Estimating the Deep Space Network modification costs to prepare for future space missions by using major cost drivers

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Remer, Donald S.; Sherif, Josef; Buchanan, Harry R.

1993-01-01

This paper develops a cost model to do long range planning cost estimates for Deep Space Network (DSN) support of future space missions. The paper focuses on the costs required to modify and/or enhance the DSN to prepare for future space missions. The model is a function of eight major mission cost drivers and estimates both the total cost and the annual costs of a similar future space mission. The model is derived from actual cost data from three space missions: Voyager (Uranus), Voyager (Neptune), and Magellan. Estimates derived from the model are tested against actual cost data for two independent missions, Viking and Mariner Jupiter/Saturn (MJS).

Capability Investment Strategy to Enable JPL Future Space Missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lincoln, William; Merida, Sofia; Adumitroaie, Virgil; Weisbin, Charles R.

2006-01-01

The Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) formulates and conducts deep space missions for NASA (the National Aeronautics and Space Administration). The Chief Technologist of JPL has responsibility for strategic planning of the laboratory's advanced technology program to assure that the required technological capabilities to enable future missions are ready as needed. The responsibilities include development of a Strategic Plan (Antonsson, E., 2005). As part of the planning effort, a structured approach to technology prioritization, based upon the work of the START (Strategic Assessment of Risk and Technology) (Weisbin, C.R., 2004) team, was developed. The purpose of this paper is to describe this approach and present its current status relative to the JPL technology investment.

Long range planning for the development of space flight emergency systems.

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bolger, P. H.; Childs, C. W.

1972-01-01

The importance of long-range planning for space flight emergency systems is pointed out. Factors in emergency systems planning are considered, giving attention to some of the mission classes which have to be taken into account. Examples of the hazards in space flight include fire, decompression, mechanical structure failures, radiation, collision, and meteoroid penetration. The criteria for rescue vehicles are examined together with aspects regarding the conduction of rescue missions. Future space flight programs are discussed, taking into consideration low earth orbit space stations, geosynchronous orbit space stations, lunar operations, manned planetary missions, future space flight vehicles, the space shuttle, special purpose space vehicles, and a reusable nuclear shuttle.

Extending NASA's SPICE ancillary information system to meet future mission needs

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Acton, C.; Bachman, N.; Elson, L.; Semenov, B.; Turner, F.; Wright, E.

2002-01-01

This paper summarizes the architecture, capabilities, characteristics and uses of the current SPICE ancillary information system, and then outlines plans and ideas for how this system can be extended to meet future space mission requirements.

Orbital Express mission operations planning and resource management using ASPEN

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chouinard, Caroline; Knight, Russell; Jones, Grailing; Tran, Daniel

2008-04-01

As satellite equipment and mission operations become more costly, the drive to keep working equipment running with less labor-power rises. Demonstrating the feasibility of autonomous satellite servicing was the main goal behind the Orbital Express (OE) mission. Like a tow-truck delivering gas to a car on the road, the "servicing" satellite of OE had to find the "client" from several kilometers away, connect directly to the client, and transfer fluid (or a battery) autonomously, while on earth-orbit. The mission met 100% of its success criteria, and proved that autonomous satellite servicing is now a reality for space operations. Planning the satellite mission operations for OE required the ability to create a plan which could be executed autonomously over variable conditions. As the constraints for execution could change weekly, daily, and even hourly, the tools used create the mission execution plans needed to be flexible and adaptable to many different kinds of changes. At the same time, the hard constraints of the plans needed to be maintained and satisfied. The Automated Scheduling and Planning Environment (ASPEN) tool, developed at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, was used to create the schedule of events in each daily plan for the two satellites of the OE mission. This paper presents an introduction to the ASPEN tool, an overview of the constraints of the OE domain, the variable conditions that were presented within the mission, and the solution to operations that ASPEN provided. ASPEN has been used in several other domains, including research rovers, Deep Space Network scheduling research, and in flight operations for the NASA's Earth Observing One mission's EO1 satellite. Related work is discussed, as are the future of ASPEN and the future of autonomous satellite servicing.

National space transportation systems planning

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lucas, W. R.

1985-01-01

In the fall of 1984, the DOD and NASA had been asked to identify launch vehicle technologies which could be made available for use in 1995 to 2010. The results of the studies of the two groups were integrated, and a consumer report, dated December 1984, was forwarded to the President. Aspects of mission planning and analysis are discussed along with a combined mission model, future launch system requirements, a launch vehicle planning background, Shuttle derivative vehicle program options, payload modularization, launch vehicle technology implications, a new engine program for the mid-1990's. Future launch systems goals are to achieve an order of magnitude reduction in future launch cost and meet the lift requirements and launch rates. Attention is given to an advanced cryogenic engine, advanced LOX/hydrocarbon engine, advanced power systems, aerodynamics/flight mechanics, reentry/recovery systems, avionics/software, advanced manufacturing techniques, autonomous ground and mission operations, advanced structures/materials, and air breathing propulsion.

Space missions to comets

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Neugebauer, M. (Editor); Yeomans, D. K. (Editor); Brandt, J. C. (Editor); Hobbs, R. W. (Editor)

1979-01-01

The broad impact of a cometary mission is assessed with particular emphasis on scientific interest in a fly-by mission to Halley's comet and a rendezvous with Tempel 2. Scientific results, speculations, and future plans are discussed.

Mars scientific investigations as a precursor for human exploration.

PubMed

Ahlf, P; Cantwell, E; Ostrach, L; Pline, A

2000-01-01

In the past two years, NASA has begun to develop and implement plans for investigations on robotic Mars missions which are focused toward returning data critical for planning human missions to Mars. The Mars Surveyor Program 2001 Orbiter and Lander missions will mark the first time that experiments dedicated to preparation for human exploration will be carried out. Investigations on these missions and future missions range from characterization of the physical and chemical environment of Mars, to predicting the response of biology to the Mars environment. Planning for such missions must take into account existing data from previous Mars missions which were not necessarily focused on human exploration preparation. At the same time, plans for near term missions by the international community must be considered to avoid duplication of effort. This paper reviews data requirements for human exploration and applicability of existing data. It will also describe current plans for investigations and place them within the context of related international activities. c 2000 International Astronautical Federation. Published by Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.

Mars scientific investigations as a precursor for human exploration

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ahlf, P.; Cantwell, E.; Ostrach, L.; Pline, A.

2000-01-01

In the past two years, NASA has begun to develop and implement plans for investigations on robotic Mars missions which are focused toward returning data critical for planning human missions to Mars. The Mars Surveyor Program 2001 Orbiter and Lander missions will mark the first time that experiments dedicated to preparation for human exploration will be carried out. Investigations on these missions and future missions range from characterization of the physical and chemical environment of Mars, to predicting the response of biology to the Mars environment. Planning for such missions must take into account existing data from previous Mars missions which were not necessarily focused on human exploration preparation. At the same time, plans for near term missions by the international community must be considered to avoid duplication of effort. This paper reviews data requirements for human exploration and applicability of existing data. It will also describe current plans for investigations and place them within the context of related international activities. c 2000 International Astronautical Federation. Published by Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.

End of Mission Considerations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hull, Scott M.

2013-01-01

While a great deal of effort goes into planning and executing successful mission operations, it is also important to consider the End of the Mission during the planning, design, and operations phases of any mission. Spacecraft and launch vehicles must be disposed of properly in order to limit the generation of orbital debris, and better preserve the orbital environment for all future missions. Figure 30-1 shows a 1990's projected growth of debris with and without the use of responsible disposal techniques. This requires early selection of a responsible disposal scenario, so that the necessary capabilities can be incorporated into the hardware designs. The mission operations must then be conducted in such a way as to preserve, and then actually perform, the planned, appropriate end of mission disposal.

Planning for the Future, a Look from Apollo to the Present

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Segrera, David

2008-01-01

Future missions out of low Earth orbit, returning to the moon and Mars, will be some of the most complicated endeavors ever attempted by mankind. It will require the wealth of nations and the dedicated efforts of thousand of individuals working in a concerted effort to take man to the moon, Mars and beyond. These missions will require new equipment and new approaches to optimize our limited resources and time in space. This daily planning and optimization which currently is being performed by scores of people in MCC Houston and around the world will need to adapt to the challenges faced far from Earth. By studying the processes, methodologies, and tools employed from Apollo, Skylab, Shuttle, ISS, and other programs such as NEEMO, we can learn from the past to plan for the future. This paper will explore the planning process used from Apollo onward and will discuss their relevancy in future applications.

Realistic Goals and Processes for Future Space Astronomy Portfolio Planning

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Morse, Jon

2015-08-01

It is generally recognized that international participation and coordination is highly valuable for maximizing the scientific impact of modern space science facilities, as well as for cost-sharing reasons. Indeed, all large space science missions, and most medium and small missions, are international, even if one country or space agency has a clear leadership role and bears most of the development costs. International coordination is a necessary aspect of future mission planning, but how that coordination is done remains debatable. I propose that the community's scientific vision is generally homogeneous enough to permit international coordination of decadal-scale strategic science goals. However, the timing and budget allocation/funding mechanisms of individual countries and/or space agencies are too disparate for effective long-term strategic portfolio planning via a single international process. Rather, I argue that coordinated space mission portfolio planning is a natural consequence of international collaboration on individual strategic missions. I review the process and outcomes of the U.S. 2010 decadal survey in astronomy & astrophysics from the perspective of a government official who helped craft the survey charter and transmitted guidance to the scientific community on behalf of a sponsoring agency (NASA), while continuing to manage the current portfolio that involved ongoing negotiations with other space agencies. I analyze the difficulties associated with projecting long-term budgets, obtaining realistic mission costs (including the additional cost burdens of international partnerships), and developing new (possibly transformational) technologies. Finally, I remark on the future role that privately funded space science missions can have in accomplishing international science community goals.

Long-range planning cost model for support of future space missions by the deep space network

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sherif, J. S.; Remer, D. S.; Buchanan, H. R.

1990-01-01

A simple model is suggested to do long-range planning cost estimates for Deep Space Network (DSP) support of future space missions. The model estimates total DSN preparation costs and the annual distribution of these costs for long-range budgetary planning. The cost model is based on actual DSN preparation costs from four space missions: Galileo, Voyager (Uranus), Voyager (Neptune), and Magellan. The model was tested against the four projects and gave cost estimates that range from 18 percent above the actual total preparation costs of the projects to 25 percent below. The model was also compared to two other independent projects: Viking and Mariner Jupiter/Saturn (MJS later became Voyager). The model gave cost estimates that range from 2 percent (for Viking) to 10 percent (for MJS) below the actual total preparation costs of these missions.

Cornerstone: Foundational Models and Services for Integrated Battle Planning

DTIC Science & Technology

2012-06-01

We close with a summary of future planned research. 3 Cross-Domain Knowledge Representation One of the primary reasons behind the...mission data using Google Earth to display the results of a Keyhole Markup Language (KML) mission data translator. Finally, we successfully ran Thread 1

Reference Mission Version 3.0 Addendum to the Human Exploration of Mars: The Reference Mission of the NASA Mars Exploration Study Team. Addendum; 3.0

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Drake, Bret G. (Editor)

1998-01-01

This Addendum to the Mars Reference Mission was developed as a companion document to the NASA Special Publication 6107, "Human Exploration of Mars: The Reference Mission of the NASA Mars Exploration Study Team." It summarizes changes and updates to the Mars Reference Missions that were developed by the Exploration Office since the final draft of SP 6107 was printed in early 1999. The Reference Mission is a tool used by the exploration community to compare and evaluate approaches to mission and system concepts that could be used for human missions to Mars. It is intended to identify and clarify system drivers, significant sources of cost, performance, risk, and schedule variation. Several alternative scenarios, employing different technical approaches to solving mission and technology challenges, are discussed in this Addendum. Comparing alternative approaches provides the basis for continual improvement to technology investment plan and a general understanding of future human missions to Mars. The Addendum represents a snapshot of work in progress in support of planning for future human exploration missions through May 1998.

Lessons learned from and the future for NASA's Small Explorer Program

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Newton, George P.

1991-01-01

NASA started the Small Explorer Program to provide space scientists with an opportunity to conduct space science research in the Explorer Program using scientific payloads launched on small-class expendable launch vehicles. A series of small payload, scientific missions was envisioned that could be launched at the rate of one to two missions per year. Three missions were selected in April 1989: Solar Anomalous and Magnetospheric Particle Explorer, Fast Auroral Snapshot Explorer, and Sub-millimeter Wave Astronomy. These missions are planned for launch in June 1992, September 1994 and June 1995, respectively. At a program level, this paper presents the history, objectives, status, and lessons learned which may be applicable to similar programs, and discusses future program plans.

Pointing and control system enabling technology for future automated space missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dahlgren, J. B.

1978-01-01

Future automated space missions present challenging opportunities in the pointing-and-control technology disciplines. The enabling pointing-and-control system technologies for missions from 1985 to the year 2000 were identified and assessed. A generic mission set including Earth orbiter, planetary, and other missions which predominantly drive the pointing-and-control requirements was selected for detailed evaluation. Technology candidates identified were prioritized as planning options for future NASA-OAST advanced development programs. The primary technology thrusts in each candidate program were cited, and advanced development programs in pointing-and-control were recommended for the FY 80 to FY 87 period, based on these technology thrusts.

Temporal Investment Strategy to Enable JPL Future Space Missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lincoln, William P.; Hua, Hook; Weisbin, Charles R.

2006-01-01

The Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) formulates and conducts deep space missions for NASA (the National Aeronautics and Space Administration). The Chief Technologist of JPL has the responsibility for strategic planning of the laboratory's advanced technology program to assure that the required technological capabilities to enable future JPL deep space missions are ready as needed; as such he is responsible for the development of a Strategic Plan. As part of the planning effort, he has supported the development of a structured approach to technology prioritization based upon the work of the START (Strategic Assessment of Risk and Technology) team. A major innovation reported here is the addition of a temporal model that supports scheduling of technology development as a function of time. The JPL Strategic Technology Plan divides the required capabilities into 13 strategic themes. The results reported here represent the analysis of an initial seven.

Hitchhiker mission operations: Past, present, and future

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Anderson, Kathryn

1995-01-01

What is mission operations? Mission operations is an iterative process aimed at achieving the greatest possible mission success with the resources available. The process involves understanding of the science objectives, investigation of which system capabilities can best meet these objectives, integration of the objectives and resources into a cohesive mission operations plan, evaluation of the plan through simulations, and implementation of the plan in real-time. In this paper, the authors present a comprehensive description of what the Hitchhiker mission operations approach is and why it is crucial to mission success. The authors describe the significance of operational considerations from the beginning and throughout the experiment ground and flight systems development. The authors also address the necessity of training and simulations. Finally, the authors cite several examples illustrating the benefits of understanding and utilizing the mission operations process.

Apollo experience report: Mission planning for Apollo entry

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Graves, C. A.; Harpold, J. C.

1972-01-01

The problems encountered and the experience gained in the entry mission plans, flight software, trajectory-monitoring procedures, and backup trajectory-control techniques of the Apollo Program should provide a foundation upon which future spacecraft programs can be developed. Descriptions of these entry activities are presented. Also, to provide additional background information needed for discussion of the Apollo entry experience, descriptions of the entry targeting for the Apollo 11 mission and the postflight analysis of the Apollo 10 mission are presented.

Leader development transformation in the Army Nurse Corps.

PubMed

Funari, Tamara S; Ford, Kathleen; Schoneboom, Bruce A

2011-01-01

The Army Nurse (AN) Corps is undergoing a historic transformation. Under the leadership of its Chief, MG Patricia Horoho, the Corps developed and implemented the AN Campaign Plan to insure that the Corps has the right capability and capacity to meet the current and future needs of the US Army. This article describes the work conducted by the AN Corps Leadership Imperative Action Team (Leader IAT) to develop full-spectrum leaders for the future. The mission of the Leader IAT is derived from both the AN Campaign plan as well as the operational objectives defined in the AN balanced scorecard. As a result of the analysis conducted during preparation of the AN Campaign Plan, several key gaps were identified regarding the Army Nurse Corps' ability to match leadership talents with the diverse demands of current missions, as well as its adaptability and flexibility to be prepared for unknown future missions. This article also introduces the Leadership Capability Map and other initiatives implemented to ensure the development of full-spectrum leaders who will be effective in the future military healthcare environment.

Curating NASA's Astromaterials Collections: Past, Present, and Future

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zeigler, Ryan

2015-01-01

Planning for the curation of samples from future sample return missions must begin during the initial planning stages of a mission. Waiting until the samples have been returned to Earth, or even when you begin to physically build the spacecraft is too late. A lack of proper planning could lead to irreversible contamination of the samples, which in turn would compromise the scientific integrity of the mission. For example, even though the Apollo missions first returned samples in 1969, planning for the curation facility began in the early 1960s, and construction of the Lunar Receiving Laboratory was completed in 1967. In addition to designing the receiving facility and laboratory that the samples will be characterized and stored in, there are many aspects of contamination that must be addressed during the planning and building of the spacecraft: planetary protection (both outbound and inbound); cataloging, documenting, and preserving the materials used to build spacecraft (also known as coupons); near real-time monitoring of the environment in which the spacecraft is being built using witness plates for critical aspects of contamination (known as contamination control); and long term monitoring and preservation of the environment in which the spacecraft is being built for most aspects of potential contamination through the use of witness plates (known as contamination knowledge). The OSIRIS REx asteroid sample return mission, currently being built, is dealing with all of these aspects of contamination in order to ensure they return the best preserved sample possible. Coupons and witness plates from OSIRIS REx are currently being studied and stored (for future studies) at the Johnson Space Center. Similarly, planning for the clean room facility at Johnson Space Center to house the OSIRIS-REx samples is well advanced, and construction of the facility should begin in early 2017 (despite a nominal 2023 return date for OSIRIS-REx samples). Similar development is being done, in concert with JAXA, for the return of Hayabusa 2 samples (nominally in 2020). We are also actively developing advanced techniques like cold curation and organically clean curation in anticipation of future sample return missions such as comet nucleus sample return and Mars sample return.

Strategic Implications of Human Exploration of Near-Earth Asteroids

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Drake, Bret G.

2011-01-01

The current United States Space Policy [1] as articulated by the White House and later confirmed by the Congress [2] calls for [t]he extension of the human presence from low-Earth orbit to other regions of space beyond low-Earth orbit will enable missions to the surface of the Moon and missions to deep space destinations such as near-Earth asteroids and Mars. Human exploration of the Moon and Mars has been the focus of numerous exhaustive studies and planning, but missions to Near-Earth Asteroids (NEAs) has, by comparison, garnered relatively little attention in terms of mission and systems planning. This paper examines the strategic implications of human exploration of NEAs and how they can fit into the overall exploration strategy. This paper specifically addresses how accessible NEAs are in terms of mission duration, technologies required, and overall architecture construct. Example mission architectures utilizing different propulsion technologies such as chemical, nuclear thermal, and solar electric propulsion were formulated to determine resulting figures of merit including number of NEAs accessible, time of flight, mission mass, number of departure windows, and length of the launch windows. These data, in conjunction with what we currently know about these potential exploration targets (or need to know in the future), provide key insights necessary for future mission and strategic planning.

Autonomous mission planning and scheduling: Innovative, integrated, responsive

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sary, Charisse; Liu, Simon; Hull, Larry; Davis, Randy

1994-01-01

Autonomous mission scheduling, a new concept for NASA ground data systems, is a decentralized and distributed approach to scientific spacecraft planning, scheduling, and command management. Systems and services are provided that enable investigators to operate their own instruments. In autonomous mission scheduling, separate nodes exist for each instrument and one or more operations nodes exist for the spacecraft. Each node is responsible for its own operations which include planning, scheduling, and commanding; and for resolving conflicts with other nodes. One or more database servers accessible to all nodes enable each to share mission and science planning, scheduling, and commanding information. The architecture for autonomous mission scheduling is based upon a realistic mix of state-of-the-art and emerging technology and services, e.g., high performance individual workstations, high speed communications, client-server computing, and relational databases. The concept is particularly suited to the smaller, less complex missions of the future.

Planning and scheduling lessons learned study, executive summary

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Robinson, Toni

1990-01-01

The study was performed to document the lessons on planning and scheduling activities for a number of missions and institutional facilities in such a way that they can be applied to future missions; to provide recommendations to both projects and Code 500 that will improve the end-to-end planning and scheduling process; and to identify what, if any, mission characteristics might be related to certain lessons learned. The results are a series of recommendations of both a managerial and technical nature related to the underlying lessons learned.

Workshop proceedings: Information Systems for Space Astrophysics in the 21st Century, volume 1

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cutts, James (Editor); Ng, Edward (Editor)

1991-01-01

The Astrophysical Information Systems Workshop was one of the three Integrated Technology Planning workshops. Its objectives were to develop an understanding of future mission requirements for information systems, the potential role of technology in meeting these requirements, and the areas in which NASA investment might have the greatest impact. Workshop participants were briefed on the astrophysical mission set with an emphasis on those missions that drive information systems technology, the existing NASA space-science operations infrastructure, and the ongoing and planned NASA information systems technology programs. Program plans and recommendations were prepared in five technical areas: Mission Planning and Operations; Space-Borne Data Processing; Space-to-Earth Communications; Science Data Systems; and Data Analysis, Integration, and Visualization.

Generic mission planning concepts for space astronomy missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Guffin, O. T.; Onken, J. F.

1993-01-01

The past two decades have seen the rapid development of space astronomy, both manned and unmanned, and the concurrent proliferation of the operational concepts and software that have been produced to support each individual project. Having been involved in four of these missions since the '70's and three yet to fly in the present decade, the authors believe it is time to step back and evaluate this body of experience from a macro-systems point of view to determine the potential for generic mission planning concepts that could be applied to future missions. This paper presents an organized evaluation of astronomy mission planning functions, functional flows, iteration cycles, replanning activities, and the requirements that drive individual concepts to specific solutions. The conclusions drawn from this exercise are then used to propose a generic concept that could support multiple missions.

Commerce Lab - A program of commercial flight opportunities

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Robertson, J.; Atkins, H. L.; Williams, J. R.

1985-01-01

Commerce Lab is conceived as an adjunct to the National Space Transportation System (NSTS) by providing a focal point for commercial missions which could utilize existing NSTS carrier and resource capabilities for on-orbit experimentation in the microgravity sciences. In this context, the Commerce Lab program provides mission planning for private sector involvement in the space program, in general, and the commercial exploitation of the microgravity environment for materials processing research and development. It is expected that Commerce Lab will provide a logical transition between currently planned NSTS missions and future microgravity science and commercial R&D missions centered around the Space Station. The present study identifies candidate Commerce Lab flight experiments and their development status and projects a mission traffic model that can be used in commercial mission planning.

50 Years of Mars Exploration

NASA Image and Video Library

2015-08-20

2015 marks 50 years of successful NASA missions to Mars starting with Mariner 4 in 1965. Since then, a total of 15 robotic missions led by various NASA centers have laid the groundwork for future human missions to the Red Planet. The journey to Mars continues with additional robotic missions planned for 2016 and 2020, and human missions in the 2030s.

Integrating multiple publics into the strategic plan. The best plans can be derailed without comprehensive up-front research.

PubMed

Peltier, J W; Kleimenhagen, A K; Naidu, G M

1996-01-01

The mission of a health care organization represents its vision for the future. The authors present an approach used to develop an organizational mission for a large multispecialty physician clinic. In implementing the strategic planning process, research objectives must be clearly stated that identify in advance how the data will be used. Failure to integrate strategic data from all relevant publics will likely result in a mission statement that misses the significant interests of one or more stakeholders and reduces the effectiveness of the strategic planning process. Although costly, comprehensive research can uncover some surprising differences in perception that, if ignored, might complete defeat strategic planning efforts.

Distributed decision support for the 21st century mission space

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McQuay, William K.

2002-07-01

The past decade has produced significant changes in the conduct of military operations: increased humanitarian missions, asymmetric warfare, the reliance on coalitions and allies, stringent rules of engagement, concern about casualties, and the need for sustained air operations. Future mission commanders will need to assimilate a tremendous amount of information, make quick-response decisions, and quantify the effects of those decisions in the face of uncertainty. Integral to this process is creating situational assessment-understanding the mission space, simulation to analyze alternative futures, current capabilities, planning assessments, course-of-action assessments, and a common operational picture-keeping everyone on the same sheet of paper. Decision support tools in a distributed collaborative environment offer the capability of decomposing these complex multitask processes and distributing them over a dynamic set of execution assets. Decision support technologies can semi-automate activities, such as planning an operation, that have a reasonably well-defined process and provide machine-level interfaces to refine the myriad of information that is not currently fused. The marriage of information and simulation technologies provides the mission commander with a collaborative virtual environment for planning and decision support.

Increasing Crew Autonomy for Long Duration Exploration Missions: Self-Scheduling

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Marquez, Jessica J.; Hillenius, Steven; Deliz, Ivonne; Kanefsky, Bob; Zheng, Jimin; Reagan, Marcum L.

2017-01-01

Over the last three years, we have been investigating the operational concept of crew self-scheduling as a method of increasing crew autonomy for future exploration missions. Through Playbook, a planning and scheduling software tool, we have incrementally increased the ability for Earth analog mission crews to modify their schedules. Playbook allows the crew to add new activities from scratch, add new activities or groups of activities through a Task List, and reschedule or reassign flexible activities. The crew is also able to identify if plan modifications create violations, i.e., plan constraints not being met. This paper summarizes our observations with qualitative evidence from four NASA Extreme Environment Mission Operations (NEEMO) analog missions that supported self-scheduling as a feasible operational concept.

Planetary protection implementation on future Mars lander missions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Howell, Robert; Devincenzi, Donald L.

1993-06-01

A workshop was convened to discuss the subject of planetary protection implementation for Mars lander missions. It was sponsored and organized by the Exobiology Implementation Team of the U.S./Russian Joint Working Group on Space Biomedical and Life Support Systems. The objective of the workshop was to discuss planetary protection issues for the Russian Mars '94 mission, which is currently under development, as well as for additional future Mars lander missions including the planned Mars '96 and U.S. MESUR Pathfinder and Network missions. A series of invited presentations was made to ensure that workshop participants had access to information relevant to the planned discussions. The topics summarized in this report include exobiology science objectives for Mars exploration, current international policy on planetary protection, planetary protection requirements developed for earlier missions, mission plans and designs for future U.S. and Russian Mars landers, biological contamination of spacecraft components, and techniques for spacecraft bioload reduction. In addition, the recent recommendations of the U.S. Space Studies Board (SSB) on this subject were also summarized. Much of the discussion focused on the recommendations of the SSB. The SSB proposed relaxing the planetary protection requirements for those Mars lander missions that do not contain life detection experiments, but maintaining Viking-like requirements for those missions that do contain life detection experiments. The SSB recommendations were found to be acceptable as a guide for future missions, although many questions and concerns about interpretation were raised and are summarized. Significant among the concerns was the need for more quantitative guidelines to prevent misinterpretation by project offices and better access to and use of the Viking data base of bio-assays to specify microbial burden targets. Among the questions raised were how will the SSB recommendations be integrated with existing Committee on Space Research (COSPAR) policy and how will they apply to and affect Mars '94, Mars '96, MESUR Pathfinder, and MESUR Network missions? One additional topic briefly considered at the workshop was the identification of some issues related to planetary protection considerations for Mars sample return missions. These issues will form the basis for a follow-on joint U.S./Russian workshop on that subject.

Planetary protection implementation on future Mars lander missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Howell, Robert; Devincenzi, Donald L.

1993-01-01

A workshop was convened to discuss the subject of planetary protection implementation for Mars lander missions. It was sponsored and organized by the Exobiology Implementation Team of the U.S./Russian Joint Working Group on Space Biomedical and Life Support Systems. The objective of the workshop was to discuss planetary protection issues for the Russian Mars '94 mission, which is currently under development, as well as for additional future Mars lander missions including the planned Mars '96 and U.S. MESUR Pathfinder and Network missions. A series of invited presentations was made to ensure that workshop participants had access to information relevant to the planned discussions. The topics summarized in this report include exobiology science objectives for Mars exploration, current international policy on planetary protection, planetary protection requirements developed for earlier missions, mission plans and designs for future U.S. and Russian Mars landers, biological contamination of spacecraft components, and techniques for spacecraft bioload reduction. In addition, the recent recommendations of the U.S. Space Studies Board (SSB) on this subject were also summarized. Much of the discussion focused on the recommendations of the SSB. The SSB proposed relaxing the planetary protection requirements for those Mars lander missions that do not contain life detection experiments, but maintaining Viking-like requirements for those missions that do contain life detection experiments. The SSB recommendations were found to be acceptable as a guide for future missions, although many questions and concerns about interpretation were raised and are summarized. Significant among the concerns was the need for more quantitative guidelines to prevent misinterpretation by project offices and better access to and use of the Viking data base of bioassays to specify microbial burden targets. Among the questions raised were how will the SSB recommendations be integrated with existing Committee on Space Research (COSPAR) policy and how will they apply to and affect Mars '94, Mars '96, MESUR Pathfinder, and MESUR Network missions? One additional topic briefly considered at the workshop was the identification of some issues related to planetary protection considerations for Mars sample return missions. These issues will form the basis for a follow-on joint U.S./Russian workshop on that subject.

Antarctic Exploration Parallels for Future Human Planetary Exploration: A Workshop Report

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hoffman, Stephen J. (Editor)

2002-01-01

Four Antarctic explorers were invited to a workshop at Johnson Space Center (JSC) to provide expert assessments of NASA's current understanding of future human exploration missions beyond low Earth orbit. These explorers had been on relatively sophisticated, extensive Antarctic expeditions with sparse or nonexistent support infrastructure in the period following World War II through the end of the International Geophysical Year. Their experience was similar to that predicted for early Mars or other planetary exploration missions. For example: one Antarctic a expedition lasted two years with only one planned resupply mission and contingency plans for no resupply missions should sea ice prevent a ship from reaching them; several traverses across Antarctica measured more than 1000 total miles, required several months to complete, and were made without maps (because they did not exist) and with only a few aerial photos of the route; and the crews of six to 15 were often international in composition. At JSC, the explorers were given tours of development, training, and scientific facilities, as well as documentation at operational scenarios for future planetary exploration. This report records their observations about these facilities and plans in answers to a series of questions provided to them before the workshop.

Lunar Exploration and Science in ESA

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Carpenter, J.; Houdou, B.; Fisackerly, R.; De Rosa, D.; Espinasse, S.; Hufenbach, B.

2013-09-01

Lunar exploration continues to be a priority for the European Space Agency (ESA) and is recognized as the next step for human exploration beyond low Earth orbit. The Moon is also recognized as an important scientific target providing vital information on the history of the inner solar system; Earth and the emergence of life, and fundamental information on the formation and evolution of terrestrial planets. The Moon also provides a platform that can be utilized for fundamental science and to prepare the way for exploration deeper into space and towards a human Mars mission, the ultimate exploration goal. Lunar missions can also provide a means of preparing for a Mars sample return mission, which is an important long term robotic milestone. ESA is preparing for future participation in lunar exploration through a combination of human and robotic activities, in cooperation with international partners. These include activities on the ISS and participation with US led Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle, which is planned for a first unmanned lunar flight in 2017. Future activities planned activities also include participation in international robotic missions. These activities are performed with a view to generating the technologies, capabilities, knowledge and heritage that will make Europe an indispensible partner in the exploration missions of the future. We present ESA's plans for Lunar exploration and the current status of activities. In particular we will show that this programme gives rise to unique scientific opportunities and prepares scientifically and technologically for future exploratory steps.

Impact risk assessment and planetary defense mission planning for asteroid 2015 PDC

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vardaxis, George; Sherman, Peter; Wie, Bong

2016-05-01

In this paper, an integrated utilization of analytic keyhole theory, B-plane mapping, and planetary encounter geometry, augmented by direct numerical simulation, is shown to be useful in determining the impact risk of an asteroid with the Earth on a given encounter, as well on potential future encounters via keyhole passages. The accurate estimation of the impact probability of hazardous asteroids is extremely important for planetary defense mission planning. Asteroids in Earth resonant orbits are particularly troublesome because of the continuous threat they pose in the future. Based on the trajectories of the asteroid and the Earth, feasible mission trajectories can be found to mitigate the impact threat of hazardous asteroids. In order to try to ensure mission success, trajectories are judged based on initial and final mission design parameters that would make the mission easier to complete. Given the potential of a short-warning time scenario, a disruption mission considered in this paper occurs approximately one year prior to the anticipated impact date. Expanding upon the established theory, a computational method is developed to estimate the impact probability of the hazardous asteroid, in order to assess the likelihood of an event, and then investigate the fragmentation of the asteroid due to a disruption mission and analyze its effects on the current and future encounters of the fragments with Earth. A fictional asteroid, designated as 2015 PDC - created as an example asteroid risk exercise for the 2015 Planetary Defence Conference, is used as a reference target asteroid to demonstrate the effectiveness and applicability of computational tools being developed for impact risk assessment and planetary defense mission planning for a hazardous asteroid or comet.

Operations planning for Space Station Freedom - And beyond

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gibson, Stephen S.; Martin, Thomas E.; Durham, H. J.

1992-01-01

The potential of automated planning and electronic execution systems for enhancing operations on board Space Station Freedom (SSF) are discussed. To exploit this potential the Operations Planning and Scheduling Subsystem is being developed at the NASA Johnson Space Center. Such systems may also make valuable contributions to the operation of resource-constrained, long-duration space habitats of the future. Points that should be considered during the design of future long-duration manned space missions are discussed. Early development of a detailed operations concept as an end-to-end mission description offers a basis for iterative design evaluation, refinement, and option comparison, particularly when used with an advanced operations planning system capable of modeling the operations and resource constraints of the proposed designs.

Long Range Navigation for Mars Rovers Using Sensor-Based Path Planning and Visual Localisation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Laubach, Sharon L.; Olson, Clark F.; Burdick, Joel W.; Hayati, Samad

1999-01-01

The Mars Pathfinder mission illustrated the benefits of including a mobile robotic explorer on a planetary mission. However, for future Mars rover missions, significantly increased autonomy in navigation is required in order to meet demanding mission criteria. To address these requirements, we have developed new path planning and localisation capabilities that allow a rover to navigate robustly to a distant landmark. These algorithms have been implemented on the JPL Rocky 7 prototype microrover and have been tested extensively in the JPL MarsYard, as well as in natural terrain.

NASA's ultraviolet astrophysics branch - The next decade

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Welsh, Barry Y.; Kaplan, Michael

1992-01-01

We review some of the mission concepts currently being considered by NASA's Astrophysics Division to carry out future observations in the 100-3000 Angstrom region. Examples of possible future missions include UV and visible interferometric experiments, a next generation Space Telescope and lunar-based UV instrumentation. In order to match the science objectives of these future missions with new observational techniques, critical technology needs in the ultraviolet regime have been identified. Here we describe how NASA's Astrophysics Division Advanced Programs Branch is attempting to formulate an integrated technology plan called the 'Astrotech 21' program in order to provide the technology base for these astrophysics missions of the 21st century.

Lessons Learned on Operating and Preparing Operations for a Technology Mission from the Perspective of the Earth Observing-1 Mission

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mandl, Dan; Howard, Joseph

2000-01-01

The New Millennium Program's first Earth-observing mission (EO-1) is a technology validation mission. It is managed by the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland and is scheduled for launch in the summer of 2000. The purpose of this mission is to flight-validate revolutionary technologies that will contribute to the reduction of cost and increase of capabilities for future land imaging missions. In the EO-1 mission, there are five instrument, five spacecraft, and three supporting technologies to flight-validate during a year of operations. EO-1 operations and the accompanying ground system were intended to be simple in order to maintain low operational costs. For purposes of formulating operations, it was initially modeled as a small science mission. However, it quickly evolved into a more complex mission due to the difficulties in effectively integrating all of the validation plans of the individual technologies. As a consequence, more operational support was required to confidently complete the on-orbit validation of the new technologies. This paper will outline the issues and lessons learned applicable to future technology validation missions. Examples of some of these include the following: (1) operational complexity encountered in integrating all of the validation plans into a coherent operational plan, (2) initial desire to run single shift operations subsequently growing to 6 "around-the-clock" operations, (3) managing changes in the technologies that ultimately affected operations, (4) necessity for better team communications within the project to offset the effects of change on the Ground System Developers, Operations Engineers, Integration and Test Engineers, S/C Subsystem Engineers, and Scientists, and (5) the need for a more experienced Flight Operations Team to achieve the necessary operational flexibility. The discussion will conclude by providing several cost comparisons for developing operations from previous missions to EO-1 and discuss some details that might be done differently for future technology validation missions.

The Hubble Space Telescope servicing missions: Past, present, and future operational challenges

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ochs, William R.; Barbehenn, George M.; Crabb, William G.

1996-01-01

The Hubble Space Telescope was designed to be serviced by the Space Shuttle to upgrade systems, replace failed components and boost the telescope into higher orbits. There exists many operational challenges that must be addressed in preparation for the execution of a servicing mission, including technical and managerial issues. The operational challenges faced by the Hubble operations and ground system project for the support of the first servicing mission and future servicing missions, are considered. The emphasis is on those areas that helped ensure the success of the mission, including training, testing and contingency planning.

Human Health/Human Factors Considerations in Trans-Lunar Space

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Moore, E. Cherice; Howard, Robert; Mendeck, Gavin

2014-01-01

The human factors insights of how they are incorporated into the vehicle are crucial towards designing and planning the internal designs necessary for future spacecraft and missions. The adjusted mission concept of supporting the Asteroid Redirect Crewed Mission will drive some human factors changes on how the Orion will be used and will be reassessed so as to best contribute to missions success. Recognizing what the human factors and health functional needs are early in the design process and how to integrate them will improve this and future generations of space vehicles to achieve mission success and continue to minimize risks.

Towards a class library for mission planning

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Pujo, Oliver; Smith, Simon T.; Starkey, Paul; Wolff, Thilo

1994-01-01

The PASTEL Mission Planning System (MPS) has been developed in C++ using an object-oriented (OO) methodology. While the scope and complexity of this system cannot compare to that of an MPS for a complex mission one of the main considerations of the development was to ensure that we could reuse some of the classes in future MPS. We present here PASTEL MPS classes which could be used in the foundations of a class library for MPS.

Key Future Engineering Capabilities for Human Capital Retention

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sivich, Lorrie

Projected record retirements of Baby Boomer generation engineers have been predicted to result in significant losses of mission-critical knowledge in space, national security, and future scientific ventures vital to high-technology corporations. No comprehensive review or analysis of engineering capabilities has been performed to identify threats related to the specific loss of mission-critical knowledge posed by the increasing retirement of tenured engineers. Archival data from a single diversified Fortune 500 aerospace manufacturing engineering company's engineering career database were analyzed to ascertain whether relationships linking future engineering capabilities, engineering disciplines, and years of engineering experience could be identified to define critical knowledge transfer models. Chi square, logistic, and linear regression analyses were used to map patterns of discipline-specific, mission-critical knowledge using archival data of engineers' perceptions of engineering capabilities, key developmental experiences, and knowledge learned from their engineering careers. The results from the study were used to document key engineering future capabilities. The results were then used to develop a proposed human capital retention plan to address specific key knowledge gaps of younger engineers as veteran engineers retire. The potential for social change from this study involves informing leaders of aerospace engineering corporations on how to build better quality mentoring or succession plans to fill the void of lost knowledge from retiring engineers. This plan can secure mission-critical knowledge for younger engineers for current and future product development and increased global competitiveness in the technology market.

Using Scenarios and Simulations to Plan Colleges

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McIntyre, Chuck

2004-01-01

Using a case study, this article describes a method by which higher education institutions construct and use multiple future scenarios and simulations to plan strategically: to create visions of their futures, chart broad directions (mission and goals), and select learning and delivery strategies so as to achieve those broad directions. The…

A Collection of Papers on Self-Study and Institutional Improvement, 2003. Volume 2: Organizational Effectiveness and Future Directions. 2003 Edition.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Van Kollenburg, Susan E., Ed.

Papers in this collection were prepared for the annual meeting of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools. This volume contains papers related to organizational effectiveness and future directions. Chapter 1, "Mission, Planning, and Organizational Change," contains: (1) "Revitalizing Mission: A Collaborative Model" (Stephany…

Minimum Equipment Lists, Flight Rules and ... Past, Present and Future of Safety Pre-Determined Decisions for Operations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Herd, A.; Wolff, M.

2012-01-01

Extended mission operations, such as human spaceflight to Mars provide an opportunity for take current human exploration beyond Low Earth Orbit, such as the operations undertaken on the International Space Station (ISS). This opportunity also presents a challenge in terms of extending what we currently understand as "remote operations" performed on ISS, offering learning beyond that gained from the successful moon- lander expeditions. As such there is a need to assess how the existing operations concept of ground support teams directing (and supporting) on-orbit ISS operations can be applied in the extended mission concept. The current mission support concept involves three interacting operations products - a short term plan, crew procedures and flight rules. Flight rules (for ISS operations) currently provide overall planning, engineering and operations constraints (including those derived from a safety perspective) in the form of a rule book. This paper will focus specifically on flight rules, and describe the current use of them, and assess the future role of flight rules to support exploration, including the deployment of decision support tools (DSTs) to ensure flight rule compliancy for missions with minimal ground support. Taking consideration of the historical development of pre-planned decisions, and their manifestation within the operations environment, combined with the extended remoteness of human exploration missions, we will propose a future development of this product and a platform on which it could be presented.

A concept for NASA's Mars 2016 astrobiology field laboratory.

PubMed

Beegle, Luther W; Wilson, Michael G; Abilleira, Fernando; Jordan, James F; Wilson, Gregory R

2007-08-01

The Mars Program Plan includes an integrated and coordinated set of future candidate missions and investigations that meet fundamental science objectives of NASA and the Mars Exploration Program (MEP). At the time this paper was written, these possible future missions are planned in a manner consistent with a projected budget profile for the Mars Program in the next decade (2007-2016). As with all future missions, the funding profile depends on a number of factors that include the exact cost of each mission as well as potential changes to the overall NASA budget. In the current version of the Mars Program Plan, the Astrobiology Field Laboratory (AFL) exists as a candidate project to determine whether there were (or are) habitable zones and life, and how the development of these zones may be related to the overall evolution of the planet. The AFL concept is a surface exploration mission equipped with a major in situ laboratory capable of making significant advancements toward the Mars Program's life-related scientific goals and the overarching Vision for Space Exploration. We have developed several concepts for the AFL that fit within known budget and engineering constraints projected for the 2016 and 2018 Mars mission launch opportunities. The AFL mission architecture proposed here assumes maximum heritage from the 2009 Mars Science Laboratory (MSL). Candidate payload elements for this concept were identified from a set of recommendations put forth by the Astrobiology Field Laboratory Science Steering Group (AFL SSG) in 2004, for the express purpose of identifying overall rover mass and power requirements for such a mission. The conceptual payload includes a Precision Sample Handling and Processing System that would replace and augment the functionality and capabilities provided by the Sample Acquisition Sample Processing and Handling system that is currently part of the 2009 MSL platform.

Bringing life to space exploration.

PubMed

Noor, A K; Doyle, R J; Venneri, S L

1999-11-01

Characteristics of 21st century space exploration are examined. Characteristics discussed include autonomy, evolvability, robotic outposts, and an overview of future missions. Sidebar articles examine the application of lessons from biological systems to engineered systems and mission concepts taking shape at NASA. Those mission concepts include plans for Mars missions, sample return missions for Venus and a comet nucleus, Europa orbiter and lander missions, a Titan organics explorer, and a terrestrial planet finder.

Technology Development for Human Exploration Beyond LEO in the New Millennium IAA-13-3 Strategies and Plans for Human Mars Missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Larson, William E.; Lueck, Dale E.; Parrish, Clyde F.; Sanders, Gerald B.; Trevathan, Joseph R.; Baird, R. Scott; Simon, Tom; Peters, T.; Delgado, H. (Technical Monitor)

2001-01-01

As we look forward into the new millennium, the extension of human presence beyond Low-Earth Orbit (LEO) looms large in the plans of NASA. The Agency's Strategic Plan specifically calls out the need to identify and develop technologies for 100 and 1000-day class missions beyond LEO. To meet the challenge of these extended duration missions, it is important that we learn how to utilize the indigenous resources available to us on extraterrestrial bodies. This concept, known as In-Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU) can greatly reduce the launch mass & cost of human missions while reducing the risk. These technologies may also pave the way for the commercial development of space. While no specific target beyond LEO is identified in NASA's Strategic Plan, mission architecture studies have been on-going for the Moon, Mars, Near-Earth Asteroids and Earth/Moon & Earth/Sun Libration Points. As a result of these studies, the NASA Office of Space Flight (Code M) through the Johnson and Kennedy Space Centers, is leading the effort to develop ISRU technologies and systems to meet the current and future needs of human missions beyond LEO and on to Mars. This effort also receives support from the NASA Office of Biological and Physical Research (Code U), the Office of Space Science (Code S), and the Office of Aerospace Technology (Code R). This paper will present unique developments in the area of fuel and oxidizer production, breathing air production, water production, C02 collection, separation of atmospheric gases, and gas liquefaction and storage. A technology overview will be provided for each topic along with the results achieved to date, future development plans, and the mission architectures that these technologies support.

Propulsion Health Management System Development for Affordable and Reliable Operation of Space Exploration Systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Melcher, Kevin J.; Maul, William A.; Garg, Sanjay

2007-01-01

The constraints of future Exploration Missions will require unique integrated system health management capabilities throughout the mission. An ambitious launch schedule, human-rating requirements, long quiescent periods, limited human access for repair or replacement, and long communication delays, all require an integrated approach to health management that can span distinct, yet interdependent vehicle subsystems, anticipate failure states, provide autonomous remediation and support the Exploration Mission from beginning to end. Propulsion is a critical part of any space exploration mission, and monitoring the health of the propulsion system is an integral part of assuring mission safety and success. Health management is a somewhat ubiquitous technology that encompasses a large spectrum of physical components and logical processes. For this reason, it is essential to develop a systematic plan for propulsion health management system development. This paper provides a high-level perspective of propulsion health management systems, and describes a logical approach for the future planning and early development that are crucial to planned space exploration programs. It also presents an overall approach, or roadmap, for propulsion health management system development and a discussion of the associated roadblocks and challenges.

