Dawn Spacecraft Processing

NASA Image and Video Library

2007-04-10

In clean room C of Astrotech's Payload Processing Facility, a worker wears a "bunny suit," or clean-room attire, next to the Dawn spacecraft, which will be unbagged and undergo further processing. Dawn's mission is to explore two of the asteroid belt's most intriguing and dissimilar occupants: asteroid Vesta and the dwarf planet Ceres. The Dawn mission is managed by JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, for NASA's Science Mission Directorate in Washington, D.C.

NASA Spacecraft Images Texas Wildfire

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-09-13

The tri-county Riley Road wildfire burning in Texas north of Houston was 85 percent contained when NASA Terra spacecraft acquired this image on Sept. 12, 2011. Burned areas are dark gray and black; vegetation red; and bare ground and roads light gray.

The NASA Spacecraft Transponding Modem

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Berner, Jeff B.; Kayalar, Selahattin; Perret, Jonathan D.

2000-01-01

A new deep space transponder is being developed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory for NASA. The Spacecraft Transponding Modem (STM) implements the standard transponder functions and the channel service functions that have previously resided in spacecraft Command/Data Subsystems. The STM uses custom ASICs, MMICs, and MCMs to reduce the active device parts count to 70, mass to I kg, and volume to 524 cc. The first STMs will be flown on missions launching in the 2003 time frame. The STM tracks an X-band uplink signal and provides both X-band and Ka-band downlinks, either coherent or non-coherent with the uplink. A NASA standard Command Detector Unit is integrated into the STM, along with a codeblock processor and a hardware command decoder. The decoded command codeblocks are output to the spacecraft command/data subsystem. Virtual Channel 0 (VC-0) (hardware) commands are processed and output as critical controller (CRC) commands. Downlink telemetry is received from the spacecraft data subsystem as telemetry frames. The STM provides the following downlink coding options: the standard CCSDS (7-1/2) convolutional coding, ReedSolomon coding with interleave depths one and five, (15-1/6) convolutional coding, and Turbo coding with rates 1/3 and 1/6. The downlink symbol rates can be linearly ramped to match the G/T curve of the receiving station, providing up to a 1 dB increase in data return. Data rates range from 5 bits per second (bps) to 24 Mbps, with three modulation modes provided: modulated subcarrier (3 different frequencies provided), biphase-L modulated direct on carrier, and Offset QPSK. Also, the capability to generate one of four non-harmonically related telemetry beacon tones is provided, to allow for a simple spacecraft status monitoring scheme for cruise phases of missions. Three ranging modes are provided: standard turn around ranging, regenerative pseudo-noise (PN) ranging, and Differential One-way Ranging (DOR) tones. The regenerative ranging provides the

NASA Spacecraft Images Cambodian Flooding

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-08-29

This image acquired by NASA Terra spacecraft shows unusually heavy rains over the upper Mekong River in Laos and Thailand that led to severe flooding in Cambodia in mid-August 2011. The city of Phnom Penh is at the bottom center of the image.

NASA Spacecraft Images Oregon Wildfire

NASA Image and Video Library

2012-09-21

This image, acquired by NASA Terra spacecraft, is of the Pole Creek fire southwest of Sisters, Ore., which had grown to 24,000 acres as of Sept. 20, 2012. No structures have been destroyed, and the fire is mostly confined to the national forest.

DOD Recovery personnel and NASA technicians inspect Friendship 7 spacecraft

NASA Image and Video Library

1962-02-20

S64-14861 (1962) --- Department of Defense (DOD) recovery personnel and spacecraft technicians from NASA and McDonnell Aircraft Corp., inspect astronaut John Glenn's Mercury spacecraft, Friendship 7, following its return to Cape Canaveral after recovery in the Atlantic Ocean. Photo credit: NASA

Dawn Spacecraft Processing

NASA Image and Video Library

2007-04-10

In clean room C of Astrotech's Payload Processing Facility, technicians dressed in "bunny suits," or clean-room attire, begin working on the Dawn spacecraft. Dawn's mission is to explore two of the asteroid belt's most intriguing and dissimilar occupants: asteroid Vesta and the dwarf planet Ceres. The Dawn mission is managed by JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, for NASA's Science Mission Directorate in Washington, D.C.

NASA Spacecraft Images Mexican Volcanic Eruption

NASA Image and Video Library

2012-04-24

NASA Terra spacecraft shows Mexico active Popocatepetl volcano, located about 40 miles southeast of Mexico City, spewing water vapor, gas, ashes and glowing rocks since its most recent eruption period began in April 2012.

NASA InSight Lander in Spacecraft Back Shell

NASA Image and Video Library

2015-08-18

In this photo, NASA's InSight Mars lander is stowed inside the inverted back shell of the spacecraft's protective aeroshell. It was taken on July 13, 2015, in a clean room of spacecraft assembly and test facilities at Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver, during preparation for vibration testing of the spacecraft. InSight, for Interior Exploration Using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport, is scheduled for launch in March 2016 and landing in September 2016. It will study the deep interior of Mars to advance understanding of the early history of all rocky planets, including Earth. Note: After thorough examination, NASA managers have decided to suspend the planned March 2016 launch of the Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations Geodesy and Heat Transport (InSight) mission. The decision follows unsuccessful attempts to repair a leak in a section of the prime instrument in the science payload. http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA19813

Preparing NASA InSight Spacecraft for Vibration Test

NASA Image and Video Library

2015-08-18

Spacecraft specialists at Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver, prepare NASA's InSight spacecraft for vibration testing as part of assuring that it is ready for the rigors of launch from Earth and flight to Mars. The spacecraft is oriented with its heat shield facing up in this July 13, 2015, photograph. InSight, for Interior Exploration Using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport, is scheduled for launch in March 2016 and landing in September 2016. It will study the deep interior of Mars to advance understanding of the early history of all rocky planets, including Earth. Note: After thorough examination, NASA managers have decided to suspend the planned March 2016 launch of the Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations Geodesy and Heat Transport (InSight) mission. The decision follows unsuccessful attempts to repair a leak in a section of the prime instrument in the science payload. http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA19815

NASA Spacecraft Images Continued Thailand Flooding

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-10-28

On Oct. 25, 2011, the Chao Phraya River was in flood stage as NASA Terra spacecraft imaged flooded agricultural fields and villages depicted here in dark blue, and the sediment-laden water in shades of tan.

NASA Spacecraft Images New Mexico Wildfire

Atmospheric Science Data Center

2014-05-15

article title:  NASA Spacecraft Images New Mexico Wildfire     Left, ...   Lightning ignited the Silver Fire in western New Mexico on June 7, 2013. It has since consumed more than 137,000 acres of timber ...

NASA Spacecraft Eyes Iceland Volcanic Eruption

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-09-03

On the night of Sept. 1, 2014, NASA Earth Observing 1 EO-1 spacecraft observed the ongoing eruption at Holuhraun, Iceland. This false-color image that emphasizes the hottest areas of the vent and resulting lava flows.

NASA Spacecraft Monitors Flooding in Algeria

NASA Image and Video Library

2012-03-09

Extremely heavy rains fell at the end of February 2012 in the northern Algerian province of El Tarf, near the Tunisian border. The rainfall total was the greatest recorded in the last 30 years. This image is from NASA Terra spacecraft.

NASA STD-4005: The LEO Spacecraft Charging Design Standard

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ferguson, Dale C.

2006-01-01

Power systems with voltages higher than about 55 volts may charge in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) enough to cause destructive arcing. The NASA STD-4005 LEO Spacecraft Charging Design Standard will help spacecraft designers prevent arcing and other deleterious effects on LEO spacecraft. The Appendices, an Information Handbook based on the popular LEO Spacecraft Charging Design Guidelines by Ferguson and Hillard, serve as a useful explanation and accompaniment to the Standard.

NASA GRAIL Spacecraft in Science Collection Phase Artist Concept

NASA Image and Video Library

2012-03-27

An artist depiction of the twin spacecraft that comprise NASA GRAIL mission. During the GRAIL mission science phase, spacecraft Ebb and Flow transmit radio signals precisely defining the distance between them as they orbit the moon in formation.

NASA Spacecraft Sees 'Pac-Man' on Saturn Moon

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-12-08

NASA release date March 29, 2010 The highest-resolution-yet temperature map and images of Saturn’s icy moon Mimas obtained by NASA’s Cassini spacecraft reveal surprising patterns on the surface of the small moon, including unexpected hot regions that resemble “Pac-Man” eating a dot, and striking bands of light and dark in crater walls. The left portion of this image shows Mimas in visible light, an image that has drawn comparisons to the "Star Wars" Death Star. The right portion shows the new temperature map, which resembles 1980s video game icon "Pac Man." To learn more about this image go to: www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/news/features/2010/pac-man-m... Credit: NASA/JPL/Goddard/SWRI/SSI NASA Goddard Space Flight Center is home to the nation's largest organization of combined scientists, engineers and technologists that build spacecraft, instruments and new technology to study the Earth, the sun, our solar system, and the universe.

NASA Medical Response to Human Spacecraft Accidents

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Patlach, Robert

2010-01-01

Manned space flight is risky business. Accidents have occurred and may occur in the future. NASA's manned space flight programs, with all their successes, have had three fatal accidents, one at the launch pad and two in flight. The Apollo fire and the Challenger and Columbia accidents resulted in a loss of seventeen crewmembers. Russia's manned space flight programs have had three fatal accidents, one ground-based and two in flight. These accidents resulted in the loss of five crewmembers. Additionally, manned spacecraft have encountered numerous close calls with potential for disaster. The NASA Johnson Space Center Flight Safety Office has documented more than 70 spacecraft incidents, many of which could have become serious accidents. At the Johnson Space Center (JSC), medical contingency personnel are assigned to a Mishap Investigation Team. The team deploys to the accident site to gather and preserve evidence for the Accident Investigation Board. The JSC Medical Operations Branch has developed a flight surgeon accident response training class to capture the lessons learned from the Columbia accident. This presentation will address the NASA Mishap Investigation Team's medical objectives, planned response, and potential issues that could arise subsequent to a manned spacecraft accident. Educational Objectives are to understand the medical objectives and issues confronting the Mishap Investigation Team medical personnel subsequent to a human space flight accident.

NASA Spacecraft Images New Mexico Wildfire

NASA Image and Video Library

2013-07-02

NASA Terra spacecraft passed over the Silver Fire in western New Mexico on June 7, 2013. It has since consumed more than 137,000 acres of timber in a rugged area of the Gila National Forest that has not seen large fires for nearly a century.

NASA's Terra Spacecraft Eyes Smoke Plumes from Massive Rim Fire Near Yosemite

Atmospheric Science Data Center

2014-05-15

article title:  NASA's Terra Spacecraft Eyes Smoke Plumes from Massive Rim Fire Near Yosemite   ... on NASA's Terra spacecraft, showing extensive, brownish smoke. The imaged area measures 236 by 215 miles (380 by 346 kilometers). ...

U.K. Flooding Captured by NASA Spacecraft

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-02-19

This image acquired by NASA Terra spacecraft depicts the high water levels and flooding along the Thames River west of London as record-breaking rains covered the United Kingdom in January and February.

NASA Spacecraft Eyes Severe Flooding in Argentina

NASA Image and Video Library

2013-04-05

NASA Terra spacecraft captured this view of severe flooding in La Plata, Argentina, on April 4, 2013. Torrential rains and record flash flooding has killed more than 50 and left thousands homeless, according to news reports.

Historical Mass, Power, Schedule, and Cost Growth for NASA Spacecraft

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hayhurst, Marc R.; Bitten, Robert E.; Shinn, Stephen A.; Judnick, Daniel C.; Hallgrimson, Ingrid E.; Youngs, Megan A.

2016-01-01

Although spacecraft developers have been moving towards standardized product lines as the aerospace industry has matured, NASA's continual need to push the cutting edge of science to accomplish unique, challenging missions can still lead to spacecraft resource growth over time. This paper assesses historical mass, power, cost, and schedule growth for multiple NASA spacecraft from the last twenty years and compares to industry reserve guidelines to understand where the guidelines may fall short. Growth is assessed from project start to launch, from the time of the preliminary design review (PDR) to launch and from the time of the critical design review (CDR) to launch. Data is also assessed not just at the spacecraft bus level, but also at the subsystem level wherever possible, to help obtain further insight into possible drivers of growth. Potential recommendations to minimize spacecraft mass, power, cost, and schedule growth for future missions are also discussed.

Certification of vapor phase hydrogen peroxide sterilization process for spacecraft application

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rohatgi, N.; Schubert, W.; Koukol, R.; Foster, T. L.; Stabekis, P. D.

2002-01-01

This paper describes the selection process and research activities JPL is planning to conduct for certification of hydrogen peroxide as a NASA approved technique for sterilization of various spacecraft parts/components and entire modern spacecraft.

Nap Time for New Horizons: NASA Spacecraft Enters Hibernation

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-04-11

This is an overhead view of NASA's New Horizons full trajectory; the spacecraft has entered a hibernation phase on April 7 that will last until early September. The full article is available at https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA21589

Artist Rendering of NASA Dawn Spacecraft Approaching Mars

NASA Image and Video Library

2009-05-23

Artist rendering of NASA's Dawn spacecraft approaching Mars. Dawn, part of NASA's Discovery Program of competitively selected missions, was launched in 2007 to orbit the large asteroid Vesta and the dwarf planet Ceres. The two bodies have very different properties from each other. By observing them both with the same set of instruments, Dawn will probe the early solar system and specify the properties of each body. http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA18152

NASA Spacecraft Captures Fury of Russian Volcano

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-01-27

This nighttime thermal infrared image from NASA Terra spacecraft shows Shiveluch volcano, one of the largest and most active volcanoes in Russia Kamchatka Peninsula; the bright, hot summit lava dome is evident in the center of the image.

NASA Spacecraft Shows Location of China Quake

NASA Image and Video Library

2013-04-22

This image from NASA Terra spacecraft highlights the epicenter of a powerful magnitude 6.6 earthquake which struck Sichuan Province in southwest China on April 20, 2013. Vegetation is displayed in red; clouds and snow are in white.

DOD Recovery personnel and NASA technicians inspect Friendship 7 spacecraft

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1964-01-01

Department of Defense Recovery personnel and spacecraft technicians from NASA adn McDonnell Aircraft Corp., inspect Astronaut John Glenn's Mercury spacecraft, Friendship 7, following its return to Cape Canaveral after recovery in the Atlantic Ocean.

NASA Spacecraft Captures Image of Brazil Flooding

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-01-19

On Jan. 18, 2011, NASA Terra spacecraft captured this 3-D perspective image of the city of Nova Friburgo, Brazil. A week of torrential rains triggered a series of deadly mudslides and floods. More details about this image at the Photojournal.

Angry Indonesian Volcano Imaged by NASA Spacecraft

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-02-11

This image acquired by NASA Terra spacecraft is of Mount Sinabung, a stratovolcano located in Indonesia. In late 2013, a lava dome formed on the summit. In early January 2014, the volcano erupted, and it erupted again in early February.

NASA Spacecraft Depicts More Flooding in Thailand

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-11-10

NASA Terra spacecraft acquired this image of flooding from the Chao Phraya River, Thailand on Nov. 8, 2011. The muddy water that had overflowed the banks of the river, flooding agricultural fields and villages, is seen in dark blue and blue-gray.

NASA Juno Spacecraft Taking Shape in Denver

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-03-07

This image shows NASA Juno spacecraft undergoing environmental testing at Lockheed Martin Space Systems on Jan. 26, 2011. All 3 solar array wings are installed and stowed, and the large high-gain antenna is in place on the top of the avionics vault.

Leo Spacecraft Charging Design Guidelines: A Proposed NASA Standard

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hillard, G. B.; Ferguson, D. C.

2004-01-01

Over the past decade, Low Earth Orbiting (LEO) spacecraft have gradually required ever-increasing power levels. As a rule, this has been accomplished through the use of high voltage systems. Recent failures and anomalies on such spacecraft have been traced to various design practices and materials choices related to the high voltage solar arrays. NASA Glenn has studied these anomalies including plasma chamber testing on arrays similar to those that experienced difficulties on orbit. Many others in the community have been involved in a comprehensive effort to understand the problems and to develop practices to avoid them. The NASA Space Environments and Effects program, recognizing the timeliness of this effort, commissioned and funded a design guidelines document intended to capture the current state of understanding. This document, which was completed in the spring of 2003, has been submitted as a proposed NASA standard. We present here an overview of this document and discuss the effort to develop it as a NASA standard.

NASA Spacecraft Spots Signs of Erupting Russian Volcano

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-05-20

Winter still grips the volcanoes on Russia Kamchatka peninsula. NASA Terra spacecraft acquired this image showing the mantle of white, disturbed by dark ash entirely covering Sheveluch volcano from recent eruptions.

NASA Terra Spacecraft Images Russian Volcanic Eruption

NASA Image and Video Library

2013-01-16

Plosky Tolbachik volcano in Russia far eastern Kamchatka peninsula erupted on Nov. 27, 2012, for the first time in 35 years, sending clouds of ash to the height of more than 9,800 feet 3,000 meters in this image from NASA Terra spacecraft.

NASA Spacecraft Captures Effects of U.S. Drought

NASA Image and Video Library

2012-09-06

Two satellite images acquired by NASA Terra spacecraft, obtained about 10 years apart, clearly illustrate the effects of the near-historic drought conditions in southwestern Kansas. Farmers are among the hardest hit.

NASA's OSIRIS-REx Spacecraft In Thermal Vacuum Testing

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-12-08

The OSIRIS-REx spacecraft being lifted into the thermal vacuum chamber at Lockheed Martin for environmental testing. Credits: Lockheed Martin Read more: www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/2016/osiris-rex-in-thermal-vac

Flooding on the Mississippi River Captured by NASA Spacecraft

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-01-20

This image acquired on Jan. 17, 2016 by NASA Terra spacecraft shows major flooding along the Mississippi River, affecting Missouri, Illinois, Arkansas and Tennessee. As of January 17, flood warnings were issued for the area around Baton Rouge, Louisiana, as the river crested at 43.3 feet (13.1 meters), 8 feet (2.4 meters) above flood stage. Shipping and industrial activities were significantly affected; low-lying areas were flooded, and agricultural operations were impacted on the west side of the river. This image from the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) on NASA's Terra spacecraft was acquired Jan. 17, 2016, covers an area of 23.6 by 23.6 miles (38 by 38 kilometers), and is located at 30.6 degrees north, 91.3 degrees west. http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA20364

Spacecraft Hybrid Control At NASA: A Look Back, Current Initiatives, and Some Future Considerations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dennehy, Neil

2014-01-01

There is a heightened interest within NASA for the design, development, and flight implementation of mixed actuator hybrid attitude control systems for science spacecraft that have less than three functional reaction wheel actuators. This interest is driven by a number of recent reaction wheels failures on aging, but still scientifically productive, NASA spacecraft. This paper describes the highlights of the first NASA Cross-Center Hybrid Control Workshop that was held in Greenbelt, Maryland in April of 2013 under the sponsorship of the NASA Engineering and Safety Center (NESC). A brief historical summary of NASA's past experiences with spacecraft mixed actuator hybrid attitude control approaches, some of which were implemented on-orbit, will be provided. This paper will also convey some of the lessons learned and best practices captured at that workshop. Some relevant recent and current hybrid control activities will be described with an emphasis on work in support of a repurposed Kepler spacecraft. Specific technical areas for future considerations regarding spacecraft hybrid control will also be identified.

Survey of Command Execution Systems for NASA Spacecraft and Robots

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Verma, Vandi; Jonsson, Ari; Simmons, Reid; Estlin, Tara; Levinson, Rich

2005-01-01

NASA spacecraft and robots operate at long distances from Earth Command sequences generated manually, or by automated planners on Earth, must eventually be executed autonomously onboard the spacecraft or robot. Software systems that execute commands onboard are known variously as execution systems, virtual machines, or sequence engines. Every robotic system requires some sort of execution system, but the level of autonomy and type of control they are designed for varies greatly. This paper presents a survey of execution systems with a focus on systems relevant to NASA missions.

NASA Spacecraft Spots Large Eruption of Russian Volcano

NASA Image and Video Library

2012-06-07

NASA Terra spacecraft acquired this image on June 2, 2012 of Sheveluch, one of the most active volcanoes on the Kamchatka peninsula, with frequent explosive events that can disrupt air traffic over the northern Pacific.

NASA Spacecraft Images Severe Flooding in South Asia

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-09-27

NASA Terra spacecraft captured this image of the city of Jhudo, Pakistan, and surrounding countryside on Sept. 24, 2011. Torrential monsoon rains in south Asia have displaced hundreds of thousands of residents in India, Pakistan and Thailand.

NASA Spacecraft Images Some of Earth Newest Real

NASA Image and Video Library

2012-01-20

In December, 2011, NASA Terra spacecraft captured this image of a new volcanic island forming in the Red Sea. This region is part of the Red Sea Rift where the African and Arabian tectonic plates are pulling apart.

NASA Spacecraft Images One of Earth Iceberg Incubators

NASA Image and Video Library

2012-04-13

Acquired by NASA Terra spacecraft, this image shows the west coast of Greenland, one of Earth premiere incubators for icebergs -- large blocks of land ice that break off from glaciers or ice shelves and float in the ocean.

Multi-kilowatt modularized spacecraft power processing system development

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Andrews, R. E.; Hayden, J. H.; Hedges, R. T.; Rehmann, D. W.

1975-01-01

A review of existing information pertaining to spacecraft power processing systems and equipment was accomplished with a view towards applicability to the modularization of multi-kilowatt power processors. Power requirements for future spacecraft were determined from the NASA mission model-shuttle systems payload data study which provided the limits for modular power equipment capabilities. Three power processing systems were compared to evaluation criteria to select the system best suited for modularity. The shunt regulated direct energy transfer system was selected by this analysis for a conceptual design effort which produced equipment specifications, schematics, envelope drawings, and power module configurations.

Spacecraft Fire Safety Research at NASA Glenn Research Center

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Meyer, Marit

2016-01-01

Appropriate design of fire detection systems requires knowledge of both the expected fire signature and the background aerosol levels. Terrestrial fire detection systems have been developed based on extensive study of terrestrial fires. Unfortunately there is no corresponding data set for spacecraft fires and consequently the fire detectors in current spacecraft were developed based upon terrestrial designs. In low gravity, buoyant flow is negligible which causes particles to concentrate at the smoke source, increasing their residence time, and increasing the transport time to smoke detectors. Microgravity fires have significantly different structure than those in 1-g which can change the formation history of the smoke particles. Finally the materials used in spacecraft are different from typical terrestrial environments where smoke properties have been evaluated. It is critically important to detect a fire in its early phase before a flame is established, given the fixed volume of air on any spacecraft. Consequently, the primary target for spacecraft fire detection is pyrolysis products rather than soot. Experimental investigations have been performed at three different NASA facilities which characterize smoke aerosols from overheating common spacecraft materials. The earliest effort consists of aerosol measurements in low gravity, called the Smoke Aerosol Measurement Experiment (SAME), and subsequent ground-based testing of SAME smoke in 55-gallon drums with an aerosol reference instrument. Another set of experiments were performed at NASAs Johnson Space Center White Sands Test Facility (WSTF), with additional fuels and an alternate smoke production method. Measurements of these smoke products include mass and number concentration, and a thermal precipitator was designed for this investigation to capture particles for microscopic analysis. The final experiments presented are from NASAs Gases and Aerosols from Smoldering Polymers (GASP) Laboratory, with selected

NASA EO-1 Spacecraft Images Chile Volcanic Eruption

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-06-17

On June 14, 2011, NASA Earth Observing-1 EO-1 spacecraft obtained this image showing ash-rich volcanic plume billowing out of the vent, punching through a low cloud layer. The plume grey color is a reflection of its ash content.

Deadly Everest Avalanche Site Spotted by NASA Spacecraft

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-04-28

On Friday, April 26, 2014, an avalanche on Mount Everest killed at least 13 Sherpa guides. NASA Terra spacecraft looked toward the northeast, with Mount Everest center, and Lhotse, the fourth-highest mountain on Earth, on the skyline to right center.

NASA Spacecraft Images Wildfire Near Yosemite National Park

NASA Image and Video Library

2013-06-21

This image, acquired by NASA Terra spacecraft, is of the Carstens, Calif. wildfire which continues to burn in the foothills west of Yosemite National Park. Vegetation is displayed in green and burned and bare areas are dark to light gray.

Costa Rica Turrialba Volcano, Continued Activity seen by NASA Spacecraft

NASA Image and Video Library

2015-04-06

The March, 2015 eruption of Turrialba Volcano in Costa Rica caught everyone by surprise as seen in this image from the ASTER instrument onboard NASA Terra spacecraft. Activity had greatly diminished when the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) instrument on NASA's Terra spacecraft acquired this nighttime thermal infrared image on April 2, 2015. The hot summit crater appears in white, indicating continued volcanic unrest. To the west, Poas Volcano's hot crater lake also appears white, though its temperature is considerably less than Turrialba's crater. The large image covers an area of 28 by 39 miles (45 by 63 kilometers); the insets 2 by 2 miles (3.1 by 3.1 kilometers). The image is centered at 10.1 degrees north, 84 degrees west. http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA19355

NASA astronaut Rex Walheim checks out the Dragon spacecraft und

NASA Image and Video Library

2012-01-30

HAWTHORNE, Calif. -- NASA astronaut Rex Walheim checks out the Dragon spacecraft under development by Space Exploration Technologies SpaceX of Hawthorne, Calif., for the agency's Commercial Crew Program. In 2011, NASA selected SpaceX during Commercial Crew Development Round 2 CCDev2) activities to mature the design and development of a crew transportation system with the overall goal of accelerating a United States-led capability to the International Space Station. The goal of CCP is to drive down the cost of space travel as well as open up space to more people than ever before by balancing industry’s own innovative capabilities with NASA's 50 years of human spaceflight experience. Six other aerospace companies also are maturing launch vehicle and spacecraft designs under CCDev2, including Alliant Techsystems Inc. ATK, The Boeing Co., Excalibur Almaz Inc., Blue Origin, Sierra Nevada, and United Launch Alliance ULA. For more information, visit www.nasa.gov/commercialcrew. Image credit: Space Exploration Technologies

Site of Destructive China Temblor Imaged by NASA Spacecraft

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-08-05

The star on this image from the NASA Terra spacecraft indicates the eipcenter of a magnitude 6.1 earthquake which truck in southern China Yunnan province, toppling thousands of homes and causing numerous casualties.

America in Space: The First Decade - NASA Spacecraft

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1969-01-01

It is ten years since the National Aeronautics and Space Administration was created to explore space and to continue the American efforts that had already begun with the launch of Explorer 1 on January 31, 1958. Many changes have occurred since that tumbling, 31 -pound cylinder went into an Earth orbit. "NASA Spacecraft" represents one of the broad avenues selected by NASA as an approach to its objective of making widely known the progress that has taken place in its program of space exploration. This report is a vivid illustration of the changes that have occurred and the complexities that have developed. Here one finds descriptions of the present family of spacecraft some small, some large; some spinoriented, some accurately attitude-controlled; some manned, some automated; some in low orbits, some in trajectories to the Moon and the planets; some free in space until they expire, others commanded to return to the Earth or to land on the Moon

NASA Spacecraft Images Drought Impacts on the Mighty Mississippi

NASA Image and Video Library

2012-08-25

NASA Terra spacecraft acquired this image on Aug. 24, 2012, 13 miles 20 kilometers north of Vicksburg, Miss., as drought continued to afflict the U.S. Midwest, water levels of the Mississippi River approached historic lows.

NASA Spacecraft Views Aftermath of Texas Floods

NASA Image and Video Library

2015-06-02

The torrential rains that lashed Texas in late May 2015 caused widespread flooding and devastation. Now that skies have partially cleared, evidence of the excessive water can still be seen in this image, acquired June 1, 2015 by the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) instrument on NASA's Terra spacecraft. Located south of San Antonio, the Nueces River was one of many that overflowed its banks, sending water into adjacent fields and towns. The image covers an area of 23 by 13 miles (37 by 21 kilometers), and is located at 28.2 degrees north, 99 degrees west. http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA19681

Spacecraft Electrical Connector Selection and Application Processes

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Iannello, Chris; Davis, Mitchell I; Kichak, Robert A.; Slenski, George

2009-01-01

This assessment was initiated by the NASA Engineering & Safety Center (NESC) after a number of recent "high profile" connector problems, the most visible and publicized of these being the problem with the Space Shuttle's Engine Cut-Off System cryogenic feed-thru connector. The NESC commissioned a review of NASA's connector selection and application processes for space flight applications, including how lessons learned and past problem records are fed back into the processes to avoid recurring issues. Team members were primarily from the various NASA Centers and included connector and electrical parts specialists. The commissioned study was conducted on spacecraft connector selection and application processes at NASA Centers. The team also compared the NASA spacecraft connector selection and application process to the military process, identified recent high profile connector failures, and analyzed problem report data looking for trends and common occurrences. The team characterized NASA's connector problem experience into a list of top connector issues based on anecdotal evidence of a system's impact and commonality between Centers. These top issues are as follows, in no particular rank order: electrically shorted, bent and/or recessed contact pins, contact pin/socket contamination leading to electrically open or intermittencies, connector plating corrosion or corrosion of connector components, low or inadequate contact pin retention forces, contact crimp failures, unmated connectors and mis-wiring due to workmanship errors during installation or maintenance, loose connectors due to manufacturing defects such as wavy washer and worn bayonet retention, damaged connector elastomeric seals and cryogenic connector failure. A survey was also conducted of SAE Connector AE-8C1 committee members regarding their experience relative to the NASA concerns on connectors. The most common responses in order of occurrence were contact retention, plating issues, worn-out or damaged

Surface refractivity measurements at NASA spacecraft tracking sites

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Schmid, P. E.

1972-01-01

High-accuracy spacecraft tracking requires tropospheric modeling which is generally scaled by either estimated or measured values of surface refractivity. This report summarizes the results of a worldwide surface-refractivity test conducted in 1968 in support of the Apollo program. The results are directly applicable to all NASA radio-tracking systems.

Persistent Flooding in Louisiana Imaged by NASA Spacecraft

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-03-21

Torrential rains in the mid-South of the United States in mid-March 2016 produced flooding throughout Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi. On March 21, 2016, the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) instrument on NASA's Terra spacecraft acquired this image showing persistent flooding along the Mississippi River between the Louisiana cities of Alexandria and Natchitoches. The image covers an area of 25 to 36 miles (41 by 58 kilometers), and is located at 31.5 degrees north, 92.8 degrees west. http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA20533

Progress of Hawaii Lava Flow Tracked by NASA Spacecraft

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-09-24

On June 27, 2014, a new vent opened on Hawaii Puu Oo vent, on the eastern flank of Kilauea volcano. NASA Terra spacecraft shows the hot lava flow in white, extending about 11 miles 17 kilometers from the vent.

Nighttime Look at Ambrym Volcano, Vanuatu by NASA Spacecraft

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-02-12

Ambrym volcano in Vanuatu is one of the most active volcanoes in the world. A large summit caldera contains two active vent complexes, Marum and Benbow is seen in this February 12, 2014 nighttime thermal infrared image from NASA Terra spacecraft.

NASA's spacecraft data system

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cudmore, Alan; Flanegan, Mark

1993-01-01

The NASA Small Explorer Data System (SEDS), a space flight data system developed to support the Small Explorer (SMEX) project, is addressed. The system was flown on the Solar Anomalous Magnetospheric Particle Explorer (SAMPEX) SMEX mission, and with reconfiguration for different requirements will fly on the X-ray Timing Explorer (XTE) and the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM). SEDS is also foreseen for the Hubble repair mission. Its name was changed to Spacecraft Data System (SDS) in view of expansions. Objectives, SDS hardware, and software are described. Each SDS box contains two computers, data storage memory, uplink (command) reception circuitry, downlink (telemetry) encoding circuitry, Instrument Telemetry Controller (ITC), and spacecraft timing circuitry. The SDS communicates with other subsystems over the MIL-STD-1773 data bus. The SDS software uses a real time Operating System (OS) and the C language. The OS layer, communications and scheduling layer, application task layer, and diagnostic software, are described. Decisions on the use of advanced technologies, such as ASIC's (Application Specific Integrated Circuits) and fiber optics, led to technical improvements, such as lower power and weight, without increasing the risk associated with the data system. The result was a successful SAMPEX development, integration and test, and mission using SEDS, and the upgrading of that system to SDS for TRMM and XTE.

NASA Spacecraft Views Erupting Chilean Volcano

NASA Image and Video Library

2015-03-13

On March 3, 2015, Chile's Villarrica volcano erupted, forcing the evacuation of thousands of people. The eruption deposited a layer of ash over the volcano's eastern slope, blanketing and darkening the normal winter snow cover. The eruption and its effects were captured by the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) instrument on NASA's Terra spacecraft on March 9. Black flows on the other flanks are mud and ash flows. Vegetation is displayed in red colors. The thermal infrared image shows hot spots (white colored) at the summit crater, indicating continuing volcanic activity. The ash blanket is warmer (brighter) than the cold snow (black). The image covers an area of 13.5 by 16.5 kilometers, and is located at 39.4 degrees south, 71.9 degrees west. http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA19241

NASA Spacecraft Captures 3-D View of Massive Australian Wildfire

NASA Image and Video Library

2013-02-05

This 3-D view was created from data acquired Feb. 4, 2013 by NASA Terra spacecraft showing a massive wildfire which damaged Australia largest optical astronomy facility, the Siding Spring Observatory.

NASA Spacecraft Shows Before/After of Typhoon Haiyan Devastation

NASA Image and Video Library

2013-11-20

On Nov. 8, 2013, NASA Terra spacecraft acquired this image of Super Typhoon Haiyan as it tore across the central Philippines, leaving a trail of destruction in its path. Among the worst-hit areas is eastern Leyte island and the city of Tacloban.

NASA Spacecraft Images Hudson River Flooding from Hurricane Irene

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-09-09

Brown and tan muddy water flows down the Hudson River are seen in this image acquired by NASA Terra spacecraft on Sept. 1, 2011. After the torrential rains from Hurricane Irene, many rivers in the eastern United States were filled with sediment.

NASA Spacecraft Watches as Eruption Reshapes African Volcano

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-02-23

On Jan. 24, 2017, the Hyperion Imager on NASA's Earth Observing 1 (EO-1) spacecraft observed a new eruption at Erta'Ale volcano, Ethiopia, from an altitude of 438 miles (705 kilometers). Data were collected at a resolution of 98 feet (30 meters) per pixel at different visible and infrared wavelengths and were combined to create these images. A visible-wavelength image is on the left. An infrared image is shown on the right. The infrared image emphasizes the hottest areas and reveals a spectacular rift eruption, where a crack opens and lava gushes forth, fountaining into the air. The lava flows spread away from the crack. Erta'Ale is the location of a long-lived lava lake, and it remains to be seen if this survives this new eruption. The observation was scheduled via the Volcano Sensor Web, a network of sensors linked by artificial intelligence software to create an autonomous global monitoring program of satellite observations of volcanoes. The Volcano Sensor Web was alerted to this new activity by data from another spacecraft. http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA11239

NASA Engineering Design Challenges: Spacecraft Structures. EP-2008-09-121-MSFC

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Haddad, Nick; McWilliams, Harold; Wagoner, Paul

2007-01-01

NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) Engineers at Marshall Space Flight Center along with their partners at other NASA centers, and in private industry, are designing and beginning to develop the next generation of spacecraft to transport cargo, equipment, and human explorers to space. These vehicles are part of the Constellation…

Tracking and data relay satellite system: NASA's new spacecraft data acquisition system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schneider, W. C.; Garman, A. A.

The growth in NASA's ground network complexity and cost triggered a search for an alternative. Through a lease service contract, Western Union will provide to NASA 10 years of space communications services with a Tracking and Data Relay Satellite System (TDRSS). A constellation of four operating satellites in geostationary orbit and a single ground terminal will provide complete tracking, telemetry and command service for all of NASA's Earth orbital satellites below an altitude of 12,000 km. The system is shared: two satellites will be dedicated to NASA service; a third will provide backup as a shared spare; the fourth satellite will be dedicated to Western Union's Advanced Westar commercial service. Western Union will operate the ground terminal and provide operational satellite control. NASA's Network Control Center will provide the focal point for scheduling user services and controlling the interface between TDRSS and the rest of the NASA communications network, project control centers and data processing facilities. TDRSS single access user spacecraft data systems should be designed for efficient time shared data relay support. Reimbursement policy and rate structure for non-NASA users are currently being developed.

The NASA Robotic Conjunction Assessment Process: Overview and Operational Experiences

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Newman, Lauri Kraft

2008-01-01

Orbital debris poses a significant threat to spacecraft health and safety. Recent events such as China's anti-satellite test and the Breeze-M rocket explosion have led to an even greater awareness and concern in the satellite community. Therefore, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has established requirements that routine conjunction assessment screening shall be performed for all maneuverable spacecraft having perigees less than 2000 km or within 200 km of geosynchronous altitude. NASA s Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) has developed an operational collision risk assessment process to protect NASA s high-value unmanned (robotic) assets that has been in use since January 2005. This paper provides an overview of the NASA robotic conjunction assessment process, including descriptions of the new tools developed to analyze close approach data and of the risk mitigation strategies employed. In addition, statistical data describing the number of conjunctions experienced are presented. A debris avoidance maneuver performed by Aura in June of 2008 is described in detail to illustrate the process.

NASA Spacecraft Captures Swath of Destruction from Deadly Oklahoma Tornado

NASA Image and Video Library

2013-06-05

The Newcastle-Moore EF-5 tornado ripped through central Oklahoma on May 20, 2013, killing 24 people and leaving behind more than billion in damage. This image was acquired NASA Terra spacecraft on June 2, 2013.

NASA Spacecraft Images Massive Crack in Antarctica Pine Island Glacier

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-11-15

This image from NASA Terra spacecraft shows a massive crack across the Pine Island Glacier, a major ice stream that drains the West Antarctic Ice Sheet. Eventually, the crack will extend all the way across the glacier.

Spacecraft environmental interactions: A joint Air Force and NASA research and technology program

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Pike, C. P.; Purvis, C. K.; Hudson, W. R.

1985-01-01

A joint Air Force/NASA comprehensive research and technology program on spacecraft environmental interactions to develop technology to control interactions between large spacecraft systems and the charged-particle environment of space is described. This technology will support NASA/Department of Defense operations of the shuttle/IUS, shuttle/Centaur, and the force application and surveillance and detection missions, planning for transatmospheric vehicles and the NASA space station, and the AFSC military space system technology model. The program consists of combined contractual and in-house efforts aimed at understanding spacecraft environmental interaction phenomena and relating results of ground-based tests to space conditions. A concerted effort is being made to identify project-related environmental interactions of concern. The basic properties of materials are being investigated to develop or modify the materials as needed. A group simulation investigation is evaluating basic plasma interaction phenomena to provide inputs to the analytical modeling investigation. Systems performance is being evaluated by both groundbased tests and analysis.

Ashy Aftermath of Indonesian Volcano Eruption seen by NASA Spacecraft

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-02-23

On Feb. 13, 2014, violent eruption of Kelud stratovolcano in Java, Indonesia sent volcanic ash covering an area of 70,000 square miles, prompting the evacuation of tens of thousands of people. This image is from NASA Terra spacecraft.

Compendium of Current Single Event Effects for Candidate Spacecraft Electronics for NASA

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

O'Bryan, Martha V.; Label, Kenneth A.; Chen, Dakai; Campola, Michael J.; Casey, Megan C.; Lauenstein, Jean-Marie; Pellish, Jonathan A.; Ladbury, Raymond L.; Berg, Melanie D.

2015-01-01

NASA spacecraft are subjected to a harsh space environment that includes exposure to various types of ionizing radiation. The performance of electronic devices in a space radiation environment are often limited by their susceptibility to single event effects (SEE). Ground-based testing is used to evaluate candidate spacecraft electronics to determine risk to spaceflight applications. Interpreting the results of radiation testing of complex devices is and adequate understanding of the test condition is critical. Studies discussed herein were undertaken to establish the application-specific sensitivities of candidate spacecraft and emerging electronic devices to single-event upset (SEU), single-event latchup (SEL), single-event gate rupture (SEGR), single-event burnout (SEB), and single-event transient (SET). For total ionizing dose (TID) and displacement damage dose (DDD) results, see a companion paper submitted to the 2015 Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Nuclear and Space Radiation Effects Conference (NSREC) Radiation Effects Data Workshop (REDW) entitled "compendium of Current Total Ionizing Dose and Displacement Damage for Candidate Spacecraft Electronics for NASA by M. Campola, et al.

NASA Medical Response to Human Spacecraft Accidents

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Patlach, Robert

2011-01-01

This slide presentation reviews NASA's role in the response to spacecraft accidents that involve human fatalities or injuries. Particular attention is given to the work of the Mishap Investigation Team (MIT), the first response to the accidents and the interface to the accident investigation board. The MIT does not investigate the accident, but the objective of the MIT is to gather, guard, preserve and document the evidence. The primary medical objectives of the MIT is to receive, analyze, identify, and transport human remains, provide assistance in the recovery effort, and to provide family Casualty Coordinators with latest recovery information. The MIT while it does not determine the cause of the accident, it acts as the fact gathering arm of the Mishap Investigation Board (MIB), which when it is activated may chose to continue to use the MIT as its field investigation resource. The MIT membership and the specific responsibilities and tasks of the flight surgeon is reviewed. The current law establishing the process is also reviewed.

