Volume 10, Number 3 • May/June 2002 • Advanced Technologies

NASA Video Innovation Wins Major Award

The team responsible for developing VISAR earned the Federal Lab Consortium Excellence in Technology Transfer Award.

The team responsible for NASA software technology proven to be invaluable for law enforcement and other down-to-Earth applications has received the prestigious Federal Lab Consortium Excellence in Technology Transfer Award.

To aid their space program research, two NASA scientists invented the Video Image Stabilization and Registration system, known as VISAR; however, this video-enhancement technology soon found broader applications.

The system works by making minute details in poor-quality video readable. The innovative technology was created by Dr. David Hathaway, a solar physicist at NASA Marshall Space Flight Center, and Paul Meyer, an atmospheric scientist at the National Space Science and Technology Center. Sammy Nabors, commercial technology lead at Marshall, was also recognized for his work as commercialization representative for VISAR. VISAR was chosen for the honor from dozens of entries, including submissions from the US Department of Defense, Department of Energy and Department of Health and Human Services. Among other requirements, the innovations had to have potential for overwhelming positive impact on society and must have been commercialized into the private sector.

The award is coveted because a panel of experts from industry, state and local government, academia and other Federal Lab Consortium members judge entries.

The consortium promotes cooperation between government and private laboratories to exchange ideas and enhance the nation’s economic competitiveness.

The scientists’ foray into the world of forensics began when they helped the FBI analyze video of the bombing that killed two people and injured hundreds more at the 1996 Summer Olympic Games in Atlanta. Hathaway and Meyer successfully clarified nighttime videotapes made with handheld camcorders, revealing important details about the bomb and the bomber.

Why did the FBI come to NASA for help? As scientists, Hathaway and Meyer had developed equipment for enhancing images of the sun and Earth’s atmosphere. They used this experience and worked together to invent the VISAR technology.

Since their first case with the FBI, Hathaway and Meyer have worked to refine their software. It has gained interest in the commercial sector because it can remove “snow” from video, correct zoom and camera jitter, as well as produce clearer images of moving objects by smoothing jagged edges and enhancing still images.

Marshall Space Flight Center currently has a license with Intergraph Corporation to use VISAR technology in their VideoAnalystTM product. Marshall is offering the technology for license to software producers for home computer applications. VISAR is now widely used by public safety agencies across the United States. It also shows promising use for military and medical applications. Q

For more information, contact Sammy Nabors at 256/544-5226, sammy.nabors@msfc.nasa.gov. Please mention you read about it in Innovation.

NASA Official: Jonathan Root • Web Design: Printing & Design Office, NASA Headquarters • Credits