The Ames Research Center (ARC), also known as NASA Ames, is a NASA field center at Moffett Federal Airfield in California's Silicon Valley. Founded in 1939 as the second laboratory of the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA), it became part of NASA when that agency was established in 1958. The center is named for Joseph Sweetman Ames, a physicist and founding member of NACA.
Ames was originally established for wind-tunnel research on propeller-driven aircraft. Its work later expanded to spaceflight, planetary science, astrobiology, small spacecraft, supercomputing, entry systems, intelligent systems, human factors, and aviation operations. Ames has led or supported missions including Pioneer 10, Pioneer 11, Lunar Prospector, LCROSS, Kepler, the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA), the Interface Region Imaging Spectrograph, and LADEE.
History
NASA traces the center's founding to December 20, 1939, when NACA established the Ames Aeronautical Laboratory at Moffett Field as its second laboratory, named for Joseph Sweetman Ames, a physicist who chaired NACA from 1927 to 1939. Smith J. DeFrance, a senior NACA aeronautical engineer, served as Engineer-in-Charge beginning July 1940 and oversaw construction of the center's first wind tunnels and flight research facilities.
During World War II, Ames conducted aerodynamics research on aircraft stability, drag reduction, and high-speed performance. In the early 1950s, aerodynamicist H. Julian Allen and Alfred J. Eggers Jr. developed the blunt-body reentry theory at Ames, demonstrating that a blunt, rounded nose shape generates a detached shock wave that carries away most aerodynamic heating during atmospheric reentry rather than conducting it into the vehicle structure. The research, initially classified, became the design basis for the Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo capsules and for subsequent planetary entry probes. Allen later served as center director from 1965 to 1968.
NACA was dissolved on October 1, 1958, and its personnel and facilities transferred to the newly created NASA; the laboratory became NASA Ames Research Center.
In 1994, the United States Navy transferred Moffett Federal Airfield to NASA, placing the airfield and the research center under a single agency. The airfield site falls within the U.S. Naval Air Station, Sunnyvale, California, Historic District, an NRHP historic district covering the former Navy installation's hangars and structures dating from the 1930s, including Hangars One, Two, and Three. The National Full-Scale Aerodynamics Complex and the Arc Jet Complex were individually listed on the National Register in 2017.
Missions
Although Ames is a NASA research center rather than a flight center, it has managed or supported a range of planetary and astronomy missions.
The Pioneer program's eight successful space missions from 1965 to 1978 were managed by Charles Hall at Ames, initially aimed at the inner Solar System. By 1972, Ames supported flyby missions to Jupiter and Saturn with Pioneer 10 and Pioneer 11. Those missions collected data on the radiation environment, moons, and gravity-assist trajectories later used by planners of the more complex Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 missions. In 1978, the program returned to the inner Solar System with the Pioneer Venus Orbiter and Multiprobe, using orbital insertion rather than flyby.
Lunar Prospector was the third mission selected by NASA for full development and construction as part of the Discovery Program. At a cost of $62.8 million, the 19-month mission was put into a low polar orbit of the Moon, mapping surface composition and possible polar ice deposits, measuring magnetic and gravity fields, and studying lunar outgassing events. Based on Lunar Prospector Neutron Spectrometer (NS) data, mission scientists determined that water ice existed in the polar craters of the Moon. The mission ended July 31, 1999, when the orbiter was guided to an impact into a crater near the lunar south pole in an attempt to vaporize any polar water for spectroscopic analysis from Earth.
The 11-pound (5 kg) GeneSat-1, carrying bacteria inside a miniature laboratory, was launched on December 16, 2006, as a secondary payload on a Minotaur I rocket from Wallops Flight Facility.
The Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS) launched on June 18, 2009, on an Atlas V rocket from Kennedy Space Center as a secondary payload accompanying the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter. LCROSS impacted a permanently shadowed crater near the lunar south pole on October 9, 2009; analysis of the debris plume confirmed the presence of water ice.
thumb|right|250px|alt=Exterior of Hangar One at Moffett Field|[[Hangar One (Moffett Federal Airfield)|Hangar One, originally a U.S. Navy airship hangar, at Moffett Federal Airfield]]
The Kepler space telescope launched on March 7, 2009, and was NASA's first mission capable of finding Earth-size planets around other stars. It monitored the brightness of more than 150,000 stars simultaneously, detecting planets by the slight dimming caused as they transited their host stars. Kepler confirmed more than 2,600 exoplanets before its fuel was exhausted; NASA retired the spacecraft on October 30, 2018.
The Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) was a joint project of NASA and the German Aerospace Center (DLR) that operated an infrared telescope aboard a modified Boeing 747SP aircraft, flying at altitudes above most of the atmospheric water vapor that blocks infrared wavelengths. The aircraft was supplied by the U.S. and the telescope by Germany. Modifications to the airframe were made by L-3 Communications Integrated Systems of Waco, Texas. SOFIA began science operations in 2014 and was retired on September 29, 2022.
The Interface Region Imaging Spectrograph (IRIS), launched June 27, 2013, is a partnership with the Lockheed Martin Solar and Astrophysics Laboratory to study the processes at the boundary between the Sun's chromosphere and corona. The mission is sponsored by the NASA Small Explorer program.
The Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer (LADEE), developed and managed by NASA Ames, launched September 6, 2013, to study the composition of the lunar exosphere and the behavior of dust near the lunar surface. The spacecraft impacted the Moon on April 18, 2014, after completing its science mission.
Ames has also contributed to several other missions, including the Mars Pathfinder and Mars Exploration Rover missions, where the Ames Intelligent Robotics Laboratory contributed robotics work. Ames contributed to the Phoenix Mars lander through Arc Jet testing of its aeroshell thermal protection system. NASA Ames also contributed to Mars Science Laboratory and its Curiosity rover.
Facilities and research areas
Aviation systems
The Aviation Systems Division conducts research and development in advanced air traffic management, airspace integration, and high-fidelity aerospace simulation. Its air traffic management work includes automation and decision-support tools for the National Airspace System.
For high-fidelity flight simulation, the division operates the Vertical Motion Simulator, a Level-D Boeing 747-400 simulator, and a panoramic air traffic control tower simulator. Ames simulators have been used for Space Shuttle pilot training, development of future spacecraft handling qualities, advanced airspace and airport-surface concepts, helicopter control system testing, and accident investigations.
The center's flight simulation and guidance laboratory was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2017.
Information technology
thumb|left|alt=IBM 7090 mainframe computer at Ames in 1961 with several people standing nearby|[[IBM 7090 mainframe computer at Ames in 1961. Center director Smith J. DeFrance is second from the left.]]
Ames houses NASA organizations working in advanced supercomputing, human factors, and artificial intelligence. These groups support NASA programs in aeronautics, science, exploration, and space operations. The center also manages the E Root nameserver of the Domain Name System.
The Intelligent Systems Division develops software and autonomous systems for NASA missions. Its work has included MAPGEN, automated planning software used to schedule daily activities for the Mars Exploration Rover mission, and autonomous systems for the International Space Station. Deep Space 1, launched in 1998, carried an autonomous navigation system developed at Ames as one of the first such systems used on a deep-space mission.
The Human Systems Integration Division studies human-centered design, human performance, and human-automation interaction in aerospace systems.
The NASA Advanced Supercomputing Division at Ames operates computing systems for NASA science and engineering. The NASA Advanced Supercomputing Facility provides supercomputing resources and services for about 1,500 users from NASA centers, academia, and industry. NASA announced in January 2026 that Athena, housed in the Modular Supercomputing Facility at Ames, had become the agency's most powerful supercomputer.
In September 2009, Ames launched NEBULA as a cloud computing platform for NASA data sets. This pilot used open-source components, complied with FISMA, and was designed to scale to government-sized data demands. In July 2010, NASA CTO Chris C. Kemp open sourced Nova, the technology behind the NEBULA Project, in collaboration with Rackspace, launching OpenStack.
Wind tunnels
thumb|alt=Large exterior intake of the 80 by 120 foot wind tunnel at NASA Ames|One of the air intakes of the 80 by 120 foot wind tunnel, located at NASA Ames Research Center
thumb|alt=Interior of the 80 by 120 foot wind tunnel with model support struts in the foreground|Inside 80 by 120-foot wind tunnel facing towards the intake
The Ames Research Center wind tunnels support research and testing for aircraft, spacecraft, rotorcraft, and entry systems.