NASA Spacecraft Monitors Continuing Burn of Arizona Largest-Ever Wildfire

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-06-22

NASA Terra spacecraft acquired this image of the Wallow fire in Arizona on June 21, 2011; vegetation appears in red, bare ground in shades of tan, burned areas in black and very-dark red; and smoke from the active fire front appears gray.

NASA End-to-End Data System /NEEDS/ information adaptive system - Performing image processing onboard the spacecraft

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kelly, W. L.; Howle, W. M.; Meredith, B. D.

1980-01-01

The Information Adaptive System (IAS) is an element of the NASA End-to-End Data System (NEEDS) Phase II and is focused toward onbaord image processing. Since the IAS is a data preprocessing system which is closely coupled to the sensor system, it serves as a first step in providing a 'Smart' imaging sensor. Some of the functions planned for the IAS include sensor response nonuniformity correction, geometric correction, data set selection, data formatting, packetization, and adaptive system control. The inclusion of these sensor data preprocessing functions onboard the spacecraft will significantly improve the extraction of information from the sensor data in a timely and cost effective manner and provide the opportunity to design sensor systems which can be reconfigured in near real time for optimum performance. The purpose of this paper is to present the preliminary design of the IAS and the plans for its development.

Activity at Europe Most Active Volcano Eyed by NASA Spacecraft

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-05-27

Mt. Etna, Sicily, Italy, is Europe most active volcano. In mid-May 2016, Mt. Etna put on a display of lava fountaining, ash clouds and lava flows. Three of the four summit craters were active. NASA Terra spacecraft acquired this image on May 26, 2016.

NASA Workshop on Hybrid (Mixed-Actuator) Spacecraft Attitude Control

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dennehy, Cornelius J.; Kunz, Nans

2014-01-01

At the request of the Science Mission Directorate Chief Engineer, the NASA Technical Fellow for Guidance, Navigation & Control assembled and facilitated a workshop on Spacecraft Hybrid Attitude Control. This multi-Center, academic, and industry workshop, sponsored by the NASA Engineering and Safety Center (NESC), was held in April 2013 to unite nationwide experts to present and discuss the various innovative solutions, techniques, and lessons learned regarding the development and implementation of the various hybrid attitude control system solutions investigated or implemented. This report attempts to document these key lessons learned with the 16 findings and 9 NESC recommendations.

STS-34 Galileo processing at KSC's SAEF-2 planetary spacecraft facility

NASA Image and Video Library

1989-07-21

At the Kennedy Space Center's (KSC's) Spacecraft and Assembly Encapsulation Facility 2 (SAEF-2), the planetary spacecraft checkout facility, clean-suited technicians work on the Galileo spacecraft prior to moving it to the Vehicle Processing Facility (VPF) for mating with the inertial upper stage (IUS). Galileo is scheduled for launch aboard Atlantis, Orbiter Vehicle (OV) 104, on Space Shuttle Mission STS-34 in October 1989. It will be sent to the planet Jupiter, a journey which will taken more than six years to complete. In December 1995 as the two and one half ton spacecraft orbits Jupiter with its ten scientific instruments, a probe will be released to parachute into the Jovian atmosphere. NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) manages the Galileo project. View provided by KSC.

An Evaluation of a High Pressure Regulator for NASA's Robotic Lunar Lander Spacecraft

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Burnside, Christopher G.; Trinh, Huu P.; Pedersen, Kevin W.

2013-01-01

The Robotic Lunar Lander (RLL) development project office at NASA Marshall Space Flight Center is currently studying several lunar surface science mission concepts. The focus is on spacecraft carrying multiple science instruments and power systems that will allow extended operations on the lunar surface or other air-less bodies in the solar system. Initial trade studies of launch vehicle options indicate the spacecraft will be significantly mass and volume constrained. Because of the investment by the DOD in low mass, highly volume efficient components, NASA has investigated the potential integration of some of these technologies in space science applications. A 10,000 psig helium pressure regulator test activity has been conducted as part of the overall risk reduction testing for the RLL spacecraft. The regulator was subjected to typical NASA acceptance testing to assess the regulator response to the expected RLL mission requirements. The test results show the regulator can supply helium at a stable outlet pressure of 740 psig within a +/- 5% tolerance band and maintain a lock-up pressure less than the +5% above nominal outlet pressure for all tests conducted. Numerous leak tests demonstrated leakage less than 10-3 standard cubic centimeters per second (SCCS) for the internal seat leakage at lock-up and less than 10-5 SCCS for external leakage through the regulator body. The successful test has shown the potential for 10,000 psig helium systems in NASA spacecraft and has reduced risk associated with hardware availability and hardware ability to meet RLL mission requirements.

NASA's small spacecraft technology initiative _Clark_ spacecraft

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hayduk, Robert J.; Scott, Walter S.; Walberg, Gerald D.; Butts, James J.; Starr, Richard D.

1996-11-01

The Small Satellite Technology Initiative (SSTI) is a National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) program to demonstrate smaller, high technology satellites constructed rapidly and less expensively. Under SSTI, NASA funded the development of "Clark," a high technology demonstration satellite to provide 3-m resolution panchromatic and 15-m resolution multispectral images, as well as collect atmospheric constituent and cosmic x-ray data. The 690-Ib. satellite, to be launched in early 1997, will be in a 476 km, circular, sun-synchronous polar orbit. This paper describes the program objectives, the technical characteristics of the sensors and satellite, image processing, archiving and distribution. Data archiving and distribution will be performed by NASA Stennis Space Center and by the EROS Data Center, Sioux Falls, South Dakota, USA.

NASA Spacecraft Peers Into the Mouth of the Galapagos Wolf Volcano

NASA Image and Video Library

2015-06-12

On May 26, 2015, Wolf Volcano on Isabela Island in the Galapagos Islands erupted for the first time in 33 years. This image was acquired by NASA Terra spacecraft on June 11, 2015, after the eruption had quieted.

Progress of Icelandic Lava Flows Charted by NASA EO-1 Spacecraft

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-09-09

On the night of Sept. 6, 2014 NASA Earth Observing 1 EO-1 spacecraft observed the ongoing eruption at Holuhraun, Iceland. Partially covered by clouds, this scene shows the extent of the lava flows that have been erupting.

NASA Aqua Spacecraft Captures Start of West Coast Atmospheric River Event

NASA Image and Video Library

2012-11-29

NASA Aqua spacecraft captured this infrared image of the first of a series of storms approaching the Pacific Northwest at 2141 UTC 1:41 p.m. PST on Nov. 28, 2012, marking the beginning of an atmospheric river event.

TDRS-M Spacecraft Processing at Astrotech

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-07-13

Inside the Astrotech facility in Titusville, Florida, NASA's Tracking and Data Relay Satellite, TDRS-M, is undergoing final checkouts in a test cell behind a large door. The spacecraft soon will be encapsulated in its payload fairing, seen on the right. TDRS-M is the latest spacecraft destined for the agency's constellation of communications satellites that allows nearly continuous contact with orbiting spacecraft ranging from the International Space Station and Hubble Space Telescope to the array of scientific observatories. Liftoff atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket is scheduled to take place from Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station at 9:02 a.m. EDT Aug. 3, 2017.

Impact of Destructive California Wildfire Captured by NASA Spacecraft

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-07-01

The Erskine wildfire, northeast of Bakersfield, California, is the state's largest to date in 2016. After starting on June 23, the fire has consumed 47,000 acres (19,020 hectares), destroyed more than 250 single residences, and is responsible for two fatalities. As of June 30, the fire was 70 percent contained; full containment was estimated by July 5. This image, obtained June 30 by the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) instrument on NASA's Terra spacecraft, displays vegetation in red. The image covers an area of 19 by 21 miles (31 by 33 kilometers), and is located at 35.6 degrees north, 118.5 degrees west. http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA20741

Effects of Devastating Australian Bushfires Seen by NASA Spacecraft

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-01-19

The summer, dry season in Australia is marked by small to massive bushfires. The remote town of Yarloop, about 75 miles (120 kilometers) south of the Western Australian capital of Perth, was destroyed as part of a 100,000-acre (405-square kilometer) blaze that started on January 7, 2016. The fire burned trees in the forested mountains, and extended down to the coast. This image, from the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) instrument on NASA's Terra spacecraft, covers an area of 25 by 34 miles (40 by 54 kilometers). It was acquired Jan. 15, 2016, and is located at 32.9 degrees south, 115.9 degrees east. http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA20363

The exploration of outer space with cameras: A history of the NASA unmanned spacecraft missions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mirabito, M. M.

The use of television cameras and other video imaging devices to explore the solar system's planetary bodies with unmanned spacecraft is chronicled. Attention is given to the missions and the imaging devices, beginning with the Ranger 7 moon mission, which featured the first successfully operated electrooptical subsystem, six television cameras with vidicon image sensors. NASA established a network of parabolic, ground-based antennas on the earth (the Deep Space Network) to receive signals from spacecraft travelling farther than 16,000 km into space. The image processing and enhancement techniques used to convert spacecraft data transmissions into black and white and color photographs are described, together with the technological requirements that drove the development of the various systems. Terrestrial applications of the planetary imaging systems are explored, including medical and educational uses. Finally, the implementation and functional characteristics of CCDs are detailed, noting their installation on the Space Telescope.

Spacecraft Bus and Platform Technology Development under the NASA ISPT Program

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Anderson, David J.; Munk, Michelle M.; Pencil, Eric; Dankanich, John; Glaab, Louis; Peterson, Todd

2013-01-01

The In-Space Propulsion Technology (ISPT) program is developing spacecraft bus and platform technologies that will enable or enhance NASA robotic science missions. The ISPT program is currently developing technology in four areas that include Propulsion System Technologies (electric and chemical), Entry Vehicle Technologies (aerocapture and Earth entry vehicles), Spacecraft Bus and Sample Return Propulsion Technologies (components and ascent vehicles), and Systems/Mission Analysis. Three technologies are ready for near-term flight infusion: 1) the high-temperature Advanced Material Bipropellant Rocket (AMBR) engine providing higher performance; 2) NASA s Evolutionary Xenon Thruster (NEXT) ion propulsion system, a 0.6-7 kW throttle-able gridded ion system; and 3) Aerocapture technology development with investments in a family of thermal protection system (TPS) materials and structures; guidance, navigation, and control (GN&C) models of blunt-body rigid aeroshells; and aerothermal effect models. Two component technologies being developed with flight infusion in mind are the Advanced Xenon Flow Control System, and ultra-lightweight propellant tank technologies. Future direction for ISPT are technologies that relate to sample return missions and other spacecraft bus technology needs like: 1) Mars Ascent Vehicles (MAV); 2) multi-mission technologies for Earth Entry Vehicles (MMEEV) for sample return missions; and 3) electric propulsion for sample return and low cost missions. These technologies are more vehicle and mission-focused, and present a different set of technology development and infusion steps beyond those previously implemented. The Systems/Mission Analysis area is focused on developing tools and assessing the application of propulsion and spacecraft bus technologies to a wide variety of mission concepts. These in-space propulsion technologies are applicable, and potentially enabling for future NASA Discovery, New Frontiers, and sample return missions

Spacecraft Bus and Platform Technology Development under the NASA ISPT Program

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Anderson, David J.; Munk, Michelle M.; Pencil, Eric J.; Dankanich, John W.; Glaab, Louis J.; Peterson, Todd T.

2013-01-01

The In-Space Propulsion Technology (ISPT) program is developing spacecraft bus and platform technologies that will enable or enhance NASA robotic science missions. The ISPT program is currently developing technology in four areas that include Propulsion System Technologies (electric and chemical), Entry Vehicle Technologies (aerocapture and Earth entry vehicles), Spacecraft Bus and Sample Return Propulsion Technologies (components and ascent vehicles), and Systems/Mission Analysis. Three technologies are ready for near-term flight infusion: 1) the high-temperature Advanced Material Bipropellant Rocket (AMBR) engine providing higher performance 2) NASAs Evolutionary Xenon Thruster (NEXT) ion propulsion system, a 0.6-7 kW throttle-able gridded ion system and 3) Aerocapture technology development with investments in a family of thermal protection system (TPS) materials and structures guidance, navigation, and control (GN&C) models of blunt-body rigid aeroshells and aerothermal effect models. Two component technologies being developed with flight infusion in mind are the Advanced Xenon Flow Control System, and ultra-lightweight propellant tank technologies. Future direction for ISPT are technologies that relate to sample return missions and other spacecraft bus technology needs like: 1) Mars Ascent Vehicles (MAV) 2) multi-mission technologies for Earth Entry Vehicles (MMEEV) for sample return missions and 3) electric propulsion for sample return and low cost missions. These technologies are more vehicle and mission-focused, and present a different set of technology development and infusion steps beyond those previously implemented. The Systems/Mission Analysis area is focused on developing tools and assessing the application of propulsion and spacecraft bus technologies to a wide variety of mission concepts. These in-space propulsion technologies are applicable, and potentially enabling for future NASA Discovery, New Frontiers, and sample return missions currently

NASA Facts: Edison Demonstration of Spacecraft Networks (EDSN) Mission

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ord, Stephen; Yost, Bruce D.; Petro, Andrew J.

2013-01-01

NASA's Edison Demonstration of Smallsat Networks (EDSN) mission will launch and deploy a swarm of 8 cubesats into a loose formation approximately 500 km above Earth. EDSN will develop technology to send multiple, advanced, yet affordable nanosatellites into space with cross-link communications to enable a wide array of scientific, commercial, and academic research. Other goals of the mission include lowering the cost and shortening the development time for future small spacecraft.

A Status Report on the Parachute Development for NASA's Next Manned Spacecraft

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sinclair, Robert

2008-01-01

NASA has determined that the parachute portion of the Landing System for the Crew Exploration Vehicle (CEV) will be Government Furnished Equipment (GFE). The Earth Landing System has been designated CEV Parachute Assembly System (CPAS). Thus a program team was developed consisting of NASA Johnson Space Center (JSC) and Jacobs Engineering through their Engineering and Science Contract Group (ESCG). Following a rigorous competitive phase, Airborne Systems North America was selected to provide the parachute design, testing and manufacturing role to support this team. The development program has begun with some early flight testing of a Generation 1 parachute system. Future testing will continue to refine the design and complete a qualification phase prior to manned flight of the spacecraft. The program team will also support early spacecraft system testing, including a Pad Abort Flight Test in the Fall of 2008

New millennium program ST6: autonomous technologies for future NASA spacecraft

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chmielewski, Arthur B.; Chien, Steve; Sherwood, Robert; Wyman, William; Brady, T.; Buckley, S.; Tillier, C.

2005-01-01

The purpose of NASA's New Millennium Program (NMP) is to validate advanced technologies in space and thus lower the risk for the first mission user. The focus of NMP is only on those technologies which need space environment for proper validation. The ST6 project has developed two advanced, experimental technologies for use on spacecraft of the future. These technologies are the Autonomous Sciencecraft Experiment and the Inertial Stellar Compass. These technologies will improve spacecraft's ability to: make decisions on what information to gather and send back to the ground, determine its own attitude and adjust its pointing.

Closest Multi-Spacecraft Flying Formation on This Week @NASA – September 23, 2016

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-09-23

The four spacecraft orbiting Earth in formation as part of NASA’s Magnetospheric Multiscale, or MMS, mission achieved a new record recently when the space between them was decreased from just over six miles to only four-and-a-half miles. This is the closest separation ever of any multi-spacecraft formation. The team of spacecraft fly in a pyramid shape, called a tetrahedron, which enables MMS to capture three-dimensional observations of magnetic reconnection – a mysterious phenomenon, during which magnetic fields experience explosive interactions. The closer formation will allow the spacecraft to measure magnetic reconnection at smaller scales, helping scientists to better understand it. Also, Destination Mars Exhibit, Orbital ATK Targets Launch Window, NASA-developed Technology Saves Pilot’s Life, and Combined Federal Campaign Underway!

InSight Spacecraft Lift to Spin Table & Pre-Spin Processing

NASA Image and Video Library

2018-03-28

In the Astrotech facility at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, technicians and engineers inspect NASA's Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport, or InSight, spacecraft after it was placed on a spin table during preflight processing. InSight will be the first mission to look deep beneath the Martian surface. It will study the planet's interior by measuring its heat output and listen for marsquakes. The spacecraft will use the seismic waves generated by marsquakes to develop a map of the planet’s deep interior. The resulting insight into Mars’ formation will provide a better understanding of how other rocky planets, including Earth, were created. InSight is scheduled for liftoff May 5, 2018.

A Spacebird-eye View of the Grand Canyon from NASA Terra Spacecraft

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-10-14

NASA Terra spacecraft provided this view of the eastern part of Grand Canyon National Park in northern Arizona in this image on July 14, 2011. This view looks to the west, with tourist facilities of Grand Canyon Village visible in the upper left.

NASA Spacecraft Fault Management Workshop Results

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Newhouse, Marilyn; McDougal, John; Barley, Bryan; Fesq, Lorraine; Stephens, Karen

2010-01-01

Fault Management is a critical aspect of deep-space missions. For the purposes of this paper, fault management is defined as the ability of a system to detect, isolate, and mitigate events that impact, or have the potential to impact, nominal mission operations. The fault management capabilities are commonly distributed across flight and ground subsystems, impacting hardware, software, and mission operations designs. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Discovery & New Frontiers (D&NF) Program Office at Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) recently studied cost overruns and schedule delays for 5 missions. The goal was to identify the underlying causes for the overruns and delays, and to develop practical mitigations to assist the D&NF projects in identifying potential risks and controlling the associated impacts to proposed mission costs and schedules. The study found that 4 out of the 5 missions studied had significant overruns due to underestimating the complexity and support requirements for fault management. As a result of this and other recent experiences, the NASA Science Mission Directorate (SMD) Planetary Science Division (PSD) commissioned a workshop to bring together invited participants across government, industry, academia to assess the state of the art in fault management practice and research, identify current and potential issues, and make recommendations for addressing these issues. The workshop was held in New Orleans in April of 2008. The workshop concluded that fault management is not being limited by technology, but rather by a lack of emphasis and discipline in both the engineering and programmatic dimensions. Some of the areas cited in the findings include different, conflicting, and changing institutional goals and risk postures; unclear ownership of end-to-end fault management engineering; inadequate understanding of the impact of mission-level requirements on fault management complexity; and practices, processes, and

Integrated Design System (IDS) Tools for the Spacecraft Aeroassist/Entry Vehicle Design Process

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Olynick, David; Braun, Robert; Langhoff, Steven R. (Technical Monitor)

1997-01-01

The definition of the Integrated Design System technology focus area as presented in the NASA Information Technology center of excellence strategic plan is described. The need for IDS tools in the aeroassist/entry vehicle design process is illustrated. Initial and future plans for spacecraft IDS tool development are discussed.

Guatemala Volcanic Eruption Captured in NASA Spacecraft Image

NASA Image and Video Library

2015-02-19

Guatemala's Fuego volcano continued its frequent moderate eruptions in early February 2015. Pyroclastic flows from the eruptions descended multiple drainages, and the eruptions sent ash plumes spewing over Guatemala City 22 miles (35 kilometers) away, and forced closure of the international airport. The Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) instrument onboard NASA's Terra spacecraft captured a new image of the region on February 17. Fuego is on the left side of the image. The thermal infrared inset image shows the summit crater activity (white equals hot), and remnant heat in the flows on the flank. Other active volcanoes shown in the image are Acatenango close by to the north, Volcano de Agua in the middle of the image, and Pacaya volcano to the east. The image covers an area of 19 by 31 miles (30 by 49.5 kilometers), and is located at 14.5 degrees north, 90.9 degrees west. http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA19297

Advanced Image Processing for NASA Applications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

LeMoign, Jacqueline

2007-01-01

The future of space exploration will involve cooperating fleets of spacecraft or sensor webs geared towards coordinated and optimal observation of Earth Science phenomena. The main advantage of such systems is to utilize multiple viewing angles as well as multiple spatial and spectral resolutions of sensors carried on multiple spacecraft but acting collaboratively as a single system. Within this framework, our research focuses on all areas related to sensing in collaborative environments, which means systems utilizing intracommunicating spatially distributed sensor pods or crafts being deployed to monitor or explore different environments. This talk will describe the general concept of sensing in collaborative environments, will give a brief overview of several technologies developed at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center in this area, and then will concentrate on specific image processing research related to that domain, specifically image registration and image fusion.

Ah, That New Car Smell: NASA Technology Protects Spacecraft from Outgassed Molecular Contaminants

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-12-08

Goddard technologist Nithin Abraham, a member of the team that has developed a low-cost, low-mass technique for protecting sensitive spacecraft components from outgassed contaminants, studies a paint sample in her laboratory. To read this story go to: www.nasa.gov/topics/technology/features/outgas-tech.html Credit: NASA/Pat Izzo NASA image use policy. NASA Goddard Space Flight Center enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission. Follow us on Twitter Like us on Facebook Find us on Instagram

Enhancing the NASA Expendable Launch Vehicle Payload Safety Review Process Through Program Activities

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Palo, Thomas E.

2007-01-01

The safety review process for NASA spacecraft flown on Expendable Launch Vehicles (ELVs) has been guided by NASA-STD 8719.8, Expendable Launch Vehicle Payload Safety Review Process Standard. The standard focused primarily on the safety approval required to begin pre-launch processing at the launch site. Subsequent changes in the contractual, technical, and operational aspects of payload processing, combined with lessons-learned supported a need for the reassessment of the standard. This has resulted in the formation of a NASA ELV Payload Safety Program. This program has been working to address the programmatic issues that will enhance and supplement the existing process, while continuing to ensure the safety of ELV payload activities.

In Brief: NASA's Phoenix spacecraft lands on Mars

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Showstack, Randy; Kumar, Mohi

2008-06-01

After a 9.5-month, 679-million-kilometer flight from Florida, NASA's Phoenix spacecraft made a soft landing in Vastitas Borealis in Mars's northern polar region on 25 May. The lander, whose camera already has returned some spectacular images, is on a 3-month mission to examine the area and dig into the soil of this site-chosen for its likelihood of having frozen water near the surface-and analyze samples. In addition to a robotic arm and robotic arm camera, the lander's instruments include a surface stereo imager; thermal and evolved-gas analyzer; microscopy, electrochemistry, and conductivity analyzer; and a meteorological station that is tracking daily weather and seasonal changes.

Phoenix Mars Lander Spacecraft Processing

NASA Image and Video Library

2007-05-10

This closeup shows the Phoenix Mars Lander spacecraft nestled inside the backshell. The spacecraft is ready for spin testing on the spin table to which it is attached in the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility. The Phoenix mission is the first project in NASA's first openly competed program of Mars Scout missions. Phoenix will land in icy soils near the north polar permanent ice cap of Mars and explore the history of the water in these soils and any associated rocks, while monitoring polar climate. Landing is planned in May 2008 on arctic ground where a mission currently in orbit, Mars Odyssey, has detected high concentrations of ice just beneath the top layer of soil. It will serve as NASA's first exploration of a potential modern habitat on Mars and open the door to a renewed search for carbon-bearing compounds, last attempted with NASA’s Viking missions in the 1970s. A stereo color camera and a weather station will study the surrounding environment while the other instruments check excavated soil samples for water, organic chemicals and conditions that could indicate whether the site was ever hospitable to life. Microscopes can reveal features as small as one one-thousandth the width of a human hair. Launch of Phoenix aboard a Delta II rocket is targeted for Aug. 3 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.

Phoenix Mars Lander Spacecraft Processing

NASA Image and Video Library

2007-05-10

This closeup shows the Phoenix Mars Lander spacecraft nestled inside the backshell. The spacecraft will undergo spin testing on the spin table to which it is attached in the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility. The Phoenix mission is the first project in NASA's first openly competed program of Mars Scout missions. Phoenix will land in icy soils near the north polar permanent ice cap of Mars and explore the history of the water in these soils and any associated rocks, while monitoring polar climate. Landing is planned in May 2008 on arctic ground where a mission currently in orbit, Mars Odyssey, has detected high concentrations of ice just beneath the top layer of soil. It will serve as NASA's first exploration of a potential modern habitat on Mars and open the door to a renewed search for carbon-bearing compounds, last attempted with NASA’s Viking missions in the 1970s. A stereo color camera and a weather station will study the surrounding environment while the other instruments check excavated soil samples for water, organic chemicals and conditions that could indicate whether the site was ever hospitable to life. Microscopes can reveal features as small as one one-thousandth the width of a human hair. Launch of Phoenix aboard a Delta II rocket is targeted for Aug. 3 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.

Spacecraft propulsion systems test capability at the NASA White Sands Test Facility

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Baker, Pleddie; Gorham, Richard

1993-01-01

The NASA White Sands Facility (WSTF), a component insallation of the Johnson Space Center, is located on a 94-square-mile site in southwestern New Mexico. WSTF maintains many unique capabilities to support its mission to test and evaluate spacecraft materials, components, and propulsion systems to enable the safe human exploration and utilization of space. WSTF has tested over 340 rocket engines with more than 2.5 million firings to date. Included are propulsion system testing for Apollo, Shuttle, and now Space Station as well as unmanned spacecraft such as Viking, Pioneer, and Mars Observer. This paper describes the current WSTF propulsion test facilities and capabilities.

Technology for small spacecraft

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1994-01-01

This report gives the results of a study by the National Research Council's Panel on Small Spacecraft Technology that reviewed NASA's technology development program for small spacecraft and assessed technology within the U.S. government and industry that is applicable to small spacecraft. The panel found that there is a considerable body of advanced technology currently available for application by NASA and the small spacecraft industry that could provide substantial improvement in capability and cost over those technologies used for current NASA small spacecraft. These technologies are the result of developments by commercial companies, Department of Defense agencies, and to a lesser degree NASA. The panel also found that additional technologies are being developed by these same entities that could provide additional substantial improvement if development is successfully completed. Recommendations for future technology development efforts by NASA across a broad technological spectrum are made.

TDRS-L Spacecraft Fairing Encapsulation

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-01-08

TITUSVILLE, Fla. – Inside the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville NASA's Tracking and Data Relay Satellite, or TDRS-L, spacecraft is being encapsulated in its payload fairing prior to being transported to Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The TDRS-L satellite will be a part of the second of three next-generation spacecraft designed to ensure vital operational continuity for the NASA Space Network. It is scheduled to launch from Cape Canaveral's Space Launch Complex 41 atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket on January 23, 2014. The current Tracking and Data Relay Satellite system consists of eight in-orbit satellites distributed to provide near continuous information relay contact with orbiting spacecraft ranging from the International Space Station and Hubble Space Telescope to the array of scientific observatories. For more information, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/tdrs/home/index.html

TDRS-L Spacecraft Fairing Encapsulation

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-01-08

TITUSVILLE, Fla. – Inside the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, NASA's Tracking and Data Relay Satellite, or TDRS-L, spacecraft has been encapsulated in its payload fairing. TDRS-L will then be transported to Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The TDRS-L satellite will be a part of the second of three next-generation spacecraft designed to ensure vital operational continuity for the NASA Space Network. It is scheduled to launch from Cape Canaveral's Space Launch Complex 41 atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket on January 23, 2014. The current Tracking and Data Relay Satellite system consists of eight in-orbit satellites distributed to provide near continuous information relay contact with orbiting spacecraft ranging from the International Space Station and Hubble Space Telescope to the array of scientific observatories. For more information, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/tdrs/home/index.html

TDRS-L Spacecraft Fairing Encapsulation

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-01-08

TITUSVILLE, Fla. – Inside the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, NASA's Tracking and Data Relay Satellite, or TDRS-L, spacecraft is being encapsulated in its payload fairing in preparation for begin transported to Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The TDRS-L satellite will be a part of the second of three next-generation spacecraft designed to ensure vital operational continuity for the NASA Space Network. It is scheduled to launch from Cape Canaveral's Space Launch Complex 41 atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket on January 23, 2014. The current Tracking and Data Relay Satellite system consists of eight in-orbit satellites distributed to provide near continuous information relay contact with orbiting spacecraft ranging from the International Space Station and Hubble Space Telescope to the array of scientific observatories. For more information, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/tdrs/home/index.html

Tracking and Navigation of Future NASA Spacecraft with the Square Kilometer Array

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Resch, G. M.; Jones, D. L.; Connally, M. J.; Weinreb, S.; Preston, R. A.

2001-12-01

The international radio astronomy community is currently working on the design of an array of small radio antennas with a total collecting area of one square kilometer - more than a hundred times that of the largest existing (100-m) steerable antennas. An array of this size would provide obvious advantages for high data rate telemetry reception and for spacecraft navigation. Among these advantages are a two-orders-of-magnitude increase in sensitivity for telemetry downlink, flexible sub-arraying to track multiple spacecraft simultaneously, increased reliability through the use of large numbers of identical array elements, very accurate real-time angular spacecraft tracking, and a dramatic reduction in cost per unit area. NASA missions in many disciplines, including planetary science, would benefit from this increased ground-based tracking capability. The science return from planned missions could be increased, and opportunities for less expensive or completely new kinds of missions would be created.

NASA's Evolution to Ka-Band Space Communications for Near-Earth Spacecraft

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

McCarthy, Kevin; Stocklin, Frank; Geldzahler, Barry; Friedman, Daniel; Celeste, Peter

2010-01-01

This slide presentation reviews the exploration of NASA using a Ka-band system for spacecraft communications in Near-Earth orbits. The reasons for changing to Ka-band are the higher data rates, and the current (X-band spectrum) is becoming crowded. This will require some modification to the current ground station antennas systems. The results of a Request for Information (RFI) are discussed, and the recommended solution is reviewed.

Applications of Advanced Nondestructive Measurement Techniques to Address Safety of Flight Issues on NASA Spacecraft

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Prosser, Bill

2016-01-01

Advanced nondestructive measurement techniques are critical for ensuring the reliability and safety of NASA spacecraft. Techniques such as infrared thermography, THz imaging, X-ray computed tomography and backscatter X-ray are used to detect indications of damage in spacecraft components and structures. Additionally, sensor and measurement systems are integrated into spacecraft to provide structural health monitoring to detect damaging events that occur during flight such as debris impacts during launch and assent or from micrometeoroid and orbital debris, or excessive loading due to anomalous flight conditions. A number of examples will be provided of how these nondestructive measurement techniques have been applied to resolve safety critical inspection concerns for the Space Shuttle, International Space Station (ISS), and a variety of launch vehicles and unmanned spacecraft.

Electrical Grounding Architecture for Unmanned Spacecraft

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1998-01-01

This handbook is approved for use by NASA Headquarters and all NASA Centers and is intended to provide a common framework for consistent practices across NASA programs. This handbook was developed to describe electrical grounding design architecture options for unmanned spacecraft. This handbook is written for spacecraft system engineers, power engineers, and electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) engineers. Spacecraft grounding architecture is a system-level decision which must be established at the earliest point in spacecraft design. All other grounding design must be coordinated with and be consistent with the system-level architecture. This handbook assumes that there is no one single 'correct' design for spacecraft grounding architecture. There have been many successful satellite and spacecraft programs from NASA, using a variety of grounding architectures with different levels of complexity. However, some design principles learned over the years apply to all types of spacecraft development. This handbook summarizes those principles to help guide spacecraft grounding architecture design for NASA and others.

Agreement for NASA/OAST - USAF/AFSC space interdependency on spacecraft environment interaction

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Pike, C. P.; Stevens, N. J.

1980-01-01

A joint AF/NASA comprehensive program on spacecraft environment interactions consists of combined contractual and in house efforts aimed at understanding spacecraft environment ineraction phenomena and relating ground test results to space conditions. Activities include: (1) a concerted effort to identify project related environmental interactions; (2) a materials investigation to measure the basic properties of materials and develop or modify materials as needed; and (3) a ground simulation investigation to evaluate basic plasma interaction phenomena and provide inputs to the analytical modeling investigation. Systems performance is evaluated by both ground tests and analysis. There is an environmental impact investigation to determine the effect of future large spacecraft on the charged particle environment. Space flight investigations are planned to verify the results. The products of this program are test standards and design guidelines which summarize the technology, specify test criteria, and provide techniques to minimize or eliminate system interactions with the charged particle environment.

The management approach to the NASA space station definition studies at the Manned Spacecraft Center

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Heberlig, J. C.

1972-01-01

The overall management approach to the NASA Phase B definition studies for space stations, which were initiated in September 1969 and completed in July 1972, is reviewed with particular emphasis placed on the management approach used by the Manned Spacecraft Center. The internal working organizations of the Manned Spacecraft Center and its prime contractor, North American Rockwell, are delineated along with the interfacing techniques used for the joint Government and industry study. Working interfaces with other NASA centers, industry, and Government agencies are briefly highlighted. The controlling documentation for the study (such as guidelines and constraints, bibliography, and key personnel) is reviewed. The historical background and content of the experiment program prepared for use in this Phase B study are outlined and management concepts that may be considered for future programs are proposed.

Definition of spacecraft standard interfaces by the NASA Space Assembly and Servicing Working Group (SASWG)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Radtke, Robert; Woolley, Charles; Arnold, Lana

1993-01-01

The purpose of the NASA Space Assembly and Servicing Working Group (SASWG) is to study enabling technologies for on-orbit spacecraft maintenance and servicing. One key technology required for effective space logistics activity is the development of standard spacecraft interfaces, including the 'Basic Set' defined by NASA, the U.S. Space Command, and industry panelists to be the following: (1) navigation aids; (2) grasping, berthing, and docking; and (3) utility connections for power, data, and fluids. Draft standards have been prepared and referred to professional standards organizations, including the AIAA, EIA, and SAE space standards committee. The objective of the SASWG is to support these committees with the technical expertise required to prepare standards, guidelines, and recommended practices which will be accepted by the ANSI and international standards organizations, including the ISO, IEC, and PASC.

Standard spacecraft procurement analysis: A case study in NASA-DoD coordination in space programs. Ph.D. Thesis - Rand Graduate Inst.

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Harris, E. D.

1980-01-01

The Space Test Program Standard Satellite (STPSS), a design proposed by the Air Force, and two NASA candidates, the Applications Explorer Mission spacecraft (AEM) and the Multimission Modular Spacecraft (MMS), were considered during the first phase. During the second phase, a fourth candidate was introduced, a larger, more capable AEM (L-AEM), configured by the Boeing Company under NASA sponsorship to meet the specifications jointly agreed upon by NASA and the Air Force. Total program costs for a variety of procurement options, each of which is capable of performing all of the Air Force Space Test Program missions during the 1980-1990 time period, were used as the principal measure for distinguishing among procurement options. Program cost does not provide a basis for choosing among the AEM, STPSS, and MMS spacecraft, given their present designs. The availability of the L-AEM spacecraft, or some very similar design, would provide a basis for minimizing the cost of the Air Force Space Test Program.

Xenia Spacecraft Study Addendum: Spacecraft Cost Estimate

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hill, Spencer; Hopkins, Randall

2009-01-01

This slide presentation reviews the Xenia spacecraft cost estimates as an addendum for the Xenia Spacecraft study. The NASA/Air Force Cost model (NAFCPOM) was used to derive the cost estimates that are expressed in 2009 dollars.

TDRS-L Spacecraft is Lifted Onto Transporter

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-01-10

TITUSVILLE, Fla. – Encapsulated in its payload fairing, NASA's Tracking and Data Relay Satellite, or TDRS-L, spacecraft is being mounted on a transporter for its trip from the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville to Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The TDRS-L satellite will be a part of the second of three next-generation spacecraft designed to ensure vital operational continuity for the NASA Space Network. It is scheduled to launch from Cape Canaveral's Space Launch Complex 41 atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket on January 23, 2014. The current Tracking and Data Relay Satellite system consists of eight in-orbit satellites distributed to provide near continuous information relay contact with orbiting spacecraft ranging from the International Space Station and Hubble Space Telescope to the array of scientific observatories. For more information, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/tdrs/home/index.html Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett

TDRS-L Spacecraft is Lifted Onto Transporter

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-01-10

TITUSVILLE, Fla. – Inside the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, NASA's Tracking and Data Relay Satellite, or TDRS-L, spacecraft has been encapsulated in its payload fairing in preparation for begin transported to Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The TDRS-L satellite will be a part of the second of three next-generation spacecraft designed to ensure vital operational continuity for the NASA Space Network. It is scheduled to launch from Cape Canaveral's Space Launch Complex 41 atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket on January 23, 2014. The current Tracking and Data Relay Satellite system consists of eight in-orbit satellites distributed to provide near continuous information relay contact with orbiting spacecraft ranging from the International Space Station and Hubble Space Telescope to the array of scientific observatories. For more information, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/tdrs/home/index.html Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett

The Status of Spacecraft Bus and Platform Technology Development under the NASA ISPT Program

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Anderson, David J.; Munk, Michelle M.; Pencil, Eric; Dankanich, John; Glaab, Louis; Peterson, Todd

2013-01-01

The In-Space Propulsion Technology (ISPT) program is developing spacecraft bus and platform technologies that will enable or enhance NASA robotic science missions. The ISPT program is currently developing technology in four areas that include Propulsion System Technologies (electric and chemical), Entry Vehicle Technologies (aerocapture and Earth entry vehicles), Spacecraft Bus and Sample Return Propulsion Technologies (components and ascent vehicles), and Systems/Mission Analysis. Three technologies are ready for near-term flight infusion: 1) the high-temperature Advanced Material Bipropellant Rocket (AMBR) engine providing higher performance; 2) NASA s Evolutionary Xenon Thruster (NEXT) ion propulsion system, a 0.6-7 kW throttle-able gridded ion system; and 3) Aerocapture technology development with investments in a family of thermal protection system (TPS) materials and structures; guidance, navigation, and control (GN&C) models of blunt-body rigid aeroshells; and aerothermal effect models. Two component technologies being developed with flight infusion in mind are the Advanced Xenon Flow Control System and ultralightweight propellant tank technologies. Future directions for ISPT are technologies that relate to sample return missions and other spacecraft bus technology needs like: 1) Mars Ascent Vehicles (MAV); 2) multi-mission technologies for Earth Entry Vehicles (MMEEV); and 3) electric propulsion. These technologies are more vehicles and mission-focused, and present a different set of technology development and infusion steps beyond those previously implemented. The Systems/Mission Analysis area is focused on developing tools and assessing the application of propulsion and spacecraft bus technologies to a wide variety of mission concepts. These inspace propulsion technologies are applicable, and potentially enabling for future NASA Discovery, New Frontiers, and sample return missions currently under consideration, as well as having broad applicability to

The status of spacecraft bus and platform technology development under the NASA ISPT program

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Anderson, D. J.; Munk, M. M.; Pencil, E.; Dankanich, J.; Glaab, L.; Peterson, T.

The In-Space Propulsion Technology (ISPT) program is developing spacecraft bus and platform technologies that will enable or enhance NASA robotic science missions. The ISPT program is currently developing technology in four areas that include Propulsion System Technologies (electric and chemical), Entry Vehicle Technologies (aerocapture and Earth entry vehicles), Spacecraft Bus and Sample Return Propulsion Technologies (components and ascent vehicles), and Systems/Mission Analysis. Three technologies are ready for near-term flight infusion: 1) the high-temperature Advanced Material Bipropellant Rocket (AMBR) engine providing higher performance; 2) NASA's Evolutionary Xenon Thruster (NEXT) ion propulsion system, a 0.6-7 kW throttle-able gridded ion system; and 3) Aerocapture technology development with investments in a family of thermal protection system (TPS) materials and structures; guidance, navigation, and control (GN& C) models of blunt-body rigid aeroshells; and aerothermal effect models. Two component technologies being developed with flight infusion in mind are the Advanced Xenon Flow Control System and ultra-lightweight propellant tank technologies. Future directions for ISPT are technologies that relate to sample return missions and other spacecraft bus technology needs like: 1) Mars Ascent Vehicles (MAV); 2) multi-mission technologies for Earth Entry Vehicles (MMEEV); and 3) electric propulsion. These technologies are more vehicles and mission-focused, and present a different set of technology development and infusion steps beyond those previously implemented. The Systems/Mission Analysis area is focused on developing tools and assessing the application of propulsion and spacecraft bus technologies to a wide variety of mission concepts. These in-space propulsion technologies are applicable, and potentially enabling for future NASA Discovery, New Frontiers, and sample return missions currently under consideration, as well as having broad applicabilit- to

The Status of Spacecraft Bus and Platform Technology Development Under the NASA ISPT Program

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Anderson, David J.; Munk, Michelle M.; Pencil, Eric J.; Dankanich, John; Glaab, Louis J.

