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Northrop
Grumman Corporation (NYSE: NOC) has signed a sponsored research
agreement with the California Institute of
Technology (Caltech) for the development of the Space Solar
Power Initiative (SSPI). Under the terms of the agreement,
Northrop Grumman will provide up to $17.5
million to the initiative over three years.
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Working together, the team will develop the scientific and
technological innovations necessary to enable a space-based solar
power system capable of generating electric power at cost parity
with grid-connected fossil fuel power plants. SSPI responds to the
engineering challenge of providing a cost-competitive source of
sustainable energy. SSPI will develop technologies in three
areas: high-efficiency ultralight photovoltaics; ultralight
deployable space structures; and phased array and power
transmission.
SSPI was conceived by three principal investigators from
Caltech's Division of Engineering and Applied Science (EAS) who
jointly lead the initiative:
- Harry A. Atwater, Jr., Howard
Hughes Professor of Applied Physics and Materials Science, Director
of the Resnick Sustainability Institute;
- Ali Hajimiri, Thomas G. Myers Professor of Electrical
Engineering and Medical Engineering; and
- Sergio Pellegrino, Joyce and
Kent Kresa Professor of Aeronautics, Professor of Civil Engineering
and Jet Propulsion Laboratory Senior Research Scientist.
Atwater, Hajimiri and Pellegrino have assembled a team of
students, postdoctoral scholars, and senior researchers that will
eventually exceed 50 members. EAS is building specialized
laboratory facilities to support this team. Northrop Grumman
engineers and scientists will collaborate with the team at Caltech
to develop solutions, build prototypes and obtain experimental and
numerical validation of concepts that could allow development to
proceed toward eventual implementation.
"By working together with Caltech, Northrop Grumman extends its
long heritage of innovation in space-based technologies and mission
solutions," said Joseph Ensor, vice
president and general manager, Space Intelligence, Surveillance and
Reconnaissance (ISR) Systems, Northrop Grumman. "The potential
breakthroughs from this research could have extensive applications
across a number of related power use challenges."
"This initiative is a great example of how Caltech engineers are
working at the leading edges of fundamental science to invent the
technologies of the future," said Ares Rosakis, Otis Booth
Leadership Chair of the Caltech Division of Engineering and Applied
Science and the Theodore von Kármán Professor of Aeronautics and
Professor of Mechanical Engineering. "The Space Solar Power
Initiative brings together electrical engineers, applied
physicists, and aerospace engineers in the type of profound
interdisciplinary collaboration that is seamlessly enhanced at a
small place like Caltech. I believe it also demonstrates the value
of industry and academic partnerships. We are working on extremely
difficult problems that could eventually provide the foundations
for new industries."
Caltech and Northrop Grumman have a long history of
collaboration, dating back decades to joint work between Professor
Theodore von Kármán and Jack
Northrop. Von Karman was a
scientist and engineer who directed Caltech's Guggenheim
Aeronautical Laboratory during the 1930s and later co-founded the
Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Northrop was an aviation pioneer who in
1939 founded the Northrop Corporation, one of the legacy companies
that united to become Northrop Grumman. This unique
$17.5 million initiative is one of
the largest corporate sponsored research projects Caltech has
undertaken in recent years.
Caltech (www.caltech.edu) is a world-renowned research and
education institution focused on science and engineering, where
faculty and students pursue new knowledge about our world and
search for the kinds of bold and innovative advances that will
transform our future. The scientific, engineering, and
technological contributions of Caltech's faculty and alumni have
earned national and international recognition. Caltech's 124-acre
campus is located in Pasadena,
California. The Institute manages the Jet Propulsion
Laboratory (JPL) (www.jpl.nasa.gov) for NASA, and owns and operates
several large-scale research facilities. The Caltech Division of
Engineering and Applied Science (www.eas.caltech.edu) consists of
seven departments and supports teaching and research faculty who
work with internationally diverse and extremely talented students,
postdoctoral scholars, and colleagues.
Northrop Grumman is a leading global security company providing
innovative systems, products and solutions in unmanned systems,
cyber, C4ISR, and logistics and modernization to government and
commercial customers worldwide. Please visit
www.northropgrumman.com for more information.
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SOURCE Northrop Grumman Corporation