Three UA faculty members are working in collaboration with NASA to test new technology that could be useful in earthquakes and high winds.

NASA’s technology is known as DTM, or Disruptive Tuned Mass technology, and should be truly put to the test on UA’s seismic simulator, according to a UA News Release.

The testing will be held in the Large Scale Structures Lab (LSSL) in the South Engineering Research Center Thursday, April 14, at 1 p.m where the seismic simulator is located.

The University was chosen as the testing location due to the LSSL’s abilites in studying the effects of severe weather and natural disasters, such as earthquakes, according to a UA News Release.

Professor Wei Song, Professor Sriram Aaleti and Professor Michael Kreger are the UA faculty working with NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center on campus to test the new DTM technology.

Kreger, a professor in civil construction and environmental engineering, said the testing will consist of an overview of the technology involved, the actual demonstration and then a Q&A period following the testing.

Though the lab is limited in the amount of space it provides for spectators, UA students will be involved in the testing itself and watching the event in person. People from industries where NASA’s technology may be used are also traveling to UA to witness the testing, Kreger said.

“Ultimately, what we hope and expect that [the DTM technology] will be used for is that it will be incorporated in structures to mitigate the effects of earthquakes as well as wind,” Kreger said.