2013-01-01

The In-Space Propulsion Technology (ISPT) program is developing spacecraft bus and platform technologies that will enable or enhance NASA robotic science missions. The ISPT program is currently developing technology in four areas that include Propulsion System Technologies (electric and chemical), Entry Vehicle Technologies (aerocapture and Earth entry vehicles), Spacecraft Bus and Sample Return Propulsion Technologies (components and ascent vehicles), and Systems/Mission Analysis. Three technologies are ready for near-term flight infusion: 1) the high-temperature Advanced Material Bipropellant Rocket (AMBR) engine providing higher performance 2) NASAs Evolutionary Xenon Thruster (NEXT) ion propulsion system, a 0.6-7 kW throttle-able gridded ion system and 3) Aerocapture technology development with investments in a family of thermal protection system (TPS) materials and structures guidance, navigation, and control (GN&C) models of blunt-body rigid aeroshells and aerothermal effect models. Two component technologies being developed with flight infusion in mind are the Advanced Xenon Flow Control System, and ultra-lightweight propellant tank technologies. Future direction for ISPT are technologies that relate to sample return missions and other spacecraft bus technology needs like: 1) Mars Ascent Vehicles (MAV) 2) multi-mission technologies for Earth Entry Vehicles (MMEEV) and 3) electric propulsion. These technologies are more vehicle and mission-focused, and present a different set of technology development and infusion steps beyond those previously implemented. The Systems/Mission Analysis area is focused on developing tools and assessing the application of propulsion and spacecraft bus technologies to a wide variety of mission concepts. These in-space propulsion technologies are applicable, and potentially enabling for future NASA Discovery, New Frontiers, and sample return missions currently under consideration, as well as having broad applicability to potential

NASA Spacecraft Image Shows Location of Iranian Earthquake

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-12-08

On April 9, 2013 at 11:52 GMT, a magnitude 6.3 earthquake hit southwestern Iran's Bushehr province near the town of Kaki. Preliminary information is that several villages have been destroyed and many people have died, as reported by BBC News. This perspective view of the region was acquired Nov. 17, 2012, by the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) instrument on NASA's Terra spacecraft. The location of the earthquake's epicenter is marked with a yellow star. Vegetation is displayed in red; the vertical exaggeration of the topography is 2X. The image is centered near 28.5 degrees north latitude, 51.6 degrees east longitude. With its 14 spectral bands from the visible to the thermal infrared wavelength region and its high spatial resolution of 15 to 90 meters (about 50 to 300 feet), ASTER images Earth to map and monitor the changing surface of our planet. ASTER is one of five Earth-observing instruments launched Dec. 18, 1999, on Terra. The instrument was built by Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry. A joint U.S./Japan science team is responsible for validation and calibration of the instrument and data products. The broad spectral coverage and high spectral resolution of ASTER provides scientists in numerous disciplines with critical information for surface mapping and monitoring of dynamic conditions and temporal change. Example applications are: monitoring glacial advances and retreats; monitoring potentially active volcanoes; identifying crop stress; determining cloud morphology and physical properties; wetlands evaluation; thermal pollution monitoring; coral reef degradation; surface temperature mapping of soils and geology; and measuring surface heat balance. The U.S. science team is located at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. The Terra mission is part of NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington, D.C. More information about ASTER is available at asterweb.jpl.nasa.gov/. Image Credit: NASA

Nicaragua Eruption Lava Threat Closely Monitored by NASA EO-1 Spacecraft

NASA Image and Video Library

2015-12-07

Momotombo volcano, Nicaragua, began erupting on Dec. 1, 2015, after more than a century of inactivity. On Dec. 4, 2015, the Advanced Land Imager (ALI) on NASA's Earth Observing 1 (EO-1) spacecraft observed the new eruption. This image is created from infrared data, and shows the incandescent active vent at the summit of the volcano and lava flowing down the side of the volcano. These data are being examined by scientists to determine where lava will flow, allowing assessment of possible threats to local infrastructure. The EO-1 data were obtained at an altitude of 438 miles (705 kilometers) and at a resolution of 98 feet (30 meters) per pixel at different visible and infrared wavelengths. The ALI image is 23 miles (37 kilometers) wide. http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA20203

Extent of California Blue Cut Fire Devastation Seen by NASA Spacecraft

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-09-07

In San Bernardino County, California, the Blue Cut fire burned ferociously for one week starting Aug. 16, 2016. By the time it was contained, it had burned 36,000 acres and destroyed 105 homes. More than 80,000 people were affected by evacuation orders. Ten days after containment, the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) instrument on NASA's Terra spacecraft captured this image of the region, highlighting the extent of the damage. Healthy vegetation is depicted in red, with burnt areas in the mountains and fields shown in shades of black. The image, acquired Sept. 3, covers an area of 14 by 17 miles (22 by 27 kilometers), and is located at 34.3 degrees north, 117.5 degrees west. http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA20899

Internet Access to Spacecraft

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rash, James; Parise, Ron; Hogie, Keith; Criscuolo, Ed; Langston, Jim; Jackson, Chris; Price, Harold; Powers, Edward I. (Technical Monitor)

2000-01-01

The Operating Missions as Nodes on the Internet (OMNI) project at NASA's Goddard Space flight Center (GSFC), is demonstrating the use of standard Internet protocols for spacecraft communication systems. This year, demonstrations of Internet access to a flying spacecraft have been performed with the UoSAT-12 spacecraft owned and operated by Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd. (SSTL). Previously, demonstrations were performed using a ground satellite simulator and NASA's Tracking and Data Relay Satellite System (TDRSS). These activities are part of NASA's Space Operations Management Office (SOMO) Technology Program, The work is focused on defining the communication architecture for future NASA missions to support both NASA's "faster, better, cheaper" concept and to enable new types of collaborative science. The use of standard Internet communication technology for spacecraft simplifies design, supports initial integration and test across an IP based network, and enables direct communication between scientists and instruments as well as between different spacecraft, The most recent demonstrations consisted of uploading an Internet Protocol (IP) software stack to the UoSAT- 12 spacecraft, simple modifications to the SSTL ground station, and a series of tests to measure performance of various Internet applications. The spacecraft was reconfigured on orbit at very low cost. The total period between concept and the first tests was only 3 months. The tests included basic network connectivity (PING), automated clock synchronization (NTP), and reliable file transfers (FTP). Future tests are planned to include additional protocols such as Mobile IP, e-mail, and virtual private networks (VPN) to enable automated, operational spacecraft communication networks. The work performed and results of the initial phase of tests are summarized in this paper. This work is funded and directed by NASA/GSFC with technical leadership by CSC in arrangement with SSTL, and Vytek Wireless.

Nonlinear Dynamic Behavior in the Cassini Spacecraft Modal Survey

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Carney, Kelly S.

1997-01-01

In October 1997, the 6-ton robotic spacecraft, Cassini, will lift off from Cape Canaveral atop a Titan IV B rocket, beginning a 7-year journey to Saturn. Upon completion of that voyage, Cassini will send the Huygens probe into the atmosphere of Saturn's largest moon, Titan. Cassini will then spend years studying Saturn's vast realm of rings, icy moons, and magnetic fields. The size and complexity of this endeavor mandates the involvement of many organizations. The Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) manages the project for NASA and is responsible for the spacecraft design, development, and assembly. The NASA Lewis Research Center is the launch system integrator. As is typical for such a spacecraft, a test-verified finite element model is required for loads analysis. JPL had responsibility for the Cassini modal survey and the development of the spacecraft test-verified finite element model. Test verification is a complex and sometimes subjective process. Because of this, NASA Lewis independently verified and validated the Cassini spacecraft modal survey.

TDRS-L Spacecraft Transported from Astrotech to SLC

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-01-13

TITUSVILLE, Fla. – Encapsulated in its payload fairing, NASA's Tracking and Data Relay Satellite, or TDRS-L, spacecraft begins it trip from the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville to Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The TDRS-L satellite will be a part of the second of three next-generation spacecraft designed to ensure vital operational continuity for the NASA Space Network. It is scheduled to launch from Cape Canaveral's Space Launch Complex 41 atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket on January 23, 2014. The current Tracking and Data Relay Satellite system consists of eight in-orbit satellites distributed to provide near continuous information relay contact with orbiting spacecraft ranging from the International Space Station and Hubble Space Telescope to the array of scientific observatories. For more information, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/tdrs/home/index.html Photo credit: NASA/Dimitri Gerondidakis

NASA Spacecraft Spots Aftermath of Destructive Wildfire in LA Backyard

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-08-02

The Sand fire, in the mountains northwest of Los Angeles, has burned more than 39,000 acres, destroyed 18 houses, and caused one fatality. By August 1, 2016, when the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) instrument on NASA's Terra spacecraft acquired this image, the fire was more than 90 percent contained. The fire began 10 days earlier in a brushy area near Highway 14. It grew explosively to thousands of acres, driven by high winds and temperatures over 100 degrees Fahrenheit. At one time, more than 20,000 residents were evacuated from their homes. In this image, vegetation is displayed in red, and the burn area is dark grey to black. The image covers an area of 16.4 by 19.4 miles (26.4 by 31.3 kilometers), and is located at 34.4 degrees north, 118.3 degrees west. http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA20723

Spacecraft dielectric material properties and spacecraft charging

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Frederickson, A. R.; Wall, J. A.; Cotts, D. B.; Bouquet, F. L.

1986-01-01

The physics of spacecraft charging is reviewed, and criteria for selecting and testing semiinsulating polymers (SIPs) to avoid charging are discussed and illustrated. Chapters are devoted to the required properties of dielectric materials, the charging process, discharge-pulse phenomena, design for minimum pulse size, design to prevent pulses, conduction in polymers, evaluation of SIPs that might prevent spacecraft charging, and the general response of dielectrics to space radiation. SIPs characterized include polyimides, fluorocarbons, thermoplastic polyesters, poly(alkanes), vinyl polymers and acrylates, polymers containing phthalocyanine, polyacene quinones, coordination polymers containing metal ions, conjugated-backbone polymers, and 'metallic' conducting polymers. Tables summarizing the results of SIP radiation tests (such as those performed for the NASA Galileo Project) are included.

A GNC Perspective of the Launch and Commissioning of NASA's SMAP (Soil Moisture Active Passive) Spacecraft

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Brown, Todd S.

2016-01-01

The NASA Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) spacecraft was designed to use radar and radiometer measurements to produce global soil moisture measurements every 2-3 days. The SMAP spacecraft is a complicated dual-spinning design with a large 6 meter deployable mesh reflector mounted on a platform that spins at 14.6 rpm while the Guidance Navigation and Control algorithms maintain precise nadir pointing for the de-spun portion of the spacecraft. After launching in early 2015, the Guidance Navigation and Control software and hardware aboard the SMAP spacecraft underwent an intensive spacecraft checkout and commissioning period. This paper describes the activities performed by the Guidance Navigation and Control team to confirm the health and phasing of subsystem hardware and the functionality of the guidance and control modes and algorithms. The operations tasks performed, as well as anomalies that were encountered during the commissioning, are explained and results are summarized.

Printable Spacecraft: Flexible Electronic Platforms for NASA Missions. Phase One

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Short, Kendra (Principal Investigator); Van Buren, David (Principal Investigator)

2012-01-01

Atmospheric confetti. Inchworm crawlers. Blankets of ground penetrating radar. These are some of the unique mission concepts which could be enabled by a printable spacecraft. Printed electronics technology offers enormous potential to transform the way NASA builds spacecraft. A printed spacecraft's low mass, volume and cost offer dramatic potential impacts to many missions. Network missions could increase from a few discrete measurements to tens of thousands of platforms improving areal density and system reliability. Printed platforms could be added to any prime mission as a low-cost, minimum resource secondary payload to augment the science return. For a small fraction of the mass and cost of a traditional lander, a Europa flagship mission might carry experimental printed surface platforms. An Enceladus Explorer could carry feather-light printed platforms to release into volcanic plumes to measure composition and impact energies. The ability to print circuits directly onto a variety of surfaces, opens the possibility of multi-functional structures and membranes such as "smart" solar sails and balloons. The inherent flexibility of a printed platform allows for in-situ re-configurability for aerodynamic control or mobility. Engineering telemetry of wheel/soil interactions are possible with a conformal printed sensor tape fit around a rover wheel. Environmental time history within a sample return canister could be recorded with a printed sensor array that fits flush to the interior of the canister. Phase One of the NIAC task entitled "Printable Spacecraft" investigated the viability of printed electronics technologies for creating multi-functional spacecraft platforms. Mission concepts and architectures that could be enhanced or enabled with this technology were explored. This final report captures the results and conclusions of the Phase One study. First, the report presents the approach taken in conducting the study and a mapping of results against the proposed

NASA Collaborative Design Processes

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jones, Davey

2017-01-01

This is Block 1, the first evolution of the world's most powerful and versatile rocket, the Space Launch System, built to return humans to the area around the moon. Eventually, larger and even more powerful and capable configurations will take astronauts and cargo to Mars. On the sides of the rocket are the twin solid rocket boosters that provide more than 75 percent during liftoff and burn for about two minutes, after which they are jettisoned, lightening the load for the rest of the space flight. Four RS-25 main engines provide thrust for the first stage of the rocket. These are the world's most reliable rocket engines. The core stage is the main body of the rocket and houses the fuel for the RS-25 engines, liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen, and the avionics, or "brain" of the rocket. The core stage is all new and being manufactured at NASA's "rocket factory," Michoud Assembly Facility near New Orleans. The Launch Vehicle Stage Adapter, or LVSA, connects the core stage to the Interim Cryogenic Propulsion Stage. The Interim Cryogenic Propulsion Stage, or ICPS, uses one RL-10 rocket engine and will propel the Orion spacecraft on its deep-space journey after first-stage separation. Finally, the Orion human-rated spacecraft sits atop the massive Saturn V-sized launch vehicle. Managed out of Johnson Space Center in Houston, Orion is the first spacecraft in history capable of taking humans to multiple destinations within deep space. 2) Each element of the SLS utilizes collaborative design processes to achieve the incredible goal of sending human into deep space. Early phases are focused on feasibility and requirements development. Later phases are focused on detailed design, testing, and operations. There are 4 basic phases typically found in each phase of development.

The Status of Spacecraft Bus and Platform Technology Development Under the NASA ISPT Program

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Anderson, David; Munk, Michelle M.; Pencil, Eric; Dankanich, John; Glaab, Louis; Peterson, Todd

2014-01-01

The In-Space Propulsion Technology (ISPT) program is developing spacecraft bus and platform technologies that will enable or enhance NASA robotic science missions. The ISPT program is currently developing technology in three areas that include Propulsion System Technologies, Entry Vehicle Technologies, and Systems Mission Analysis. ISPTs propulsion technologies include: 1) NASAs Evolutionary Xenon Thruster (NEXT) ion propulsion system, a 0.6-7 kW throttle-able gridded ion system; 2) a Hall-effect electric propulsion (HEP) system for sample return and low cost missions; 3) the Advanced Xenon Flow Control System (AXFS); ultra-lightweight propellant tank technologies (ULTT); and propulsion technologies for a Mars Ascent Vehicle (MAV). The AXFS and ULTT are two component technologies being developed with nearer-term flight infusion in mind, whereas NEXT and the HEP are being developed as EP systems. ISPTs entry vehicle technologies are: 1) Aerocapture technology development with investments in a family of thermal protection system (TPS) materials and structures; guidance, navigation, and control (GNC) models of blunt-body rigid aeroshells; and aerothermal effect models; and 2) Multi-mission technologies for Earth Entry Vehicles (MMEEV) for sample return missions. The Systems Mission Analysis area is focused on developing tools and assessing the application of propulsion, entry vehicle, and spacecraft bus technologies to a wide variety of mission concepts. Several of the ISPT technologies are related to sample return missions and other spacecraft bus technology needs like: MAV propulsion, MMEEV, and electric propulsion. These technologies, as well as Aerocapture, are more vehicle and mission-focused, and present a different set of technology development challenges. These in-space propulsion technologies are applicable, and potentially enabling for future NASA Discovery, New Frontiers, Flagship and sample return missions currently under consideration. This paper provides

TDRS-L Spacecraft Fairing Encapsulation

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-01-08

TITUSVILLE, Fla. – Inside the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, the Tracking and Data Relay Satellite, or TDRS-L, spacecraft is being encapsulated in its payload fairing in preparation for begin transported to Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The TDRS-L satellite will be a part of the second of three next-generation spacecraft designed to ensure vital operational continuity for the NASA Space Network. It is scheduled to launch from Cape Canaveral's Space Launch Complex 41 atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket on January 23, 2014. The current Tracking and Data Relay Satellite system consists of eight in-orbit satellites distributed to provide near continuous information relay contact with orbiting spacecraft ranging from the International Space Station and Hubble Space Telescope to the array of scientific observatories. For more information, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/tdrs/home/index.html

TDRS-L Spacecraft Fairing Encapsulation

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-01-08

TITUSVILLE, Fla. – Inside the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, the Tracking and Data Relay Satellite, or TDRS-L, spacecraft is being encapsulated in its payload fairing in preparation for being transported to Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The TDRS-L satellite will be a part of the second of three next-generation spacecraft designed to ensure vital operational continuity for the NASA Space Network. It is scheduled to launch from Cape Canaveral's Space Launch Complex 41 atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket on January 23, 2014. The current Tracking and Data Relay Satellite system consists of eight in-orbit satellites distributed to provide near continuous information relay contact with orbiting spacecraft ranging from the International Space Station and Hubble Space Telescope to the array of scientific observatories. For more information, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/tdrs/home/index.html

Best Practices for Reliable and Robust Spacecraft Structures

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Raju, Ivatury S.; Murthy, P. L. N.; Patel, Naresh R.; Bonacuse, Peter J.; Elliott, Kenny B.; Gordon, S. A.; Gyekenyesi, J. P.; Daso, E. O.; Aggarwal, P.; Tillman, R. F.

2007-01-01

A study was undertaken to capture the best practices for the development of reliable and robust spacecraft structures for NASA s next generation cargo and crewed launch vehicles. In this study, the NASA heritage programs such as Mercury, Gemini, Apollo, and the Space Shuttle program were examined. A series of lessons learned during the NASA and DoD heritage programs are captured. The processes that "make the right structural system" are examined along with the processes to "make the structural system right". The impact of technology advancements in materials and analysis and testing methods on reliability and robustness of spacecraft structures is studied. The best practices and lessons learned are extracted from these studies. Since the first human space flight, the best practices for reliable and robust spacecraft structures appear to be well established, understood, and articulated by each generation of designers and engineers. However, these best practices apparently have not always been followed. When the best practices are ignored or short cuts are taken, risks accumulate, and reliability suffers. Thus program managers need to be vigilant of circumstances and situations that tend to violate best practices. Adherence to the best practices may help develop spacecraft systems with high reliability and robustness against certain anomalies and unforeseen events.

Cluster Inter-Spacecraft Communications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cox, Brian

2008-01-01

A document describes a radio communication system being developed for exchanging data and sharing data-processing capabilities among spacecraft flying in formation. The system would establish a high-speed, low-latency, deterministic loop communication path connecting all the spacecraft in a cluster. The system would be a wireless version of a ring bus that complies with the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) standard 1393 (which pertains to a spaceborne fiber-optic data bus enhancement to the IEEE standard developed at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory). Every spacecraft in the cluster would be equipped with a ring-bus radio transceiver. The identity of a spacecraft would be established upon connection into the ring bus, and the spacecraft could be at any location in the ring communication sequence. In the event of failure of a spacecraft, the ring bus would reconfigure itself, bypassing a failed spacecraft. Similarly, the ring bus would reconfigure itself to accommodate a spacecraft newly added to the cluster or newly enabled or re-enabled. Thus, the ring bus would be scalable and robust. Reliability could be increased by launching, into the cluster, spare spacecraft to be activated in the event of failure of other spacecraft.

Spacecraft Coming out of Protective Storage

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-08-28

Members of the InSight mission's assembly, test and launch operations (ATLO) team remove the "birdcage" from NASA's InSight spacecraft, in this photo taken June 19, 2017, in a Lockheed Martin clean room facility in Littleton, Colorado. The birdcage is the inner layer of protective housing that shielded the spacecraft while in storage following a postponement of launch. It is made of a film that dissipates electrostatic conditions to protect the spacecraft from contamination. The InSight mission (for Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport) is scheduled to launch in May 2018 and land on Mars Nov. 26, 2018. It will investigate processes that formed and shaped Mars and will help scientists better understand the evolution of our inner solar system's rocky planets, including Earth. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA21843

STS-30 Magellan spacecraft processing at Kennedy Space Center (KSC) SAEF-2

NASA Image and Video Library

1988-10-08

S89-25281 (8 Oct 1988) --- The Magellan spacecraft is hoisted from the transport trailer of the Payload Environmental Transportation System (PETS) to the floor of the cleanroom in the SAEF-2 planetary checkout facility at the Kennedy Space Center (KSC). The spacecraft, destined for unprecedented studies of Venusian topographic features, is to be deployed by the crew of NASA's STS-30 mission in April 1989.

TDRS-L Spacecraft Fairing Encapsulation

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-01-08

TITUSVILLE, Fla. – Inside the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, United Launch Alliance engineers and technicians encapsulate the Tracking and Data Relay Satellite, or TDRS-L, spacecraft in its payload fairing. TDRS-L will then be transported to Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The TDRS-L satellite will be a part of the second of three next-generation spacecraft designed to ensure vital operational continuity for the NASA Space Network. It is scheduled to launch from Cape Canaveral's Space Launch Complex 41 atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket on January 23, 2014. The current Tracking and Data Relay Satellite system consists of eight in-orbit satellites distributed to provide near continuous information relay contact with orbiting spacecraft ranging from the International Space Station and Hubble Space Telescope to the array of scientific observatories. For more information, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/tdrs/home/index.html

TDRS-L Spacecraft Fairing Encapsulation

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-01-08

TITUSVILLE, Fla. – Inside the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, United Launch Alliance engineers and technicians ensure precision as the Tracking and Data Relay Satellite, or TDRS-L, spacecraft is being encapsulated in its payload fairing in preparation for begin transported to Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The TDRS-L satellite will be a part of the second of three next-generation spacecraft designed to ensure vital operational continuity for the NASA Space Network. It is scheduled to launch from Cape Canaveral's Space Launch Complex 41 atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket on January 23, 2014. The current Tracking and Data Relay Satellite system consists of eight in-orbit satellites distributed to provide near continuous information relay contact with orbiting spacecraft ranging from the International Space Station and Hubble Space Telescope to the array of scientific observatories. For more information, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/tdrs/home/index.html

TDRS-M Spacecraft Arrival

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-06-23

NASA's TDRS-M satellite arrives inside its shipping container at Space Coast Regional Airport in Titusville, Florida, aboard a U.S. Air Force transport aircraft. The spacecraft is transported to the nearby Astrotech facility, also in Titusville, for preflight processing. The TDRS-M is the latest spacecraft destined for the agency's constellation of communications satellites that allows nearly continuous contact with orbiting spacecraft ranging from the International Space Station and Hubble Space Telescope to the array of scientific observatories. Liftoff atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket is scheduled to take place from Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station at 9:02 a.m. EDT Aug. 3, 2017.

Growing Wildfire Near Big Sur, California Imaged by NASA Terra Spacecraft

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-08-09

The Soberanes fire, in Central California near Big Sur, had grown to more than 67,000 acres when the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) instrument on NASA's Terra spacecraft captured this image on Aug. 6, 2016. More than 4,800 personnel are battling the blaze, which is now 50 percent contained. The fire has destroyed 57 homes and 11 outbuildings and caused one fatality. Evacuation orders are still in effect for a number of nearby communities. The fire was caused by an illegal unattended campfire. Vegetation is depicted in red colors; burned areas are dark grey; clouds are white; smoke and ash are light grey. Yellow indicates active fires, detected on ASTER's thermal infrared channels. The image covers an area of 19 by 26 miles (30 by 42 kilometers), and is located at 36.4 degrees north, 121.8 degrees west. http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA20725

Research-Based Monitoring, Prediction, and Analysis Tools of the Spacecraft Charging Environment for Spacecraft Users

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zheng, Yihua; Kuznetsova, Maria M.; Pulkkinen, Antti A.; Maddox, Marlo M.; Mays, Mona Leila

2015-01-01

The Space Weather Research Center (http://swrc. gsfc.nasa.gov) at NASA Goddard, part of the Community Coordinated Modeling Center (http://ccmc.gsfc.nasa.gov), is committed to providing research-based forecasts and notifications to address NASA's space weather needs, in addition to its critical role in space weather education. It provides a host of services including spacecraft anomaly resolution, historical impact analysis, real-time monitoring and forecasting, tailored space weather alerts and products, and weekly summaries and reports. In this paper, we focus on how (near) real-time data (both in space and on ground), in combination with modeling capabilities and an innovative dissemination system called the integrated Space Weather Analysis system (http://iswa.gsfc.nasa.gov), enable monitoring, analyzing, and predicting the spacecraft charging environment for spacecraft users. Relevant tools and resources are discussed.

Rapid Spacecraft Development: Results and Lessons Learned

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Watson, William A.

2002-01-01

The Rapid Spacecraft Development Office (RSDO) at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center is responsible for the management and direction of a dynamic and versatile program for the definition, competition, and acquisition of multiple indefinite delivery and indefinite quantity contracts - resulting in a catalog of spacecraft buses. Five spacecraft delivery orders have been placed by the RSDO and one spacecraft has been launched. Numerous concept and design studies have been performed, most with the intent of leading to a future spacecraft acquisition. A collection of results and lessons learned is recorded to highlight management techniques, methods and processes employed in the conduct of spacecraft acquisition. Topics include working relationships under fixed price delivery orders, price and value, risk management, contingency reserves, and information restrictions.

NASA Tropospheric Emission Spectrometer TES Instrument Onboard Aura

NASA Image and Video Library

2004-04-01

Technicians install NASA's Tropospheric Emission Spectrometer (TES) instrument on NASA's Aura spacecraft prior to launch. Launched in July 2004 and designed to fly for two years, the TES mission is currently in an extended operations phase. Mission managers at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, California, are evaluating an alternate way to collect and process science data from the Tropospheric Emission Spectrometer (TES) instrument on NASA's Aura spacecraft following the age-related failure of a critical instrument component. TES is an infrared sensor designed to study Earth's troposphere, the lowermost layer of Earth's atmosphere, which is where we live. The remainder of the TES instrument, and the Aura spacecraft itself, are operating as expected, and TES continues to collect science data. TES is one of four instruments on Aura, three of which are still operating. http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA15608

Evaluation of Brine Processing Technologies for Spacecraft Wastewater

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Shaw, Hali L.; Flynn, Michael; Wisniewski, Richard; Lee, Jeffery; Jones, Harry; Delzeit, Lance; Shull, Sarah; Sargusingh, Miriam; Beeler, David; Howard, Jeanie;

Advanced optical sensing and processing technologies for the distributed control of large flexible spacecraft

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Williams, G. M.; Fraser, J. C.

1991-01-01

The objective was to examine state-of-the-art optical sensing and processing technology applied to control the motion of flexible spacecraft. Proposed large flexible space systems, such an optical telescopes and antennas, will require control over vast surfaces. Most likely distributed control will be necessary involving many sensors to accurately measure the surface. A similarly large number of actuators must act upon the system. The used technical approach included reviewing proposed NASA missions to assess system needs and requirements. A candidate mission was chosen as a baseline study spacecraft for comparison of conventional and optical control components. Control system requirements of the baseline system were used for designing both a control system containing current off-the-shelf components and a system utilizing electro-optical devices for sensing and processing. State-of-the-art surveys of conventional sensor, actuator, and processor technologies were performed. A technology development plan is presented that presents a logical, effective way to develop and integrate advancing technologies.

STS-30 Magellan spacecraft processing at Kennedy Space Center (KSC) SAEF-2

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1989-01-01

Magellan spacecraft is hoisted from the transport trailer of the Payload Environmental Transportation System (PETS) to the floor of the clean room in the Space Assembly and Encapsulation Facility 2 (SAEF-2) at Kennedy Space Center (KSC). Clean-suited technicians guide Magellan into place. The spacecraft, destined for unprecedented studies of Venusian topographic features, will be deployed by the crew of NASA's STS-30 mission in April 1989. View provided by KSC with alternate number KSC-88PC-1084.

GEMINI SPACECRAFT - ARTIST CONCEPT

NASA Image and Video Library

1964-01-01

S64-22331 (1964) --- Artist concept illustrating the relative sizes of the one-man Mercury spacecraft, the two-man Gemini spacecraft, and the three-man Apollo spacecraft. Also shows line drawing of launch vehicles to show their relative size in relation to each other. Photo credit: NASA

Phoenix Mars Lander Spacecraft Processing

NASA Image and Video Library

2007-05-10

In the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility, an overhead crane lifts the heat shield from the Phoenix Mars Lander spacecraft. The Phoenix mission is the first project in NASA's first openly competed program of Mars Scout missions. Phoenix will land in icy soils near the north polar permanent ice cap of Mars and explore the history of the water in these soils and any associated rocks, while monitoring polar climate. Landing is planned in May 2008 on arctic ground where a mission currently in orbit, Mars Odyssey, has detected high concentrations of ice just beneath the top layer of soil. It will serve as NASA's first exploration of a potential modern habitat on Mars and open the door to a renewed search for carbon-bearing compounds, last attempted with NASA’s Viking missions in the 1970s. A stereo color camera and a weather station will study the surrounding environment while the other instruments check excavated soil samples for water, organic chemicals and conditions that could indicate whether the site was ever hospitable to life. Microscopes can reveal features as small as one one-thousandth the width of a human hair. Launch of Phoenix aboard a Delta II rocket is targeted for Aug. 3 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.

X-Ray Detection and Processing Models for Spacecraft Navigation and Timing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sheikh, Suneel; Hanson, John

2013-01-01

The current primary method of deepspace navigation is the NASA Deep Space Network (DSN). High-performance navigation is achieved using Delta Differential One-Way Range techniques that utilize simultaneous observations from multiple DSN sites, and incorporate observations of quasars near the line-of-sight to a spacecraft in order to improve the range and angle measurement accuracies. Over the past four decades, x-ray astronomers have identified a number of xray pulsars with pulsed emissions having stabilities comparable to atomic clocks. The x-ray pulsar-based navigation and time determination (XNAV) system uses phase measurements from these sources to establish autonomously the position of the detector, and thus the spacecraft, relative to a known reference frame, much as the Global Positioning System (GPS) uses phase measurements from radio signals from several satellites to establish the position of the user relative to an Earth-centered fixed frame of reference. While a GPS receiver uses an antenna to detect the radio signals, XNAV uses a detector array to capture the individual xray photons from the x-ray pulsars. The navigation solution relies on detailed xray source models, signal processing, navigation and timing algorithms, and analytical tools that form the basis of an autonomous XNAV system. Through previous XNAV development efforts, some techniques have been established to utilize a pulsar pulse time-of-arrival (TOA) measurement to correct a position estimate. One well-studied approach, based upon Kalman filter methods, optimally adjusts a dynamic orbit propagation solution based upon the offset in measured and predicted pulse TOA. In this delta position estimator scheme, previously estimated values of spacecraft position and velocity are utilized from an onboard orbit propagator. Using these estimated values, the detected arrival times at the spacecraft of pulses from a pulsar are compared to the predicted arrival times defined by the pulsar s pulse

NASA Hazard Analysis Process

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Deckert, George

2010-01-01

This viewgraph presentation reviews The NASA Hazard Analysis process. The contents include: 1) Significant Incidents and Close Calls in Human Spaceflight; 2) Subsystem Safety Engineering Through the Project Life Cycle; 3) The Risk Informed Design Process; 4) Types of NASA Hazard Analysis; 5) Preliminary Hazard Analysis (PHA); 6) Hazard Analysis Process; 7) Identify Hazardous Conditions; 8) Consider All Interfaces; 9) Work a Preliminary Hazard List; 10) NASA Generic Hazards List; and 11) Final Thoughts

NASA's X2000 Program: An Institutional Approach to Enabling Smaller Spacecraft

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Deutsch, Leslie J.; Salvo, Chris; Woerner, David

2000-01-01

The number of NASA science missions per year is increasing from less than one to more than six. At the same time, individual mission budgets are smaller and cannot afford their own dedicated technology developments. In response to this, NASA has formed the X2000 Program. This program, which is divided into a set of subsequent "deliveries" will provide the basic avionics, power, communications, and software capability for future science missions. X2000 First Delivery, which will be completed in early 2001, will provide a full-functioned one MRAD tolerant flight computer, power switching electronics, a highly efficient radioisotope power source, and a transponder that provides high-level services at both 8.4 GHz and 32 GHz bands. The X2000 Second Delivery, which will be completed in the 2003 time frame, will enable complete spacecraft in the 10-50 kg class. All capabilities delivered by the X2000 program will be commercialized within the US and therefore will be available for others to use. Although the immediate customers for these technologies are deep space missions, most of the capabilities being delivered are generic in nature and will be equally applicable to Earth Observation missions.

Benefit from NASA

NASA Image and Video Library

1985-01-01

The NASA imaging processing technology, an advanced computer technique to enhance images sent to Earth in digital form by distant spacecraft, helped develop a new vision screening process. The Ocular Vision Screening system, an important step in preventing vision impairment, is a portable device designed especially to detect eye problems in children through the analysis of retinal reflexes.

InSight Spacecraft Arrival

NASA Image and Video Library

2018-02-28

At Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, NASA's Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport, or InSight, spacecraft arrives at the Astrotech processing facility. InSight was developed and built by Lockheed-Martin Space Systems in Denver, Colorado, and is scheduled for liftoff is May 5, 2018. InSight is the first mission to land on Mars and explore the Red Planet's deep interior. It will investigate processes that shaped the rocky planets of the inner solar system including Earth.

Critical safety assurance factors for manned spacecraft - A fire safety perspective

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rodney, George A.

1990-01-01

Safety assurance factors for manned spacecraft are discussed with a focus on the Space Station Freedom. A hazard scenario is provided to demonstrate a process commonly used by safety engineers and other analysts to identify onboard safety risks. Fire strategies are described, including a review of fire extinguishing agents being considered for the Space Station. Lessons learned about fire safety technology in other areas are also noted. NASA and industry research on fire safety applications is discussed. NASA's approach to ensuring safety for manned spacecraft is addressed in the context of its multidiscipline program.

A mathematical problem and a Spacecraft Control Laboratory Experiment (SCOLE) used to evaluate control laws for flexible spacecraft. NASA/IEEE design challenge

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Taylor, Lawrence W., Jr.; Balakrishnan, A. V.

1988-01-01

The problen of controlling large, flexible space systems has been evaluated using computer simulation. In several cases, ground experiments have also been used to validate system performance under more realistic conditions. There remains a need, however, to test additional control laws for flexible spacecraft and to directly compare competing design techniques. A program is discussed which has been initiated to make direct comparisons of control laws for, first, a mathematical problem, then and experimental test article being assembled under the cognizance of the Spacecraft Control Branch at the NASA Langley Research Center with the advice and counsel of the IEEE Subcommittee on Large Space Structures. The physical apparatus will consist of a softly supported dynamic model of an antenna attached to the Shuttle by a flexible beam. The control objective will include the task of directing the line-of-sight of the Shuttle antenna configuration toward a fixed target, under conditions of noisy data, control authority and random disturbances.

Phoenix Mars Lander Spacecraft Processing

NASA Image and Video Library

2007-05-10

In the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility, technicians lower a crane over the Phoenix Mars Lander spacecraft. The crane will be used to remove the heat shield from around the Phoenix. The Phoenix mission is the first project in NASA's first openly competed program of Mars Scout missions. Phoenix will land in icy soils near the north polar permanent ice cap of Mars and explore the history of the water in these soils and any associated rocks, while monitoring polar climate. Landing is planned in May 2008 on arctic ground where a mission currently in orbit, Mars Odyssey, has detected high concentrations of ice just beneath the top layer of soil. It will serve as NASA's first exploration of a potential modern habitat on Mars and open the door to a renewed search for carbon-bearing compounds, last attempted with NASA’s Viking missions in the 1970s. A stereo color camera and a weather station will study the surrounding environment while the other instruments check excavated soil samples for water, organic chemicals and conditions that could indicate whether the site was ever hospitable to life. Microscopes can reveal features as small as one one-thousandth the width of a human hair. Launch of Phoenix aboard a Delta II rocket is targeted for Aug. 3 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.

Phoenix Mars Lander Spacecraft Processing

NASA Image and Video Library

2007-05-10

In the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility, workers help guide the heat shield onto a platform. The heat shield was removed from the Phoenix Mars Lander spacecraft.. The Phoenix mission is the first project in NASA's first openly competed program of Mars Scout missions. Phoenix will land in icy soils near the north polar permanent ice cap of Mars and explore the history of the water in these soils and any associated rocks, while monitoring polar climate. Landing is planned in May 2008 on arctic ground where a mission currently in orbit, Mars Odyssey, has detected high concentrations of ice just beneath the top layer of soil. It will serve as NASA's first exploration of a potential modern habitat on Mars and open the door to a renewed search for carbon-bearing compounds, last attempted with NASA’s Viking missions in the 1970s. A stereo color camera and a weather station will study the surrounding environment while the other instruments check excavated soil samples for water, organic chemicals and conditions that could indicate whether the site was ever hospitable to life. Microscopes can reveal features as small as one one-thousandth the width of a human hair. Launch of Phoenix aboard a Delta II rocket is targeted for Aug. 3 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.

Phoenix Mars Lander Spacecraft Processing

NASA Image and Video Library

2007-05-10

In the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility, workers watch as an overhead crane lowers the heat shield toward a platform. The heat shield was removed from the Phoenix Mars Lander spacecraft. The Phoenix mission is the first project in NASA's first openly competed program of Mars Scout missions. Phoenix will land in icy soils near the north polar permanent ice cap of Mars and explore the history of the water in these soils and any associated rocks, while monitoring polar climate. Landing is planned in May 2008 on arctic ground where a mission currently in orbit, Mars Odyssey, has detected high concentrations of ice just beneath the top layer of soil. It will serve as NASA's first exploration of a potential modern habitat on Mars and open the door to a renewed search for carbon-bearing compounds, last attempted with NASA’s Viking missions in the 1970s. A stereo color camera and a weather station will study the surrounding environment while the other instruments check excavated soil samples for water, organic chemicals and conditions that could indicate whether the site was ever hospitable to life. Microscopes can reveal features as small as one one-thousandth the width of a human hair. Launch of Phoenix aboard a Delta II rocket is targeted for Aug. 3 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.

Phoenix Mars Lander Spacecraft Processing

NASA Image and Video Library

2007-05-10

In the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility, technicians attach a crane to the Phoenix Mars Lander spacecraft. The crane will be used to remove the heat shield from around the Phoenix. The Phoenix mission is the first project in NASA's first openly competed program of Mars Scout missions. Phoenix will land in icy soils near the north polar permanent ice cap of Mars and explore the history of the water in these soils and any associated rocks, while monitoring polar climate. Landing is planned in May 2008 on arctic ground where a mission currently in orbit, Mars Odyssey, has detected high concentrations of ice just beneath the top layer of soil. It will serve as NASA's first exploration of a potential modern habitat on Mars and open the door to a renewed search for carbon-bearing compounds, last attempted with NASA’s Viking missions in the 1970s. A stereo color camera and a weather station will study the surrounding environment while the other instruments check excavated soil samples for water, organic chemicals and conditions that could indicate whether the site was ever hospitable to life. Microscopes can reveal features as small as one one-thousandth the width of a human hair. Launch of Phoenix aboard a Delta II rocket is targeted for Aug. 3 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.

Phoenix Mars Lander Spacecraft Processing

NASA Image and Video Library

2007-05-10

In the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility, an overhead crane moves the heat shield toward a platform at left. The heat shield was removed from the Phoenix Mars Lander spacecraft at right. The Phoenix mission is the first project in NASA's first openly competed program of Mars Scout missions. Phoenix will land in icy soils near the north polar permanent ice cap of Mars and explore the history of the water in these soils and any associated rocks, while monitoring polar climate. Landing is planned in May 2008 on arctic ground where a mission currently in orbit, Mars Odyssey, has detected high concentrations of ice just beneath the top layer of soil. It will serve as NASA's first exploration of a potential modern habitat on Mars and open the door to a renewed search for carbon-bearing compounds, last attempted with NASA’s Viking missions in the 1970s. A stereo color camera and a weather station will study the surrounding environment while the other instruments check excavated soil samples for water, organic chemicals and conditions that could indicate whether the site was ever hospitable to life. Microscopes can reveal features as small as one one-thousandth the width of a human hair. Launch of Phoenix aboard a Delta II rocket is targeted for Aug. 3 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.

Phoenix Mars Lander Spacecraft Processing

NASA Image and Video Library

2007-05-10

An overhead crane lifts the backshell with the Phoenix Mars Lander inside off its work stand in the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility. The spacecraft is being moved to a spin table (back left) for spin testing. The Phoenix mission is the first project in NASA's first openly competed program of Mars Scout missions. Phoenix will land in icy soils near the north polar permanent ice cap of Mars and explore the history of the water in these soils and any associated rocks, while monitoring polar climate. Landing is planned in May 2008 on arctic ground where a mission currently in orbit, Mars Odyssey, has detected high concentrations of ice just beneath the top layer of soil. It will serve as NASA's first exploration of a potential modern habitat on Mars and open the door to a renewed search for carbon-bearing compounds, last attempted with NASA’s Viking missions in the 1970s. A stereo color camera and a weather station will study the surrounding environment while the other instruments check excavated soil samples for water, organic chemicals and conditions that could indicate whether the site was ever hospitable to life. Microscopes can reveal features as small as one one-thousandth the width of a human hair. Launch of Phoenix aboard a Delta II rocket is targeted for Aug. 3 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.

LADEE NASA Social

NASA Image and Video Library

2013-09-05

Bob Barber, Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer (LADEE) Spacecraft Systems Engineer at NASA Ames Research Center, points to a model of the LADEE spacecraft a NASA Social, Thursday, Sept. 5, 2013 at NASA Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia. Fifty of NASA's social media followers are attending a two-day event in support of the LADEE launch. Data from LADEE will provide unprecedented information about the environment around the moon and give scientists a better understanding of other planetary bodies in our solar system and beyond. LADEE is scheduled to launch at 11:27 p.m. Friday, Sept. 6, from NASA's Wallops Flight Facility. Photo Credit: (NASA/Carla Cioffi)

Orbit determination and orbit control for the Earth Observing System (EOS) AM spacecraft

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Herberg, Joseph R.; Folta, David C.

