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Overview
Langley's Structures and Materials researchers are constantly working to develop stronger, lighter, more durable materials that can withstand the harsh conditions of space. Discoveries of and refinements to new adhesives, plastics, composites, and metal alloys will not only be used in current and future aircraft and spacecraft, but also by citizens in their daily lives.
Materials must be tested so that researchers can learn how they will perform or hold up under the stresses of flight and in hostile environments. The Structures and Materials research area has facilities and laboratories that can heat, cool, bend, twist, shake, tear, and break any material, while duplicating virtually any aerospace condition.
The Structures and Materials research area invents advanced materials to enable efficient, high-performance concepts, develops efficient, physics-based analytical and computational methods for multidisciplinary design and analysis, quantifies the performance and safety of systems using advanced materials and structures, and Investigates/alleviates unstable conditions that limit the performance of aircraft, space craft, and space platforms.
To support all these activities, SMC engineers develop advanced nondestructive evaluation and health-monitoring sensors. Many of these innovations also find their way into non-aerospace applications that improve the quality of life.
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