ARC Unitary Plan Wind Tunnel
The Unitary Plan Wind Tunnel (UPWT) was completed in 1956 under the Unitary Plan Act of 1949. It is a continuous-flow tunnel with three test sections covering Mach numbers from 0.2 to 3.5. Commercial transports, military aircraft, and NASA space vehicles have been tested in the tunnel complex, including Space Shuttle configurations and Mars Science Laboratory aeroshell designs. It is used to support an active research program in aerodynamics, dynamics, model noise, and full-scale aircraft and their components. The aerodynamic characteristics of new configurations are investigated with an emphasis on estimating the accuracy of computational methods. The tunnel is also used to investigate the aeromechanical stability boundaries of advanced rotorcraft and rotor-fuselage interactions. Stability and control derivatives are also determined, including the static and dynamic characteristics of new aircraft configurations. The acoustic characteristics of most of the full-scale vehicles are also determined, as well as acoustic research aimed at discovering and reducing aerodynamic sources of noise. In addition to the normal data gathering methods (e.g., balance system, pressure measuring transducers, and temperature sensing thermocouples), non-intrusive instrumentation (e.g., laser velocimeters and shadowgraphs) is available to determine flow direction and velocity around lifting surfaces. The 40 by 80 Foot Wind Tunnel is primarily used for determining the low- and medium-speed aerodynamic characteristics of high-performance aircraft, rotorcraft, and fixed wing, powered-lift V/STOL aircraft.
The 80 by 120 Foot Wind Tunnel is the world's largest wind tunnel test section. This open circuit leg was added and a new fan drive system was installed in the 1980s. It is currently capable of air speeds up to .
Arc Jet Complex
thumb|alt=Thermal protection material glowing under test in an arc jet stream|A thermal protection system sample under test at the Arc Jet Complex
The Ames Arc Jet Complex is an advanced thermophysics facility where sustained hypersonic- and hyperthermal testing of vehicular thermoprotective systems takes place under a variety of simulated flight- and re-entry conditions. Of its seven available test bays, four currently contain Arc Jet units of differing configurations. These are the Aerodynamic Heating Facility (AHF), the Turbulent Flow Duct (TFD), the Panel Test Facility (PTF), and the Interaction Heating Facility (IHF). The support equipment includes two D.C. power supplies, a steam ejector-driven vacuum system, a water-cooling system, high-pressure gas systems, data acquisition system, and other auxiliary systems.
Ames Vertical Gun Range
thumb|alt=Ames Vertical Gun Range in horizontal loading position|Vertical Gun Range in horizontal loading position
The Ames Vertical Gun Range (AVGR) was designed to conduct scientific studies of lunar impact processes in support of the Apollo missions. In 1979, it was established as a National Facility, funded through the Planetary Geology and Geophysics Program. In 1995, increased scientific needs across various disciplines resulted in joint core funding by three different science programs at NASA Headquarters (Planetary Geology and Geophysics, Exobiology, and Solar System Origins). The AVGR has provided support for planetary missions including Stardust and Deep Impact.
List of center directors
The following persons had served as the Ames Research Center director:
{| class="wikitable"
|-
!
!Image
!Director
!Start
!End
!Notes
|-
|rowspan="3"|1
|rowspan="3"|70px
|rowspan="3"|Smith J. DeFrance
|July 25, 1940
|June 24, 1947
|Engineer-in-Charge, NACA Ames Aeronautical Laboratory
|-
|June 24, 1947
|October 1, 1958
|Director, NACA Ames Aeronautical Laboratory
|-
|October 1, 1958
|October 15, 1965
|Director, NASA Ames RC
|-
|2
|70px
|H. Julian Allen
|October 15, 1965
|November 15, 1968
|
|-
|3
|70px
|Hans Mark
|February 20, 1969
|August 15, 1977
|
|- bgcolor="#e6e6aa"
|Acting
|rowspan="2" bgcolor="#ffffff"|70px
|rowspan="2" bgcolor="#ffffff" nowrap|Clarence A. Syvertson
|August 15, 1977
|April 30, 1978
|
|-
|4
|April 30, 1978
|January 13, 1984
|
|-
|rowspan="2"|5
|rowspan="2"|75px
|rowspan="2"|William F. Ballhaus Jr.
