COLLEGE STATION, TX — One year ago, as the world watched the SpaceX crew Dragon Spacecraft launch to the international space station... very few knew that Texas A&M played a large role in the lead up to the launch.
In 2017, NASA came to Texas A&M and utilized the school's offshore technology research center to perform detailed testing for a specialized life raft. The life raft, which was tested right here in College Station, was specially developed to protect the spacecraft crew, in the event of an emergency, landing in the Gulf of Mexico during dangerous weather.
"When there was that impact and it was noted by NASA, all of a sudden, people got excited, but it's just that, it's just the excitement of being a part of something that is rather unusual." shared Richard Mercier, a Texas A&M civil and environmental engineering professor." It's a definite milestone and definite impact on the near future of space utilization and exploration."
The offshore technology research center provided NASA with large-scale simulations of the effects of wind, waves, and currents while conducting tests on the specially crafted raft.
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