Evolution of Requirements and Assumptions for Future Exploration Missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Anderson, Molly; Sargusingh, Miriam; Perry, Jay

2017-01-01

NASA programs are maturing technologies, systems, and architectures to enabling future exploration missions. To increase fidelity as technologies mature, developers must make assumptions that represent the requirements of a future program. Multiple efforts have begun to define these requirements, including team internal assumptions, planning system integration for early demonstrations, and discussions between international partners planning future collaborations. For many detailed life support system requirements, existing NASA documents set limits of acceptable values, but a future vehicle may be constrained in other ways, and select a limited range of conditions. Other requirements are effectively set by interfaces or operations, and may be different for the same technology depending on whether the hard-ware is a demonstration system on the International Space Station, or a critical component of a future vehicle. This paper highlights key assumptions representing potential life support requirements and explanations of the driving scenarios, constraints, or other issues that drive them.

Commerce Lab - An enabling facility and test bed for commercial flight opportunities

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Robertson, Jack; Atkins, Harry L.; Williams, John R.

1986-01-01

Commerce Lab is conceived as an adjunct to the National Space Transportation System (NSTS) by providing a focal point for commercial missions which could utilize existing NSTS carrier and resource capabilities for on-orbit experimentation in the microgravity sciences. In this context, the Commerce Lab provides an enabling facility and test bed for commercial flight opportunities. Commerce Lab program activities to date have focused on mission planning for private sector involvement in the space program to facilitate the commercial exploitation of the microgravity environment for materials processing research and development. It is expected that Commerce Lab will provide a logical transition between currently planned NSTS missions and future microgravity science and commercial R&D missions centered around the Space Station. The present study identifies candidate Commerce Lab flight experiments and their development status and projects a mission traffic model that can be used in commercial mission planning.

Space science and applications: Strategic plan 1991

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1991-01-01

The Office of Space Science and Applications (OSSA) 1991 Strategic Plan reflects a transitional year in which we respond to changes and focus on carrying out a vital space science program and strengthening our research base to reap the benefits of current and future missions. The Plan is built on interrelated, complementary strategies for the core space science program, for Mission to Planet Earth, and for Mission from Planet Earth. Each strategy has its own unique themes and mission priorities, but they share a common set of principles and a common goal - leadership through the achievement of excellence. Discussed here is the National Space Policy; an overview of OSSA activities, goals, and objectives; and the implications of the OSSA space science and applications strategy.

China's roadmap for planetary exploration

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wei, Yong; Yao, Zhonghua; Wan, Weixing

2018-05-01

China has approved or planned a string of several space exploration missions to be launched over the next decade. A new generation of planetary scientists in China is playing an important role in determining the scientific goals of future missions.

Global Snow from Space: Development of a Satellite-based, Terrestrial Snow Mission Planning Tool

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Forman, B. A.; Kumar, S.; LeMoigne, J.; Nag, S.

2017-12-01

A global, satellite-based, terrestrial snow mission planning tool is proposed to help inform experimental mission design with relevance to snow depth and snow water equivalent (SWE). The idea leverages the capabilities of NASA's Land Information System (LIS) and the Tradespace Analysis Tool for Constellations (TAT-C) to harness the information content of Earth science mission data across a suite of hypothetical sensor designs, orbital configurations, data assimilation algorithms, and optimization and uncertainty techniques, including cost estimates and risk assessments of each hypothetical permutation. One objective of the proposed observing system simulation experiment (OSSE) is to assess the complementary - or perhaps contradictory - information content derived from the simultaneous collection of passive microwave (radiometer), active microwave (radar), and LIDAR observations from space-based platforms. The integrated system will enable a true end-to-end OSSE that can help quantify the value of observations based on their utility towards both scientific research and applications as well as to better guide future mission design. Science and mission planning questions addressed as part of this concept include: What observational records are needed (in space and time) to maximize terrestrial snow experimental utility? How might observations be coordinated (in space and time) to maximize this utility? What is the additional utility associated with an additional observation? How can future mission costs be minimized while ensuring Science requirements are fulfilled?

Towards the Development of a Global, Satellite-based, Terrestrial Snow Mission Planning Tool

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Forman, Bart; Kumar, Sujay; Le Moigne, Jacqueline; Nag, Sreeja

2017-01-01

A global, satellite-based, terrestrial snow mission planning tool is proposed to help inform experimental mission design with relevance to snow depth and snow water equivalent (SWE). The idea leverages the capabilities of NASAs Land Information System (LIS) and the Tradespace Analysis Tool for Constellations (TAT C) to harness the information content of Earth science mission data across a suite of hypothetical sensor designs, orbital configurations, data assimilation algorithms, and optimization and uncertainty techniques, including cost estimates and risk assessments of each hypothetical orbital configuration.One objective the proposed observing system simulation experiment (OSSE) is to assess the complementary or perhaps contradictory information content derived from the simultaneous collection of passive microwave (radiometer), active microwave (radar), and LIDAR observations from space-based platforms. The integrated system will enable a true end-to-end OSSE that can help quantify the value of observations based on their utility towards both scientific research and applications as well as to better guide future mission design. Science and mission planning questions addressed as part of this concept include:1. What observational records are needed (in space and time) to maximize terrestrial snow experimental utility?2. How might observations be coordinated (in space and time) to maximize utility? 3. What is the additional utility associated with an additional observation?4. How can future mission costs being minimized while ensuring Science requirements are fulfilled?

Towards the Development of a Global, Satellite-Based, Terrestrial Snow Mission Planning Tool

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Forman, Bart; Kumar, Sujay; Le Moigne, Jacqueline; Nag, Sreeja

2017-01-01

A global, satellite-based, terrestrial snow mission planning tool is proposed to help inform experimental mission design with relevance to snow depth and snow water equivalent (SWE). The idea leverages the capabilities of NASA's Land Information System (LIS) and the Tradespace Analysis Tool for Constellations (TAT-C) to harness the information content of Earth science mission data across a suite of hypothetical sensor designs, orbital configurations, data assimilation algorithms, and optimization and uncertainty techniques, including cost estimates and risk assessments of each hypothetical permutation. One objective of the proposed observing system simulation experiment (OSSE) is to assess the complementary or perhaps contradictory information content derived from the simultaneous collection of passive microwave (radiometer), active microwave (radar), and LIDAR observations from space-based platforms. The integrated system will enable a true end-to-end OSSE that can help quantify the value of observations based on their utility towards both scientific research and applications as well as to better guide future mission design. Science and mission planning questions addressed as part of this concept include: What observational records are needed (in space and time) to maximize terrestrial snow experimental utility? How might observations be coordinated (in space and time) to maximize this utility? What is the additional utility associated with an additional observation? How can future mission costs be minimized while ensuring Science requirements are fulfilled?

Distributed intelligence for ground/space systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Aarup, Mads; Munch, Klaus Heje; Fuchs, Joachim; Hartmann, Ralf; Baud, Tim

1994-01-01

DI is short for Distributed Intelligence for Ground/Space Systems and the DI Study is one in a series of ESA projects concerned with the development of new concepts and architectures for future autonomous spacecraft systems. The kick-off of DI was in January 1994 and the planned duration is three years. The background of DI is the desire to design future ground/space systems with a higher degree of autonomy than seen in today's missions. The aim of introducing autonomy in spacecraft systems is to: (1) lift the role of the spacecraft operators from routine work and basic troubleshooting to supervision; (2) ease access to and increase availability of spacecraft resources; (3) carry out basic mission planning for users; (4) enable missions which have not yet been feasible due to eg. propagation delays, insufficient ground station coverage etc.; and (5) possibly reduce mission cost. The study serves to identify the feasibility of using state-of-the-art technologies in the area of planning, scheduling, fault detection using model-based diagnosis and knowledge processing to obtain a higher level of autonomy in ground/space systems.

Constellation Mission Operation Working Group: ESMO Maneuver Planning Process Review

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Moyer, Eric

2015-01-01

The Earth Science Mission Operation (ESMO) Project created an Independent Review Board to review our Conjunction Risk evaluation process and Maneuver Planning Process to identify improvements that safely manages mission conjunction risks, maintains ground track science requirements, and minimizes overall hours expended on High Interest Events (HIE). The Review Board is evaluating the current maneuver process which requires support by multiple groups. In the past year, there have been several changes to the processes although many prior and new concerns exist. This presentation will discuss maneuver process reviews and Board comments, ESMO assessment and path foward, ESMO future plans, recent changes and concerns.

Technology for the future - Long range planning for space technology development

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Collier, Lisa D.; Breckenridge, Roger A.; Llewellyn, Charles P.

1992-01-01

NASA's Office of Aeronautics and Space Technology (OAST) has begun the definition of an Integrated Technology Plan for the civilian space program which guides long-term technology development for space platforms, in light of continuing marker research and other planning data. OAST has conferred particular responsibility for future candidate space mission evaluations and platform performance requirement projections to NASA-Langley. An implementation plan is devised which is amenable to periodic space-platform technology updates.

Human-in-the-Loop Operations over Time Delay: NASA Analog Missions Lessons Learned

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rader, Steven N.; Reagan, Marcum L.; Janoiko, Barbara; Johnson, James E.

2013-01-01

Teams at NASA have conducted studies of time-delayed communications as it effects human exploration. In October 2012, the Advanced Exploration Systems (AES) Analog Missions project conducted a Technical Interchange Meeting (TIM) with the primary stakeholders to share information and experiences of studying time delay, to build a coherent picture of how studies are covering the problem domain, and to determine possible forward plans (including how to best communicate study results and lessons learned, how to inform future studies and mission plans, and how to drive potential development efforts). This initial meeting s participants included personnel from multiple NASA centers (HQ, JSC, KSC, ARC, and JPL), academia, and ESA. It included all of the known studies, analog missions, and tests of time delayed communications dating back to the Apollo missions including NASA Extreme Environment Mission Operations (NEEMO), Desert Research and Technology Studies (DRATS/RATS), International Space Station Test-bed for Analog Research (ISTAR), Pavilion Lake Research Project (PLRP), Mars 520, JPL Mars Orbiters/Rovers, Advanced Mission Operations (AMO), Devon Island analog missions, and Apollo experiences. Additionally, the meeting attempted to capture all of the various functional perspectives via presentations by disciplines including mission operations (flight director and mission planning), communications, crew, Capcom, Extra-Vehicular Activity (EVA), Behavioral Health and Performance (BHP), Medical/Surgeon, Science, Education and Public Outreach (EPO), and data management. The paper summarizes the descriptions and results from each of the activities discussed at the TIM and includes several recommendations captured in the meeting for dealing with time delay in human exploration along with recommendations for future development and studies to address this issue.

Future applications of artificial intelligence to Mission Control Centers

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Friedland, Peter

1991-01-01

Future applications of artificial intelligence to Mission Control Centers are presented in the form of the viewgraphs. The following subject areas are covered: basic objectives of the NASA-wide AI program; inhouse research program; constraint-based scheduling; learning and performance improvement for scheduling; GEMPLAN multi-agent planner; planning, scheduling, and control; Bayesian learning; efficient learning algorithms; ICARUS (an integrated architecture for learning); design knowledge acquisition and retention; computer-integrated documentation; and some speculation on future applications.

Re-Engineering JPL's Mission Planning Ground System Architecture for Cost Efficient Operations in the 21st Century

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Fordyce, Jess

1996-01-01

Work carried out to re-engineer the mission analysis segment of JPL's mission planning ground system architecture is reported on. The aim is to transform the existing software tools, originally developed for specific missions on different support environments, into an integrated, general purpose, multi-mission tool set. The issues considered are: the development of a partnership between software developers and users; the definition of key mission analysis functions; the development of a consensus based architecture; the move towards evolutionary change instead of revolutionary replacement; software reusability, and the minimization of future maintenance costs. The current status and aims of new developments are discussed and specific examples of cost savings and improved productivity are presented.

The Future of Operational Space Weather Observations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Berger, T. E.

2015-12-01

We review the current state of operational space weather observations, the requirements for new or evolved space weather forecasting capablities, and the relevant sections of the new National strategy for space weather developed by the Space Weather Operations, Research, and Mitigation (SWORM) Task Force chartered by the Office of Science and Technology Policy of the White House. Based on this foundation, we discuss future space missions such as the NOAA space weather mission to the L1 Lagrangian point planned for the 2021 time frame and its synergy with an L5 mission planned for the same period; the space weather capabilities of the upcoming GOES-R mission, as well as GOES-Next possiblities; and the upcoming COSMIC-2 mission for ionospheric observations. We also discuss the needs for ground-based operational networks to supply mission critical and/or backup space weather observations including the NSF GONG solar optical observing network, the USAF SEON solar radio observing network, the USGS real-time magnetometer network, the USCG CORS network of GPS receivers, and the possibility of operationalizing the world-wide network of neutron monitors for real-time alerts of ground-level radiation events.

Automatic mission planning algorithms for aerial collection of imaging-specific tasks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sponagle, Paul; Salvaggio, Carl

2017-05-01

The rapid advancement and availability of small unmanned aircraft systems (sUAS) has led to many novel exploitation tasks utilizing that utilize this unique aerial imagery data. Collection of this unique data requires novel flight planning to accomplish the task at hand. This work describes novel flight planning to better support structure-from-motion missions to minimize occlusions, autonomous and periodic overflight of reflectance calibration panels to permit more efficient and accurate data collection under varying illumination conditions, and the collection of imagery data to study optical properties such as the bidirectional reflectance distribution function without disturbing the target in sensitive or remote areas of interest. These novel mission planning algorithms will provide scientists with additional tools to meet their future data collection needs.

Everett Transit 1994,Comprehensive Plan

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1994-09-07

Everett Transit's Comprehensive Plann provides the long-term framework to guide : the development of public transportation services in Everett over the next : twenty years. In this plan, Everett Transit clearly defines its mission, future : direction...

Strategic Planning and the Future of Community Colleges.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Myran, Gunder A., Ed.; Kelley, Douglas, Ed.

Designed for institutional leaders facing fundamental questions of changes in mission, goals, external relations, and internal priorities, this collection offers an introduction to strategic planning and descriptions of planning processes at several community colleges. Section I includes the following essays: "What Is Strategic…

STS-112 Atlantis Launch from LC-39B

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2002-01-01

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Space Shuttle Atlantis roars into the clear blue sky from the billows of smoke below after launch on mission STS-112, the 15th assembly flight to the International Space Station. Liftoff from Launch Pad 39B occurred at 3:46 p.m. EDT. Atlantis carries the S1 Integrated Truss Structure and the Crew and Equipment Translation Aid (CETA) Cart A. The CETA is the first of two human-powered carts that will ride along the ISS railway, providing mobile work platforms for future spacewalking astronauts. On the 11-day mission, three spacewalks are planned to attach the S1 truss. providing mobile work platforms for future spacewalking astronauts. On the 11-day mission, three spacewalks are planned to attach the S1 truss to the Station.

Planetary exploration with optical imaging systems review: what is the best sensor for future missions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Michaelis, H.; Behnke, T.; Bredthauer, R.; Holland, A.; Janesick, J.; Jaumann, R.; Keller, H. U.; Magrin, D.; Greggio, D.; Mottola, Stefano; Thomas, N.; Smith, P.

2017-11-01

When we talk about planetary exploration missions most people think spontaneously about fascinating images from other planets or close-up pictures of small planetary bodies such as asteroids and comets. Such images come in most cases from VIS/NIR- imaging- systems, simply called `cameras', which were typically built by institutes in collaboration with industry. Until now, they have nearly all been based on silicon CCD sensors, they have filter wheels and have often high power-consuming electronics. The question is, what are the challenges for future missions and what can be done to improve performance and scientific output. The exploration of Mars is ongoing. NASA and ESA are planning future missions to the outer planets like to the icy Jovian moons. Exploration of asteroids and comets are in focus of several recent and future missions. Furthermore, the detection and characterization of exo-planets will keep us busy for next generations. The paper is discussing the challenges and visions of imaging sensors for future planetary exploration missions. The focus of the talk is monolithic VIS/NIR- detectors.

Future Orbital Power Systems Technology Requirements

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1978-01-01

NASA is actively involved in program planning for missions requiring several orders of magnitude, more energy than in the past. Therefore, a two-day symposium was held to review the technology requirements for future orbital power systems. The purpose of the meeting was to give leaders from government and industry a broad view of current government supported technology efforts and future program plans in space power. It provided a forum for discussion, through workshops, to comment on current and planned programs and to identify opportunities for technology investment. Several papers are presented to review the technology status and the planned programs.

A new European small platform: Proteus and prospected optical application missions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dubois, J.-B.; Paoli, F.

2018-04-01

Progress in technology in recent years and new industrial approaches now make it possible to design valuable optical missions using a small-class satellite, like the PROTEUS multi mission platform. Some future space optical missions using existing or planned instruments, combined with the PROTEUS platform, have been assessed by AEROSPATIALE / SPACE and DEFENSE and/or the CNES (French National Space Agency).

Commerce Lab: Mission analysis. Payload integration study

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Marvin, G. D.

1984-01-01

The objectives of the commerce lab mission analysis and payload integration study are discussed. A mission model which accommodates commercial users and provides a basic data base for future mission planning is described. The data bases developed under this study include: (1) user requirements; (2) apparatus capabilities and availabilities; and (3) carrier capabilities. These data bases are synthesized in a trades and analysis phase along with the STS flight opportunities. Optimum missions are identified.

Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) Navigation Overview

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lamb, Rivers

2008-01-01

This viewgraph presentation is an overview of the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO), with emphasis on the navigation and plans for the mission. The objective of the LRO mission is to conduct investigations that will be specifically target to prepare for and support future human exploration of the Moon. There is a review of the scientific instruments on board the LRO and an overview of the phases of the planned trajectory.

Future Mission Trends and their Implications for the Deep Space Network

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Abraham, Douglas S.

2006-01-01

Planning for the upgrade and/or replacement of Deep Space Network (DSN) assets that typically operate for forty or more years necessitates understanding potential customer needs as far into the future as possible. This paper describes the methodology Deep Space Network (DSN) planners use to develop this understanding, some key future mission trends that have emerged from application of this methodology, and the implications of the trends for the DSN's future evolution. For NASA's current plans out to 2030, these trends suggest the need to accommodate: three times as many communication links, downlink rates two orders of magnitude greater than today's, uplink rates some four orders of magnitude greater, and end-to-end link difficulties two-to-three orders of magnitude greater. To meet these challenges, both DSN capacity and capability will need to increase.

A Vision for the Future: Site-Based Strategic Planning.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Herman, Jerry J.

1989-01-01

Presents a model to help principals with strategic planning. Success hinges on involving stakeholders, scanning for relevant data, identifying critical success factors, developing vision and mission statements, analyzing the site manager's supports and constraints, creating strategic goals and objectives, developing action plans, allocating…

NASA Space Sciences Strategic Planning

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Crane, Philippe

2004-01-01

The purpose of strategic planning roadmap is to:Fulfill the strategic planning requirements; Provide a guide to the science community in presenting research requests to NASA; Inform and inspire; Focus investments in technology and research for future missions; and Provide the scientific and technical justification for augmentation requests.

Human Exploration of Mars Design Reference Architecture 5.0

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Drake, Bret G.

2010-01-01

This paper provides a summary of the Mars Design Reference Architecture 5.0 (DRA 5.0), which is the latest in a series of NASA Mars reference missions. It provides a vision of one potential approach to human Mars exploration. The reference architecture provides a common framework for future planning of systems concepts, technology development, and operational testing as well as Mars robotic missions, research that is conducted on the International Space Station, and future lunar exploration missions. This summary the Mars DRA 5.0 provides an overview of the overall mission approach, surface strategy and exploration goals, as well as the key systems and challenges for the first three human missions to Mars.

A Mission Planning Approach for Precision Farming Systems Based on Multi-Objective Optimization.

PubMed

Zhai, Zhaoyu; Martínez Ortega, José-Fernán; Lucas Martínez, Néstor; Rodríguez-Molina, Jesús

2018-06-02

As the demand for food grows continuously, intelligent agriculture has drawn much attention due to its capability of producing great quantities of food efficiently. The main purpose of intelligent agriculture is to plan agricultural missions properly and use limited resources reasonably with minor human intervention. This paper proposes a Precision Farming System (PFS) as a Multi-Agent System (MAS). Components of PFS are treated as agents with different functionalities. These agents could form several coalitions to complete the complex agricultural missions cooperatively. In PFS, mission planning should consider several criteria, like expected benefit, energy consumption or equipment loss. Hence, mission planning could be treated as a Multi-objective Optimization Problem (MOP). In order to solve MOP, an improved algorithm, MP-PSOGA, is proposed, taking advantages of the Genetic Algorithms and Particle Swarm Optimization. A simulation, called precise pesticide spraying mission, is performed to verify the feasibility of the proposed approach. Simulation results illustrate that the proposed approach works properly. This approach enables the PFS to plan missions and allocate scarce resources efficiently. The theoretical analysis and simulation is a good foundation for the future study. Once the proposed approach is applied to a real scenario, it is expected to bring significant economic improvement.

NASDA's view of ground control in mission operations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Tateno, Satoshi

1993-01-01

This paper presents an overview of the present status and future plans of the National Space Development Agency of Japan 's (NASDA's) ground segment and related space missions. The described ground segment consists of the tracking and data acquisition (T&DA) system and the Earth Observation Center (EOC) system. In addition to these systems, the current plan of the Engineering Support Center (ESC) for the Japanese Experiment Module (JEM) attached to Space Station Freedom is introduced. Then, NASDA's fundamental point of view on the future trend of operations and technologies in the coming new space era is discussed. Within the discussion, the increasing importance of international cooperation is also mentioned.

Strategic Human Resource Planning in Academia

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ulferts, Gregory; Wirtz, Patrick; Peterson, Evan

2009-01-01

A strategic plan guides a college in successfully meeting its mission. Based on the strategic plan, a college can develop a human resource plan that will allow it to make management decisions in the present to support the future direction of the college. The overall purpose of human resource management is to: (1) ensure the organization has…

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Smith, A.R.; Hurley, D.L.

A year ago at the First LDEF Post-Retrieval Symposium, we reported detailed measurements on trunnion sections, as well as results from intentional'' samples (Co, Ni, In, Ta, and V) and spacecraft parts. For this year's Symposium we re-evaluate some of these findings in combination with more recent results, to cast a longer perspective on the LDEF experience, and to sketch some promising avenues toward more effective participation in future missions. The LDEF analysis effort has been a superb training exercise, from which lessons learned needs be applied to future missions -- right back to the early phases of mission planning.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Smith, A.R.; Hurley, D.L.

A year ago at the First LDEF Post-Retrieval Symposium, we reported detailed measurements on trunnion sections, as well as results from ``intentional`` samples (Co, Ni, In, Ta, and V) and spacecraft parts. For this year`s Symposium we re-evaluate some of these findings in combination with more recent results, to cast a longer perspective on the LDEF experience, and to sketch some promising avenues toward more effective participation in future missions. The LDEF analysis effort has been a superb training exercise, from which lessons learned needs be applied to future missions -- right back to the early phases of mission planning.

The Ion Propulsion System for the Asteroid Redirect Robotic Mission

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Herman, Daniel A.; Santiago, Walter; Kamhawi, Hani; Polk, James E.; Snyder, John Steven; Hofer, Richard; Sekerak, Michael

2016-01-01

The Asteroid Redirect Robotic Mission is a Solar Electric Propulsion Technology Demonstration Mission (ARRM) whose main objectives are to develop and demonstrate a high-power solar electric propulsion capability for the Agency and return an asteroidal mass for rendezvous and characterization in a companion human-crewed mission. This high-power solar electric propulsion capability, or an extensible derivative of it, has been identified as a critical part of NASA's future beyond-low-Earth-orbit, human-crewed exploration plans. This presentation presents the conceptual design of the ARRM ion propulsion system, the status of the NASA in-house thruster and power processing development activities, the status of the planned technology maturation for the mission through flight hardware delivery, and the status of the mission formulation and spacecraft acquisition.

Planning Systems for Distributed Operations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Maxwell, Theresa G.

2002-01-01

This viewgraph representation presents an overview of the mission planning process involving distributed operations (such as the International Space Station (ISS)) and the computer hardware and software systems needed to support such an effort. Topics considered include: evolution of distributed planning systems, ISS distributed planning, the Payload Planning System (PPS), future developments in distributed planning systems, Request Oriented Scheduling Engine (ROSE) and Next Generation distributed planning systems.

The asteroid impact mission: testing laser communication in deep-space

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Carnelli, I.; Mellab, K.; Heese, C.; Sodnik, Z.; Pesquita, V.; Gutierrez, B.

2017-09-01

In October 2022 the binary asteroid system 65803 Didymos will have an exceptionally close approach with the Earth flying by within only 0.088 AU. ESA is planning to leverage on this close encounter to launch a small mission of opportunity called Asteroid Impact Mission (AIM) to explore and demonstrate new technologies for future science and exploration missions while addressing planetary defence and performing asteroid scientific investigations.

Solar Cell and Array Technology Development for NASA Solar Electric Propulsion Missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Piszczor, Michael; McNatt, Jeremiah; Mercer, Carolyn; Kerslake, Tom; Pappa, Richard

2012-01-01

NASA is currently developing advanced solar cell and solar array technologies to support future exploration activities. These advanced photovoltaic technology development efforts are needed to enable very large (multi-hundred kilowatt) power systems that must be compatible with solar electric propulsion (SEP) missions. The technology being developed must address a wide variety of requirements and cover the necessary advances in solar cell, blanket integration, and large solar array structures that are needed for this class of missions. Th is paper will summarize NASA's plans for high power SEP missions, initi al mission studies and power system requirements, plans for advanced photovoltaic technology development, and the status of specific cell and array technology development and testing that have already been conducted.

The Advanced Technology Operations System: ATOS

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kaufeler, J.-F.; Laue, H. A.; Poulter, K.; Smith, H.

1993-01-01

Mission control systems supporting new space missions face ever-increasing requirements in terms of functionality, performance, reliability and efficiency. Modern data processing technology is providing the means to meet these requirements in new systems under development. During the past few years the European Space Operations Centre (ESOC) of the European Space Agency (ESA) has carried out a number of projects to demonstrate the feasibility of using advanced software technology, in particular, knowledge based systems, to support mission operations. A number of advances must be achieved before these techniques can be moved towards operational use in future missions, namely, integration of the applications into a single system framework and generalization of the applications so that they are mission independent. In order to achieve this goal, ESA initiated the Advanced Technology Operations System (ATOS) program, which will develop the infrastructure to support advanced software technology in mission operations, and provide applications modules to initially support: Mission Preparation, Mission Planning, Computer Assisted Operations, and Advanced Training. The first phase of the ATOS program is tasked with the goal of designing and prototyping the necessary system infrastructure to support the rest of the program. The major components of the ATOS architecture is presented. This architecture relies on the concept of a Mission Information Base (MIB) as the repository for all information and knowledge which will be used by the advanced application modules in future mission control systems. The MIB is being designed to exploit the latest in database and knowledge representation technology in an open and distributed system. In conclusion the technological and implementation challenges expected to be encountered, as well as the future plans and time scale of the project, are presented.

The National Strategic Plan and Action Agenda for Agricultural Education: Reinventing Agricultural Education for the Year 2020. Creating the Preferred Future for Agricultural Education.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

National Council for Agricultural Education, Alexandria, VA.

The Reinventing Agricultural Education for the Year 2020 initiative, a project conducted during 1996-1999 with a diverse group of more than 10,000 people from across the United States, resulted in this strategic plan designed to achieve the mission set by the initiative. That mission has a two-part focus: preparing students for career success in…

Advanced Environmental Monitoring and Control Program: Strategic Plan

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Schmidt, Gregory

1996-01-01

Human missions in space, from short-duration shuttle missions lasting no more than several days to the medium-to-long-duration missions planned for the International Space Station, face a number of hazards that must be understood and mitigated for the mission to be carried out safely. Among these hazards are those posed by the internal environment of the spacecraft itself; through outgassing of toxic vapors from plastics and other items, failures or off-nominal operations of spacecraft environmental control systems, accidental exposure to hazardous compounds used in experiments: all present potential hazards that while small, may accumulate and pose a danger to crew health. The first step toward mitigating the dangers of these hazards is understanding the internal environment of the spacecraft and the compounds contained within it. Future spacecraft will have integrated networks of redundant sensors which will not only inform the crew of hazards, but will pinpoint the problem location and, through analysis by intelligent systems, recommend and even implement a course of action to stop the problem. This strategic plan details strategies to determine NASA's requirements for environmental monitoring and control systems for future spacecraft, and goals and objectives for a program to answer these needs.

Plasma Outflows: Known Knowns, Known Unknowns, and The Unknown

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Moore, T. E.

2012-01-01

A brief summary is given of i) what we know from observing ionospheric outflows and ii) how outflow parameterizations are being used in global simulations to evaluate their effects on magnetospheric dynamics. Then, a list of unanswered questions and issues to be resolved is given, followed by a description of the known future mission plans expressed in the Heliophysics Roadmap, such as Origin of Near-Earth Plasmas (ONEP), and Ion-Neutral Coupling in the Atmosphere (INCA). Finally, a set of requirements for definitive plasma outflow observations are identified, along with possible methods for fulfilling them in future missions. Since results of the current Heliophysics Decadal Survey are expected soon, it is hoped that future plans can be summarized and discussed without speculation at the GEM 2012 meeting.

Transportation technology program: Strategic plan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

1991-09-01

The purpose of this report is to define the technology program required to meet the transportation technology needs for current and future civil space missions. It is a part of an integrated plan, prepared by NASA in part in response to the Augustine Committee recommendations, to describe and advocate expanded and more aggressive efforts in the development of advanced space technologies. This expanded program will provide a technology basis for future space missions to which the U.S. aspires, and will help to regain technology leadership for the U.S. on a broader front. The six aspects of this integrated program/plan deal with focused technologies to support space sciences, exploration, transportation, platforms, and operations as well as provide a Research and Technology Base Program. This volume describes the technologies needed to support transportation systems, e.g., technologies needed for upgrades to current transportation systems and to provide reliable and efficient transportation for future space missions. The Office of Aeronautics, Exploration, and Technology (OAET) solicited technology needs from the major agency technology users and the aerospace industry community and formed a transportation technology team (appendix A) to develop a technology program to respond to those needs related to transportation technologies. This report addresses the results of that team activity. It is a strategic plan intended for use as a planning document rather than as a project management tool. It is anticipated that this document will be primarily utilized by research & technology (R&T) management at the various NASA Centers as well as by officials at NASA Headquarters and by industry in planning their corporate Independent Research and Development (IR&D) investments.

Transportation technology program: Strategic plan

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1991-01-01

The purpose of this report is to define the technology program required to meet the transportation technology needs for current and future civil space missions. It is a part of an integrated plan, prepared by NASA in part in response to the Augustine Committee recommendations, to describe and advocate expanded and more aggressive efforts in the development of advanced space technologies. This expanded program will provide a technology basis for future space missions to which the U.S. aspires, and will help to regain technology leadership for the U.S. on a broader front. The six aspects of this integrated program/plan deal with focused technologies to support space sciences, exploration, transportation, platforms, and operations as well as provide a Research and Technology Base Program. This volume describes the technologies needed to support transportation systems, e.g., technologies needed for upgrades to current transportation systems and to provide reliable and efficient transportation for future space missions. The Office of Aeronautics, Exploration, and Technology (OAET) solicited technology needs from the major agency technology users and the aerospace industry community and formed a transportation technology team (appendix A) to develop a technology program to respond to those needs related to transportation technologies. This report addresses the results of that team activity. It is a strategic plan intended for use as a planning document rather than as a project management tool. It is anticipated that this document will be primarily utilized by research & technology (R&T) management at the various NASA Centers as well as by officials at NASA Headquarters and by industry in planning their corporate Independent Research and Development (IR&D) investments.

Evolution and Reengineering of NASA's Flight Dynamics Facility (FDF)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Stengle, Thomas; Hoge, Susan

2008-01-01

The NASA Goddard Space Flight Center's Flight Dynamics Facility (FDF) is a multimission support facility that performs ground navigation and spacecraft trajectory design services for a wide range of scientific satellites. The FDF also supports the NASA Space Network by providing orbit determination and tracking data evaluation services for the Tracking Data Relay Satellite System (TDRSS). The FDF traces its history to early NASA missions in the 1960's, including navigation support to the Apollo lunar missions. Over its 40 year history, the FDF has undergone many changes in its architecture, services offered, missions supported, management approach, and business operation. As a fully reimbursable facility (users now pay 100% of all costs for FDF operations and sustaining engineering activities), the FDF has faced significant challenges in recent years in providing mission critical products and services at minimal cost while defining and implementing upgrades necessary to meet future mission demands. This paper traces the history of the FDF and discusses significant events in the past that impacted the FDF infrastructure and/or business model, and the events today that are shaping the plans for the FDF in the next decade. Today's drivers for change include new mission requirements, the availability of new technology for spacecraft navigation, and continued pressures for cost reduction from FDF users. Recently, the FDF completed an architecture study based on these drivers that defines significant changes planned for the facility. This paper discusses the results of this study and a proposed implementation plan. As a case study in how flight dynamics operations have evolved and will continue to evolve, this paper focuses on two periods of time (1992 and the present) in order to contrast the dramatic changes that have taken place in the FDF. This paper offers observations and plans for the evolution of the FDF over the next ten years. Finally, this paper defines the mission model of the future for the FDF based on NASA's current mission list and planning for the Constellation Program. As part of this discussion the following are addressed: the relevance and benefits of a multi-mission facility for NASA's navigation operations in the future; anticipated technologies affecting ground orbit determination; continued incorporation of Commercial Off-the-shelf (COTS) software into the FDF; challenges of a business model that relies entirely on user fees to fund facility upgrades; anticipated changes in flight dynamics services required; and considerations for defining architecture upgrades given a set of cost drivers.

Psychological aspects of living in space - architectural challenges

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Häuplik, Sandra; Lorenz, Susanne

2002-10-01

Space missions have generally involved crews, drawn from a highly homogeneous pool (such as white, educated, young adult males) and functioned for limited periods of time. Future missions may involve crews drawn from a more heterogeneous pool and missions could eventually last years. 3 to 5-person groups are considered appropriate for the Space Shuttle and the first interplanetry missions. In addition to the above mentioned topics the success of a mission will no longer be dependent only on safety issues due to technological progress, but sociological and psychological aspects will become important determinants off the success or failure of future space missions. To create and ensure the social and psychological balance an adequate spatial planning is essential. In the following essay notions for a conception basis of designing a space station will be described.

Reducing the Risk of Human Space Missions with INTEGRITY

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jones, Harry W.; Dillon-Merill, Robin L.; Tri, Terry O.; Henninger, Donald L.

2003-01-01

The INTEGRITY Program will design and operate a test bed facility to help prepare for future beyond-LEO missions. The purpose of INTEGRITY is to enable future missions by developing, testing, and demonstrating advanced human space systems. INTEGRITY will also implement and validate advanced management techniques including risk analysis and mitigation. One important way INTEGRITY will help enable future missions is by reducing their risk. A risk analysis of human space missions is important in defining the steps that INTEGRITY should take to mitigate risk. This paper describes how a Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA) of human space missions will help support the planning and development of INTEGRITY to maximize its benefits to future missions. PRA is a systematic methodology to decompose the system into subsystems and components, to quantify the failure risk as a function of the design elements and their corresponding probability of failure. PRA provides a quantitative estimate of the probability of failure of the system, including an assessment and display of the degree of uncertainty surrounding the probability. PRA provides a basis for understanding the impacts of decisions that affect safety, reliability, performance, and cost. Risks with both high probability and high impact are identified as top priority. The PRA of human missions beyond Earth orbit will help indicate how the risk of future human space missions can be reduced by integrating and testing systems in INTEGRITY.

Human Exploration of Mars Design Reference Architecture 5.0

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Drake, Bret G.; Hoffman, Stephen J.; Beaty, David W.

2009-01-01

This paper provides a summary of the 2007 Mars Design Reference Architecture 5.0 (DRA 5.0), which is the latest in a series of NASA Mars reference missions. It provides a vision of one potential approach to human Mars exploration including how Constellation systems can be used. The reference architecture provides a common framework for future planning of systems concepts, technology development, and operational testing as well as Mars robotic missions, research that is conducted on the International Space Station, and future lunar exploration missions. This summary the Mars DRA 5.0 provides an overview of the overall mission approach, surface strategy and exploration goals, as well as the key systems and challenges for the first three human missions to Mars.

Experimental Methods to Evaluate Science Utility Relative to the Decadal Survey

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Widergren, Cynthia

2012-01-01

The driving factor for competed missions is the science that it plans on performing once it has reached its target body. These science goals are derived from the science recommended by the most current Decadal Survey. This work focuses on science goals in previous Venus mission proposals with respect to the 2013 Decadal Survey. By looking at how the goals compare to the survey and how much confidence NASA has in the mission's ability to accomplish these goals, a method was created to assess the science return utility of each mission. This method can be used as a tool for future Venus mission formulation and serves as a starting point for future development of create science utility assessment tools.

College of New Caledonia Three Year Plan, 1991-1994.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Seens, Paul

In 1991, the College of New Caledonia (CNC) (British Columbia, Canada) prepared this 3-year plan representing the college's vision of the future as it attempts to meet the educational needs of the region. Identifying key opportunities open to CNC, this nine-part plan describes CNC's mission, goals, plans, and objectives. Section I provides an…

Predictive Modeling of the CDRA 4BMS

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Coker, Robert; Knox, James

2016-01-01

Fully predictive models of the Four Bed Molecular Sieve of the Carbon Dioxide Removal Assembly on the International Space Station are being developed. This virtual laboratory will be used to help reduce mass, power, and volume requirements for future missions. In this paper we describe current and planned modeling developments in the area of carbon dioxide removal to support future crewed Mars missions as well as the resolution of anomalies observed in the ISS CDRA.

Commerce Lab: Mission analysis and payload integration study

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1984-01-01

The needs of an aggressive commercial microgravity program are identified, space missions are defined, and infrastructural issues are identified and analyzed. A commercial laboratory, commerce lab, is conceived to be one or more an array of carriers which would fly aboard the space shuttle and accommodate microgravity science experiment payloads. Commerce lab is seen as a logical transition between currently planned space shuttle missions and future microgravity missions centered around the space station.

Manned orbital systems concepts study. Book 2: Requirements for extended-duration missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1975-01-01

In order to provide essential data needed in long-range program planning, the Manned Orbital Systems Concepts (MOSC) study attempted to define, evaluate, and compare concepts for manned orbital systems that provide extended experiment mission capabilities in space, flexibility of operation, and growth potential. Specific areas discussed include roles and requirements for man in future space missions, requirements for extended capability, mission/payload concepts, and preliminary design and operational requirements.

The Ion Propulsion System for the Asteroid Redirect Robotic Mission

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Herman, Daniel A.; Santiago, Walter; Kamhawi, Hani; Polk, James E.; Snyder, John Steven; Hofer, Richard R.; Sekerak, Michael J.

2016-01-01

The Asteroid Redirect Robotic Mission is a Solar Electric Propulsion Technology Demonstration Mission (ARRM) whose main objectives are to develop and demonstrate a high-power solar electric propulsion capability for the Agency and return an asteroidal mass for rendezvous and characterization in a companion human-crewed mission. This high-power solar electric propulsion capability, or an extensible derivative of it, has been identified as a critical part of NASA'a future beyond-low-Earth-orbit, human-crewed exploration plans. Under the NASA Space Technology Mission Directorate the critical electric propulsion and solar array technologies are being developed. This paper presents the conceptual design of the ARRM ion propulsion system, the status of the NASA in-house thruster and power processing development activities, the status of the planned technology maturation for the mission through flight hardware delivery, and the status of the mission formulation and spacecraft acquisition.

Planning to Explore: Using a Coordinated Multisource Infrastructure to Overcome Present and Future Space Flight Planning Challenges

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Balaban, Edward; Orosz, Michael; Kichkaylo, Tatiana; Goforth, Andre; Sweet, Adam; Neches, Robert

2006-01-01

Few human endeavors present as much of a planning and scheduling challenge as space flight, particularly manned space flight. Just on the operational side of it, efforts of thousands of people across hundreds of organizations need to be coordinated. Numerous tasks of varying complexity and nature, from scientific to construction, need to be accomplished within limited mission time frames. Resources need to be carefully managed and contingencies worked out, often on a very short notice. From the beginning of the NASA space program, planning has been done by large teams of domain experts working months, sometimes years, to put together a single mission. This approach, while proven very reliable up to now, is becoming increasingly harder to sustain. Elevated levels of NASA space activities, from deployment of the new Crew Exploration Vehicle (CEV) and completion of the International Space Station (ISS), to the planned lunar missions and permanent lunar bases, will put an even greater strain on this largely manual process. While several attempts to automate it have been made in the past, none have fully succeeded. In this paper we describe the current NASA planning methods, outline their advantages and disadvantages, discuss the planning challenges of upcoming missions and propose a distributed planning/scheduling framework (CMMD) aimed at unifying and optimizing the planning effort. CMMD will not attempt to make the process completely automated, but rather serve in a decision support capacity for human managers and planners. It will help manage information gathering, creation of partial and consolidated schedules, inter-team negotiations, contingencies investigation, and rapid re-planning when the situation demands it. The fist area of CMMD application will be planning for Extravehicular Activities (EVA) and associated logistics. Other potential applications, not only in the space flight domain, and future research efforts will be discussed as well.

Mission to Planet Earth Strategic Enterprise Plan 1996-2002

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1996-01-01

Mission to Planet Earth's (MTPE's) first Strategic Enterprise Plan, issued in May 1995, defined the Agency's major goals and objectives as well as constraints. This update of the Strategic Enterprise Plan identifies the following major changes: a focused Science Research Plan that integrates space-based and in situ observational critical science to address critical science uncertainties; a technology infusion plan to reduce the cost of future missions; a series of flight opportunities to infuse new science into the overall program; and a tighter coupling between NASA and NOAA to reduce costs and to improve the overall program. Three important new initiatives are also under development and are described briefly in this plan: MTPE Education Strategy, MTPE Commercial Strategy, and an emerging concept for an Integrated Global Observing Strategy. This first update to the MTPE Strategic Enterprise Plan captures these new developments, and takes a significant step forward in planning this complex Earth system science endeavor. The plan and other information on MTPE may be viewed via the Internet at http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/mtpe/.

Bird's Eye View of Mars

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2004-01-01

This artist's concept shows NASA's future Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter mission over the red planet.

NASA plans to launch this multipurpose spacecraft in August 2005 to advance our understanding of Mars through detailed observation, to examine potential landing sites for future surface missions and to provide a high-data-rate communications relay for those missions.

The orbiter's shallow radar experiment, one of six science instruments on board, is designed to probe the internal structure of Mars' polar ice caps, as well as to gather information planet-wide about underground layers of ice, rock and, perhaps, liquid water, which might be accessible from the surface.

Advanced Ablative TPS

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gasch, Matthew J.

2011-01-01

Early NASA missions (Gemini, Apollo, Mars Viking) employed new ablative TPS that were tailored for the entry environment. After 40 years, heritage ablative TPS materials using Viking or Pathfinder era materials are at or near their performance limits and will be inadequate for future exploration missions. Significant advances in TPS materials technology are needed in order to enable any subsequent human exploration missions beyond Low Earth Orbit. This poster summarizes some recent progress at NASA in developing families of advanced rigid/conformable and flexible ablators that could potentially be used for thermal protection in planetary entry missions. In particular the effort focuses technologies required to land heavy (approx.40 metric ton) masses on Mars to facilitate future exploration plans.

Remote science support during MARS2013: testing a map-based system of data processing and utilization for future long-duration planetary missions.

PubMed

Losiak, Anna; Gołębiowska, Izabela; Orgel, Csilla; Moser, Linda; MacArthur, Jane; Boyd, Andrea; Hettrich, Sebastian; Jones, Natalie; Groemer, Gernot

2014-05-01

MARS2013 was an integrated Mars analog field simulation in eastern Morocco performed by the Austrian Space Forum between February 1 and 28, 2013. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the system of data processing and utilization adopted by the Remote Science Support (RSS) team during this mission. The RSS team procedures were designed to optimize operational efficiency of the Flightplan, field crew, and RSS teams during a long-term analog mission with an introduced 10 min time delay in communication between "Mars" and Earth. The RSS workflow was centered on a single-file, easy-to-use, spatially referenced database that included all the basic information about the conditions at the site of study, as well as all previous and planned activities. This database was prepared in Google Earth software. The lessons learned from MARS2013 RSS team operations are as follows: (1) using a spatially referenced database is an efficient way of data processing and data utilization in a long-term analog mission with a large amount of data to be handled, (2) mission planning based on iterations can be efficiently supported by preparing suitability maps, (3) the process of designing cartographical products should start early in the planning stages of a mission and involve representatives of all teams, (4) all team members should be trained in usage of cartographical products, (5) technical problems (e.g., usage of a geological map while wearing a space suit) should be taken into account when planning a work flow for geological exploration, (6) a system that helps the astronauts to efficiently orient themselves in the field should be designed as part of future analog studies.

Key Gaps for Enabling Plant Growth in Future Missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Anderson, Molly S.; Barta, Daniel; Douglas, Grace; Fritsche, Ralph; Massa, Gioia; Wheeler, Ray; Quincy, Charles; Romeyn, Matthew; Motil, Brian; Hanford, Anthony

2017-01-01

Growing plants to provide food or psychological benefits to crewmembers is a common vision for the future of human spaceflight, often represented both in media and in serious concept studies. The complexity of controlled environment agriculture and of plant growth in microgravity have and continue to be the subject of dedicated scientific research. However, actually implementing these systems in a way that will be cost effective, efficient, and sustainable for future space missions is a complex, multi-disciplinary problem. Key questions exist in many areas: human research in nutrition and psychology, horticulture, plant physiology and microbiology, multi-phase microgravity fluid physics, hardware design and technology development, and system design, operations and mission planning. The criticality of the research, and the ideal solution, will vary depending on the mission and type of system implementation being considered.

Information Management For Tactical Reconnaissance

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

White, James P.

