We solve complex research, engineering, and analytical problems that present critical challenges to our nation. APL—the nation’s largest university affiliated research center—provides U.S. government agencies with deep expertise in specialized fields to support national priorities and technology development programs. We also serve as independent trusted technical agents to the government, providing continuity for highly complex, multigenerational technology development systems.
Our purpose is to make critical contributions to critical challenges. At APL, we feel it is our responsibility to try to solve these national challenges with the full measure of our dedication and expertise.
The Lab’s core values are unquestionable integrity, trusted service to the nation, world-class expertise, and game-changing impact—all in an environment that is collaborative, fulfilling (and even fun!).
APL’s purpose and core values guide our future, and it is no less than to create defining innovations that ensure our nation’s preeminence in the 21st century.
April 3, 2020
Ralph Lorenz, a planetary scientist and aerospace engineer at Johns Hopkins APL, was one of two awarded the 2020 Alvin Seiff Memorial Award. The honor recognizes Lorenz’s significant contributions to solar system exploration and his undying commitment to mentoring the next generation of explorers.
March 30, 2020
An APL scientist is part of a team that has received a Johns Hopkins Alliance for a Healthier World grant to hone the design of a device that allows surgeons to quickly and inexpensively perform sight-saving cataract surgery, opening the door for millions of low-income patients who until now could not afford the procedure or the aftercare.
March 25, 2020
As the United States works to ramp up testing and containment capabilities, ESSENCE, a public health electronic surveillance tool developed by APL, is helping to fill gaps for local and state public health departments, the CDC and the Department of Defense, by tracking the spread of COVID-19 symptomatically.
March 23, 2020
Armed with software and molecular biology approaches developed partly at the Laboratory, APL biologists Peter Thielen and Tom Mehoke are using hand-held DNA sequencers at Johns Hopkins Hospital to conduct immediate sequencing of the SARS-CoV-2 genome — the virus that causes COVID-19.
March 23, 2020
In an effort to slow the spread of COVID-19, two phrases have been thrust into the worldwide lexicon: social distancing and flattening the curve. APL experts explain what they mean and why these measures are imperative in combating the pandemic.
March 17, 2020
Jamie Porter, Mareena Robinson Snowden and Ciara Sivels were each the first black woman to earn a Doctor of Philosophy in nuclear engineering from their respective colleges. Now, they work in three different sectors at APL, dedicating their time and their brains to important challenges facing the nation — with an eye toward furthering a sea change in their wake.
March 13, 2020
The Pentagon cleared the Standard Missile-3 Block IIA program — which has been in co-development with Japan since 2006 — for initial production, setting the stage for deployment of a significant operational enhancement to the Ballistic Missile Defense System.
March 10, 2020
APL has been recognized as one of 2020’s Most Innovative Space Companies by Fast Company magazine for its leading role on and design of the Dragonfly mission — a bold, game-changing NASA exploration of Saturn’s largest moon, Titan.
March 9, 2020
Nancy Chabot, a planetary scientist at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory, was elected vice president of the Meteoritical Society. She will serve as vice president from 2021 to 2022 and become president of the society from 2023 to 2024.
March 6, 2020
What started as a simple solution to a Force Projection Sector project challenge at APL has flourished and grown into a tailored job — and STEM mentorship opportunity — for Howard Community College students.
February 28, 2020
Michael Presley, of the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL), and Laszlo Kecskes, of the Hopkins Extreme Materials Institute (HEMI), are the inaugural recipients of the HEMI/APL Seed Grant for their project, “Application of Thermodynamic Modeling to Spatially Tailor the Microstructure of Additively Manufactured W-based Alloys.”
February 18, 2020
APL researchers have been investigating a type of artificial intelligence technique that may help address some of the bias in machine-learning tools, while improving training for human clinicians.