1993-01-01

Future NASA Earth Observing System (EOS) Spacecraft will make measurements of the earth's clouds, oceans, atmosphere, land and radiation balance. These EOS Spacecraft will be part of the NASA Mission to Planet Earth. This paper specifically addresses the EOS AM Spacecraft, referred to as 'AM' because it has a sun-synchronous orbit with a 10:30 AM descending node. This paper describes the EOS AM Spacecraft mission orbit requirements, orbit determination, orbit control, and navigation system impact on earth based pointing. The EOS AM Spacecraft will be the first spacecraft to use the TDRSS Onboard Navigation System (TONS) as the primary means of navigation. TONS flight software will process one-way forward Doppler measurements taken during scheduled TDRSS contacts. An extended Kalman filter will estimate spacecraft position, velocity, drag coefficient correction, and ultrastable master oscillator frequency bias and drift. The TONS baseline algorithms, software, and hardware implementation are described in this paper. TONS integration into the EOS AM Spacecraft Guidance, Navigation, and Control (GN&C) System; TONS assisted onboard time maintenance; and the TONS Ground Support System (TGSS) are also addressed.

InSight Spacecraft Arrival

NASA Image and Video Library

2018-02-28

After arrival at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, ground crews prepare NASA's Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport, or InSight, spacecraft for transportation to the Astrotech processing facility. InSight was developed and built by Lockheed-Martin Space Systems in Denver, Colorado, and is scheduled for liftoff is May 5, 2018. InSight is the first mission to explore the deep interior of Mars. It will investigate processes that shaped the rocky planets of the inner solar system including Earth.

Spacecraft Charging Issues for Launch Vehicles

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Buhler, Janessa L.; Minow, Joseph I.; Trout, Dawn H.

2014-01-01

Spacecraft charging is well known threat to successful long term spacecraft operations and instrument reliability in orbits that spend significant time in hot electron environments. In recent years, spacecraft charging has increasingly been recognized as a potentially significant engineering issue for launch vehicles used to deploy spacecraft using (a) low Earth orbit (LEO), high inclination flight trajectories that pass through the auroral zone, (b) geostationary transfer orbits that require exposures to the hot electron environments in the Earths outer radiation belts, and (c) LEO escape trajectories using multiple phasing orbits through the Earths radiation belts while raising apogee towards a final Earth escape geometry. Charging becomes an issue when significant areas of exposed insulating materials or ungrounded conductors are used in the launch vehicle design or the payload is designed for use in a benign charging region beyond the Earths magnetosphere but must survive passage through the strong charging regimes of the Earths radiation belts. This presentation will first outline the charging risks encountered on typical launch trajectories used to deploy spacecraft into Earth orbit and Earth escape trajectories. We then describe the process used by NASAs Launch Services Program to evaluate when surface and internal charging is a potential risk to a NASA mission. Finally, we describe the options for mitigating charging risks including modification of the launch vehicle andor payload design and controlling the risk through operational launch constraints to avoid significant charging environments.

DSCOVR Spacecraft Arrival, Offload, & Unpacking

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-11-20

NOAA’s Deep Space Climate Observatory spacecraft, or DSCOVR, wrapped in plastic, comes into view as the protective shipping container is lifted from around the spacecraft at the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, Florida, near Kennedy Space Center. DSCOVR is a partnership between NOAA, NASA and the U.S. Air Force. DSCOVR will maintain the nation's real-time solar wind monitoring capabilities which are critical to the accuracy and lead time of NOAA's space weather alerts and forecasts. Launch is currently scheduled for January 2015 aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 v 1.1 launch vehicle from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida.

Reengineering the JPL Spacecraft Design Process

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Briggs, C.

1995-01-01

This presentation describes the factors that have emerged in the evolved process of reengineering the unmanned spacecraft design process at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. Topics discussed include: New facilities, new design factors, new system-level tools, complex performance objectives, changing behaviors, design integration, leadership styles, and optimization.

Research supporting potential modification of the NASA specification for dry heat microbial reduction of spacecraft hardware

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Spry, James A.; Beaudet, Robert; Schubert, Wayne

Dry heat microbial reduction (DHMR) is the primary method currently used to reduce the microbial load of spacecraft and component parts to comply with planetary protection re-quirements. However, manufacturing processes often involve heating flight hardware to high temperatures for purposes other than planetary protection DHMR. At present, the specifica-tion in NASA document NPR8020.12, describing the process lethality on B. atrophaeus (ATCC 9372) bacterial spores, does not allow for additional planetary protection bioburden reduction credit for processing outside a narrow temperature, time and humidity window. Our results from a comprehensive multi-year laboratory research effort have generated en-hanced data sets on four aspects of the current specification: time and temperature effects in combination, the effect that humidity has on spore lethality, and the lethality for spores with exceptionally high thermal resistance (so called "hardies"). This paper describes potential modifications to the specification, based on the data set gener-ated in the referenced studies. The proposed modifications are intended to broaden the scope of the current specification while still maintaining confidence in a conservative interpretation of the lethality of the DHMR process on microorganisms.

Compendium of Single Event Effects, Total Ionizing Dose, and Displacement Damage for Candidate Spacecraft Electronics for NASA

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

LaBel, Kenneth A.; OBryan, Martha V.; Chen, Dakai; Campola, Michael J.; Casey, Megan C.; Pellish, Jonathan A.; Lauenstein, Jean-Marie; Wilcox, Edward P.; Topper, Alyson D.; Ladbury, Raymond L.;

Standard spacecraft economic analysis. Volume 1: Executive summary

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Harris, E. D.; Large, J. P.

1976-01-01

A study of the comparative program costs associated with use of various standardized spacecraft for Air Force space test program missions to be flown on the space shuttle during the 1980-1990 time period is reviewed. The first phase of the study considered a variety of procurement mixes composed of existing or programmed NASA standard spacecraft designs and a Air Force standard spacecraft design. The results were briefed to a joint NASA/Air Force audience on July 11, 1976. The second phase considered additional procurement options using an upgraded version of an existing NASA design. The results of both phases are summarized.

Protecting Against Faults in JPL Spacecraft

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Morgan, Paula

2007-01-01

A paper discusses techniques for protecting against faults in spacecraft designed and operated by NASA s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). The paper addresses, more specifically, fault-protection requirements and techniques common to most JPL spacecraft (in contradistinction to unique, mission specific techniques), standard practices in the implementation of these techniques, and fault-protection software architectures. Common requirements include those to protect onboard command, data-processing, and control computers; protect against loss of Earth/spacecraft radio communication; maintain safe temperatures; and recover from power overloads. The paper describes fault-protection techniques as part of a fault-management strategy that also includes functional redundancy, redundant hardware, and autonomous monitoring of (1) the operational and health statuses of spacecraft components, (2) temperatures inside and outside the spacecraft, and (3) allocation of power. The strategy also provides for preprogrammed automated responses to anomalous conditions. In addition, the software running in almost every JPL spacecraft incorporates a general-purpose "Safe Mode" response algorithm that configures the spacecraft in a lower-power state that is safe and predictable, thereby facilitating diagnosis of more complex faults by a team of human experts on Earth.

Spacecraft Images Comet Target Jets

NASA Image and Video Library

2010-11-04

NASA Deep Impact spacecraft High- and Medium-Resolution Imagers HRI and MRI captured multiple jets emanating from comet Hartley 2 turning on and off while the spacecraft is 8 million kilometers 5 million miles away from the comet.

Mars Science Laboratory Spacecraft Assembled for Testing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2008-01-01

The major components of NASA's Mars Science Laboratory spacecraft cruise stage atop the aeroshell, which has the descent stage and rover inside were connected together in October 2008 for several weeks of system testing, including simulation of launch vibrations and deep-space environmental conditions.

These components will be taken apart again, for further work on each of them, after the environmental testing. The Mars Science Laboratory spacecraft is being assembled and tested for launch in 2011.

This image was taken inside the Spacecraft Assembly Facility at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., which manages the Mars Science Laboratory Project for the NASA Science Mission Directorate, Washington. JPL is a division of the California Institute of Technology.

Autonomic Computing for Spacecraft Ground Systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Li, Zhenping; Savkli, Cetin; Jones, Lori

2007-01-01

Autonomic computing for spacecraft ground systems increases the system reliability and reduces the cost of spacecraft operations and software maintenance. In this paper, we present an autonomic computing solution for spacecraft ground systems at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC), which consists of an open standard for a message oriented architecture referred to as the GMSEC architecture (Goddard Mission Services Evolution Center), and an autonomic computing tool, the Criteria Action Table (CAT). This solution has been used in many upgraded ground systems for NASA 's missions, and provides a framework for developing solutions with higher autonomic maturity.

Science Benefits of Onboard Spacecraft Navigation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cangahuala, Al; Bhaskaran, Shyam; Owen, Bill

2012-01-01

navigation can be accomplished through a self- contained system that by eliminating light time restrictions dramatically improves the relative trajectory knowledge and control and subsequently increases the amount of quality data collected. Flybys are one-time events, so the system's underlying algorithms and software must be extremely robust. The autonomous software must also be able to cope with the unknown size, shape, and orientation of the previously unseen comet nucleus. Furthermore, algorithms must be reliable in the presence of imperfections and/or damage to onboard cameras accrued after many years of deep-space operations. The AutoNav operational flight software packages, developed by scientists at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) under contract with NASA, meet all these requirements. They have been directly responsible for the successful encounters on all of NASA's close-up comet-imaging missions (see Figure !1). AutoNav is the only system to date that has autonomously tracked comet nuclei during encounters and performed autonomous interplanetary navigation. AutoNav has enabled five cometary flyby missions (Table!1) residing on four NASA spacecraft provided by three different spacecraft builders. Using this software, missions were able to process a combined total of nearly 1000 images previously unseen by humans. By eliminating the need to navigate spacecraft from Earth, the accuracy gained by AutoNav during flybys compared to ground-based navigation is about 1!order of magnitude in targeting and 2!orders of magnitude in time of flight. These benefits ensure that pointing errors do not compromise data gathered during flybys. In addition, these benefits can be applied to flybys of other solar system objects, flybys at much slower relative velocities, mosaic imaging campaigns, and other proximity activities (e.g., orbiting, hovering, and descent/ascent).

Spacecraft Charge Monitor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Goembel, L.

2003-12-01

We are currently developing a flight prototype Spacecraft Charge Monitor (SCM) with support from NASA's Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program. The device will use a recently proposed high energy-resolution electron spectroscopic technique to determine spacecraft floating potential. The inspiration for the technique came from data collected by the Atmosphere Explorer (AE) satellites in the 1970s. The data available from the AE satellites indicate that the SCM may be able to determine spacecraft floating potential to within 0.1 V under certain conditions. Such accurate measurement of spacecraft charge could be used to correct biases in space plasma measurements. The device may also be able to measure spacecraft floating potential in the solar wind and in orbit around other planets.

Benefits of Spacecraft Level Vibration Testing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gordon, Scott; Kern, Dennis L.

2015-01-01

NASA-HDBK-7008 Spacecraft Level Dynamic Environments Testing discusses the approaches, benefits, dangers, and recommended practices for spacecraft level dynamic environments testing, including vibration testing. This paper discusses in additional detail the benefits and actual experiences of vibration testing spacecraft for NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) and Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) flight projects. JPL and GSFC have both similarities and differences in their spacecraft level vibration test approach: JPL uses a random vibration input and a frequency range usually starting at 5 Hz and extending to as high as 250 Hz. GSFC uses a sine sweep vibration input and a frequency range usually starting at 5 Hz and extending only to the limits of the coupled loads analysis (typically 50 to 60 Hz). However, both JPL and GSFC use force limiting to realistically notch spacecraft resonances and response (acceleration) limiting as necessary to protect spacecraft structure and hardware from exceeding design strength capabilities. Despite GSFC and JPL differences in spacecraft level vibration test approaches, both have uncovered a significant number of spacecraft design and workmanship anomalies in vibration tests. This paper will give an overview of JPL and GSFC spacecraft vibration testing approaches and provide a detailed description of spacecraft anomalies revealed.

Relative Positions of Distant Spacecraft

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-04-29

This graphic shows the relative positions of NASA most distant spacecraft in early 2011, looking at the solar system from the side. Voyager 1 is the most distant spacecraft, 10.9 billion miles away from the sun at a northward angle.

WIND Spacecraft Launch

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1994-01-01

An international effort to learn more about the complex interaction between the Earth and Sun took another step forward with the launch of WIND spacecraft from Kennedy Space Center (KSC). WIND spacecraft is studded with eight scientific instruments - six US, one French, and one - the first Russian instrument to fly on a US spacecraft - that collected data about the influence of the solar wind on the Earth and its atmosphere. WIND is part of the Global Geospace Science (GGS) initiative, the US contribution to NASA's International Solar Terrestrial Physics (ISTP) program.

Interpretive computer simulator for the NASA Standard Spacecraft Computer-2 (NSSC-2)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Smith, R. S.; Noland, M. S.

1979-01-01

An Interpretive Computer Simulator (ICS) for the NASA Standard Spacecraft Computer-II (NSSC-II) was developed as a code verification and testing tool for the Annular Suspension and Pointing System (ASPS) project. The simulator is written in the higher level language PASCAL and implented on the CDC CYBER series computer system. It is supported by a metal assembler, a linkage loader for the NSSC-II, and a utility library to meet the application requirements. The architectural design of the NSSC-II is that of an IBM System/360 (S/360) and supports all but four instructions of the S/360 standard instruction set. The structural design of the ICS is described with emphasis on the design differences between it and the NSSC-II hardware. The program flow is diagrammed, with the function of each procedure being defined; the instruction implementation is discussed in broad terms; and the instruction timings used in the ICS are listed. An example of the steps required to process an assembly level language program on the ICS is included. The example illustrates the control cards necessary to assemble, load, and execute assembly language code; the sample program to to be executed; the executable load module produced by the loader; and the resulting output produced by the ICS.

Spacecraft Maximum Allowable Concentrations for Selected Airborne Contaminants. Volume 2

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1996-01-01

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is aware of the potential toxicological hazards to humans that might be associated with prolonged spacecraft missions. Despite major engineering advances in controlling the atmosphere within spacecraft, some contamination of the air appears inevitable. NASA has measured numerous airborne contaminants during space missions. As the missions increase in duration and complexity, ensuring the health and well-being of astronauts traveling and working in this unique environment becomes increasingly difficult. As part of its efforts to promote safe conditions aboard spacecraft, NASA requested the National Research Council (NRC) to develop guidelines for establishing spacecraft maximum allowable concentrations (SMACs) for contaminants, and to review SMACs for various space-craft contaminants to determine whether NASA's recommended exposure limits are consistent with the guidelines recommended by the subcommittee. In response to NASA's request, the NRC organized the Subcommittee on Guidelines for Developing Spacecraft Maximum Allowable Concentrations for Space Station Contaminants within the Committee On Toxicology (COT). In the first phase of its work, the subcommittee developed the criteria and methods for preparing SMACs for spacecraft contaminants. The subcommittee's report, entitled Guidelines for Developing Spacecraft Maximum Allowable Concentrations for Space Station Contaminants, was published in 1992. The executive summary of that report is reprinted as Appendix A of this volume. In the second phase of the study, the Subcommittee on Spacecraft Maximum Allowable Concentrations reviewed reports prepared by NASA scientists and contractors recommending SMACs for approximately 35 spacecraft contaminants. The subcommittee sought to determine whether the SMAC reports were consistent with the 1992 guidelines. Appendix B of this volume contains the SMAC reports for 12 chemical contaminants that have been reviewed for

Spacecraft maximum allowable concentrations for selected airborne contaminants, volume 1

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1994-01-01

As part of its efforts to promote safe conditions aboard spacecraft, NASA requested the National Research Council (NRC) to develop guidelines for establishing spacecraft maximum allowable concentrations (SMAC's) for contaminants, and to review SMAC's for various spacecraft contaminants to determine whether NASA's recommended exposure limits are consistent with the guidelines recommended by the subcommittee. In response to NASA's request, the NRC organized the Subcommittee on Guidelines for Developing Spacecraft Maximum Allowable Concentrations for Space Station Contaminants within the Committee on Toxicology (COT). In the first phase of its work, the subcommittee developed the criteria and methods for preparing SMAC's for spacecraft contaminants. The subcommittee's report, entitled Guidelines for Developing Spacecraft Maximum Allowable Concentrations for Space Station Contaminants, was published in 1992. The executive summary of that report is reprinted as Appendix A of this volume. In the second phase of the study, the Subcommittee on Spacecraft Maximum Allowable Concentrations reviewed reports prepared by NASA scientists and contractors recommending SMAC's for 35 spacecraft contaminants. The subcommittee sought to determine whether the SMAC reports were consistent with the 1992 guidelines. Appendix B of this volume contains the first 11 SMAC reports that have been reviewed for their application of the guidelines developed in the first phase of this activity and approved by the subcommittee.

Spacecraft Charging Calculations: NASCAP-2K and SEE Spacecraft Charging Handbook

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Davis, V. A.; Neergaard, L. F.; Mandell, M. J.; Katz, I.; Gardner, B. M.; Hilton, J. M.; Minor, J.

2002-01-01

For fifteen years NASA and the Air Force Charging Analyzer Program for Geosynchronous Orbits (NASCAP/GEO) has been the workhorse of spacecraft charging calculations. Two new tools, the Space Environment and Effects (SEE) Spacecraft Charging Handbook (recently released), and Nascap-2K (under development), use improved numeric techniques and modern user interfaces to tackle the same problem. The SEE Spacecraft Charging Handbook provides first-order, lower-resolution solutions while Nascap-2K provides higher resolution results appropriate for detailed analysis. This paper illustrates how the improvements in the numeric techniques affect the results.

COTSAT Small Spacecraft Cost Optimization for Government and Commercial Use

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Swank, Aaron J.; Bui, David; Dallara, Christopher; Ghassemieh, Shakib; Hanratty, James; Jackson, Evan; Klupar, Pete; Lindsay, Michael; Ling, Kuok; Mattei, Nicholas;

High voltage cabling for high power spacecraft

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dunbar, W. G.

1981-01-01

Studies by NASA have shown that many of the space missions proposed for the time period 1980 to 2000 will require large spacecraft structures to be assembled in orbit. Large antennas and power systems up to 2.5 MW size are predicted to supply the electrical/electronic subsystems, solar electric subsystems, solar electric propulsion, and space processing for the near-term programs. Platforms of 100 meters/length for stable foundations, utility stations, and supports for these multi-antenna and electronic powered mechanisms are also being considered. This paper includes the findings of an analytic and conceptual design study for large spacecraft power distribution, and electrical loads and their influence on the cable and connector requirements for these proposed large spacecraft.

Applying Formal Methods to NASA Projects: Transition from Research to Practice

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Othon, Bill

2009-01-01

NASA project managers attempt to manage risk by relying on mature, well-understood process and technology when designing spacecraft. In the case of crewed systems, the margin for error is even tighter and leads to risk aversion. But as we look to future missions to the Moon and Mars, the complexity of the systems will increase as the spacecraft and crew work together with less reliance on Earth-based support. NASA will be forced to look for new ways to do business. Formal methods technologies can help NASA develop complex but cost effective spacecraft in many domains, including requirements and design, software development and inspection, and verification and validation of vehicle subsystems. To realize these gains, the technologies must be matured and field-tested so that they are proven when needed. During this discussion, current activities used to evaluate FM technologies for Orion spacecraft design will be reviewed. Also, suggestions will be made to demonstrate value to current designers, and mature the technology for eventual use in safety-critical NASA missions.

User-oriented end-to-end transport protocols for the real-time distribution of telemetry data from NASA spacecraft

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hooke, A. J.

1979-01-01

A set of standard telemetry protocols for downlink data flow facilitating the end-to-end transport of instrument data from the spacecraft to the user in real time is proposed. The direct switching of data by autonomous message 'packets' that are assembled by the source instrument on the spacecraft is discussed. The data system consists thus of a format on a message rather than word basis, and such packet telemetry would include standardized protocol headers. Standards are being developed within the NASA End-to-End Data System (NEEDS) program for the source packet and transport frame protocols. The source packet protocol contains identification of both the sequence number of the packet as it is generated by the source and the total length of the packet, while the transport frame protocol includes a sequence count defining the serial number of the frame as it is generated by the spacecraft data system, and a field specifying any 'options' selected in the format of the frame itself.

SOHO Mission Interruption Joint NASA/ESA Investigation Board

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1998-01-01

Contact with the SOlar Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) spacecraft was lost in the early morning hours of June 25, 1998, Eastern Daylight Time (EDT), during a planned period of calibrations, maneuvers, and spacecraft reconfigurations. Prior to this the SOHO operations team had concluded two years of extremely successful science operations. A joint European Space Agency (ESA)/National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) engineering team has been planning and executing recovery efforts since loss of contact with some success to date. ESA and NASA management established the SOHO Mission Interruption Joint Investigation Board to determine the actual or probable cause(s) of the SOHO spacecraft mishap. The Board has concluded that there were no anomalies on-board the SOHO spacecraft but that a number of ground errors led to the major loss of attitude experienced by the spacecraft. The Board finds that the loss of the SOHO spacecraft was a direct result of operational errors, a failure to adequately monitor spacecraft status, and an erroneous decision which disabled part of the on-board autonomous failure detection. Further, following the occurrence of the emergency situation, the Board finds that insufficient time was taken by the operations team to fully assess the spacecraft status prior to initiating recovery operations. The Board discovered that a number of factors contributed to the circumstances that allowed the direct causes to occur. The Board strongly recommends that the two Agencies proceed immediately with a comprehensive review of SOHO operations addressing issues in the ground procedures, procedure implementation, management structure and process, and ground systems. This review process should be completed and process improvements initiated prior to the resumption of SOHO normal operations.

An Architecture to Enable Autonomous Control of Spacecraft

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

May, Ryan D.; Dever, Timothy P.; Soeder, James F.; George, Patrick J.; Morris, Paul H.; Colombano, Silvano P.; Frank, Jeremy D.; Schwabacher, Mark A.; Wang, Liu; LawLer, Dennis

2014-01-01

Autonomy is required for manned spacecraft missions distant enough that light-time communication delays make ground-based mission control infeasible. Presently, ground controllers develop a complete schedule of power modes for all spacecraft components based on a large number of factors. The proposed architecture is an early attempt to formalize and automate this process using on-vehicle computation resources. In order to demonstrate this architecture, an autonomous electrical power system controller and vehicle Mission Manager are constructed. These two components are designed to work together in order to plan upcoming load use as well as respond to unanticipated deviations from the plan. The communication protocol was developed using "paper" simulations prior to formally encoding the messages and developing software to implement the required functionality. These software routines exchange data via TCP/IP sockets with the Mission Manager operating at NASA Ames Research Center and the autonomous power controller running at NASA Glenn Research Center. The interconnected systems are tested and shown to be effective at planning the operation of a simulated quasi-steady state spacecraft power system and responding to unexpected disturbances.

Implementation of NASA Materials and Processes Requirements at the Goddard Space Flight Center

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Powers, Charles E.

2009-01-01

This slide presentation reviews the history and current practices of the Materials Engineering Branch (MEB) at the Goddard Space Flight Center. Included in the presentation is a review of the general Materials and Processes (M&P) requirements in the NASA-STD-6016. The work that the Materials Engineering Branch does to support GSFC Projects is also reviewed. The Materials Engineering Branch capabilities are listed, the expertise that is available to GSFC projects is also listed. Included in the backup slides are forms that the MEB uses to identify the materials in the spacecraft under development.

NASA Centers and Universities Collaborate Through Smallsat Technology Partnerships

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cockrell, James

2018-01-01

The Small Spacecraft Technology (SST) Program within the NASA Space Technology Mission Directorate is chartered develop and demonstrate the capabilities that enable small spacecraft to achieve science and exploration missions in "unique" and "more affordable" ways. Specifically, the SST program seeks to enable new mission architectures through the use of small spacecraft, to expand the reach of small spacecraft to new destinations, and to make possible the augmentation existing assets and future missions with supporting small spacecraft. The SST program sponsors smallsat technology development partnerships between universities and NASA Centers in order to engage the unique talents and fresh perspectives of the university community and to share NASA experience and expertise in relevant university projects to develop new technologies and capabilities for small spacecraft. These partnerships also engage NASA personnel in the rapid, agile and cost-conscious small spacecraft approaches that have evolved in the university community, as well as increase support to university efforts and foster a new generation of innovators for NASA and the nation.

Low power arcjet system spacecraft impacts

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Pencil, Eric J.; Sarmiento, Charles J.; Lichtin, D. A.; Palchefsky, J. W.; Bogorad, A. L.

1993-01-01

Application of electrothermal arcjets on communications satellites requires assessment of integration concerns identified by the user community. Perceived risks include plume contamination of spacecraft materials, induced arcing or electrostatic discharges between differentially charged spacecraft surfaces, and conducted and radiated electromagnetic interference (EMI) for both steady state and transient conditions. A Space Act agreement between Martin Marietta Astro Space, the Rocket Research Company, and NASA's Lewis Research Center was established to experimentally examine these issues. Spacecraft materials were exposed to an arcjet plume for 40 hours, representing 40 weeks of actual spacecraft life, and contamination was characterized by changes in surface properties. With the exception of the change in emittance of one sample, all measurable changes in surface properties resulted in acceptable end of life characteristics. Charged spacecraft samples were benignly and consistently reduced to ground potential during exposure to the powered arcjet plume, suggesting that the arcjet could act as a charge control device on spacecraft. Steady state EMI signatures obtained using two different power processing units were similar to emissions measured in a previous test. Emissions measured in UHF, S, C, Ku and Ka bands obtained a null result which verified previous work in the UHF, S, and C bands. Characteristics of conducted and radiated transient emissions appear within standard spacecraft susceptibility criteria.

Integrating Powered Descent Vehicle with Back Shell of Mars Spacecraft

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-11-10

The powered descent vehicle of NASA Mars Science Laboratory spacecraft is being prepared for final integration into the spacecraft back shell in this photograph from inside the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at NASA Kennedy Space Center, Fla.

NASA SMAP is Readied for Launch

NASA Image and Video Library

2015-01-20

NASA Soil Moisture Active Passive spacecraft is lowered onto the Delta II payload attach structure in the Astrotech payload processing facility at Vandenberg Air Force Base, California, in preparation for launch, to take place no sooner than Jan. 29.

On-Orbit ACDS Performance of the Landsat 7 Spacecraft

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sabelhaus, Phillip; Bolek, Joseph; Scott, Steve; Holmes, Eric; O'Donnell, James R., Jr.; Storey, James

2001-01-01

Landsat 7 is part of NASA's Earth Science Enterprise (ESE). The ESE is committed to developing an understanding of the total Earth system, the effects of natural and human-induced changes on the global environment, and how natural processes affect humans and how humans affect them. The Landsat 7 satellite consists of the spacecraft bus which was provided under a NASA contract with Lockheed Martin Missiles and Space in Philadelphia, PA, and the Enhanced Thematic Mapper-Plus (ETM+) instrument, procured under a NASA contract with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing, in Santa Barbara, CA. The Landsat 7 Attitude Control and Determination System (ACDS) provides many essential functions for the operation of the spacecraft bus and for ETM+. The ACDS maintains the required attitude and orbit at the degree of accuracy necessary for power generation, command and telemetry, thermal balance, image acquisition, Gimbaled X-Band Antenna (GXA) pointing and data for image post-processing. Descriptions of the Landsat 7 mission and the ACDS modes and requirements are presented. A brief summary of significant events of the on-orbit initialization and validation period are provided. Finally, the Landsat 7 product generation system is described and the impact that the ACDS performance has on the ground based image processing system is explored.

Rockets and spacecraft: Sine qua non of space science

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1980-01-01

The evolution of the national launch vehicle stable is presented along with lists of launch vehicles used in NASA programs. A partial list of spacecraft used throughout the world is also given. Scientific spacecraft costs are presented along with an historial overview of project development and funding in NASA.

Flammability Configuration Analysis for Spacecraft Applications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Pedley, Michael D.

2014-01-01

Fire is one of the many potentially catastrophic hazards associated with the operation of crewed spacecraft. A major lesson learned by NASA from the Apollo 204 fire in 1966 was that ignition sources in an electrically powered vehicle should and can be minimized, but can never be eliminated completely. For this reason, spacecraft fire control is based on minimizing potential ignition sources and eliminating materials that can propagate fire. Fire extinguishers are always provided on crewed spacecraft, but are not considered as part of the fire control process. "Eliminating materials that can propagate fire" does not mean eliminating all flammable materials - the cost of designing and building spacecraft using only nonflammable materials is extraordinary and unnecessary. It means controlling the quantity and configuration of such materials to eliminate potential fire propagation paths and thus ensure that any fire would be small, localized, and isolated, and would self-extinguish without harm to the crew. Over the years, NASA has developed many solutions for controlling the configuration of flammable materials (and potentially flammable materials in commercial "off-the-shelf" hardware) so that they can be used safely in air and oxygen-enriched environments in crewed spacecraft. This document describes and explains these design solutions so payload customers and other organizations can use them in designing safe and cost-effective flight hardware. Proper application of these guidelines will produce acceptable flammability configurations for hardware located in any compartment of the International Space Station or other program crewed vehicles and habitats. However, use of these guidelines does not exempt hardware organizations of the responsibility for safety of the hardware under their control.

Wyoming Wildfire Spotted by NASA Spacecraft

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-07-28

The blue dots in this field of galaxies, known as the COSMOS field, show galaxies that contain supermassive black holes emitting high-energy X-rays. The black holes were detected by NASA's Nuclear Spectroscopic Array, or NuSTAR, which spotted 32 such black holes in this field and has observed hundreds across the whole sky so far. The other colored dots are galaxies that host black holes emitting lower-energy X-rays, and were spotted by NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory. Chandra data show X-rays with energies between 0.5 to 7 kiloelectron volts, while NuSTAR data show X-rays between 8 to 24 kiloelectron volts. http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA20865

TDRS-L Spacecraft Transported from Astrotech to SLC

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-01-13

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – Encapsulated in its payload fairing, NASA's Tracking and Data Relay Satellite, or TDRS-L, spacecraft arrives at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station's Vertical Integration Facility at Launch Complex 41. The TDRS-L satellite will be a part of the second of three next-generation spacecraft designed to ensure vital operational continuity for the NASA Space Network. It is scheduled to launch from Cape Canaveral's Space Launch Complex 41 atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket on January 23, 2014. The current Tracking and Data Relay Satellite system consists of eight in-orbit satellites distributed to provide near continuous information relay contact with orbiting spacecraft ranging from the International Space Station and Hubble Space Telescope to the array of scientific observatories. For more information, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/tdrs/home/index.html Photo credit: NASA/Dimitri Gerondidakis

Tools Automate Spacecraft Testing, Operation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2010-01-01

"NASA began the Small Explorer (SMEX) program to develop spacecraft to advance astrophysics and space physics. As one of the entities supporting software development at Goddard Space Flight Center, the Hammers Company Inc. (tHC Inc.), of Greenbelt, Maryland, developed the Integrated Test and Operations System to support SMEX. Later, the company received additional Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) funding from Goddard for a tool to facilitate the development of flight software called VirtualSat. NASA uses the tools to support 15 satellites, and the aerospace industry is using them to develop science instruments, spacecraft computer systems, and navigation and control software."

Spacecraft Data Simulator for the test of level zero processing systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Shi, Jeff; Gordon, Julie; Mirchandani, Chandru; Nguyen, Diem

1994-01-01

The Microelectronic Systems Branch (MSB) at Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) has developed a Spacecraft Data Simulator (SDS) to support the development, test, and verification of prototype and production Level Zero Processing (LZP) systems. Based on a disk array system, the SDS is capable of generating large test data sets up to 5 Gigabytes and outputting serial test data at rates up to 80 Mbps. The SDS supports data formats including NASA Communication (Nascom) blocks, Consultative Committee for Space Data System (CCSDS) Version 1 & 2 frames and packets, and all the Advanced Orbiting Systems (AOS) services. The capability to simulate both sequential and non-sequential time-ordered downlink data streams with errors and gaps is crucial to test LZP systems. This paper describes the system architecture, hardware and software designs, and test data designs. Examples of test data designs are included to illustrate the application of the SDS.

GSFC Cutting Edge Avionics Technologies for Spacecraft

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Luers, Philip J.; Culver, Harry L.; Plante, Jeannette

1998-01-01

With the launch of NASA's first fiber optic bus on SAMPEX in 1992, GSFC has ushered in an era of new technology development and insertion into flight programs. Predating such programs the Lewis and Clark missions and the New Millenium Program, GSFC has spearheaded the drive to use cutting edge technologies on spacecraft for three reasons: to enable next generation Space and Earth Science, to shorten spacecraft development schedules, and to reduce the cost of NASA missions. The technologies developed have addressed three focus areas: standard interface components, high performance processing, and high-density packaging techniques enabling lower cost systems. To realize the benefits of standard interface components GSFC has developed and utilized radiation hardened/tolerant devices such as PCI target ASICs, Parallel Fiber Optic Data Bus terminals, MIL-STD-1773 and AS1773 transceivers, and Essential Services Node. High performance processing has been the focus of the Mongoose I and Mongoose V rad-hard 32-bit processor programs as well as the SMEX-Lite Computation Hub. High-density packaging techniques have resulted in 3-D stack DRAM packages and Chip-On-Board processes. Lower cost systems have been demonstrated by judiciously using all of our technology developments to enable "plug and play" scalable architectures. The paper will present a survey of development and insertion experiences for the above technologies, as well as future plans to enable more "better, faster, cheaper" spacecraft. Details of ongoing GSFC programs such as Ultra-Low Power electronics, Rad-Hard FPGAs, PCI master ASICs, and Next Generation Mongoose processors.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Workers in NASA Spacecraft Hangar AE position the Space Infrared Telescope Facility (SIRTF), which has been returned to the hangar from the launch pad, for further processing. SIRTF will remain in the clean room until it returns to the pad in early August. One of NASA's largest infrared telescopes to be launched, SIRTF will obtain images and spectra by detecting the infrared energy, or heat, radiated by objects in space.

NASA Image and Video Library

2003-05-02

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Workers in NASA Spacecraft Hangar AE position the Space Infrared Telescope Facility (SIRTF), which has been returned to the hangar from the launch pad, for further processing. SIRTF will remain in the clean room until it returns to the pad in early August. One of NASA's largest infrared telescopes to be launched, SIRTF will obtain images and spectra by detecting the infrared energy, or heat, radiated by objects in space.

Spacecraft Will Communicate "on the Fly"

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Laufenberg, Lawrence

2003-01-01

As NASA probes deeper into space, the distance between sensor and scientist increases, as does the time delay. NASA needs to close that gap, while integrating more spacecraft types and missions-from near-Earth orbit to deep space. To speed and integrate communications from space missions to scientists on Earth and back again. NASA needs a comprehensive, high-performance communications network. To this end, the CICT Programs Space Communications (SC) Project is providing technologies for building the Space Internet which will consist of large backbone network, mid-size access networks linked to the backbones, and smaller, ad-hoc network linked to the access network. A key component will be mobile, wireless networks for spacecraft flying in different configurations.

Standard spacecraft economic analysis. Volume 2: Findings and conclusions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Harris, E. D.; Large, J. P.

1976-01-01

The comparative program costs associated with use of various standardized spacecraft for Air Force space test program missions to be flown on the space shuttle were studied in two phases. In the first phase, a variety of procurement mixes composed of existing or programmed NASA standard spacecraft designs and an Air Force standard spacecraft design were considered. The second phase dealt with additional procurement options using an upgraded version of an existing NASA design. The results of both phases are discussed.

2000 Survey of Distributed Spacecraft Technologies and Architectures for NASA's Earth Science Enterprise in the 2010-2025 Timeframe

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ticker, Ronald L.; Azzolini, John D.

2000-01-01

The study investigates NASA's Earth Science Enterprise needs for Distributed Spacecraft Technologies in the 2010-2025 timeframe. In particular, the study focused on the Earth Science Vision Initiative and extrapolation of the measurement architecture from the 2002-2010 time period. Earth Science Enterprise documents were reviewed. Interviews were conducted with a number of Earth scientists and technologists. fundamental principles of formation flying were also explored. The results led to the development of four notional distribution spacecraft architectures. These four notional architectures (global constellations, virtual platforms, precision formation flying, and sensorwebs) are presented. They broadly and generically cover the distributed spacecraft architectures needed by Earth Science in the post-2010 era. These notional architectures are used to identify technology needs and drivers. Technology needs are subsequently grouped into five categories: Systems and architecture development tools; Miniaturization, production, manufacture, test and calibration; Data networks and information management; Orbit control, planning and operations; and Launch and deployment. The current state of the art and expected developments are explored. High-value technology areas are identified for possible future funding emphasis.

NASA Product Peer Review Process

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jenks, Ken

2009-01-01

This viewgraph presentation describes NASA's product peer review process. The contents include: 1) Inspection/Peer Review at NASA; 2) Reasons for product peer reviews; 3) Different types of peer reviews; and 4) NASA requirements for peer reviews. This presentation also includes a demonstration of an actual product peer review.

The Spacecraft Fire Experiment (Saffire) - Objectives, Development and Status

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Schoren, William; Ruff, Gary A.; Urban, David L.

2016-01-01

Since 2012, the Spacecraft Fire Experiment (Saffire) has been under development by the Spacecraft Fire Safety Demonstration (SFS Demo) project that is funded by NASA's Advanced Exploration Systems Division in the Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate. The overall objective of this project is to reduce the uncertainty and risk associated with the design of spacecraft fire safety systems for NASA's exploration missions. This is accomplished by defining, developing, and conducting experiments that address gaps in spacecraft fire safety knowledge and capabilities identified by NASA's Fire Safety System Maturation Team. This paper describes the three Spacecraft Fire Experiments (Saffire-I, -II, and -III) that were developed at NASA-GRC and that will conduct a series of material flammability tests in low-gravity and at length scales that are realistic for a spacecraft fire. The experiments will be conducted in Orbital ATK's Cygnus vehicle after it has unberthed from the International Space Station. The tests will be fully automated with the data downlinked at the conclusion of the test and before the Cygnus vehicle reenters the atmosphere. The objectives of these experiments are to (1) determine how rapidly a large scale fire grows in low-gravity and (2) investigate the low-g flammability limits compared to those obtained in NASA's normal gravity material flammability screening test. The hardware for these experiments has been completed and is awaiting their respective launches, all planned for 2016. This paper will review the objectives of these experiments and how they address several of the knowledge gaps for NASA's exploration missions. The hardware development will be discussed including several novel approaches that were taken for testing and evaluation of these series payloads. The status of the missions and operational status will also be presented.

1997 Spacecraft Contamination and Coatings Workshop

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chen, Philip T. (Compiler); Benner, Steve M. (Compiler)

1997-01-01

This volume contains the presentation charts of talks given at the "1997 Spacecraft Contamination and Coatings Workshop," held July 9-10, 1997, in Annapolis, Maryland. The workshop was attended by representatives from NASA, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Department of Defense, industry, and universities concerned with the the spacecraft contamination engineering and thermal control coatings. The workshop provided a forum for exchanging new developments in spacecraft contamination and coatings.

NASA Headquarters/Kennedy Space Center: Organization and Small Spacecraft Launch Services

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sierra, Albert; Beddel, Darren

1999-01-01

The objectives of the Kennedy Space Center's (KSC) Expendable Launch Vehicles (ELV) Program are to provide safe, reliable, cost effective ELV launches, maximize customer satisfaction, and perform advanced payload processing capability development. Details are given on the ELV program organization, products and services, foreign launch vehicle policy, how to get a NASA launch service, and some of the recent NASA payloads.

The X2000 Program: An Institutional Approach to Enabling Smaller Spacecraft

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Deutsch, Les; Salvo, Chris; Woerner, Dave

2000-01-01

NASA's X2000 Program is important for many reasons - It develops the technology that will enable new types of deep space space exploration - It is a new, faster and cheaper process for technology infusion into NASA missions - It transfers these capabilities to US industry so they are available for future spacecraft. Many of these new capabilities are relevant to Earth missions as well X2000 will work with the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (and others) to help make these capabilities available to a larger community.

NASA Facts, The Viking Mission.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Washington, DC. Educational Programs Div.

Presented is one of a series of publications of National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) facts about the exploration of Mars. The Viking mission to Mars, consisting of two unmanned NASA spacecraft launched in August and September, 1975, is described. A description of the spacecraft and their paths is given. A diagram identifying the…

TDRS-L Spacecraft Transported from Astrotech to SLC

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-01-13

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – Encapsulated in its payload fairing, NASA's Tracking and Data Relay Satellite, or TDRS-L, spacecraft is transported along the Saturn Causeway at the Kennedy Space Center on its way to Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The TDRS-L satellite will be a part of the second of three next-generation spacecraft designed to ensure vital operational continuity for the NASA Space Network. It is scheduled to launch from Cape Canaveral's Space Launch Complex 41 atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket on January 23, 2014. The current Tracking and Data Relay Satellite system consists of eight in-orbit satellites distributed to provide near continuous information relay contact with orbiting spacecraft ranging from the International Space Station and Hubble Space Telescope to the array of scientific observatories. For more information, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/tdrs/home/index.html Photo credit: NASA/Dimitri Gerondidakis

NASA Social

NASA Image and Video Library

2012-12-04

NASA astronaut Joe Acaba answers questions at a NASA Social at NASA Headquarters on Tuesday, Dec. 4, 2012 in Washington. Acaba launched to the International Space Station on a Russian Soyuz spacecraft May 15, 2012, spending 123 days aboard as a flight engineer of the Expedition 31 and 32 crews. He recently returned to Earth on Sept. 17 after four months in low earth orbit. Photo Credit: (NASA/Carla Cioffi)

New NOAA spacecraft readies for launch next month

Science.gov Websites

: NASA) DSCOVR spacecraft at NASA's Goddard Spaceflight Center, Greenbelt, Maryland. (Credit: NASA) " . In addition to space weather technology, DSCOVR will carry two NASA Earth-observing instruments that timely space weather forecasting by NOAA and provide important Earth-observing data to NASA." The

GRAIL Spacecraft Over the Moon Artist Concept

NASA Image and Video Library

2012-03-27

An artist depiction of the twin spacecraft Ebb and Flow that comprise NASA GRAIL mission. As Ebb and Flow fly over areas of greater and lesser gravity surface features can influence the distance between the two spacecraft.