1984-12-01

The expected battlefield tactics of the 1980's and 1990's will be fluid and dynamic. If tactical reconnaissance is to meet this challenge, it must explore all ways of accelerating the flow of information through the reconnaissance cycle, from the moment a tasking request is received to the time the mission results are delivered to the requestor. In addition to near real-time dissemination of reconnaissance information, the mission planning phase needs to be more responsive to the rapidly changing battlefield scenario. By introducing Artificial Intelligence (AI) via an expert system to the mission planning phase, repetitive and computational tasks can be more readily performed by the ground-based mission planning system, thereby permitting the aircrew to devote more of their time to target study. Transporting the flight plan, plus other mission data, to the aircraft is simple with the Fairchild Data Transfer Equipment (DTE). Aircrews are relieved of the tedious, error-prone, and time-consuming task of manually keying-in avionics initialization data. Post-flight retrieval of mission data via the DTE will permit follow-on aircrews, just starting their mission planning phase, to capitalize on current threat data collected by the returning aircrew. Maintenance data retrieved from the recently flown mission will speed-up the aircraft turn-around by providing near-real time fault detection/isolation. As future avionics systems demand more information, a need for a computer-controlled, smart data base or expert system on-board the aircraft will emerge.

Synthesis: ecology-based landscape planning and management

Treesearch

Thomas R. Crow

2008-01-01

The words "sustain" or "sustainable" are commonly found in the mission statements of resource management agencies. The mission of the USDA Forest Service, for example, is to "sustain the health, diversity, and productivity of the Nation's forests and grasslands to meet the needs of present and future generations." Sustaining the...

Urban Growth Scenarios of a Future MEGA City: Case Study Ahmedabad

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lehner, A.; Kraus, V.; Steinnocher, K.

2016-06-01

The study of urban areas and their development focuses on cities, their physical and demographic expansion and the tensions and impacts that go along with urban growth. Especially in developing countries and emerging national economies like India, consistent and up to date information or other planning relevant data all too often is not available. With its Smart Cities Mission, the Indian government places great importance on the future developments of Indian urban areas and pays tribute to the large-scale rural to urban migration. The potentials of urban remote sensing and its contribution to urban planning are discussed and related to the Indian Smart Cities Mission. A case study is presented showing urban remote sensing based information products for the city of Ahmedabad. Resulting urban growth scenarios are presented, hotspots identified and future action alternatives proposed.

Lunar Exploration and Science in ESA

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Carpenter, James; Houdou, Bérengère; Fisackerly, Richard; De Rosa, Diego; Patti, Bernardo; Schiemann, Jens; Hufenbach, Bernhard; Foing, Bernard

2015-04-01

ESA seeks to provide Europe with access to the lunar surface, and allow Europeans to benefit from the opening up of this new frontier, as part of a global endeavor. This will be best achieved through an exploration programme which combines the strengths and capabilities of both robotic and human explorers. ESA is preparing for future participation in lunar exploration through a combination of human and robotic activities, in cooperation with international partners. Future planned activities include the contribution of key technological capabilities to the Russian led robotic missions, Luna-Glob, Luna-Resurs orbiter and Luna-Resurs lander. For the Luna-Resurs lander ESA will provide analytical capabilities to compliment the Russian led science payload, focusing on developing an characterising the resource opportunities offered at the lunar surface. This should be followed by the contributions at the level of mission elements to a Lunar Polar Sample Return mission. These robotic activities are being performed with a view to enabling a future more comprehensive programme in which robotic and human activities are integrated to provide the maximum benefits from lunar surface access. Activities on the ISS and ESA participation to the US led Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle, which is planned for a first unmanned lunar flight in 2017, are also important steps towards achieving this. In the frame of a broader future international programme under discussion through the International Space Exploration Coordination Group (ISECG) future missions are under investigation that would provide access to the lunar surface through international cooperation and human-robotic partnerships.

NASA's Radioisotope Power Systems Planning and Potential Future Systems Overview

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zakrajsek, June F.; Woerner, Dave F.; Cairns-Gallimore, Dirk; Johnson, Stephen G.; Qualls, Louis

2016-01-01

The goal of NASA's Radioisotope Power Systems (RPS) Program is to make RPS ready and available to support the exploration of the solar system in environments where the use of conventional solar or chemical power generation is impractical or impossible to meet the needs of the missions. To meet this goal, the RPS Program, working closely with the Department of Energy, performs mission and system studies (such as the recently released Nuclear Power Assessment Study), assesses the readiness of promising technologies to infuse in future generators, assesses the sustainment of key RPS capabilities and knowledge, forecasts and tracks the Program's budgetary needs, and disseminates current information about RPS to the community of potential users. This process has been refined and used to determine the current content of the RPS Program's portfolio. This portfolio currently includes an effort to mature advanced thermoelectric technology for possible integration into an enhanced Multi-Mission Radioisotope Generator (eMMRTG), sustainment and production of the currently deployed MMRTG, and technology investments that could lead to a future Stirling Radioisotope Generator (SRG). This paper describes the program planning processes that have been used, the currently available MMRTG, and one of the potential future systems, the eMMRTG.

NASA's Radioisotope Power Systems Planning and Potential Future Systems Overview

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zakrajsek, June F.; Woerner, Dave F.; Cairns-Gallimore, Dirk; Johnson, Stephen G.; Qualis, Louis

2016-01-01

The goal of NASA's Radioisotope Power Systems (RPS) Program is to make RPS ready and available to support the exploration of the solar system in environments where the use of conventional solar or chemical power generation is impractical or impossible to meet the needs of the missions. To meet this goal, the RPS Program, working closely with the Department of Energy, performs mission and system studies (such as the recently released Nuclear Power Assessment Study), assesses the readiness of promising technologies to infuse in future generators, assesses the sustainment of key RPS capabilities and knowledge, forecasts and tracks the Programs budgetary needs, and disseminates current information about RPS to the community of potential users. This process has been refined and used to determine the current content of the RPS Programs portfolio. This portfolio currently includes an effort to mature advanced thermoelectric technology for possible integration into an enhanced Multi-Mission Radioisotope Generator (eMMRTG), sustainment and production of the currently deployed MMRTG, and technology investments that could lead to a future Stirling Radioisotope Generator (SRG). This paper describes the program planning processes that have been used, the currently available MMRTG, and one of the potential future systems, the eMMRTG.

NASA/ESMD Analogue Mission Plans

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hoffman, Stephen J.

2007-01-01

A viewgraph presentation exploring Earth and its analogues is shown. The topics include: 1) ESMD Goals for the Use of Earth Analogues; 2) Stakeholders Summary; 3) Issues with Current Analogue Situation; 4) Current state of Analogues; 5) External Implementation Plan (Second Step); 6) Recent Progress in Utilizing Analogues; 7) Website Layout Example-Home Page; 8) Website Layout Example-Analogue Site; 9) Website Layout Example-Analogue Mission; 10) Objectives of ARDIG Analog Initiatives; 11) Future Plans; 12) Example: Cold-Trap Sample Return; 13) Example: Site Characterization Matrix; 14) Integrated Analogue Studies-Prerequisites for Human Exploration; and 15) Rating Scale Definitions.

Atmospheric, Magnetospheric and Plasmas in Space (AMPS) spacelab payload definition study - program analysis and planning for phase C/D document - Volume 7

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Keeley, J. T.

1976-01-01

Typical missions identified for AMPS flights in the arly 1980's are described. Experiment objectives and typical scientific instruments selected to accomplish these objectives are discussed along with mission requirements and shuttle and Spacelab capabilities assessed to determine any AMPS unique requirements. Preliminary design concepts for the first two AMPS flights form the basis for the Phase C/D program plan. This plan implements flights 1 and 2 and indicates how both the scientific and flight support hardware can be systematically evolved for future AMPS flights.

Minimizing Astronauts' Risk from Space Radiation during Future Lunar Missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kim, Myung-Hee Y.; Hayat, Mathew; Nounu, Hatem N.; Feiveson, Alan H.; Cucinotta, Francis A.

2007-01-01

This viewgraph presentation reviews the risk factors from space radiation for astronauts on future lunar missions. Two types of radiation are discussed, Galactic Cosmic Radiation (GCR) and Solar Particle events (SPE). Distributions of Dose from 1972 SPE at 4 DLOCs inside Spacecraft are shown. A chart with the organ dose quantities is also given. Designs of the exploration class spacecraft and the planned lunar rover are shown to exhibit radiation protections features of those vehicles.

Astrotech 21: A technology program for future astrophysics missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cutts, James A.; Newton, George P.

1991-01-01

The Astrotech 21 technology program is being formulated to enable a program of advanced astrophysical observatories in the first decade of the 21st century. This paper describes the objectives of Astrotech 21 and the process that NASA is using to plan and implement it. It also describes the future astrophysical mission concepts that have been defined for the twenty-first century and discusses some of the requirements that they will impose on information systems for space astrophysics.

Planetary Protection Technologies: Technical Challenges for Mars Exploration

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Buxbaum, Karen L.

2005-01-01

The search for life in the solar system, using either in situ analysis or sample return, brings with it special technical challenges in the area of planetary protection. Planetary protection (PP) requires planetary explorers to preserve biological and organic conditions for future exploration and to protect the Earth from potential extraterrestrial contamination that could occur as a result of sample return to the Earth-Moon system. In view of the exploration plans before us, the NASA Solar System Exploration Program Roadmap published in May 2003 identified planetary protection as one of 13 technologies for "high priority technology investments." Recent discoveries at Mars and Jupiter, coupled with new policies, have made this planning for planetary protection technology particularly challenging and relevant.New missions to Mars have been formulated, which present significantly greater forward contamination potential. New policies, including the introduction by COSPAR of a Category IVc for planetary protection, have been adopted by COSPAR in response. Some missions may not be feasible without the introduction of new planetary protection technologies. Other missions may be technically possible but planetary protection requirements may be so costly to implement with current technology that they are not affordable. A strategic investment strategy will be needed to focus on technology investments designed to enable future missions and reduce the costs of future missions. This presentation will describe some of the potential technological pathways that may be most protective.

Exploring our outer solar system - The Giant Planet System Observers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cooper, J. F.; Sittler, E. C., Jr.; Sturner, S. J.; Pitman, J. T.

As space-faring peoples now work together to plan and implement future missions that robotically prepare for landing humans to explore the Moon, and later Mars, the time is right to develop evolutionary approaches for extending this next generation of exploration beyond Earth's terrestrial planet neighbors to the realm of the giant planets. And while initial fly-by missions have been hugely successful in providing exploratory surveys of what lies beyond Mars, we need to consider now what robotic precursor mission capabilities we need to emplace that prepare us properly, and comprehensively, for long-term robotic exploration, and eventual human habitation, beyond Mars to the outer reaches of our solar system. To develop practical strategies that can establish prioritized capabilities, and then develop a means for achieving those capabilities within realistic budget and technology considerations, and in reasonable timeframes, is our challenge. We suggest one component of such an approach to future outer planets exploration is a series of Giant Planets System Observer (GPSO) missions that provide for long- duration observations, monitoring, and relay functions to help advance our understanding of the outer planets and thereby enable a sound basis for planning their eventual exploration by humans. We envision these missions as being comparable to taking Hubble-class remote-sensing facilities, along with the space physics capabilities of long-lived geospace and heliospheric missions, to the giant planet systems and dedicating long observing lifetimes (HST, 16 yr.; Voyagers, 29 yr.) to the exhaustive study and characterization of those systems. GPSO missions could feature 20-yr+ extended mission lifetimes, direct inject trajectories to maximize useful lifetime on target, placement strategies that take advantage of natural environment shielding (e.g., Ganymede magnetic field) where possible, orbit designs having favorable planetary system viewing geometries, comprehensive broadband remote sensing capabilities, a complementary and redundant science instrument suite, fully autonomous operations, high bandwidth science data downlink, advanced solar power technologies (supplemented where necessary), functional interfaces that are compatible with future small fly-by missions, and fail-safe features for mission operations and planetary protection, 1 among other considerations. We describe in this paper one example of a GPSO-type mission our team has been formulating as a practical approach that addresses many of the most highly-rated future science exploration needs in the Jovian system, including the exploration of Europa, observation of Io and Ganymede, and characterization of the Jovian atmosphere. We call this mission concept the Ganymede Exploration Observer with Probes (GEOP), and describe its architecture, mission design, system features, science capabilities, key trades, and notional development plan for implementation within the next decade. 2

The ESA activities on future launchers

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Pfeffer, H.

1984-01-01

A future launcher development scenario depends on many assumptions, such as the impetus provided by the probability of future missions, and the political willingness of member states to undertake future developments. Because of the long timescale implied by a coherent launcher development, a step-wise approach within an overall future launcher development plan appears essential. The definition of development steps allows the launcher developments to be adapted to the driving external forces, so that no possible opportunity to Europe in the space launch business is missed out because of improper planning on the absence of a long term goal. The launcher senario, to be presented in 1985, forms part of Europe's overall STS plan for the future. This overall STS plan is one product of the complete STS LTPP, a first draft of which should exist by 1985, and which will be updated regularly to take into account the changing political and economic perspectives.

Mission and science activity scheduling language

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hull, Larry G.

1993-01-01

To support the distributed and complex operational scheduling required for future National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) missions, a formal, textual language, the Scheduling Applications Interface Language (SAIL), has been developed. Increased geographic dispersion of investigators is leading to distributed mission and science activity planning, scheduling, and operations. SAIL is an innovation which supports the effective and efficient communication of scheduling information among physically dispersed applications in distributed scheduling environments. SAIL offers a clear, concise, unambiguous expression of scheduling information in a readable, hardware independent format. The language concept, syntax, and semantics incorporate language features found useful during five years of research and prototyping with scheduling languages in physically distributed environments. SAIL allows concise specification of mission and science activity plans in a format which promotes repetition and reuse.

Phoenix--the first Mars Scout mission.

PubMed

Shotwell, Robert

2005-01-01

NASA has initiated the first of a new series of missions to augment the current Mars Program. In addition to the systematic series of planned, directed missions currently comprising the Mars Program plan, NASA has started a series of Mars Scout missions that are low cost, price fixed, Principal [correction of Principle] Investigator-led projects. These missions are intended to provide an avenue for rapid response to discoveries made as a result of the primary Mars missions, as well as allow more risky technologies and approaches to be applied in the investigation of Mars. The first in this new series is the Phoenix mission which was selected as part of a highly competitive process. Phoenix will use the Mars 2001 Lander that was discontinued in 2000 and apply a new set of science objectives and mission objectives and will validate this soft lander architecture for future applications. This paper will provide an overview of both the Program and the Project. c2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Curation, Spacecraft Recovery and Preliminary Examination for the Stardust Mission: A Perspective from the Curatorial Facility

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zolensky, Michael; Nakamura-Messenger, Keiko; Fletcher, Lisa; See, Thomas

2008-01-01

We briefly describe some of the challenges to the Stardust mission, curation and sample preliminary analysis, from the perspective of the Curation Office at the Johnson Space Center. Our goal is to inform persons planning future sample returns, so that they may learn from both our successes and challenges (and avoid some of our mistakes). The Curation office played a role in the mission from its inception, most critically assisting in the design and implementation of the spacecraft contamination control plan, and in planning and documenting the recovery of the spacecraft reentry capsule in Utah. A unique class 100 cleanroom was built to maintain the returned comet and interstellar samples in clean comfort, and to permit dissection and allocation of samples for analysis.

The Design, Planning and Control of Robotic Systems in Space

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dubowsky, Steven

1996-01-01

In the future, robotic systems will be expected to perform important tasks in space, in orbit and in planetary exploration. In orbit, current technology requires that tasks such as the repair, construction and maintenance of space stations and satellites be performed by astronaut Extra Vehicular Activity (EVA). Eliminating the need for astronaut EVA through the use of space manipulators would greatly reduce both mission costs and hazards to astronauts. In planetary exploration, cost and logistical considerations clearly make the use of autonomous and telerobotic systems also very attractive, even in cases where an astronaut explorer might be in the area. However, such applications introduce a number of technical problems not found in conventional earth-bound industrial robots. To design useful and practical systems to meet the needs of future space missions, substantial technical development is required, including in the areas of the design, control and planning. The objectives of this research program were to develop such design paradigms and control and planning algorithms to enable future space robotic systems to meet their proposed mission objectives. The underlying intellectual focus of the program is to construct a set of integrated design, planning and control techniques based on an understanding of the fundamental mechanics of space robotic systems. This work was to build upon the results obtained in our previous research in this area supported by NASA Langley Research Center in which we have made important contributions to the area of space robotics.

Advanced Technologies for Future Spacecraft Cockpits and Space-based Control Centers

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Garcia-Galan, Carlos; Uckun, Serdar; Gregory, William; Williams, Kerry

2006-01-01

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is embarking on a new era of Space Exploration, aimed at sending crewed spacecraft beyond Low Earth Orbit (LEO), in medium and long duration missions to the Lunar surface, Mars and beyond. The challenges of such missions are significant and will require new technologies and paradigms in vehicle design and mission operations. Current roles and responsibilities of spacecraft systems, crew and the flight control team, for example, may not be sustainable when real-time support is not assured due to distance-induced communication lags, radio blackouts, equipment failures, or other unexpected factors. Therefore, technologies and applications that enable greater Systems and Mission Management capabilities on-board the space-based system will be necessary to reduce the dependency on real-time critical Earth-based support. The focus of this paper is in such technologies that will be required to bring advance Systems and Mission Management capabilities to space-based environments where the crew will be required to manage both the systems performance and mission execution without dependence on the ground. We refer to this concept as autonomy. Environments that require high levels of autonomy include the cockpits of future spacecraft such as the Mars Exploration Vehicle, and space-based control centers such as a Lunar Base Command and Control Center. Furthermore, this paper will evaluate the requirements, available technology, and roadmap to enable full operational implementation of onboard System Health Management, Mission Planning/re-planning, Autonomous Task/Command Execution, and Human Computer Interface applications. The technology topics covered by the paper include enabling technology to perform Intelligent Caution and Warning, where the systems provides directly actionable data for human understanding and response to failures, task automation applications that automate nominal and Off-nominal task execution based on human input or integrated health state-derived conditions. Shifting from Systems to Mission Management functions, we discuss the role of automated planning applications (tactical planning) on-board, which receive data from the other cockpit automation systems and evaluate the mission plan against the dynamic systems and mission states and events, to provide the crew with capabilities that enable them to understand, change, and manage the timeline of their mission. Lastly, we discuss the role of advanced human interface technologies that organize and provide the system md mission information to the crew in ways that maximize their situational awareness and ability to provide oversight and control of aLl the automated data and functions.

Reducing Mission Costs by Leveraging Previous Investments in Space

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Miller, Ron; Adams, W. James

1999-01-01

The Rapid Spacecraft Development Office (RSDO) at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center has been charged with the responsibility to reduce mission cost by allowing access to previous developments on government and commercial space missions. RSDO accomplishes this responsibility by implementing two revolutionary contract vehicles, the Rapid Spacecraft Acquisition (RSA) and Quick Ride. This paper will describe the concept behind these contracts, the current capabilities available to missions, analysis of pricing trends to date using the RSDO processes, and future plans to increase flexibility and capabilities available to mission planners.

DARe: Dark Asteroid Rendezvous

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Noll, K. S.; McFadden, L. A.; Rhoden, A. R.; Lim, L. F.; Boynton, W. V.; Carter, L. M.; Collins, G.; Englander, J. A.; Goossens, S. A.; Grundy, W. M.;

The future of climate change policy by provincial government in Indonesia: A study on the vision and mission of elected governors in 2017 election

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kurniawan, T.

2018-03-01

The IPCC in 2015 has recognized the critical role of local governments in scaling up the adaptation of communities to climate change. The role will be executed properly if the leaders have an awareness of climate change as a strategic agenda in his administration. In the context of Indonesia, the vision and mission of a regional head can be a clue as to how he supports efforts in tackling climate change. The five-year regional development plan is an elaboration of the development agendas offered by a regional head in his vision and mission. Therefore, this paper aims to analyze the future of climate change policy in some provincial governments based on the vision and mission of the elected governors. To achieve the goal, the author employs a qualitative approach to analyze the contents of the vision and mission and their preference to climate change. The results of the study indicate that the elected governors are still not very aware of climate change and did not specify it in their vision and mission. Therefore, in the preparation of five-year regional development plan, it is necessary for some stakeholders to address and specifically mention the issues of climate change.

Revolutionary Aerospace Systems Concepts - Planning for the Future of Technology Investments

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ferebee, Melvin J., Jr.; Breckenridge, Roger A.; Hall, John B., Jr.

2002-01-01

In January, 2000, the NASA Administrator gave the following directions to Langley: "We will create a new role for Langley as a leader for the assessment of revolutionary aerospace system concepts and architectures, and provide resources needed to assure technology breakthroughs will be there to support these advanced concepts. This is critical in determining how NASA can best invest its resources to enable future missions." The key objective of the RASC team is to look beyond current research and technology (R&T) programs and missions and evolutionary technology development approaches with a "top-down" perspective to explore possible new mission capabilities. The accomplishment of this objective will allow NASA to provide the ability to go anywhere, anytime - safely, and affordably- to meet its strategic goals for exploration, science, and commercialization. The RASC Team will seek to maximize the cross-Enterprise benefits of these revolutionary capabilities as it defines the revolutionary enabling technology areas and performance levels needed. The product of the RASC Team studies will be revolutionary systems concepts along with enabling technologies and payoffs in new mission capabilities, which these concepts can provide. These results will be delivered to the NASA Enterprises and the NASA Chief Technologist for use in planning revolutionary future NASA R&T program investments.

A Model-based Approach to Controlling the ST-5 Constellation Lights-Out Using the GMSEC Message Bus and Simulink

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Witt, Kenneth J.; Stanley, Jason; Shendock, Robert; Mandl, Daniel

2005-01-01

Space Technology 5 (ST-5) is a three-satellite constellation, technology validation mission under the New Millennium Program at NASA to be launched in March 2006. One of the key technologies to be validated is a lights-out, model-based operations approach to be used for one week to control the ST-5 constellation with no manual intervention. The ground architecture features the GSFC Mission Services Evolution Center (GMSEC) middleware, which allows easy plugging in of software components and a standardized messaging protocol over a software bus. A predictive modeling tool built on MatLab's Simulink software package makes use of the GMSEC standard messaging protocol to interface to the Advanced Mission Planning System (AMPS) Scenario Scheduler which controls all activities, resource allocation and real-time re-profiling of constellation resources when non-nominal events occur. The key features of this system, which we refer to as the ST-5 Simulink system, are as follows: Original daily plan is checked to make sure that predicted resources needed are available by comparing the plan against the model. As the plan is run in real-time, the system re-profiles future activities in real-time if planned activities do not occur in the predicted timeframe or fashion. Alert messages are sent out on the GMSEC bus by the system if future predicted problems are detected. This will allow the Scenario Scheduler to correct the situation before the problem happens. The predictive model is evolved automatically over time via telemetry updates thus reducing the cost of implementing and maintaining the models by an order of magnitude from previous efforts at GSFC such as the model-based system built for MAP in the mid-1990's. This paper will describe the key features, lessons learned and implications for future missions once this system is successfully validated on-orbit in 2006.

Tools of the Future: How Decision Tree Analysis Will Impact Mission Planning

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Otterstatter, Matthew R.

2005-01-01

The universe is infinitely complex; however, the human mind has a finite capacity. The multitude of possible variables, metrics, and procedures in mission planning are far too many to address exhaustively. This is unfortunate because, in general, considering more possibilities leads to more accurate and more powerful results. To compensate, we can get more insightful results by employing our greatest tool, the computer. The power of the computer will be utilized through a technology that considers every possibility, decision tree analysis. Although decision trees have been used in many other fields, this is innovative for space mission planning. Because this is a new strategy, no existing software is able to completely accommodate all of the requirements. This was determined through extensive research and testing of current technologies. It was necessary to create original software, for which a short-term model was finished this summer. The model was built into Microsoft Excel to take advantage of the familiar graphical interface for user input, computation, and viewing output. Macros were written to automate the process of tree construction, optimization, and presentation. The results are useful and promising. If this tool is successfully implemented in mission planning, our reliance on old-fashioned heuristics, an error-prone shortcut for handling complexity, will be reduced. The computer algorithms involved in decision trees will revolutionize mission planning. The planning will be faster and smarter, leading to optimized missions with the potential for more valuable data.

Procedure for estimating orbital debris risks

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Crafts, J. L.; Lindberg, J. P.

1985-01-01

A procedure for estimating the potential orbital debris risk to the world's populace from payloads or spent stages left in orbit on future missions is presented. This approach provides a consistent, but simple, procedure to assess the risk due to random reentry with an adequate accuracy level for making programmatic decisions on planned low Earth orbit missions.

Aerospace Medicine

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Davis, Jeffrey R.

2006-01-01

This abstract describes the content of a presentation for ground rounds at Mt. Sinai School of Medicine. The presentation contains three sections. The first describes the history of aerospace medicine beginning with early flights with animals. The second section of the presentation describes current programs and planning for future missions. The third section describes the medical challenges of exploration missions.

Sensor Webs to Constellations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cole, M.

2017-12-01

Advanced technology plays a key role in enabling future Earth-observing missions needed for global monitoring and climate research. Rapid progress over the past decade and anticipated for the coming decades have diminished the size of some satellites while increasing the amount of data and required pace of integration and analysis. Sensor web developments provide correlations to constellations of smallsats. Reviewing current advances in sensor webs and requirements for constellations will improve planning, operations, and data management for future architectures of multiple satellites with a common mission goal.

Developing Tools and Technologies to Meet MSR Planetary Protection Requirements

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lin, Ying

2013-01-01

This paper describes the tools and technologies that need to be developed for a Caching Rover mission in order to meet the overall Planetary Protection requirements for future Mars Sample Return (MSR) campaign. This is the result of an eight-month study sponsored by the Mars Exploration Program Office. The goal of this study is to provide a future MSR project with a focused technology development plan for achieving the necessary planetary protection and sample integrity capabilities for a Mars Caching Rover mission.

Open Source and Design Thinking at NASA: A Vision for Future Software

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Trimble, Jay

2017-01-01

NASA Mission Control Software for the Visualization of data has historically been closed, accessible only to small groups of flight controllers, often bound to a specific mission discipline such as flight dynamics, health and status or mission planning. Open Mission Control Technologies (MCT) provides new capability for NASA mission controllers and, by being fully open source, opens up NASA software for the visualization of mission data to broader communities inside and outside of NASA. Open MCT is the product of a design thinking process within NASA, using participatory design and design sprints to build a product that serves users.

Anaesthesia in outer space: the ultimate ambulatory setting?

PubMed

Komorowski, Matthieu; Fleming, Sarah; Hinkelbein, Jochen

2016-12-01

Missions to the Moon or more distant planets are planned in the next future, and will push back the limits of our experience in providing medical support in remote environments. Medical preparedness is ongoing, and involves planning for emergency surgical interventions and anaesthetic procedures. This review will summarize what principles of ambulatory anaesthesia on Earth could benefit the environment of a space mission with its unique constraints. Ambulatory anaesthesia relies on several principles such as improved patient pathway, correct patient selection, optimized procedural strategies to hasten recovery and active prevention of postoperative complications. Severe limitations in the equipment available and the skills of the crew members represent the key factors to be taken into account when designing the on-board medical system for future interplanetary space missions. The application of some of the key principles of ambulatory anaesthesia, as well as recent advances in anaesthetic techniques and better understanding of human adaptation to the space environment might allow nonanaesthesiologist physicians to perform common anaesthetic procedures, whilst maximizing crew safety and minimizing the impact of medical events on the mission.

Development of Carbon Dioxide Removal Systems for Advanced Exploration Systems 2016-2017

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Knox, James C.; Peters, Warren; Cmarik, Gregory E.; Watson, David; Coker, Robert; Miller, Lee

2017-01-01

A long-term goal for NASA is to enable crewed missions to Mars: first to the vicinity of Mars, and then to the Mars surface. These missions present new challenges for all aspects of spacecraft design in comparison with the International Space Station, as resupply is unavailable in the transit phase, and early return is not possible. Additionally, mass, power, and volume must be minimized for all phases to reduce propulsion needs. In this paper we describe current and planned developments in the area of carbon dioxide removal to support future crewed Mars missions. Activities are also described that apply to both the resolution of anomalies observed in the ISS CDRA and the design of life support systems for future missions.

Innovative Test Operations to Support Orion and Future Human Rated Missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Koenig, William J.; Garcia, Rafael; Harris, Richard F.; See, Michael J.; Van Lear, Benjamin S.; Dobson, Jill M.; Norris, Scott Douglas

2017-01-01

This paper describes how the Orion program is implementing new and innovative test approaches and strategies in an evolving development environment. The early flight test spacecraft are evolving in design maturity and complexity requiring significant changes in the ground test operations for each mission. The testing approach for EM-2 is planned to validate innovative Orion production acceptance testing methods to support human exploration missions in the future. Manufacturing and testing at Kennedy Space Center in the Neil Armstrong Operations and Checkout facility will provide a seamless transition directly to the launch site avoiding transportation and checkout of the spacecraft from other locations.

A photon phreak digs the LDEF happening

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Smith, Alan R.; Hurley, Donna L.

1993-01-01

A year ago at the First Long Duration Exposure Facility (LDEF) Post-Retrieval Symposium, detailed measurements on trunnion sections, as well as results from 'intentional' samples (Co, Ni, In, Ta, and V) and spacecraft parts were reported. For this year's Symposium, some of these findings are re-evaluated in combination with more recent results, to cast a longer perspective on the LDEF experience, and to sketch some promising avenues toward more effective participation in future missions. The LDEF analysis effort has been a superb training exercise, from which lessons learned need to be applied to future missions - right back to the early phases of mission planning.

Space Nuclear Power Public and Stakeholder Risk Communication

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dawson, Sandra M.; Sklar, Maria

2005-01-01

The 1986 Challenger accident coupled with the Chernobyl nuclear reactor accident increased public concern about the safety of spacecraft using nuclear technology. While three nuclear powered spacecraft had been launched before 1986 with little public interest, future nuclear powered missions would see significantly more public concern and require NASA to increase its efforts to communicate mission risks to the public. In 1987 a separate risk communication area within the Launch Approval Planning Group of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory was created to address public concern about the health, environmental, and safety risks of NASA missions. The lessons learned from the risk communication strategies developed for the nuclear powered Galileo, Ulysses, and Cassini missions are reviewed in this paper and recommendations are given as to how these lessons can be applied to future NASA missions that may use nuclear power systems and other potentially controversial NASA missions.

Comm for Small Sats: The Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer (LADEE) Communications Subsystem

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kuroda, Vanessa M.; Allard, Mark R.; Lewis, Brian; Lindsay, Michael

2014-01-01

September 6, 2013 through April 21, 2014 marked the mission lifecycle of the highly successful LADEE (Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer) mission that orbited the moon to gather detailed information about the thin lunar atmosphere. This paper will address the development, risks, and lessons learned regarding the specification, selection, and deployment of LADEE's unique Radio Frequency based communications subsystem and supporting tools. This includes the Electronic Ground Support Equipment (EGSE), test regimes, and RF dynamic link analysis environment developed to meet mission requirements for small, flexible, low cost, high performance, fast turnaround, and reusable spacecraft communication capabilities with easy and reliable application to future similar low cost small satellite missions over widely varying needs for communications and communications system complexity. LADEE communication subsystem key components, architecture, and mission performance will be reviewed toward applicability for future mission planning, design, and utilization.

Planning Tool for Strategic Evaluation of Facility Plans - 13570

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Magoulas, Virginia; Cercy, Michael; Hall, Irin

2013-07-01

Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL) has developed a strategic planning tool for the evaluation of the utilization of its unique resources for processing and research and development of nuclear materials. The Planning Tool is a strategic level tool for assessing multiple missions that could be conducted utilizing the SRNL facilities and showcasing the plan. Traditional approaches using standard scheduling tools and laying out a strategy on paper tended to be labor intensive and offered either a limited or cluttered view for visualizing and communicating results. A tool that can assess the process throughput, duration, and utilization of the facility wasmore » needed. SRNL teamed with Newport News Shipbuilding (NNS), a division of Huntington Ingalls Industries, to create the next generation Planning Tool. The goal of this collaboration was to create a simulation based tool that allows for quick evaluation of strategies with respect to new or changing missions, and clearly communicates results to the decision makers. This tool has been built upon a mature modeling and simulation software previously developed by NNS. The Planning Tool provides a forum for capturing dependencies, constraints, activity flows, and variable factors. It is also a platform for quickly evaluating multiple mission scenarios, dynamically adding/updating scenarios, generating multiple views for evaluating/communicating results, and understanding where there are areas of risks and opportunities with respect to capacity. The Planning Tool that has been developed is useful in that it presents a clear visual plan for the missions at the Savannah River Site (SRS). It not only assists in communicating the plans to SRS corporate management, but also allows the area stakeholders a visual look at the future plans for SRS. The design of this tool makes it easily deployable to other facility and mission planning endeavors. (authors)« less

A Year in the Life of International Space Station

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Uri, John J.

2006-01-01

The past twelve months (October 2005 to September 2006) have been among the busiest in the life of the International Space Station (ISS), both in terms of on-orbit operations as well as future planning, for both ISS systems and research. The Expedition 12 and 13 crews completed their missions successfully, carrying out research for Russia, the United States, Europe and Japan, and bringing continuous ISS occupancy to nearly six years. The European Space Agency's (ESA) first Long Duration Mission on ISS is underway, involving significant international research. The Expedition 14 crew completed its training and is embarking on its own 6-month mission with a full slate of international research. Future crews are in training for their respective assembly and research missions. Shuttle flights resumed after a 10-month hiatus, delivering new research facilities and resuming assembly of ISS. ESA's Columbus research module was delivered to the Kennedy Space Center, joining Japan's Kibo research module already there. Following preflight testing, the two modules will launch in 2007 and 2008, respectively, joining Destiny as ISS's research infrastructure. A revised ISS configuration and assembly sequence were endorsed by all the Partners, with a reduced number of Shuttle flights, but for the first time including plans for post-Shuttle ISS operations after 2010. The new plan will pose significant challenges to the ISS research community. As Europe and Japan build their on-orbit research infrastructure, and long-term plans become firmer, the next 12 months should prove to be equally challenging and exciting.

Automatic Scheduling and Planning (ASAP) in future ground control systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Matlin, Sam

1988-01-01

This report describes two complementary approaches to the problem of space mission planning and scheduling. The first is an Expert System or Knowledge-Based System for automatically resolving most of the activity conflicts in a candidate plan. The second is an Interactive Graphics Decision Aid to assist the operator in manually resolving the residual conflicts which are beyond the scope of the Expert System. The two system designs are consistent with future ground control station activity requirements, support activity timing constraints, resource limits and activity priority guidelines.

Archive & Data Management Activities for ISRO Science Archives

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Thakkar, Navita; Moorthi, Manthira; Gopala Krishna, Barla; Prashar, Ajay; Srinivasan, T. P.

2012-07-01

ISRO has kept a step ahead by extending remote sensing missions to planetary and astronomical exploration. It has started with Chandrayaan-1 and successfully completed the moon imaging during its life time in the orbit. Now, in future ISRO is planning to launch Chandrayaan-2 (next moon mission), Mars Mission and Astronomical mission ASTROSAT. All these missions are characterized by the need to receive process, archive and disseminate the acquired science data to the user community for analysis and scientific use. All these science missions will last for a few months to a few years but the data received are required to be archived, interoperable and requires a seamless access to the user community for the future. ISRO has laid out definite plans to archive these data sets in specified standards and develop relevant access tools to be able to serve the user community. To achieve this goal, a Data Center is set up at Bangalore called Indian Space Science Data Center (ISSDC). This is the custodian of all the data sets of the current and future science missions of ISRO . Chandrayaan-1 is the first among the planetary missions launched/to be launched by ISRO and we had taken the challenge and developed a system for data archival and dissemination of the payload data received. For Chandrayaan-1 the data collected from all the instruments are processed and is archived in the archive layer in the Planetary Data System (PDS 3.0) standards, through the automated pipeline. But the dataset once stored is of no use unless it is made public, which requires a Web-based dissemination system that can be accessible to all the planetary scientists/data users working in this field. Towards this, a Web- based Browse and Dissemination system has been developed, wherein users can register and search for their area of Interest and view the data archived for TMC & HYSI with relevant Browse chips and Metadata of the data. Users can also order the data and get it on their desktop in the PDS. For other AO payloads users can view the metadata and the data is available through FTP site. This same archival and dissemination strategy will be extended for the next moon mission Chandrayaan-2. ASTROSAT is going to be the first multi-wavelength astronomical mission for which the data is archived at ISSDC. It consists of five astronomical payloads that would allow simultaneous multi-wavelengths observations from X-ray to Ultra-Violet (UV) of astronomical objects. It is planned to archive the data sets in FITS. The archive of the ASTROSAT will be done in the Archive Layer at ISSDC. The Browse of the Archive will be available through the ISDA (Indian Science Data Archive) web site. The Browse will be IVOA compliant with a search mechanism using VOTable. The data will be available to the users only on request basis via a FTP site after the lock in period is over. It is planned that the Level2 pipeline software and various modules for processing the data sets will be also available on the web site. This paper, describes the archival procedure of Chandrayaan-1 and archive plan for the ASTROSAT, Chandrayaan-2 and other future mission of ISRO including the discussion on data management activities.

Evaluation of Crew-Centric Onboard Mission Operations Planning and Execution Tool: Year 2

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hillenius, S.; Marquez, J.; Korth, D.; Rosenbaum, M.; Deliz, Ivy; Kanefsky, Bob; Zheng, Jimin

2018-01-01

Currently, mission planning for the International Space Station (ISS) is largely affected by ground operators in mission control. The task of creating a week-long mission plan for ISS crew takes dozens of people multiple days to complete, and is often created far in advance of its execution. As such, re-planning or adapting to changing real-time constraints or emergent issues is similarly taxing. As we design for future mission operations concepts to other planets or areas with limited connectivity to Earth, more of these ground-based tasks will need to be handled autonomously by the crew onboard.There is a need for a highly usable (including low training time) tool that enables efficient self-scheduling and execution within a single package. The ISS Program has identified Playbook as a potential option. It already has high crew acceptance as a plan viewer from previous analogs and can now support a crew self-scheduling assessment on ISS or on another mission. The goals of this work, a collaboration between the Human Research Program and the ISS Program, are to inform the design of systems for more autonomous crew operations and provide a platform for research on crew autonomy for future deep space missions. Our second year of the research effort have included new insights on the crew self-scheduling sessions performed by the crew through use on the HERA (Human Exploration Research Analog) and NEEMO (NASA Extreme Environment Mission Operations) analogs. Use on the NEEMO analog involved two self-scheduling strategies where the crew planned and executed two days of EVAs (Extra-Vehicular Activities). On HERA year two represented the first HERA campaign where we were able to perform research tasks. This involved selected flexible activities that the crew could schedule, mock timelines where the crew completed more complex planning exercises, usability evaluation of the crew self-scheduling features, and more insights into the limit of plan complexity that the crew could effectively self-schedule. In parallel we have added in new features and functionality in the Playbook tool based off of our insights from crew self-scheduling in the NASA analogs. In particular this year we have added in the ability for the crew to add, edit, and remove their own activities in the Playbook tool, expanding the type of planning and re-planning possible in the tool and opening up the ability for more free form plan creation. The ability to group and manipulate groups of activities from the plan task list was also added, allowing crew members to add predefined sets of activities onto their mission timeline. In addition we also added a way for crew members to roll back changes in their plan, in order to allow an undo like capability. These features expand and complement the initial self-scheduling features added in year one with the goal of making crew autonomous planning more efficient. As part of this work we have also finished developing the first version of our Playbook Data Analysis Tool, a research tool built to interpret and analyze the unobtrusively collected data obtained during the NASA analog missions through Playbook. This data which includes user click interaction as well as plan change information, through the Playbook Data Analysis Tool, allows us to playback this information as if a video camera was mounted over the crewmember's tablet. While the primary purpose of this tool is to allow usability analysis of crew self-scheduling sessions used on the NASA analog, since the data collected is structured, the tool can automatically derive metrics that would be traditionally tedious to achieve without manual analysis of video playback. We will demonstrate and discuss the ability for future derived metrics to be added to the tool. In addition to the current data and results gathered in year two we will also discuss the preparation and goals of our International Space Station (ISS) onboard technology demonstration with Playbook. This technology demonstration will be preformed as part of the CAST payload starting in late 2016.

Advances in Astromaterials Curation: Supporting Future Sample Return Missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Evans, C. A.; Zeigler, R. A.; Fries, M. D..; Righter, K.; Allton, J. H.; Zolensky, M. E.; Calaway, M. J.; Bell, M. S.

2015-01-01

NASA's Astromaterials, curated at the Johnson Space Center in Houston, are the most extensive, best-documented, and leastcontaminated extraterrestrial samples that are provided to the worldwide research community. These samples include lunar samples from the Apollo missions, meteorites collected over nearly 40 years of expeditions to Antarctica (providing samples of dozens of asteroid bodies, the Moon, and Mars), Genesis solar wind samples, cosmic dust collected by NASA's high altitude airplanes, Comet Wild 2 and interstellar dust samples from the Stardust mission, and asteroid samples from JAXA's Hayabusa mission. A full account of NASA's curation efforts for these collections is provided by Allen, et al [1]. On average, we annually allocate about 1500 individual samples from NASA's astromaterials collections to hundreds of researchers from around the world, including graduate students and post-doctoral scientists; our allocation rate has roughly doubled over the past 10 years. The curation protocols developed for the lunar samples returned from the Apollo missions remain relevant and are adapted to new and future missions. Several lessons from the Apollo missions, including the need for early involvement of curation scientists in mission planning [1], have been applied to all subsequent sample return campaigns. From the 2013 National Academy of Sciences report [2]: "Curation is the critical interface between sample return missions and laboratory research. Proper curation has maintained the scientific integrity and utility of the Apollo, Antarctic meteorite, and cosmic dust collections for decades. Each of these collections continues to yield important new science. In the past decade, new state-of-the-art curatorial facilities for the Genesis and Stardust missions were key to the scientific breakthroughs provided by these missions." The results speak for themselves: research on NASA's astromaterials result in hundreds of papers annually, yield fundamental discoveries about the evolution of the solar system (e.g. [3] and references contained therein), and serve the global scientific community as ground truth for current and planned missions such as NASA's Dawn mission to Vesta and Ceres, and the future OSIRIS REx mission to asteroid Bennu [1,3

Supporting Increased Autonomy for a Mars Rover

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Estlin, Tara; Castano, Rebecca; Gaines, Dan; Bornstein, Ben; Judd, Michele; Anderson, Robert C.; Nesnas, Issa

2008-01-01

This paper presents an architecture and a set of technology for performing autonomous science and commanding for a planetary rover. The MER rovers have outperformed all expectations by lasting over 1100 sols (or Martian days), which is an order of magnitude longer than their original mission goal. The longevity of these vehicles will have significant effects on future mission goals, such as objectives for the Mars Science Laboratory rover mission (scheduled to fly in 2009) and the Astrobiology Field Lab rover mission (scheduled to potentially fly in 2016). Common objectives for future rover missions to Mars include the handling of opportunistic science, long-range or multi-sol driving, and onboard fault diagnosis and recovery. To handle these goals, a number of new technologies have been developed and integrated as part of the CLARAty architecture. CLARAty is a unified and reusable robotic architecture that was designed to simplify the integration, testing and maturation of robotic technologies for future missions. This paper focuses on technology comprising the CLARAty Decision Layer, which was designed to support and validate high-level autonomy technologies, such as automated planning and scheduling and onboard data analysis.

A look towards the future in the handling of space science mission geometry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Acton, Charles; Bachman, Nathaniel; Semenov, Boris; Wright, Edward

2018-01-01

The "SPICE" system has been widely used since the days of the Magellan mission to Venus as the method for scientists and engineers to access a variety of space mission geometry such as positions, velocities, directions, orientations, sizes and shapes, and field-of-view projections (Acton, 1996). While originally focused on supporting NASA's planetary missions, the use of SPICE has slowly grown to include most worldwide planetary missions, and it has also been finding application in heliophysics and other space science disciplines. This paper peeks under the covers to see what new capabilities are being developed or planned at SPICE headquarters to better support the future of space science. The SPICE system is implemented and maintained by NASA's Navigation and Ancillary Information Facility (NAIF) located at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California (http://naif.jpl.nasa.gov).

LaRC 20-Year Center Revitalization Plan

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mangum, Cathy H.; Harris, Charles E.; Allen, Cheryl L.; Craft, Stephen J.; Hope, Drew J.; Kegelman, Jerome T.; Mastaler, Michael D; Weiser, Erik S.

2012-01-01

LaRC has developed a 20-Year Center Revitalization Plan. The objective of this plan is to assure that the center infrastructure is sustainable for the long-term and that the center will have the essential facilities and laboratories to execute the future NASA mission. The plan was developed by a centerwide team, VITAL, and was approved by the Center Leadership Council (CLC) in March 2012. The revitalization plan will be implemented through the Center Master Planning process.

Development of a Crosslink Channel Simulator

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hunt, Chris; Smith, Carl; Burns, Rich

2004-01-01

Distributed Spacecraft missions are an integral part of current and future plans for NASA and other space agencies. Many of these multi-vehicle missions involve utilizing the array of spacecraft as a single, instrument requiring communication via crosslinks to achieve mission goals. NASA s Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) is developing the Formation Flying Test Bed (FFTB) to provide a hardware-in-the-loop simulation environment to support mission concept development and system trades with a primary focus on Guidance, Navigation, and Control (GN&C) challenges associated with spacecraft flying. The goal of the FFTB is to reduce mission risk by assisting in mission planning and analysis, provide a technology development platform that allows algorithms to be developed for mission functions such as precision formation navigation and control and time synchronization. The FFTB will provide a medium in which the various crosslink transponders being used in multi-vehicle missions can be integrated for development and test; an integral part of the FFTB is the Crosslink Channel Simulator (CCS). The CCS is placed into the communications channel between the crosslinks under test, and is used to simulate on-mission effects to the communications channel such as vehicle maneuvers, relative vehicle motion, or antenna misalignment. The CCS is based on the Starlight software programmable platform developed at General Dynamics Decision Systems and provides the CCS with the ability to be modified on the fly to adapt to new crosslink formats or mission parameters. This paper briefly describes the Formation Flying Test Bed and its potential uses. It then provides details on the current and future development of the Crosslink Channel Simulator and its capabilities.

Addressing Human System Risks to Future Space Exploration

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Paloski, W. H.; Francisco, D. R.; Davis, J. R.

