Watch Live: NASA and DARPA Discuss New Advanced Propulsion Tech - Gizmodo

Two of the most forward-thinking agencies in the United States are joining forces to foster the development of advanced space propulsion.

The 2023 American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) SciTech Forum is officially underway in National Harbor, Maryland.

The theme for this year’s confab is to “explore the frontiers of aerospace,” and it will run from today through to Friday at the Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center.

Forum speakers will touch upon the future of space and planetary exploration, aeronautics, climate research, and Earth sciences, among other topics.

NASA administrator Bill Nelson will deliver a keynote address, after which Steven Howe, the former director of the Center for Space Nuclear Research (CSNR), will moderate a two-person panel consisting of NASA deputy administrator Pam Melroy and DARPA director Stefanie Tompkins.

The extent to which the panelists will delve into the details is not clear, but it’d been great to get some concrete information about the types of advanced space propulsion technologies that NASA and DARPA will seek to develop, along with descriptions of possible future applications.