InSight Spacecraft Arrival

NASA Image and Video Library

2018-02-28

After a U.S. Air Force C-17 aircraft arrived at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, ground crews offload NASA's Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport, or InSight, spacecraft designed to land on Mars. InSight was developed and built by Lockheed-Martin Space Systems in Denver, Colorado, and is scheduled for liftoff is May 5, 2018. InSight is the first mission to explore the Red Planet's deep interior. It will investigate processes that shaped the rocky planets of the inner solar system including Earth.

InSight Spacecraft Arrival

NASA Image and Video Library

2018-02-28

A U.S. Air Force C-17 aircraft arrives at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California carrying NASA's Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport, or InSight, spacecraft designed to land on Mars. InSight was developed and built by Lockheed-Martin Space Systems in Denver, Colorado, and is scheduled for liftoff is May 5, 2018. InSight is the first mission to explore the Red Planet's deep interior. It will investigate processes that shaped the rocky planets of the inner solar system including Earth.

Pegasus XL CYGNSS Spacecraft Mate

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-10-28

Inside Building 1555 at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, the eight NASA Cyclone Global Navigation Satellite System (CYGNSS) spacecraft installed on their deployment module undergo inspections prior to NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Processing activities will prepare the spacecraft for launch aboard an Orbital ATK Pegasus XL rocket. When preparations are competed at Vandenberg, the rocket will be transported to Kennedy attached to the Orbital ATK L-1011 carrier aircraft with in its payload fairing. CYGNSS will launch on the Pegasus XL rocket from the Skid Strip at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. CYGNSS will make frequent and accurate measurements of ocean surface winds throughout the life cycle of tropical storms and hurricanes. The data that CYGNSS provides will enable scientists to probe key air-sea interaction processes that take place near the core of storms, which are rapidly changing and play a critical role in the beginning and intensification of hurricanes.

TEMPEST-D Spacecraft

NASA Image and Video Library

2018-05-17

The complete TEMPEST-D spacecraft shown with the solar panels deployed. RainCube, CubeRRT and TEMPEST-D are currently integrated aboard Orbital ATKs Cygnus spacecraft and are awaiting launch on an Antares rocket. After the CubeSats have arrived at the station, they will be deployed into low-Earth orbit and will begin their missions to test these new technologies useful for predicting weather, ensuring data quality, and helping researchers better understand storms. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA22458

DSCOVR Spacecraft Arrival, Offload, & Unpacking

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-11-20

NOAA’s Deep Space Climate Observatory spacecraft, or DSCOVR, has been uncovered and is ready for processing in the high bay of Building 1 at the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, Florida, near Kennedy Space Center. DSCOVR is a partnership between NOAA, NASA and the U.S. Air Force. DSCOVR will maintain the nation's real-time solar wind monitoring capabilities which are critical to the accuracy and lead time of NOAA's space weather alerts and forecasts. Launch is currently scheduled for January 2015 aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 v 1.1 launch vehicle from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida.

NASA Social

NASA Image and Video Library

2012-12-04

NASA astronaut Joe Acaba speaks at a behind-the-scenes NASA Social at NASA Headquarters on Tuesday, Dec. 4, 2012 in Washington. Acaba launched to the International Space Station on a Russian Soyuz spacecraft May 15, 2012, spending 123 days aboard as a flight engineer of the Expedition 31 and 32 crews. He recently returned to Earth on Sept. 17 after four months in low earth orbit. Photo Credit: (NASA/Carla Cioffi)

NASA Social

NASA Image and Video Library

2012-12-04

A NASA Social participant tweets during as astronaut Joe Acaba answers questions from the audience at NASA Headquaters, Tuesday, Dec. 4, 2012 in Washington. NASA astronaut Acaba launched to the ISS on a Russian Soyuz spacecraft May 15, 2012, spending 123 days aboard as a flight engineer of the Expedition 31 and 32 crews. He recently returned to Earth on Sept. 17 after four months in low earth orbit. Photo Credit: (NASA/Carla Cioffi)

NASA Social

NASA Image and Video Library

2012-12-04

NASA astronaut Joe Acaba answers questions at a behind-the-scenes NASA Social at NASA Headquarters on Tuesday, Dec. 4, 2012 in Washington. Acaba launched to the International Space Station on a Russian Soyuz spacecraft May 15, 2012, spending 123 days aboard as a flight engineer of the Expedition 31 and 32 crews. He recently returned to Earth on Sept. 17 after four months in low earth orbit. Photo Credit: (NASA/Carla Cioffi)

NASA Social

NASA Image and Video Library

2012-12-04

NASA astronaut Joe Acaba, center, greets participants at a behind-the-scenes NASA Social in Washington, Tuesday, Dec. 4, 2012 at NASA Headquarters. Acaba launched to the International Space Station on a Russian Soyuz spacecraft May 15, 2012, spending 123 days aboard as a flight engineer of the Expedition 31 and 32 crews. He recently returned to Earth on Sept. 17 after four months in low earth orbit. Photo Credit: (NASA/Carla Cioffi)

TDRS-L spacecraft lift to mate on Atlas V

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-01-13

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – At Cape Canaveral Air Force Station's Vertical Integration Facility at Launch Complex 41, NASA's Tracking and Data Relay Satellite, or TDRS-L, spacecraft is lifted for mounting atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket. The TDRS-L satellite will be a part of the second of three next-generation spacecraft designed to ensure vital operational continuity for the NASA Space Network. It is scheduled to launch from Cape Canaveral's Space Launch Complex 41 atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket on Jan. 23, 2014. The current Tracking and Data Relay Satellite system consists of eight in-orbit satellites distributed to provide near continuous information relay contact with orbiting spacecraft ranging from the International Space Station and Hubble Space Telescope to the array of scientific observatories. For more information, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/tdrs/home/index.html Photo credit: NASA/Dimitri Gerondidakis

TDRS-L spacecraft lift to mate on Atlas V

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-01-13

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – At Cape Canaveral Air Force Station's Vertical Integration Facility at Launch Complex 41, NASA's Tracking and Data Relay Satellite, or TDRS-L, spacecraft has been mated atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket. The TDRS-L satellite will be a part of the second of three next-generation spacecraft designed to ensure vital operational continuity for the NASA Space Network. It is scheduled to launch from Cape Canaveral's Space Launch Complex 41 atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket on Jan. 23, 2014. The current Tracking and Data Relay Satellite system consists of eight in-orbit satellites distributed to provide near continuous information relay contact with orbiting spacecraft ranging from the International Space Station and Hubble Space Telescope to the array of scientific observatories. For more information, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/tdrs/home/index.html Photo credit: NASA/Dimitri Gerondidakis

TDRS-L spacecraft lift to mate on Atlas V

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-01-13

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – Encapsulated in its payload fairing, NASA's Tracking and Data Relay Satellite, or TDRS-L, spacecraft arrives at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station's Vertical Integration Facility at Launch Complex 41. The TDRS-L satellite will be a part of the second of three next-generation spacecraft designed to ensure vital operational continuity for the NASA Space Network. It is scheduled to launch from Cape Canaveral's Space Launch Complex 41 atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket on Jan. 23, 2014. The current Tracking and Data Relay Satellite system consists of eight in-orbit satellites distributed to provide near continuous information relay contact with orbiting spacecraft ranging from the International Space Station and Hubble Space Telescope to the array of scientific observatories. For more information, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/tdrs/home/index.html Photo credit: NASA/Dimitri Gerondidakis

Secondary electron generation, emission and transport: Effects on spacecraft charging and NASCAP models

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Katz, Ira; Mandell, Myron; Roche, James C.; Purvis, Carolyn

1987-01-01

Secondary electrons control a spacecraft's response to a plasma environment. To accurately simulate spacecraft charging, the NASA Charging Analyzer Program (NASCAP) has mathematical models of the generation, emission and transport of secondary electrons. The importance of each of the processes and the physical basis for each of the NASCAP models are discussed. Calculations are presented which show that the NASCAP formulations are in good agreement with both laboratory and space experiments.

The NASA controls-structures interaction technology program

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Newsom, Jerry R.; Layman, W. E.; Waites, H. B.; Hayduk, R. J.

1990-01-01

The interaction between a flexible spacecraft structure and its control system is commonly referred to as controls-structures interaction (CSI). The CSI technology program is developing the capability and confidence to integrate the structure and control system, so as to avoid interactions that cause problems and to exploit interactions to increase spacecraft capability. A NASA program has been initiated to advance CSI technology to a point where it can be used in spacecraft design for future missions. The CSI technology program is a multicenter program utilizing the resources of the NASA Langley Research Center (LaRC), the NASA Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC), and the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). The purpose is to describe the current activities, results to date, and future activities of the NASA CSI technology program.

Mariner-C Spacecraft Model

NASA Image and Video Library

1964-06-21

A model of the Mariner-C spacecraft at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Lewis Research Center for a June 1964 Conference on New Technology. Mariner-C and Mariner-D were identical spacecraft designed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory to flyby Mars and photograph the Martian surface. Mariner-C was launched on November 4, 1964, but the payload shroud did not jettison properly and the spacecraft’s battery power did not function. The mission ended unsuccessfully two days later. Mariner-D was launched as designed on November 28, 1964 and became the first successful mission to Mars. It was the first time a planet was photographed from space. Mariner-D’s 21 photographs revealed an inhospitable and barren landscape. The two Mariner spacecraft were launched by Atlas-Agena-D rockets. Lewis had taken over management of the Agena Program in October 1962. There had been five failures and two partial failures in the 17 Agena launches before being taken over by NASA Lewis. Lewis, however, oversaw 28 successful Agena missions between 1962 and 1968, including several Rangers and the Mariner Venus '67.

Contributions of the NASA Langley Transonic Dynamics Tunnel to Launch Vehicle and Spacecraft Development

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cole, Stanley R.; Keller, Donald F.; Piatak, David J.

2000-01-01

The NASA Langley Transonic Dynamics Tunnel (TDT) has provided wind-tunnel experimental validation and research data for numerous launch vehicles and spacecraft throughout its forty year history. Most of these tests have dealt with some aspect of aeroelastic or unsteady-response testing, which is the primary purpose of the TDT facility. However, some space-related test programs that have not involved aeroelasticity have used the TDT to take advantage of specific characteristics of the wind-tunnel facility. In general. the heavy gas test medium, variable pressure, relatively high Reynolds number and large size of the TDT test section have made it the preferred facility for these tests. The space-related tests conducted in the TDT have been divided into five categories. These categories are ground wind loads, launch vehicle dynamics, atmospheric flight of space vehicles, atmospheric reentry. and planetary-probe testing. All known TDT tests of launch vehicles and spacecraft are discussed in this report. An attempt has been made to succinctly summarize each wind-tunnel test, or in the case of multiple. related tests, each wind-tunnel program. Most summaries include model program discussion, description of the physical wind-tunnel model, and some typical or significant test results. When available, references are presented to assist the reader in further pursuing information on the tests.

Internet Distribution of Spacecraft Telemetry Data

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Specht, Ted; Noble, David

2006-01-01

Remote Access Multi-mission Processing and Analysis Ground Environment (RAMPAGE) is a Java-language server computer program that enables near-real-time display of spacecraft telemetry data on any authorized client computer that has access to the Internet and is equipped with Web-browser software. In addition to providing a variety of displays of the latest available telemetry data, RAMPAGE can deliver notification of an alarm by electronic mail. Subscribers can then use RAMPAGE displays to determine the state of the spacecraft and formulate a response to the alarm, if necessary. A user can query spacecraft mission data in either binary or comma-separated-value format by use of a Web form or a Practical Extraction and Reporting Language (PERL) script to automate the query process. RAMPAGE runs on Linux and Solaris server computers in the Ground Data System (GDS) of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory and includes components designed specifically to make it compatible with legacy GDS software. The client/server architecture of RAMPAGE and the use of the Java programming language make it possible to utilize a variety of competitive server and client computers, thereby also helping to minimize costs.

NASA launches dual Dynamics Explorer spacecraft

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1981-01-01

A Delta launch vehicle was used to insert Dynamics Explorer A into a highly elliptical polar orbit, ranging from 675 to 24,945 km, and Dynamics Explorer B satellite into a low polar orbit, ranging from 306 to 1,300 km. The two spacecraft are designed to provide specific knowledge about the interaction of energy, electric currents, electric fields, and plasmas between the magnetosphere, the ionosphere, and the atmosphere.

MMS Spacecraft Uncrated & Moved

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-10-29

Two of the observatories, the lower stack, mini-stack number 1, for NASA's Magnetospheric Multiscale Observatory, or MMS, arrive in the Building 1 airlock at the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, Florida, near Kennedy Space Center. The MMS upper stack, mini-stack number 2, is scheduled to arrive in about two weeks. MMS is a Solar Terrestrial Probes mission comprising four identically instrumented spacecraft that will use Earth’s magnetosphere as a laboratory to study the microphysics of three fundamental plasma processes: magnetic reconnection, energetic particle acceleration and turbulence. Launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket from Space Launch Complex 41 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station is targeted for March 12, 2015.

MMS Spacecraft Uncrated & Moved

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-10-29

Two of the observatories, the lower stack, mini-stack number 1, for NASA's Magnetospheric Multiscale Observatory, or MMS, roll into the Building 1 airlock at the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, Florida, near Kennedy Space Center. The MMS upper stack, mini-stack number 2, is scheduled to arrive in about two weeks. MMS is a Solar Terrestrial Probes mission comprising four identically instrumented spacecraft that will use Earth’s magnetosphere as a laboratory to study the microphysics of three fundamental plasma processes: magnetic reconnection, energetic particle acceleration and turbulence. Launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket from Space Launch Complex 41 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station is targeted for March 12, 2015.

Neptune aerocapture mission and spacecraft design overview

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bailey, Robert W.; Hall, Jeff L.; Spliker, Tom R.; O'Kongo, Nora

2004-01-01

A detailed Neptune aerocapture systems analysis and spacecraft design study was performed as part of NASA's In-Space Propulsion Program. The primary objectives were to assess the feasibility of a spacecraft point design for a Neptune/Triton science mission. That uses aerocapture as the Neptune orbit insertion mechanism. This paper provides an overview of the science, mission and spacecraft design resulting from that study.

Vibroacoustic Response of the NASA ACTS Spacecraft Antenna to Launch Acoustic Excitation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Larko, Jeffrey M.; Cotoni, Vincent

2008-01-01

The Advanced Communications Technology Satellite was an experimental NASA satellite launched from the Space Shuttle Discovery. As part of the ground test program, the satellite s large, parabolic reflector antennas were exposed to a reverberant acoustic loading to simulate the launch acoustics in the Shuttle payload bay. This paper describes the modelling and analysis of the dynamic response of these large, composite spacecraft antenna structure subjected to a diffuse acoustic field excitation. Due to the broad frequency range of the excitation, different models were created to make predictions in the various frequency regimes of interest: a statistical energy analysis (SEA) model to capture the high frequency response and a hybrid finite element-statistical energy (hybrid FE-SEA) model for the low to mid-frequency responses. The strengths and limitations of each of the analytical techniques are discussed. The predictions are then compared to the measured acoustic test data and to a boundary element (BEM) model to evaluate the performance of the hybrid techniques.

TDRS-L spacecraft lift to mate on Atlas V

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-01-13

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – At Cape Canaveral Air Force Station's Vertical Integration Facility at Launch Complex 41, NASA's Tracking and Data Relay Satellite, or TDRS-L, spacecraft is moved into position for mating atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket. The TDRS-L satellite will be a part of the second of three next-generation spacecraft designed to ensure vital operational continuity for the NASA Space Network. It is scheduled to launch from Cape Canaveral's Space Launch Complex 41 atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket on Jan. 23, 2014. The current Tracking and Data Relay Satellite system consists of eight in-orbit satellites distributed to provide near continuous information relay contact with orbiting spacecraft ranging from the International Space Station and Hubble Space Telescope to the array of scientific observatories. For more information, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/tdrs/home/index.html Photo credit: NASA/Dimitri Gerondidakis

Case Studies in Crewed Spacecraft Environmental Control and Life Support System Process Compatibility and Cabin Environmental Impact

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Perry, J. L.

2017-01-01

Contamination of a crewed spacecraft's cabin environment leading to environmental control and life support system (ECLSS) functional capability and operational margin degradation or loss can have an adverse effect on NASA's space exploration mission figures of merit-safety, mission success, effectiveness, and affordability. The role of evaluating the ECLSS's compatibility and cabin environmental impact as a key component of pass trace contaminant control is presented and the technical approach is described in the context of implementing NASA's safety and mission success objectives. Assessment examples are presented for a variety of chemicals used in vehicle systems and experiment hardware for the International Space Station program. The ECLSS compatibility and cabin environmental impact assessment approach, which can be applied to any crewed spacecraft development and operational effort, can provide guidance to crewed spacecraft system and payload developers relative to design criteria assigned ECLSS compatibility and cabin environmental impact ratings can be used by payload and system developers as criteria for ensuring adequate physical and operational containment. In additional to serving as an aid for guiding containment design, the assessments can guide flight rule and procedure development toward protecting the ECLSS as well as approaches for contamination event remediation.

NASA Administrator Visits Goddard, Discusses MMS

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-05-12

NASA Administrator Charles Bolden got a firsthand look at work being done on the four Magnetospheric Multiscale (MMS) spacecraft during his visit to the agency's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, on May 12. Standing 20 feet high inside a Goddard clean room, the spacecraft were in their "four-stack" formation, similar to how they will be arranged inside their launch vehicle. The MMS spacecraft recently completed vibration testing. With MMS as a backdrop, Bolden and Goddard Center Director Chris Scolese discussed the mission, ground testing and preparations for launch with project personnel. Read more: go.nasa.gov/1jSza7E Credit: NASA/Goddard/Rebecca Roth NASA image use policy. NASA Goddard Space Flight Center enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission. Follow us on Twitter Like us on Facebook Find us on Instagram

NASA Administrator Visits Goddard, Discusses MMS

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-05-12

NASA Administrator Charles Bolden got a firsthand look at work being done on the four Magnetospheric Multiscale (MMS) spacecraft during his visit to the agency's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, on May 12. Standing 20 feet high inside a Goddard clean room, the spacecraft were in their "four-stack" formation, similar to how they will be arranged inside their launch vehicle. The MMS spacecraft recently completed vibration testing. With MMS as a backdrop, Bolden and Goddard Center Director Chris Scolese discussed the mission, ground testing and preparations for launch with project personnel. Read more: go.nasa.gov/1jSza7E Credit: NASA/Goddard/Bill Hrybyk NASA image use policy. NASA Goddard Space Flight Center enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission. Follow us on Twitter Like us on Facebook Find us on Instagram

NASA Administrator Visits Goddard, Discusses MMS

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-12-08

NASA Administrator Charles Bolden got a firsthand look at work being done on the four Magnetospheric Multiscale (MMS) spacecraft during his visit to the agency's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, on May 12. Standing 20 feet high inside a Goddard clean room, the spacecraft were in their "four-stack" formation, similar to how they will be arranged inside their launch vehicle. The MMS spacecraft recently completed vibration testing. With MMS as a backdrop, Bolden and Goddard Center Director Chris Scolese discussed the mission, ground testing and preparations for launch with project personnel. Read more: go.nasa.gov/1jSza7E Credit: NASA/Goddard/Rebecca Roth NASA image use policy. NASA Goddard Space Flight Center enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission. Follow us on Twitter Like us on Facebook Find us on Instagram

NASA Administrator Visits Goddard, Discusses MMS

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-12-08

NASA Administrator Charles Bolden got a firsthand look at work being done on the four Magnetospheric Multiscale (MMS) spacecraft during his visit to the agency's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, on May 12. Standing 20 feet high inside a Goddard clean room, the spacecraft were in their "four-stack" formation, similar to how they will be arranged inside their launch vehicle. The MMS spacecraft recently completed vibration testing. With MMS as a backdrop, Bolden and Goddard Center Director Chris Scolese discussed the mission, ground testing and preparations for launch with project personnel. Read more: go.nasa.gov/1jSza7E Credit: NASA/Goddard/Bill Hrybyk NASA image use policy. NASA Goddard Space Flight Center enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission. Follow us on Twitter Like us on Facebook Find us on Instagram

Results from the NASA Spacecraft Fault Management Workshop: Cost Drivers for Deep Space Missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Newhouse, Marilyn E.; McDougal, John; Barley, Bryan; Stephens Karen; Fesq, Lorraine M.

2010-01-01

Fault Management, the detection of and response to in-flight anomalies, is a critical aspect of deep-space missions. Fault management capabilities are commonly distributed across flight and ground subsystems, impacting hardware, software, and mission operations designs. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Discovery & New Frontiers (D&NF) Program Office at Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) recently studied cost overruns and schedule delays for five missions. The goal was to identify the underlying causes for the overruns and delays, and to develop practical mitigations to assist the D&NF projects in identifying potential risks and controlling the associated impacts to proposed mission costs and schedules. The study found that four out of the five missions studied had significant overruns due to underestimating the complexity and support requirements for fault management. As a result of this and other recent experiences, the NASA Science Mission Directorate (SMD) Planetary Science Division (PSD) commissioned a workshop to bring together invited participants across government, industry, and academia to assess the state of the art in fault management practice and research, identify current and potential issues, and make recommendations for addressing these issues. The workshop was held in New Orleans in April of 2008. The workshop concluded that fault management is not being limited by technology, but rather by a lack of emphasis and discipline in both the engineering and programmatic dimensions. Some of the areas cited in the findings include different, conflicting, and changing institutional goals and risk postures; unclear ownership of end-to-end fault management engineering; inadequate understanding of the impact of mission-level requirements on fault management complexity; and practices, processes, and tools that have not kept pace with the increasing complexity of mission requirements and spacecraft systems. This paper summarizes the

Optical information processing for NASA's space exploration

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chao, Tien-Hsin; Ochoa, Ellen; Juday, Richard

1990-01-01

The development status of optical processing techniques under development at NASA-JPL, NASA-Ames, and NASA-Johnson, is evaluated with a view to their potential applications in future NASA planetary exploration missions. It is projected that such optical processing systems can yield major reductions in mass, volume, and power requirements relative to exclusively electronic systems of comparable processing capabilities. Attention is given to high-order neural networks for distortion-invariant classification and pattern recognition, multispectral imaging using an acoustooptic tunable filter, and an optical matrix processor for control problems.

Mars Science Laboratory Spacecraft During Cruise, Artist Concept

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-10-03

This is an artist concept of NASA Mars Science Laboratory spacecraft during its cruise phase between launch and final approach to Mars. The spacecraft includes a disc-shaped cruise stage on the left attached to the aeroshell.

IUS with Magellan spacecraft drifts into space after STS-30 deployment

NASA Image and Video Library

1989-05-04

STS030-71-063 (4 May 1989) --- This scene is one of two released by NASA showing the process of solar array panel deployment on the Magellan spacecraft. Panels are not fully extended in this frame. The spacecraft had earlier been released by the STS-30 crewmembers to begin its long journey to the planet Venus for an extensive radar mapping mission. The frame was photographed through Atlantis? aft flight deck windows with a handheld 70mm camera. The complementary photograph is STS030-71-070.

TDRS-M NASA Social

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-08-17

Social media gather in Kennedy Space Center’s Press Site auditorium for a briefing focused on preparations to launch NASA's Tracking and Data Relay Satellite, TDRS-M. The latest spacecraft destined for the agency's constellation of communications satellites, TDRS-M will allow nearly continuous contact with orbiting spacecraft ranging from the International Space Station and Hubble Space Telescope to the array of scientific observatories. Liftoff atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket is scheduled to take place from Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station at 8:03 a.m. EDT Aug. 18. NASA Social Media Team includes: Emily Furfaro and Amber Jacobson. Guest speakers include: Badri Younes, Deputy Associate Administrator for Space Communications and Navigation at NASA Headquarters in Washington; Dave Littmann, Project Manager for TDRS-M at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center; Neil Mallik, NASA Deputy Network Director for Human Spaceflight; Nicole Mann, NASA Astronaut; Steve Bowen, NASA Astronaut; Skip Owen, NASA Launch Services; Scott Messer, United Launch Alliance Program Manager for NASA Missions.

NASA Social

NASA Image and Video Library

2012-12-04

A participant at a NASA Social in Washington engages in social media as he listens to astronaut Joe Acaba answer questions, Tuesday, Dec. 4, 2012 at NASA Headquarters. NASA astronaut Joe Acaba launched to the International Space Station on a Russian Soyuz spacecraft May 15, 2012, spending 123 days aboard as a flight engineer of the Expedition 31 and 32 crews. He recently returned to Earth on Sept. 17 after four months in low earth orbit. Photo Credit: (NASA/Carla Cioffi)

NASA Social

NASA Image and Video Library

2012-12-04

A participant at a NASA Social in Washington listens to astronaut Joe Acaba answer questions about his time living aboard the International Space Station, Tuesday, Dec. 4, 2012 at NASA Headquarters. NASA astronaut Acaba launched to the ISS on a Russian Soyuz spacecraft May 15, 2012, spending 123 days aboard as a flight engineer of the Expedition 31 and 32 crews. He recently returned to Earth on Sept. 17 after four months in low earth orbit. Photo Credit: (NASA/Carla Cioffi)

NASA Social

NASA Image and Video Library

2012-12-04

A participant at a NASA Social in Washington asks astronaut Joe Acaba a question, Tuesday, Dec. 4, 2012, at NASA Headquarters. Acaba launched to the International Space Station on a Russian Soyuz spacecraft May 15, 2012, spending 123 days aboard as a flight engineer of the Expedition 31 and 32 crews. He recently returned to Earth on Sept. 17 after four months in low earth orbit. Photo Credit: (NASA/Carla Cioffi)

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Workers in NASA Spacecraft Hangar AE check the placement of the Space Infrared Telescope Facility (SIRTF), which has been returned to the hangar from the launch pad for further processing. SIRTF will remain in the clean room until it returns to the pad in early August. One of NASA's largest infrared telescopes to be launched, SIRTF will obtain images and spectra by detecting the infrared energy, or heat, radiated by objects in space.

NASA Image and Video Library

2003-05-02

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Workers in NASA Spacecraft Hangar AE check the placement of the Space Infrared Telescope Facility (SIRTF), which has been returned to the hangar from the launch pad for further processing. SIRTF will remain in the clean room until it returns to the pad in early August. One of NASA's largest infrared telescopes to be launched, SIRTF will obtain images and spectra by detecting the infrared energy, or heat, radiated by objects in space.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Workers in NASA Spacecraft Hangar AE begin the next phase of processing of the Space Infrared Telescope Facility (SIRTF), which has been returned to the hangar from the launch pad. SIRTF will remain in the clean room until it returns to the pad in early August. One of NASA's largest infrared telescopes to be launched, SIRTF will obtain images and spectra by detecting the infrared energy, or heat, radiated by objects in space.

NASA Image and Video Library

2003-05-02

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Workers in NASA Spacecraft Hangar AE begin the next phase of processing of the Space Infrared Telescope Facility (SIRTF), which has been returned to the hangar from the launch pad. SIRTF will remain in the clean room until it returns to the pad in early August. One of NASA's largest infrared telescopes to be launched, SIRTF will obtain images and spectra by detecting the infrared energy, or heat, radiated by objects in space.

Trends in NASA communication satellites

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sivo, J. N.; Robbins, W. H.; Stretchberry, D. M.

1972-01-01

Satellite telecommunications can help to satisfy several national needs such as education, health care, cultural opportunities, and data transfer. There are current experiments being conducted with NASA spacecraft ATS 1, 3, and 5 in an attempt to satisfy these national needs. Future experiments are planned for the ATS F/G and CTS spacecrafts. The next generation of communications satellites must provide multiple region coverage, multichannel capability, high quality TV pictures, and must allow low cost ground receivers to be used. The proposed NASA spacecrafts, ATS H/I, will satisfy these requirements. Other countries of the world can benefit from ATS H/I technology.

Processing Images of Craters for Spacecraft Navigation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cheng, Yang; Johnson, Andrew E.; Matthies, Larry H.

2009-01-01

A crater-detection algorithm has been conceived to enable automation of what, heretofore, have been manual processes for utilizing images of craters on a celestial body as landmarks for navigating a spacecraft flying near or landing on that body. The images are acquired by an electronic camera aboard the spacecraft, then digitized, then processed by the algorithm, which consists mainly of the following steps: 1. Edges in an image detected and placed in a database. 2. Crater rim edges are selected from the edge database. 3. Edges that belong to the same crater are grouped together. 4. An ellipse is fitted to each group of crater edges. 5. Ellipses are refined directly in the image domain to reduce errors introduced in the detection of edges and fitting of ellipses. 6. The quality of each detected crater is evaluated. It is planned to utilize this algorithm as the basis of a computer program for automated, real-time, onboard processing of crater-image data. Experimental studies have led to the conclusion that this algorithm is capable of a detection rate >93 percent, a false-alarm rate <5 percent, a geometric error <0.5 pixel, and a position error <0.3 pixel.

Operation and Development Status of the Spacecraft Fire Experiments (Saffire)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ruff, Gary A.; Urban, David L.

2016-01-01

Since 2012, a series of Spacecraft Fire Experiments (Saffire) have been under development by the Spacecraft Fire Safety Demonstration (SFS Demo) project, funded by NASA's Advanced Exploration Systems Division. The overall objective of this project is to reduce the uncertainty and risk associated with the design of spacecraft fire safety systems for NASA's exploration missions. The approach to achieving this goal has been to define, develop, and conduct experiments that address gaps in spacecraft fire safety knowledge and capabilities identified by NASA's Fire Safety System Maturation Team. The Spacecraft Fire Experiments (Saffire-I, -II, and -III) are material flammability tests at length scales that are realistic for a spacecraft fire in low-gravity. The specific objectives of these three experiments are to (1) determine how rapidly a large scale fire grows in low-gravity and (2) investigate the low-g flammability limits compared to those obtained in NASA's normal gravity material flammability screening test. The experiments will be conducted in Orbital ATK's Cygnus vehicle after it has unberthed from the International Space Station. The tests will be fully automated with the data downlinked at the conclusion of the test before the Cygnus vehicle reenters the atmosphere. This paper discusses the status of the Saffire-I, II, and III experiments followed by a review of the fire safety technology gaps that are driving the development of objectives for the next series of experiments, Saffire-IV, V, and VI.

NASA's Software Safety Standard

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ramsay, Christopher M.

2005-01-01

NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) relies more and more on software to control, monitor, and verify its safety critical systems, facilities and operations. Since the 1960's there has hardly been a spacecraft (manned or unmanned) launched that did not have a computer on board that provided vital command and control services. Despite this growing dependence on software control and monitoring, there has been no consistent application of software safety practices and methodology to NASA's projects with safety critical software. Led by the NASA Headquarters Office of Safety and Mission Assurance, the NASA Software Safety Standard (STD-18l9.13B) has recently undergone a significant update in an attempt to provide that consistency. This paper will discuss the key features of the new NASA Software Safety Standard. It will start with a brief history of the use and development of software in safety critical applications at NASA. It will then give a brief overview of the NASA Software Working Group and the approach it took to revise the software engineering process across the Agency.

Evaluation of spacecraft technology programs (effects on communication satellite business ventures), volume 1

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Greenburg, J. S.; Gaelick, C.; Kaplan, M.; Fishman, J.; Hopkins, C.

1985-01-01

Commercial organizations as well as government agencies invest in spacecraft (S/C) technology programs that are aimed at increasing the performance of communications satellites. The value of these programs must be measured in terms of their impacts on the financial performane of the business ventures that may ultimately utilize the communications satellites. An economic evaluation and planning capability was developed and used to assess the impact of NASA on-orbit propulsion and space power programs on typical fixed satellite service (FSS) and direct broadcast service (DBS) communications satellite business ventures. Typical FSS and DBS spin and three-axis stabilized spacecraft were configured in the absence of NASA technology programs. These spacecraft were reconfigured taking into account the anticipated results of NASA specified on-orbit propulsion and space power programs. In general, the NASA technology programs resulted in spacecraft with increased capability. The developed methodology for assessing the value of spacecraft technology programs in terms of their impact on the financial performance of communication satellite business ventures is described. Results of the assessment of NASA specified on-orbit propulsion and space power technology programs are presented for typical FSS and DBS business ventures.

Evaluation of spacecraft technology programs (effects on communication satellite business ventures), volume 1

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Greenburg, J. S.; Gaelick, C.; Kaplan, M.; Fishman, J.; Hopkins, C.

1985-09-01

Commercial organizations as well as government agencies invest in spacecraft (S/C) technology programs that are aimed at increasing the performance of communications satellites. The value of these programs must be measured in terms of their impacts on the financial performane of the business ventures that may ultimately utilize the communications satellites. An economic evaluation and planning capability was developed and used to assess the impact of NASA on-orbit propulsion and space power programs on typical fixed satellite service (FSS) and direct broadcast service (DBS) communications satellite business ventures. Typical FSS and DBS spin and three-axis stabilized spacecraft were configured in the absence of NASA technology programs. These spacecraft were reconfigured taking into account the anticipated results of NASA specified on-orbit propulsion and space power programs. In general, the NASA technology programs resulted in spacecraft with increased capability. The developed methodology for assessing the value of spacecraft technology programs in terms of their impact on the financial performance of communication satellite business ventures is described. Results of the assessment of NASA specified on-orbit propulsion and space power technology programs are presented for typical FSS and DBS business ventures.

A genetic inventory of spacecraft and associated surfaces.

PubMed

La Duc, Myron T; Venkateswaran, Kasthuri; Conley, Catharine A

2014-01-01

Terrestrial organisms or other contaminants that are transported to Mars could interfere with efforts to study the potential for indigenous martian life. Similarly, contaminants that make the round-trip to Mars and back to Earth could compromise the ability to discriminate an authentic martian biosignature from a terrestrial organism. For this reason, it is important to develop a comprehensive inventory of microbes that are present on spacecraft to avoid interpreting their traces as authentic extraterrestrial biosignatures. Culture-based methods are currently used by NASA to assess spacecraft cleanliness but deliberately detect only a very small subset of total organisms present. The National Research Council has recommended that molecular (DNA)-based identification techniques should be developed as one aspect of managing the risk that terrestrial contamination could interfere with detection of life on (or returned from) Mars. The current understanding of the microbial diversity associated with spacecraft and clean room surfaces is expanding, but the capability to generate a comprehensive inventory of the microbial populations present on spacecraft outbound from Earth would address multiple considerations in planetary protection, relevant to both robotic and human missions. To this end, a 6-year genetic inventory study was undertaken by a NASA/JPL team. It was completed in 2012 and included delivery of a publicly available comprehensive final report. The genetic inventory study team evaluated the utility of three analytical technologies (conventional cloning techniques, PhyloChip DNA microarrays, and 454 tag-pyrosequencing) and combined them with a systematic methodology to collect, process, and archive nucleic acids as the first steps in assessing the phylogenetic breadth of microorganisms on spacecraft and associated surfaces.

SOHO spacecraft observations interrupted

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

1998-06-01

Efforts to re-establish nominal operations did not succeed and telemetry was lost. Subsequent attempts using the full NASA Deep Space Network capabilities have so far not been successful. ESA and NASA engineers are continuing with the task of re-establishing contact with the spacecraft. The SOHO mission is a joint undertaking of ESA and NASA. The spacecraft was launched aboard an Atlas II rocket from Florida on 2 December 1995 from the Cape Canaveral Air Station. Mission operations are directed from the control center at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center in Maryland, USA. In April 1998 SOHO successfully completed its nominal two-year mission to study the Sun's atmosphere, surface and interior. Major science highlights include the detection of rivers of plasma beneath the surface of the sun; the discovery of a magnetic "carpet" on the solar surface that seems to account for a substantial part of the energy that is needed to cause the very high temperatures of the corona, the Sun's outermost layer; the first detection of flare-induced solar quakes; the discovery of more than 50 sungrazing comets; the most detailed view to date of the solar atmosphere; and spectacular images and movies of Coronal Mass Ejections, which are being used to improve the ability to forecast space weather.

NASA Social

NASA Image and Video Library

2012-12-04

A participant at a NASA Social in Washington tweets as he listens to astronaut Joe Acaba answer questions about his time living aboard the International Space Station, Tuesday, Dec. 4, 2012 at NASA Headquarters. NASA astronaut Joe Acaba launched to the ISS on a Russian Soyuz spacecraft May 15, 2012, spending 123 days aboard as a flight engineer of the Expedition 31 and 32 crews. He recently returned to Earth on Sept. 17 after four months in low earth orbit. Photo Credit: (NASA/Carla Cioffi)

Spacecraft

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Feoktistov, K. P.

1974-01-01

The task of building a spacecraft is compared to the construction of an artificial cybernetic system able to acquire and process information. Typical features for future spacecraft are outlined and the assignment of duties in spacecraft control between automatic devices and the crew is analyzed.

LEO Spacecraft Charging Guidelines

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hillard, G. B.; Ferguson, D. C.

2002-01-01

Over the past decade, Low Earth Orbiting (LEO) spacecraft have gradually required ever-increasing power levels. As a rule, this has been accomplished through the use of high voltage systems. Recent failures and anomalies on such spacecraft have been traced to various design practices and materials choices related to the high voltage solar arrays. NASA Glenn has studied these anomalies including plasma chamber testing on arrays similar to those that experienced difficulties on orbit. Many others in the community have been involved in a comprehensive effort to understand the problems and to develop practices to avoid them. The NASA Space Environments and Effects program, recognizing the timeliness of this effort, has commissioned and funded a design guidelines document intended to capture the current state of understanding. We present here an overview of this document, which is now nearing completion.

A Study of Learning Curve Impact on Three Identical Small Spacecraft

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chen, Guangming; McLennan, Douglas D.

2003-01-01

With an eye to the future strategic needs of NASA, the New Millennium Program is funding the Space Technology 5 (ST-5) project to address the future needs in the area of small satellites in constellation missions. The ST-5 project, being developed at Goddard Space Flight Center, involves the development and simultaneous launch of three small, 20-kilogram-class spacecraft. ST-5 is only a test drive and future NASA science missions may call for fleets of spacecraft containing tens of smart and capable satellites in an intelligent constellation. The objective of ST-5 project is to develop three such pioneering small spacecraft for flight validation of several critical new technologies. The ST-5 project team at Goddard Space Flight Center has completed the spacecraft design, is now building and testing the three flight units. The launch readiness date (LRD) is in December 2005. A critical part of ST-5 mission is to prove that it is possible to build these small but capable spacecraft with recurring cost low enough to make future NASA s multi- spacecraft constellation missions viable from a cost standpoint.

NASA SBIR product catalog, 1991

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1991-01-01

This catalog is a partial list of products of NASA SBIR (Small Business Innovation Research) projects that have advanced to some degree into Phase 3. While most of the products evolved from work conducted during SBIR Phase 1 and 2, a few advanced to commercial status solely from Phase 1 activities. The catalog presents information provided to NASA by SBIR contractors who wished to have their products exhibited at Technology 2001, a NASA-sponsored technology transfer conference held in San Jose, California, on December 4, 5, and 6, 1991. The catalog presents the product information in the following technology areas: computer and communication systems; information processing and AI; robotics and automation; signal and image processing; microelectronics; electronic devices and equipment; microwave electronic devices; optical devices and lasers; advanced materials; materials processing; materials testing and NDE; materials instrumentation; aerodynamics and aircraft; fluid mechanics and measurement; heat transfer devices; refrigeration and cryogenics; energy conversion devices; oceanographic instruments; atmosphere monitoring devices; water management; life science instruments; and spacecraft electromechanical systems.

Parker Solar Probe Spacecraft Arrival, Offload and Transport

NASA Image and Video Library

2018-04-03

A U.S. Air Force C-5 transport aircraft arrives at Space Coast Regional Airport in Titusville, Florida, with NASA's Parker Solar Probe spacecraft aboard. The spacecraft will be offloaded and transported to the Astrotech processing facility near the agency's Kennedy Space Center. The Parker Solar Probe will launch on a United Launch Alliance Delta IV Heavy rocket from Space Launch Complex 37 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida in July 2018. The mission will perform the closest-ever observations of a star when it travels through the Sun's atmosphere, called the corona. The probe will rely on measurements and imaging to revolutionize our understanding of the corona and the Sun-Earth connection.

Parker Solar Probe Spacecraft Arrival, Offload and Transport

NASA Image and Video Library

2018-04-03

A U.S. Air Force C-5 transport aircraft touches down at Space Coast Regional Airport in Titusville, Florida, with NASA's Parker Solar Probe spacecraft aboard. The spacecraft will be offloaded and transported to the Astrotech processing facility near the agency's Kennedy Space Center. The Parker Solar Probe will launch on a United Launch Alliance Delta IV Heavy rocket from Space Launch Complex 37 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida in July 2018. The mission will perform the closest-ever observations of a star when it travels through the Sun's atmosphere, called the corona. The probe will rely on measurements and imaging to revolutionize our understanding of the corona and the Sun-Earth connection.

Parker Solar Probe Spacecraft Arrival, Offload and Transport

NASA Image and Video Library

2018-04-03

A U.S. Air Force C-5 transport aircraft approaches the runway for landing at Space Coast Regional Airport in Titusville, Florida, with NASA's Parker Solar Probe spacecraft aboard. The spacecraft will be offloaded and transported to the Astrotech processing facility near the agency's Kennedy Space Center. The Parker Solar Probe will launch on a United Launch Alliance Delta IV Heavy rocket from Space Launch Complex 37 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida in July 2018. The mission will perform the closest-ever observations of a star when it travels through the Sun's atmosphere, called the corona. The probe will rely on measurements and imaging to revolutionize our understanding of the corona and the Sun-Earth connection.

