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The Office of Naval Research's Polymer Matrix Composites (PMC) program has invested significantly in developing new structural fibers with better thermo-oxidative resistance, new non-toxic resins systems and sandwich cores with enhanced resistance to fire and its propagation, new additives to improve PMC inter-laminar properties, and new resin infusion models and processing tools for improving product quality and lowering manufacturing costs.

Retired U.S. Navy Capt. Don Walsh, best known for his daring dive to the deepest spot on Earth, nearly 36,000 feet below the ocean’s surface, has died at age 92. Walsh was a co-pilot of the Trieste bathyscaphe, a deep submergence vehicle acquired by the Office of Naval Research (ONR) in 1958. Two years later, on January 23, 1960, Walsh and Swiss engineer Jacques Piccard, son of the inventor of the bathyscaphe, became the first humans to descend into the Challenger Deep, located in the Pacific Ocean’s Mariana Trench. “ONR sponsored the Trieste, but it was then-Lt. Don Walsh who made the very daring decision to make the first descent into the deepest spot of the earth’s ocean. Walsh was a Navy officer, a submariner, an adventurer, and an oceanographer. To his family, we extend our deepest condolences and gratitude for allowing him to explore, and share his extraordinary experiences and knowledge with us,” said Chief of Naval Research Rear Adm. Kurt Rothenhaus.

Today, the White House Office of Science, Technology, and Policy (OSTP) released the “National Strategy for Aquatic Environmental DNA.” The Environmental DNA (eDNA) Task Team had 10 federal agencies participating in drafting the strategy and included significant scoping and engagement of the private sector, academia and non-profit organizations.

The Office of Naval Research Global TechSolutions program recently demonstrated the latest advancement in surf observation (SUROB) technology at the Technical Concept Experiment 24.2 held at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California.

The Office of Naval Research's Propulsion Materials program involves, in part, the kinetics and thermodynamics of materials interactions and materials stability under marine operating environments and temperatures.

The Office of Naval Research's Structural Metals program emphasizes developing the fundamental understanding needed to discover, design, and produce high-performance structural metals.

The Office of Naval Research's Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning for Photonics, Power & Energy, Atmospherics, and Quantum Science program is focused on machine learning techniques that can be applied to photonics, power and energy, thermal management and controls, atmospherics, communication, and quantum science for improved naval capabilities.

The Office of Naval Research's Materials for New Sensor Modalities program is interested in basic research aimed at drastic or fundamental alterations of a material’s response to stimuli.

Three esteemed engineers with ties to the Office of Naval Research (ONR) have been elected to the prestigious National Academy of Engineering (NAE) Class of 2025. NAE members are among the world’s most accomplished engineers from business, academia and government.

In January 2025, the Office of Naval Research (ONR) partnered with the 144th Airlift Squadron of the Alaska Air National Guard, the U.S. Interagency Arctic Buoy Program (USIABP) and the International Cooperative Engagement Program for Polar Research (ICE-PPR) to deploy meteorological and oceanographic buoys across more than 5,000 nautical miles of the Arctic Ocean.