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 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.

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, advancing science by disrupting the limits of what is currently measurable, observable, and achievable in Heliophysics.

Increase the Likelihood of Success

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

Expand Our Community

Invite technologists from beyond the Heliophysics community to partner with Heliophysics scientists for developing novel technologies that enable future Heliophysics science missions.

Establish a
Technology Forum

The Heliophysics Technology Program Analysis Group (H-TPAG) will serve as a community-based interdisciplinary forum for soliciting and coordinating community analysis and input in support of the HTP objectives and on matters relevant to new technology development and investment.