GN&C Engineering Best Practices for Human-Rated Spacecraft Systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dennehy, Cornelius J.; Lebsock, Kenneth; West, John

2007-01-01

The NASA Engineering and Safety Center (NESC) recently completed an in-depth assessment to identify a comprehensive set of engineering considerations for the Design, Development, Test and Evaluation (DDT&E) of safe and reliable human-rated spacecraft systems. Reliability subject matter experts, discipline experts, and systems engineering experts were brought together to synthesize the current "best practices" both at the spacecraft system and subsystems levels. The objective of this paper is to summarize, for the larger Community of Practice, the initial set of Guidance, Navigation and Control (GN&C) engineering Best Practices as identified by this NESC assessment process.

GN&C Engineering Best Practices for Human-Rated Spacecraft System

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dennehy, Cornelius J.; Lebsock, Kenneth; West, John

2008-01-01

The NASA Engineering and Safety Center (NESC) recently completed an in-depth assessment to identify a comprehensive set of engineering considerations for the Design, Development, Test and Evaluation (DDT&E) of safe and reliable human-rated spacecraft systems. Reliability subject matter experts, discipline experts, and systems engineering experts were brought together to synthesize the current "best practices" both at the spacecraft system and subsystems levels. The objective of this paper is to summarize, for the larger Community of Practice, the initial set of Guidance, Navigation and Control (GN&C) engineering Best Practices as identified by this NESC assessment process.

GN&C Engineering Best Practices For Human-Rated Spacecraft Systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dennehy, Cornelius J.; Lebsock, Kenneth; West, John

2007-01-01

The NASA Engineering and Safety Center (NESC) recently completed an in-depth assessment to identify a comprehensive set of engineering considerations for the Design, Development, Test and Evaluation (DDT&E) of safe and reliable human-rated spacecraft systems. Reliability subject matter experts, discipline experts, and systems engineering experts were brought together to synthesize the current "best practices" both at the spacecraft system and subsystems levels. The objective of this paper is to summarize, for the larger Community of Practice, the initial set of Guidance, Navigation and Control (GN&C) engineering Best Practices as identified by this NESC assessment process.

MMS Uncovering of Spacecraft

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-10-30

A technician carefully removes the protective covering from the lower stack, mini-stack number 1, two of the observatories for NASA's Magnetospheric Multiscale Observatory, or MMS, in Building 1 D high bay at the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, Florida, near Kennedy Space Center. The MMS upper stack, mini-stack number 2, is scheduled to arrive in about two weeks. MMS is a Solar Terrestrial Probes mission comprising four identically instrumented spacecraft that will use Earth’s magnetosphere as a laboratory to study the microphysics of three fundamental plasma processes: magnetic reconnection, energetic particle acceleration and turbulence. Launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket from Space Launch Complex 41 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station is targeted for March 12, 2015.

MMS Uncovering of Spacecraft

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-10-30

Technicians begin to remove the protective covering from the lower stack, mini-stack number 1, two of the observatories for NASA's Magnetospheric Multiscale Observatory, or MMS, in Building 1 D high bay at the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, Florida, near Kennedy Space Center. The MMS upper stack, mini-stack number 2, is scheduled to arrive in about two weeks. MMS is a Solar Terrestrial Probes mission comprising four identically instrumented spacecraft that will use Earth’s magnetosphere as a laboratory to study the microphysics of three fundamental plasma processes: magnetic reconnection, energetic particle acceleration and turbulence. Launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket from Space Launch Complex 41 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station is targeted for March 12, 2015.

MMS Spacecraft Uncrated & Moved

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-10-29

Two of the observatories for NASA's Magnetospheric Multiscale Observatory, or MMS, the lower stack, mini-stack number 1, begin the trip from the Building 2 south encapsulation bay to the Building 1 high bay at the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, Florida, near Kennedy Space Center. The MMS upper stack, mini-stack number 2, is scheduled to arrive in about two weeks. MMS is a Solar Terrestrial Probes mission comprising four identically instrumented spacecraft that will use Earth’s magnetosphere as a laboratory to study the microphysics of three fundamental plasma processes: magnetic reconnection, energetic particle acceleration and turbulence. Launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket from Space Launch Complex 41 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station is targeted for March 12, 2015.

MMS Uncovering of Spacecraft

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-10-30

Technicians prepare to remove the protective covering from the lower stack, mini-stack number 1, two of the observatories for NASA's Magnetospheric Multiscale Observatory, or MMS, in Building 1 D high bay at the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, Florida, near Kennedy Space Center. The MMS upper stack, mini-stack number 2, is scheduled to arrive in about two weeks. MMS is a Solar Terrestrial Probes mission comprising four identically instrumented spacecraft that will use Earth’s magnetosphere as a laboratory to study the microphysics of three fundamental plasma processes: magnetic reconnection, energetic particle acceleration and turbulence. Launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket from Space Launch Complex 41 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station is targeted for March 12, 2015.

MMS Uncovering of Spacecraft

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-10-30

Technicians have removed most of the protective covering from the lower stack, mini-stack number 1, two of the observatories for NASA's Magnetospheric Multiscale Observatory, or MMS, in Building 1 D high bay at the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, Florida, near Kennedy Space Center. The MMS upper stack, mini-stack number 2, is scheduled to arrive in about two weeks. MMS is a Solar Terrestrial Probes mission comprising four identically instrumented spacecraft that will use Earth’s magnetosphere as a laboratory to study the microphysics of three fundamental plasma processes: magnetic reconnection, energetic particle acceleration and turbulence. Launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket from Space Launch Complex 41 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station is targeted for March 12, 2015.

MMS Uncovering of Spacecraft

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-10-30

Technicians remove the protective covering from the lower stack, mini-stack number 1, two of the observatories for NASA's Magnetospheric Multiscale Observatory, or MMS, in Building 1 D high bay at the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, Florida, near Kennedy Space Center. The MMS upper stack, mini-stack number 2, is scheduled to arrive in about two weeks. MMS is a Solar Terrestrial Probes mission comprising four identically instrumented spacecraft that will use Earth’s magnetosphere as a laboratory to study the microphysics of three fundamental plasma processes: magnetic reconnection, energetic particle acceleration and turbulence. Launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket from Space Launch Complex 41 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station is targeted for March 12, 2015.

MMS Spacecraft Uncrated & Moved

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-10-29

Workers prepare a payload dolly for the lower stack, mini-stack number 1, two of the observatories for NASA's Magnetospheric Multiscale Observatory, or MMS, during uncrating operations in the Building 2 south encapsulation bay at the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, Florida, near Kennedy Space Center. The MMS upper stack, mini-stack number 2, is scheduled to arrive in about two weeks. MMS is a Solar Terrestrial Probes mission comprising four identically instrumented spacecraft that will use Earth’s magnetosphere as a laboratory to study the microphysics of three fundamental plasma processes: magnetic reconnection, energetic particle acceleration and turbulence. Launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket from Space Launch Complex 41 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station is targeted for March 12, 2015.

MMS Uncovering of Spacecraft

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-10-30

Most of the protective covering has been removed from the lower stack, mini-stack number 1, two of the observatories for NASA's Magnetospheric Multiscale Observatory, or MMS, inside Building 1 D high bay at the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, Florida, near Kennedy Space Center. The MMS upper stack, mini-stack number 2, is scheduled to arrive in about two weeks. MMS is a Solar Terrestrial Probes mission comprising four identically instrumented spacecraft that will use Earth’s magnetosphere as a laboratory to study the microphysics of three fundamental plasma processes: magnetic reconnection, energetic particle acceleration and turbulence. Launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket from Space Launch Complex 41 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station is targeted for March 12, 2015.

MMS Spacecraft Uncrated & Moved

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-10-29

Preparations are underway to remove the lower stack, mini-stack number 1, two of the observatories for NASA's Magnetospheric Multiscale Observatory, or MMS, from their protective shipping container in the Building 2 south encapsulation bay at the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, Florida, near Kennedy Space Center. The MMS upper stack, mini-stack number 2, is scheduled to arrive in about two weeks. MMS is a Solar Terrestrial Probes mission comprising four identically instrumented spacecraft that will use Earth’s magnetosphere as a laboratory to study the microphysics of three fundamental plasma processes: magnetic reconnection, energetic particle acceleration and turbulence. Launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket from Space Launch Complex 41 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station is targeted for March 12, 2015.

MMS Uncovering of Spacecraft

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-10-30

Preparations are underway to remove the protective covering from the lower stack, mini-stack number 1, two of the observatories for NASA's Magnetospheric Multiscale Observatory, or MMS, in Building 1 D high bay at the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, Florida, near Kennedy Space Center. The MMS upper stack, mini-stack number 2, is scheduled to arrive in about two weeks. MMS is a Solar Terrestrial Probes mission comprising four identically instrumented spacecraft that will use Earth’s magnetosphere as a laboratory to study the microphysics of three fundamental plasma processes: magnetic reconnection, energetic particle acceleration and turbulence. Launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket from Space Launch Complex 41 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station is targeted for March 12, 2015.

MMS Spacecraft Uncrated & Moved

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-10-29

Two of the observatories, the lower stack, mini-stack number 1, for NASA's Magnetospheric Multiscale Observatory, or MMS, glides toward a payload dolly during uncrating operations in the Building 2 south encapsulation bay at the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, Florida, near Kennedy Space Center. The MMS upper stack, mini-stack number 2, is scheduled to arrive in about two weeks. MMS is a Solar Terrestrial Probes mission comprising four identically instrumented spacecraft that will use Earth’s magnetosphere as a laboratory to study the microphysics of three fundamental plasma processes: magnetic reconnection, energetic particle acceleration and turbulence. Launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket from Space Launch Complex 41 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station is targeted for March 12, 2015.

MMS Spacecraft Uncrated & Moved

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-10-29

A crane is lowered toward the lower stack, mini-stack number 1, two of the observatories for NASA's Magnetospheric Multiscale Observatory, or MMS, during uncrating operations in the Building 2 south encapsulation bay at the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, Florida, near Kennedy Space Center. The MMS upper stack, mini-stack number 2, is scheduled to arrive in about two weeks. MMS is a Solar Terrestrial Probes mission comprising four identically instrumented spacecraft that will use Earth’s magnetosphere as a laboratory to study the microphysics of three fundamental plasma processes: magnetic reconnection, energetic particle acceleration and turbulence. Launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket from Space Launch Complex 41 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station is targeted for March 12, 2015.

MMS Spacecraft Uncrated & Moved

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-10-29

Workers position two of the observatories, the lower stack, mini-stack number 1 for NASA's Magnetospheric Multiscale Observatory, or MMS, onto a payload dolly in the Building 2 south encapsulation bay at the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, Florida, near Kennedy Space Center. The MMS upper stack, mini-stack number 2, is scheduled to arrive in about two weeks. MMS is a Solar Terrestrial Probes mission comprising four identically instrumented spacecraft that will use Earth’s magnetosphere as a laboratory to study the microphysics of three fundamental plasma processes: magnetic reconnection, energetic particle acceleration and turbulence. Launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket from Space Launch Complex 41 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station is targeted for March 12, 2015.

MMS Spacecraft Uncrated & Moved

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-10-29

The protective shipping container is lifted from the lower stack, mini-stack number 1, two of the observatories for NASA's Magnetospheric Multiscale Observatory, or MMS, in the Building 2 south encapsulation bay at the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, Florida, near Kennedy Space Center. The MMS upper stack, mini-stack number 2, is scheduled to arrive in about two weeks. MMS is a Solar Terrestrial Probes mission comprising four identically instrumented spacecraft that will use Earth’s magnetosphere as a laboratory to study the microphysics of three fundamental plasma processes: magnetic reconnection, energetic particle acceleration and turbulence. Launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket from Space Launch Complex 41 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station is targeted for March 12, 2015.

MMS Uncovering of Spacecraft

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-10-30

A technician prepares to remove the protective covering from the lower stack, mini-stack number 1, two of the observatories for NASA's Magnetospheric Multiscale Observatory, or MMS, in Building 1 D high bay at the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, Florida, near Kennedy Space Center. The MMS upper stack, mini-stack number 2, is scheduled to arrive in about two weeks. MMS is a Solar Terrestrial Probes mission comprising four identically instrumented spacecraft that will use Earth’s magnetosphere as a laboratory to study the microphysics of three fundamental plasma processes: magnetic reconnection, energetic particle acceleration and turbulence. Launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket from Space Launch Complex 41 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station is targeted for March 12, 2015.

Foot Pedals for Spacecraft Manual Control

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Love, Stanley G.; Morin, Lee M.; McCabe, Mary

2010-01-01

Fifty years ago, NASA decided that the cockpit controls in spacecraft should be like the ones in airplanes. But controls based on the stick and rudder may not be best way to manually control a vehicle in space. A different method is based on submersible vehicles controlled with foot pedals. A new pilot can learn the sub's control scheme in minutes and drive it hands-free. We are building a pair of foot pedals for spacecraft control, and will test them in a spacecraft flight simulator.

The Potential for Hosted Payloads at NASA

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Andraschko, Mark; Antol, Jeffrey; Baize, Rosemary; Horan, Stephen; Neil, Doreen; Rinsland, Pamela; Zaiceva, Rita

2012-01-01

The 2010 National Space Policy encourages federal agencies to actively explore the use of inventive, nontraditional arrangements for acquiring commercial space goods and services to meet United States Government requirements, including...hosting government capabilities on commercial spacecraft. NASA's Science Mission Directorate has taken an important step towards this goal by adding an option for hosted payload responses to its recent Announcement of Opportunity (AO) for Earth Venture-2 missions. Since NASA selects a significant portion of its science missions through a competitive process, it is useful to understand the implications that this process has on the feasibility of successfully proposing a commercially hosted payload mission. This paper describes some of the impediments associated with proposing a hosted payload mission to NASA, and offers suggestions on how these impediments might be addressed. Commercially hosted payloads provide a novel way to serve the needs of the science and technology demonstration communities at a fraction of the cost of a traditional Geostationary Earth Orbit (GEO) mission. The commercial communications industry launches over 20 satellites to GEO each year. By exercising this repeatable commercial paradigm of privately financed access to space with proven vendors, NASA can achieve science goals at a significantly lower cost than the current dedicated spacecraft and launch vehicle approach affords. Commercial hosting could open up a new realm of opportunities for NASA science missions to make measurements from GEO. This paper also briefly describes two GEO missions recommended by the National Academies of Science Earth Science Decadal Survey, the Geostationary Coastal and Air Pollution Events (GEO-CAPE) mission and the Precipitation and All-weather Temperature and Humidity (PATH) mission. Hosted payload missions recently selected for implementation by the Office of the Chief Technologist are also discussed. Finally, there are

TDRS-M NASA Social

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-08-17

Skip Owen of NASA Launch Services, left and Scott Messer, United Launch Alliance program manager for NASA missions speak to members of social media in the Kennedy Space Center’s Press Site auditorium. The briefing focused on preparations to launch NASA's Tracking and Data Relay Satellite, TDRS-M. The latest spacecraft destined for the agency's constellation of communications satellites, TDRS-M will allow nearly continuous contact with orbiting spacecraft ranging from the International Space Station and Hubble Space Telescope to the array of scientific observatories. Liftoff atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket is scheduled to take place from Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station at 8:03 a.m. EDT Aug. 18.

Deep Impact Spacecraft Collides With Comet Tempel 1 (Video)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2005-01-01

After 172 days and 268 million miles of deep space travel, the NASA Deep Impact spacecraft successfully reached out and touched comet Tempel 1. The collision between the coffee table-sized space probe and city-sized comet occurred July 4, 2005 at 12:52 a.m. CDT. Comprised of images taken by the targeting sensor aboard the impactor probe, this movie shows the spacecraft approaching the comet up to just seconds before impact. Mission scientists expect Deep Impact to provide answers to basic questions about the formation of the solar system. Principal investigator for Deep Impact, Dr. Michael A'Hearn of the University of Maryland in College Park, is responsible for the mission, and project management is handled by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. The program office at the Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) in Huntsville, Alabama assisted the Science Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington with program management, technology planning, systems assessment, flight assurance and public outreach. The spacecraft was built for NASA by Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corporation of Boulder, Colorado. (NASA/JPL-Caltech/UMD)

Modeling Meteor Flares for Spacecraft Safety

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ehlert, Steven

2017-01-01

NASA's Meteoroid Environment Office (MEO) is tasked with assisting spacecraft operators and engineers in quantifying the threat the meteoroid environment poses to their individual missions. A more complete understanding of the meteoroid environment for this application requires extensive observations. One manner by which the MEO observes meteors is with dedicated video camera systems that operate nightly. Connecting the observational data from these video cameras to the relevant physical properties of the ablating meteoroids, however, is subject to sizable observational and theoretical uncertainties. Arguably the most troublesome theoretical uncertainty in ablation is a model for the structure of meteoroids, as observations clearly show behaviors wholly inconsistent with meteoroids being homogeneous spheres. Further complicating the interpretation of the observations in the context of spacecraft risk is the ubiquitous process of fragmentation and the flares it can produce, which greatly muddles any attempts to estimating initial meteoroid masses. In this talk a method of estimating the mass distribution of fragments in flaring meteors using high resolution video observations will be dis- cussed. Such measurements provide an important step in better understanding of the structure and fragmentation process of the parent meteoroids producing these flares, which in turn may lead to better constraints on meteoroid masses and reduced uncertainties in spacecraft risk.

Spacecraft Jitter Attenuation Using Embedded Piezoelectric Actuators

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Belvin, W. Keith

1995-01-01

Remote sensing from spacecraft requires precise pointing of measurement devices in order to achieve adequate spatial resolution. Unfortunately, various spacecraft disturbances induce vibrational jitter in the remote sensing instruments. The NASA Langley Research Center has performed analysis, simulations, and ground tests to identify the more promising technologies for minimizing spacecraft pointing jitter. These studies have shown that the use of smart materials to reduce spacecraft jitter is an excellent match between a maturing technology and an operational need. This paper describes the use of embedding piezoelectric actuators for vibration control and payload isolation. In addition, recent advances in modeling, simulation, and testing of spacecraft pointing jitter are discussed.

Looking for Microbes in a Spacecraft Assembly Clean Room

NASA Image and Video Library

2013-11-06

A microbiologist collects a swab sample from the floor of a spacecraft assembly clean room at NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory where samples such as this are taken frequently during the assembly of a spacecraft and analyzed.

Spacecraft Charging and the Microwave Anisotropy Probe Spacecraft

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Timothy, VanSant J.; Neergaard, Linda F.

1998-01-01

The Microwave Anisotropy Probe (MAP), a MIDEX mission built in partnership between Princeton University and the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC), will study the cosmic microwave background. It will be inserted into a highly elliptical earth orbit for several weeks and then use a lunar gravity assist to orbit around the second Lagrangian point (L2), 1.5 million kilometers, anti-sunward from the earth. The charging environment for the phasing loops and at L2 was evaluated. There is a limited set of data for L2; the GEOTAIL spacecraft measured relatively low spacecraft potentials (approx. 50 V maximum) near L2. The main area of concern for charging on the MAP spacecraft is the well-established threat posed by the "geosynchronous region" between 6-10 Re. The launch in the autumn of 2000 will coincide with the falling of the solar maximum, a period when the likelihood of a substorm is higher than usual. The likelihood of a substorm at that time has been roughly estimated to be on the order of 20% for a typical MAP mission profile. Because of the possibility of spacecraft charging, a requirement for conductive spacecraft surfaces was established early in the program. Subsequent NASCAP/GEO analyses for the MAP spacecraft demonstrated that a significant portion of the sunlit surface (solar cell cover glass and sunshade) could have nonconductive surfaces without significantly raising differential charging. The need for conductive materials on surfaces continually in eclipse has also been reinforced by NASCAP analyses.

Trajectory Design for the Phobos and Deimos & Mars Environment Spacecraft

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Genova, Anthony L.; Korsmeyer, David J.; Loucks, Michel E.; Yang, Fan Yang; Lee, Pascal

2016-01-01

The presented trajectory design and analysis was performed for the Phobos and Deimos & Mars Environment (PADME) mission concept as part of a NASA proposal submission managed by NASA Ames Research Center in the 2014-2015 timeframe. The PADME spacecraft would be a derivative of the successfully flown Lunar Atmosphere & Dust Environment Explorer (LADEE) spacecraft. While LADEE was designed to enter low-lunar orbit, the PADME spacecraft would instead enter an elliptical Mars orbit of 2-week period. This Mars orbit would pass by Phobos near periapsis on successive orbits and then raise periapsis to yield close approaches of Deimos every orbit thereafter.

NASA Social

NASA Image and Video Library

2012-12-04

NASA Social participants listen as astronaut Joe Acaba answers questions about his time living aboard the International Space Station at NASA Headquarters, Tuesday, Dec. 4, 2012 in Washington. Acaba launched to the International Space Station on a Russian Soyuz spacecraft May 15, 2012, spending 123 days aboard as a flight engineer of the Expedition 31 and 32 crews. He recently returned to Earth on Sept. 17 after four months in low earth orbit. Photo Credit: (NASA/Carla Cioffi)

NASA's Orbital Debris Conjuction Assessment and Collision Avoidance Strategy

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gavin, Richard T.

2010-01-01

NASA has successfully used debris avoidance maneuvers to protect our spacecraft for more than 20 . years. This process which started out using parametric data and maneuver boxes has seen considerable evolution and now allows us to continue nominal operations for all but the most threatening objects. This has greatly reduced the interruptions to the critical mission objectives being pursued by NASA s Space Station, Space Shuttle, and robotic satellites.

Feasibility of NASA TT&C via Commercial Satellite Services

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mitchell, Carl W.; Weiss, Roland

1997-01-01

This report presents the results of a study to identify impact and driving requirements by implementing commercial satellite communications service into traditional National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) space-ground communications. The NASA communication system is used to relay spacecraft and instrument commands, telemetry and science data. NASA's goal is to lower the cost of operation and increase the flexibility of spacecraft operations. Use of a commercial network offers the opportunity to contact a spacecraft on a nearly "on-demand" basis with ordinary phone calls to enable real time interaction with science events.

NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory Unveils New Images

NASA Image and Video Library

2010-04-20

Scientists involved in NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) mission attend a press conference to discuss recent images captured by the SDO spacecraft Wednesday, April 21, 2010, at the Newseum in Washington. On Feb. 11, 2010, NASA launched the SDO spacecraft, which is the most advanced spacecraft ever designed to study the sun. Seated left to right are: Dean Pesnell, SDO project scientist, Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md.; Alan Title, principal investigator, Atmospheric Imaging Assembly instrument, Lockheed Martin Solar and Astrophysics Laboratory in Palo Alto; Philip H. Scherrer, principal investigator, Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager instrument, Stanford University in Palo Alto; Tom Woods, principal investigator, Extreme Ultraviolet Variability Experiment Instrument, Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics, University of Colorado in Boulder and Madhulika Guhathakurta, SDO program scientist, NASA Headquarters in Washington. Photo Credit: (NASA/Carla Cioffi)

Educational Experiences of Embry-Riddle Students through NASA Research Collaboration

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Schlee, Keith; Gangadharan, Sathya; Chatman, Yadira; Sudermann, James; Walker, Charles; Ristow, James

2006-01-01

NASA's educational. programs benefit students and faculty while increasing the overall productivity of the organization. The NASA Graduate Student Research Program (GSRP) awards fellowships for graduate study leading to both masters and doctoral degrees in several technical fields. GSRP participants have the option to utilize NASA Centers andlor university research facilities. In addition, GSRP students can serve as mentors for undergrad students to provide a truly unique learning experience. NASA's Cooperative Education Program allows undergraduate students the chance to gain "real-world" work experience in the field. It also gives NASA a no risk capability to evaluate the true performance of a prospective new hire without relying solely on a "paper resume" while providing the students with a greater hiring potential upon graduation, at NASA or elsewhere. University faculty can also benefit by participating in the NASA Faculty Fellowship Program (NFFP). This program gives the faculty an opportunity to work with NASA peers. The Mission Analysis Branch of the Expendable Launch Vehicles Division at NASA Kennedy Space Center has utilized these two programs with students from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (ERAU) to conduct research in modeling and developing a parameter estimation method for spacecraft fuel slosh using simple pendulum analogs. Simple pendulum models are used to understand complicated spacecraft fuel slosh behavior. A robust parameter estimation process will help to identif' the parameters that will predict the response fairly accurately during the initial stages of design. These programs provide students with a unique opportunity to work on "real-world" aerospace problems, like spacecraft fuel slosh,. This in turn reinforces their problem solving abilities and their communication skills such as interviewing, resume writing, technical writing, and presentation. Faculty benefits by applying what they have learned to the classroom. Through

NASA's Earth Science Data Systems Standards Process Experiences

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ullman, Richard E.; Enloe, Yonsook

2007-01-01

NASA has impaneled several internal working groups to provide recommendations to NASA management on ways to evolve and improve Earth Science Data Systems. One of these working groups is the Standards Process Group (SPC). The SPG is drawn from NASA-funded Earth Science Data Systems stakeholders, and it directs a process of community review and evaluation of proposed NASA standards. The working group's goal is to promote interoperability and interuse of NASA Earth Science data through broader use of standards that have proven implementation and operational benefit to NASA Earth science by facilitating the NASA management endorsement of proposed standards. The SPC now has two years of experience with this approach to identification of standards. We will discuss real examples of the different types of candidate standards that have been proposed to NASA's Standards Process Group such as OPeNDAP's Data Access Protocol, the Hierarchical Data Format, and Open Geospatial Consortium's Web Map Server. Each of the three types of proposals requires a different sort of criteria for understanding the broad concepts of "proven implementation" and "operational benefit" in the context of NASA Earth Science data systems. We will discuss how our Standards Process has evolved with our experiences with the three candidate standards.

Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) project. VI - Spacecraft, scientific instruments, and launching rocket. Part 1 - Spacecraft

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Keating, Thomas; Ihara, Toshio; Miida, Sumio

1990-01-01

A cooperative United States/Japan study was made for one year from 1987 to 1988 regarding the feasibility of the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM). As part of this study a phase-A-level design of spacecraft for TRMM was developed by NASA/GSFC, and the result was documented in a feasibility study. The phase-A-level design is developed for the TRMM satellite utilizing a multimission spacecraft.

Spacecraft Chemical Propulsion Systems at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center: Heritage and Capabilities

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

McRight, Patrick S.; Sheehy, Jeffrey A.; Blevins, John A.

2005-01-01

NASA Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) is well known for its contributions to large ascent propulsion systems such as the Saturn V and the Space Shuttle. This paper highlights a lesser known but equally rich side of MSFC - its heritage in spacecraft chemical propulsion systems and its current capabilities for in-space propulsion system development and chemical propulsion research. The historical narrative describes the efforts associated with developing upper-stage main propulsion systems such as the Saturn S-IVB as well as orbital maneuvering and reaction control systems such as the S-IVB auxiliary propulsion system, the Skylab thruster attitude control system, and many more recent activities such as Chandra, the Demonstration of Automated Rendezvous Technology, X-37, the X-38 de-orbit propulsion system, the Interim Control Module, the US Propulsion Module, and several technology development activities. Also discussed are MSFC chemical propulsion research capabilities, along with near- and long-term technology challenges to which MSFC research and system development competencies are relevant.

Design Process of Flight Vehicle Structures for a Common Bulkhead and an MPCV Spacecraft Adapter

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Aggarwal, Pravin; Hull, Patrick V.

2015-01-01

Design and manufacturing space flight vehicle structures is a skillset that has grown considerably at NASA during that last several years. Beginning with the Ares program and followed by the Space Launch System (SLS); in-house designs were produced for both the Upper Stage and the SLS Multipurpose crew vehicle (MPCV) spacecraft adapter. Specifically, critical design review (CDR) level analysis and flight production drawing were produced for the above mentioned hardware. In particular, the experience of this in-house design work led to increased manufacturing infrastructure for both Marshal Space Flight Center (MSFC) and Michoud Assembly Facility (MAF), improved skillsets in both analysis and design, and hands on experience in building and testing (MSA) full scale hardware. The hardware design and development processes from initiation to CDR and finally flight; resulted in many challenges and experiences that produced valuable lessons. This paper builds on these experiences of NASA in recent years on designing and fabricating flight hardware and examines the design/development processes used, as well as the challenges and lessons learned, i.e. from the initial design, loads estimation and mass constraints to structural optimization/affordability to release of production drawing to hardware manufacturing. While there are many documented design processes which a design engineer can follow, these unique experiences can offer insight into designing hardware in current program environments and present solutions to many of the challenges experienced by the engineering team.

TDRS-M Spacecraft Encapsulation

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-08-02

Inside the Astrotech facility in Titusville, Florida, NASA's Tracking and Data Relay Satellite, TDRS-M, is encapsulated into ULA's Atlas V payload fairing. TDRS-M is the latest spacecraft destined for the agency's constellation of communications satellites that allows nearly continuous contact with orbiting spacecraft ranging from the International Space Station and Hubble Space Telescope to the array of scientific observatories. Liftoff atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket is scheduled to take place from Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station at 8:03 a.m. EDT Aug. 18, 2017.

Failures and anomalies attributed to spacecraft charging

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Leach, R. D.; Alexander, M. B. (Editor)

1995-01-01

The effects of spacecraft charging can be very detrimental to electronic systems utilized in space missions. Assuring that subsystems and systems are protected against charging is an important engineering function necessary to assure mission success. Spacecraft charging is expected to have a significant role in future space activities and programs. Objectives of this reference publication are to present a brief overview of spacecraft charging, to acquaint the reader with charging history, including illustrative cases of charging anomalies, and to introduce current spacecraft charging prevention activities of the Electromagnetics and Environments Branch, Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC), National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).

Spacecraft Autonomy and Automation: A Comparative Analysis of Strategies for Cost Effective Mission Operations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wright, Nathaniel, Jr.

2000-01-01

The evolution of satellite operations over the last 40 years has drastically changed. October 4, 1957 (during the cold war) the Soviet Union launched the world's first spacecraft into orbit. The Sputnik satellite orbited Earth for three months and catapulted the United States into a race for dominance in space. A year after Sputnik, President Dwight Eisenhower formed the National Space and Aeronautics Administration (NASA). With a team of scientists and engineers, NASA successfully launched Explorer 1, the first US satellite to orbit Earth. During these early years, massive amounts of ground support equipment and operators were required to successfully operate spacecraft vehicles. Today, budget reductions and technological advances have forced new approaches to spacecraft operations. These approaches require increasingly complex, on board spacecraft systems, that enable autonomous operations, resulting in more cost-effective mission operations. NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, considered world class in satellite development and operations, has developed and operated over 200 satellites during its 40 years of existence. NASA Goddard is adopting several new millennium initiatives that lower operational costs through the spacecraft autonomy and automation. This paper examines NASA's approach to spacecraft autonomy and ground system automation through a comparative analysis of satellite missions for Hubble Space Telescope-HST, Near Earth Asteroid Rendezvous-NEAR, and Solar Heliospheric Observatory-SoHO, with emphasis on cost reduction methods, risk analysis and anomalies and strategies employed for mitigating risk.

ANTARES: Spacecraft Simulation for Multiple User Communities and Facilities

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Acevedo, Amanda; Berndt, Jon; Othon, William; Arnold, Jason; Gay, Robet

2007-01-01

The Advanced NASA Technology Architecture for Exploration Studies (ANTARES) simulation is the primary tool being used for requirements assessment of the NASA Orion spacecraft by the Guidance Navigation and Control (GN&C) teams at Johnson Space Center (JSC). ANTARES is a collection of packages and model libraries that are assembled and executed by the Trick simulation environment. Currently, ANTARES is being used for spacecraft design assessment, performance analysis, requirements validation, Hardware In the Loop (HWIL) and Human In the Loop (HIL) testing.

DSCOVR Spacecraft Arrival, Offload, & Unpacking

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-11-20

Workers remove the plastic cover from NOAA’s Deep Space Climate Observatory spacecraft, or DSCOVR, in the high bay of Building 1 at the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, Florida, near Kennedy Space Center. DSCOVR is a partnership between NOAA, NASA and the U.S. Air Force. DSCOVR will maintain the nation's real-time solar wind monitoring capabilities which are critical to the accuracy and lead time of NOAA's space weather alerts and forecasts. Launch is currently scheduled for January 2015 aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 v 1.1 launch vehicle from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida.

DSCOVR Spacecraft Arrival, Offload, & Unpacking

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-11-20

Preparations are underway to lift NOAA’s Deep Space Climate Observatory spacecraft, or DSCOVR, wrapped in plastic, from its transportation pallet at the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, Florida, near Kennedy Space Center. DSCOVR is a partnership between NOAA, NASA and the U.S. Air Force. DSCOVR will maintain the nation's real-time solar wind monitoring capabilities which are critical to the accuracy and lead time of NOAA's space weather alerts and forecasts. Launch is currently scheduled for January 2015 aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 v 1.1 launch vehicle from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida.

DSCOVR Spacecraft Arrival, Offload, & Unpacking

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-11-20

Workers align NOAA’s Deep Space Climate Observatory spacecraft, or DSCOVR, wrapped in plastic, onto a portable work stand at the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, Florida, near Kennedy Space Center. DSCOVR is a partnership between NOAA, NASA and the U.S. Air Force. DSCOVR will maintain the nation's real-time solar wind monitoring capabilities which are critical to the accuracy and lead time of NOAA's space weather alerts and forecasts. Launch is currently scheduled for January 2015 aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 v 1.1 launch vehicle from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida.

DSCOVR Spacecraft Arrival, Offload, & Unpacking

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-11-20

A lifting device is attached to NOAA’s Deep Space Climate Observatory spacecraft, or DSCOVR, wrapped in plastic, to remove it from its transportation pallet at the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, Florida, near Kennedy Space Center. DSCOVR is a partnership between NOAA, NASA and the U.S. Air Force. DSCOVR will maintain the nation's real-time solar wind monitoring capabilities which are critical to the accuracy and lead time of NOAA's space weather alerts and forecasts. Launch is currently scheduled for January 2015 aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 v 1.1 launch vehicle from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida.

DSCOVR Spacecraft Arrival, Offload, & Unpacking

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-11-20

Preparations are underway to remove a protective shipping container from around NOAA’s Deep Space Climate Observatory spacecraft, or DSCOVR, at the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, Florida, near Kennedy Space Center. DSCOVR is a partnership between NOAA, NASA and the U.S. Air Force. DSCOVR will maintain the nation's real-time solar wind monitoring capabilities which are critical to the accuracy and lead time of NOAA's space weather alerts and forecasts. Launch is currently scheduled for January 2015 aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 v 1.1 launch vehicle from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida.

DSCOVR Spacecraft Arrival, Offload, & Unpacking

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-11-20

NOAA’s Deep Space Climate Observatory spacecraft, or DSCOVR, enclosed in a protective shipping container, is delivered by truck to the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, Florida, near Kennedy Space Center. DSCOVR is a partnership between NOAA, NASA and the U.S. Air Force. DSCOVR will maintain the nation's real-time solar wind monitoring capabilities which are critical to the accuracy and lead time of NOAA's space weather alerts and forecasts. Launch is currently scheduled for January 2015 aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 v 1.1 launch vehicle from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida.

DSCOVR Spacecraft Arrival, Offload, & Unpacking

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-11-20

NOAA’s Deep Space Climate Observatory spacecraft, or DSCOVR, wrapped in plastic, is transferred from its transportation pallet to a portable work stand at the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, Florida, near Kennedy Space Center. DSCOVR is a partnership between NOAA, NASA and the U.S. Air Force. DSCOVR will maintain the nation's real-time solar wind monitoring capabilities which are critical to the accuracy and lead time of NOAA's space weather alerts and forecasts. Launch is currently scheduled for January 2015 aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 v 1.1 launch vehicle from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida.

TDRS-M NASA Social

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-08-17

NASA astronauts Nicole Mann, left, and Steve Bowen speak to members of social media in the Kennedy Space Center’s Press Site auditorium. With them on the right is Emily Furfaro of the NASA Social Media Team. The briefing focused on preparations to launch NASA's Tracking and Data Relay Satellite, TDRS-M. The latest spacecraft destined for the agency's constellation of communications satellites, TDRS-M will allow nearly continuous contact with orbiting spacecraft ranging from the International Space Station and Hubble Space Telescope to the array of scientific observatories. Liftoff atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket is scheduled to take place from Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station at 8:03 a.m. EDT Aug. 18.

ASTRONAUT COOPER - SPACECRAFT "FAITH 7" - RECOVERY - USS KEARSAGE - PACIFIC

NASA Image and Video Library

1963-05-16

S63-07701 (16 May 1963) --- Recovery Force personnel bring the Mercury-Atlas 9 (MA-9) spacecraft aboard the prime recovery vessel following its successful flight into space. Pilot inside the spacecraft is astronaut L. Gordon Cooper Jr. Photo credit: NASA

Modeling Spacecraft Fuel Slosh at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Schlee, Keith L.

2007-01-01

As a NASA-sponsored GSRP Fellow, I worked with other researchers and analysts at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University and NASA's ELV Division to investigate the effect of spacecraft fuel slosh. NASA's research into the effects of fuel slosh includes modeling the response in full-sized tanks using equipment such as the Spinning Slosh Test Rig (SSTR), located at Southwest Research Institute (SwRI). NASA and SwRI engineers analyze data taken from SSTR runs and hand-derive equations of motion to identify model parameters and characterize the sloshing motion. With guidance from my faculty advisor, Dr. Sathya Gangadharan, and NASA flight controls analysts James Sudermann and Charles Walker, I set out to automate this parameter identification process by building a simple physical experimental setup to model free surface slosh in a spherical tank with a simple pendulum analog. This setup was then modeled using Simulink and SimMechanics. The Simulink Parameter Estimation Tool was then used to identify the model parameters.

Limiting Future Collision Risk to Spacecraft: An Assessment of NASA's Meteoroid and Orbital Debris Programs

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2011-01-01

Over the past 50 years, various NASA communities have contributed significantly to maturing NASA s meteoroid and orbital debris (MMOD)1 programs to their current state. As a result of these community efforts, and to NASA s credit, NASA s MMOD programs and models are now widely used and respected by the providers and users of both government and commercial satellites, nationally as well as internationally. Satellites have been redesigned to protect critical components from MMOD damage by moving critical components from exterior surfaces to deep inside a satellite s structure. Orbits are monitored and altered to minimize the risk of collision with tracked orbital debris. MMOD shielding added to the International Space Station (ISS) protects critical components and astronauts from potentially catastrophic damage that might result from smaller, untracked debris and meteoroid impacts. The space shuttle, as it orbited Earth, and whether docked to the ISS or not, was optimally oriented to protect its fragile thermal protection and thermal radiation systems from MMOD damage. In addition, astronauts inspected its thermal protection system for MMOD damage before the shuttle reentered Earth s atmosphere; Orion, NASA s capsule to carry astronauts to low Earth orbit, includes designs to mitigate the threat of MMOD damage and provide increased safety to the crew. When a handful of reasonable assumptions are used in NASA s MMOD models, scenarios are uncovered that conclude that the current orbital debris environment has already reached a "tipping point." That is, the amount of debris - in terms of the population of large debris objects, as well as overall mass of debris in orbit - currently in orbit has reached a threshold where it will continually collide with itself, further increasing the population of orbital debris. This increase will lead to corresponding increases in spacecraft failures, which will only create more feedback into the system, increasing the debris population

NASA welding assessment program

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Stofel, E. J.

1984-01-01

A long duration test has been conducted for comparing various methods of attaching electrical interconnects to solar cells for near Earth orbit spacecraft. Representative solar array modules have been thermally cycled for 36,000 cycles between -80 and +80 C on this JPL and NASA Lewis Research Center sponsored work. This test simulates the environmental stress of more than 6 years on a near Earth spacecraft as it cycles in and out of the Earth's shadow. Evaluations of the integrity of these modules were made by visual and by electrical examinations before starting the cycling and then at periodic intervals during the cycling tests. Modules included examples of parallel gap and of ultrasonic welding, as well as soldering. The materials and fabrication processes are state of the art, suitable for forming large solar arrays of spacecraft quality. The modules survived his extensive cycling without detectable degradation in their ability to generate power under sunlight illumination.

IUS with Magellan spacecraft drifts into space after STS-30 deployment

NASA Image and Video Library

1989-05-04

STS030-71-070 (4 May 1989) --- This scene is one of two released by NASA showing the process of solar array panel deployment on the Magellan spacecraft. Though partially blended into the backdrop of the blackness of space, it appears the two panels are fully extended in this frame. The spacecraft had earlier been released by the STS-30 crewmembers to begin its long journey to the planet Venus for an extensive radar mapping mission. The frame was photographed through Atlantis' aft flight deck windows with a handheld 70mm camera. The complementary photograph is STS030-71-063.

Parker Solar Probe Spacecraft Arrival, Offload and Transport

NASA Image and Video Library

2018-04-03

Preparations are underway to offload NASA's Parker Solar Probe spacecraft, secured in its shipping container, from a U.S. Air Force C-5 transport aircraft at Space Coast Regional Airport in Titusville, Florida. The spacecraft will be transported to the Astrotech processing facility near the agency's Kennedy Space Center. The Parker Solar Probe will launch on a United Launch Alliance Delta IV Heavy rocket from Space Launch Complex 37 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida in July 2018. The mission will perform the closest-ever observations of a star when it travels through the Sun's atmosphere, called the corona. The probe will rely on measurements and imaging to revolutionize our understanding of the corona and the Sun-Earth connection.

