What does wave energy have to do with space exploration? It turns out, plenty.
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is working toward launching the Artemis I mission, an uncrewed lunar test flight, in 2021. It will be the maiden flight of the Space Launch System heavy-lift launch vehicle, as well as the Orion crew module (CM). Orion will orbit the moon for multiple days before returning to Earth and landing in the Pacific Ocean.
Wave energy experts at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) are helping ensure the safety of Orion's future crew between splash down and recovery.
NASA and Lockheed Martin (LM), NASA's prime contractor for Orion, are using the Wave Energy Converter SIMulator (WEC-Sim), an open-source code developed by NREL and Sandia National Laboratories, to ensure that the CM uprights upon landing.
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