HEliophysics Strategic Technology Office (HESTO)

The HEliophysics Strategic Technology Office (HESTO), hosted at NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia, is led by an experienced program management team tasked with facilitating NASA’s Heliophysics Technology Program (HTP) technology investments, nurturing project maturation, and promoting technology infusion toward the greatest science community benefit. HTP solicits and invests in technologies through an open and competitive solicitation process that provides grants to universities, corporations, and other institutions to explore new instrument designs and technologies, laboratory investigations, and mission concepts.

Our Vision is to Enable New Realms of Heliophysics Knowledge and Capability.

Our Mission is to Enable novel and transformative capabilities and mission concepts. Advance science by expanding the limits of what is measurable, observable, and achievable in Heliophysics. Enable science and missions that are not conceivable or achievable today.

From 2018 to 2023, technology investments have exceeded $50M. In support of HTP’s mission of investment, advancement, maturation, and infusion of Heliophysics-funded technologies, HESTO will:

Invest in the Right Technologies

Develop a periodic Heliophysics technology gap and trend analysis to guide investment in the right technologies.

Lean Forward

Incentivize the community to submit novel and transformative technology proposals and mission concepts. Invite innovation from beyond the Heliophysics community to develop novel technologies.

Increase the Likelihood of Success

Nurture technology project maturation and promote infusion for the greatest science community benefit.

Establish a Technology Community

Host an annual Technology Symposium to nurture collaboration. Partner with the Heliophysics Technology Program Analysis Group (H-TPAG) that serves as a community-based interdisciplinary group for analysis in support of the NASA Heliophysics Technology Program.