2015-01-01

NASA is contemplating future human exploration missions to destinations beyond low Earth orbit, including the Moon, deep-space asteroids, and Mars. While we have learned much about protecting crew health and performance during orbital space flight over the past half-century, the challenges of these future missions far exceed those within our current experience base. To ensure success in these missions, we have developed a Human System Risk Board (HSRB) to identify, quantify, and develop mitigation plans for the extraordinary risks associated with each potential mission scenario. The HSRB comprises research, technology, and operations experts in medicine, physiology, psychology, human factors, radiation, toxicology, microbiology, pharmacology, and food sciences. Methods: Owing to the wide range of potential mission characteristics, we first identified the hazards to human health and performance common to all exploration missions: altered gravity, isolation/confinement, increased radiation, distance from Earth, and hostile/closed environment. Each hazard leads to a set of risks to crew health and/or performance. For example the radiation hazard leads to risks of acute radiation syndrome, central nervous system dysfunction, soft tissue degeneration, and carcinogenesis. Some of these risks (e.g., acute radiation syndrome) could affect crew health or performance during the mission, while others (e.g., carcinogenesis) would more likely affect the crewmember well after the mission ends. We next defined a set of design reference missions (DRM) that would span the range of exploration missions currently under consideration. In addition to standard (6-month) and long-duration (1-year) missions in low Earth orbit (LEO), these DRM include deep space sortie missions of 1 month duration, lunar orbital and landing missions of 1 year duration, deep space journey and asteroid landing missions of 1 year duration, and Mars orbital and landing missions of 3 years duration. We then assessed the likelihood and consequences of each risk against each DRM, using three levels of likelihood (Low: less than or equal to 0.1%; Medium: 0.1%–1.0%; High: greater than or equal to 1.0%) and four levels of consequence ranging from Very Low (temporary or insignificant) to High (death, loss of mission, or significant reduction to length or quality of life). Quantitative evidence from clinical, operational, and research sources were used whenever available. Qualitative evidence was used when quantitative evidence was unavailable. Expert opinion was used whenever insufficient evidence was available. Results: A set of 30 risks emerged that will require further mitigation efforts before being accepted by the Agency. The likelihood by consequence risk assessment process provided a means of prioritizing among the risks identified. For each of the high priority risks, a plan was developed to perform research, technology, or standards development thought necessary to provide suitable reduction of likelihood or consequence to allow agency acceptance. Conclusion: The HSRB process has successfully identified a complete set of risks to human space travelers on planned exploration missions based on the best evidence available today. Risk mitigation plans have been established for the highest priority risks. Each risk will be reassessed annually to track the progress of our risk mitigation efforts.

Low/Medium Density Biomass, Coastal and Ocean Carbon: A Carbon Cycle Mission

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Esper, Jaime; Gervin, Jan; Kirchman, Frank; Middleton, Elizabeth; Knox, Robert; Gregg, Watson; Mannino, Antonio; McClain, Charles; Herman, Jay; Hall, Forrest

2003-01-01

As part of the Global Carbon Cycle research effort, an agency-wide planning initiative was organized between October 2000 and June 2001 by the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) at the behest of the Associate Administrator for Earth Science. The goal was to define future research and technology development activities needed for implementing a cohesive scientific observation plan. A timeline for development of missions necessary to acquire the selected new measurements was laid out, and included missions for low - medium density terrestrial biomass / coastal ocean / and ocean carbon. This paper will begin with the scientific justification and measurement requirements for these specific activities, explore the options for having separate or combined missions, and follow-up with an implementation study centered on a hyperspectral imager at geosynchronous altitudes.

Cooling Technology for Large Space Telescopes

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

DiPirro, Michael; Cleveland, Paul; Durand, Dale; Klavins, Andy; Muheim, Daniella; Paine, Christopher; Petach, Mike; Tenerelli, Domenick; Tolomeo, Jason; Walyus, Keith

2007-01-01

NASA's New Millennium Program funded an effort to develop a system cooling technology, which is applicable to all future infrared, sub-millimeter and millimeter cryogenic space telescopes. In particular, this technology is necessary for the proposed large space telescope Single Aperture Far-Infrared Telescope (SAFIR) mission. This technology will also enhance the performance and lower the risk and cost for other cryogenic missions. The new paradigm for cooling to low temperatures will involve passive cooling using lightweight deployable membranes that serve both as sunshields and V-groove radiators, in combination with active cooling using mechanical coolers operating down to 4 K. The Cooling Technology for Large Space Telescopes (LST) mission planned to develop and demonstrate a multi-layered sunshield, which is actively cooled by a multi-stage mechanical cryocooler, and further the models and analyses critical to scaling to future missions. The outer four layers of the sunshield cool passively by radiation, while the innermost layer is actively cooled to enable the sunshield to decrease the incident solar irradiance by a factor of more than one million. The cryocooler cools the inner layer of the sunshield to 20 K, and provides cooling to 6 K at a telescope mounting plate. The technology readiness level (TRL) of 7 will be achieved by the active cooling technology following the technology validation flight in Low Earth Orbit. In accordance with the New Millennium charter, tests and modeling are tightly integrated to advance the technology and the flight design for "ST-class" missions. Commercial off-the-shelf engineering analysis products are used to develop validated modeling capabilities to allow the techniques and results from LST to apply to a wide variety of future missions. The LST mission plans to "rewrite the book" on cryo-thermal testing and modeling techniques, and validate modeling techniques to scale to future space telescopes such as SAFIR.

Accounting for Epistemic Uncertainty in Mission Supportability Assessment: A Necessary Step in Understanding Risk and Logistics Requirements

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Owens, Andrew; De Weck, Olivier L.; Stromgren, Chel; Goodliff, Kandyce; Cirillo, William

2017-01-01

Future crewed missions to Mars present a maintenance logistics challenge that is unprecedented in human spaceflight. Mission endurance – defined as the time between resupply opportunities – will be significantly longer than previous missions, and therefore logistics planning horizons are longer and the impact of uncertainty is magnified. Maintenance logistics forecasting typically assumes that component failure rates are deterministically known and uses them to represent aleatory uncertainty, or uncertainty that is inherent to the process being examined. However, failure rates cannot be directly measured; rather, they are estimated based on similarity to other components or statistical analysis of observed failures. As a result, epistemic uncertainty – that is, uncertainty in knowledge of the process – exists in failure rate estimates that must be accounted for. Analyses that neglect epistemic uncertainty tend to significantly underestimate risk. Epistemic uncertainty can be reduced via operational experience; for example, the International Space Station (ISS) failure rate estimates are refined using a Bayesian update process. However, design changes may re-introduce epistemic uncertainty. Thus, there is a tradeoff between changing a design to reduce failure rates and operating a fixed design to reduce uncertainty. This paper examines the impact of epistemic uncertainty on maintenance logistics requirements for future Mars missions, using data from the ISS Environmental Control and Life Support System (ECLS) as a baseline for a case study. Sensitivity analyses are performed to investigate the impact of variations in failure rate estimates and epistemic uncertainty on spares mass. The results of these analyses and their implications for future system design and mission planning are discussed.

Automated and Adaptive Mission Planning for Orbital Express

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chouinard, Caroline; Knight, Russell; Jones, Grailing; Tran, Daniel; Koblick, Darin

2008-01-01

The Orbital Express space mission was a Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) lead demonstration of on-orbit satellite servicing scenarios, autonomous rendezvous, fluid transfers of hydrazine propellant, and robotic arm transfers of Orbital Replacement Unit (ORU) components. Boeing's Autonomous Space Transport Robotic Operations (ASTRO) vehicle provided the servicing to the Ball Aerospace's Next Generation Serviceable Satellite (NextSat) client. For communication opportunities, operations used the high-bandwidth ground-based Air Force Satellite Control Network (AFSCN) along with the relatively low-bandwidth GEO-Synchronous space-borne Tracking and Data Relay Satellite System (TDRSS) network. Mission operations were conducted out of the RDT&E Support Complex (RSC) at the Kirtland Air Force Base in New Mexico. All mission objectives were met successfully: The first of several autonomous rendezvous was demonstrated on May 5, 2007; autonomous free-flyer capture was demonstrated on June 22, 2007; the fluid and ORU transfers throughout the mission were successful. Planning operations for the mission were conducted by a team of personnel including Flight Directors, who were responsible for verifying the steps and contacts within the procedures, the Rendezvous Planners who would compute the locations and visibilities of the spacecraft, the Scenario Resource Planners (SRPs), who were concerned with assignment of communications windows, monitoring of resources, and sending commands to the ASTRO spacecraft, and the Mission planners who would interface with the real-time operations environment, process planning products and coordinate activities with the SRP. The SRP position was staffed by JPL personnel who used the Automated Scheduling and Planning ENvironment (ASPEN) to model and enforce mission and satellite constraints. The lifecycle of a plan began three weeks outside its execution on-board. During the planning timeframe, many aspects could change the plan, causing the need for re-planning. These variable factors, ranging from shifting contact times to ground-station closures and required maintenance times, are discussed along with the flexibility of the ASPEN tool to accommodate changes to procedures and the daily or long-range plan, which contributed to the success of the mission. This paper will present an introduction to ASPEN, a more in-depth discussion on its use on the Orbital Express mission, and other relative work. A description of ground operations after the SRP deliveries were made is included, and we briefly discuss lessons learned from the planning perspective and future work.

Serving future transportation needs : succession planning for a state department of transportation organization, its people & mission.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2011-06-01

This project will examine the employment of people who accomplish the work of the Department of Transportation & Public Facilities : (AKDOT&PF) those who will serve the future transportation needs of Alaska. The study will focus primarily on prof...

Intelligent Systems Technologies for Ops

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Smith, Ernest E.; Korsmeyer, David J.

2012-01-01

As NASA supports International Space Station assembly complete operations through 2020 (or later) and prepares for future human exploration programs, there is additional emphasis in the manned spaceflight program to find more efficient and effective ways of providing the ground-based mission support. Since 2006 this search for improvement has led to a significant cross-fertilization between the NASA advanced software development community and the manned spaceflight operations community. A variety of mission operations systems and tools have been developed over the past decades as NASA has operated the Mars robotic missions, the Space Shuttle, and the International Space Station. NASA Ames Research Center has been developing and applying its advanced intelligent systems research to mission operations tools for both unmanned Mars missions operations since 2001 and to manned operations with NASA Johnson Space Center since 2006. In particular, the fundamental advanced software development work under the Exploration Technology Program, and the experience and capabilities developed for mission operations systems for the Mars surface missions, (Spirit/Opportunity, Phoenix Lander, and MSL) have enhanced the development and application of advanced mission operation systems for the International Space Station and future spacecraft. This paper provides an update on the status of the development and deployment of a variety of intelligent systems technologies adopted for manned mission operations, and some discussion of the planned work for Autonomous Mission Operations in future human exploration. We discuss several specific projects between the Ames Research Center and the Johnson Space Centers Mission Operations Directorate, and how these technologies and projects are enhancing the mission operations support for the International Space Station, and supporting the current Autonomous Mission Operations Project for the mission operation support of the future human exploration programs.

Heavy cosmic-ray exposure of Apollo astronauts.

PubMed

Benton, E V; Henke, R P; Bailey, J V

1975-01-24

A comprehensive study of the heavy-particle cosmic-ray exposure received by the individual astronauts during the nine lunar Apollo missions reveals a significant variation in the exposure as a function of shielding and the phase of the solar cycle. The data are useful in planning for future long-range missions and in estimating the expected biological damage.

Brookhaven National Laboratory Institutional Plan FY2001--FY2005

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Davis, S.

Brookhaven National Laboratory is a multidisciplinary laboratory in the Department of Energy National Laboratory system and plays a lead role in the DOE Science and Technology mission. The Laboratory also contributes to the DOE missions in Energy Resources, Environmental Quality, and National Security. Brookhaven strives for excellence in its science research and in facility operations and manages its activities with particular sensitivity to environmental and community issues. The Laboratory's programs are aligned continuously with the goals and objectives of the DOE through an Integrated Planning Process. This Institutional Plan summarizes the portfolio of research and capabilities that will assure successmore » in the Laboratory's mission in the future. It also sets forth BNL strategies for our programs and for management of the Laboratory. The Department of Energy national laboratory system provides extensive capabilities in both world class research expertise and unique facilities that cannot exist without federal support. Through these national resources, which are available to researchers from industry, universities, other government agencies and other nations, the Department advances the energy, environmental, economic and national security well being of the US, provides for the international advancement of science, and educates future scientists and engineers.« less

High performance techniques for space mission scheduling

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Smith, Stephen F.

1994-01-01

In this paper, we summarize current research at Carnegie Mellon University aimed at development of high performance techniques and tools for space mission scheduling. Similar to prior research in opportunistic scheduling, our approach assumes the use of dynamic analysis of problem constraints as a basis for heuristic focusing of problem solving search. This methodology, however, is grounded in representational assumptions more akin to those adopted in recent temporal planning research, and in a problem solving framework which similarly emphasizes constraint posting in an explicitly maintained solution constraint network. These more general representational assumptions are necessitated by the predominance of state-dependent constraints in space mission planning domains, and the consequent need to integrate resource allocation and plan synthesis processes. First, we review the space mission problems we have considered to date and indicate the results obtained in these application domains. Next, we summarize recent work in constraint posting scheduling procedures, which offer the promise of better future solutions to this class of problems.

Performance Testing of Yardney Li-Ion Cells and Batteries in Support of Future NASA Missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Smart, M. C.; Ratnakumar, B. V.; Whitcanack, L. D.; Puglia, F. J.; Santee, S.; Gitzendanner, R.

2009-01-01

NASA requires lightweight rechargeable batteries for future missions to Mars and the outer planets that are capable of operating over a wide range of temperatures, with high specific energy and energy densities. Due to the attractive performance characteristics, Li-ion batteries have been identified as the battery chemistry of choice for a number of future applications. For example, JPL is planning to launch another unmanned rover mission to the planet Mars. This mission, referred to as the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL), will involve the use of a rover that is much larger than the previously developed Spirit and Opportunity Rovers for the 2003 Mars Exploration Rover (MER) mission, that are currently still in operation on the surface of the planet after more than five years. Part of the reason that the MER rovers have operated so successfully, far exceeding the required mission duration of 90 sols, is that they possess robust Li-ion batteries, manufactured by Yardney Technical Products, which have demonstrated excellent life characteristics. Given the excellent performance characteristics displayed, similar Li-ion batteries have been projected to successfully meet the mission requirements of the up-coming MSL mission. In addition to future missions to Mars, Li-ion technology is attractive for a number of other future NASA applications which require high specific energy, rechargeable batteries. To ascertain the viability of using Li-ion batteries for these applications, a number of performance validation tests have been performed on both Yardney cells and batteries of various sizes. These tests include mission simulation tests, charge and discharge rate characterization testing, cycle life testing under various conditions, and storage testing.

Planned Environmental Microbiology Aspects of Future Lunar and Mars Missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ott, C. Mark; Castro, Victoria A.; Pierson, Duane L.

2006-01-01

With the establishment of the Constellation Program, NASA has initiated efforts designed similar to the Apollo Program to return to the moon and subsequently travel to Mars. Early lunar sorties will take 4 crewmembers to the moon for 4 to 7 days. Later missions will increase in duration up to 6 months as a lunar habitat is constructed. These missions and vehicle designs are the forerunners of further missions destined for human exploration of Mars. Throughout the planning and design process, lessons learned from the International Space Station (ISS) and past programs will be implemented toward future exploration goals. The standards and requirements for these missions will vary depending on life support systems, mission duration, crew activities, and payloads. From a microbiological perspective, preventative measures will remain the primary techniques to mitigate microbial risk. Thus, most of the effort will focus on stringent preflight monitoring requirements and engineering controls designed into the vehicle, such as HEPA air filters. Due to volume constraints in the CEV, in-flight monitoring will be limited for short-duration missions to the measurement of biocide concentration for water potability. Once long-duration habitation begins on the lunar surface, a more extensive environmental monitoring plan will be initiated. However, limited in-flight volume constraints and the inability to return samples to Earth will increase the need for crew capabilities in determining the nature of contamination problems and method of remediation. In addition, limited shelf life of current monitoring hardware consumables and limited capabilities to dispose of biohazardous trash will drive flight hardware toward non-culture based methodologies, such as hardware that rapidly distinguishes biotic versus abiotic surface contamination. As missions progress to Mars, environmental systems will depend heavily on regeneration of air and water and biological waste remediation and regeneration systems, increasing the need for environmental monitoring. Almost complete crew autonomy will be needed for assessment and remediation of contamination problems. Cabin capacity will be limited; thus, current methods of microbial monitoring will be inadequate. Future methodology must limit consumables, and these consumables must have a shelf life of over three years. In summary, missions to the moon and Mars will require a practical design that prudently uses available resources to mitigate microbial risk to the crew.

Medical System Concept of Operations for Mars Exploration Missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Urbina, Michelle; Rubin, D.; Hailey, M.; Reyes, D.; Antonsen, Eric

2017-01-01

Future exploration missions will be the first time humanity travels beyond Low Earth Orbit (LEO) since the Apollo program, taking us to cis-lunar space, interplanetary space, and Mars. These long-duration missions will cover vast distances, severely constraining opportunities for emergency evacuation to Earth and cargo resupply opportunities. Communication delays and blackouts between the crew and Mission Control will eliminate reliable, real-time telemedicine consultations. As a result, compared to current LEO operations onboard the International Space Station, exploration mission medical care requires an integrated medical system that provides additional in-situ capabilities and a significant increase in crew autonomy. The Medical System Concept of Operations for Mars Exploration Missions illustrates how a future NASA Mars program could ensure appropriate medical care for the crew of this highly autonomous mission. This Concept of Operations document, when complete, will document all mission phases through a series of mission use case scenarios that illustrate required medical capabilities, enabling the NASA Human Research Program (HRP) Exploration Medical Capability (ExMC) Element to plan, design, and prototype an integrated medical system to support human exploration to Mars.

Serving future transportation needs : succession planning for a state department of transportation organization, its people & mission. [Executive summary].

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2011-06-01

This project will examine the employment of people who accomplish the work of the Department of Transportation & Public Facilities : (AKDOT&PF) those who will serve the future transportation needs of Alaska. The study will focus primarily on prof...

The NASA Ground Network Vision for the Future

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Clson, Roger N.; Matalavage, Jill E.; Taylor, David A.

2008-01-01

This paper will highlight the GN's mission, motivation, and future plans, specifically in relation to the increase of commercialization for routine services and partnership opportunities for routine and unique services with the goal that other agencies can benefit from our approach as they pursue their science and exploration goals.

Mars: 2010 - 2020

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Li, Fuk K.

2006-01-01

This slide presentation reviews the Mars Exploration program for the current decade and beyond. The potential items for procurements for the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) are discussed, as well as future technology investments to enable to continued development of exploration of Mars by rovers and orbiters that are planned and envisioned for future missions.

Lunar Exploration and Science in ESA

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Carpenter, James; Houdou, Bérengère; Fisackerly, Richard; De Rosa, Diego; Patti, Bernardo; Schiemann, Jens; Hufenbach, Bernhard; Foing, Bernard

2014-05-01

ESA seeks to provide Europe with access to the lunar surface, and allow Europeans to benefit from the opening up of this new frontier, as part of a global endeavor. This will be best achieved through an exploration programme which combines the strengths and capabilities of both robotic and human explorers. ESA is preparing for future participation in lunar exploration through a combination of human and robotic activities, in cooperation with international partners. Future planned activities include the contribution of key technological capabilities to the Russian led robotic missions, Luna-Glob, Luna-Resurs orbiter and Luna-Resurs lander. For the Luna-Resurs lander ESA will provide analytical capabilities to compliment the already selected Russian led payload, focusing on the composition and isotopic abundances of lunar volatiles in polar regions. This should be followed by the contributions at the level of mission elements to a Lunar Polar Sample Return mission. This partnership will provide access for European investigators to the opportunities offered by the Russian led instruments on the missions, as well as providing Europe with a unique opportunity to characterize and utilize polar volatile populations. Ultimately samples of high scientific value, from as of yet unexplored and unsampled locations shall be made available to the scientific community. These robotic activities are being performed with a view to enabling a future more comprehensive programme in which robotic and human activities are integrated to provide the maximum benefits from lunar surface access. Activities on the ISS and ESA participation to the US led Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle, which is planned for a first unmanned lunar flight in 2017, are also important steps towards achieving this. All of these activities are performed with a view to generating the technologies, capabilities, knowledge and heritage that will make Europe an indispensable partner in the exploration missions of the future.

Mission Options Scoping Tool for Mars Orbiters: Mass Cost Calculator (MC2)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sturm, Eric J., II; Deutsch, Marie-Jose; Harmon, Corey; Nakagawa, Roy; Kinsey, Robert; Lopez, Nino; Kudrle, Paul; Evans, Alex

2007-01-01

Prior to developing the details of an advanced mission study, the mission architecture trade space is typically explored to assess the scope of feasible options. This paper describes the main features of an Excel-based tool, called the Mass-Cost-Calculator (MC2 ), which is used to perform rapid, high-level mass and cost options analyses of Mars orbiter missions. MC2 consists of a combination of databases, analytical solutions, and parametric relationships to enable quick evaluation of new mission concepts and comparison of multiple architecture options. The tool's outputs provide program management and planning teams with answers to "what if" queries, as well as an understanding of the driving mission elements, during the pre-project planning phase. These outputs have been validated against the outputs generated by the Advanced Projects Design Team (Team X) at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). The architecture of the tool allows for future expansion to other orbiters beyond Mars, and to non-orbiter missions, such as those involving fly-by spacecraft, probes, landers, rovers, or other mission elements.

Organic Contamination Baseline Study on NASA JSC Astromaterial Curation Gloveboxes

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Calaway, Michael J.; Allton, J. H.; Allen, C. C.; Burkett, P. J.

2013-01-01

Future planned sample return missions to carbon-rich asteroids and Mars in the next two decades will require strict handling and curation protocols as well as new procedures for reducing organic contamination. After the Apollo program, astromaterial collections have mainly been concerned with inorganic contamination [1-4]. However, future isolation containment systems for astromaterials, possibly nitrogen enriched gloveboxes, must be able to reduce organic and inorganic cross-contamination. In 2012, a baseline study was orchestrated to establish the current state of organic cleanliness in gloveboxes used by NASA JSC astromaterials curation labs that could be used as a benchmark for future mission designs.

Tank System Integrated Model: A Cryogenic Tank Performance Prediction Program

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bolshinskiy, L. G.; Hedayat, A.; Hastings, L. J.; Sutherlin, S. G.; Schnell, A. R.; Moder, J. P.

2017-01-01

Accurate predictions of the thermodynamic state of the cryogenic propellants, pressurization rate, and performance of pressure control techniques in cryogenic tanks are required for development of cryogenic fluid long-duration storage technology and planning for future space exploration missions. This Technical Memorandum (TM) presents the analytical tool, Tank System Integrated Model (TankSIM), which can be used for modeling pressure control and predicting the behavior of cryogenic propellant for long-term storage for future space missions. Utilizing TankSIM, the following processes can be modeled: tank self-pressurization, boiloff, ullage venting, mixing, and condensation on the tank wall. This TM also includes comparisons of TankSIM program predictions with the test data andexamples of multiphase mission calculations.

Radioisotope Power Systems Program: A Program Overview

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hamley, John A.

2016-01-01

NASA's Radioisotope Power Systems (RPS) Program continues to plan, mature research in energy conversion, and partners with the Department of Energy (DOE) to make RPS ready and available to support the exploration of the solar system in environments where the use of conventional solar or chemical power generation is impractical or impossible to meet potential future mission needs. Recent programs responsibilities include providing investment recommendations to NASA stakeholders on emerging thermoelectric and Stirling energy conversion technologies and insight on NASA investments at DOE in readying a generator for the Mars 2020 mission. This presentation provides an overview of the RPS Program content and status and the approach used to maintain the readiness of RPS to support potential future NASA missions.

NEEMO 21: Tools, Techniques, Technologies & Training for Science Exploration EVA

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Graff, Trevor

2016-01-01

The 21st mission of the NASA Extreme Environment Mission Operations (NEEMO) was a highly integrated operational test and evaluation of tools, techniques, technologies, and training for science driven exploration during Extravehicular Activity (EVA).The 16-day mission was conducted from the Aquarius habitat, an underwater laboratory, off the coast of Key Largo, FL. The unique facility, authentic science objectives, and diverse skill-sets of the crew/team facilitate the planning and design for future space exploration.

Animal experimentation in Spacelab - Present and future U.S. plans

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Berry, W. E.; Dant, C. C.

1983-01-01

Current development of life-sciences hardware and experiments for the fourth Spacelab mission in the Life Sciences Flight Experiments Program at NASA Ames is reviewed. The research-animal holding facility, the general-purpose work station, and the life sciences laboratory equipment are characterized, and the 14 Ames projects accepted for the mission are listed and discussed. Several hardware systems and experimental procedures will be verified on the Spacelab-3 mission scheduled for late 1984.

Maximized exoEarth candidate yields for starshades

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stark, Christopher C.; Shaklan, Stuart; Lisman, Doug; Cady, Eric; Savransky, Dmitry; Roberge, Aki; Mandell, Avi M.

2016-10-01

The design and scale of a future mission to directly image and characterize potentially Earth-like planets will be impacted, to some degree, by the expected yield of such planets. Recent efforts to increase the estimated yields, by creating observation plans optimized for the detection and characterization of Earth-twins, have focused solely on coronagraphic instruments; starshade-based missions could benefit from a similar analysis. Here we explore how to prioritize observations for a starshade given the limiting resources of both fuel and time, present analytic expressions to estimate fuel use, and provide efficient numerical techniques for maximizing the yield of starshades. We implemented these techniques to create an approximate design reference mission code for starshades and used this code to investigate how exoEarth candidate yield responds to changes in mission, instrument, and astrophysical parameters for missions with a single starshade. We find that a starshade mission operates most efficiently somewhere between the fuel- and exposuretime-limited regimes and, as a result, is less sensitive to photometric noise sources as well as parameters controlling the photon collection rate in comparison to a coronagraph. We produced optimistic yield curves for starshades, assuming our optimized observation plans are schedulable and future starshades are not thrust-limited. Given these yield curves, detecting and characterizing several dozen exoEarth candidates requires either multiple starshades or an η≳0.3.

Psychosocial issues in space: future challenges.

PubMed

Sandal, G M

2001-06-01

As the duration of space flights increases and crews become more heterogeneous, psychosocial factors are likely to play an increasingly important role in determining mission success. The operations of the International Space Station and planning of interplanetary missions represent important future challenges for how to select, train and monitor crews. So far, empirical evidence about psychological factors in space is based on simulations and personnel in analog environments (i.e. polar expeditions, submarines). It is apparent that attempts to transfer from these environments to space requires a thorough analysis of the human behavior specific to the fields. Recommendations for research include the effects of multi-nationality on crew interaction, development of tension within crews and between Mission Control, and prediction of critical phases in adaptation over time. Selection of interpersonally compatible crews, pre-mission team training and implementation of tools for self-monitoring of psychological parameters ensure that changes in mission requirements maximize crew performance.

Predictive Modeling of the CDRA 4BMS

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Coker, Robert F.; Knox, James C.

2016-01-01

As part of NASA's Advanced Exploration Systems (AES) program and the Life Support Systems Project (LSSP), fully predictive models of the Four Bed Molecular Sieve (4BMS) of the Carbon Dioxide Removal Assembly (CDRA) on the International Space Station (ISS) are being developed. This virtual laboratory will be used to help reduce mass, power, and volume requirements for future missions. In this paper we describe current and planned modeling developments in the area of carbon dioxide removal to support future crewed Mars missions as well as the resolution of anomalies observed in the ISS CDRA.

Analogue Simulation of human and psychosocial factors for MoonMars bases

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Davidová, Lucie; Foing, Bernard

2017-04-01

Several courageous plans regarding future human space exploration have been proposed. Both main future targets, ESA's Moon village, as well as journey to Mars represent huge challenge for humans. Appropriate research on psychological aspects of humans in extreme conditions is needed. Analogue simulations represent valuable source of information that help us to understand how to provide an adequate support to astronauts in specific conditions of isolation and limited resources. The psychosocial investigation was designed to builds on combination of several methods based on subjective as well as objective assessments, namely observation, sociomapping, content analysis of interviews etc. Research on several simulations provided lessons learned and various insights. The attention was paid particularly to the interpersonal interactions among crew members, intragroup as well as intergroup communication, cooperation, and performance. This comprehensive approach enables early detection of hidden structures and potential insufficiencies of an astronaut team. The sociomapping of interpersonal communication as well as analysis of interviews with participants revealed insufficiencies especially in communication between the analogue astronauts and mission control. Another important finding was gain by investigation of the relationship between the astronaut crew and mission control. Astronauts low trust to mission control can have a great negative impact to the performance and well-being of astronauts. The findings of the psychosocial studies are very important for designing astronaut training and planning future mission.

A Vision for the Future: Henry G. Bennett Memorial Library, Southeastern Oklahoma State University Strategic Plan, 2002-2007.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Davis, Dorothy

This document presents the five-year strategic plan developed by the library director, staff, and the Library Committee for the Henry G. Bennett Memorial Library, Southeastern Oklahoma State University. The goal of this plan is to provide a framework that the library can use to focus energy and resources in fulfilling the mission of the library…

Solar Terrestrial programs: A five year plan

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Stern, D. P.

1978-01-01

Major projects to be initiated in the 1980-1985 period, designed to study the Sun, the heliosphere, Earth's magnetosphere, and the upper atmosphere involve the use of spacelab as well as free flying spacecraft. Current and recent investigations in these areas are reviewed and the guiding principles followed in planning future missions are examined. The implementation strategy, the planning process, and supporting research and technology are discussed.

Solar Electric Propulsion Vehicle Demonstration to Support Future Space Exploration Missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Smith, Bryan K.; Nazario, Margaret L.; Cunningham, Cameron C.

2012-01-01

Human and robotic exploration beyond Low Earth Orbit (LEO) will require enabling capabilities that are efficient, affordable, and reliable. Solar Electric Propulsion (SEP) is highly advantageous because of its favorable in-space mass transfer efficiency compared to traditional chemical propulsion systems. The NASA studies have demonstrated that this advantage becomes highly significant as missions progress beyond Earth orbit. Recent studies of human exploration missions and architectures evaluated the capabilities needed to perform a variety of human exploration missions including missions to Near Earth Objects (NEOs). The studies demonstrated that SEP stages have potential to be the most cost effective solution to perform beyond LEO transfers of high mass cargoes for human missions. Recognizing that these missions require power levels more than 10X greater than current electric propulsion systems, NASA embarked upon a progressive pathway to identify critical technologies needed and a plan for an incremental demonstration mission. The NASA studies identified a 30kW class demonstration mission that can serve as a meaningful demonstration of the technologies, operational challenges, and provide the appropriate scaling and modularity required. This paper describes the planning options for a representative demonstration 30kW class SEP mission.

Swarm satellite mission scheduling & planning using Hybrid Dynamic Mutation Genetic Algorithm

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zheng, Zixuan; Guo, Jian; Gill, Eberhard

2017-08-01

Space missions have traditionally been controlled by operators from a mission control center. Given the increasing number of satellites for some space missions, generating a command list for multiple satellites can be time-consuming and inefficient. Developing multi-satellite, onboard mission scheduling & planning techniques is, therefore, a key research field for future space mission operations. In this paper, an improved Genetic Algorithm (GA) using a new mutation strategy is proposed as a mission scheduling algorithm. This new mutation strategy, called Hybrid Dynamic Mutation (HDM), combines the advantages of both dynamic mutation strategy and adaptive mutation strategy, overcoming weaknesses such as early convergence and long computing time, which helps standard GA to be more efficient and accurate in dealing with complex missions. HDM-GA shows excellent performance in solving both unconstrained and constrained test functions. The experiments of using HDM-GA to simulate a multi-satellite, mission scheduling problem demonstrates that both the computation time and success rate mission requirements can be met. The results of a comparative test between HDM-GA and three other mutation strategies also show that HDM has outstanding performance in terms of speed and reliability.

The Asteroid Impact and Deflection Assessment Mission and its Potential Contributions to Human Exploration of Asteroids

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Abell, Paul A.; Rivkin, Andy S.

2014-01-01

The joint ESA and NASA Asteroid Impact and Deflection Assessment (AIDA) mission will directly address aspects of NASA's Asteroid Initiative and will contribute to future human exploration. The NASA Asteroid Initiative is comprised of two major components: the Grand Challenge and the Asteroid Mission. The first component, the Grand Challenge, focuses on protecting Earth's population from asteroid impacts by detecting potentially hazardous objects with enough warning time to either prevent them from impacting the planet, or to implement civil defense procedures. The Asteroid Mission, involves sending astronauts to study and sample a near-Earth asteroid (NEA) prior to conducting exploration missions of the Martian system, which includes Phobos and Deimos. AIDA's primary objective is to demonstrate a kinetic impact deflection and characterize the binary NEA Didymos. The science and technical data obtained from AIDA will aid in the planning of future human exploration missions to NEAs and other small bodies. The dual robotic missions of AIDA, ESA's Asteroid Impact Monitor (AIM) and NASA's Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART), will provide a great deal of technical and engineering data on spacecraft operations for future human space exploration while conducting in-depth scientific examinations of the binary target Didymos both prior to and after the kinetic impact demonstration. The knowledge gained from this mission will help identify asteroidal physical properties in order to maximize operational efficiency and reduce mission risk for future small body missions. The AIDA data will help fill crucial strategic knowledge gaps concerning asteroid physical characteristics that are relevant for human exploration considerations at similar small body destinations.

Teacher Professional Development: Lessons Learned from Six Kepler Mission Workshops

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

DeVore, Edna; Harman, P.; Gould, A.; Koch, D.

2010-01-01

NASA's Kepler Mission conducted teacher professional development workshops on the search for exoplanets in the habitable zone of Sun-like stars. During late 2008 and into 2009, six workshops were conducted surrounding the launch of the Kepler Mission. These were a part of the Kepler Mission's outreach honoring the International Year of Astronomy. Each workshop was supported by a Kepler team scientist, two Education & Public Outreach staff and local hosts. Activities combined a science content lecture and discussion, making models, kinesthetic activities, and interpretation of transit data. The emphasis was on inquiry-based instruction and supported science education standards in grades 7-12. Participants’ kit included an orrery, optical sensor and software to demonstrate transit detection. The workshop plan, teaching strategies, and lessons learned from evaluation will be discussed. The Kepler Mission teacher professional development workshops were designed using the best practices and principals from the National Science Education Standards and similar documents. Sharing the outcome of our plans, strategies and evaluation results can be of use to other Education and Public Outreach practitioners who plan similar events. In sharing our experiences, we hope to assist others, and to learn from them as well. Future events are planned. Supported by NASA Grants to the SETI Institute: NAG2-6066 Kepler Education and Public Outreach and NNX08BA74G, IYA Kepler Mission Pre-launch Workshops.

An Initial Strategy for Commercial Industry Awareness of the International Space Station

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jorgensen, Catherine A.

1999-01-01

While plans are being developed to utilize the ISS for scientific research, and human and microgravity experiments, it is time to consider the future of the ISS as a world-wide commercial marketplace developed from a government owned, operated and controlled facility. Commercial industry will be able to seize this opportunity to utilize the ISS as a unique manufacturing platform and engineering testbed for advanced technology. NASA has begun the strategic planning of the evolution and commercialization of the ISS. The Pre-Planned Program Improvement (P3I) Working Group at NASA is assessing the future ISS needs and technology plans to enhance ISS performance. Some of these enhancements will allow the accommodation of commercial applications and the Human Exploration and Development of Space mission support. As this information develops, it is essential to disseminate this information to commercial industry, targeting not only the private and public space sector but also the non-aerospace commercial industries. An approach is presented for early distribution of this information via the ISS Evolution Data book that includes ISS baseline system information, baseline utilization and operations plans, advanced technologies, future utilization opportunities, ISS evolution and Design Reference Missions (DRM). This information source and tool can be used as catalyst in the commercial world for the generation of ideas and options to enhance the current capabilities of the ISS.

Parametric Cost Modeling of Space Missions Using the Develop New Projects (DMP) Implementation Process

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rosenberg, Leigh; Hihn, Jairus; Roust, Kevin; Warfield, Keith

2000-01-01

This paper presents an overview of a parametric cost model that has been built at JPL to estimate costs of future, deep space, robotic science missions. Due to the recent dramatic changes in JPL business practices brought about by an internal reengineering effort known as develop new products (DNP), high-level historic cost data is no longer considered analogous to future missions. Therefore, the historic data is of little value in forecasting costs for projects developed using the DNP process. This has lead to the development of an approach for obtaining expert opinion and also for combining actual data with expert opinion to provide a cost database for future missions. In addition, the DNP cost model has a maximum of objective cost drivers which reduces the likelihood of model input error. Version 2 is now under development which expands the model capabilities, links it more tightly with key design technical parameters, and is grounded in more rigorous statistical techniques. The challenges faced in building this model will be discussed, as well as it's background, development approach, status, validation, and future plans.

NASA Earth Science Update with Information Science Technology

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Halem, Milton

2000-01-01

This viewgraph presentation gives an overview of NASA earth science updates with information science technology. Details are given on NASA/Earth Science Enterprise (ESE)/Goddard Space Flight Center strategic plans, ESE missions and flight programs, roles of information science, ESE goals related to the Minority University-Space Interdisciplinary Network, and future plans.

Mission operations management

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rocco, David A.

1994-01-01

Redefining the approach and philosophy that operations management uses to define, develop, and implement space missions will be a central element in achieving high efficiency mission operations for the future. The goal of a cost effective space operations program cannot be realized if the attitudes and methodologies we currently employ to plan, develop, and manage space missions do not change. A management philosophy that is in synch with the environment in terms of budget, technology, and science objectives must be developed. Changing our basic perception of mission operations will require a shift in the way we view the mission. This requires a transition from current practices of viewing the mission as a unique end product, to a 'mission development concept' built on the visualization of the end-to-end mission. To achieve this change we must define realistic mission success criteria and develop pragmatic approaches to achieve our goals. Custom mission development for all but the largest and most unique programs is not practical in the current budget environment, and we simply do not have the resources to implement all of our planned science programs. We need to shift our management focus to allow us the opportunity make use of methodologies and approaches which are based on common building blocks that can be utilized in the space, ground, and mission unique segments of all missions.

A survey of experiments and experimental facilities for active control of flexible structures

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sparks, Dean W., Jr.; Horner, Garnett C.; Juang, Jer-Nan; Klose, Gerhard

1989-01-01

A brief survey of large space structure control related experiments and facilities was presented. This survey covered experiments performed before and up to 1982, and those of the present period (1982-...). Finally, the future planned experiments and facilities in support of the control-structure interaction (CSI) program were reported. It was stated that new, improved ground test facilities are needed to verify the new CSI design techniques that will allow future space structures to perform planned NASA missions.

Habitat Concepts for Deep Space Exploration

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Smitherman, David; Griffin, Brand N.

2014-01-01

Future missions under consideration requiring human habitation beyond the International Space Station (ISS) include deep space habitats in the lunar vicinity to support asteroid retrieval missions, human and robotic lunar missions, satellite servicing, and Mars vehicle servicing missions. Habitat designs are also under consideration for missions beyond the Earth-Moon system, including transfers to near-Earth asteroids and Mars orbital destinations. A variety of habitat layouts have been considered, including those derived from the existing ISS designs and those that could be fabricated from the Space Launch System (SLS) propellant tanks. This paper presents a comparison showing several options for asteroid, lunar, and Mars mission habitats using ISS derived and SLS derived modules and identifies some of the advantages and disadvantages inherent in each. Key findings indicate that the larger SLS diameter modules offer built-in compatibility with the launch vehicle, single launch capability without on-orbit assembly, improved radiation protection, lighter structures per unit volume, and sufficient volume to accommodate consumables for long duration missions without resupply. The information provided with the findings includes mass and volume comparison data that should be helpful to future exploration mission planning efforts.

Ra: The Sun for Science and Humanity

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1996-01-01

To guide the development of the Ra Strategic Framework, we defined scientific and applications objectives. For our primary areas of scientific interest, we choose the corona, the solar wind, the Sun's effect on the Earth, and solar theory and model development. For secondary areas of scientific interest, we selected sunspots, the solar constant, the Sun's gravitational field, helioseismology and the galactic cosmic rays. We stress the importance of stereoscopic imaging, observations at high spatial, spectral, and temporal resolutions, as well as of long duration measurements. Further exploration of the Sun's polar regions is also important, as shown already by the Ulysses mission. From an applications perspective, we adopted three broad objectives that would derive complementary inputs for the Strategic Framework. These were to identify and investigate: possible application spin-offs from science missions, possible solar-terrestrial missions dedicated to a particular application, and possible future applications that require technology development. The Sun can be viewed as both a source of resources and of threats. Our principal applications focus was that of threat mitigation, by examining ways to improve solar threat monitoring and early warning systems. We compared these objectives to the mission objectives of past, current, and planned international solar missions. Past missions (1962-1980) seem to have been focused on improvement of scientific knowledge, using multiple instrument spacecraft. A ten year gap followed this period, during which the results from previous missions were analyzed and solar study programmes were prepared in international organizations. Current missions (1990-1996) focus on particular topics such as the corona, solar flares, and coronal mass ejections. In planned missions, Sun/Earth interactions and environmental effects of solar activity are becoming more important. The corona is the centre of interest of almost all planned missions. It seems that no international long-term strategy has yet been adopted. For these plans the number of necessary future missions can be reduced and the onboard instrumentation can be optimized by performing a comparative analysis. The study of the corona must be done from different observing locations, orbits closer to the Sun, and by different means. The Cluster mission replacement is in progress; however, if the replacement is not implemented, the ISTP programme will fade after 1998. Furthermore, the physics of the Sun's interior should be emphasized more in the Mid- and Far-Term programmes. Finally, more emphasis should be placed on monitoring space weather and forecasting Sun/Earth interactions.

SpaceOps 1992: Proceedings of the Second International Symposium on Ground Data Systems for Space Mission Operations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1993-01-01

The Second International Symposium featured 135 oral presentations in these 12 categories: Future Missions and Operations; System-Level Architectures; Mission-Specific Systems; Mission and Science Planning and Sequencing; Mission Control; Operations Automation and Emerging Technologies; Data Acquisition; Navigation; Operations Support Services; Engineering Data Analysis of Space Vehicle and Ground Systems; Telemetry Processing, Mission Data Management, and Data Archiving; and Operations Management. Topics focused on improvements in the productivity, effectiveness, efficiency, and quality of mission operations, ground systems, and data acquisition. Also emphasized were accomplishments in management of human factors; use of information systems to improve data retrieval, reporting, and archiving; design and implementation of logistics support for mission operations; and the use of telescience and teleoperations.

NASA Technology Demonstrations Missions Program Overview

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Turner, Susan

2011-01-01

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Fiscal Year 2010 (FY10) budget introduced a new strategic plan that placed renewed emphasis on advanced missions beyond Earth orbit. This supports NASA s 2011 strategic goal to create innovative new space technologies for our exploration, science, and economic future. As a result of this focus on undertaking many and more complex missions, NASA placed its attention on a greater investment in technology development, and this shift resulted in the establishment of the Technology Demonstrations Missions (TDM) Program. The TDM Program, within the newly formed NASA Office of the Chief Technologist, supports NASA s grand challenges by providing a steady cadence of advanced space technology demonstrations (Figure 1), allowing the infusion of flexible path capabilities for future exploration. The TDM Program's goal is to mature crosscutting capabilities to flight readiness in support of multiple future space missions, including flight test projects where demonstration is needed before the capability can transition to direct mission The TDM Program has several unique criteria that set it apart from other NASA program offices. For instance, the TDM Office matures a small number of technologies that are of benefit to multiple customers to flight technology readiness level (TRL) 6 through relevant environment testing on a 3-year development schedule. These technologies must be crosscutting, which is defined as technology with potential to benefit multiple mission directorates, other government agencies, or the aerospace industry, and they must capture significant public interest and awareness. These projects will rely heavily on industry partner collaboration, and funding is capped for all elements of the flight test demonstration including planning, hardware development, software development, launch costs, ground operations, and post-test assessments. In order to inspire collaboration across government and industry, more than 70% of the TDM funds will be competitively awarded as a result of yearly calls for proposed flight demonstrators and selected based on possible payoff to NASA, technology maturity, customer interest, cost, and technical risk reduction. This paper will give an overview of the TDM Program s mission and organization, as well as its current status in delivering advanced space technologies that will enable more flexible and robust future missions. It also will provide several examples of missions that fit within these parameters and expected outcomes.

Mission to Planet Earth. Strategic enterprise plan, 1995-2000

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

1995-05-01

Mission to Planet Earth (MTPE) provides long-term understanding of the earth system needed to protect and improve our environment, now and for future generations. This MTPE Strategic Enterprise Plan states how NASA intends to meet its responsibility to the Nation for developing a long-term, integrated program of environmental observation in support of informed decision-making. This plan implements the NASA Strategic Plan for the MTPE Enterprise; it is the first version of a rolling 5-year plan that will be updated annually. It is consistent with the interagency program developed by the Committee on Environment and Natural Resources of the National Science and Technology Council and implemented in large part through the U.S. Global Change Research Program. This report consists of the following sections: (1) introduction; (2) scientific foundation; (3) mission (destination and purposes); (4) principle of operation (ethical and quality assurance standards); (5) customer base (to ensure that the right products and services are delivered); (6) internal and external assessments; (7) assumptions; (8) goals, objectives, and strategies; (9) linkages to other strategic enterprises; and (10) summary.

Mission to Planet Earth. Strategic enterprise plan, 1995-2000

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1995-01-01

Mission to Planet Earth (MTPE) provides long-term understanding of the earth system needed to protect and improve our environment, now and for future generations. This MTPE Strategic Enterprise Plan states how NASA intends to meet its responsibility to the Nation for developing a long-term, integrated program of environmental observation in support of informed decision-making. This plan implements the NASA Strategic Plan for the MTPE Enterprise; it is the first version of a rolling 5-year plan that will be updated annually. It is consistent with the interagency program developed by the Committee on Environment and Natural Resources of the National Science and Technology Council and implemented in large part through the U.S. Global Change Research Program. This report consists of the following sections: (1) introduction; (2) scientific foundation; (3) mission (destination and purposes); (4) principle of operation (ethical and quality assurance standards); (5) customer base (to ensure that the right products and services are delivered); (6) internal and external assessments; (7) assumptions; (8) goals, objectives, and strategies; (9) linkages to other strategic enterprises; and (10) summary.

