![\"Dragonfly](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Dragonfly-Astrobiology-Mission-Begins.jpg\")
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\n From left, Carlisa Drew, Seth Harvey, Anthony Fanelli, Emory Toomey and TJ Lee conduct power and functional testing on Dragonfly\u2019s Integrated Electronics Module (IEM) and Power Switching Unit (PSU) in the cleanroom at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) in Laurel, Maryland. The IEM is Dragonfly\u2019s \u201cbrain,\u201d containing the spacecraft\u2019s core avionics; the PSUs control the flow of power to Dragonfly\u2019s instruments and systems.
\nNASA\/Johns Hopkins APL\/Ed Whitman <\/p>\n
NASA Dragonfly\u2019s integration and testing \u2013 the activities involved in assembling the mission\u2019s rotorcraft lander and testing it for the rigors of launch and extreme conditions of space \u2013 is officially underway in clean rooms and control rooms at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) in Laurel, Maryland.<\/p>\n
In partnership with teams across government, industry and academia, APL is building the car-sized, nuclear-powered drone for NASA. Dragonfly<\/strong><\/a> is scheduled to launch no earlier than 2028 for a six-year voyage to Saturn\u2019s moon Titan, where it will explore a range of diverse sites to study the chemistry, geology, and atmosphere of the terrestrial moon and ultimately advance our understanding of life\u2019s chemical origins.<\/p>\n Primary activities during the first weeks of this effort included power and functional testing on two critical components: the Integrated Electronics Module (IEM) and the Power Switching Units (PSUs). Think of the IEM as Dragonfly\u2019s \u201cbrain,\u201d containing the spacecraft\u2019s core avionics (such as command and data handling, guidance and navigation, and communications) in a single space-saving and power-efficient box. The IEM and both PSUs were connected to Dragonfly\u2019s wiring system and passed their first power-service checks.<\/p>\n Artist\u2019s concept of Dragonfly on the surface of Titan NASA\/Johns Hopkins APL<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cThis milestone essentially marks the birth of our flight system,\u201d said Elizabeth Turtle, Dragonfly principal investigator from APL. \u201cBuilding a first-of-its kind vehicle to fly across another ocean world in our solar system pushes us to the edge of what\u2019s possible, but that\u2019s exactly why this stage is so exciting. The team is doing an outstanding job, and every component we install and every test we run brings us one step closer to launching Dragonfly to Titan.\u201d<\/p>\n Much work has led up to this point. The aeroshell and cruise-stage assemblies are moving forward with integration and testing at Lockheed Martin Space in Littleton, Colorado. The team completed a thorough aerodynamic test series in the wind tunnels of NASA\u2019s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia. Testing continues in the Titan Chamber at APL of the foam coating that will insulate the rotorcraft from Titan\u2019s frigid temperatures. The science payload<\/a> is coming together at locations around the country and internationally. The flight radio has been delivered, and additional flight systems are scheduled for delivery and testing within the next six months.<\/p>\n Dragonfly integration and testing will continue at APL through this year and into early 2027, when system-level testing is planned at Lockheed Martin. Late next year, the lander returns to APL for final space-environment testing before heading to NASA\u2019s Kennedy Space Center in Florida in spring 2028 for launch aboard a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket that summer.<\/p>\n \u201cStarting integration and testing is a huge milestone for the Dragonfly team,\u201d said Annette Dolbow, the Dragonfly integration and test lead at APL. \u201cWe\u2019ve spent years designing and refining this amazing rotorcraft on computer screens and in laboratories, and now we get to bring all those elements together and transform Dragonfly into an actual flight system.\u201d<\/p>\n Astrobiology,<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"From left, Carlisa Drew, Seth Harvey, Anthony Fanelli, Emory Toomey and TJ Lee conduct power and functional testing…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":385321,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[77],"tags":[172260,8100,6843,18,175382,19,17,176361,1024,1434,133,41011,31019],"class_list":["post-385320","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-science","tag-biosignatures","tag-dragonfly","tag-drone","tag-eire","tag-https-astrobiology-com-2026-03-tricorder","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-johns-hopkins-applied-physics-laboratory","tag-nasa","tag-saturn","tag-science","tag-titan","tag-uav"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@ie\/116229266829015543","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/385320","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=385320"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/385320\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/385321"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=385320"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=385320"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=385320"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Dragonfly-Astrobiology-Mission-Begins1.png\")
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