News Releases

Five years ago today, NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft — designed, built and operated by Johns Hopkins APL — conducted the first close-up exploration of Pluto. Since then, scientists have uncovered numerous surprising, revolutionary and downright unbelievable things about Pluto and its moons that have transformed our view of these distant icy worlds.

As cyber threats to the nation grow and adversaries move with increasing stealth, APL and the Department of Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency are teaming up to help state and local governments enhance their online defenses.

As the COVID-19 pandemic stretches on and a cautious reopening of the state continues, APL staff members remain uniquely focused on hitting their targets. In an unprecedented situation, teams in the Lab’s Space Exploration Sector and Research and Exploratory Development Department are evolving and adapting to ensure the Lab’s critical work remains on time and up to snuff.

David Porter, a longtime chief scientist in Johns Hopkins APL’s Force Projection Sector, was selected as a 2020 Blackboard Catalyst Award winner in the Teaching and Learning category for his graduate-level online course, Introduction to Oceanography, in the Johns Hopkins Engineering for Professionals (EP) program.

Radar data from the Miniature Radio Frequency instrument aboard NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter suggests a trove of metal-rich minerals lies deeper below the Moon’s surface, according to a recent study that includes Johns Hopkins APL researcher Wes Patterson. The finding could resolve a dilemma about the Moon’s formation.

M. Khair ElZarrad, the Deputy Director of the Office of Medical Policy in the Center for Drug Evaluation and Research at the Food and Drug Administration, will be the featured speaker in the July installment of APL’s National Health Virtual Speaker Series.

Asteroids Ryugu and Bennu, two top-shaped asteroids with orbits around the Sun similar to Earth’s, may stem from the rupture of a single, common parent asteroid, according to a study published May 27 in Nature Communications.

APL and Purdue University have signed an agreement that will allow both institutions to harness one another’s capabilities and expertise in the field of hypersonics.

Making the list for the third consecutive year, APL held its No. 11 ranking among large organizations and is ranked second overall for both training and career development.

Nearly two decades ago, a near-Earth asteroid was discovered to have a moon and the binary system was given the name “Didymos” — Greek for “twin,” a loose description of the larger main body and the smaller orbiting moon, which became unofficially known as Didymos B.