Pre-Hardware Optimization of Spacecraft Image Processing Algorithms and Hardware Implementation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kizhner, Semion; Petrick, David J.; Flatley, Thomas P.; Hestnes, Phyllis; Jentoft-Nilsen, Marit; Day, John H. (Technical Monitor)

2002-01-01

Spacecraft telemetry rates and telemetry product complexity have steadily increased over the last decade presenting a problem for real-time processing by ground facilities. This paper proposes a solution to a related problem for the Geostationary Operational Environmental Spacecraft (GOES-8) image data processing and color picture generation application. Although large super-computer facilities are the obvious heritage solution, they are very costly, making it imperative to seek a feasible alternative engineering solution at a fraction of the cost. The proposed solution is based on a Personal Computer (PC) platform and synergy of optimized software algorithms, and reconfigurable computing hardware (RC) technologies, such as Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGA) and Digital Signal Processors (DSP). It has been shown that this approach can provide superior inexpensive performance for a chosen application on the ground station or on-board a spacecraft.

MMS Spacecraft Uncrated & Moved

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-10-29

Workers attach a crane to the protective shipping container to prepare to uncover the lower stack, mini-stack number 1, two of the observatories for NASA's Magnetospheric Multiscale Observatory, or MMS. They were delivered to the Building 2 south encapsulation bay at the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, Florida, near Kennedy Space Center. The MMS upper stack, mini-stack number 2, is scheduled to arrive in about two weeks. MMS is a Solar Terrestrial Probes mission comprising four identically instrumented spacecraft that will use Earth’s magnetosphere as a laboratory to study the microphysics of three fundamental plasma processes: magnetic reconnection, energetic particle acceleration and turbulence. Launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket from Space Launch Complex 41 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station is targeted for March 12, 2015.

MMS Spacecraft Uncrated & Moved

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-10-29

Preparations are underway to tow two of the observatories, the lower stack, mini-stack number 1, for NASA's Magnetospheric Multiscale Observatory, or MMS, from the Building 2 south encapsulation bay to the Building 1 high bay at the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, Florida, near Kennedy Space Center. The MMS upper stack, mini-stack number 2, is scheduled to arrive in about two weeks. MMS is a Solar Terrestrial Probes mission comprising four identically instrumented spacecraft that will use Earth’s magnetosphere as a laboratory to study the microphysics of three fundamental plasma processes: magnetic reconnection, energetic particle acceleration and turbulence. Launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket from Space Launch Complex 41 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station is targeted for March 12, 2015.

MMS Spacecraft Uncrated & Moved

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-10-29

Workers surround two of the observatories, the lower stack, mini-stack number 1, for NASA's Magnetospheric Multiscale Observatory, or MMS, on their trip from the Building 2 south encapsulation bay to the Building 1 high bay at the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, Florida, near Kennedy Space Center. The MMS upper stack, mini-stack number 2, is scheduled to arrive in about two weeks. MMS is a Solar Terrestrial Probes mission comprising four identically instrumented spacecraft that will use Earth’s magnetosphere as a laboratory to study the microphysics of three fundamental plasma processes: magnetic reconnection, energetic particle acceleration and turbulence. Launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket from Space Launch Complex 41 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station is targeted for March 12, 2015.

Evaluation and comparison of alternative designs for water/solid-waste processing systems for spacecraft

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Spurlock, J. M.

1975-01-01

Promising candidate designs currently being considered for the management of spacecraft solid waste and waste-water materials were assessed. The candidate processes were: (1) the radioisotope thermal energy evaporation/incinerator process; (2) the dry incineration process; and (3) the wet oxidation process. The types of spacecraft waste materials that were included in the base-line computational input to the candidate systems were feces, urine residues, trash and waste-water concentrates. The performance characteristics and system requirements for each candidate process to handle this input and produce the specified acceptable output (i.e., potable water, a storable dry ash, and vapor phase products that can be handled by a spacecraft atmosphere control system) were estimated and compared. Recommendations are presented.

Low-Temperature Spacecraft: Challenges/Opportunities

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dickman, J. E.; Patterson, R. L.; Overton, E.; Hammoud, A. N.; Gerber, S. S.

2001-01-01

Imagine sending a spacecraft into deep space that operates at the ambient temperature of its environment rather than hundreds of degrees Kelvin warmer. The average temperature of a spacecraft warmed only by the sun drops from 279 K near the Earth's orbit to 90 K near the orbit of Saturn, and to 44 K near Pluto's orbit. At present, deep space probes struggle to maintain an operating temperature near 300 K for the onboard electronics. To warm the electronics without consuming vast amounts of electrical energy, radioisotope heater units (RHUs) are used in vast numbers. Unfortunately, since RHU are always 'on', an active thermal management system is required to reject the excess heat. A spacecraft designed to operate at cryogenic temperatures and shielded from the sun by a large communication dish or solar cell array could be less complex, lighter, and cheaper than current deep space probes. Before a complete low-temperature spacecraft becomes a reality, there are several challenges to be met. Reliable cryogenic power electronics is one of the major challenges. The Low-Temperature Power Electronics Research Group at NASA Glenn Research Center (GRC) has demonstrated the ability of some commercial off the shelf power electronic components to operate at temperatures approaching that of liquid nitrogen (77 K). Below 77 K, there exists an opportunity for the development of reliable semiconductor power switching technologies other than bulk silicon CMOS. This paper will report on the results of NASA GRC's Low-Temperature Power Electronics Program and discuss the challenges to (opportunities for) the creation of a low-temperature spacecraft.

Small Spacecraft Technology Initiative Education Program

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1995-01-01

A NASA engineer with the Commercial Remote Sensing Program (CRSP) at Stennis Space Center works with students from W.P. Daniels High School in New Albany, Miss., through NASA's Small Spacecraft Technology Initiative Program. CRSP is teaching students to use remote sensing to locate a potential site for a water reservoir to offset a predicted water shortage in the community's future.

Implementing NASA's Capability-Driven Approach: Insight into NASA's Processes for Maturing Exploration Systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Williams-Byrd, Julie; Arney, Dale; Rodgers, Erica; Antol, Jeff; Simon, Matthew; Hay, Jason; Larman, Kevin

2015-01-01

NASA is engaged in transforming human spaceflight. The Agency is shifting from an exploration-based program with human activities focused on low Earth orbit (LEO) and targeted robotic missions in deep space to a more sustainable and integrated pioneering approach. Through pioneering, NASA seeks to address national goals to develop the capacity for people to work, learn, operate, live, and thrive safely beyond the Earth for extended periods of time. However, pioneering space involves more than the daunting technical challenges of transportation, maintaining health, and enabling crew productivity for long durations in remote, hostile, and alien environments. This shift also requires a change in operating processes for NASA. The Agency can no longer afford to engineer systems for specific missions and destinations and instead must focus on common capabilities that enable a range of destinations and missions. NASA has codified a capability driven approach, which provides flexible guidance for the development and maturation of common capabilities necessary for human pioneers beyond LEO. This approach has been included in NASA policy and is captured in the Agency's strategic goals. It is currently being implemented across NASA's centers and programs. Throughout 2014, NASA engaged in an Agency-wide process to define and refine exploration-related capabilities and associated gaps, focusing only on those that are critical for human exploration beyond LEO. NASA identified 12 common capabilities ranging from Environmental Control and Life Support Systems to Robotics, and established Agency-wide teams or working groups comprised of subject matter experts that are responsible for the maturation of these exploration capabilities. These teams, called the System Maturation Teams (SMTs) help formulate, guide and resolve performance gaps associated with the identified exploration capabilities. The SMTs are defining performance parameters and goals for each of the 12 capabilities

Spacecraft Water Exposure Guidelines for Selected Contaminants. Volume 2

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2007-01-01

The International Space Station is a closed and complex environment, so some contamination of its internal atmosphere and water system is expected. To protect space crews from contaminants in potable and hygiene water, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) requested that the National Research Council (NRC) provide guidance on how to develop water exposure guidelines and review NASA s development of the exposure guidelines for specific chemicals. NASA selects water contaminants for which spacecraft water exposure guidelines (SWEGs) will be established; this involves identifying toxicity effects relevant to astronauts and calculating exposure concentrations on the basis of those end points. SWEGs are established for exposures of 1, 10, 100, and 1,000 days. This report is the second volume in the series, Spacecraft Water Exposure Guidelines for Selected Chemicals. SWEG reports for acetone, alkylamines, ammonia, barium, cadmium, caprolactam, formate, formaldehyde, manganese, total organic carbon, and zinc are included in this report. The committee concludes that the SWEGs developed for these chemicals are scientifically valid based on the data reviewed by NASA and are consistent with the NRC (2000) report, Methods for Developing Spacecraft Water Exposure Guidelines. SWEG reports for additional chemicals will be presented in a subsequent volume.

Initialization of distributed spacecraft for precision formation flying

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hadaegh, F. Y.; Scharf, D. P.; Ploen, S. R.

2003-01-01

In this paper we present a solution to the formation initialization problem for N distributed spacecraft located in deep space. Our solution to the FI problem is based on a three-stage sky search procedure that reduces the FI problem for N spacecraft to the simpler problem of initializing a set of sub-formations. We demonstrate our FI algorithm in simulation using NASA's five spacecraft Terrestrial Planet Finder mission as an example.

NASA Deputy Administrator Tours Sierra Nevada Space Systems' Dre

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-02-05

NASA Deputy Administrator Lori Garver talks during a press conference with Sierra Nevada's Dream Chaser spacecraft in the background on Saturday, Feb. 5, 2011, at the University of Colorado at Boulder. Sierra Nevada's Dream Chaser spacecraft is under development with support from NASA's Commercial Crew Development Program to provide crew transportation to and from low Earth orbit. NASA is helping private companies develop innovative technologies to ensure that the U.S. remains competitive in future space endeavors. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)

NASA Deputy Administrator Tours Sierra Nevada Space Systems' Dre

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-02-05

Sierra Nevada's Dream Chaser spacecraft is seen as NASA Deputy Administrator Lori Garver talks during a press conference on Saturday, Feb. 5, 2011, at the University of Colorado at Boulder. Sierra Nevada's Dream Chaser spacecraft is under development with support from NASA's Commercial Crew Development Program to provide crew transportation to and from low Earth orbit. NASA is helping private companies develop innovative technologies to ensure that the U.S. remains competitive in future space endeavors. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)

LDEF materials results for spacecraft applications: Executive summary

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Whitaker, A. F.; Dooling, D.

1995-03-01

To address the challenges of space environmental effects, NASA designed the Long Duration Exposure Facility (LDEF) for an 18-month mission to expose thousands of samples of candidate materials that might be used on a space station or other orbital spacecraft. LDEF was launched in April 1984 and was to have been returned to Earth in 1985. Changes in mission schedules postponed retrieval until January 1990, after 69 months in orbit. Analyses of the samples recovered from LDEF have provided spacecraft designers and managers with the most extensive data base on space materials phenomena. Many LDEF samples were greatly changed by extended space exposure. Among even the most radially altered samples, NASA and its science teams are finding a wealth of surprising conclusions and tantalizing clues about the effects of space on materials. Many were discussed at the first two LDEF results conferences and subsequent professional papers. The LDEF Materials Results for Spacecraft Applications Conference was convened in Huntsville to discuss implications for spacecraft design. Already, paint and thermal blanket selections for space station and other spacecraft have been affected by LDEF data. This volume synopsizes those results.

LDEF materials results for spacecraft applications: Executive summary

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Whitaker, A. F. (Compiler); Dooling, D. (Compiler)

1995-01-01

To address the challenges of space environmental effects, NASA designed the Long Duration Exposure Facility (LDEF) for an 18-month mission to expose thousands of samples of candidate materials that might be used on a space station or other orbital spacecraft. LDEF was launched in April 1984 and was to have been returned to Earth in 1985. Changes in mission schedules postponed retrieval until January 1990, after 69 months in orbit. Analyses of the samples recovered from LDEF have provided spacecraft designers and managers with the most extensive data base on space materials phenomena. Many LDEF samples were greatly changed by extended space exposure. Among even the most radially altered samples, NASA and its science teams are finding a wealth of surprising conclusions and tantalizing clues about the effects of space on materials. Many were discussed at the first two LDEF results conferences and subsequent professional papers. The LDEF Materials Results for Spacecraft Applications Conference was convened in Huntsville to discuss implications for spacecraft design. Already, paint and thermal blanket selections for space station and other spacecraft have been affected by LDEF data. This volume synopsizes those results.

NASA Planetary Surface Exploration

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hayati, Samad

1999-01-01

Managed for NASA by the California Institute of Technology, the Jet Propulsion Laboratory is the lead U.S. center for robotic exploration of the solar system. JPL spacecraft have visited all known planets except Pluto (a Pluto mission is currently under study). In addition to its work for NASA, JPL conducts tasks for a variety of other federal agencies. In addition, JPL manages the worldwide Deep Space Network, which communicates with spacecraft and conducts scientific investigations from its complexes in California's Mojave Desert near Goldstone; near Madrid, Spain; and near Canberra, Australia. JPL employs about 6000 people.

Artist's Concept of Psyche Spacecraft with Five-Panel Array

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-05-23

This artist's-concept illustration depicts the spacecraft of NASA's Psyche mission near the mission's target, the metal asteroid Psyche. The artwork was created in May 2017 to show the five-panel solar arrays planned for the spacecraft. The spacecraft's structure will include power and propulsion systems to travel to, and orbit, the asteroid. These systems will combine solar power with electric propulsion to carry the scientific instruments used to study the asteroid through space. The mission plans launch in 2022 and arrival at Psyche, between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter, in 2026. This selected asteroid is made almost entirely of nickel-iron metal. It offers evidence about violent collisions that created Earth and other terrestrial planets. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA21499

InSight Spacecraft Uncrating, Removal from Container, Lift Heat

NASA Image and Video Library

2018-03-01

At Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, NASA's Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport, or InSight, spacecraft is uncrated inside the Astrotech processing facility. InSight was developed and built by Lockheed-Martin Space Systems in Denver, Colorado, and is scheduled for liftoff is May 5, 2018. InSight is the first mission to land on Mars and explore the Red Planet's deep interior. It will investigate processes that shaped the rocky planets of the inner solar system including Earth.

Spacecraft Maximum Allowable Concentrations for Selected Airborne Contaminants. Volume 5

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2008-01-01

To protect space crews from air contaminants, NASA requested that the National Research Council (NRC) provide guidance for developing spacecraft maximum allowable concentrations (SMACs) and review NASA's development of exposure guidelines for specific chemicals. The NRC convened the Committee on Spacecraft Exposure Guidelines to address this task. The committee published Guidelines for Developing Spacecraft Maximum Allowable Concentrations for Space Station Contaminants (NRC 1992). The reason for the review of chemicals in Volume 5 is that many of them have not been examined for more than 10 years, and new research necessitates examining the documents to ensure that they reflect current knowledge. New knowledge can be in the form of toxicologic data or in the application of new approaches for analysis of available data. In addition, because NASA anticipates longer space missions beyond low Earth orbit, SMACs for 1,000-d exposures have also been developed.

Making Human Spaceflight Practical and Affordable: Spacecraft Designs and their Degree of Operability

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Crocker, Alan R.

2011-01-01

As we push toward new and diverse space transportation capabilities, reduction in operations cost becomes increasingly important. Achieving affordable and safe human spaceflight capabilities will be the mark of success for new programs and new providers. The ability to perceive the operational implications of design decisions is crucial in developing safe yet cost competitive space transportation systems. Any human spaceflight program - government or commercial - must make countless decisions either to implement spacecraft system capabilities or adopt operational constraints or workarounds to account for the lack of such spacecraft capabilities. These decisions can benefit from the collective experience that NASA has accumulated in building and operating crewed spacecraft over the last five decades. This paper reviews NASA s history in developing and operating human rated spacecraft, reviewing the key aspects of spacecraft design and their resultant impacts on operations phase complexity and cost. Specific examples from current and past programs - including the Space Shuttle and International Space Station - are provided to illustrate design traits that either increase or increase cost and complexity associated with spacecraft operations. These examples address factors such as overall design performance margins, levels of redundancy, degree of automated failure response, type and quantity of command and telemetry interfaces, and the definition of reference scenarios for analysis and test. Each example - from early program requirements, design implementation and resulting real-time operations experience - to tell the end-to-end "story" Based on these experiences, specific techniques are recommended to enable earlier and more effective assessment of operations concerns during the design process. A formal method for the assessment of spacecraft operability is defined and results of such operability assessments for recent spacecraft designs are provided. Recent

NASA high performance computing, communications, image processing, and data visualization-potential applications to medicine.

PubMed

Kukkonen, C A

1995-06-01

High-speed information processing technologies being developed and applied by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory for NASA and Department of Defense mission needs have potential dual-uses in telemedicine and other medical applications. Fiber optic ground networks connected with microwave satellite links allow NASA to communicate with its astronauts in Earth orbit or on the moon, and with its deep space probes billions of miles away. These networks monitor the health of astronauts and or robotic spacecraft. Similar communications technology will also allow patients to communicate with doctors anywhere on Earth. NASA space missions have science as a major objective. Science sensors have become so sophisticated that they can take more data than our scientists can analyze by hand. High performance computers--workstations, supercomputer and massively parallel computers are being used to transform this data into knowledge. This is done using image processing, data visualization and other techniques to present the data--one's and zero's in forms that a human analyst can readily relate to and understand. Medical sensors have also explored in the in data output--witness CT scans, MRI, and ultrasound. This data must be presented in visual form and computers will allow routine combination of many two dimensional MRI images into three dimensional reconstructions of organs that then can be fully examined by physicians. Emerging technologies such as neural networks that are being "trained" to detect craters on planets or incoming missiles amongst decoys can be used to identify microcalcification in mammograms.

Deep Impact Spacecraft Collides With Comet Tempel 1-Video

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2005-01-01

After 172 days and 268 million miles of deep space travel, the NASA Deep Impact spacecraft successfully reached out and touched comet Tempel 1. The collision between the coffee table-sized space probe and city-sized comet occurred July 4, 2005 at 12:52 a.m. CDT. The objects met at 23,000 miles per hour. The heat produced by the impact was at least several thousand degrees Kelvin and at that extreme temperature, just about any material begins to glow. This movie, made up of images taken by the medium resolution camera aboard the spacecraft, from May 1 to July 2, shows the Deep Impact approach to comet Tempel 1. The spacecraft detected 3 outbursts during this time period, on June 14th, June 22nd, and July 2nd. The movie ends during the final outburst. Mission scientists expect Deep Impact to provide answers to basic questions about the formation of the solar system. Principal investigator, Dr. Michael A'Hearn of the University of Maryland in College Park, is responsible for the mission, and project management is handled by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. The program office at Marshall Space Flight Center MSFC) in Huntsville, Alabama, assisted the Science Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington with program management, technology planning, systems assessment, flight assurance and public outreach. The spacecraft was built for NASA by Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corporation of Boulder, Colorado. (NASA/JPL-Caltech/UMD)

Delta II JPSS-1 Spacecraft Arrival and Ofload

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-09-01

The Joint Polar Satellite System-1, or JPSS-1, arrives at the Astrotech Processing Facility at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. Technicians and engineers remove the the spacecraft from it shipping container. JPSS is the first in a series four next-generation environmental satellites in a collaborative program between the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and NASA. The satellite is scheduled to liftoff later this year atop a United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket.

NASA Social for the Launch of Orion

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-12-03

At NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, NASA leaders spoke to social media participants as the Orion spacecraft and its Delta IV Heavy rocket were being prepared for launch. Speakers included NASA astronaut Rex Walheim.

Computer and laboratory simulation of interactions between spacecraft surfaces and charged-particle environments

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Stevens, N. J.

1979-01-01

Cases where the charged-particle environment acts on the spacecraft (e.g., spacecraft charging phenomena) and cases where a system on the spacecraft causes the interaction (e.g., high voltage space power systems) are considered. Both categories were studied in ground simulation facilities to understand the processes involved and to measure the pertinent parameters. Computer simulations are based on the NASA Charging Analyzer Program (NASCAP) code. Analytical models are developed in this code and verified against the experimental data. Extrapolation from the small test samples to space conditions are made with this code. Typical results from laboratory and computer simulations are presented for both types of interactions. Extrapolations from these simulations to performance in space environments are discussed.

Temperature Measurements Taken by Phoenix Spacecraft

NASA Image and Video Library

2008-09-30

This chart plots the minimum daily atmospheric temperature measured by NASA Phoenix Mars Lander spacecraft since landing on Mars. As the temperature increased through the summer season, the atmospheric humidity also increased.

NASA Facts, Voyager.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Washington, DC. Educational Programs Div.

This document is one of a series of publications of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) on facts about the exploration of Jupiter and Saturn. This NASA mission consists of two unmanned Voyager spacecrafts launched in August and September of 1977, and due to arrive at Jupiter in 1979. An account of the scientific equipment…

A Bayesian Framework for Reliability Analysis of Spacecraft Deployments

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Evans, John W.; Gallo, Luis; Kaminsky, Mark

2012-01-01

Deployable subsystems are essential to mission success of most spacecraft. These subsystems enable critical functions including power, communications and thermal control. The loss of any of these functions will generally result in loss of the mission. These subsystems and their components often consist of unique designs and applications for which various standardized data sources are not applicable for estimating reliability and for assessing risks. In this study, a two stage sequential Bayesian framework for reliability estimation of spacecraft deployment was developed for this purpose. This process was then applied to the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) Sunshield subsystem, a unique design intended for thermal control of the Optical Telescope Element. Initially, detailed studies of NASA deployment history, "heritage information", were conducted, extending over 45 years of spacecraft launches. This information was then coupled to a non-informative prior and a binomial likelihood function to create a posterior distribution for deployments of various subsystems uSing Monte Carlo Markov Chain sampling. Select distributions were then coupled to a subsequent analysis, using test data and anomaly occurrences on successive ground test deployments of scale model test articles of JWST hardware, to update the NASA heritage data. This allowed for a realistic prediction for the reliability of the complex Sunshield deployment, with credibility limits, within this two stage Bayesian framework.

Flight Plasma Diagnostics for High-Power, Solar-Electric Deep-Space Spacecraft

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Johnson, Lee; De Soria-Santacruz Pich, Maria; Conroy, David; Lobbia, Robert; Huang, Wensheng; Choi, Maria; Sekerak, Michael J.

2018-01-01

NASA's Asteroid Redirect Robotic Mission (ARRM) project plans included a set of plasma and space environment instruments, the Plasma Diagnostic Package (PDP), to fulfill ARRM requirements for technology extensibility to future missions. The PDP objectives were divided into the classes of 1) Plasma thruster dynamics, 2) Solar array-specific environmental effects, 3) Plasma environmental spacecraft effects, and 4) Energetic particle spacecraft environment. A reference design approach and interface requirements for ARRM's PDP was generated by the PDP team at JPL and GRC. The reference design consisted of redundant single-string avionics located on the ARRM spacecraft bus as well as solar array, driving and processing signals from multiple copies of several types of plasma, effects, and environments sensors distributed over the spacecraft and array. The reference design sensor types were derived in part from sensors previously developed for USAF Research Laboratory (AFRL) plasma effects campaigns such as those aboard TacSat-2 in 2007 and AEHF-2 in 2012.

NASA Celebrates 40 Years of the Voyager Mission

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-09-05

NASA celebrates 40 years of the Voyager 1 and 2 spacecraft -- humanity's farthest and longest-lived mission -- on Tuesday, Sept. 5. The Voyagers’ original mission was to explore Jupiter and Saturn. Although the twin spacecraft are now far beyond the planets in the solar system, NASA continues to communicate with them daily as they explore the frontier where interstellar space begins.

NASA GSFC Perspective on Heterogeneous Processing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Powell, Wesley A.

2016-01-01

This presentation provides an overview of NASA GSFC, our onboard processing applications, the applicability heterogeneous processing to these applications, and necessary developments to enable heterogeneous processing to be infused into our missions.

DSCOVR Spacecraft Arrival, Offload, & Unpacking

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-11-20

NOAA’s newly arrived Deep Space Climate Observatory spacecraft, or DSCOVR, wrapped in plastic and secured onto a portable work stand, is delivered to the high bay of Building 1 at the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, Florida, near Kennedy Space Center. DSCOVR is a partnership between NOAA, NASA and the U.S. Air Force. DSCOVR will maintain the nation's real-time solar wind monitoring capabilities which are critical to the accuracy and lead time of NOAA's space weather alerts and forecasts. Launch is currently scheduled for January 2015 aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 v 1.1 launch vehicle from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida.

DSCOVR Spacecraft Arrival, Offload, & Unpacking

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-11-20

Workers are on hand to receive NOAA’s Deep Space Climate Observatory spacecraft, or DSCOVR, wrapped in plastic and secured onto a portable work stand, into the high bay of Building 1 at the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, Florida, near Kennedy Space Center. DSCOVR is a partnership between NOAA, NASA and the U.S. Air Force. DSCOVR will maintain the nation's real-time solar wind monitoring capabilities which are critical to the accuracy and lead time of NOAA's space weather alerts and forecasts. Launch is currently scheduled for January 2015 aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 v 1.1 launch vehicle from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida.

DSCOVR Spacecraft Arrival, Offload, & Unpacking

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-11-20

The truck delivering NOAA’s Deep Space Climate Observatory spacecraft, or DSCOVR, enclosed in a protective shipping container, backs up to the door of the airlock of Building 2 at the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, Florida, near Kennedy Space Center. DSCOVR is a partnership between NOAA, NASA and the U.S. Air Force. DSCOVR will maintain the nation's real-time solar wind monitoring capabilities which are critical to the accuracy and lead time of NOAA's space weather alerts and forecasts. Launch is currently scheduled for January 2015 aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 v 1.1 launch vehicle from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida.

InSight Spacecraft Uncrating, Removal from Container, Lift Heat

NASA Image and Video Library

2018-03-01

Inside the Astrotech processing facility at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, the heatshield for NASA's Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport, or InSight, spacecraft is removed from protective wrapping. InSight was developed and built by Lockheed-Martin Space Systems in Denver, Colorado, and is scheduled for liftoff is May 5, 2018. InSight is the first mission to land on Mars and explore the Red Planet's deep interior. It will investigate processes that shaped the rocky planets of the inner solar system including Earth.

InSight Spacecraft Uncrating, Removal from Container, Lift Heat

NASA Image and Video Library

2018-03-01

Inside the Astrotech processing facility at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, technicians and engineers inspect the heatshield for NASA's Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport, or InSight, spacecraft. InSight was developed and built by Lockheed-Martin Space Systems in Denver, Colorado, and is scheduled for liftoff is May 5, 2018. InSight is the first mission to land on Mars and explore the Red Planet's deep interior. It will investigate processes that shaped the rocky planets of the inner solar system including Earth.

InSight Spacecraft Uncrating, Removal from Container, Lift Heat

NASA Image and Video Library

2018-03-01

Inside the Astrotech processing facility at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, the heatshield for NASA's Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport, or InSight, spacecraft has been removed from protective wrapping. InSight was developed and built by Lockheed-Martin Space Systems in Denver, Colorado, and is scheduled for liftoff is May 5, 2018. InSight is the first mission to land on Mars and explore the Red Planet's deep interior. It will investigate processes that shaped the rocky planets of the inner solar system including Earth.

NASA Science Data Processing for SNPP

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hall, A.; Behnke, J.; Lowe, D. R.; Ho, E. L.

2014-12-01

NASA's ESDIS Project has been operating the Suomi National Polar-Orbiting Partnership (SNPP) Science Data Segment (SDS) since the launch in October 2011. The science data processing system includes a Science Data Depository and Distribution Element (SD3E) and five Product Evaluation and Analysis Tool Elements (PEATEs): Land, Ocean, Atmosphere, Ozone, and Sounder. The SDS has been responsible for assessing Environmental Data Records (EDRs) for climate quality, providing and demonstrating algorithm improvements/enhancements and supporting the calibration/validation activities as well as instrument calibration and sensor table uploads for mission planning. The SNPP also flies two NASA instruments: OMPS Limb and CERES. The SNPP SDS has been responsible for producing, archiving and distributing the standard products for those instruments in close association with their NASA science teams. The PEATEs leveraged existing science data processing techniques developed under the EOSDIS Program. This enabled he PEATEs to do an excellent job in supporting Science Team analysis for SNPP. The SDS acquires data from three sources: NESDIS IDPS (Raw Data Records (RDRs)), GRAVITE (Retained Intermediate Products (RIPs)), and the NOAA/CLASS (higher level products). The SD3E component aggregates the RDRs, and distributes them to each of the PEATEs for further analysis and processing. It provides a ~32 day rolling storage of data, available for pickup by the PEATEs. The current system used by NASA will be presented along with plans for streamlining the system in support of continuing the NASA's EOS measurements.

Analysis of spacecraft on-orbit anomalies and lifetimes

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bloomquist, C.; Graham, W.

1983-01-01

Analyses of the on-orbit performance of forty-four unmanned NASA spacecraft are presented. Included are detailed descriptions and classifications of over 600 anomalies; each anomalous incident represents one reported deviation from expected spacecraft performance. Charts depicting satellite lifetimes and the performance of their major subsystems are included. Engineering analyses to further investigate the kinds and frequencies of various classes of anomalies have been conducted. An improved method for charting spacecraft capability as a function of time on orbit is explored.

Internet Technology on Spacecraft

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rash, James; Parise, Ron; Hogie, Keith; Criscuolo, Ed; Langston, Jim; Powers, Edward I. (Technical Monitor)

2000-01-01

The Operating Missions as Nodes on the Internet (OMNI) project has shown that Internet technology works in space missions through a demonstration using the UoSAT-12 spacecraft. An Internet Protocol (IP) stack was installed on the orbiting UoSAT-12 spacecraft and tests were run to demonstrate Internet connectivity and measure performance. This also forms the basis for demonstrating subsequent scenarios. This approach provides capabilities heretofore either too expensive or simply not feasible such as reconfiguration on orbit. The OMNI project recognized the need to reduce the risk perceived by mission managers and did this with a multi-phase strategy. In the initial phase, the concepts were implemented in a prototype system that includes space similar components communicating over the TDRS (space network) and the terrestrial Internet. The demonstration system includes a simulated spacecraft with sample instruments. Over 25 demonstrations have been given to mission and project managers, National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), Department of Defense (DoD), contractor technologists and other decisions makers, This initial phase reached a high point with an OMNI demonstration given from a booth at the Johnson Space Center (JSC) Inspection Day 99 exhibition. The proof to mission managers is provided during this second phase with year 2000 accomplishments: testing the use of Internet technologies onboard an actual spacecraft. This was done with a series of tests performed using the UoSAT-12 spacecraft. This spacecraft was reconfigured on orbit at very low cost. The total period between concept and the first tests was only 6 months! On board software was modified to add an IP stack to support basic IP communications. Also added was support for ping, traceroute and network timing protocol (NTP) tests. These tests show that basic Internet functionality can be used onboard spacecraft. The performance of data was measured to show no degradation from current

NASA Space Environments Technical Discipline Team Space Weather Activities

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Minow, J. I.; Nicholas, A. C.; Parker, L. N.; Xapsos, M.; Walker, P. W.; Stauffer, C.

2017-12-01

The Space Environment Technical Discipline Team (TDT) is a technical organization led by NASA's Technical Fellow for Space Environments that supports NASA's Office of the Chief Engineer through the NASA Engineering and Safety Center. The Space Environments TDT conducts independent technical assessments related to the space environment and space weather impacts on spacecraft for NASA programs and provides technical expertise to NASA management and programs where required. This presentation will highlight the status of applied space weather activities within the Space Environment TDT that support development of operational space weather applications and a better understanding of the impacts of space weather on space systems. We will first discuss a tool that has been developed for evaluating space weather launch constraints that are used to protect launch vehicles from hazardous space weather. We then describe an effort to better characterize three-dimensional radiation transport for CubeSat spacecraft and processing of micro-dosimeter data from the International Space Station which the team plans to make available to the space science community. Finally, we will conclude with a quick description of an effort to maintain access to the real-time solar wind data provided by the Advanced Composition Explorer satellite at the Sun-Earth L1 point.

TDRS-M NASA Social

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-08-17

Neil Mallik, NASA deputy network director for Human Spaceflight, speaks to members of social media in the Kennedy Space Center’s Press Site auditorium. The briefing focused on preparations to launch NASA's Tracking and Data Relay Satellite, TDRS-M. The latest spacecraft destined for the agency's constellation of communications satellites, TDRS-M will allow nearly continuous contact with orbiting spacecraft ranging from the International Space Station and Hubble Space Telescope to the array of scientific observatories. Liftoff atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket is scheduled to take place from Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station at 8:03 a.m. EDT Aug. 18.

TDRS-M NASA Social

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-08-17

Emily Furfaro of the NASA Social Media Team speaks to members of social media in the Kennedy Space Center’s Press Site auditorium. The briefing focused on preparations to launch NASA's Tracking and Data Relay Satellite, TDRS-M. The latest spacecraft destined for the agency's constellation of communications satellites, TDRS-M will allow nearly continuous contact with orbiting spacecraft ranging from the International Space Station and Hubble Space Telescope to the array of scientific observatories. Liftoff atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket is scheduled to take place from Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station at 8:03 a.m. EDT Aug. 18.

TDRS-M NASA Social

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-08-17

Amber Jacobson of the NASA TDRS Social Media Team speaks to members of social media in the Kennedy Space Center’s Press Site auditorium. The briefing focused on preparations to launch NASA's Tracking and Data Relay Satellite, TDRS-M. The latest spacecraft destined for the agency's constellation of communications satellites, TDRS-M will allow nearly continuous contact with orbiting spacecraft ranging from the International Space Station and Hubble Space Telescope to the array of scientific observatories. Liftoff atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket is scheduled to take place from Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station at 8:03 a.m. EDT Aug. 18.

TDRS-M NASA Social

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-08-17

NASA astronaut Nicole Mann speaks to members of social media in the Kennedy Space Center’s Press Site auditorium. The briefing focused on preparations to launch NASA's Tracking and Data Relay Satellite, TDRS-M. The latest spacecraft destined for the agency's constellation of communications satellites, TDRS-M will allow nearly continuous contact with orbiting spacecraft ranging from the International Space Station and Hubble Space Telescope to the array of scientific observatories. Liftoff atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket is scheduled to take place from Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station at 8:03 a.m. EDT Aug. 18.

TDRS-M NASA Social

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-08-17

NASA astronaut Steve Bowen speaks to members of social media in the Kennedy Space Center’s Press Site auditorium. The briefing focused on preparations to launch NASA's Tracking and Data Relay Satellite, TDRS-M. The latest spacecraft destined for the agency's constellation of communications satellites, TDRS-M will allow nearly continuous contact with orbiting spacecraft ranging from the International Space Station and Hubble Space Telescope to the array of scientific observatories. Liftoff atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket is scheduled to take place from Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station at 8:03 a.m. EDT Aug. 18.

Human Factors Evaluations of Two-Dimensional Spacecraft Conceptual Layouts

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kennedy, Kriss J.; Toups, Larry D.; Rudisill, Marianne

2010-01-01

Much of the human factors work done in support of the NASA Constellation lunar program has been with low fidelity mockups. These volumetric replicas of the future lunar spacecraft allow researchers to insert test subjects from the engineering and astronaut population and evaluate the vehicle design as the test subjects perform simulations of various operational tasks. However, lunar outpost designs must be evaluated without the use of mockups, creating a need for evaluation tools that can be performed on two-dimension conceptual spacecraft layouts, such as floor plans. A tool based on the Cooper- Harper scale was developed and applied to one lunar scenario, enabling engineers to select between two competing floor plan layouts. Keywords: Constellation, human factors, tools, processes, habitat, outpost, Net Habitable Volume, Cooper-Harper.

JPSS-1 Spacecraft Mate to Payload Attach Fittings

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-10-19

NOAA's Joint Polar Satellite System-1, or JPSS-1, remains wrapped in a protective covering after removal from its shipping container at the Astrotech Processing Facility at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. Technicians help secure the spacecraft onto a payload attach fitting. JPSS-1 will liftoff aboard a United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket from Vandenberg's Space Launch Complex-2. JPSS-1 is the first in a series of four next-generation environmental satellites in a collaborative program between NOAA and NASA.

Avionics System Architecture for the NASA Orion Vehicle

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Baggerman, Clint; McCabe, Mary; Verma, Dinesh

2009-01-01

It has been 30 years since the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) last developed a crewed spacecraft capable of launch, on-orbit operations, and landing. During that time, aerospace avionics technologies have greatly advanced in capability, and these technologies have enabled integrated avionics architectures for aerospace applications. The inception of NASA s Orion Crew Exploration Vehicle (CEV) spacecraft offers the opportunity to leverage the latest integrated avionics technologies into crewed space vehicle architecture. The outstanding question is to what extent to implement these advances in avionics while still meeting the unique crewed spaceflight requirements for safety, reliability and maintainability. Historically, aircraft and spacecraft have very similar avionics requirements. Both aircraft and spacecraft must have high reliability. They also must have as much computing power as possible and provide low latency between user control and effecter response while minimizing weight, volume, and power. However, there are several key differences between aircraft and spacecraft avionics. Typically, the overall spacecraft operational time is much shorter than aircraft operation time, but the typical mission time (and hence, the time between preventive maintenance) is longer for a spacecraft than an aircraft. Also, the radiation environment is typically more severe for spacecraft than aircraft. A "loss of mission" scenario (i.e. - the mission is not a success, but there are no casualties) arguably has a greater impact on a multi-million dollar spaceflight mission than a typical commercial flight. Such differences need to be weighted when determining if an aircraft-like integrated modular avionics (IMA) system is suitable for a crewed spacecraft. This paper will explore the preliminary design process of the Orion vehicle avionics system by first identifying the Orion driving requirements and the difference between Orion requirements and those of

A Novel Spacecraft Charge Monitor for LEO

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Goembel, Luke

2004-01-01

Five years ago we introduced a new method for measuring spacecraft chassis floating potential relative to the space plasma (absolute spacecraft potential) in low Earth orbit. The method, based on a straightforward interpretation of photoelectron spectra, shows promise for numerous applications, but has not yet been tried. In the interest of testing the method, and ultimately supplying another tool for measuring absolute spacecraft charge, we are producing a flight prototype Spacecraft Charge Monitor (SCM) with support from NASA's Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program. Although insight into the technique came from data collected in space over two decades ago, very little data are available. The data indicate that it may be possible to determine spacecraft floating potential to within 0.1 volt each with the SCM second under certain conditions. It is debatable that spacecraft floating potential has ever been measured with such accuracy. The compact, easily deployed SCM also offers the advantage of long-term stability in calibration. Accurate floating potential determinations from the SCM could be used to correct biases in space plasma measurements and evaluate charge mitigation and/or sensing devices. Although this paper focuses on the device's use in low Earth orbit (LEO), the device may also be able to measure spacecraft charge at higher altitudes, in the solar wind, and in orbits around other planets. The flight prototype SCM we are producing for delivery to NASA in the third quarter of 2004 will measure floating potential from 0 to -150 volts with 0.1 volt precision, weigh approximately 600-700 grams, consume approximately 2 watts, and will measure approximately 8 x 10 x 17 cm.

Close-Range Photogrammetry & Next Generation Spacecraft

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Pappa, Richard S.

2002-01-01

NASA is focusing renewed attention on the topic of large, ultra-lightweight space structures, also known as 'gossamer' spacecraft. Nearly all of the details of the giant spacecraft are still to be worked out. But it's already clear that one of the most challenging aspects will be developing techniques to align and control these systems after they are deployed in space. A critical part of this process is creating new ground test methods to measure gossamer structures under stationary, deploying and vibrating conditions for validation of corresponding analytical predictions. In addressing this problem, I considered, first of all, the possibility of simply using conventional displacement or vibration sensor that could provide spatial measurements. Next, I turned my attention to photogrammetry, a method of determining the spatial coordinates of objects using photographs. The success of this research and development has convinced me that photogrammetry is the most suitable method to solve the gossamer measurement problem.

NASA Pocket Statistics

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1995-01-01

NASA Pocket Statistics is published for the use of NASA managers and their staff. Included herein is Administrative and Organizational information, summaries of Space Flight Activity including the NASA Major Launch Record, and NASA Procurement, Financial, and Manpower data. The NASA Major Launch Record includes all launches of Scout class and larger vehicles. Vehicle and spacecraft development flights are also included in the Major Launch Record. Shuttle missions are counted as one launch and one payload, where free flying payloads are not involved. Satellites deployed from the cargo bay of the Shuttle and placed in a separate orbit or trajectory are counted as an additional payload.

SMAP Spacecraft Offload

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-10-15

NASA's Soil Moisture Active Passive, or SMAP, spacecraft, enclosed in a transportation container, is offloaded from the truck on which it traveled from the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, to the Astrotech payload processing facility on Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. SMAP will launch on a Delta II 7320 configuration vehicle featuring a United Launch Alliance first stage booster powered by an Aerojet Rocketdyne RS-27A main engine and three Alliant Techsystems, or ATK, strap-on solid rocket motors. Once on station in Earth orbit, SMAP will provide global measurements of soil moisture and its freeze/thaw state. These measurements will be used to enhance understanding of processes that link the water, energy and carbon cycles, and to extend the capabilities of weather and climate prediction models. SMAP data also will be used to quantify net carbon flux in boreal landscapes and to develop improved flood prediction and drought monitoring capabilities. Launch from Space Launch Complex 2 is targeted for Jan. 29, 2015.