|January 16, 1984
|February 1, 1988
|
|-
|February 1, 1989
|July 15, 1989
|
|- bgcolor="#e6e6aa"
|Acting
|rowspan="3" bgcolor="#ffffff"|75px
|rowspan="3" bgcolor="#ffffff"|Dale L. Compton
|February 1, 1988
|February 1, 1989
|
|- bgcolor="#e6e6aa"
|Acting
|July 15, 1989
|nowrap|December 20, 1989
|
|-
|6
|December 20, 1989
|January 28, 1994
|
|-
|7
|70px
|Ken Munechika
|January 28, 1994
|March 4, 1996
|
|-
|8
|76px
|Henry McDonald
|March 4, 1996
|September 19, 2002
|
|-
|9
|70px
|G. Scott Hubbard
|September 19, 2002
|February 15, 2006
|
|- bgcolor="#e6e6aa"
|Acting
|
|Marvin Christensen
|nowrap|February 15, 2006
|May 4, 2006
|
|-
|10
|70px
|Simon P. Worden
|May 4, 2006
|March 31, 2015
|
|-
|11
|70px
|Eugene Tu
|May 4, 2015
|present
|
|-
|}
United States Geological Survey presence
In 2016, the United States Geological Survey (USGS) announced plans to relocate its West Coast science center from nearby Menlo Park to Ames at Moffett Field. The relocation formally began with a ribbon-cutting event in July 2019. As of April 2024, the project was described as "wrapping up", with "full relocation ... scheduled by the end of the year."
Education
NASA Ames Visitor Center
The NASA Ames Visitor Center is located at the Chabot Space and Science Center in Oakland, California. Ames does not host public tours of its research campus, which remains an active laboratory. The Chabot visitor center opened on November 12, 2021, and includes artifacts and exhibits about Ames work in entry systems, computing, aeronautics, astrobiology, life sciences, robotics, space science, and Earth science.
NASA Ames Exploration Center
right|thumb|alt=Exterior entrance of the NASA Ames Exploration Center|NASA Ames Exploration Center
The on-site NASA Ames Exploration Center was a science museum and education center with displays about NASA technology, missions, and space exploration. It included a Moon rock, a meteorite, and other geologic samples.
Robotics Alliance Project
The Robotics Alliance Project, developed at Ames, supports educational robotics programs and competitions as a way to build robotics capabilities relevant to future space exploration missions.
Tenants and partnerships
NASA Research Park, established through a 2002 development plan, is a public-private campus within the Ames site hosting university, commercial, and nonprofit tenants. NASA has also entered into long-term leases with private partners for portions of Moffett Federal Airfield adjacent to the research center.
On September 28, 2005, Google and Ames Research Center disclosed details to a long-term research partnership. In addition to pooling engineering talent, Google planned to build a facility on the ARC campus. One of the projects between Ames, Google, and Carnegie Mellon University was the Gigapan Project, a robotic platform for creating, sharing, and annotating terrestrial gigapixel images. The Planetary Content Project sought to integrate and improve data used for Google Moon and Google Mars. On June 4, 2008, Google announced it had leased from NASA at Moffett Federal Airfield, for use as office space and employee housing.
Google opened its Bay View campus on Ames property in May 2022.
In May 2013, Google announced it was launching the Quantum Artificial Intelligence Lab, hosted at Ames. The lab housed a 512-qubit quantum computer from D-Wave Systems, with the Universities Space Research Association (USRA) inviting researchers to share time on it to study how quantum computing might advance machine learning.
Announced on November 10, 2014, Planetary Ventures LLC, a Google subsidiary, leased Moffett Federal Airfield from NASA. The lease covers about 1,000 acres, includes restoration of Hangar One and hangars Two and Three, and runs for 60 years. NASA reported in March 2026 that Planetary Ventures had completed restoration of Hangar One in December 2025.
See also
- Timeline of Ames Research Center
- NASA Research Park
- Pleiades (supercomputer)
- National Register of Historic Places listings in Santa Clara County, California
References
Further reading
External links
- NASA – About Ames
- NASA – Ames current programs and projects
- NASA Ames Visitor Center