MOM-E: Moon-Orbiting Mothership Explorer

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Murphy, Gloria A.

2010-01-01

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration proposed that a new class of robotic space missions and spacecrafts be introduced to "ensure that future missions are safe, sustainable and affordable". Indeed, the United States space program aims for a return to manned space missions beyond Earth orbit, and robotic explorers are intended to pave the way. This vision requires that all future missions become less costly, provide a sustainable business plan, and increase in safety. Over the course of several fast feasibility studies that considered the 3 drivers above, the small-scale, consumer-driven Moon-Orbiting Mothership Explorer (MOM-E) mission was born. MOM-E's goals are to enable space exploration by offering a scaled down platform which carries multiple small space explorers to the Moon. Each payload will be dropped at their desired destination, offering a competitive price to customers. MOM-E's current scope of operations is limited to the Moon and will be used as a proof of concept mission. However, MOM-E is specifically designed with the idea that the platform is scalable.

Key Gaps for Enabling Plant Growth in Future Missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Anderson, Molly; Motil, Brian; Barta, Dan; Fritsche, Ralph; Massa, Gioia; Quincy, Charlie; Romeyn, Matthew; Wheeler, Ray; Hanford, Anthony

2017-01-01

Growing plants to provide food or psychological benefits to crewmembers is a common vision for the future of human spaceflight, often represented in media and in serious concept studies. The complexity of controlled environment agriculture, and plant growth in microgravity have and continue to be the subject of dedicated scientific research. However, actually implementing these systems in a way that will be cost effective, efficient, and sustainable for future space missions is a complex, multi-disciplinary problem. Key questions exist in many areas: human medical research in nutrition and psychology, horticulture, plant physiology and microbiology, multi-phase microgravity fluid physics, hardware design and technology development, and system design, operations and mission planning. This paper describes key knowledge gaps identified by a multi-disciplinary working group within the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). It also begins to identify solutions to the simpler questions identified by the group based on work initiated in 2017. Growing plants to provide food or psychological benefits to crewmembers is a common vision for the future of human spaceflight, often represented in media and in serious concept studies. The complexity of controlled environment agriculture, and plant growth in microgravity have and continue to be the subject of dedicated scientific research. However, actually implementing these systems in a way that will be cost effective, efficient, and sustainable for future space missions is a complex, multi-disciplinary problem. Key questions exist in many areas: human medical research in nutrition and psychology, horticulture, plant physiology and microbiology, multi-phase microgravity fluid physics, hardware design and technology development, and system design, operations and mission planning. This paper describes key knowledge gaps identified by a multi-disciplinary working group within the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). It also begins to identify solutions to the simpler questions identified by the group based on work initiated in 2017.

Creating a living document: developing the National Association of School Nurses Mission Statement for the new millennium.

PubMed

Brandt, C M

1999-12-01

The second in a series of three articles devoted to the development, maintenance, and implementation of the National Association of School Nurses 1998-2001 Strategic Plan and how it relates to the practice of school nurses. Information about the development of a mission/vision statement for the organization is given along with strategies for developing a local school district school health program strategic plan. A previous Nursing Practice Management section article discussed the development of the Association's strategic plan considering the changing health care climate, the shifting needs of school children, and the economic climate for school funding. A future Nursing Practice Management section article will discuss the implementation of the seven goal areas in the National Association of School Nurses 1998-2001 Strategic Plan.

Mars - The relationship of robotic and human elements in the IAA International Exploration of Mars study

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Marov, Mikhail YA.; Duke, Michael B.

1993-01-01

The roles of human and robotic missions in Mars exploration are defined in the context of the short- and long-term Mars programs. In particular, it is noted that the currently implemented and planned missions to Mars can be regarded as robotic precursor missions to human exploration. Attention is given to factors that must be considered in formulating the rationale for human flights to Mars and future human Mars settlements and justifying costly projects.

Space Launch System (SLS) Mission Planner's Guide

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Smith, David Alan

2017-01-01

The purpose of this Space Launch System (SLS) Mission Planner's Guide (MPG) is to provide future payload developers/users with sufficient insight to support preliminary SLS mission planning. Consequently, this SLS MPG is not intended to be a payload requirements document; rather, it organizes and details SLS interfaces/accommodations in a manner similar to that of current Expendable Launch Vehicle (ELV) user guides to support early feasibility assessment. Like ELV Programs, once approved to fly on SLS, specific payload requirements will be defined in unique documentation.

Delivery of Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Data

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ivancic, William D.; Sullivan, Donald V.

2011-01-01

To support much of NASA's Upper Atmosphere Research Program science, NASA has acquired two Global Hawk Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs). Two major missions are currently planned using the Global Hawk: the Global Hawk Pacific (GloPac) and the Genesis and Rapid Intensification Processes (GRIP) missions. This paper briefly describes GloPac and GRIP, the concept of operations and the resulting requirements and communication architectures. Also discussed are requirements for future missions that may use satellite systems and networks owned and operated by third parties.

Implementing Strategic Planning Capabilities Within the Mars Relay Operations Service

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hy, Franklin

2011-01-01

Throughout this development and deployment process we have followed a few guiding principles: (1) Ensure ubiquitous access through ReSTful and web interfaces; (2) Design a system that is mission and even planet agnostic so that future missions may be added with little hassle, and the system itself may be redeployed for other planetary relay networks; (3) Accept constant input and feedback between mission operators and the development team to ensure that there is a useful product that may be used for years to come.

Utilization of the International Space Station for Crew Autonomous Scheduling Test (CAST)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Healy, Matthew; Marquez, Jesica; Hillenius, Steven; Korth, David; Bakalyar, Laure Rush; Woodbury, Neil; Larsen, Crystal M.; Bates, Shelby; Kockler, Mikayla; Rhodes, Brooke;

Farmers Insures Success

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Freifeld, Lorri

2012-01-01

Farmers Insurance claims the No. 2 spot on the Training Top 125 with a forward-thinking training strategy linked to its primary mission: FarmersFuture 2020. It's not surprising an insurance company would have an insurance policy for the future. But Farmers takes that strategy one step further, setting its sights on 2020 with a far-reaching plan to…

Future directions for LDEF ionizing radiation modeling and assessments

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Armstrong, T. W.; Colborn, B. L.

1992-01-01

Data from the ionizing radiation dosimetry aboard LDEF provide a unique opportunity for assessing the accuracy of current space radiation models and in identifying needed improvements for future mission applications. Details are given of the LDEF data available for radiation model evaluations. The status is given of model comparisons with LDEF data, along with future directions of planned modeling efforts and data comparison assessments. The methodology is outlined which is related to modeling being used to help insure that the LDEF ionizing radiation results can be used to address ionizing radiation issues for future missions. In general, the LDEF radiation modeling has emphasized quick-look predictions using simplified methods to make comparisons with absorbed dose measurements and induced radioactivity measurements of emissions. Modeling and LDEF data comparisons related to linear energy transfer spectra are of importance for several reasons which are outlined. The planned modeling and LDEF data comparisons for LET spectra is discussed, including components of the LET spectra due to different environment sources, contribution from different production mechanisms, and spectra in plastic detectors vs silicon.

EO-1/Hyperion: Nearing Twelve Years of Successful Mission Science Operation and Future Plans

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Middleton, Elizabeth M.; Campbell, Petya K.; Huemmrich, K. Fred; Zhang, Qingyuan; Landis, David R.; Ungar, Stephen G.; Ong, Lawrence; Pollack, Nathan H.; Cheng, Yen-Ben

2012-01-01

The Earth Observing One (EO-1) satellite is a technology demonstration mission that was launched in November 2000, and by July 2012 will have successfully completed almost 12 years of high spatial resolution (30 m) imaging operations from a low Earth orbit. EO-1 has two unique instruments, the Hyperion and the Advanced Land Imager (ALI). Both instruments have served as prototypes for NASA's newer satellite missions, including the forthcoming (in early 2013) Landsat-8 and the future Hyperspectral Infrared Imager (HyspIRI). As well, EO-1 is a heritage platform for the upcoming German satellite, EnMAP (2015). Here, we provide an overview of the mission, and highlight the capabilities of the Hyperion for support of science investigations, and present prototype products developed with Hyperion imagery for the HyspIRI and other space-borne spectrometers.

Importance of joint efforts for balanced process of designing and education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mayorova, V. I.; Bannova, O. K.; Kristiansen, T.-H.; Igritsky, V. A.

2015-06-01

This paper discusses importance of a strategic planning and design process when developing long-term space exploration missions both robotic and manned. The discussion begins with reviewing current and/or traditional international perspectives on space development at the American, Russian and European space agencies. Some analogies and comparisons will be drawn upon analysis of several international student collaborative programs: Summer International workshops at the Bauman Moscow State Technical University, International European Summer Space School "Future Space Technologies and Experiments in Space", Summer school at Stuttgart University in Germany. The paper will focus on discussion about optimization of design and planning processes for successful space exploration missions and will highlight importance of the following: understanding connectivity between different levels of human being and machinery; simultaneous mission planning approach; reflections and correlations between disciplines involved in planning and executing space exploration missions; knowledge gained from different disciplines and through cross-applying and re-applying design approaches between variable space related fields of study and research. The conclusions will summarize benefits and complications of applying balanced design approach at all levels of the design process. Analysis of successes and failures of organizational efforts in space endeavors is used as a methodological approach to identify key questions to be researched as they often cause many planning and design processing problems.

Future Spacelift Requirements Study

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1997-01-01

This study addresses future space applications and the derived requirements these potential applications will have on future spacelift systems. This NASA sponsored activity is a comprehensive study of potential missions including those of the military, civil, and commercial users. The study objectively evaluated the key architectural requirements for future launch systems. The results of this study are technical, economic, and policy analyses of future spacelift systems. It is intended to assist NASA and DOD decision-makers in planning technical investments and establishing policy for future U.S. spacelift systems.

NASA's Kepler Mission: Lessons Learned from Teacher Professional Development Workshops

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Devore, E.; Harman, P.; Koch, D.; Gould, A.

2010-08-01

NASA's Kepler Mission conducts teacher professional development workshops on the search for exoplanets in the habitable zone of Sun-like stars. Each is supported by a Kepler team scientist, two Education and Public Outreach staff and local hosts. Activities combine a science content lecture and discussion, making models, kinesthetic activities, and interpretation of transit data. The emphasis is on inquiry-based instruction and supports science education standards in grades 7-12. Participants' kit includes an orrery, optical sensor and software to demonstrate transit detection. The workshop plan, teaching strategies, and lessons learned from evaluation will be discussed. Future events are planned. The Kepler Mission teacher professional development workshops are designed using the best practices and principals from the National Science Education Standards and similar documents. Sharing the outcome of our plans, strategies and formative evaluation results can be of use to other Education and Public Outreach practitioners who plan similar events. In sharing our experiences, we hope to assist others, and to learn from them as well. Supported by NASA Grants to the E. DeVore, SETI Institute NAG2-6066 Kepler Education and Public Outreach and NNX08BA74G, IYA Kepler Mission Pre-launch Workshops.

Behavioral Health and Performance at NASA JSC: Recent Successes and Future Plan for BHP Research and Operations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Leveton, L. B.; VanderArk, S. T.

2014-01-01

The Behavioral Health and Performance discipline at NASA Johnson Space Center is organized into two distinct Divisions (Biomedical Research and Environmental Science Division and Space and Clinical Operations Division) but is integrated and interrelated in its day-to-day work. Ongoing operations supporting NASA's spaceflight goals benefit from the research portfolios that address risks to mission success. Similarly, these research portfolios are informed by operations to ensure investigations stay relevant given the dynamic environment of spaceflight. There are many success stories that can be presented where initial work begun as a BHP Research project, and funded through the Human Research Program, was fully implemented in operations or addressed an operational need. Examples include improving effectiveness of the debriefings used within Mission Control by the Mission Operations Directorate and countermeasures for fatigue management. There is also ongoing collaboration with research and operations for developing selection methods for future generation astronauts, and to enhance and inform the current family support function. The objective of this panel is to provide examples of recent success stories, describe areas where close collaboration is benefitting ongoing research and operations, and summarize how this will come together as NASA plans for the one year ISS mission - a unique opportunity for both BHP operations and research to learn more about preparing and supporting crewmembers for extended missions in space. The proposed panel will be comprised of six presentations, each describing a unique aspect of research or operations and the benefits to current and future spaceflight.

Planning Our Future Together.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ortiz, Alba A.

1993-01-01

This memo outlines priorities of the Council for Exceptional Children in accomplishing its mission. Priorities include increasing membership, retaining a higher percentage of current members, promoting education standards, improving professional education offerings, and influencing public policy. (JDD)

A Preliminary Research Plan for Development of a Photosynthetic Link in a Closed Ecological Life Support System

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Morgan, P. W.

1979-01-01

The use of higher plants in a closed ecological life support system for long duration space missions involving large numbers of people is considered. The approach to planning and developing both the habitat for a long term space mission and closed ecological life support systems are discussed with emphasis on environmental compatibility and integrated systems design. The requirements of photosynthetic processes are summarized and evaluated in terms of their availability within a closed ecological life support environment. Specific references are recommended as a data base for future research on this topic.

Envisioning Cognitive Robots for Future Space Exploration

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Huntsberger, Terry; Stoica, Adrian

2010-01-01

Cognitive robots in the context of space exploration are envisioned with advanced capabilities of model building, continuous planning/re-planning, self-diagnosis, as well as the ability to exhibit a level of 'understanding' of new situations. An overview of some JPL components (e.g. CASPER, CAMPOUT) and a description of the architecture CARACaS (Control Architecture for Robotic Agent Command and Sensing) that combines these in the context of a cognitive robotic system operating in a various scenarios are presented. Finally, two examples of typical scenarios of a multi-robot construction mission and a human-robot mission, involving direct collaboration with humans is given.

ISRU Technologies for Mars Life Support

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Finn, John E.; Sridhar, K. R.

2000-01-01

The primary objectives of the Mars Exploration program are to collect data for planetary science in a quest to answer questions related to Origins, to search for evidence of extinct and extant life, and to expand the human presence in the solar system. The public and political engagement that is critical for support of a Mars exploration program is based on all of these objectives. In order to retain and to build public and political support, it is important for NASA to have an integrated Mars exploration plan, not separate robotic and human plans that exist in parallel or in sequence. The resolution stemming from the current architectural review and prioritization of payloads may be pivotal in determining whether NASA will have such a unified plan and retain public support. There are several potential scientific and technological links between the robotic-only missions that have been flown and planned to date, and the robotic + human missions that will come in the future. Taking advantage of and leveraging those links are central to the idea of a unified Mars exploration plan. One such link is in situ resource utilization (ISRU) as an enabling technology to provide consumables such as fuels, oxygen, sweep and utility gases from the Mars atmosphere. ISRU for propellant production and for generation of life support consumables is a key element of human exploration mission plans because of the tremendous savings that can be realized in terms of launch costs and reduction in overall risk to the mission. The Human Exploration and Development of Space (HEDS) Enterprise has supported ISRU technology development for several years, and is funding the MIP and PROMISE payloads that will serve as the first demonstrations of ISRU technology for Mars. In our discussion and presentation at the workshop, we will highlight how the PROMISE ISRU experiment that has been selected by HEDS for a future Mars flight opportunity can extend and enhance the science experiments on board.

Progress of Crew Autonomous Scheduling Test (CAST) On the ISS

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Healy, Matthew; Marquez, Jessica; Hillenius, Steven; Korth, David; Bakalyar, Lauren Rush; Woodbury, Neil; Larsen, Crystal M.; Bates, Shelby; Kockler, Mikayla; Rhodes, Brooke;

Collecting, Managing, and Visualizing Data during Planetary Surface Exploration

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Young, K. E.; Graff, T. G.; Bleacher, J. E.; Whelley, P.; Garry, W. B.; Rogers, A. D.; Glotch, T. D.; Coan, D.; Reagan, M.; Evans, C. A.; Garrison, D. H.

2017-12-01

While the Apollo lunar surface missions were highly successful in collecting valuable samples to help us understand the history and evolution of the Moon, technological advancements since 1969 point us toward a new generation of planetary surface exploration characterized by large volumes of data being collected and used to inform traverse execution real-time. Specifically, the advent of field portable technologies mean that future planetary explorers will have vast quantities of in situ geochemical and geophysical data that can be used to inform sample collection and curation as well as strategic and tactical decision making that will impact mission planning real-time. The RIS4E SSERVI (Remote, In Situ and Synchrotron Studies for Science and Exploration; Solar System Exploration Research Virtual Institute) team has been working for several years to deploy a variety of in situ instrumentation in relevant analog environments. RIS4E seeks both to determine ideal instrumentation suites for planetary surface exploration as well as to develop a framework for EVA (extravehicular activity) mission planning that incorporates this new generation of technology. Results from the last several field campaigns will be discussed, as will recommendations for how to rapidly mine in situ datasets for tactical and strategic planning. Initial thoughts about autonomy in mining field data will also be presented. The NASA Extreme Environments Mission Operations (NEEMO) missions focus on a combination of Science, Science Operations, and Technology objectives in a planetary analog environment. Recently, the increase of high-fidelity marine science objectives during NEEMO EVAs have led to the ability to evaluate how real-time data collection and visualization can influence tactical and strategic planning for traverse execution and mission planning. Results of the last few NEEMO missions will be discussed in the context of data visualization strategies for real-time operations.

Space technology research plans

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hook, W. Ray

1992-01-01

Development of new technologies is the primary purpose of the Office of Aeronautics and Space Technology (OAST). OAST's mission includes the following two goals: (1) to conduct research to provide fundamental understanding, develop advanced technology and promote technology transfer to assure U.S. preeminence in aeronautics and to enhance and/or enable future civil space missions: and (2) to provide unique facilities and technical expertise to support national aerospace needs. OAST includes both NASA Headquarters operations as well as programmatic and institutional management of the Ames Research Center, the Langley Research Center and the Lewis Research Center. In addition. a considerable portion of OAST's Space R&T Program is conducted through the flight and science program field centers of NASA. Within OAST, the Space Technology Directorate is responsible for the planning and implementation of the NASA Space Research and Technology Program. The Space Technology Directorate's mission is 'to assure that OAST shall provide technology for future civil space missions and provide a base of research and technology capabilities to serve all national space goals.' Accomplishing this mission entails the following objectives: y Identify, develop, validate and transfer technology to: (1) increase mission safety and reliability; (2) reduce flight program development and operations costs; (3) enhance mission performance; and (4) enable new missions. Provide the capability to: (1) advance technology in critical disciplines; and (2) respond to unanticipated mission needs. In-space experiments are an integral part of OAST's program and provides for experimental studies, development and support for in-space flight research and validation of advanced space technologies. Conducting technology experiments in space is a valuable and cost effective way to introduce advanced technologies into flight programs. These flight experiments support both the R&T base and the focussed programs within OAST.

The HAL 9000 Space Operating System Real-Time Planning Engine Design and Operations Requirements

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Stetson, Howard; Watson, Michael D.; Shaughnessy, Ray

2012-01-01

In support of future deep space manned missions, an autonomous/automated vehicle, providing crew autonomy and an autonomous response planning system, will be required due to the light time delays in communication. Vehicle capabilities as a whole must provide for tactical response to vehicle system failures and space environmental effects induced failures, for risk mitigation of permanent loss of communication with Earth, and for assured crew return capabilities. The complexity of human rated space systems and the limited crew sizes and crew skills mix drive the need for a robust autonomous capability on-board the vehicle. The HAL 9000 Space Operating System[2] designed for such missions and space craft includes the first distributed real-time planning / re-planning system. This paper will detail the software architecture of the multiple planning engine system, and the interface design for plan changes, approval and implementation that is performed autonomously. Operations scenarios will be defined for analysis of the planning engines operations and its requirements for nominal / off nominal activities. An assessment of the distributed realtime re-planning system, in the defined operations environment, will be provided as well as findings as it pertains to the vehicle, crew, and mission control requirements needed for implementation.

Explanation of Change (EoC) Study: Considerations and Implementation Challenges

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bitten, Robert E.; Emmons, Debra L.; Hart, Matthew J.; Bordi, Francesco; Scolese, Christopher; Hinners, Noel

2013-01-01

This paper discusses the implementation of considerations resulting from a study investigating the cost change experienced by historical NASA science missions. The study investigated historical milestone and monthly status report documentation followed by interviews with key project personnel. The reasons for cost change were binned as being external to NASA, external to the project and internal to the project relative to the project's planning and execution. Based on the results of the binning process and the synthesis of project meetings and interviews, ten considerations were made with the objective to decrease the potential for cost change in future missions. Although no one magic bullet consideration was discovered, the considerations taken as a whole should help reduce cost and schedule change in future NASA missions.

Core Curriculum Revision at TCU: How Faculty Created and Are Maintaining the TCU Core Curriculum

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McNertney, Edward; Ferrandino, Blaise

2010-01-01

The initiative to revise Texas Christian University's (TCU) general education curriculum was one of the outcomes of an institutional strategic planning process in 2000, the Commission on the Future of TCU. Coincident with this planning process, TCU developed a new institutional mission statement that focused on preparing students for becoming…

Logistical concepts associated with international shipments using the USA/9904/B(U)F RTG Transportation System (RTGTS)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Barklay, Chadwick D.; Miller, Roger G.; Pugh, Barry K.; Howell, Edwin I.

1997-01-01

Over the last 30 years, radioisotopes have provided heat from which electrical power is generated. For space missions, the isotope of choice has generally been 238PuO2, its long half-life making it ideal for supplying power to remote satellites and spacecraft like the Voyager, Pioneer, and Viking missions, as well as the recently launched Galileo and Ulysses missions, and the presently planned Cassini mission. Electric power for future space missions will be provided by either radioisotopic thermoelectric generators (RTG), radioisotope thermophotovoltaic systems (RTPV), alkali metal thermal to electrical conversion (AMTEC) systems, radioisotope Stirling systems, or a combination of these. The type of electrical power system has yet to be specified for the ``Pluto Express'' mission. However, the current plan does incorporate the use of Russian launch platforms for the spacecraft. The implied tasks associated with this plan require obtaining international certification for the transport of the radioisotopic power system, and resolving any logistical issues associated with the actual shipment of the selected radioisotopic power system. This paper presents a conceptual summary of the logistical considerations associated with shipping the selected radioisotopic power system using the USA/9904/B(U)F-85, Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generator Transportation System (RTGTS).

Engineering and Fabrication Considerations for Cost-Effective Space Reactor Shield Development

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Berg, Thomas A.; Disney, Richard K.

2004-02-01

Investment in developing nuclear power for space missions cannot be made on the basis of a single mission. Current efforts in the design and fabrication of the reactor module, including the reactor shield, must be cost-effective and take into account scalability and fabricability for planned and future missions. Engineering considerations for the shield need to accommodate passive thermal management, varying radiation levels and effects, and structural/mechanical issues. Considering these challenges, design principles and cost drivers specific to the engineering and fabrication of the reactor shield are presented that contribute to lower recurring mission costs.

Engineering and Fabrication Considerations for Cost-Effective Space Reactor Shield Development

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Berg, Thomas A.; Disney, Richard K.

Investment in developing nuclear power for space missions cannot be made on the basis of a single mission. Current efforts in the design and fabrication of the reactor module, including the reactor shield, must be cost-effective and take into account scalability and fabricability for planned and future missions. Engineering considerations for the shield need to accommodate passive thermal management, varying radiation levels and effects, and structural/mechanical issues. Considering these challenges, design principles and cost drivers specific to the engineering and fabrication of the reactor shield are presented that contribute to lower recurring mission costs.

Life Support and Environmental Monitoring International System Maturation Team Considerations.

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Anderson, Molly; Gatens, Robyn; Ikeda, Toshitami; Ito, Tsuyoshi; Hovland, Scott; Witt, Johannes

2016-01-01

Human exploration of the solar system is an ambitious goal. Future human missions to Mars or other planets will require the cooperation of many nations to be feasible. Exploration goals and concepts have been gathered by the International Space Exploration Coordination Group (ISECG) at a very high level, representing the overall goals and strategies of each participating space agency. The Global Exploration Roadmap published by ISECG states that international partnerships are part of what drives the the mission scenarios. It states "Collaborations will be established at all levels (missions, capabilities, technologies), with various levels of interdependency among the partners." To make missions with interdependency successful, technologists and system experts need to share information early, before agencies have made concrete plans and binding agreements. This paper provides an overview of possible ways of integrating NASA, ESA, and JAXA work into a conceptual roadmap of life support and environmental monitoring capabilities for future exploration missions. Agencies may have immediate plans as well as long term goals or new ideas that are not part of official policy. But relationships between plans and capabilities may influence the strategies for the best ways to achieve partner goals. Without commitments and an organized program like the International Space Station, requirements for future missions are unclear. Experience from ISS has shown that standards and an early understanding of requirements are an important part of international partnerships. Attempting to integrate systems that were not designed together can create many problems. Several areas have been identified that could be important to discuss and understand early: units of measure, cabin CO2 levels, and the definition and description of fluids like high purity oxygen, potable water and residual biocide, and crew urine and urine pretreat. Each of the partners is exploring different kinds of technologies. Different specific parameters may important to define or explore possible ranges depending on the system concepts. Early coordination between technology developers can create new possibilities for collaboration, and provide input to determine what combined options may provide the best overall system architecture.

Life Support and Environmental Monitoring International System Maturation Team Considerations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Anderson, Molly; Gatens, Robyn; Ikeda, Toshitami; Ito, Tsuyoshi; Hovland, Scott; Witt, Johannes

2016-01-01

Human exploration of the solar system is an ambitious goal. Future human missions to Mars or other planets will require the cooperation of many nations to be feasible. Exploration goals and concepts have been gathered by the International Space Exploration Coordination Group (ISECG) at a very high level, representing the overall goals and strategies of each participating space agency. The Global Exploration Roadmap published by ISECG states that international partnerships are part of what drives the mission scenarios. It states "Collaborations will be established at all levels (missions, capabilities, technologies), with various levels of interdependency among the partners." To make missions with interdependency successful, technologists and system experts need to share information early, before agencies have made concrete plans and binding agreements. This paper provides an overview of possible ways of integrating NASA, ESA, and JAXA work into a conceptual roadmap of life support and environmental monitoring capabilities for future exploration missions. Agencies may have immediate plans as well as long term goals or new ideas that are not part of official policy. But relationships between plans and capabilities may influence the strategies for the best ways to achieve partner goals. Without commitments and an organized program like the International Space Station, requirements for future missions are unclear. Experience from ISS has shown that standards and an early understanding of requirements are an important part of international partnerships. Attempting to integrate systems that were not designed together can create many problems. Several areas have been identified that could be important to discuss and understand early: units of measure, cabin CO2 levels, and the definition and description of fluids like high purity oxygen, potable water and residual biocide, and crew urine and urine pretreat. Each of the partners is exploring different kinds of technologies. Different specific parameters may important to define or explore possible ranges depending on the system concepts. Early coordination between technology developers can create new possibilities for collaboration, and provide input to determine what combined options may provide the best overall system architecture.

Launch Window Trade Analysis for the James Webb Space Telescope

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Yu, Wayne H.; Richon, Karen

2014-01-01

The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) is a large-scale space telescope mission designed to study fundamental astrophysical questions ranging from the formation of the universe to the origin of planetary systems and the origins of life. JWSTs orbit design is a Libration Point Orbit (LPO) around the Sun-Earth/Moon (SEM) L2 point for a planned mission lifetime of 10.5 years. The launch readiness period for JWST is from Oct 1st, 2018 November 30th, 2018. This paper presents the first launch window analysis for the JWST observatory using finite-burn modeling; previous analysis assumed a single impulsive midcourse correction to achieve the mission orbit. The physical limitations of the JWST hardware stemming primarily from propulsion, communication and thermal requirements alongside updated mission design requirements result in significant launch window within the launch readiness period. Future plans are also discussed.

System concepts and enabling technologies for an ESA low-cost mission to Jupiter / Europa

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Renard, P.; Koeck, C.; Kemble, Steve; Atzei, Alessandro; Falkner, Peter

2004-11-01

The European Space Agency is currently studying the Jovian Minisat Explorer (JME), as part of its Technology Reference Studies (TRS), used for its development plan of technologies enabling future scientific missions. The JME focuses on the exploration of the Jovian system and particularly of Europa. The Jupiter Minisat Orbiter (JMO) study concerns the first mission phase of JME that counts up to three missions using pairs of minisats. The scientific objectives are the investigation of Europa's global topography, the composition of its (sub)surface and the demonstration of existence of a subsurface ocean below its icy crust. The present paper describes the candidate JMO system concept, based on a Europa Orbiter (JEO) supported by a communications relay satellite (JRS), and its associated technology development plan. It summarizes an analysis performed in 2004 jointly by ESA and the EADS-Astrium Company in the frame of an industrial technical assistance to ESA.

James Webb Space Telescope Launch Window Trade Analysis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Yu, Wayne; Richon, Karen

2014-01-01

The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) is a large-scale space telescope mission designed to study fundamental astrophysical questions ranging from the formation of the universe to the origin of planetary systems and the origins of life. JWSTs orbit design is a Libration Point Orbit (LPO) around the Sun-EarthMoon (SEM) L2 point for a planned mission lifetime of 10.5 years. The launch readiness period for JWST is from Oct 1st, 2018 November 30th, 2018. This paper presents the first launch window analysis for the JWST observatory using finite-burn modeling; previous analysis assumed a single impulsive midcourse correction to achieve the mission orbit. The physical limitations of the JWST hardware stemming primarily from propulsion, communication and thermal requirements alongside updated mission design requirements result in significant launch window within the launch readiness period. Future plans are also discussed.

A consensus approach to planetary protection requirements: recommendations for Mars lander missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rummel, J. D.; Meyer, M. A.

1996-01-01

Over the last several years, the nature of the surface conditions on the planet Mars, our knowledge of the growth capabilities of Earth organisms under extreme conditions, and future opportunities for Mars exploration have been under extensive review in the United States and elsewhere. As part of these examinations, in 1992 the US Space Studies Board made a series of recommendations to NASA on the requirements that should be implemented on future missions that will explore Mars. In particular, significant changes were recommended in the requirements for Mars landers, changes that significantly alleviated the burden of planetary protection implementation for these missions. In this paper we propose a resolution implementing this new set of recommendations, for adoption by COSPAR at its 30th meeting in Hamburg. We also discuss future directions and study areas for planetary protection, in light of changing plans for Mars exploration.

Space Human Factors Engineering Gap Analysis Project Final Report

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hudy, Cynthia; Woolford, Barbara

2006-01-01

Humans perform critical functions throughout each phase of every space mission, beginning with the mission concept and continuing to post-mission analysis (Life Sciences Division, 1996). Space missions present humans with many challenges - the microgravity environment, relative isolation, and inherent dangers of the mission all present unique issues. As mission duration and distance from Earth increases, in-flight crew autonomy will increase along with increased complexity. As efforts for exploring the moon and Mars advance, there is a need for space human factors research and technology development to play a significant role in both on-orbit human-system interaction, as well as the development of mission requirements and needs before and after the mission. As part of the Space Human Factors Engineering (SHFE) Project within the Human Research Program (HRP), a six-month Gap Analysis Project (GAP) was funded to identify any human factors research gaps or knowledge needs. The overall aim of the project was to review the current state of human factors topic areas and requirements to determine what data, processes, or tools are needed to aid in the planning and development of future exploration missions, and also to prioritize proposals for future research and technology development.

Human Assisted Robotic Vehicle Studies - A conceptual end-to-end mission architecture

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lehner, B. A. E.; Mazzotta, D. G.; Teeney, L.; Spina, F.; Filosa, A.; Pou, A. Canals; Schlechten, J.; Campbell, S.; Soriano, P. López

2017-11-01

With current space exploration roadmaps indicating the Moon as a proving ground on the way to human exploration of Mars, it is clear that human-robotic partnerships will play a key role for successful future human space missions. This paper details a conceptual end-to-end architecture for an exploration mission in cis-lunar space with a focus on human-robot interactions, called Human Assisted Robotic Vehicle Studies (HARVeSt). HARVeSt will build on knowledge of plant growth in space gained from experiments on-board the ISS and test the first growth of plants on the Moon. A planned deep space habitat will be utilised as the base of operations for human-robotic elements of the mission. The mission will serve as a technology demonstrator not only for autonomous tele-operations in cis-lunar space but also for key enabling technologies for future human surface missions. The successful approach of the ISS will be built on in this mission with international cooperation. Mission assets such as a modular rover will allow for an extendable mission and to scout and prepare the area for the start of an international Moon Village.

Near-Earth Asteroid (NEA) Scout

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

McNutt, Leslie; Johnson, Les; Kahn, Peter; Castillo-Rogez, Julie; Frick, Andreas

2014-01-01

Near-Earth asteroids (NEAs) are the most easily accessible bodies in the solar system, and detections of NEAs are expected to grow exponentially in the near future, offering increasing target opportunities. As NASA continues to refine its plans to possibly explore these small worlds with human explorers, initial reconnaissance with comparatively inexpensive robotic precursors is necessary. Obtaining and analyzing relevant data about these bodies via robotic precursors before committing a crew to visit a NEA will significantly minimize crew and mission risk, as well as maximize exploration return potential. The Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) and Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) are jointly examining a potential mission concept, tentatively called 'NEAScout,' utilizing a low-cost platform such as CubeSat in response to the current needs for affordable missions with exploration science value. The NEAScout mission concept would be treated as a secondary payload on the Space Launch System (SLS) Exploration Mission 1 (EM-1), the first planned flight of the SLS and the second un-crewed test flight of the Orion Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle (MPCV).

Near-Earth Asteroid Scout

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

McNutt, Leslie; Johnson, Les; Clardy, Dennon; Castillo-Rogez, Julie; Frick, Andreas; Jones, Laura

2014-01-01

Near-Earth Asteroids (NEAs) are an easily accessible object in Earth's vicinity. Detections of NEAs are expected to grow in the near future, offering increasing target opportunities. As NASA continues to refine its plans to possibly explore these small worlds with human explorers, initial reconnaissance with comparatively inexpensive robotic precursors is necessary. Obtaining and analyzing relevant data about these bodies via robotic precursors before committing a crew to visit a NEA will significantly minimize crew and mission risk, as well as maximize exploration return potential. The Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) and Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) are jointly examining a mission concept, tentatively called 'NEA Scout,' utilizing a low-cost CubeSats platform in response to the current needs for affordable missions with exploration science value. The NEA Scout mission concept would be a secondary payload on the Space Launch System (SLS) Exploration Mission 1 (EM-1), the first planned flight of the SLS and the second un-crewed test flight of the Orion Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle (MPCV).

Handling Late Changes to Titan Science

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Pitesky, Jo Eliza; Steadman, Kim; Ray, Trina; Burton, Marcia

2014-01-01

The Cassini mission has been in orbit for eight years, returning a wealth of scientific data from Titan and the Saturnian system. The mission, a cooperative undertaking between NASA, ESA and ASI, is currently in its second extension of the prime mission. The Cassini Solstice Mission (CSM) extends the mission's lifetime until Saturn's northern summer solstice in 2017. The Titan Orbital Science Team (TOST) has the task of integrating the science observations for all 56 targeted Titan flybys in the CSM. In order to balance Titan science across the entire set of flybys during the CSM, to optimize and influence the Titan flyby altitudes, and to decrease the future workload, TOST went through a "jumpstart" process before the start of the CSM. The "jumpstart" produced Master Timelines for each flyby, identifying prime science observations and allocating control of the spacecraft attitude to specific instrument teams. Three years after completing this long-range plan, TOST now faces a new challenge: incorporating changes into the Titan Science Plan without undoing the balance achieved during the jumpstart.

NASA's Ultraviolet Astrophysics Branch: Present and future detector program

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Welsh, Barry Y.

1992-01-01

The various concepts in ultraviolet detector technology currently being funded by NASA's Astrophysics Division to carry out observations in the 100 to 3000 A region are reviewed. In order to match the science objectives of future space missions with new observational techniques, critical detector technology needs in the ultraviolet regime have been identified. The attempt by NASA's Astrophysics Division Advanced Programs Branch to formulate an integrated detector technology plan as part of the ongoing 'Astrotech 21' program in order to provide the technology base for these astrophysics missions of the 21st century is described.

NASA's future Earth observation plans

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Neeck, Steven P.; Paules, Granville E.; McCuistion Ramesh, J. D.

2004-11-01

NASA's Science Mission Directorate, working with its domestic and international partners, provides accurate, objective scientific data and analysis to advance our understanding of Earth system processes. Learning more about these processes will enable improved prediction capability for climate, weather, and natural hazards. Earth interactions occur on a continuum of spatial and temporal scales ranging from short-term weather to long-term climate, and from local and regional to global. Quantitatively describing these changes means precisely measuring from space scores of biological and geophysical parameters globally. New missions that SMD will launch in the coming decade will complement the first series of the Earth Observing System. These next generation systematic measurement missions are being planned to extend or enhance the record of science-quality data necessary for understanding and predicting global change. These missions include the NPOESS Preparatory Project, Ocean Surface Topography Mission, Global Precipitation Measurement, Landsat Data Continuity Mission, and an aerosol polarimetry mission called Glory. New small explorer missions will make first of a kind Earth observations. The Orbiting Carbon Observatory will measure sources and sinks of carbon to help the Nation and the world formulate effective strategies to constrain the amount of this greenhouse gas in the atmosphere. Aquarius will measure ocean surface salinity which is key to ocean circulation in the North Atlantic that produces the current era's mild climate in northern Europe. HYDROS will measure soil moisture globally. Soil moisture is critical to agriculture and to managing fresh water resources. NASA continues to design, develop and launch the Nation's civilian operational environmental satellites, in both polar and geostationary orbits, by agreement with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). NASA plans to develop an advanced atmospheric sounder, GIFTS, for geostationary orbit to facilitate continuous measurements of weather-related phenomena, improve "nowcasting" of extreme weather events, and measure important atmospheric gases. NASA is currently developing with its partners the National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite System (NPOESS) and the next-generation geostationary system, GOES-R. Future missions will migrate today's capabilities in low Earth orbit to higher orbits such as L1 and L2 to enable more continuous monitoring of changes in the Earth system with a smaller number of satellites.

A Service Portal for the Integrated SCaN Network

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Marx, Sarah R.

2012-01-01

The Space Communication and Navigation (SCaN) program office owns the assets and services provided by the Deep Space Network (DSN), Near Earth Network (NEN), and Space Network (SN). At present, these individual networks are operated by different NASA centers--JPL for DSN--and Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) for NEN and SN--with separate commitments offices for each center. In the near future, SCaN's program office would like to deploy an integrated service portal which would merge the two commitments offices with the goal of easing the task of user planning for space missions requiring services of two or more of these networks. Following interviews with subject matter experts in this field, use cases were created to include the services and functionality mission users would like to see in this new integrated service portal. These use cases provide a guideline for a mock-up of the design of the user interface for the portal. The benefit of this work will ease the time required and streamline/standardize the process for planning and scheduling SCAN's services for future space missions.

Investments by NASA to build planetary protection capability

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Buxbaum, Karen; Conley, Catharine; Lin, Ying; Hayati, Samad

NASA continues to invest in capabilities that will enable or enhance planetary protection planning and implementation for future missions. These investments are critical to the Mars Exploration Program and will be increasingly important as missions are planned for exploration of the outer planets and their icy moons. Since the last COSPAR Congress, there has been an opportunity to respond to the advice of NRC-PREVCOM and the analysis of the MEPAG Special Regions Science Analysis Group. This stimulated research into such things as expanded bioburden reduction options, modern molecular assays and genetic inventory capability, and approaches to understand or avoid recontamination of spacecraft parts and samples. Within NASA, a portfolio of PP research efforts has been supported through the NASA Office of Planetary Protection, the Mars Technology Program, and the Mars Program Office. The investment strategy focuses on technology investments designed to enable future missions and reduce their costs. In this presentation we will provide an update on research and development supported by NASA to enhance planetary protection capability. Copyright 2008 California Institute of Technology. Government sponsorship acknowledged.

Asset - An application in mission automation for science planning

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Finnerty, D. F.; Martin, J.; Doms, P. E.

1987-01-01

Recent advances in computer technology were used to great advantage in planning science observation sequences for the Voyager 2 encounter with Uranus in 1986. Despite a loss of experienced personnel, a challenging schedule, workforce limitations, and the complex nature of the Uranus encounter itself, the resultant science observation timelines were the most highly optimized of the five Voyager encounters with the outer planets. In part, this was due to the development of a microcomputer-based system, called ASSET (Automated Science Sequence Encounter Timelines generator), which was used to design those science observation timelines. This paper details the development of that system. ASSET demonstrates several features essential to the design of the first expert systems for science planning which will be applied for future missions.

Planning for Crew Exercise for Future Deep Space Mission Scenarios

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Moore, Cherice; Ryder, Jeff

2015-01-01

Providing the necessary exercise capability to protect crew health for deep space missions will bring new sets of engineering and research challenges. Exercise has been found to be a necessary mitigation for maintaining crew health on-orbit and preparing the crew for return to earth's gravity. Health and exercise data from Apollo, Space Lab, Shuttle, and International Space Station missions have provided insight into crew deconditioning and the types of activities that can minimize the impacts of microgravity on the physiological systems. The hardware systems required to implement exercise can be challenging to incorporate into spaceflight vehicles. Exercise system design requires encompassing the hardware required to provide mission specific anthropometrical movement ranges, desired loads, and frequencies of desired movements as well as the supporting control and monitoring systems, crew and vehicle interfaces, and vibration isolation and stabilization subsystems. The number of crew and operational constraints also contribute to defining the what exercise systems will be needed. All of these features require flight vehicle mass and volume integrated with multiple vehicle systems. The International Space Station exercise hardware requires over 1,800 kg of equipment and over 24 m3 of volume for hardware and crew operational space. Improvements towards providing equivalent or better capabilities with a smaller vehicle impact will facilitate future deep space missions. Deep space missions will require more understanding of the physiological responses to microgravity, understanding appropriate mitigations, designing the exercise systems to provide needed mitigations, and integrating effectively into vehicle design with a focus to support planned mission scenarios. Recognizing and addressing the constraints and challenges can facilitate improved vehicle design and exercise system incorporation.

Responding Logistically to Future Natural and Man-Made Disasters and Catastrophes

DTIC Science & Technology

2008-03-15

Logistics Operations, Plans and Exercises, Distribution Management and Property Management. Each competency has associated roles, missions and...professional development. LMD’s Distribution Management Division (DMD) Within the LMD, FEMA also created the Distribution Management Division (DMD...to stock in anticipation of future disasters. A Distribution Management Strategy Working Group was formed with Federal, private and nongovernmental

Kickstarting a New Era of Lunar Industrialization via Campaign of Lunar COTS Missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zuniga, Allison F.; Turner, Mark; Rasky, Daniel; Pittman, Robert B.; Zapata, Edgar

2016-01-01

To support the goals of expanding our human presence and current economic sphere beyond LEO, a new plan was constructed for NASA to enter into partnerships with industry to foster and incentivize a new era of lunar industrialization. For NASA to finally be successful in achieving sustainable human exploration missions beyond LEO, lessons learned from our space history have shown that it is essential for current program planning to include affordable and economic development goals as well as address top national priorities to obtain much needed public support. In the last 58 years of NASA's existence, only Apollo's human exploration missions beyond LEO were successful since it was proclaimed to be a top national priority during the 1960's. However, the missions were not sustainable and ended abruptly in 1972 due to lack of funding and insufficient economic gain. Ever since Apollo, there have not been any human missions beyond LEO because none of the proposed program plans were economical or proclaimed a top national priority. The proposed plan outlines a new campaign of low-cost, commercial-enabled lunar COTS (Commercial Orbital Transfer Services) missions which is an update to the Lunar COTS plan previously described. The objectives of this new campaign of missions are to prospect for resources, determine the economic viability of extracting those resources and assess the value proposition of using these resources in future exploration architectures such as Mars. These missions would be accomplished in partnership with commercial industry using the wellproven COTS Program acquisition model. This model proved to be very beneficial to both NASA and its industry partners as NASA saved significantly in development and operational costs, as much as tenfold, while industry partners successfully expanded their market share and demonstrated substantial economic gain. Similar to COTS, the goals for this new initiative are 1) to develop and demonstrate cost-effective, cis-lunar commercial services, such as lunar transportation, lunar mining and lunar ISRU operations; 2) enable development of an affordable and economical exploration architecture for future missions to Mars and beyond; and 3) to incentivize the creation of new lunar markets through use of lunar resources for economic benefit to NASA, commercial industry and the international community. These cost-effective services would not only enable NASA to economically and sustainably achieve its human exploration missions to the Moon, Mars and beyond but it would also kickstart a new era of lunar industrialization. This paper will describe the goals, objectives and approach for implementing this new campaign of missions. It will also describe the potential benefits and progress that can be accomplished with these low-cost, Lunar COTS missions. Lastly, a preliminary economic analysis approach is proposed for understanding the cost and potential return on investment in the use of lunar resources to reach the goal of lunar industrialization and an expanded and sustainable human presence into cis-lunar space and beyond.

Development and implementation of a comprehensive strategic plan for medical education at an academic medical center.

PubMed

Schwartzstein, Richard M; Huang, Grace C; Coughlin, Christine M

2008-06-01

Despite their vital contributions to the training of future physicians, many academic teaching hospitals have grown operationally and financially distinct from affiliated medical schools because of divergent missions, contributing to the erosion of clinical training. Some institutions have responded by building hybrid organizations; others by creating large health care networks with variable relationships with the affiliated medical school. In this case, the authors wished to establish the future educational mission of their medical center as a core element of the institution by creating data-driven recommendations for reorganization, programs, and financing. They conducted a self-study of all constituents, the results of which confirmed the importance of education at their institution but also revealed the insufficiency of incentives for teaching. They underwent an external review by a committee of prominent educators, and they involved administrators at the hospital and the medical school. Together, these inputs composed an informed assessment of medical education at their teaching hospital, from which they developed and actualized an institution-wide strategic plan for education. Over the course of three years, they centralized the administrative structure for education, implemented programs that cross departments and reinforce the UME-GME continuum, and created transparency in the financing of medical education. The plan was purposefully aligned with the clinical and research strategic plans by supporting patient safety in programs and the professional development of faculty. The application of a rigorous strategic planning process to medical education at an academic teaching hospital can focus the mission, invigorate faculty, and lead to innovative programs.

