Featured topics

Here, DLR presents a wide range of topics in a generally understandable, clear and factual manner; topics that are relevant to society, the economy and politics, both on a national and international level. The Featured topics section presents facts and research topics comprehensively and through various multimedia formats, and illustrates the significance of current projects and missions in their respective contexts.

Re-entry and landing technologies

Reusable space transport

In the history of space travel to date, rockets have traditionally been one-way products. The first step towards making space travel systems reusable was NASA's Space Shuttle programme. The shuttle had wings and did not need to reignite its engines when entering the atmosphere or landing.

En­er­gy source of the fu­ture

Hy­dro­gen research at DLR

At the limit of what is possible

Quantum technologies

Technologies for the energy transition

Wind energy research

Wind power is already the second most important energy source in Germany. It makes the largest contribution to electricity generation from renewable resources.

Re­turn to the Moon

Artemis Pro­gramme

It has been almost 50 years since astronauts last set foot on the Moon (Apollo 17, December 1972). That is set to change before the end of this decade with NASA's Artemis programme planning to once again land humans on Earth's natural satellite. This time, the mission will also include the first woman to travel to the Moon.

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Towards sustainable aviation

Climate-compatible aviation

The objective has now been set in Germany and Europe, with the aim of achieving climate compatibility in the economy and society. This is how it is worded in the EU's 'Green Deal'. The consequences of climate change also compel us to strive towards climate-compatible aviation, as this sector is responsible for 3.5 percent of global warming. New technologies are needed to ensure global mobility in the future.

Research in Germany

Ar­ti­fi­cial in­tel­li­gence

‘Artificial intelligence’ (AI) is an umbrella term used to describe various computer science methods that can be used to automate sub-processes of human thought. DLR has been working on developing AI methods for more and more fields of application over many years. This research field has seen a strong upturn in recent years. New, advanced possibilities for collecting and evaluating enormous quantities of data using large amounts of computing power are opening up ever more areas of application.

The future of rail transport

Tech­nolo­gies for the rail trans­port of the fu­ture

The railway was one of the most significant inventions to come out of industrialisation. It remains an abiding source of fascination, but now this world of locomotives, wagons, rails and signals is now associated with plenty of cutting-edge technology. Digitalisation, automation, new communications technologies and standards, modern materials and production engineering and the use of machine learning and artificial intelligence have the potential to make rail transport much more appealing and competitive in future.

Earth Observation

Study­ing the Earth sys­tem from space

How is Earth changing? Which processes are driving these changes? Instruments on board satellites make it possible to acquire comprehensive information about these matters. They can obtain global inventories and make precise local measurements. With long time series, they also allow researchers to look back in time and to better predict future processes. They can be used to record and document the changes taking place on Earth and thus reveal the causes and consequences of climate change in a unique way. These data form an essential basis for the development of measures at both political and societal levels.