Optical Vortex Phase Masks for the Detection of Habitable Worlds 
Optical Vortex Phase Masks for the Detection of Habitable Worlds 

A team of NASA researchers is developing new types of optical masks that could help enable the many orders of magnitude of starlight suppression needed for future space observatories to pick out very faint habitable exoplanets from the far brighter glare of their stellar hosts. 

Technology Originally Developed for Space Missions Now Integral to Everyday Life
Technology Originally Developed for Space Missions Now Integral to Everyday Life

Groundbreaking “camera-on-a-chip” technology that was originally developed at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) for use in space missions is currently employed in billions of devices like cell phones that are used daily by people worldwide.