Aircrew-aircraft integration: A summary of US Army research programs and plans

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Key, D. L.; Aiken, E. W.

1984-01-01

A review of selected programs which illustrate the research efforts of the U.S. Army Aeromechanics Laboratory in the area of aircrew-aircraft integration is presented. Plans for research programs to support the development of future military rotorcraft are also described. The crew of a combat helicopter must, in general, perform two major functions during the conduct of a particular mission: flightpath control and mission management. Accordingly, the research programs described are being conducted in the same two major categories: (1) flightpath control, which encompasses the areas of handling qualities, stability and control, and displays for the pilot's control of the rotorcraft's flightpath, and (2) mission management, which includes human factors and cockpit integration research topics related to performance of navigation, communication, and aircraft systems management tasks.

Space Technology 5: Pathfinder for Future Micro-Sat Constellations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Carlisle, Candace; Finnegan, Eric

2004-01-01

The Space Technology 5 (ST-5) Project, currently in the implementation phase, is part of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) s New Millennium Program (NMP). ST-5 will consist of a constellation of three miniature satellites, each with mass less than 25 kg and size approximately 60 cm by 30 cm. ST-5 addresses technology challenges, as well as fabrication, assembly, test and operations strategies for future micro-satellite missions. ST-5 will be deployed into a highly eccentric, geo-transfer orbit (GTO). This will expose the spacecraft to a high radiation environment as well as provide a low level magnetic background. A three-month flight demonstration phase is planned to validate the technologies and demonstrate concepts for future missions. Each ST-5 spacecraft incorporates NMP competitively-selected breakthrough technologies. These include Cold Gas Micro-Thrusters for propulsion and attitude control, miniature X-band transponder for space-ground communications, Variable Emittance Coatings for dynamic thermal control, and CULPRiT ultra low power logic chip used for Reed-Solomon encoding. The ST-5 spacecraft itself is a technology that can be infused into future missions. It is a fully functional micro-spacecraft built within tight volume and mass constraints. It is built to withstand a high radiation environment, large thermal variations, and high launch loads. The spacecraft power system is low-power and low-voltage, and is designed to turn on after separation &om the launch vehicle. Some of the innovations that are included in the ST-5 design are a custom spacecraft deployment structure, magnetometer deployment boom, nutation damper, X-band antenna, miniature spinning sun sensor, solar array with triple junction solar cells, integral card cage assembly containing single card Command and Data Handling and Power System Electronics, miniature magnetometer, and lithium ion battery. ST-5 will demonstrate the ability of a micro satellite to perform research-quality science. Each ST-5 spacecraft will deploy a precision magnetometer to be used both for attitude determination and as a representative science instrument. The spacecraft has been developed with a low magnetic signature to avoid interference with the magnetometer. The spacecraft will be able to detect and respond autonomously to science events, i.e. significant changes in the magnetic field measurements. The three spacecraft will be a pathfinder for future constellation missions. They will be deployed to demonstrate an appropriate geometry for scientific measurements as a constellation. They will be operationally managed as a constellation, demonstrating automation and communication strategies that will be useful for future missions. The technologies and future mission concepts will be validated both on the ground and in space. Technologies will be validated on the ground by a combination of component level and system level testing of the flight hardware in a thermal vacuum environment. In flight, specific validation runs are planned for each of the technologies. Each validation run consists of one or more orbits with a specific validation objective. This paper will describe the ST-5 mission, and the applicability of the NMP technologies, spacecraft, and mission concepts to future missions. It will also discuss the validation approach for the ST-5 technologies and mission concepts.

CubeSat on an Earth-Mars Free-Return Trajectory to study radiation hazards in the future manned mission

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vannitsen, J.; Segret, B.; Miau, J. J.; Juang, J.-C.

2013-09-01

In order to prepare the Human Mission to Mars, few aspects of the mission still have to be known. During a transit to the Red Planet, future crews will be exposed to potentially hazardous radiations [1]. By using a CubeSat, we can then have a relatively cheap and easy way to improve the radiations environment knowledge for a Mars manned mission. A 1 Unit CubeSat is a type of miniaturized satellite for space research that usually has a volume of exactly one litre (10 cm cube), has a mass of no more than 1.33 kilograms and typically uses commercial off-the-shelf components for its electronics [2]. In this project, it is planned to use a 3 Unit CubeSat having the following dimensions: 10 cm x 10 cm x 30 cm and a maximum mass of 4kg.

Terra Mission Operations: Launch to the Present (and Beyond)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kelly, Angelita; Moyer, Eric; Mantziaras, Dimitrios; Case, Warren

2014-01-01

The Terra satellite, flagship of NASA's long-term Earth Observing System (EOS) Program, continues to provide useful earth science observations well past its 5-year design lifetime. This paper describes the evolution of Terra operations, including challenges and successes and the steps taken to preserve science requirements and prolong spacecraft life. Working cooperatively with the Terra science and instrument teams, including NASA's international partners, the mission operations team has successfully kept the Terra operating continuously, resolving challenges and adjusting operations as needed. Terra retains all of its observing capabilities (except Short Wave Infrared) despite its age. The paper also describes concepts for future operations. This paper will review the Terra spacecraft mission successes and unique spacecraft component designs that provided significant benefits extending mission life and science. In addition, it discusses special activities as well as anomalies and corresponding recovery efforts. Lastly, it discusses future plans for continued operations.

Development of Carbon Dioxide Removal Systems for Advanced Exploration Systems 2015-2016

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Knox, James C.; Coker, Robert; Howard, David; Peters, Warren; Watson, David; Cmarik, Gregory; Miller, Lee A.

2016-01-01

A long-term goal for NASA is to enable crewed missions to Mars: first to the vicinity of Mars, and then to the Mars surface. These missions present new challenges for all aspects of spacecraft design in comparison with the International Space Station, as resupply is unavailable in the transit phase, and early return is not possible. Additionally, mass, power, and volume must be minimized for all phases to reduce propulsion needs. Mass reduction is particularly crucial for Mars surface landing and liftoff due to the challenges inherent in these operations for even much smaller payloads. In this paper we describe current and planned developments in the area of carbon dioxide removal to support future crewed Mars missions. Activities are also described that apply to both the resolution of anomalies observed in the ISS CDRA and the design of life support systems for future missions.

Development of Carbon Dioxide Removal Systems for Advanced Exploration Systems 2014-2015

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Knox, James C.; Coker, Robert; Huff, Timothy L.; Gatens, Robyn; Miller, Lee A.; Stanley, Christine

2015-01-01

A long-term goal for NASA is to enable crewed missions to Mars: first to the vicinity of Mars, and then to the Mars surface. These missions present new challenges for all aspects of spacecraft design in comparison with the International Space Station, as resupply is unavailable in the transit phase, and early return is not possible. Additionally, mass, power, and volume must be minimized for all phases to reduce propulsion needs. Mass reduction is particularly crucial for Mars surface landing and liftoff due to the challenges inherent in these operations for even much smaller payloads. In this paper we describe current and planned developments in the area of carbon dioxide removal to support future crewed Mars missions. Activities are also described that apply to both the resolution of anomalies observed in the ISS CDRA and the design of life support systems for future missions.

The Influence of Antenna Pattern on Faraday Rotation in Remote Sensing at L-band

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

LeVine, David M.; Jacob, S. Daniel

2007-01-01

Faraday rotation is a change in the polarization vector of electromagnetic radiation that occurs as the waves propagate from the Earth surface through the ionosphere to a spaceborne sensor. This change can cause errors in monitoring parameters at the surface such as soil moisture and sea surface salinity and it is an important consideration for radiometers on future missions in space such as NASA's Aquarius mission and ESA's SMOS mission. Two prominent strategies for compensating for Faraday rotation are using a sum of the signal at two polarizations and using the correlation between the signals at the two polarizations. These strategies work for an idealized antenna. This paper evaluates the strategies in the context of realistic antennas such as will be built for the Aquarius radiometer. Realistic antennas will make small differences that need to be included in planning for retrieval algorithms in future missions.

Strategic planning for neuroradiologists.

PubMed

Berlin, Jonathan W; Lexa, Frank J

2012-08-01

Strategic planning is becoming essential to neuroradiology as the health care environment continues to emphasize cost efficiency, teamwork and collaboration. A strategic plan begins with a mission statement and vision of where the neuroradiology division would like to be in the near future. Formalized strategic planning frameworks, such as the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (SWOT), and the Balanced Scorecard frameworks, can help neuroradiology divisions determine their current position in the marketplace. Communication, delegation, and accountability in neuroradiology is essential in executing an effective strategic plan. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Identification of New Orbits to Enable Future Missions for the Exploration of the Martian Moon Phobos

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zamaro, Mattia; Biggs, James D.

One of the paramount stepping stones towards NASA's long-term goal of undertaking human missions to Mars is the exploration of the Martian moons. In this paper, a showcase of various classes of non-Keplerian orbits are identified and a number of potential mission applications in the Mars-Phobos system are proposed. These applications include: low-thrust hovering around Phobos for close-range observations; Libration Point Orbits in enhanced three-body dynamics to enable unique low-cost operations for space missions in the proximity of Phobos; their manifold structure for high-performance landing/take-off maneuvers to and from Phobos' surface; Quasi-Satellite Orbits for long-period station-keeping and maintenance. In particular, these orbits could exploit Phobos' occulting bulk as a passive radiation shield during future manned flights to Mars to reduce human exposure to radiation. Moreover, the latter orbits can be used as an orbital garage, requiring no orbital maintenance, where a spacecraft could make planned pit-stops during a round-trip mission to Mars.

Curating NASA's future extraterrestrial sample collections: How do we achieve maximum proficiency?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McCubbin, Francis; Evans, Cynthia; Allton, Judith; Fries, Marc; Righter, Kevin; Zolensky, Michael; Zeigler, Ryan

2016-07-01

Introduction: The Astromaterials Acquisition and Curation Office (henceforth referred to herein as NASA Curation Office) at NASA Johnson Space Center (JSC) is responsible for curating all of NASA's extraterrestrial samples. Under the governing document, NASA Policy Directive (NPD) 7100.10E "Curation of Extraterrestrial Materials", JSC is charged with "The curation of all extraterrestrial material under NASA control, including future NASA missions." The Directive goes on to define Curation as including "…documentation, preservation, preparation, and distribution of samples for research, education, and public outreach." Here we describe some of the ongoing efforts to ensure that the future activities of the NASA Curation Office are working to-wards a state of maximum proficiency. Founding Principle: Curatorial activities began at JSC (Manned Spacecraft Center before 1973) as soon as design and construction planning for the Lunar Receiving Laboratory (LRL) began in 1964 [1], not with the return of the Apollo samples in 1969, nor with the completion of the LRL in 1967. This practice has since proven that curation begins as soon as a sample return mission is conceived, and this founding principle continues to return dividends today [e.g., 2]. The Next Decade: Part of the curation process is planning for the future, and we refer to these planning efforts as "advanced curation" [3]. Advanced Curation is tasked with developing procedures, technology, and data sets necessary for curating new types of collections as envisioned by NASA exploration goals. We are (and have been) planning for future curation, including cold curation, extended curation of ices and volatiles, curation of samples with special chemical considerations such as perchlorate-rich samples, curation of organically- and biologically-sensitive samples, and the use of minimally invasive analytical techniques (e.g., micro-CT, [4]) to characterize samples. These efforts will be useful for Mars Sample Return, Lunar South Pole-Aitken Basin Sample Return, and Comet Surface Sample Return, all of which were named in the NRC Planetary Science Decadal Survey 2013-2022. We are fully committed to pushing the boundaries of curation protocol as humans continue to push the boundaries of space exploration and sample return. However, to improve our ability to curate astromaterials collections of the future and to provide maximum protection to any returned samples, it is imperative that curation involvement commences at the time of mission conception. When curation involvement is at the ground floor of mission planning, it provides a mechanism by which the samples can be protected against project-level decisions that could undermine the scientific value of the re-turned samples. A notable example of one of the bene-fits of early curation involvement in mission planning is in the acquisition of contamination knowledge (CK). CK capture strategies are designed during the initial planning stages of a sample return mission, and they are to be implemented during all phases of the mission from assembly, test, and launch operations (ATLO), through cruise and mission operations, to the point of preliminary examination after Earth return. CK is captured by witness materials and coupons exposed to the contamination environment in the assembly labs and on the space craft during launch, cruise, and operations. These materials, along with any procedural blanks and returned flight-hardware, represent our CK capture for the returned samples and serves as a baseline from which analytical results can be vetted. Collection of CK is a critical part of being able to conduct and interpret data from organic geochemistry and biochemistry investigations of returned samples. The CK samples from a given mission are treated as part of the sample collection of that mission, hence they are part of the permanent archive that is maintained by the NASA curation Office. We are in the midst of collecting witness plates and coupons for the OSIRIS-REx mission, and we are in the planning stages for similar activities for the Mars 2020 rover mission, which is going to be the first step in a multi-stage campaign to return martian samples to Earth. Concluding Remarks: The return of every extraterrestrial sample is a scientific investment, and the CK samples and any procedural blanks represent an insurance policy against imperfections in the sample-collection and sample-return process. The curation facilities and personnel are the primary managers of that investment, and the scientific community, at large, is the beneficiary. The NASA Curation Office at JSC has the assigned task of maintaining the long-term integrity of all of NASA's astromaterials and ensuring that the samples are distributed for scientific study in a fair, timely, and responsible manner. It is only through this openness and global collaboration in the study of astromaterials that the return on our scientific investments can be maximized. For information on requesting samples and becoming part of the global study of astromaterials, please visit curator.jsc.nasa.gov References: [1] Mangus, S. & Larsen, W. (2004) NASA/CR-2004-208938, NASA, Washington, DC. [2] Allen, C. et al., (2011) Chemie Der Erde-Geochemistry, 71, 1-20. [3] McCubbin, F.M. et al., (2016) 47th LPSC #2668. [4] Zeigler, R.A. et al., (2014) 45th LPSC #2665.

Forward Contamination of the Moon and Mars: Implications for Future Life Detection Missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Glavin, Daniel P.; Dworkin, Jason P.; Lupisella, Mark; Kminek, Gerhard; Rummel, John D.

2004-01-01

NASA and ESA have outlined new visions for solar system exploration that will include a series of lunar robotic missions to prepare for, and support a human return to the Moon, and future human exploration of Mars and other destinations. One of the guiding principles for exploration is to pursue compelling scientific questions about the origin and evolution of life. The search for life on objects such as Mars will require that all spacecraft and instrumentation be sufficiently cleaned and sterilized prior to launch to ensure that the scientific integrity of extraterrestrial samples is not jeopardized by terrestrial organic contamination. Under COSPAR's current planetary protection policy for the Moon, no sterilization procedures are required for outbound lunar spacecraft. Nonetheless, future in situ investigations of a variety of locations on the Moon by highly sensitive instruments designed to search for biologically derived organic compounds would help assess the contamination of the Moon by lunar spacecraft. These studies could also provide valuable "ground truth" data for Mars sample return missions and help define planetary protection requirements for future Mars bound spacecraft carrying life detection experiments. In addition, studies of the impact of terrestrial contamination of the lunar surface by the Apollo astronauts could provide valuable data to help refine future Mars surface exploration plans for a human mission to Mars.

Progress in Life Marker Chip Technology for Detection of Life on Mars

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sims, M. R.; Cullen, D. C.; Laan, E.; Borst, G.; Prak, A.; Richter, L.; Gaubert, F.; Steele, A.; Parnell, J.; Sephton, M.

2007-12-01

Detection of Life on Mars will rely on detection of biomarkers, physical or chemical structures that can be associated with Life. As a possible payload for the ESA ExoMars rover mission planned in 2013 and other future missions a Life Marker Chip instrument is being developed. This instrument uses immuno-assay techniques to detect the relevant biomarkers. This paper describes the typical targets it will search for, its operating principle and the status of development. 63 biomarker targets have been identified and assays have been developed for a limited subset. Assay development includes use of recombinant DNA techniques to generate the molecular receptors (antibodies). This type of instrument has applications in terrestrial research e.g. sub-glacial lakes as well as planetary exploration. Breadboard demonstrators have been built of the assay system and key components of the micro-fluidics. Results from these breadboards will be presented, along with plans for future development.

Multi-Stage ADRs for Current and Future Astronomy Missions: Performance and Requirements for Cryogen-Free Operation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Shirron, Peter; Kimball, Mark; Vlahacos, Kosta

2010-01-01

The cooling requirements for current (e.g. Astro-H) and future (e.g. IXO and ASP) astronomy missions pose significant challenges for the sub-Kelvin Cooler. In particular, the use of large detector arrays increases the cooling power needed, and the variety of cryocoolers that can be used for pre-cooling greatly expands the range of temperatures at which the sub-Kelvin cooler can be designed to reject heat. In most cases, there is also a need for a stable higher temperature stage for cooling amplifiers or telescope components. NASA/GSFC is currently building a 3-stage ADR for the Astro-H mission, and is developing a 5-stage ADR suitable for IXO and ASP, as well as many other missions in the early planning stages. The architecture of these ADRs allows them to be adapted rather easily for different cooling requirements and to accommodate different cryocooler capabilities (operating temperature and cooling power). This paper will discuss the performance of these ADRs, which operate in both continuous, and single-shot cooling modes, and the minimum cryocooler capabilities needed to meet the requirements of future missions.

Advancement of a 30K W Solar Electric Propulsion System Capability for NASA Human and Robotic Exploration Missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Smith, Bryan K.; Nazario, Margaret L.; Manzella, David H.

2012-01-01

Solar Electric Propulsion has evolved into a demonstrated operational capability performing station keeping for geosynchronous satellites, enabling challenging deep-space science missions, and assisting in the transfer of satellites from an elliptical orbit Geostationary Transfer Orbit (GTO) to a Geostationary Earth Orbit (GEO). Advancing higher power SEP systems will enable numerous future applications for human, robotic, and commercial missions. These missions are enabled by either the increased performance of the SEP system or by the cost reductions when compared to conventional chemical propulsion systems. Higher power SEP systems that provide very high payload for robotic missions also trade favorably for the advancement of human exploration beyond low Earth orbit. Demonstrated reliable systems are required for human space flight and due to their successful present day widespread use and inherent high reliability, SEP systems have progressively become a viable entrant into these future human exploration architectures. NASA studies have identified a 30 kW-class SEP capability as the next appropriate evolutionary step, applicable to wide range of both human and robotic missions. This paper describes the planning options, mission applications, and technology investments for representative 30kW-class SEP mission concepts under consideration by NASA

Infusion of innovative technologies for mission operations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Donati, Alessandro

2010-11-01

The Advanced Mission Concepts and Technologies Office (Mission Technologies Office, MTO for short) at the European Space Operations Centre (ESOC) of ESA is entrusted with research and development of innovative mission operations concepts systems and provides operations support to special projects. Visions of future missions and requests for improvements from currently flying missions are the two major sources of inspiration to conceptualize innovative or improved mission operations processes. They include monitoring and diagnostics, planning and scheduling, resource management and optimization. The newly identified operations concepts are then proved by means of prototypes, built with embedded, enabling technology and deployed as shadow applications in mission operations for an extended validation phase. The technology so far exploited includes informatics, artificial intelligence and operational research branches. Recent outstanding results include artificial intelligence planning and scheduling applications for Mars Express, advanced integrated space weather monitoring system for the Integral space telescope and a suite of growing client applications for MUST (Mission Utilities Support Tools). The research, development and validation activities at the Mission technologies office are performed together with a network of research institutes across Europe. The objective is narrowing the gap between enabling and innovative technology and space mission operations. The paper first addresses samples of technology infusion cases with their lessons learnt. The second part is focused on the process and the methodology used at the Mission technologies office to fulfill its objectives.

A Possible Future for Space-Based Interferometry

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Labadie, L.; Leger, A.; Malbet, F.; Danchi, William C.; Lopez, B.

2013-01-01

We address the question of space interferometry following the recent outcome of the science themes selection by ESA for the L2/L3 missions slots. We review the current context of exoplanetary sciences and its impact for an interferometric mission. We argue that space interferometry will make a major step forward when the scientific communities interested in this technique will merge their efforts into a coherent technology development plan.

Planetary Data Archiving Plan at JAXA

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shinohara, Iku; Kasaba, Yasumasa; Yamamoto, Yukio; Abe, Masanao; Okada, Tatsuaki; Imamura, Takeshi; Sobue, Shinichi; Takashima, Takeshi; Terazono, Jun-Ya

After the successful rendezvous of Hayabusa with the small-body planet Itokawa, and the successful launch of Kaguya to the moon, Japanese planetary community has gotten their own and full-scale data. However, at this moment, these datasets are only available from the data sites managed by each mission team. The databases are individually constructed in the different formats, and the user interface of these data sites is not compatible with foreign databases. To improve the usability of the planetary archives at JAXA and to enable the international data exchange smooth, we are investigating to make a new planetary database. Within a coming decade, Japan will have fruitful datasets in the planetary science field, Venus (Planet-C), Mercury (BepiColombo), and several missions in planning phase (small-bodies). In order to strongly assist the international scientific collaboration using these mission archive data, the planned planetary data archive at JAXA should be managed in an unified manner and the database should be constructed in the international planetary database standard style. In this presentation, we will show the current status and future plans of the planetary data archiving at JAXA.

Human Exploration of Mars: The Reference Mission of the NASA Mars Exploration Study Team

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hoffman, Stephen J.; Kaplan, David I.

1997-07-01

Personnel representing several NASA field centers have formulated a "Reference Mission" addressing human exploration of Mars. This report summarizes their work and describes a plan for the first human missions to Mars, using approaches that are technically feasible, have reasonable risks, and have relatively low costs. The architecture for the Mars Reference Mission builds on previous work of the Synthesis Group (1991) and Zubrin's (1991) concepts for the use of propellants derived from the Martian Atmosphere. In defining the Reference Mission, choices have been made. In this report, the rationale for each choice is documented; however, unanticipated technology advances or political decisions might change the choices in the future.

Science Data Center concepts for moderate-sized NASA missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Price, R.; Han, D.; Pedelty, J.

1991-01-01

The paper describes the approaches taken by the NASA Science Data Operations Center to the concepts for two future NASA moderate-sized missions, the Orbiting Solar Laboratory (OSL) and the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM). The OSL space science mission will be a free-flying spacecraft with a complement of science instruments, placed in a high-inclination, sun synchronous orbit to allow continuous study of the sun for extended periods. The TRMM is planned to be a free-flying satellite for measuring tropical rainfall and its variations. Both missions will produce 'standard' data products for the benefit of their communities, and both depend upon their own scientific community to provide algorithms for generating the standard data products.

Human Exploration of Mars: The Reference Mission of the NASA Mars Exploration Study Team

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hoffman, Stephen J. (Editor); Kaplan, David I. (Editor)

1997-01-01

Personnel representing several NASA field centers have formulated a "Reference Mission" addressing human exploration of Mars. This report summarizes their work and describes a plan for the first human missions to Mars, using approaches that are technically feasible, have reasonable risks, and have relatively low costs. The architecture for the Mars Reference Mission builds on previous work of the Synthesis Group (1991) and Zubrin's (1991) concepts for the use of propellants derived from the Martian Atmosphere. In defining the Reference Mission, choices have been made. In this report, the rationale for each choice is documented; however, unanticipated technology advances or political decisions might change the choices in the future.

International programs - A growing trend

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bunner, A. N.

1990-01-01

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration has collaborated successfully in space science missions with a multiplicity of partners, including the European Space Agency, Federal Republic of Germany, the Netherlands, United Kingdom, Japan, and the Soviet Union, among others. These collaborations generally arise out of common scientific goals and in the interest of economizing to take advantage of skills and capabilities among the partners. A trend towards increased cooperation in space is expected to continue as the global scientific community works together to plan future space science missions and the missions become more sophisticated.

Primary care renewal: regional faculty development and organizational change.

PubMed

Quirk, Mark E; Haley, Heather-Lyn; Hatem, David; Starr, Susan; Philbin, Mary

2005-03-01

Many reports, including the Future of Family Medicine, have called for change in primary care, but few have defined, implemented, and evaluated mechanisms to address such change. The regional, interdisciplinary Primary Care Renewal Project was designed to address problems in primary care practice and teaching related to practice management, compensation, increasing responsibility for teaching, and faculty development. Twelve northeastern US medical schools assembled a conference attended by teams of key stakeholders representing both clinical and educational missions. Teams developed and implemented an institutional plan to address identified needs. Outcome data was collected during, and for 1 year after, the conference. Findings demonstrate novel ways of improving learning experiences, coordinating and centralizing planning efforts, and addressing faculty needs. The magnitude of organizational change ranged from establishing new administrative units with significant institutional authority (eg, restructuring dean's office) to enhancing the strategic planning process and refining mission statements to reflect emphasis on primary care. A well-planned, regional interdisciplinary effort that fosters the development of concrete plans can be associated with significant change in medical education. A central theme emerged--that primary care medicine will survive only if institutions align their educational and clinical missions and foster system-wide change.

Mission Planning and Scheduling System for NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Mission

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Garcia, Gonzalo; Barnoy, Assaf; Beech, Theresa; Saylor, Rick; Cosgrove, Jennifer Sager; Ritter, Sheila

2009-01-01

In the framework of NASA's return to the Moon efforts, the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) is the first step. It is an unmanned mission to create a comprehensive atlas of the Moon's features and resources necessary to design and build a lunar outpost. LRO is scheduled for launch in April, 2009. LRO carries a payload comprised of six instruments and one technology demonstration. In addition to its scientific mission LRO will use new technologies, systems and flight operations concepts to reduce risk and increase productivity of future missions. As part of the effort to achieve robust and efficient operations, the LRO Mission Operations Team (MOT) will use its Mission Planning System (MPS) to manage the operational activities of the mission during the Lunar Orbit Insertion (LOI) and operational phases of the mission. The MPS, based on GMV's flexplan tool and developed for NASA with Honeywell Technology Solutions (prime contractor), will receive activity and slew maneuver requests from multiple science operations centers (SOC), as well as from the spacecraft engineers. flexplan will apply scheduling rules to all the requests received and will generate conflict free command schedules in the form of daily stored command loads for the orbiter and a set of daily pass scripts that help automate nominal real-time operations.

PHM Enabled Autonomous Propellant Loading Operations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Walker, Mark; Figueroa, Fernando

2017-01-01

The utility of Prognostics and Health Management (PHM) software capability applied to Autonomous Operations (AO) remains an active research area within aerospace applications. The ability to gain insight into which assets and subsystems are functioning properly, along with the derivation of confident predictions concerning future ability, reliability, and availability, are important enablers for making sound mission planning decisions. When coupled with software that fully supports mission planning and execution, an integrated solution can be developed that leverages state assessment and estimation for the purposes of delivering autonomous operations. The authors have been applying this integrated, model-based approach to the autonomous loading of cryogenic spacecraft propellants at Kennedy Space Center.

NASA's OCA Mirroring System: An Application of Multiagent Systems in Mission Control

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sierhuis, Maarten; Clancey, William J.; vanHoof, Ron J. J.; Seah, Chin H.; Scott, Michael S.; Nado, Robert A.; Blumenberg, Susan F.; Shafto, Michael G.; Anderson, Brian L.; Bruins, Anthony C.;

Selection of human consumables for future space missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bourland, C. T.; Smith, M. C.

1991-01-01

Consumables for human spaceflight include oxygen, water, food and food packaging, personal hygiene items, and clothing. This paper deals with the requirements for food and water, and their impact on waste product generation. Just as urbanization of society has been made possible by improved food processing and packaging, manned spaceflight has benefitted from this technology. The downside of this technology is increased food package waste product. Since consumables make up a major portion of the vehicle onboard stowage and generate most of the waste products, selection of consumables is a very critical process. Food and package waste comprise the majority of the trash generated on the current shuttle orbiter missions. Plans for future missions must include accurate assessment of the waste products to be generated, and the methods for processing and disposing of these wastes.

Lunar Exploration and Science in ESA

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Carpenter, James; Foing, Bernard H.; Fisackerly, Richard; Houdou, Berengere; De Rosa, Diego; Patti, Bernado; Schiemann, Jens

ESA seeks to provide Europe with access to the lunar surface, and allow Europeans to benefit from the opening up of this new frontier, as part of a global endeavor. This will be best achieved through an exploration programme which combines the strengths and capabilities of both robotic and human explorers. ESA is preparing for future participation in lunar exploration through a combination of human and robotic activities, in cooperation with international partners. Future planned activities include the contribution of key technological capabilities to the Russian led robotic missions, Luna-Glob, Luna-Resurs orbiter and Luna-Resurs lander. For the Luna-Resurs lander ESA will provide analytical capabilities to compliment the already selected Russian led payload, focusing on the abundance, composition and isotopes of lunar volatiles in polar regions, and their associated chemistry. This should be followed by the contributions at the level of mission elements to a Lunar Polar Sample Return mission. This partnership will provide access for European investigators to the opportunities offered by the Russian led instruments on the missions, as well as providing Europe with a unique opportunity to characterise and utilise polar volatile populations. Ultimately samples of high scientific value, from as of yet unexplored and unsampled locations shall be made available to the scientific community. These robotic activities are being performed with a view to enabling a future more comprehensive programme in which robotic and human activities are integrated to provide the maximum benefits from lunar surface access. Activities on the ISS and ESA participation to the US Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle, which is planned for a first unmanned lunar flight in 2017, are also important steps towards achieving this. All of these activities are performed with a view to generating the technologies, capabilities, knowledge and heritage that will make Europe an indispensable partner in the exploration missions of the future.

Exploration Life Support Critical Questions for Future Human Space Missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kwert, Michael K.; Barta, Daniel J.; McQuillan, Jeff

2010-01-01

Exploration Life Support (ELS) is a current project under NASA's Exploration Systems Mission Directorate. The ELS Project plans, coordinates and implements the development of advanced life support technologies for human exploration missions in space. Recent work has focused on closed loop atmosphere and water systems for long duration missions, including habitats and pressurized rovers. But, what are the critical questions facing life support system developers for these and other future human missions? This paper explores those questions and how progress in the development of ELS technologies can help answer them. The ELS Project includes the following Elements: Atmosphere Revitalization Systems, Water Recovery Systems, Waste Management Systems, Habitation Engineering, Systems Integration, Modeling and Analysis, and Validation and Testing, which includes the Sub-Elements Flight Experiments and Integrated Testing. Systems engineering analysis by ELS seeks to optimize overall mission architectures by considering all the internal and external interfaces of the life support system and the potential for reduction or reuse of commodities. In particular, various sources and sinks of water and oxygen are considered along with the implications on loop closure and the resulting launch mass requirements. Systems analysis will be validated through the data gathered from integrated testing, which will demonstrate the interfaces of a closed loop life support system. By applying a systematic process for defining, sorting and answering critical life support questions, the ELS project is preparing for a variety of future human space missions

Bringing Gravity to Space

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Norsk, P.; Shelhamer, M.

2016-01-01

This panel will present NASA's plans for ongoing and future research to define the requirements for Artificial Gravity (AG) as a countermeasure against the negative health effects of long-duration weightlessness. AG could mitigate the gravity-sensitive effects of spaceflight across a host of physiological systems. Bringing gravity to space could mitigate the sensorimotor and neuro-vestibular disturbances induced by G-transitions upon reaching a planetary body, and the cardiovascular deconditioning and musculoskeletal weakness induced by weightlessness. Of particular interest for AG during deep-space missions is mitigation of the Visual Impairment Intracranial Pressure (VIIP) syndrome that the majority of astronauts exhibit in space to varying degrees, and which presumably is associated with weightlessness-induced fluid shift from lower to upper body segments. AG could be very effective for reversing the fluid shift and thus help prevent VIIP. The first presentation by Dr. Charles will summarize some of the ground-based and (very little) space-based research that has been conducted on AG by the various space programs. Dr. Paloski will address the use of AG during deep-space exploration-class missions and describe the different AG scenarios such as intra-vehicular, part-of-vehicle, or whole-vehicle centrifugations. Dr. Clement will discuss currently planned NASA research as well as how to coordinate future activities among NASA's international partners. Dr. Barr will describe some possible future plans for using space- and ground-based partial-G analogs to define the relationship between physiological responses and G levels between 0 and 1. Finally, Dr. Stenger will summarize how the human cardiovascular system could benefit from intermittent short-radius centrifugations during long-duration missions.

Deflection Missions for Asteroid 2011 AG5

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Grebow, Daniel; Landau, Damon; Bhaskaran, Shyam; Chodas, Paul; Chesley, Steven; Yeomans, Don; Petropoulos, Anastassios; Sims, Jon

2012-01-01

The recently discovered asteroid 2011 AG5 currently has a 1-in-500 chance of impacting Earth in 2040. In this paper, we discuss the potential of future observations of the asteroid and their effects on the asteroid's orbital uncertainty. Various kinetic impactor mission scenarios, relying on both conventional chemical as well as solar-electric propulsion, are presented for deflecting the course of the asteroid safely away from Earth. The times for the missions range from pre-keyhole passage (pre-2023), and up to five years prior to the 2040 Earth close approach. We also include a brief discussion on terminal guidance, and contingency options for mission planning.

Non-Solar Photovoltaics for Small Space Missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Landis, Geoffrey A.; Bailey, Sheila G.; Clark, Eric B.; Myers, Matthew G.; Piszazor, Michael F.; Murbach, Marcus S.

2012-01-01

NASA has missions planned to targets in the solar system ranging from the permanently shadowed craters of Mercury to the icy reaches of the Kuiper belt and beyond. In 2011, the NASA Office of the Chief Technologist (OCT) requested the NASA Ames and Glenn Research Centers to assess the potential of small power supplies based on direct conversion of energy from radioisotope sources for future NASA missions; and in particular to assess whether alphavoltaic and betavoltaic power sources could be of potential benefit in small missions, as well as examining the use of miniaturized thermophotovoltaic power supplies. This paper summarizes the results of that assessment.

Integrated Facilities and Infrastructure Plan.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Reisz Westlund, Jennifer Jill

Our facilities and infrastructure are a key element of our capability-based science and engineering foundation. The focus of the Integrated Facilities and Infrastructure Plan is the development and implementation of a comprehensive plan to sustain the capabilities necessary to meet national research, design, and fabrication needs for Sandia National Laboratories’ (Sandia’s) comprehensive national security missions both now and into the future. A number of Sandia’s facilities have reached the end of their useful lives and many others are not suitable for today’s mission needs. Due to the continued aging and surge in utilization of Sandia’s facilities, deferred maintenance has continuedmore » to increase. As part of our planning focus, Sandia is committed to halting the growth of deferred maintenance across its sites through demolition, replacement, and dedicated funding to reduce the backlog of maintenance needs. Sandia will become more agile in adapting existing space and changing how space is utilized in response to the changing requirements. This Integrated Facilities & Infrastructure (F&I) Plan supports the Sandia Strategic Plan’s strategic objectives, specifically Strategic Objective 2: Strengthen our Laboratories’ foundation to maximize mission impact, and Strategic Objective 3: Advance an exceptional work environment that enables and inspires our people in service to our nation. The Integrated F&I Plan is developed through a planning process model to understand the F&I needs, analyze solution options, plan the actions and funding, and then execute projects.« less

Space Flight. Teacher Resources.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

2001

This teacher's guide contains information, lesson plans, and diverse student learning activities focusing on space flight. The guide is divided into seven sections: (1) "Drawing Activities" (Future Flight; Space Fun; Mission: Draw); (2) "Geography" (Space Places); (3) "History" (Space and Time); (4)…

Mars exobiology landing sites for future exploration

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Landheim, Ragnhild; Greeley, Ronald; Desmarais, David; Farmer, Jack D.; Klein, Harold

1993-01-01

The selection of landing sites for Exobiology is an important issue for planning for future Mars missions. Results of a recent site selection study which focused on potential landing sites described in the Mars Landing Site Catalog are presented. In addition, basic Exobiology science objectives in Mars exploration are reviewed, and the procedures used in site evaluation and prioritization are outlined.

Autonomous Path Planning for On-Orbit Servicing Vehicles

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McInnes, C. R.

On-orbit servicing has long been considered as a means of reducing mission costs. While automated on-orbit servicing of satellites in LEO and GEO has yet to be realised, the International Space Station (ISS) will require servicing in a number of forms for re-supply, external visual inspection and maintenance. This paper will discuss a unified approach to path planning for such servicing vehicles using artificial potential field methods. In particular, path constrained rendezvous and docking of the ESA Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV) at the ISS will be investigated as will mission and path planning tools for the Daimler-Chrysler Aerospace ISS Inspector free-flying camera. Future applications for free-flying microcameras and co-operative control between multiple free-flyers for on-orbit assembly will also be considered.

Technology Thrust for Future Earth Science Applications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Habib, Shahid

2000-01-01

This paper presents NASA's recent direction to invest in the critical science instrument and platform technologies in order to realize more reliable, frequent and versatile missions for future Earth Science measurements. Traditionally, NASA's Earth Science Enterprise has developed and flown science missions that have been large in size, weight and volume. These missions have taken much longer implementation due to technology development time and have carried a large suite of instruments on a large-size spacecraft. NASA is also facing an era where the budget for the future years is more or less flat and the possibility for any major new start does not vividly appear on the horizon. Unfortunately, the scientific goals have not shrunk to commensurate with the budget constraints. In fact, the challenges and scientific appetite in search of answers to a score of outstanding questions have been gradually expanding. With these factors in mind, for the last three years NASA has been changing its focus to concentrate on how to take advantage of smaller missions by relying on industry, and minimizing the overall life cycle by infusing technologies that are being developed independently of any planned mission's implementation cycle. The major redirection of early investment in the critical technologies should have its rewards and significantly reduce the mission development period. Needless to say, in the long run this approach should save money, minimize risk, promote or encourage partnering, and allow for more frequent missions or earth science measurements to occur. This paper gives an overview of some of the identified crucial technologies and their intended applications for meeting the future Earth Science challenges.

In Situ Biological Contamination Studies of the Moon: Implications for Future Planetary Protection and Life Detection Missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Glavin, Daniel P.; Dworkin, Jason P.; Lupisella, Mark; Kminek, Gerhard; Rummel, John D.

2010-01-01

NASA and ESA have outlined visions for solar system exploration that will include a series of lunar robotic precursor missions to prepare for, and support a human return to the Moon, and future human exploration of Mars and other destinations. One of the guiding principles for exploration is to pursue compelling scientific questions about the origin and evolution of life. The search for life on objects such as Mars will require that all spacecraft and instrumentation be sufficiently cleaned and sterilized prior to launch to ensure that the scientific integrity of extraterrestrial samples is not jeopardized by terrestrial organic contamination. Under the Committee on Space Research's (COSPAR's) current planetary protection policy for the Moon, no sterilization procedures are required for outbound lunar spacecraft, nor is there yet a planetary protection category for human missions. Future in situ investigations of a variety of locations on the Moon by highly sensitive instruments designed to search for biologically derived organic compounds would help assess the contamination of the Moon by lunar spacecraft. These studies could also provide valuable "ground truth" data for Mars sample return missions and help define planetary protection requirements for future Mars bound spacecraft carrying life detection experiments. In addition, studies of the impact of terrestrial contamination of the lunar surface by the Apollo astronauts could provide valuable data to help refine future Mars surface exploration plans for a human mission to Mars.

Lunar and Mars Exploration: The Autonomy Factor

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rando, Cynthia M.; Schuh, Susan V.

2008-01-01

Long duration space flight crews have relied heavily on almost constant communication with ground control mission support. Ground control teams provide vehicle status and system monitoring, while offering near real time support for specific tasks, emergencies, and ensuring crew health and well being. With extended exploration goals to lunar and Mars outposts, real time communication with ground control teams and the ground s ability to conduct mission monitoring will be very limited compared to the resources provided to current International Space Station (ISS) crews. An operational shift toward more autonomy and a heavier reliance on the crew to monitor their vehicle and operations will be required for these future missions. NASA s future exploration endeavors and the subsequent increased autonomy will require a shift in crew skill composition, i.e. engineer, doctor, mission specialist etc. and lead to new training challenges and mission scenarios. Specifically, operational and design changes will be necessary in many areas including: Habitat Infrastructure and Support Systems, Crew Composition, Training, Procedures and Mission Planning. This paper will specifically address how to apply ISS lessons learned to further use ISS as a test bed to address decreased amounts of ground support to achieve full autonomous operations for lunar and Mars missions. Understanding these lessons learned and applying them to current operations will help to address the future impacts of increased crew autonomy for the lunar and Mars outposts and pave the way for success in increasingly longer mission durations.

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.

Manned space stations - A perspective

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Disher, J. H.

1981-09-01

The findings from the Skylab missions are discussed as they relate to the operations planning of future space stations such as Spacelab and the proposed Space Operations Center. Following a brief description of the Skylab spacecraft, the significance of the mission as a demonstration of the possibility of effecting emergency repairs in space is pointed out. Specific recommendations made by Skylab personnel concerning capabilities for future in-flight maintenance are presented relating to the areas of spacecraft design criteria, tool selection and spares carried. Attention is then given to relevant physiological findings, and to habitability considerations in the areas of sleep arrangements, hygiene, waste management, clothing, and food. The issue of contamination control is examined in detail as a potential major system to be integrated into future design criteria. The importance of the Skylab results to the designers of future space stations is emphasized.

Mission design concepts for repeat groundtrack orbits and application to the ICESat mission

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pie, Nadege

The primary objective of the NASA sponsored ICESat mission is to study the short and long term changes in the ice mass in the Greenland and Antarctica regions. The satellite was therefore placed into a frozen near-polar near-circular repeat groundtrack to ensure an adequate coverage of the polar regions while keeping the groundtrack periodic and reducing the variations in the orbital elements, and more specifically the semi-major axis of the ICESat orbit. After launch, a contingency plan had to be devised to compensate for a laser that dangerously compromised the lifetime of the ICESat mission. This new plan makes an intensive use of the ICESat subcycles, a characteristic of the repeat groundtrack orbits often over-looked. The subcycle of a repeat groundtrack orbit provide global coverage within a time shorter than the groundtrack repetition period. For a satellite with an off-nadir pointing capacity, the subcycles provide near-repeat tracks which represents added opportunity for altimetry measurement over a specific track. The ICESat subcycles were also used in a very innovative fashion to reposition the satellite within its repeat cycle via orbital maneuvers called phasing maneuver. The necessary theoretical framework is provided for the subcycle analysis and the implementation of phasing maneuvers for any future repeat orbit mission. In the perspective of performing cross-validation of missions like CryoSat using the ICESat off-nadir capacity, a study was conducted to determine the geolocations of crossovers between two different repeat groundtrack Keplerian orbits. The general analytical solution was applied to ICESat vs. several other repeat groundtrack orbit mission, including the future ICESat-II mission. ICESat's repeat groundtrack orbit was designed using a disturbing force model that includes only the Earth geopotential. Though the third body effect from the Sun and the Moon was neglected in the orbit design, it does in fact disrupt the repeatability condition of the groundtrack and consequently implies orbit correction maneuvers. The perturbations on ICESat orbit due to the third body effect are studied as a preliminary work towards including these forces in the design of the future ICESat-II repeat groundtrack orbit.

Satellite Ground Operations Automation: Lessons Learned and Future Approaches

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Catena, John; Frank, Lou; Saylor, Rick; Weikel, Craig; Obenschain, Arthur F. (Technical Monitor)

2001-01-01

Reducing spacecraft ground system operations costs is a major goal in all missions. The Fast Auroral Snapshot (FAST) flight operations team at the NASA/Goddard Spacecraft Flight Center developed in-house scripts and procedures to automate monitoring of critical spacecraft functions. The initial staffing profile of 16x7 was reduced first to 8x5 and then to 'lights out'. Operations functions became an offline review of system performance and the generation of future science plans for subsequent upload to the spacecraft. Lessons learned will be applied to the challenging Triana mission, where 24x7 contact with the spacecraft will be necessary at all times.

Defining Long-Duration Traverses of Lunar Volcanic Complexes with LROC NAC Images

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Stopar, J. D.; Lawrence, S. J.; Joliff, B. L.; Speyerer, E. J.; Robinson, M. S.

2016-01-01

A long-duration lunar rover [e.g., 1] would be ideal for investigating large volcanic complexes like the Marius Hills (MH) (approximately 300 x 330 km), where widely spaced sampling points are needed to explore the full geologic and compositional variability of the region. Over these distances, a rover would encounter varied surface morphologies (ranging from impact craters to rugged lava shields), each of which need to be considered during the rover design phase. Previous rovers including Apollo, Lunokhod, and most recently Yutu, successfully employed pre-mission orbital data for planning (at scales significantly coarser than that of the surface assets). LROC was specifically designed to provide mission-planning observations at scales useful for accurate rover traverse planning (crewed and robotic) [2]. After-the-fact analyses of the planning data can help improve predictions of future rover performance [e.g., 3-5].

NASA strategic plan

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1994-01-01

The NASA Strategic Plan is a living document. It provides far-reaching goals and objectives to create stability for NASA's efforts. The Plan presents NASA's top-level strategy: it articulates what NASA does and for whom; it differentiates between ends and means; it states where NASA is going and what NASA intends to do to get there. This Plan is not a budget document, nor does it present priorities for current or future programs. Rather, it establishes a framework for shaping NASA's activities and developing a balanced set of priorities across the Agency. Such priorities will then be reflected in the NASA budget. The document includes vision, mission, and goals; external environment; conceptual framework; strategic enterprises (Mission to Planet Earth, aeronautics, human exploration and development of space, scientific research, space technology, and synergy); strategic functions (transportation to space, space communications, human resources, and physical resources); values and operating principles; implementing strategy; and senior management team concurrence.

Space astronomy and astrophysics program by NASA

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hertz, Paul L.

