Critical Contributions to Critical Challenges | May 14, 2025

Dave Van Wie has been selected to lead the Lab as its next director. Van Wie, currently APL’s Air and Missile Defense Sector Head, is a distinguished leader and scholar whose groundbreaking contributions to national defense and aerospace engineering have significantly advanced our nation’s security. His appointment is effective July 14. 

The Lab-led team working on the first rotorcraft designed for scientific exploration on another ocean world has passed its Critical Design Review, a major milestone confirming that Dragonfly’s design is mature and the team can turn its attention to construction and testing of the spacecraft itself.

Scientists at APL have demonstrated a working capability that can radically accelerate the testing of critical quantum computing components, accomplishing in a matter of minutes what has previously taken days or even weeks. 

The Lab recently released the report on the nation’s first space weather tabletop exercise held last year, which simulated a severe space weather event. The report identifies key findings and recommendations for improving the nation’s response to space weather events. 

Lunar experts at APL have developed a new resource to guide technology developers who are creating systems designed to withstand the rigors of the Moon’s surface. 

This article introduces and reviews some of the principles and methods used in Bayesian reliability. It specifically discusses methods used in the analysis of success/no-success data and describes a simple Monte Carlo algorithm that can be used to calculate the posterior distribution of a system’s reliability. This algorithm is especially useful when a system’s reliability is modeled through the reliability of its subcomponents, yet only system-level data are available.

The LSIC 2025 Spring Meeting will be held May 20-22 at APL in Laurel, Maryland. From NASA updates to another technology “show and tell,” the spring meeting will provide networking opportunities and an understanding of why each sector in the community is needed. The meeting also includes invited speakers, panels, capability area discussions, lightning talks, posters and more.

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