SMAP Spacecraft Offload

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-10-15

NASA's Soil Moisture Active Passive, or SMAP, spacecraft is delivered by truck from the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, to the Astrotech payload processing facility on Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. SMAP will launch on a Delta II 7320 configuration vehicle featuring a United Launch Alliance first stage booster powered by an Aerojet Rocketdyne RS-27A main engine and three Alliant Techsystems, or ATK, strap-on solid rocket motors. Once on station in Earth orbit, SMAP will provide global measurements of soil moisture and its freeze/thaw state. These measurements will be used to enhance understanding of processes that link the water, energy and carbon cycles, and to extend the capabilities of weather and climate prediction models. SMAP data also will be used to quantify net carbon flux in boreal landscapes and to develop improved flood prediction and drought monitoring capabilities. Launch from Space Launch Complex 2 is targeted for Jan. 29, 2015.

Planning and Processing Space Science Observations Using NASA's SPICE System

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Acton, Charles H.

2000-01-01

The Navigation and Ancillary Information Facility (NAIF) team, acting under the directions of NASA's Office of Space Science, has built a data system-named SPICE, to assist scientists in planning and interpreting scientific observations from space-borne instruments. The principal objective of this data system is that it will provide geometric and other ancillary data used to plan space science missions and subsequently recover the full value of science instrument data returned from these missions, including correlation of individual instrument data sets with data from other instruments on the same or other spacecraft. SPICE is also used to support a host of mission engineering functions, such as telecommunications system analysis and operation of NASA's Deep Space Network antennas. This paper describes the SPICE system, including where and how it is used. It also touches on possibilities for further development and invites participation it this endeavor.

MERCURY-ATLAS (MA)-9 - "FRIENDSHIP 7" SPACECRAFT - PRELAUNCH ACTIVITIES - CAPE

NASA Image and Video Library

1963-02-01

S63-03960 (1 Feb. 1963) --- Astronaut L. Gordon Cooper Jr., prime pilot for the Mercury-Atlas 9 (MA-9) mission, checks over the instrument panel from Mercury spacecraft #20 with Robert Graham, McDonnell Aircraft Corp. spacecraft engineer. It contains the instruments necessary to monitor spacecraft systems and sequencing, the controls required to initiate primary sequences manually, and flight control displays. Photo credit: NASA

NASA Social for the Launch of Orion

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-12-03

At NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, NASA leaders spoke to social media participants as the Orion spacecraft and its Delta IV Heavy rocket were being prepared for launch. Speakers included NASA Administrator Charlie Bolden, left, and Kennedy Space Center Director Bob Cabana.

Separation and Purification of Mineral Salts from Spacecraft Wastewater Processing via Electrostatic Beneficiation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Miles, John D., II; Lunn, Griffin

2013-01-01

Electrostatic separation is a class of material processing technologies commonly used for the sorting of coarse mixtures by means of electrical forces acting on charged or polarized particles. Most if not all of the existing tribo-electrostatic separators had been initially developed for mineral ores beneficiation. It is a well-known process that has been successfully used to separate coal from minerals. Potash (potassium) enrichment where underground salt mines containing large amounts of sodium is another use of this techno logy. Through modification this technology can be used for spacecraft wastewater brine beneficiation. This will add in closing the gap beeen traveling around Earth's Gravity well and long-term space explorations. Food has been brought on all man missions, which is why plant growth for food crops continues to be of interest to NASA. For long-term mission considerations food productions is one of the top priorities. Nutrient recovery is essential for surviving in or past low earth orbit. In our advance bio-regenerative process instead of nitrogen gas produced; soluble nitrate salts that can be recovered for plant fertilizer would be produced instead. The only part missing is the beneficiation of brine to separate the potassium from the sodium. The use of electrostatic beneficiation in this experiment utilizes the electrical charge differences between aluminum and dried brine by surface contact. The helixes within the aluminum tribocharger allows for more surface contact when being agitated. When two materials are in contact, the material with the highest affinity for electrons becomes negatively charged, while the other becomes positively charged. This contact exchange of charge may cause the particles to agglomerate depending on their residence time within the tribocharger, compromising the efficiency of separation. The aim of this experiment is to further the development in electrostatic beneficiation by optimizing the separation of ersatz and

OSIRIS-REx NASA Social

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-09-07

Tim Linn, chief system engineer with Lockheed Martin, discusses the unique design of the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft during a NASA Social with social media followers in the Operations Support Building II at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The presentation took place before launch of the agency’s Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, Security-Regolith Explorer, or OSIRIS-REx spacecraft.

Worldwide Spacecraft Crew Hatch History

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Johnson, Gary

2009-01-01

The JSC Flight Safety Office has developed this compilation of historical information on spacecraft crew hatches to assist the Safety Tech Authority in the evaluation and analysis of worldwide spacecraft crew hatch design and performance. The document is prepared by SAIC s Gary Johnson, former NASA JSC S&MA Associate Director for Technical. Mr. Johnson s previous experience brings expert knowledge to assess the relevancy of data presented. He has experience with six (6) of the NASA spacecraft programs that are covered in this document: Apollo; Skylab; Apollo Soyuz Test Project (ASTP), Space Shuttle, ISS and the Shuttle/Mir Program. Mr. Johnson is also intimately familiar with the JSC Design and Procedures Standard, JPR 8080.5, having been one of its original developers. The observations and findings are presented first by country and organized within each country section by program in chronological order of emergence. A host of reference sources used to augment the personal observations and comments of the author are named within the text and/or listed in the reference section of this document. Careful attention to the selection and inclusion of photos, drawings and diagrams is used to give visual association and clarity to the topic areas examined.

Participation of women in spacecraft science teams

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rathbun, Julie

2017-06-01

There is an ongoing discussion about the participation of women in science and particularly astronomy. Demographic data from NASA's robotic planetary spacecraft missions show women scientists to be consistently under-represented.

Solar Terrestrial Relations Observatory Spacecraft Artist Concept

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-06-01

An artist conception of one of NASA Solar Terrestrial Relations Observatory STEREO spacecraft. The two observatories currently lie on either side of the sun, providing views of the entire sun simultaneously.

TDRS-M Spacecraft Lift and Mate

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-08-09

NASA's Tracking and Data Relay Satellite (TDRS-M) is stacked atop the United Launch Alliance Atlas V Centaur upper stage. It will be the latest spacecraft destined for the agency's constellation of communications satellites that allows nearly continuous contact with orbiting spacecraft ranging from the International Space Station and Hubble Space Telescope to the array of scientific observatories. Liftoff atop the ULA Atlas V rocket is scheduled to take place from Cape Canaveral's Space Launch Complex 41 on Aug. 18, 2017.

Human Integration Design Processes (HIDP)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Boyer, Jennifer

2014-01-01

The purpose of the Human Integration Design Processes (HIDP) document is to provide human-systems integration design processes, including methodologies and best practices that NASA has used to meet human systems and human rating requirements for developing crewed spacecraft. HIDP content is framed around human-centered design methodologies and processes in support of human-system integration requirements and human rating. NASA-STD-3001, Space Flight Human-System Standard, is a two-volume set of National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Agency-level standards established by the Office of the Chief Health and Medical Officer, directed at minimizing health and performance risks for flight crews in human space flight programs. Volume 1 of NASA-STD-3001, Crew Health, sets standards for fitness for duty, space flight permissible exposure limits, permissible outcome limits, levels of medical care, medical diagnosis, intervention, treatment and care, and countermeasures. Volume 2 of NASASTD- 3001, Human Factors, Habitability, and Environmental Health, focuses on human physical and cognitive capabilities and limitations and defines standards for spacecraft (including orbiters, habitats, and suits), internal environments, facilities, payloads, and related equipment, hardware, and software with which the crew interfaces during space operations. The NASA Procedural Requirements (NPR) 8705.2B, Human-Rating Requirements for Space Systems, specifies the Agency's human-rating processes, procedures, and requirements. The HIDP was written to share NASA's knowledge of processes directed toward achieving human certification of a spacecraft through implementation of human-systems integration requirements. Although the HIDP speaks directly to implementation of NASA-STD-3001 and NPR 8705.2B requirements, the human-centered design, evaluation, and design processes described in this document can be applied to any set of human-systems requirements and are independent of reference

NASA Pocket Statistics

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1996-01-01

This booklet of pocket statistics includes the 1996 NASA Major Launch Record, NASA Procurement, Financial, and Workforce data. The NASA Major Launch Record includes all launches of Scout class and larger vehicles. Vehicle and spacecraft development flights are also included in the Major Luanch Record. Shuttle missions are counted as one launch and one payload, where free flying payloads are not involved. Satellites deployed from the cargo bay of the Shuttle and placed in a separate orbit or trajectory are counted as an additional payload.

Adsorption Processes in Spacecraft Environmental Control and Life Support Systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bauman, Liese Dall; Finn, John E.; Kliss, Mark (Technical Monitor)

1998-01-01

The environmental control and life support system on a spacecraft must maintain a safe and comfortable environment in which the crew can live and work. The system's functions include supplying the crew with oxygen and water as well as removing carbon dioxide, water vapor, and trace contaminants from cabin air. Although open-loop systems have been used in the past, logistics and safety factors of current and future missions in space make near-complete recycling of the cabin's air and water imperative. The recycling process may include separation and reduction of carbon dioxide, removal of trace gas-phase contaminants, recovery and purification of humidity condensate, purification and polishing of wastewater streams, and other processes. Several of these operations can be performed totally or in part by adsorption processes. These processes are frequently good candidates to perform separations and purifications in space due to their gravity independence, high reliability, relatively high energy efficiency, design flexibility, technological maturity, and regenerability. For these reasons, adsorption has historically played a key role in life support on U.S. and Russian piloted spacecraft. This article focuses on three current spacecraft life support applications that often use adsorption technology: gas-phase trace contaminant control, carbon dioxide removal from cabin air, and potable water recovery from waste streams. In each application, adsorption technology has been selected for use on the International Space Station. The requirements, science, and hardware for each of these applications are discussed. Eventually, human space exploration may lead to construction of planetary habitats. These habitats may provide additional opportunities for use of adsorption processes, such as control of greenhouse gas composition, and may have different requirements and resources available to them, such as gases present in the planetary atmosphere. Adsorption separation and

Earth imaging and scientific observations by SSTI ``Clark'' a NASA technology demonstration spacecraft

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hayduk, Robert J.; Scott, Walter S.; Walberg, Gerald D.; Butts, James J.; Starr, Richard D.

1997-01-01

The Small Satellite Technology Initiative (SSTI) is a National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) program to demonstrate smaller, high technology satellites constructed rapidly and less expensively. Under SSTI, NASA funded the development of ``Clark,'' a high technology demonstration satellite to provide 3-m resolution panchromatic and 15-m resolution multispectral images, as well as collect atmospheric constituent and cosmic x-ray data. The 690-lb. satellite, to be launched in early 1997, will be in a 476 km, circular, sun-synchronous polar orbit. This paper describes the program objectives, the technical characteristics of the sensors and satellite, image processing, archiving and distribution. Data archiving and distribution will be performed by NASA Stennis Space Center and by the EROS Data Center, Sioux Falls, South Dakota, USA.

JPSS-1 Spacecraft Mate to Payload Attach Fittings

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-10-19

NOAA's Joint Polar Satellite System-1, or JPSS-1, remains wrapped in a protective covering after removal from its shipping container at the Astrotech Processing Facility at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. Technicians confirm that the spacecraft is secured onto a payload attach fitting. JPSS-1 will liftoff aboard a United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket from Vandenberg's Space Launch Complex-2. JPSS-1 is the first in a series of four next-generation environmental satellites in a collaborative program between NOAA and NASA.

JPSS-1 Spacecraft Mate to Payload Attach Fittings

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-10-19

NOAA's Joint Polar Satellite System-1, or JPSS-1, remains wrapped in a protective covering after removal from its shipping container at the Astrotech Processing Facility at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. Technicians prepare the spacecraft for its move to a payload attach fitting. JPSS-1 will liftoff aboard a United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket from Vandenberg's Space Launch Complex-2. JPSS-1 is the first in a series of four next-generation environmental satellites in a collaborative program between NOAA and NASA.

JPSS-1 Spacecraft Mate to Payload Attach Fittings

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-10-19

NOAA's Joint Polar Satellite System-1, or JPSS-1, remains wrapped in a protective covering after removal from its shipping container at the Astrotech Processing Facility at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. The spacecraft is being prepared for its move to a payload attach fitting. JPSS-1 will liftoff aboard a United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket from Vandenberg's Space Launch Complex-2. JPSS-1 is the first in a series of four next-generation environmental satellites in a collaborative program between NOAA and NASA.

JPSS-1 Spacecraft Mate to Payload Attach Fittings

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-10-19

NOAA's Joint Polar Satellite System-1, or JPSS-1, remains wrapped in a protective covering after removal from its shipping container at the Astrotech Processing Facility at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. Technicians assist as a crane lowers the spacecraft toward a payload attach fitting. JPSS-1 will liftoff aboard a United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket from Vandenberg's Space Launch Complex-2. JPSS-1 is the first in a series of four next-generation environmental satellites in a collaborative program between NOAA and NASA.

Enabling Advanced Automation in Spacecraft Operations with the Spacecraft Emergency Response System

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Breed, Julie; Fox, Jeffrey A.; Powers, Edward I. (Technical Monitor)

2001-01-01

True autonomy is the Holy Grail of spacecraft mission operations. The goal of launching a satellite and letting it manage itself throughout its useful life is a worthy one. With true autonomy, the cost of mission operations would be reduced to a negligible amount. Under full autonomy, any problems (no matter the severity or type) that may arise with the spacecraft would be handled without any human intervention via some combination of smart sensors, on-board intelligence, and/or smart automated ground system. Until the day that complete autonomy is practical and affordable to deploy, incremental steps of deploying ever-increasing levels of automation (computerization of once manual tasks) on the ground and on the spacecraft are gradually decreasing the cost of mission operations. For example, NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center (NASA-GSFC) has been flying spacecraft with low cost operations for several years. NASA-GSFC's SMEX (Small Explorer) and MIDEX (Middle Explorer) missions have effectively deployed significant amounts of automation to enable the missions to fly predominately in 'light-out' mode. Under light-out operations the ground system is run without human intervention. Various tools perform many of the tasks previously performed by the human operators. One of the major issues in reducing human staff in favor of automation is the perceived increased in risk of losing data, or even losing a spacecraft, because of anomalous conditions that may occur when there is no one in the control center. When things go wrong, missions deploying advanced automation need to be sure that anomalous conditions are detected and that key personal are notified in a timely manner so that on-call team members can react to those conditions. To ensure the health and safety of its lights-out missions, NASA-GSFC's Advanced Automation and Autonomy branch (Code 588) developed the Spacecraft Emergency Response System (SERS). The SERS is a Web-based collaborative environment that enables

Relativistic Spacecraft Propelled by Directed Energy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kulkarni, Neeraj; Lubin, Philip; Zhang, Qicheng

2018-04-01

Achieving relativistic flight to enable extrasolar exploration is one of the dreams of humanity and the long-term goal of our NASA Starlight program. We derive a relativistic solution for the motion of a spacecraft propelled by radiation pressure from a directed energy (DE) system. Depending on the system parameters, low-mass spacecraft can achieve relativistic speeds, thus enabling interstellar exploration. The diffraction of the DE system plays an important role and limits the maximum speed of the spacecraft. We consider “photon recycling” as a possible method to achieving higher speeds. We also discuss recent claims that our previous work on this topic is incorrect and show that these claims arise from an improper treatment of causality.

Onboard Image Processing for Autonomous Spacecraft Detection of Volcanic Plumes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Thompson, D. R.; Bunte, M.; Castaño, R.; Chien, S.; Greeley, R.

2011-03-01

Onboard spacecraft image processing could enable long-term monitoring for volcanic plume activity in the outer planets. A new plume detection technique shows strong performance on images of Enceladus and Io taken by Cassini, Voyager, and Galileo.

TDRS-M NASA Social

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-08-17

Badri Younes, deputy associate administrator for Space Communications and Navigation at NASA Headquarters in Washington, speaks to members of social media in the Kennedy Space Center’s Press Site auditorium. The briefing focused on preparations to launch NASA's Tracking and Data Relay Satellite, TDRS-M. The latest spacecraft destined for the agency's constellation of communications satellites, TDRS-M will allow nearly continuous contact with orbiting spacecraft ranging from the International Space Station and Hubble Space Telescope to the array of scientific observatories. Liftoff atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket is scheduled to take place from Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station at 8:03 a.m. EDT Aug. 18.

A Web Based Collaborative Design Environment for Spacecraft

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dunphy, Julia

1998-01-01

In this era of shrinking federal budgets in the USA we need to dramatically improve our efficiency in the spacecraft engineering design process. We have come up with a method which captures much of the experts' expertise in a dataflow design graph: Seamlessly connectable set of local and remote design tools; Seamlessly connectable web based design tools; and Web browser interface to the developing spacecraft design. We have recently completed our first web browser interface and demonstrated its utility in the design of an aeroshell using design tools located at web sites at three NASA facilities. Multiple design engineers and managers are now able to interrogate the design engine simultaneously and find out what the design looks like at any point in the design cycle, what its parameters are, and how it reacts to adverse space environments.

A Reconfigurable Testbed Environment for Spacecraft Autonomy

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Biesiadecki, Jeffrey; Jain, Abhinandan

1996-01-01

A key goal of NASA's New Millennium Program is the development of technology for increased spacecraft on-board autonomy. Achievement of this objective requires the development of a new class of ground-based automony testbeds that can enable the low-cost and rapid design, test, and integration of the spacecraft autonomy software. This paper describes the development of an Autonomy Testbed Environment (ATBE) for the NMP Deep Space I comet/asteroid rendezvous mission.

Spacecraft optical disk recorder memory buffer control

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hodson, Robert F.

1993-01-01

This paper discusses the research completed under the NASA-ASEE summer faculty fellowship program. The project involves development of an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC) to be used as a Memory Buffer Controller (MBC) in the Spacecraft Optical Disk System (SODR). The SODR system has demanding capacity and data rate specifications requiring specialized electronics to meet processing demands. The system is being designed to support Gigabit transfer rates with Terabit storage capability. The complete SODR system is designed to exceed the capability of all existing mass storage systems today. The ASIC development for SODR consist of developing a 144 pin CMOS device to perform format conversion and data buffering. The final simulations of the MBC were completed during this summer's NASA-ASEE fellowship along with design preparations for fabrication to be performed by an ASIC manufacturer.

Standardization and economics of nuclear spacecraft: Executive summary

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1973-01-01

Feasibility and cost benefits of nuclear-powered standardized spacecraft were investigated. The study indicates that two shuttle-launched nuclear-powered spacecraft should be able to serve the majority of unmanned NASA missions anticipated for the 1980's. The standard spacecraft include structure, thermal control, power, attitude control, some propulsion capability and tracking, telemetry, and command subsystems. One spacecraft design, powered by the radioisotope thermoelectric generator, can serve missions requiring up to 450 watts. The other spacecraft design, powered by similar nuclear heat sources in a Brayton-cycle generator, can serve missions requiring up to 2200 watts. Design concepts and trade-offs are discussed. The conceptual designs selected are presented and successfully tested against a variety of missions. The thermal design is such that both spacecraft are capable of operating in any earth orbit and any orientation without modification.

Handling Qualities Implications for Crewed Spacecraft Operations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bailey, Randall E.; Jackson, E. Bruce; Arthur, J. J.

2012-01-01

Abstract Handling qualities embody those qualities or characteristics of an aircraft that govern the ease and precision with which a pilot is able to perform the tasks required in support of an aircraft role. These same qualities are as critical, if not more so, in the operation of spacecraft. A research, development, test, and evaluation process was put into effect to identify, understand, and interpret the engineering and human factors principles which govern the pilot-vehicle dynamic system as they pertain to space exploration missions and tasks. Toward this objective, piloted simulations were conducted at the NASA Langley Research Center and Ames Research Center for earth-orbit proximity operations and docking and lunar landing. These works provide broad guidelines for the design of spacecraft to exhibit excellent handling characteristics. In particular, this work demonstrates how handling qualities include much more than just stability and control characteristics of a spacecraft or aircraft. Handling qualities are affected by all aspects of the pilot-vehicle dynamic system, including the motion, visual and aural cues of the vehicle response as the pilot performs the required operation or task. A holistic approach to spacecraft design, including the use of manual control, automatic control, and pilot intervention/supervision is described. The handling qualities implications of design decisions are demonstrated using these pilot-in-the-loop evaluations of docking operations and lunar landings.

Attempted Recovery of Mercury spacecraft at end of MR-4 mission

NASA Image and Video Library

1961-07-21

S61-02826 (21 July 1961) --- A U.S. Marine Corps helicopter attempts an unsuccessful recovery of the Mercury-Redstone 4 "Liberty Bell 7" spacecraft. The spacecraft hatch opened prematurely, and astronaut Virgil I. Grissom, pilot, escaped into the water. The helicopter hooked onto the spacecraft but could not retrieve it. Grissom was recovered by another helicopter and flown to the recovery ship, USS Randolph. The Mercury spacecraft sank to the bottom of the ocean. Photo credit: NASA

Attempted Recovery of Mercury spacecraft at end of MR-4 mission

NASA Image and Video Library

1961-07-21

S61-02824 (21 July 1961) --- A U.S. Marine Corps helicopter attempts an unsuccessful recovery of the Mercury-Redstone 4 "Liberty Bell 7" spacecraft. The spacecraft hatch opened prematurely, and astronaut Virgil I. Grissom, pilot, escaped into the water. The helicopter hooked onto the spacecraft but could not retrieve it. Grissom was recovered by another helicopter and flown to the recovery ship, USS Randolph. The Mercury spacecraft sank to the bottom of the ocean. Photo credit: NASA

NASA Deputy Administrator Tours Sierra Nevada Space Systems' Dre

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-02-05

Director of Advanced Programs, Sierra Nevada Corporation, Jim Voss talks during a press conference with Sierra Nevada's Dream Chaser spacecraft in the background on Saturday, Feb. 5, 2011, at the University of Colorado at Boulder. Sierra Nevada's Dream Chaser spacecraft is under development with support from NASA's Commercial Crew Development Program to provide crew transportation to and from low Earth orbit. NASA is helping private companies develop innovative technologies to ensure that the U.S. remains competitive in future space endeavors. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)

NASA Deputy Administrator Tours Sierra Nevada Space Systems' Dre

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-02-05

Sierra Nevada Space Systems chairman Mark Sirangello talks during a press conference with Sierra Nevada's Dream Chaser spacecraft in the background on Saturday, Feb. 5, 2011, at the University of Colorado at Boulder. Sierra Nevada's Dream Chaser spacecraft is under development with support from NASA's Commercial Crew Development Program to provide crew transportation to and from low Earth orbit. NASA is helping private companies develop innovative technologies to ensure that the U.S. remains competitive in future space endeavors. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)

DSCOVR Spacecraft Arrival, Offload, & Unpacking

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-11-20

Workers monitor NOAA’s Deep Space Climate Observatory spacecraft, or DSCOVR, wrapped in plastic and secured onto a portable work stand, as it travels between the airlock of Building 2 to the high bay of Building 1 at the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, Florida, near Kennedy Space Center. DSCOVR is a partnership between NOAA, NASA and the U.S. Air Force. DSCOVR will maintain the nation's real-time solar wind monitoring capabilities which are critical to the accuracy and lead time of NOAA's space weather alerts and forecasts. Launch is currently scheduled for January 2015 aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 v 1.1 launch vehicle from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida.

DSCOVR Spacecraft Arrival, Offload, & Unpacking

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-11-20

Workers transfer NOAA’s Deep Space Climate Observatory spacecraft, or DSCOVR, wrapped in plastic and secured onto a portable work stand, from the airlock of Building 2 to the high bay of Building 1 at the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, Florida, near Kennedy Space Center. DSCOVR is a partnership between NOAA, NASA and the U.S. Air Force. DSCOVR will maintain the nation's real-time solar wind monitoring capabilities which are critical to the accuracy and lead time of NOAA's space weather alerts and forecasts. Launch is currently scheduled for January 2015 aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 v 1.1 launch vehicle from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida.

Micro-Inspector Spacecraft for Space Exploration Missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mueller, Juergen; Alkalai, Leon; Lewis, Carol

2005-01-01

NASA is seeking to embark on a new set of human and robotic exploration missions back to the Moon, to Mars, and destinations beyond. Key strategic technical challenges will need to be addressed to realize this new vision for space exploration, including improvements in safety and reliability to improve robustness of space operations. Under sponsorship by NASA's Exploration Systems Mission, the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), together with its partners in government (NASA Johnson Space Center) and industry (Boeing, Vacco Industries, Ashwin-Ushas Inc.) is developing an ultra-low mass (<3.0 kg) free-flying micro-inspector spacecraft in an effort to enhance safety and reduce risk in future human and exploration missions. The micro-inspector will provide remote vehicle inspections to ensure safety and reliability, or to provide monitoring of in-space assembly. The micro-inspector spacecraft represents an inherently modular system addition that can improve safety and support multiple host vehicles in multiple applications. On human missions, it may help extend the reach of human explorers, decreasing human EVA time to reduce mission cost and risk. The micro-inspector development is the continuation of an effort begun under NASA's Office of Aerospace Technology Enabling Concepts and Technology (ECT) program. The micro-inspector uses miniaturized celestial sensors; relies on a combination of solar power and batteries (allowing for unlimited operation in the sun and up to 4 hours in the shade); utilizes a low-pressure, low-leakage liquid butane propellant system for added safety; and includes multi-functional structure for high system-level integration and miniaturization. Versions of this system to be designed and developed under the H&RT program will include additional capabilities for on-board, vision-based navigation, spacecraft inspection, and collision avoidance, and will be demonstrated in a ground-based, space-related environment. These features make the micro

TDRS-M Spacecraft Lift & Mate

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-08-09

A crane is used to lift the payload fairing containing NASA's Tracking and Data Relay Satellite (TDRS-M) at the Vertical Integration Facility at Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. TDRS-M will be stacked atop the United Launch Alliance Atlas V Centaur upper stage. TDRS-M will be the latest spacecraft destined for the agency's constellation of communications satellites that allows nearly continuous contact with orbiting spacecraft ranging from the International Space Station and Hubble Space Telescope to the array of scientific observatories. Liftoff atop the ULA Atlas V rocket is scheduled for Aug. 18, 2017.

Large-Scale Spacecraft Fire Safety Tests

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Urban, David; Ruff, Gary A.; Ferkul, Paul V.; Olson, Sandra; Fernandez-Pello, A. Carlos; T'ien, James S.; Torero, Jose L.; Cowlard, Adam J.; Rouvreau, Sebastien; Minster, Olivier;

Spacecraft System Failures and Anomalies Attributed to the Natural Space Environment

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bedingfield, Keith, L.; Leach, Richard D.; Alexander, Margaret B. (Editor)

1996-01-01

The natural space environment is characterized by many complex and subtle phenomena hostile to spacecraft. The effects of these phenomena impact spacecraft design, development, and operations. Space systems become increasingly susceptible to the space environment as use of composite materials and smaller, faster electronics increases. This trend makes an understanding of the natural space environment essential to accomplish overall mission objectives, especially in the current climate of better/cheaper/faster. This primer provides a brief overview of the natural space environment - definition, related programmatic issues, and effects on various spacecraft subsystems. The primary focus, however, is to catalog, through representative case histories, spacecraft failures and anomalies attributed to the natural space environment. This primer is one in a series of NASA Reference Publications currently being developed by the Electromagnetics and Aerospace Environments Branch, Systems Analysis and Integration Laboratory, Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC), National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).

Mars Science Laboratory Spacecraft Assembled for Testing

NASA Image and Video Library

2008-11-19

The major components of NASA Mars Science Laboratory spacecraft -- cruise stage atop the aeroshell, which has the descent stage and rover inside -- were connected together in October 2008 for several weeks of system testing.

InSight Spacecraft Uncrating, Removal from Container, Lift Heat

NASA Image and Video Library

2018-03-01

Inside the Astrotech processing facility at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, technicians and engineers use a crane to move the heatshield for NASA's Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport, or InSight, spacecraft for further testing. InSight was developed and built by Lockheed-Martin Space Systems in Denver, Colorado, and is scheduled for liftoff is May 5, 2018. InSight is the first mission to land on Mars and explore the Red Planet's deep interior. It will investigate processes that shaped the rocky planets of the inner solar system including Earth.

Autonomous Spacecraft Communication Interface for Load Planning

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dever, Timothy P.; May, Ryan D.; Morris, Paul H.

2014-01-01

Ground-based controllers can remain in continuous communication with spacecraft in low Earth orbit (LEO) with near-instantaneous communication speeds. This permits near real-time control of all of the core spacecraft systems by ground personnel. However, as NASA missions move beyond LEO, light-time communication delay issues, such as time lag and low bandwidth, will prohibit this type of operation. As missions become more distant, autonomous control of manned spacecraft will be required. The focus of this paper is the power subsystem. For present missions, controllers on the ground develop a complete schedule of power usage for all spacecraft components. This paper presents work currently underway at NASA to develop an architecture for an autonomous spacecraft, and focuses on the development of communication between the Mission Manager and the Autonomous Power Controller. These two systems must work together in order to plan future load use and respond to unanticipated plan deviations. Using a nominal spacecraft architecture and prototype versions of these two key components, a number of simulations are run under a variety of operational conditions, enabling development of content and format of the messages necessary to achieve the desired goals. The goals include negotiation of a load schedule that meets the global requirements (contained in the Mission Manager) and local power system requirements (contained in the Autonomous Power Controller), and communication of off-plan disturbances that arise while executing a negotiated plan. The message content is developed in two steps: first, a set of rapid-prototyping "paper" simulations are preformed; then the resultant optimized messages are codified for computer communication for use in automated testing.

Shipping InSight Mars Spacecraft to California for Launch

NASA Image and Video Library

2018-02-28

Personnel supporting NASA's InSight mission to Mars load the crated InSight spacecraft into a C-17 cargo aircraft at Buckley Air Force Base, Denver, for shipment to Vandenberg Air Force Base, California. The spacecraft, built in Colorado by Lockheed Martin Space, was shipped February 28, 2018, in preparation for launch from Vandenberg in May 2018. InSight, short for Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport, is the first mission dedicated to studying the deep interior of Mars. Its findings will advance understanding of the early history of all rocky planets, including Earth. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA22220

Shipping InSight Mars Spacecraft to California for Launch

NASA Image and Video Library

2018-02-28

Personnel supporting NASA's InSight mission to Mars load the crated InSight spacecraft into a C-17 cargo aircraft at Buckley Air Force Base, Denver, for shipment to Vandenberg Air Force Base, California. The spacecraft, built in Colorado by Lockheed Martin Space, was shipped February 28, 2018, in preparation for launch from Vandenberg in May 2018. InSight, short for Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport, is the first mission dedicated to studying the deep interior of Mars. Its findings will advance understanding of the early history of all rocky planets, including Earth. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA22252

Shipping InSight Mars Spacecraft to California for Launch

NASA Image and Video Library

2018-02-28

Personnel supporting NASA's InSight mission to Mars load the crated InSight spacecraft into a C-17 cargo aircraft at Buckley Air Force Base, Denver, for shipment to Vandenberg Air Force Base, California. The spacecraft, built in Colorado by Lockheed Martin Space, was shipped February 28, 2018, in preparation for launch from Vandenberg in May 2018. InSight, short for Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport, is the first mission dedicated to studying the deep interior of Mars. Its findings will advance understanding of the early history of all rocky planets, including Earth. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA22253

NASA Pocket Statistics

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1994-01-01

Pocket Statistics is published for the use of NASA managers and their staff. Included herein is Administrative and Organizational information, summaries of Space Flight Activity including the NASA Major Launch Record, and NASA Procurement, Financial, and Manpower data. The NASA Major Launch Record includes all launches of Scout class and larger vehicles. Vehicle and spacecraft development flights are also included in the Major Launch Record. Shuttle missions are counted as one launch and one payload, where free flying payloads are not involved. Satellites deployed from the cargo bay of the Shuttle and placed in a separate orbit or trajectory are counted as an additional payload.

Cassini NASA Social

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-09-14

Spacecraft operations team manager for the Cassini mission at Saturn, Julie Webster, second from right, talks about her experiences with Cassini during the Cassini NASA Social, Thursday, Sept. 14, 2017 at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. Also participating in the engineering panel was Cassini program manager at JPL, Earl Maize, right, guidance and control engineer for the Cassini mission at Saturn, Luis Andrade, second from left, and mission planner for the Cassini mission at Saturn, Molly Bittner, left. Since its arrival in 2004, the Cassini-Huygens mission has been a discovery machine, revolutionizing our knowledge of the Saturn system and captivating us with data and images never before obtained with such detail and clarity. On Sept. 15, 2017, operators will deliberately plunge the spacecraft into Saturn, as Cassini gathered science until the end. The “plunge” ensures Saturn’s moons will remain pristine for future exploration. During Cassini’s final days, mission team members from all around the world gathered at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, California, to celebrate the achievements of this historic mission. Photo Credit: (NASA/Joel Kowsky)

Spacecraft Mission Design for the Mitigation of the 2017 PDC Hypothetical Asteroid Threat

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Barbee, Brent W.; Sarli, Bruno V.; Lyzhoft, Joshua; Chodas, Paul W.; Englander, Jacob A.

2017-01-01

This paper presents a detailed mission design analysis results for the 2017 Planetary Defense Conference (PDC) Hypothetical Asteroid Impact Scenario, documented at https://cneos.jpl.nasa.gov/ pd/cs/pdc17/. The mission design includes campaigns for both reconnaissance (flyby or rendezvous) of the asteroid (to characterize it and the nature of the threat it poses to Earth) and mitigation of the asteroid, via kinetic impactor deflection, nuclear explosive device (NED) deflection, or NED disruption. Relevant scenario parameters are varied to assess the sensitivity of the design outcome, such as asteroid bulk density, asteroid diameter, momentum enhancement factor, spacecraft launch vehicle, and mitigation system type. Different trajectory types are evaluated in the mission design process from purely ballistic to those involving optimal midcourse maneuvers, planetary gravity assists, and/or lowthrust solar electric propulsion. The trajectory optimization is targeted around peak deflection points that were found through a novel linear numerical technique method. The optimization process includes constrain parameters, such as Earth departure date, launch declination, spacecraft/asteroid relative velocity and solar phase angle, spacecraft dry mass, minimum/maximum spacecraft distances from Sun and Earth, and Earth/spacecraft communications line of sight. Results show that one of the best options for the 2017 PDC deflection is solar electric propelled rendezvous mission with a single spacecraft using NED for the deflection

Spacecraft Mission Design for the Mitigation of the 2017 PDC Hypothetical Asteroid Threat

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Barbee, Brent W.; Sarli, Bruno V.; Lyzhoft, Josh; Chodas, Paul W.; Englander, Jacob A.

2017-01-01

This paper presents a detailed mission design analysis results for the 2017 Planetary Defense Conference (PDC) Hypothetical Asteroid Impact Scenario, documented at https:cneos.jpl.nasa.govpdcspdc17. The mission design includes campaigns for both reconnaissance (flyby or rendezvous) of the asteroid (to characterize it and the nature of the threat it poses to Earth) and mitigation of the asteroid, via kinetic impactor deflection, nuclear explosive device (NED) deflection, or NED disruption. Relevant scenario parameters are varied to assess the sensitivity of the design outcome, such as asteroid bulk density, asteroid diameter, momentum enhancement factor, spacecraft launch vehicle, and mitigation system type. Different trajectory types are evaluated in the mission design process from purely ballistic to those involving optimal midcourse maneuvers, planetary gravity assists, and/or low-thrust solar electric propulsion. The trajectory optimization is targeted around peak deflection points that were found through a novel linear numerical technique method. The optimization process includes constrain parameters, such as Earth departure date, launch declination, spacecraft, asteroid relative velocity and solar phase angle, spacecraft dry mass, minimum/maximum spacecraft distances from Sun and Earth, and Earth-spacecraft communications line of sight. Results show that one of the best options for the 2017 PDC deflection is solar electric propelled rendezvous mission with a single spacecraft using NED for the deflection.

Evaluating NASA Technology Programs in Terms of Private Sector Impacts

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Greenberg, J. S.

1984-01-01

NASA is currently developing spacecraft technology for application to NASA scientific missions, military missions and commercial missions which are part of or form the basis of private sector business ventures. The justification of R&D programs that lead to spacecraft technology improvements encompasses the establishment of the benefits in terms of improved scientific knowledge that may result from new and/or improved NASA science missions, improved cost effectiveness of NASA and DOD missions and new or improved services that may be offered by the private sector (for example communications satellite services). It is with the latter of these areas that attention will be focused upon. In particular, it is of interest to establish the economic value of spacecraft technology improvements to private sector communications satellite business ventures. It is proposed to assess the value of spacecraft technology improvements in terms of the changes in cash flow and present value of cash flows, that may result from the use of new and/or improved spacecraft technology for specific types of private sector communications satellite missions (for example domestic point-to-point communication or direct broadcasting). To accomplish this it is necessary to place the new and/or improved technology within typical business scenarios and estimate the impacts of technical performance upon business and financial performance.

JPSS-1 Spacecraft Mate to Payload Attach Fittings

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-10-19

NOAA's Joint Polar Satellite System-1, or JPSS-1, remains wrapped in a protective covering after removal from its shipping container at the Astrotech Processing Facility at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. Technicians assist as a crane lifts the spacecraft up for its move to a payload attach fitting. JPSS-1 will liftoff aboard a United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket from Vandenberg's Space Launch Complex-2. JPSS-1 is the first in a series of four next-generation environmental satellites in a collaborative program between NOAA and NASA.

JPSS-1 Spacecraft Mate to Payload Attach Fittings

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-10-19

NOAA's Joint Polar Satellite System-1, or JPSS-1, remains wrapped in a protective covering after removal from its shipping container at the Astrotech Processing Facility at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. A crane is attached to the spacecraft to prepare for its move to a payload attach fitting. JPSS-1 will liftoff aboard a United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket from Vandenberg's Space Launch Complex-2. JPSS-1 is the first in a series of four next-generation environmental satellites in a collaborative program between NOAA and NASA.

JPSS-1 Spacecraft Mate to Payload Attach Fittings

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-10-19

NOAA's Joint Polar Satellite System-1, or JPSS-1, remains wrapped in a protective covering after removal from its shipping container at the Astrotech Processing Facility at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. Technicians assist as a crane lifts and moves the spacecraft to a payload attach fitting. JPSS-1 will liftoff aboard a United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket from Vandenberg's Space Launch Complex-2. JPSS-1 is the first in a series of four next-generation environmental satellites in a collaborative program between NOAA and NASA.

Toxicological approach to setting spacecraft maximum allowable concentrations for carbon monoxide

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wong, K. L.; Limero, T. F.; James, J. T.

1992-01-01

The Spacecraft Maximum Allowable Concentrations (SMACs) are exposure limits for airborne chemicals used by NASA in spacecraft. The aim of these SMACs is to protect the spacecrew against adverse health effects and performance decrements that would interfere with mission objectives. Because of the 1 and 24 hr SMACs are set for contingencies, minor reversible toxic effects that do not affect mission objectives are acceptable. The 7, 30, or 180 day SMACs are aimed at nominal operations, so they are established at levels that would not cause noncarcinogenic toxic effects and more than one case of tumor per 1000 exposed individuals over the background. The process used to set the SMACs for carbon monoxide (CO) is described to illustrate the approach used by NASA. After the toxicological literature on CO was reviewed, the data were summarized and separated into acute, subchronic, and chronic toxicity data. CO's toxicity depends on the formation of carboxyhemoglobin (COHb) in the blood, reducing the blood's oxygen carrying capacity. The initial task was to estimate the COHb levels that would not produce toxic effects in the brain and heart.

Spacecraft transmitter reliability

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1980-01-01

A workshop on spacecraft transmitter reliability was held at the NASA Lewis Research Center on September 25 and 26, 1979, to discuss present knowledge and to plan future research areas. Since formal papers were not submitted, this synopsis was derived from audio tapes of the workshop. The following subjects were covered: users' experience with space transmitters; cathodes; power supplies and interfaces; and specifications and quality assurance. A panel discussion ended the workshop.

GRACE Follow-On Satellites Separating from Spacecraft (Artist's Concept)

NASA Image and Video Library

2018-04-30

Illustration of the twin spacecraft of the NASA/German Research Centre for Geosciences (GFZ) Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment Follow-On (GRACE-FO) mission. GRACE-FO will continue tracking the evolution of Earth's water cycle by monitoring changes in the distribution of mass on Earth. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA22447

NASA's Core Trajectory Sub-System Project: Using JBoss Enterprise Middleware for Building Software Systems Used to Support Spacecraft Trajectory Operations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Stensrud, Kjell C.; Hamm, Dustin

2007-01-01

NASA's Johnson Space Center (JSC) / Flight Design and Dynamics Division (DM) has prototyped the use of Open Source middleware technology for building its next generation spacecraft mission support system. This is part of a larger initiative to use open standards and open source software as building blocks for future mission and safety critical systems. JSC is hoping to leverage standardized enterprise architectures, such as Java EE, so that its internal software development efforts can be focused on the core aspects of their problem domain. This presentation will outline the design and implementation of the Trajectory system and the lessons learned during the exercise.

GRACE-FO Spacecraft (Artist's Rendering)

NASA Image and Video Library

2018-04-25

Artist's rendering of the twin spacecraft of the Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment Follow-On (GRACE-FO) mission, scheduled to launch in May, 2018. GRACE-FO will track the evolution of Earth's water cycle by monitoring changes in the distribution of mass on Earth. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA22431