2014-07-01

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration recently released the NASA Strategic Plan 20141, and the NASA Science Mission Directorate released the NASA 2014 Science Plan3. These strategic documents establish NASA's astrophysics strategic objectives to be (i) to discover how the universe works, (ii) to explore how it began and evolved, and (iii) to search for life on planets around other stars. The multidisciplinary nature of astrophysics makes it imperative to strive for a balanced science and technology portfolio, both in terms of science goals addressed and in missions to address these goals. NASA uses the prioritized recommendations and decision rules of the National Research Council's 2010 decadal survey in astronomy and astrophysics2 to set the priorities for its investments. The NASA Astrophysics Division has laid out its strategy for advancing the priorities of the decadal survey in its Astrophysics 2012 Implementation Plan4. With substantial input from the astrophysics community, the NASA Advisory Council's Astrophysics Subcommittee has developed an astrophysics visionary roadmap, Enduring Quests, Daring Visions5, to examine possible longer-term futures. The successful development of the James Webb Space Telescope leading to a 2018 launch is an Agency priority. One important goal of the Astrophysics Division is to begin a strategic mission, subject to the availability of funds, which follows from the 2010 decadal survey and is launched after the James Webb Space Telescope. NASA is studying a Wide Field Infrared Survey Telescope as its next large astrophysics mission. NASA is also planning to partner with other space agencies on their missions as well as increase the cadence of smaller Principal Investigator led, competitively selected Astrophysics Explorers missions.

NASA's Advanced Radioisotope Power Conversion Technology Development Status

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Anderson, David J.; Sankovic, John; Wilt, David; Abelson, Robert D.; Fleurial, Jean-Pierre

2007-01-01

NASA's Advanced Radioisotope Power Systems (ARPS) project is developing the next generation of radioisotope power conversion technologies that will enable future missions that have requirements that cannot be met by either photovoltaic systems or by current radioisotope power systems (RPSs). Requirements of advanced RPSs include high efficiency and high specific power (watts/kilogram) in order to meet future mission requirements with less radioisotope fuel and lower mass so that these systems can meet requirements for a variety of future space applications, including continual operation surface missions, outer-planetary missions, and solar probe. These advances would enable a factor of 2 to 4 decrease in the amount of fuel required to generate electrical power. Advanced RPS development goals also include long-life, reliability, and scalability. This paper provides an update on the contractual efforts under the Radioisotope Power Conversion Technology (RPCT) NASA Research Announcement (NRA) for research and development of Stirling, thermoelectric, and thermophotovoltaic power conversion technologies. The paper summarizes the current RPCT NRA efforts with a brief description of the effort, a status and/or summary of the contractor's key accomplishments, a discussion of upcoming plans, and a discussion of relevant system-level benefits and implications. The paper also provides a general discussion of the benefits from the development of these advanced power conversion technologies and the eventual payoffs to future missions (discussing system benefits due to overall improvements in efficiency, specific power, etc.).

STS-3 Induced Environment Contamination Monitor (IECM): Quick-look report

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Miller, E. R. (Editor); Fountain, J. A. (Editor)

1982-01-01

The STS-3/Induced Environment Contamination Monitor (IECM) mission is described. The IECM system performance is discussed, and IECM mission time events are briefly described. Quick look analyses are presented for each of the 10 instruments comprising the IECM on the flight of STS-3. Finally, a short summary is presented and plans are discussed for future IECM flights, and opportunities for direct mapping of Orbiter effluents using the Remote manipulator System.

Lunar Exploration and Science in ESA

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Carpenter, J.; Houdou, B.; Fisackerly, R.; De Rosa, D.; Patti, B.; Schiemann, J.; Hufenbach, B.; Foing, B.

2014-04-01

ESA seeks to provide Europe with access to the lunar surface, and allow Europeans to benefit from the opening up of this new frontier, as part of a global endeavor. This will be best achieved through an exploration programme which combines the strengths and capabilities of both robotic and human explorers. ESA is preparing for future participation in lunar exploration through a combination of human and robotic activities, in cooperation with international partners. Future planned activities include the contribution of key technological capabilities to the Russian led robotic missions, Luna-Glob, Luna-Resurs orbiter and Luna-Resurs lander. For the Luna-Resurs lander ESA will provide analytical capabilities to compliment the already selected Russian led payload, focusing on the composition and isotopic abundances of lunar volatiles in polar regions. This should be followed by the contributions at the level of mission elements to a Lunar Polar Sample Return mission. This partnership will provide access for European investigators to the opportunities offered by the Russian led instruments on the missions, as well as providing Europe with a unique opportunity to characterize and utilize polar volatile populations. Ultimately samples of high scientific value, from as of yet unexplored and unsampled locations shall be made available to the scientific community. These robotic activities are being performed with a view to enabling a future more comprehensive programme in which robotic and human activities are integrated to provide the maximum benefits from lunar surface access. Activities on the ISS and ESA participation to the US led Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle, which is planned for a first unmanned lunar flight in 2017, are also important steps towards achieving this. All of these activities are performed with a view to generating the technologies, capabilities, knowledge and heritage that will make Europe an indispensible partner in the exploration missions of the future. We report on the current status of the European elements in this cooperative scenario, with an emphasis on the investigations to be performed at the lunar surface. These investigations should generate knowledge that can be enabling for exploration in the future, and should also have a significant fundamental scientific return.

Lunar Exploration and Science Opportunities in ESA

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Carpenter, J.; Houdou, B.; Fisackerly, R.; De Rosa, D.; Schiemann, J.; Patti, B.; Foing, B.

2014-04-01

ESA seeks to provide Europe with access to the lunar surface, and allow Europeans to benefit from the opening up of this new frontier, as part of a global endeavour. This will be best achieved through an exploration programme which combines the strengths and capabilities of both robotic and human explorers. ESA is preparing for future participation in lunar exploration through a combination of human and robotic activities, in cooperation with international partners. Future planned activities include the contribution of key technological capabilities to the Russian led robotic missions, Luna-Glob, Luna-Resurs orbiter and Luna-Resurs lander. For the Luna-Resurs lander ESA will provide analytical capabilities to compliment the already selected Russian led payload, focusing on the composition and isotopic abundances of lunar volatiles in polar regions. This should be followed by the contributions at the level of mission elements to a Lunar Polar Sample Return mission. This partnership will provide access for European investigators to the opportunities offered by the Russian led instruments on the missions, as well as providing Europe with a unique opportunity to characterize and utilize polar volatile populations. Ultimately samples of high scientific value, from as of yet unexplored and unsampled locations shall be made available to the scientific community. These robotic activities are being performed with a view to enabling a future more comprehensive programme in which robotic and human activities are integrated to provide the maximum benefits from lunar surface access. Activities on the ISS and ESA participation to the US led Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle, which is planned for a first unmanned lunar flight in 2017, are also important steps towards achieving this. All of these activities are performed with a view to generating the technologies, capabilities, knowledge and heritage that will make Europe an indispensible partner in the exploration missions of the future. We report on the current status of the European elements in this cooperative scenario, with an emphasis on the investigations to be performed at the lunar surface. These investigations should generate knowledge that can be enabling for exploration in the future, and should also have a significant fundamental scientific return.

Planning for the future.

PubMed

Stiewing, Janis

2002-01-01

Revising the strategic plan was the beginning of a multiyear initiative that will determine the path of the JRCERT. The key word in the preceding statement is beginning. The strategic plan is an ever-changing document. Although some components, such as the values statements, will stand over time, other components will change as accreditation and educational arenas change. That is the paradox of strategic planning: Remaining true to the vision, values and mission statements requires knowing when to change to keep the JRCERT aligned with the responsive to its communities of interest.

Project Blue: Optical Coronagraphic Imaging Search for Terrestrial-class Exoplanets in Alpha Centauri

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Morse, Jon; Project Blue team

2018-01-01

Project Blue is a coronagraphic imaging space telescope mission designed to search for habitable worlds orbiting the nearest Sun-like stars in the Alpha Centauri system. With a 45-50 cm baseline primary mirror size, Project Blue will perform a reconnaissance of the habitable zones of Alpha Centauri A and B in blue light and one or two longer wavelength bands to determine the hue of any planets discovered. Light passing through the off-axis telescope feeds into a coronagraphic instrument that forms the heart of the mission. Various coronagraph designs are being considered, such as phase induced amplitude apodization (PIAA), vector vortex, etc. Differential orbital image processing techniques will be employed to analyze the data for faint planets embedded in the residual glare of the parent star. Project Blue will advance our knowledge about the presence or absence of terrestrial-class exoplanets in the habitable zones and measure the brightness of zodiacal dust around each star, which will aid future missions in planning their observational surveys of exoplanets. It also provides on-orbit demonstration of high-contrast coronagraphic imaging technologies and techniques that will be useful for planning and implementing future space missions by NASA and other space agencies. We present an overview of the science goals, mission concept and development schedule. As part of our cooperative agreement with NASA, the Project Blue team intends to make the data available in a publicly accessible archive.

Back to Basics.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

May, Abigail

1998-01-01

Offers some key business principles with the hope of helping educational facilities managers improve their operations. Looks at customer service, disparate databases, technological concerns, the mission of facility management, how to improve the bottom line, staffing ideas, future planning, and management suggestions. Lists seven habits of…

Looking to 2050: The USGS Integrated Software for Imagers and Spectrometers (ISIS)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Becker, T. L.; Edmundson, K. L.; Sides, S.; Hare, T. M.; Laura, J. R.

2017-02-01

Astrogeology Science Center develops and maintains software (ISIS) in support of planetary data for a diverse set of missions. We plan to provide support through the future while adapting to changes in hardware, software, and science requirements.

Deep Space Systems Technology Program Future Deliveries

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Salvo, Christopher G.; Keuneke, Matthew S.

2000-01-01

NASA is in a period of frequent launches of low cost deep space missions with challenging performance needs. The modest budgets of these missions make it impossible for each to develop its own technology, therefore, efficient and effective development and insertion of technology for these missions must be approached at a higher level than has been done in the past. The Deep Space Systems Technology Program (DSST), often referred to as X2000, has been formed to address this need. The program is divided into a series of "Deliveries" that develop and demonstrate a set of spacecraft system capabilities with broad applicability for use by multiple missions. The First Delivery Project, to be completed in 2001, will provide a one MRAD-tolerant flight computer, power switching electronics, efficient radioisotope power source, and a transponder with services at 8.4 GHz and 32 GHz bands. Plans call for a Second Delivery in late 2003 to enable complete deep space systems in the 10 to 50 kg class, and a Third Delivery built around Systems on a Chip (extreme levels of electronic and microsystems integration) around 2006. Formulation of Future Deliveries (past the First Delivery) is ongoing and includes plans for such developments as highly miniaturized digital/analog/power electronics, optical communications, multifunctional structures, miniature lightweight propulsion, advanced thermal control techniques, highly efficient radioisotope power sources, and a unified flight ground software architecture to support the needs of future highly intelligent space systems. All developments are targeted at broad applicability and reuse, and will be commercialized within the US.

Technology perspectives in the future exploration of extreme environments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cutts, J.; Balint, T.; Kolawa, El.; Peterson, C.

2007-08-01

Solar System exploration is driven by high priority science goals and objectives at diverse destinations, as described in the NRC Decadal Survey and in NASA's 2006 Solar System Exploration (SSE) Roadmap. Proposed missions to these targets encounter extreme environments, including high or low temperatures, high pressure, corrosion, high heat flux, radiation and thermal cycling. These conditions are often coupled, such as low temperature and high radiation at Europa; and high temperature and high pressure near the surface of Venus. Mitigation of these environmental conditions frequently reaches beyond technologies developed for terrestrial applications, for example, by the automotive and oil industries. Therefore, space agencies require dedicated technology developments to enable these future missions. Within NASA, proposed missions are divided into three categories. Competed small (Discovery class) and medium (New Frontiers class) missions are cost capped, thus limiting significant technology developments. Therefore, large (Flagship class) missions are required not only to tackle key science questions which can't be addressed by smaller missions, but also to develop mission enabling technologies that can feed forward to smaller missions as well. In a newly completed extreme environment technology assessment at NASA, we evaluated technologies from the current State of Practice (SoP) to advanced concepts for proposed missions over the next decades. Highlights of this report are discussed here, including systems architectures, such as hybrid systems; protection systems; high temperature electronics; power generation and storage; mobility technologies; sample acquisition and mechanisms; and the need to test these technologies in relevant environments. It is expected that the findings - documented in detail in NASA's Extreme Environments Technologies report - would help identifying future technology investment areas, and in turn enable or enhance planned SSE missions, while reducing mission cost and risk.

Crew-Centered Operations: What HAL 9000 Should Have Been

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Korsmeyer, David J.; Clancy, Daniel J.; Crawford, James M.; Drummond, Mark E.

2005-01-01

To date, manned space flight has maintained the locus of control for the mission on the ground. Mission control performs tasks such as activity planning, system health management, resource allocation, and astronaut health monitoring. Future exploration missions require the locus of control to shift to on-board due light speed constraints and potential loss of communication. The lunar campaign must begin to utilize a shared control approach to validate and understand the limitations of the technology allowing astronauts to oversee and direct aspects of operation that require timely decision making. Crew-centered Operations require a system-level approach that integrates multiple technologies together to allow a crew-prime concept of operations. This paper will provide an overview of the driving mission requirements, highlighting the limitations of existing approaches to mission operations and identifying the critical technologies necessary to enable a crew-centered mode of operations. The paper will focus on the requirements, trade spaces, and concepts for fulfillment of this capability. The paper will provide a broad overview of relevant technologies including: Activity Planning and Scheduling; System Monitoring; Repair and Recovery; Crew Work Practices.

A Process for Technology Prioritization in a Competitive Environment

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Stephens, Karen; Herman, Melody; Griffin, Brand

2006-01-01

This slide presentation reviews NASA's process for prioritizing technology requirements where there is a competitive environment. The In-Space Propulsion Technology (ISPT) project is used to exemplify the process. The ISPT project focuses on the mid level Technology Readiness Level (TRL) for development. These are TRL's 4 through 6, (i.e. Technology Development and Technology Demonstration. The objective of the planning activity is to identify the current most likely date each technology is needed and create ISPT technology development schedules based on these dates. There is a minimum of 4 years between flight and pacing mission. The ISPT Project needed to identify the "pacing mission" for each technology in order to provide funding for each area. Graphic representations show the development of the process. A matrix shows which missions are currently receiving pull from the both the Solar System Exploration and the Sun-Solar System Connection Roadmaps. The timeframes of the pacing missions technologies are shown for various types of propulsion. A pacing mission that was in the near future serves to increase the priority for funding. Adaptations were made when budget reductions precluded the total implementation of the plan.

The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter: Plans for the Science Phase

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Vondrak, Richard R.; Keller, John W.; Chin, Gordon; Petro, Noah; Rice, James; Garvin, James

2011-01-01

The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter spacecraft (LRO), which was launched on June 18, 2009, began with the goal of seeking safe landing sites for future robotic missions or the return of humans to the Moon as part of NASA's Exploration Systems Mission Directorate (ESMD). In addition, LRO's primary objectives included the search for resources and to investigate the Lunar radiation environment. This phase of the mission was completed on September 15,2010 when the operational responsibility for LRO was transferred from ESMD to NASA's Science Mission directorate (SMD). Under SMD, the mission focuses on a new set of goals related to the history of the Moon, its current state and what its history can tell us about the evolution of the Solar System.

Revolutionary Deep Space Science Missions Enabled by Onboard Autonomy

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chien, Steve; Debban, Theresa; Yen, Chen wan; Sherwood, Robert; Castano, Rebecca; Cichy, Benjamin; Davies, Ashley; Brul, Michael; Fukunaga, Alex; Fukunaga, Alex;

Satellite Servicing in Mission Design Studies at the NASA GSFC

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Leete, Stephen J.

2003-01-01

Several NASA missions in various stages of development have undergone one-week studies in the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) Integrated Mission Design Center (IMDC), mostly in preparation for proposals. The possible role of satellite servicing has been investigated for several of these missions, applying the lessons learned from Hubble Space Telescope (HST) servicing, taking into account the current state of the art, projecting into the future, and implementing NASA long-range plans, and is presented here. The general benefits and costs of injecting satellite servicing are detailed, including components such as mission timeline, mass, fuel, spacecraft design, risk abatement, life extension, and improved performance. The approach taken in addressing satellite servicing during IMDC studies is presented.

Distributed Operations Planning

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Fox, Jason; Norris, Jeffrey; Powell, Mark; Rabe, Kenneth; Shams, Khawaja

2007-01-01

Maestro software provides a secure and distributed mission planning system for long-term missions in general, and the Mars Exploration Rover Mission (MER) specifically. Maestro, the successor to the Science Activity Planner, has a heavy emphasis on portability and distributed operations, and requires no data replication or expensive hardware, instead relying on a set of services functioning on JPL institutional servers. Maestro works on most current computers with network connections, including laptops. When browsing down-link data from a spacecraft, Maestro functions similarly to being on a Web browser. After authenticating the user, it connects to a database server to query an index of data products. It then contacts a Web server to download and display the actual data products. The software also includes collaboration support based upon a highly reliable messaging system. Modifications made to targets in one instance are quickly and securely transmitted to other instances of Maestro. The back end that has been developed for Maestro could benefit many future missions by reducing the cost of centralized operations system architecture.

Recent Development Activities and Future Mission Applications of NASA's Evolutionary Xenon Thruster (NEXT)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Patterson, Michael J.; Pencil, Eric J.

2014-01-01

NASAs Evolutionary Xenon Thruster (NEXT) project is developing next generation ion propulsion technologies to enhance the performance and lower the costs of future NASA space science missions. This is being accomplished by producing Engineering Model (EM) and Prototype Model (PM) components, validating these via qualification-level and integrated system testing, and preparing the transition of NEXT technologies to flight system development. This presentation is a follow-up to the NEXT project overviews presented in 2009-2010. It reviews the status of the NEXT project, presents the current system performance characteristics, and describes planned activities in continuing the transition of NEXT technology to a first flight. In 2013 a voluntary decision was made to terminate the long duration test of the NEXT thruster, given the thruster design has exceeded all expectations by accumulating over 50,000 hours of operation to demonstrate around 900 kg of xenon throughput. Besides its promise for upcoming NASA science missions, NEXT has excellent potential for future commercial and international spacecraft applications.

NASA philosophy concerning space stations as operations centers for construction and maintenance of large orbiting energy systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Freitag, R. F.

1976-01-01

Future United States plans for manned space-flight activities are summarized, emphasizing the long-term goals of achieving permanent occupancy and limited self-sufficiency in space. NASA-sponsored studies of earth-orbiting Space Station concepts are reviewed along with lessons learned from the Skylab missions. Descriptions are presented of the Space Transportation System, the Space Construction Base, and the concept of space industrialization (the processing and manufacturing of goods in space). Future plans for communications satellites, solar-power satellites, terrestrial observations from space stations, and manned orbital-transfer vehicles are discussed.

Upcoming and Future Missions in the Area of Infrared Astronomy: Spacecraft and Ground-based Observations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sittler, E. C., Jr.

2004-01-01

The IRIS instrument on the Voyager spacecrafts made major discoveries with regard to the giant planets, their moons and rings and paved the way for future infrared observations for planetary missions within our solar system. The CIRS instrument of Cassini with much greater spectral-spatial resolution and sensitivity than that provided by IRIS is now rapidly approaching the Saturnian system with orbit insertion on July 1, 2004, for which CIRS is expected to provide an order of magnitude advance beyond that provided by IRIS. The Mars program is also presently dominated by infrared observations in the near to mid-infrared spectral bands for missions such as Mars Global Surveyor and its TES instrument and Odyssey with its THEMIS instrument. In the case of Earth science we have such missions as TIMED, which makes infrared observations of the thermosphere using the SABER instrument. With the newly formed New Frontiers Program we have the opportunity for $650M missions such as Kuiper Belt-Pluto Explorer and Jupiter Polar Orbiter with Probes. Under the Flagship line, once per decade, we have the opportunity for $1B missions for which Europa is presently being considered; for this mission infrared measurements could look for hot spots within the maze of cracks and faults on Europa s surface. On Kuiper Belt- Pluto there is an imaging near-IR spectrometer called LEISA. Another mission on the horizon is Titan Orbiter Aerorover Mission (TOAM) for which there is planned a state-of-art version of CIRS called TIRS on the orbiter that will map out the atmospheric composition with unprecedented wavelength coverage and spectral-spatial resolution. This instrument will also provide temperature maps of the surface of Titan to look for hot spots where life may form. On the same mission there will be a descent imager on the Aerorover (i.e., balloon) similar to that provided by LEISA on the Pluto mission to provide compositional-topographical maps of Titan s surface. Other future mission will also be discussed. Improved thermal detectors could have important applications in solar physics, specifically in the detection of far-IR synchrotron emission from energetic electrons in solar flares. For infrared astronomy we have missions like SIRTF and JWST, which will cover the spectral range from near-IR to far-IR in the search and probing of both new and old planetary systems in our galaxy and the measurement of the most distant galaxies of our universe. SIRTF is scheduled to be launched in August 2003, while JWST will be launched next decade. Another mission is TPF, which will use interferometer techniques at infrared wavelengths to search for planetary systems beyond 2010. With regard to ground based telescopes we have, for example, the twin 10 meter Keck telescopes and the IRTF telescope at Mauna Kea. The Keck telescopes are presently using interferometer techniques. Over the next several decades there are plans for 50 meter to 200 meter telescopes providing near-IR to far-IR measurements with the eventual plan to combine all telescopes using interferometer techniques to provide unprecedented spectral-spatial resolution and sensitivity.

The Business Change Initiative: A Novel Approach to Improved Cost and Schedule Management

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Shinn, Stephen A.; Bryson, Jonathan; Klein, Gerald; Lunz-Ruark, Val; Majerowicz, Walt; McKeever, J.; Nair, Param

2016-01-01

Goddard Space Flight Center's Flight Projects Directorate employed a Business Change Initiative (BCI) to infuse a series of activities coordinated to drive improved cost and schedule performance across Goddard's missions. This sustaining change framework provides a platform to manage and implement cost and schedule control techniques throughout the project portfolio. The BCI concluded in December 2014, deploying over 100 cost and schedule management changes including best practices, tools, methods, training, and knowledge sharing. The new business approach has driven the portfolio to improved programmatic performance. The last eight launched GSFC missions have optimized cost, schedule, and technical performance on a sustained basis to deliver on time and within budget, returning funds in many cases. While not every future mission will boast such strong performance, improved cost and schedule tools, management practices, and ongoing comprehensive evaluations of program planning and control methods to refine and implement best practices will continue to provide a framework for sustained performance. This paper will describe the tools, techniques, and processes developed during the BCI and the utilization of collaborative content management tools to disseminate project planning and control techniques to ensure continuous collaboration and optimization of cost and schedule management in the future.

Strategic planning for organizational effectiveness during dynamic change.

PubMed

Carlson, Susan L; Harris, Melodee; McLeskey, Nanci

2013-01-01

The leadership of a professional association is charged with developing a strategic plan to operationalize the organization's goals, tactics, and progress. Within the context of its values and goals, a strategic plan steers the organization toward its mission. While there are a variety of models and approaches used in strategic planning, the National Gerontological Nursing Association (NGNA) has historically used goal-based methodology. This method is congruent with the organization's leadership preferences, consistent with the mission-driven culture of the organization, and collaborative in its approach. In 2009 the NGNA Board of Directors initiated a plan for the organization's transformation to a more dynamic and member-driven association through a deliberate process. This article addresses the process used to arrive at the 2010–2011 NGNA strategic initiatives, including a discussion of pertinent data revealed in the 2011 needs assessment survey and NGNA's future initiatives focused on networking, communication, and membership benefits. This process is relevant for all organizations and groups seeking improvement in serving their constituents.

Advanced Curation: Solving Current and Future Sample Return Problems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Fries, M.; Calaway, M.; Evans, C.; McCubbin, F.

2015-01-01

Advanced Curation is a wide-ranging and comprehensive research and development effort at NASA Johnson Space Center that identifies and remediates sample related issues. For current collections, Advanced Curation investigates new cleaning, verification, and analytical techniques to assess their suitability for improving curation processes. Specific needs are also assessed for future sample return missions. For each need, a written plan is drawn up to achieve the requirement. The plan draws while upon current Curation practices, input from Curators, the analytical expertise of the Astromaterials Research and Exploration Science (ARES) team, and suitable standards maintained by ISO, IEST, NIST and other institutions. Additionally, new technologies are adopted on the bases of need and availability. Implementation plans are tested using customized trial programs with statistically robust courses of measurement, and are iterated if necessary until an implementable protocol is established. Upcoming and potential NASA missions such as OSIRIS-REx, the Asteroid Retrieval Mission (ARM), sample return missions in the New Frontiers program, and Mars sample return (MSR) all feature new difficulties and specialized sample handling requirements. The Mars 2020 mission in particular poses a suite of challenges since the mission will cache martian samples for possible return to Earth. In anticipation of future MSR, the following problems are among those under investigation: What is the most efficient means to achieve the less than 1.0 ng/sq cm total organic carbon (TOC) cleanliness required for all sample handling hardware? How do we maintain and verify cleanliness at this level? The Mars 2020 Organic Contamination Panel (OCP) predicts that organic carbon, if present, will be present at the "one to tens" of ppb level in martian near-surface samples. The same samples will likely contain wt% perchlorate salts, or approximately 1,000,000x as much perchlorate oxidizer as organic carbon. The chemical kinetics of this reaction are poorly understood at present under the conditions of cached or curated martian samples. Among other parameters, what is the maximum temperature allowed during storage in order to preserve native martian organic compounds for analysis? What is the best means to collect headspace gases from cached martian (and other) samples? This gas will contain not only martian atmosphere but also off-gassed volatiles from the cached solids.

Flight Dynamics Operations: Methods and Lessons Learned from Space Shuttle Orbit Operations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cutri-Kohart, Rebecca M.

2011-01-01

The Flight Dynamics Officer is responsible for trajectory maintenance of the Space Shuttle. This paper will cover high level operational considerations, methodology, procedures, and lessons learned involved in performing the functions of orbit and rendezvous Flight Dynamics Officer and leading the team of flight dynamics specialists during different phases of flight. The primary functions that will be address are: onboard state vector maintenance, ground ephemeris maintenance, calculation of ground and spacecraft acquisitions, collision avoidance, burn targeting for the primary mission, rendezvous, deorbit and contingencies, separation sequences, emergency deorbit preparation, mass properties coordination, payload deployment planning, coordination with the International Space Station, and coordination with worldwide trajectory customers. Each of these tasks require the Flight Dynamics Officer to have cognizance of the current trajectory state as well as the impact of future events on the trajectory plan in order to properly analyze and react to real-time changes. Additionally, considerations are made to prepare flexible alternative trajectory plans in the case timeline changes or a systems failure impact the primary plan. The evolution of the methodology, procedures, and techniques used by the Flight Dynamics Officer to perform these tasks will be discussed. Particular attention will be given to how specific Space Shuttle mission and training simulation experiences, particularly off-nominal or unexpected events such as shortened mission durations, tank failures, contingency deorbit, navigation errors, conjunctions, and unexpected payload deployments, have influenced the operational procedures and training for performing Space Shuttle flight dynamics operations over the history of the program. These lessons learned can then be extended to future vehicle trajectory operations.

Near-Earth Objects: Targets for Future Human Exploration, Solar System Science, and Planetary Defense

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Abell, Paul A.

2011-01-01

Human exploration of near-Earth objects (NEOs) beginning circa 2025 - 2030 is one of the stated objectives of U.S. National Space Policy. Piloted missions to these bodies would further development of deep space mission systems and technologies, obtain better understanding of the origin and evolution of our Solar System, and support research for asteroid deflection and hazard mitigation strategies. This presentation will discuss some of the physical characteristics of NEOs and review some of the current plans for NEO research and exploration from both a human and robotic mission perspective.

Opportunities for Space Science Education Using Current and Future Solar System Missions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Matiella Novak, M.; Beisser, K.; Butler, L.; Turney, D.

2010-12-01

The Education and Public Outreach (E/PO) office in The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) Space Department strives to excite and inspire the next generation of explorers by creating interactive education experiences. Since 1959, APL engineers and scientists have designed, built, and launched 61 spacecraft and over 150 instruments involved in space science. With the vast array of current and future Solar System exploration missions available, endless opportunities exist for education programs to incorporate the real-world science of these missions. APL currently has numerous education and outreach programs tailored for K-12 formal and informal education, higher education, and general outreach communities. Current programs focus on Solar System exploration missions such as the Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometer for Mars (CRISM), Miniature Radio Frequency (Mini-RF) Moon explorer, the Radiation Belt Storm Probes (RBSP), New Horizons mission to Pluto, and the Thermosphere Ionosphere Mesosphere Energetics and Dynamics (TIMED) Satellite, to name a few. Education and outreach programs focusing on K-12 formal education include visits to classrooms, summer programs for middle school students, and teacher workshops. APL hosts a Girl Power event and a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) Day each year. Education and outreach specialists hold teacher workshops throughout the year to train educators in using NASA spacecraft science in their lesson plans. High school students from around the U.S. are able to engage in NASA spacecraft science directly by participating in the Mars Exploration Student Data Teams (MESDT) and the Student Principal Investigator Programs. An effort is also made to generate excitement for future missions by focusing on what mysteries will be solved. Higher education programs are used to recruit and train the next generation of scientists and engineers. The NASA/APL Summer Internship Program offers a unique glimpse into the Space Department’s “end-to-end” approach to mission design and execution. College students - both undergraduate and graduate - are recruited from around the U.S. to work with APL scientists and engineers who act as mentors to the students. Many students are put on summer projects that allow them to work with existing spacecraft systems, while others participate in projects that investigate the operational and science objectives of future planned spacecraft systems. In many cases these interns have returned to APL as full-time staff after graduation.

EPA'S STRATEGIC PLAN: DIRECTION FOR THE FUTURE

EPA Science Inventory

Outreach is a very important part of our mission at the EPA. Educational outreach plays a vital role in informing the public of environmental issues which help shape environmental priorities. Classrooms are an excellent opportunity to inform the public about the environment which...

TankSIM: A Cryogenic Tank Performance Prediction Program

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bolshinskiy, L. G.; Hedayat, A.; Hastings, L. J.; Moder, J. P.; Schnell, A. R.; Sutherlin, S. G.

2015-01-01

Accurate prediction of the thermodynamic state of the cryogenic propellants in launch vehicle tanks is necessary for mission planning and successful execution. Cryogenic propellant storage and transfer in space environments requires that tank pressure be controlled. The pressure rise rate is determined by the complex interaction of external heat leak, fluid temperature stratification, and interfacial heat and mass transfer. If the required storage duration of a space mission is longer than the period in which the tank pressure reaches its allowable maximum, an appropriate pressure control method must be applied. Therefore, predictions of the pressurization rate and performance of pressure control techniques in cryogenic tanks are required for development of cryogenic fluid long-duration storage technology and planning of future space exploration missions. This paper describes an analytical tool, Tank System Integrated Model (TankSIM), which can be used for modeling pressure control and predicting the behavior of cryogenic propellant for long-term storage for future space missions. It is written in the FORTRAN 90 language and can be compiled with any Visual FORTRAN compiler. A thermodynamic vent system (TVS) is used to achieve tank pressure control. Utilizing TankSIM, the following processes can be modeled: tank self-pressurization, boiloff, ullage venting, and mixing. Details of the TankSIM program and comparisons of its predictions with test data for liquid hydrogen and liquid methane will be presented in the final paper.

Analogs and the BHP Risk Reduction Strategy for Future Spaceflight Missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Whitmire, Sandra; Leveton, Lauren

2011-01-01

In preparation for future exploration missions to distant destinations (e.g., Moon, Near Earth Objects (NEO), and Mars), the NASA Human Research Program s (HRP) Behavioral Health and Performance Element (BHP) conducts and supports research to address four human health risks: Risk of Behavioral Conditions; Risk of Psychiatric Conditions; Risk of Performance Decrements Due to Inadequate Cooperation, Coordination, Communication, and Psychosocial Adaptation within a Team; and Risk of Performance Errors due to Sleep Loss, Fatigue, Circadian Desynchronization, and Work Overload (HRP Science Management Plan, 2008). BHP Research, in collaboration with internal and external research investigators, as well as subject matter experts within NASA operations including flight surgeons, astronauts, and mission planners and others within the Mission Operations Directorate (MOD), identifies knowledge and technology gaps within each Risk. BHP Research subsequently manages and conducts research tasks to address and close the gaps, either through risk assessment and quantification, or the development of countermeasures and monitoring technologies. The resulting deliverables, in many instances, also support current Medical Operations and/or Mission Operations for the International Space Station (ISS).

Goddard's Astrophysics Science Division Annual Report 2011

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Centrella, Joan; Reddy, Francis; Tyler, Pat

2012-01-01

The Astrophysics Science Division(ASD) at Goddard Space Flight Center(GSFC)is one of the largest and most diverse astrophysical organizations in the world, with activities spanning a broad range of topics in theory, observation, and mission and technology development. Scientific research is carried out over the entire electromagnetic spectrum from gamma rays to radiowavelengths as well as particle physics and gravitational radiation. Members of ASD also provide the scientific operations for three orbiting astrophysics missions WMAP, RXTE, and Swift, as well as the Science Support Center for the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope. A number of key technologies for future missions are also under development in the Division, including X-ray mirrors, space-based interferometry, high contract imaging techniques to serch for exoplanets, and new detectors operating at gamma-ray, X-ray, ultraviolet, infrared, and radio wavelengths. The overriding goals of ASD are to carry out cutting-edge scientific research, and provide Project Scientist support for spaceflight missions, implement the goals of the NASA Strategic Plan, serve and suppport the astronomical community, and enable future missions by conceiving new conepts and inventing new technologies.

The Astrophysics Science Division Annual Report 2009

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Oegerle, William (Editor); Reddy, Francis (Editor); Tyler, Pat (Editor)

2010-01-01

The Astrophysics Science Division (ASD) at Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) is one of the largest and most diverse astrophysical organizations in the world, with activities spanning a broad range of topics in theory, observation, and mission and technology development. Scientific research is carried out over the entire electromagnetic spectrum - from gamma rays to radio wavelengths - as well as particle physics and gravitational radiation. Members of ASD also provide the scientific operations for three orbiting astrophysics missions - WMAP, RXTE, and Swift, as well as the Science Support Center for the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope. A number of key technologies for future missions are also under development in the Division, including X-ray mirrors, space-based interferometry, high contrast imaging techniques to search for exoplanets, and new detectors operating at gamma-ray, X-ray, ultraviolet, infrared, and radio wavelengths. The overriding goals of ASD are to carry out cutting-edge scientific research, provide Project Scientist support for spaceflight missions, implement the goals of the NASA Strategic Plan, serve and support the astronomical community, and enable future missions by conceiving new concepts and inventing new technologies.

Goddard's Astrophysics Science Division Annual Report 2013

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Weaver, Kimberly A. (Editor); Reddy, Francis J. (Editor); Tyler, Patricia A. (Editor)

2014-01-01

The Astrophysics Science Division (ASD) at Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) is one of the largest and most diverse astrophysical organizations in the world, with activities spanning a broad range of topics in theory, observation, and mission and technology development. Scientific research is carried out over the entire electromagnetic spectrum from gamma rays to radio wavelengths as well as particle physics and gravitational radiation. Members of ASD also provide the scientific operations for two orbiting astrophysics missions Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope and Swift as well as the Science Support Center for Fermi. A number of key technologies for future missions are also under development in the Division, including X-ray mirrors, space-based interferometry, high contrast imaging techniques to search for exoplanets, and new detectors operating at gamma-ray, X-ray, ultraviolet, infrared, and radio wavelengths. The overriding goals of ASD are to carry out cutting-edge scientific research, provide Project Scientist support for spaceflight missions, implement the goals of the NASA Strategic Plan, serve and support the astronomical community, and enable future missions by conceiving new concepts and inventing new technologies.

Measuring Tropospheric Winds from Space Using a Coherent Doppler Lidar Technique

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Miller, Timothy L.; Kavaya, Michael J.; Emmitt, G. David

1999-01-01

The global measurement of tropospheric wind profiles has been cited by the operational meteorological community as the most important missing element in the present and planned observing system. The most practical and economical method for obtaining this measurement is from low earth orbit, utilizing a Doppler lidar (laser radar) technique. Specifically, this paper will describe the coherent Doppler wind lidar (CDWL) technique, the design and progress of a current space flight project to fly such a system on the Space Shuttle, and plans for future flights of similar instruments. The SPARCLE (SPAce Readiness Coherent Lidar Experiment) is a Shuttle-based instrument whose flight is targeted for March, 2001. The objectives of SPARCLE are three-fold: Confirm that the coherent Doppler lidar technique can measure line-of-sight winds to within 1-2 m/s accuracy; Collect data to permit validation and improvement of instrument performance models to enable better design of future missions; and Collect wind and backscatter data for future mission optimization and for atmospheric studies. These objectives reflect the nature of the experiment and its program sponsor, NASA's New Millennium Program. The experiment is a technology validation mission whose primary purpose is to provide a space flight validation of this particular technology. (It should be noted that the CDWL technique has successfully been implemented from ground-based and aircraft-based platforms for a number of years.) Since the conduct of the SPARCLE mission is tied to future decisions on the choice of technology for free-flying, operational missions, the collection of data is intrinsically tied to the validation and improvement of instrument performance models that predict the sensitivity and accuracy of any particular present or future instrument system. The challenges unique to space flight for an instrument such as SPARCLE and follow-ons include: Obtaining the required lidar sensitivity from the long distance of orbit height to the lower atmosphere; Maintaining optical alignments after launch to orbit, and during operations in "microgravity"; Obtaining pointing knowledge of sufficient accuracy to remove the speed of the spacecraft (and the rotating Earth) from the measurements; Providing sufficient power (not a problem on the Shuttle) and cooling to the instrument. The paper will describe the status and challenges of the SPARCLE project, the value of obtaining wind data from orbit, and will present a roadmap to future instruments for scientific research and operational meteorology.

Stationkeeping Monte Carlo Simulation for the James Webb Space Telescope

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dichmann, Donald J.; Alberding, Cassandra M.; Yu, Wayne H.

2014-01-01

The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) is scheduled to launch in 2018 into a Libration Point Orbit (LPO) around the Sun-Earth/Moon (SEM) L2 point, with a planned mission lifetime of 10.5 years after a six-month transfer to the mission orbit. This paper discusses our approach to Stationkeeping (SK) maneuver planning to determine an adequate SK delta-V budget. The SK maneuver planning for JWST is made challenging by two factors: JWST has a large Sunshield, and JWST will be repointed regularly producing significant changes in Solar Radiation Pressure (SRP). To accurately model SRP we employ the Solar Pressure and Drag (SPAD) tool, which uses ray tracing to accurately compute SRP force as a function of attitude. As an additional challenge, the future JWST observation schedule will not be known at the time of SK maneuver planning. Thus there will be significant variation in SRP between SK maneuvers, and the future variation in SRP is unknown. We have enhanced an earlier SK simulation to create a Monte Carlo simulation that incorporates random draws for uncertainties that affect the budget, including random draws of the observation schedule. Each SK maneuver is planned to optimize delta-V magnitude, subject to constraints on spacecraft pointing. We report the results of the Monte Carlo simulations and discuss possible improvements during flight operations to reduce the SK delta-V budget.

Progress Report on PICA Activities in Support of New Frontiers Missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Stackpoole, Margaret; Venkatapathy, Ethiraj; Violette, Steve

2017-01-01

Phenolic Impregnated Carbon Ablator (PICA) is a TPS material that has been used in a number of previous flight missions (Stardust, MSL) and is planned for a number of future missions (OSIRIS-Rex and Mars 2020) so it has substantial flight heritage, is applicable to a wide range of missions, and is often baselined as the TPS in future NASA proposal activities. As is common with a number of TPS materials, PICA faces a supply chain issue with the rayon precursor from which the carbon fibers used in the PICA preform are derived. PICA uses a non-woven form of the rayon, which once carbonized, is used in the low-density carbon FiberForm (carbon tile) preform utilized in PICA. Current PICA uses a NASA-qualified non-domestic rayon supplier (Sniace), however the qualified supplier is no longer manufacturing the rayon materials. This activity will address PICA sustainability, by initially carbonizing the remaining stockpile of Sniace rayon precursor. A additional FiberForm manufacturing task from alternate rayon sources is also in progress.

Advanced Stirling Radioisotope Generator Life Certification Plan

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rusick, Jeffrey J.; Zampino, Edward J.

2013-01-01

An Advanced Stirling Radioisotope Generator (ASRG) power supply is being developed by the Department of Energy (DOE) in partnership with NASA for potential future deep space science missions. Unlike previous radioisotope power supplies for space exploration, such as the passive MMRTG used recently on the Mars Curiosity rover, the ASRG is an active dynamic power supply with moving Stirling engine mechanical components. Due to the long life requirement of 17 years and the dynamic nature of the Stirling engine, the ASRG project faced some unique challenges trying to establish full confidence that the power supply will function reliably over the mission life. These unique challenges resulted in the development of an overall life certification plan that emphasizes long-term Stirling engine test and inspection when analysis is not practical. The ASRG life certification plan developed is described.

In Situ Resource Utilization Technologies for Enhancing and Expanding Mars Scientific and Exploration Missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sridhar, K. R.; Finn, J. E.

2000-01-01

The primary objectives of the Mars exploration program are to collect data for planetary science in a quest to answer questions related to Origins, to search for evidence of extinct and extant life, and to expand the human presence in the solar system. The public and political engagement that is critical for support of a Mars exploration program is based on all of these objectives. In order to retain and to build public and political support, it is important for NASA to have an integrated Mars exploration plan, not separate robotic and human plans that exist in parallel or in sequence. The resolutions stemming from the current architectural review and prioritization of payloads may be pivotal in determining whether NASA will have such a unified plan and retain public support. There are several potential scientific and technological links between the robotic-only missions that have been flown and planned to date, and the combined robotic and human missions that will come in the future. Taking advantage of and leveraging those links are central to the idea of a unified Mars exploration plan. One such link is in situ resource utilization (ISRU) as an enabling technology to provide consumables such as fuels, oxygen, sweep and utility gases from the Mars atmosphere.

ROSETTA: How to archive more than 10 years of mission

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Barthelemy, Maud; Heather, D.; Grotheer, E.; Besse, S.; Andres, R.; Vallejo, F.; Barnes, T.; Kolokolova, L.; O'Rourke, L.; Fraga, D.; A'Hearn, M. F.; Martin, P.; Taylor, M. G. G. T.

2018-01-01

The Rosetta spacecraft was launched in 2004 and, after several planetary and two asteroid fly-bys, arrived at comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko in August 2014. After escorting the comet for two years and executing its scientific observations, the mission ended on 30 September 2016 through a touch down on the comet surface. This paper describes how the Planetary Science Archive (PSA) and the Planetary Data System - Small Bodies Node (PDS-SBN) worked with the Rosetta instrument teams to prepare the science data collected over the course of the Rosetta mission for inclusion in the science archive. As Rosetta is an international mission in collaboration between ESA and NASA, all science data from the mission are fully archived within both the PSA and the PDS. The Rosetta archiving process, supporting tools, archiving systems, and their evolution throughout the mission are described, along with a discussion of a number of the challenges faced during the Rosetta implementation. The paper then presents the current status of the archive for each of the science instruments, before looking to the improvements planned both for the archive itself and for the Rosetta data content. The lessons learned from the first 13 years of archiving on Rosetta are finally discussed with an aim to help future missions plan and implement their science archives.

Space-brain: The negative effects of space exposure on the central nervous system.

PubMed

Jandial, Rahul; Hoshide, Reid; Waters, J Dawn; Limoli, Charles L

2018-01-01

Journey to Mars will be a large milestone for all humankind. Throughout history, we have learned lessons about the health dangers associated with exploratory voyages to expand our frontiers. Travelling through deep space, the final frontier, is planned for the 2030s by NASA. The lessons learned from the adverse health effects of space exposure have been encountered from previous, less-lengthy missions. Prolonged multiyear deep space travel to Mars could be encumbered by significant adverse health effects, which could critically affect the safety of the mission and its voyagers. In this review, we discuss the health effects of the central nervous system by space exposure. The negative effects from space radiation and microgravity have been detailed. Future aims and recommendations for the safety of the voyagers have been discussed. With proper planning and anticipation, the mission to Mars can be done safely and securely.

In Situ Biological Contamination Studies of the Moon: Implications for Planetary Protection and Life Detection Missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Glavin, Daniel P.; Dworkin, Jason P.; Lupisella, Mark; Williams, David R.; Kminek, Gerhard; Rummel, John D.

2010-01-01

NASA and ESA have outlined visions for solar system exploration that will include a series of lunar robotic precursor missions to prepare for, and support a human return to the Moan, and future human exploration of Mars and other destinations, including possibly asteroids. One of the guiding principles for exploration is to pursue compelling scientific questions about the origin and evolution of life. The search for life on objects such as Mars will require careful operations, and that all systems be sufficiently cleaned and sterilized prior to launch to ensure that the scientific integrity of extraterrestrial samples is not jeopardized by terrestrial organic contamination. Under the Committee on Space Research's (COSPAR's) current planetary protection policy for the Moon, no sterilization procedures are required for outbound lunar spacecraft, nor is there a different planetary protection category for human missions, although preliminary C SPAR policy guidelines for human missions to Mars have been developed. Future in situ investigations of a variety of locations on the Moon by highly sensitive instruments designed to search for biologically derived organic compounds would help assess the contamination of the Moon by lunar spacecraft. These studies could also provide valuable "ground truth" data for Mars sample return missions and help define planetary protection requirements for future Mars bound spacecraft carrying life detection experiments. In addition, studies of the impact of terrestrial contamination of the lunar surface by the Apollo astronauts could provide valuable data to help refine future: Mars surface exploration plans for a human mission to Mars.

Antarctic Exploration Parallels for Future Human Planetary Exploration: The Role and Utility of Long Range, Long Duration Traverses

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hoffman, Stephen J. (Editor); Voels, Stephen A. (Editor)

2012-01-01

Topics covered include: Antarctic Exploration Parallels for Future Human Planetary Exploration: Science Operations Lessons Learned, Planning, and Equipment Capabilities for Long Range, Long Duration Traverses; Parallels Between Antarctic Travel in 1950 and Planetary Travel in 2050 (to Accompany Notes on "The Norwegian British-Swedish Antarctic Expedition 1949-52"); My IGY in Antarctica; Short Trips and a Traverse; Geologic Traverse Planning for Apollo Missions; Desert Research and Technology Studies (DRATS) Traverse Planning; Science Traverses in the Canadian High Arctic; NOR-USA Scientific Traverse of East Antarctica: Science and Logistics on a Three-Month Expedition Across Antarctica's Farthest Frontier; A Notional Example of Understanding Human Exploration Traverses on the Lunar Surface; and The Princess Elisabeth Station.

