
Research and Exploratory Development
Inventing the Future for APL and Our Nation
The Research and Exploratory Development (RED) Mission Area is Johns Hopkins APL’s research engine. We conduct pioneering research targeting game-changing breakthroughs to benefit national security missions. While each program within the RED Mission Area has a specific research focus, we recognize that innovation often happens at the intersection of technical disciplines. Therefore, we bring together multidisciplinary teams of talented scientists and engineers to tackle difficult challenges and invent the future for APL and our sponsors.
RED Mission Area Executive: Andrew Merkle
Research Programs
Highlights
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Eliminating Forever Chemicals
Multiple studies have linked PFAS exposure to harmful health effects in humans and animals, and without a natural way to break them down, the chemicals persist in soil and contaminate the environment — including water. APL scientists are developing several technologies to capture and destroy these "forever chemicals." -
Climate Security
Climate change is reshaping nearly every aspect of life on our planet, with significant implications for national security. APL is bringing all of its core competencies to bear on this critical challenge area, exploring strategic opportunities to make the greatest impact on climate change. -
Revolutionizing Prosthetics
Revolutionizing Prosthetics is an ambitious multiyear program—funded by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA)—to create a neurally controlled artificial limb that will restore near-natural motor and sensory capability to upper-extremity amputee patients.
Recent News
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News
Mar 20, 2023Researchers Sidestep Cracking in Additive Manufacturing of Refractory Metals
Researchers at Johns Hopkins APL have made significant strides in 3D printing refractory metals, which are highly desirable for applications in extreme environments. -
Press Release
Mar 13, 2023Researchers Use Quantum Biology to Understand Human Response to Earth’s Magnetic Field
APL researchers are tapping quantum mechanics to better understand one of nature’s biggest mysteries — an organism’s ability to sense Earth’s magnetic field and use it as a tool to adjust some biological processes. And they’ve found some surprising results. -
News
Jan 24, 2023Coastal Defenders: Protecting the Nation’s Coasts with Natural Solutions
As sea levels continue to rise, and the need to safeguard our coastlines increases, Johns Hopkins APL researchers are using materials science and marine biology to study and support natural structures that can mitigate erosion. -
Press Release
Jan 5, 2023Johns Hopkins APL Provides Autonomous Collision Avoidance Technology for Fixed-Wing UAVs
APL researchers have given aerobatic fixed-wing unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) the ability to autonomously navigate complex environments using onboard sensing, a first-of-its-kind achievement. -
News
Jan 4, 2023Climate Change Likely to Affect Communications, Remote Sensing Technologies
A team at APL recently studied the potential impact of climate change on communications and remote sensing systems like radars, and determined that severe changes in Earth’s climate would likely affect these technologies — in some cases for better, in others for worse.