Remote Sensing of Terrestrial Water Storage with GRACE and Future Gravimetry Missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rodell, Matt; Watkins, Mike; Famiglietti, Jay

2011-01-01

The Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) has demonstrated that satellite gravimetry can be a valuable tool for regional to global water cycle observation. Studies of ice sheet and glacier mass losses, ocean bottom pressure and circulation, and variability of water stored on and in the land including groundwater all have benefited from GRACE observations, and the list of applications and discoveries continues to grow. As the mission approaches its tenth anniversary of launch on March 12,2012, it has nearly doubled its proposed lifetime but is showing some signs of age. In particular, degraded battery capacity limits the availability of power in certain orbital configurations, so that the accelerometers must be turned off for approximately one month out of six. The mission managers have decided to operate the spacecrafts in a manner that maximizes the remaining lifetime, so that the longest possible climate data record is available from GRACE. Nevertheless, it is not unlikely that there will be a data gap between GRACE and the GRACE Follow On mission, currently proposed for launch in 2016. In this presentation we will describe recent GRACE enabled science, GRACE mission health, and plans for GRACE Follow On and other future satellite gravimetry missions.

On the Simulation of Sea States with High Significant Wave Height for the Validation of Parameter Retrieval Algorithms for Future Altimetry Missions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kuschenerus, Mieke; Cullen, Robert

2016-08-01

To ensure reliability and precision of wave height estimates for future satellite altimetry missions such as Sentinel 6, reliable parameter retrieval algorithms that can extract significant wave heights up to 20 m have to be established. The retrieved parameters, i.e. the retrieval methods need to be validated extensively on a wide range of possible significant wave heights. Although current missions require wave height retrievals up to 20 m, there is little evidence of systematic validation of parameter retrieval methods for sea states with wave heights above 10 m. This paper provides a definition of a set of simulated sea states with significant wave height up to 20 m, that allow simulation of radar altimeter response echoes for extreme sea states in SAR and low resolution mode. The simulated radar responses are used to derive significant wave height estimates, which can be compared with the initial models, allowing precision estimations of the applied parameter retrieval methods. Thus we establish a validation method for significant wave height retrieval for sea states causing high significant wave heights, to allow improved understanding and planning of future satellite altimetry mission validation.

Near-Earth Objects: Targets for Future Human Exploration, Solar System Science, Resource Utilization, and Planetary Defense

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Abell, Paul A.

2011-01-01

U.S. President Obama stated on April 15, 2010 that the next goal for human spaceflight will be to send human beings to a near-Earth asteroid by 2025. Given this direction from the White House, NASA has been involved in studying various strategies for near-Earth object (NEO) exploration in order to follow U.S. Space Exploration Policy. This mission would be the first human expedition to an interplanetary body beyond the Earth-Moon system and would prove useful for testing technologies required for human missions to Mars and other Solar System destinations. Missions to NEOs would undoubtedly provide a great deal of technical and engineering data on spacecraft operations for future human space exploration while conducting in-depth scientific investigations of these primitive objects. In addition, the resulting scientific investigations would refine designs for future extraterrestrial resource extraction and utilization, and assist in the development of hazard mitigation techniques for planetary defense. This presentation will discuss some of the physical characteristics of NEOs and review some of the current plans for NEO research and exploration from both a human and robotic mission perspective.

NASA Technology Investments in Electric Propulsion: New Directions in the New Millennium

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sankovic, John M.

2002-01-01

The last decade was a period of unprecedented acceptance of NASA developed electric propulsion by the user community. The benefits of high performance electric propulsion systems are now widely recognized, and new technologies have been accepted across the commonly. NASA clearly recognizes the need for new, high performance, electric propulsion technologies for future solar system missions and is sponsoring aggressive efforts in this area. These efforts are mainly conducted under the Office of Aerospace Technology. Plans over the next six years include the development of next generation ion thrusters for end of decade missions. Additional efforts are planned for the development of very high power thrusters, including magnetoplasmadynamic, pulsed inductive, and VASIMR, and clusters of Hall thrusters. In addition to the in-house technology efforts, NASA continues to work closely with both supplier and user communities to maximize the acceptance of new technology in a timely and cost-effective manner. This paper provides an overview of NASA's activities in the area of electric propulsion with an emphasis on future program directions.

Rapid Contingency Simulation Modeling of the NASA Crew Launch Vehicle

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Betts, Kevin M.; Rutherford, R. Chad; McDuffie, James; Johnson, Matthew D.

2007-01-01

The NASA Crew Launch Vehicle is a two-stage orbital launcher designed to meet NASA's current as well as future needs for human space flight. In order to free the designers to explore more possibilities during the design phase, a need exists for the ability to quickly perform simulation on both the baseline vehicle as well as the vehicle after proposed changes due to mission planning, vehicle configuration and avionics changes, proposed new guidance and control algorithms, and any other contingencies the designers may wish to consider. Further, after the vehicle is designed and built, the need will remain for such analysis in the event of future mission planning. An easily reconfigurable, modular, nonlinear six-degree-of-freedom simulation matching NASA Marshall's in-house high-fidelity simulator is created with the ability to quickly perform simulation and analysis of the Crew Launch Vehicle throughout the entire launch profile. Simulation results are presented and discussed, and an example comparison fly-off between two candidate controllers is presented.

Advances in Robotic, Human, and Autonomous Systems for Missions of Space Exploration

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gross, Anthony R.; Briggs, Geoffrey A.; Glass, Brian J.; Pedersen, Liam; Kortenkamp, David M.; Wettergreen, David S.; Nourbakhsh, I.; Clancy, Daniel J.; Zornetzer, Steven (Technical Monitor)

2002-01-01

Space exploration missions are evolving toward more complex architectures involving more capable robotic systems, new levels of human and robotic interaction, and increasingly autonomous systems. How this evolving mix of advanced capabilities will be utilized in the design of new missions is a subject of much current interest. Cost and risk constraints also play a key role in the development of new missions, resulting in a complex interplay of a broad range of factors in the mission development and planning of new missions. This paper will discuss how human, robotic, and autonomous systems could be used in advanced space exploration missions. In particular, a recently completed survey of the state of the art and the potential future of robotic systems, as well as new experiments utilizing human and robotic approaches will be described. Finally, there will be a discussion of how best to utilize these various approaches for meeting space exploration goals.

Cassini End of Mission

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-09-15

Spacecraft operations team manager for the Cassini mission at Saturn, Julie Webster, rips up the final contingency plan for the Cassini mission, Friday, Sept. 15, 2017 in mission control at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. 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 deliberately plunged the spacecraft into Saturn, as Cassini gathered science until the end. Loss of contact with the Cassini spacecraft occurred at 7:55 a.m. EDT (4:55 a.m. PDT). 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)

Earth Observations and the Role of UAVs: A Capabilities Assessment

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cox, Timothy H.

2006-01-01

This three-volume document, based on the draft document located on the website given on page 6, presents the findings of a NASA-led capabilities assessment of Uninhabited Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) for civil (defined as non-DoD) use in Earth observations. Volume 1 is the report that presents the overall assessment and summarizes the data. The second volume contains the appendices and references to address the technologies and capabilities required for viable UAV missions. The third volume is the living portion of this effort and contains the outputs from each of the Technology Working Groups (TWGs) along with the reviews conducted by the Universities Space Research Association (USRA). The focus of this report, intended to complement the Office of the Secretary of Defense UAV Roadmap, is four-fold: 1) To determine and document desired future Earth observation missions for all UAVs based on user-defined needs; 2) To determine and document the technologies necessary to support those missions; 3) To discuss the present state of the art platform capabilities and required technologies, including identifying those in progress, those planned, and those for which no current plans exist; 4) Provide the foundations for development of a comprehensive civil UAV roadmap. It is expected that the content of this report will be updated periodically and used to assess the feasibility of future missions. In addition, this report will provide the foundation to help influence funding decisions to develop those technologies that are considered enabling or necessary but are not contained within approved funding plans. This document is written such that each section will be supported by an Appendix that will give the reader a more detailed discussion of that section's topical materials.

NASA Global Hawk Project Update and Future Plans: A New Tool for Earth Science Research

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Naftel, Chris

2009-01-01

Science objectives include: First demonstration of the Global Hawk unmanned aircraft system (UAS) for NASA and NOAA Earth science research and applications; Validation of instruments on-board the Aura satellite; Exploration of trace gases, aerosols, and dynamics of remote upper Troposphere/lower Stratosphere regions; Sample polar vortex fragments and atmospheric rivers; Risk reduction for future missions that will study hurricanes and atmospheric rivers.

The Space Station as a Construction Base for Large Space Structures

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gates, R. M.

1985-01-01

The feasibility of using the Space Station as a construction site for large space structures is examined. An overview is presented of the results of a program entitled Definition of Technology Development Missions (TDM's) for Early Space Stations - Large Space Structures. The definition of LSS technology development missions must be responsive to the needs of future space missions which require large space structures. Long range plans for space were assembled by reviewing Space System Technology Models (SSTM) and other published sources. Those missions which will use large space structures were reviewed to determine the objectives which must be demonstrated by technology development missions. The three TDM's defined during this study are: (1) a construction storage/hangar facility; (2) a passive microwave radiometer; and (3) a precision optical system.

It's Time to Develop a New "Draft Test Protocol" for a Mars Sample Return Mission (or Two…).

PubMed

Rummel, John D; Kminek, Gerhard

2018-04-01

The last time NASA envisioned a sample return mission from Mars, the development of a protocol to support the analysis of the samples in a containment facility resulted in a "Draft Test Protocol" that outlined required preparations "for the safe receiving, handling, testing, distributing, and archiving of martian materials here on Earth" (Rummel et al., 2002 ). This document comprised a specific protocol to be used to conduct a biohazard test for a returned martian sample, following the recommendations of the Space Studies Board of the US National Academy of Sciences. Given the planned launch of a sample-collecting and sample-caching rover (Mars 2020) in 2 years' time, and with a sample return planned for the end of the next decade, it is time to revisit the Draft Test Protocol to develop a sample analysis and biohazard test plan to meet the needs of these future missions. Key Words: Biohazard detection-Mars sample analysis-Sample receiving facility-Protocol-New analytical techniques-Robotic sample handling. Astrobiology 18, 377-380.

Using Existing NASA Satellites as Orbiting Testbeds to Accelerate Technology Infusion into Future Missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mandl, Daniel; Ly, Vuong; Frye, Stuart

2006-01-01

One of the shared problems for new space mission developers is that it is extremely difficult to infuse new technology into new missions unless that technology has been flight validated. Therefore, the issue is that new technology is required to fly on a successful mission for flight validation. We have been experimenting with new technology on existing satellites by retrofitting primarily the flight software while the missions are on-orbit to experiment with new operations concepts. Experiments have been using Earth Observing 1 (EO-1), which is part of the New Millennium Program at NASA. EO-1 finished its prime mission one year after its launch on November 21,2000. From November 21,2001 until the present, EO-1 has been used in parallel with additional science data gathering to test out various sensor web concepts. Similarly, the Cosmic Hot Interstellar Plasma Spectrometer (CHIPS) satellite was also a one year mission flown by the University of Berkeley, sponsored by NASA and whose prime mission ended August 30,2005. Presently, CHIPS is being used to experiment with a seamless space to ground interface by installing Core Flight System (cFS), a "plug-and-play" architecture developed by the Flight Software Branch at NASA/GSFC on top of the existing space-to-ground Internet Protocol (IP) interface that CHIPS implemented. For example, one targeted experiment is to connect CHIPS to a rover via this interface and the Internet, and trigger autonomous actions on CHIPS, the rover or both. Thus far, having satellites to experiment with new concepts has turned out to be an inexpensive way to infuse new technology for future missions. Relevant experiences thus far and future plans will be discussed in this presentation.

Recent Results from the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Mission and Plans for the Extended Science Phase

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Vondrak, Richard; Keller, John W.; Chin, Gordon; Petro, Noah; Garvin, James B.; Rice, James W.

2012-01-01

The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter spacecraft (LRO), launched on June 18, 2009, began with the goal of seeking safe landing sites for future robotic missions or the return of humans to the Moon as part of NASA's Exploration Systems Mission Directorate (ESMD). In addition, LRO's objectives included the search for surface resources and to investigate the Lunar radiation environment. After spacecraft commissioning, the ESMD phase of the mission began on September 15, 2009 and completed on September 15, 2010 when operational responsibility for LRO was transferred to NASA's Science Mission Directorate (SMD). The SMD mission was scheduled for 2 years and completed in September, 2012. The LRO mission has been extended for two years under SMD. The extended mission focuses on a new set of goals related to understanding the geologic history of the Moon, its current state, and what it can tell us about the evolution Of the Solar System. Here we will review the major results from the LRO mission for both exploration and science and discuss plans and objectives going forward including plans for the extended science phase out to 2014. Results from the LRO mission include but are not limited to the development of comprehensive high resolution maps and digital terrain models of the lunar surface; discoveries on the nature of hydrogen distribution, and by extension water, at the lunar poles; measurement of the day and night time temperature of the lunar surface including temperature down below 30 K in permanently shadowed regions (PSRs); direct measurement of Hg, H2, and CO deposits in the PSRs, evidence for recent tectonic activity on the Moon, and high resolution maps of the illumination conditions as the poles. The objectives for the second and extended science phases of the mission under SMD include: 1) understanding the bombardment history of the Moon, 2) interpreting Lunar geologic processes, 3) mapping the global Lunar regolith, 4) identifying volatiles on the Moon, and 5) measuring the Lunar atmosphere and radiation environment.

Modeling and Simulation for Multi-Missions Space Exploration Vehicle

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chang, Max

2011-01-01

Asteroids and Near-Earth Objects [NEOs] are of great interest for future space missions. The Multi-Mission Space Exploration Vehicle [MMSEV] is being considered for future Near Earth Object missions and requires detailed planning and study of its Guidance, Navigation, and Control [GNC]. A possible mission of the MMSEV to a NEO would be to navigate the spacecraft to a stationary orbit with respect to the rotating asteroid and proceed to anchor into the surface of the asteroid with robotic arms. The Dynamics and Real-Time Simulation [DARTS] laboratory develops reusable models and simulations for the design and analysis of missions. In this paper, the development of guidance and anchoring models are presented together with their role in achieving mission objectives and relationships to other parts of the simulation. One important aspect of guidance is in developing methods to represent the evolution of kinematic frames related to the tasks to be achieved by the spacecraft and its robot arms. In this paper, we compare various types of mathematical interpolation methods for position and quaternion frames. Subsequent work will be on analyzing the spacecraft guidance system with different movements of the arms. With the analyzed data, the guidance system can be adjusted to minimize the errors in performing precision maneuvers.

Performance considerations in long-term spaceflight

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Akins, F. R.

1979-01-01

Maintenance of skilled performance during extended space flight is of critical importance to both the health and safety of crew members and to the overall success of mission goals. An examination of long term effects and performance requirements is therefore a factor of immense importance to the planning of future missions. Factors that were investigated include: definition of performance categories to be investigated; methods for assessing and predicting performance levels; in-flight factors which can affect performance; and factors pertinent to the maintenance of skilled performance.

Using the mass media to inform and educate the public about planetary protection and exploration risks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Race, M.

For the foreseeable future, the public will continue to learn piecemeal about the latest advances in Astrobiology through headlines and mass media coverage of missions, discoveries or controversies. Journalists and reporters are themselves unschooled in this emerging interdisciplinary field, yet play a critical role in explaining details to the public. While it is important to develop curricular materials for future use in formal educational settings, it is equally important to find novel ways for educating and updating journalists in this fast paced field. Risk communication plans for Mars exploration and other solar system missions should include special efforts aimed at assisting mass media professionals in both their informational and educational roles. If journalists and reporters have a deeper and more comprehensive understanding of the science and societal issues associated with missions, the result may well be more accurate explanations, improved public understanding, and continued support for exploration.

Obtaining and Using Planetary Spatial Data into the Future: The Role of the Mapping and Planetary Spatial Infrastructure Team (MAPSIT)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Radebaugh, J.; Thomson, B. J.; Archinal, B.; Hagerty, J.; Gaddis, L.; Lawrence, S. J.; Sutton, S.

2017-01-01

Planetary spatial data, which include any remote sensing data or derived products with sufficient positional information such that they can be projected onto a planetary body, continue to rapidly increase in volume and complexity. These data are the hard-earned fruits of decades of planetary exploration, and are the end result of mission planning and execution. Maintaining these data using accessible formats and standards for all scientists has been necessary for the success of past, present, and future planetary missions. The Mapping and Planetary Spatial Infrastructure Team (MAPSIT) is a group of planetary community members tasked by NASA Headquarters to work with the planetary science community to identify and prioritize their planetary spatial data needs to help determine the best pathways for new data acquisition, usable product derivation, and tools/capability development that supports NASA's planetary science missions.

Cartographic and geodetic methods to characterize the potential landing sites for the future Russian missions Luna-Glob and Luna-Resurs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Karachevtseva, I. P.; Kokhanov, A. A.; Konopikhin, A. A.; Nadezhdina, I. E.; Zubarev, A. E.; Patratiy, V. D.; Kozlova, N. A.; Uchaev, D. V.; Uchaev, Dm. V.; Malinnikov, V. A.; Oberst, J.

2015-04-01

Characterization of the potential landing sites for the planned Luna-Glob and Luna-Resurs Russian missions requires cartographic and geodetic support prepared with special methods and techniques that are briefly overviewed here. The data used in the analysis, including the digital terrain models (DTMs) and the orthoimages acquired in the survey carried out from the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter and Kaguya spacecraft, are described and evaluated. By way of illustration, different regions of the lunar surface, including the subpolar regions of the Moon, are characterized with the suggested methods and the GIS-technologies. The development of the information support for the future lunar missions started in 2011, and it is now carried on in MIIGAiK Extraterrestrial Laboratory (MExLab), which is a department of the Moscow State University of Geodesy and Cartography (MIIGAiK).

Goddard Space Flight Center Spacecraft Magnetic Test Facility Restoration Project

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Vernier, Robert; Bonalksy, Todd; Slavin, James

2004-01-01

The Goddard Space Flight Center Spacecraft Magnetic Test Facility (SMTF) was constructed in the 1960's for the purpose of simulating geomagnetic and interplanetary magnetic field environments. The facility includes a three axis Braunbek coil system consisting of 12 loops, 4 loops on each of the three orthogonal axes; a remote Earth field sensing magnetometer and servo controller; and a remote power control and instrumentation building. The inner coils of the Braunbek system are 42-foot in diameter with a 10-foot by 10-foot opening through the outer coils to accommodate spacecraft access into the test volume. The physical size and precision of the facility are matched by only two other such facilities in the world. The facility was used extensively from the late 1960's until the early 1990's when the requirement for spacecraft level testing diminished. New NASA missions planned under the Living with a Star, Solar Terrestrial Probes, Explorer, and New Millennium Programs include precision, high-resolution magnetometers to obtain magnetic field data that is critical to fulfilling their scientific mission. It is highly likely that future Lunar and Martian exploration missions will also use precision magnetometers to conduct geophysical magnetic surveys. To ensure the success of these missions, ground-testing using a magnetic test facility such as the GSFC SMTF will be required. This paper describes the history of the facility, the future mission requirements that have renewed the need for spacecraft level magnetic testing, and the plans for restoring the facility to be capable of performing to its original design specifications.

Radiology on Board the PLA(N) Peace Ark Hospital Ship During a Humanitarian Medical Relief Mission to the Philippines.

PubMed

Ren, Ai-Jun; Sun, Tao; Wang, Hai-Wei; Ge, He-Quan; Ye, Hong-Jun

2016-02-01

From November 24 to December 10, 2013, the Chinese People's Liberation Army Navy [PLA(N)] hospital ship Peace Ark was deployed to the Leyte Gulf in the Philippines to provide humanitarian medical relief in Tacloban after Typhoon Haiyan. The purpose of this study was to assess the radiological services aboard the ship to provide guidance for future missions. A retrospective review was performed on a cohort of 109 patients who underwent digital radiography (DR) and 59 patients who underwent computed tomography (CT) scans during a 16-day period during a humanitarian medical relief mission to the Philippines. Patient demographics, DR findings, and CT findings were analyzed. The mean age of the 109 DR patients was 39.7 years for the 64 males and 43.7 years for the 45 females. A total of 148 DR examinations were performed of the chest (n=109), extremities (n=35), and spine (n=4). The mean age of the 59 CT patients was 43.8 years for the 32 males and 49.1 years for the 27 females. A total of 72 CT scans were performed of the head and neck (n=36), thorax (n=24), abdomen (n=5), spine (n=4), and extremities (n=3). The imaging findings mainly included disaster-related and non-disaster-related fractures, pulmonary tuberculosis, pulmonary infection, acute brain infarction, intracranial hematoma, and occupying lesions. Analysis of radiological services during a humanitarian medical relief mission to the Philippines provided meaningful information for future humanitarian medical relief missions.

Goddard Space Flight Center Spacecraft Magnetic Test Facility Restoration Project

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Vernier, Robert; Bonalosky, Todd; Slavin, James

2004-01-01

The Goddard Space Flight Center Spacecraft Magnetic Test Facility (SMTF) was constructed in the 1960's for the purpose of simulating geomagnetic and interplanetary magnetic field environments. The facility includes a three axis Braunbek coil system consisting of 12 loops, 4 loops on each of the three orthogonal axes; a remote Earth field sensing magnetometer and servo controller; and a remote power control and instrumentation building. The inner coils of the Braunbek system are 42-foot in diameter with a 10-foot by 10-foot opening through the outer coils to accommodate spacecraft access into the test volume. The physical size and precision of the facility are matched by only two other such facilities in the world. The facility was used extensively from the late 1960's until the early 1990's when the requirement for spacecraft level testing diminished. New NASA missions planned under the Living with a Star, Solar Terrestrial Probes, Explorer, and New Millennium Programs include precision, high-resolution magnetometers to obtain magnetic field data that is critical to fulfilling their scientific mission. It is highly likely that future Lunar and Martian exploration missions will also use precision magnetometers to conduct geophysical magnetic surveys. To ensure the success of these missions, ground testing using a magnetic test facility such as the GSFC SMTF will be required. This paper describes the history of the facility, the future mission requirements that have renewed the need for spacecraft level magnetic testing, and the plans for restoring the facility to be capable of performing to its original design specifications.

Accuracy analysis of TDRSS demand forecasts

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Stern, Daniel C.; Levine, Allen J.; Pitt, Karl J.

1994-01-01

This paper reviews Space Network (SN) demand forecasting experience over the past 16 years and describes methods used in the forecasts. The paper focuses on the Single Access (SA) service, the most sought-after resource in the Space Network. Of the ten years of actual demand data available, only the last five years (1989 to 1993) were considered predictive due to the extensive impact of the Challenger accident of 1986. NASA's Space Network provides tracking and communications services to user spacecraft such as the Shuttle and the Hubble Space Telescope. Forecasting the customer requirements is essential to planning network resources and to establishing service commitments to future customers. The lead time to procure Tracking and Data Relay Satellites (TDRS's) requires demand forecasts ten years in the future a planning horizon beyond the funding commitments for missions to be supported. The long range forecasts are shown to have had a bias toward underestimation in the 1991 -1992 period. The trend of underestimation can be expected to be replaced by overestimation for a number of years starting with 1998. At that time demand from new missions slated for launch will be larger than the demand from ongoing missions, making the potential for delay the dominant factor. If the new missions appear as scheduled, the forecasts are likely to be moderately underestimated. The SN commitment to meet the negotiated customer's requirements calls for conservatism in the forecasting. Modification of the forecasting procedure to account for a delay bias is, therefore, not advised. Fine tuning the mission model to more accurately reflect the current actual demand is recommended as it may marginally improve the first year forecasting.

Kepler Mission IYA Teacher Professional Development Workshops

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Devore, E. K.; Harman, P.; Gould, A. D.; Koch, D.

2009-12-01

NASA's Kepler Mission conducted six teacher professional development workshops on the search for Earth-size in the habitable zone of Sun-like stars. The Kepler Mission launched in March, 2009. As a part of International Year of Astronomy 2009, this series of one-day workshops were designed and presented for middle and high school teachers, and science center and planetarium educators prior to and after the launch. The professional development workshops were designed using the best practices and principals from the National Science Education Standards and similar documents. Sharing the outcome of our plans, strategies and formative evaluation results can be of use to other Education and Public Outreach practitioners who plan similar trainings. Each event was supported by a Kepler team scientist, two Education & Public Outreach staff and local hosts. The workshops combined a science content lecture and discussion, making models, kinesthetic activities, and interpretation of transit data. The emphasis was on inquiry-based instruction and supported science education standards in grades 7-12. Participants’ kit included an orrery, optical sensor and software to demonstrate transit detection. The workshop plan, teaching strategies, and lessons learned from evaluation will be discussed. Future events are planned. Kepler's Education and Public Outreach program is jointly conducted by the SETI Institute and Lawrence Hall of Science at UC Berkeley in close coordination with the Kepler Mission at NASA Ames Research Center. The IYA Kepler Teacher Professional Development workshops were supported by NASA Grants to the E. DeVore, SETI Institute NAG2-6066 Kepler Education and Public Outreach and NNX08BA74G, IYA Kepler Mission Pre-launch Workshops. Teachers participate in human orrery.

The future of space medicine.

PubMed

Nicogossian, A; Pober, D

2001-01-01

In November 2000, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and its partners in the International Space Station (ISS) ushered in a new era of space flight: permanent human presence in low-Earth orbit. As the culmination of the last four decades of human space flight activities. the ISS focuses our attention on what we have learned to date. and what still must be learned before we can embark on future exploration endeavors. Space medicine has been a primary part of our past success in human space flight, and will continue to play a critical role in future ventures. To prepare for the day when crews may leave low-Earth orbit for long-duration exploratory missions, space medicine practitioners must develop a thorough understanding of the effects of microgravity on the human body, as well as ways to limit or prevent them. In order to gain a complete understanding and create the tools and technologies needed to enable successful exploration. space medicine will become even more of a highly collaborative discipline. Future missions will require the partnership of physicians, biomedical scientists, engineers, and mission planners. This paper will examine the future of space medicine as it relates to human space exploration: what is necessary to keep a crew alive in space, how we do it today, how we will accomplish this in the future, and how the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) plans to achieve future goals.

Technology and the civil future in space; Proceedings of the Twenty-sixth Goddard Memorial Symposium, Greenbelt, MD, Mar. 16-18, 1988

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Harris, Leonard A. (Editor)

1989-01-01

Reviews, reports, lectures, and panel discussions on technological aspects of current and planned NASA space missions are presented. Included are the viewpoints of NASA, the U.S. aerospace industry, potential commercial users of the civil space infrastructure, and university scientists and engineers. Sections are devoted to technology policy and plans, technology needs, technology directions, and the Astronautical Society student program.

Advanced Budget Technology in Education: The Future Is Now.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cooper, Bruce S.; Nisonoff, Philip; Speakman, Sheree T.

2001-01-01

The techno-revolution is arriving in school business officials' domain. This article discusses four major effects of technology on budgeting and financial management of schools: enhanced strategic planning and mission building, budget standards without standardized spending, movement from system to student, and integration of multiple reporting…

Historical and projected power requirements

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wolfe, M. G.

1978-01-01

Policy planning for projected space power requirements is discussed. Topics of discussion cover: (1) historical space power trends (prime power requirements and power system costs); and (2) two approaches to future space power requirements (mission/traffic model approach and advanced system scenario approach). Graphs, tables, and flow charts are presented.

Coordinating Aircraft During Field Campaigns: Real Time Mission Monitor Tool

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Goodman, Michael

2012-01-01

RTMM has evolved into a powerful and easy to use application in support of planning, situational awareness and strategic decision-making during airborne field campaigns. NASA is very open to sharing these capabilities with any interested group through interagency collaborations in future field activities.

Gaussian-based filters for detecting Martian dust devils

USGS Publications Warehouse

Yang, F.; Mlsna, P.A.; Geissler, P.

2006-01-01

The ability to automatically detect dust devils in the Martian atmosphere from orbital imagery is becoming important both for scientific studies of the planet and for the planning of future robotic and manned missions. This paper describes our approach for the unsupervised detection of dust devils and the preliminary results achieved to date. The algorithm centers upon the use of a filter constructed from Gaussian profiles to match dust devil characteristics over a range of scale and orientation. The classification step is designed to reduce false positive errors caused by static surface features such as craters. A brief discussion of planned future work is included. ?? 2006 IEEE.

Alkali Metal Rankine Cycle Boiler Technology Challenges and Some Potential Solutions for Space Nuclear Power and Propulsion Applications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Stone, James R.

1994-01-01

Alkali metal boilers are of interest for application to future space Rankine cycle power conversion systems. Significant progress on such boilers was accomplished in the 1960's and early 1970's, but development was not continued to operational systems since NASA's plans for future space missions were drastically curtailed in the early 1970's. In particular, piloted Mars missions were indefinitely deferred. With the announcement of the Space Exploration Initiative (SEI) in July 1989 by President Bush, interest was rekindled in challenging space missions and, consequently in space nuclear power and propulsion. Nuclear electric propulsion (NEP) and nuclear thermal propulsion (NTP) were proposed for interplanetary space vehicles, particularly for Mars missions. The potassium Rankine power conversion cycle became of interest to provide electric power for NEP vehicles and for 'dual-mode' NTP vehicles, where the same reactor could be used directly for propulsion and (with an additional coolant loop) for power. Although the boiler is not a major contributor to system mass, it is of critical importance because of its interaction with the rest of the power conversion system; it can cause problems for other components such as excess liquid droplets entering the turbine, thereby reducing its life, or more critically, it can drive instabilities-some severe enough to cause system failure. Funding for the SEI and its associated technology program from 1990 to 1993 was not sufficient to support significant new work on Rankine cycle boilers for space applications. In Fiscal Year 1994, funding for these challenging missions and technologies has again been curtailed, and planning for the future is very uncertain. The purpose of this paper is to review the technologies developed in the 1960's and 1970's in the light of the recent SEI applications. In this way, future Rankine cycle boiler programs may be conducted most efficiently. This report is aimed at evaluating alkali metal boiler technology for space Rankine cycle systems. Research is summarized on the problems of flow stability, liquid carryover, pressure drop and heat transfer, and on potential solutions developed, primarily those developed by the NASA Lewis Research Center in the 1960's and early 1970's.

The Hubble Space Telescope at 25: Lessons Learned for Future Missions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wiseman, Jennifer

2015-08-01

This year we celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Hubble Space Telescope mission. Astronomy worldwide has been transformed by the discoveries made with Hubble. At this momentous milestone it is important to reflect on the unique successes of Hubble, and the components of that success, as the astronomical community develops facilities and a vision for future major international efforts in scientific space exploration. First, Hubble was envisioned by pioneering astronomers long before its launch, galvanizing support from astronomers, NASA, and governmental leaders for such an innovative and risky endeavor. Second, the interplay of the astronaut program with scientific exploration was paramount to the success of Hubble, not only with the initial dramatic repair mission, but also for the subsequent five servicing missions that kept the observatory perpetually refreshed. Cooperative missions involving astronauts, engineers, and scientists may be critical for constructing and operating large facilities in space in the future. Third, the scientific discoveries of Hubble involve both incredible successes that were planned from the outset as well as new discoveries and innovative uses of the observatory that could not have been planned in advance. Hubble has been used not only to gauge the expansion rate and age of the universe, but has also been a major player in the recent surprise detection of acceleration in that expansion. Hubble has also been key for studying star formation and now the atmospheres of exoplanets; even water has been detected in exoplanetary systems, something never envisioned for Hubble originally. And the incredible evolutionary picture of galaxies has been unveiled through Hubble observations, now enhanced by the revolutionary uses of gravitational lensing to study both dark matter in the lensing clusters, and extremely distant magnified galaxies. Finally, Hubble’s great success in public outreach has made the discoveries of astronomy easily accessible and treasured by people around the world. This talk will outline how these successes of the Hubble Space Telescope program can inform and prepare us for future large scale astronomical facilities and exploration endeavors.

Integrated In-space Transportation Plan

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Farris, B.; Eberle, B.; Woodcock, G.; Negast, B.; Johnson, Les (Technical Monitor)

2002-01-01

The purpose of this report is to provide the reader with a readily accessible reference volume and history for the Integrated In-Space Transportation Plan (IISTP) phase I effort. This report was prepared by Gray Research, Inc. as a partial fulfillment of the Integrated Technology Assessment Center subcontract No. 4400037135 in support of the IISTP phase I effort within the In-Space Investment Area of the Advanced Space Transportation Program managed at Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, Alabama. Much of the data used in the preparation of this report was taken from analyses, briefings, and reports prepared by the vast number of dedicated engineers and scientists who participated in the IISTP phase I effort. The opinions and ideas expressed in this report are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of NASA in whole or in part. Reaching the outer solar system is a struggle against time and distance. The most distant planets are 4.5 to 6 billion kilometers from the Sun and to reach them in any reasonable time requires much higher values of specific impulse than can be achieved with conventional chemical rockets. In addition, the few spacecraft that have reached beyond Jupiter have used gravity assist, mainly by Jupiter, that is only available for a few months' period every 13 or so years. This permits only very infrequent missions and mission planners are very reluctant to accept travel times greater than about ten years since this is about the maximum for which one can have a realistic program plan. Advanced In-Space Propulsion (ISP) technologies will enable much more effective exploration of our Solar System and will permit mission designers to plan missions to "fly anytime, anywhere and complete a host of science objectives at the destinations' with greater reliability and safety. With a wide range of possible missions and candidate propulsion technologies with very diverse characteristics, the question of which technologies are "best" for future missions is a difficult one. The primary focus of the IISTP Phase I efforts were to: Develop, iterate and baseline future NASA requirements for In-Space Transportation; Define preliminary integrated architectures utilizing advanced ISP technologies; Identify and prioritize ISP technologies. The primary efforts of the IISTP Phase I process was to: Address Customer defined missions, mission priorities, mission requirements and technology preferences. Provide a forum for Technologists to advocate and have sufficiently considered any ISP technology for any mission of interest defined by the customer. Perform Systems analyses of the customer defined prioritized mission set to the degree necessary to support evaluation and prioritization of each technology advocated by the technologists. Perform Cost analyses on each of the technologies that were determined by systems analyses to be viable candidates for the customer defined mission set. Integrate all customers, technologists, systems, cost, program and project inputs into the final IISTP Prioritized set of technologies. The primary products of the IISTP Phase I effort were: Prioritized set of advanced ISP technologies that meet customer-provided requirements for customer prioritized mission sets; Recommendations of relative technology payoffs to guide augmentation investments.

Integrated In-Space Transportation Plan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Farris, B.; Eberle, B.; Woodcock, G.; Negast, B.

2002-10-01

The purpose of this report is to provide the reader with a readily accessible reference volume and history for the Integrated In-Space Transportation Plan (IISTP) phase I effort. This report was prepared by Gray Research, Inc. as a partial fulfillment of the Integrated Technology Assessment Center subcontract No. 4400037135 in support of the IISTP phase I effort within the In-Space Investment Area of the Advanced Space Transportation Program managed at Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, Alabama. Much of the data used in the preparation of this report was taken from analyses, briefings, and reports prepared by the vast number of dedicated engineers and scientists who participated in the IISTP phase I effort. The opinions and ideas expressed in this report are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of NASA in whole or in part. Reaching the outer solar system is a struggle against time and distance. The most distant planets are 4.5 to 6 billion kilometers from the Sun and to reach them in any reasonable time requires much higher values of specific impulse than can be achieved with conventional chemical rockets. In addition, the few spacecraft that have reached beyond Jupiter have used gravity assist, mainly by Jupiter, that is only available for a few months' period every 13 or so years. This permits only very infrequent missions and mission planners are very reluctant to accept travel times greater than about ten years since this is about the maximum for which one can have a realistic program plan. Advanced In-Space Propulsion (ISP) technologies will enable much more effective exploration of our Solar System and will permit mission designers to plan missions to "fly anytime, anywhere and complete a host of science objectives at the destinations' with greater reliability and safety. With a wide range of possible missions and candidate propulsion technologies with very diverse characteristics, the question of which technologies are "best" for future missions is a difficult one. The primary focus of the IISTP Phase I efforts were to: Develop, iterate and baseline future NASA requirements for In-Space Transportation; Define preliminary integrated architectures utilizing advanced ISP technologies; Identify and prioritize ISP technologies. The primary efforts of the IISTP Phase I process was to: Address Customer defined missions, mission priorities, mission requirements and technology preferences. Provide a forum for Technologists to advocate and have sufficiently considered any ISP technology for any mission of interest defined by the customer. Perform Systems analyses of the customer defined prioritized mission set to the degree necessary to support evaluation and prioritization of each technology advocated by the technologists. Perform Cost analyses on each of the technologies that were determined by systems analyses to be viable candidates for the customer defined mission set. Integrate all customers, technologists, systems, cost, program and project inputs into the final IISTP Prioritized set of technologies. The primary products of the IISTP Phase I effort were: Prioritized set of advanced ISP technologies that meet customer-provided requirements for customer prioritized mission sets; Recommendations of relative technology payoffs to guide augmentation investments.

Robotic assembly and maintenance of future space stations based on the ISS mission operations experience

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rembala, Richard; Ower, Cameron

2009-10-01

MDA has provided 25 years of real-time engineering support to Shuttle (Canadarm) and ISS (Canadarm2) robotic operations beginning with the second shuttle flight STS-2 in 1981. In this capacity, our engineering support teams have become familiar with the evolution of mission planning and flight support practices for robotic assembly and support operations at mission control. This paper presents observations on existing practices and ideas to achieve reduced operational overhead to present programs. It also identifies areas where robotic assembly and maintenance of future space stations and space-based facilities could be accomplished more effectively and efficiently. Specifically, our experience shows that past and current space Shuttle and ISS assembly and maintenance operations have used the approach of extensive preflight mission planning and training to prepare the flight crews for the entire mission. This has been driven by the overall communication latency between the earth and remote location of the space station/vehicle as well as the lack of consistent robotic and interface standards. While the early Shuttle and ISS architectures included robotics, their eventual benefits on the overall assembly and maintenance operations could have been greater through incorporating them as a major design driver from the beginning of the system design. Lessons learned from the ISS highlight the potential benefits of real-time health monitoring systems, consistent standards for robotic interfaces and procedures and automated script-driven ground control in future space station assembly and logistics architectures. In addition, advances in computer vision systems and remote operation, supervised autonomous command and control systems offer the potential to adjust the balance between assembly and maintenance tasks performed using extra vehicular activity (EVA), extra vehicular robotics (EVR) and EVR controlled from the ground, offloading the EVA astronaut and even the robotic operator on-orbit of some of the more routine tasks. Overall these proposed approaches when used effectively offer the potential to drive down operations overhead and allow more efficient and productive robotic operations.

Planetary programs

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mills, R. A.; Bourke, R. D.

1985-01-01

The goals of the NASA planetary exploration program are to understand the origin and evolution of the solar system and the earth, and the extent and nature of near-earth space resources. To accomplish this, a number of missions have been flown to the planets, and more are in active preparation or in the planning stage. This paper describes the current and planned planetary exploration program starting with the spacecraft now in flight (Pioneers and Voyagers), those in preparation for launch this decade (Galileo, Magellan, and Mars Observer), and those recommended by the Solar System Exploration Committee for the future. The latter include a series of modest objective Observer missions, a more ambitious set of Mariner Mark IIs, and the very challenging but scientifically rewarding sample returns.

Education and Communication for the Magnetospheric Multiscale Mission

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Reiff, Patricia H.; Cline, Troy D.

2016-03-01

The Magnetospheric Multiscale mission (MMS) proposed a balanced portfolio of education and communication activities and products, including broadly distributed materials for the general public, special programs and materials for teachers, targeted activities and materials for underserved groups, and intensive experiences for future scientists and engineers. Our plan includes creation and dissemination of educational software, podcasts and vodcasts, planetarium shows, teacher and student activities, 3D models, social media and smartphone apps. We have surveyed users of NASA data to determine which modes of learning were effective in their youth and which are the most effective now, and use those results to inform our education and communication plans. All materials will be reviewed and placed in NASA online educational archives for broad dissemination.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Adams, C.; Arsenlis, T.; Bailey, A.

Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Campus Capability Plan for 2018-2028. Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) is one of three national laboratories that are part of the National Nuclear Security Administration. LLNL provides critical expertise to strengthen U.S. security through development and application of world-class science and technology that: Ensures the safety, reliability, and performance of the U.S. nuclear weapons stockpile; Promotes international nuclear safety and nonproliferation; Reduces global danger from weapons of mass destruction; Supports U.S. leadership in science and technology. Essential to the execution and continued advancement of these mission areas are responsive infrastructure capabilities. This report showcases each LLNLmore » capability area and describes the mission, science, and technology efforts enabled by LLNL infrastructure, as well as future infrastructure plans.« less

Interviews with the Apollo lunar surface astronauts in support of planning for EVA systems design

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Connors, Mary M.; Eppler, Dean B.; Morrow, Daniel G.

1994-01-01

Focused interviews were conducted with the Apollo astronauts who landed on the moon. The purpose of these interviews was to help define extravehicular activity (EVA) system requirements for future lunar and planetary missions. Information from the interviews was examined with particular attention to identifying areas of consensus, since some commonality of experience is necessary to aid in the design of advanced systems. Results are presented under the following categories: mission approach; mission structure; suits; portable life support systems; dust control; gloves; automation; information, displays, and controls; rovers and remotes; tools; operations; training; and general comments. Research recommendations are offered, along with supporting information.

A twenty-first century perspective. [NASA space communication infrastructure to support space missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Aller, Robert O.; Miller, Albert

1990-01-01

The status of the NASA assets which are operated by the Office of Space Operations is briefly reviewed. These assets include the ground network, the space network, and communications and data handling facilities. The current plans for each element are examined, and a projection of each is made to meet the user needs in the 21st century. The following factors are noted: increasingly responsive support will be required by the users; operational support concepts must be cost-effective to serve future missions; and a high degree of system reliability and availability will be required to support manned exploration and increasingly complex missions.

The Italian Optical Telecommunications Payload: Breadboard Results

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bonino, L.; Caramia, M.; Catalano, V.; Ferrero, V.; Mata Calvo, R.

2008-08-01

The interest in satellite optical communication link has grown in the last years driven by the increasing demand in data downlink for scientific, planetary exploration and earth observation missions; in addition particular interest is also demonstrated by military market. In this context, the Italian Space Agency (ASI) is developing a program for feasibility demonstration of optical communication system with the goal of a prototype flight mission in the next future. The Paper intends to present the overall program plan and it is particularly focused on the activities performed during the Phase A2, relevant to stratospheric mission design and test campaign with an open field demonstrator of free space communications.

Planning for rover opportunistic science

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gaines, Daniel M.; Estlin, Tara; Forest, Fisher; Chouinard, Caroline; Castano, Rebecca; Anderson, Robert C.

2004-01-01

The Mars Exploration Rover Spirit recently set a record for the furthest distance traveled in a single sol on Mars. Future planetary exploration missions are expected to use even longer drives to position rovers in areas of high scientific interest. This increase provides the potential for a large rise in the number of new science collection opportunities as the rover traverses the Martian surface. In this paper, we describe the OASIS system, which provides autonomous capabilities for dynamically identifying and pursuing these science opportunities during longrange traverses. OASIS uses machine learning and planning and scheduling techniques to address this goal. Machine learning techniques are applied to analyze data as it is collected and quickly determine new science gods and priorities on these goals. Planning and scheduling techniques are used to alter the behavior of the rover so that new science measurements can be performed while still obeying resource and other mission constraints. We will introduce OASIS and describe how planning and scheduling algorithms support opportunistic science.

Execution of the Spitzer In-orbit Checkout and Science Verification Plan

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Miles, John W.; Linick, Susan H.; Long, Stacia; Gilbert, John; Garcia, Mark; Boyles, Carole; Werner, Michael; Wilson, Robert K.

2004-01-01

The Spitzer Space Telescope is an 85-cm telescope with three cryogenically cooled instruments. Following launch, the observatory was initialized and commissioned for science operations during the in-orbit checkout (IOC) and science verification (SV) phases, carried out over a total of 98.3 days. The execution of the IOC/SV mission plan progressively established Spitzer capabilities taking into consideration thermal, cryogenic, optical, pointing, communications, and operational designs and constraints. The plan was carried out with high efficiency, making effective use of cryogen-limited flight time. One key component to the success of the plan was the pre-launch allocation of schedule reserve in the timeline of IOC/SV activities, and how it was used in flight both to cover activity redesign and growth due to continually improving spacecraft and instrument knowledge, and to recover from anomalies. This paper describes the adaptive system design and evolution, implementation, and lessons learned from IOC/SV operations. It is hoped that this information will provide guidance to future missions with similar engineering challenges

Human space flight and future major space astrophysics missions: servicing and assembly

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Thronson, Harley; Peterson, Bradley M.; Greenhouse, Matthew; MacEwen, Howard; Mukherjee, Rudranarayan; Polidan, Ronald; Reed, Benjamin; Siegler, Nicholas; Smith, Hsiao

2017-09-01

Some concepts for candidate future "flagship" space observatories approach the payload limits of the largest launch vehicles planned for the next few decades, specifically in the available volume in the vehicle fairing. This indicates that an alternative to autonomous self-deployment similar to that of the James Webb Space Telescope will eventually be required. Moreover, even before this size limit is reached, there will be significant motivation to service, repair, and upgrade in-space missions of all sizes, whether to extend the life of expensive facilities or to replace outworn or obsolete onboard systems as was demonstrated so effectively by the Hubble Space Telescope program. In parallel with these challenges to future major space astronomy missions, the capabilities of in-space robotic systems and the goals for human space flight in the 2020s and 2030s offer opportunities for achieving the most exciting science goals of the early 21st Century. In this paper, we summarize the history of concepts for human operations beyond the immediate vicinity of the Earth, the importance of very large apertures for scientific discovery, and current capabilities and future developments in robot- and astronaut-enabled servicing and assembly.

Integrated Technology Plan for the Civil Space Program, 1991

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1991-01-01

The purpose of the Integrated Technology Plan (ITP) is to serve as a strategic plan for the OAST space research and technology (R&T) program, and as a strategic planning framework for other NASA and national participants in advocating and conducting technology developments that support future U.S. civil space missions. The ITP begins with a discussion of the national policy and NASA organization which establishes the overall framework for civil space R&T planning. The second chapter provides a top-level review of the potential users of civil space R&T, their strategic mission plans, and the technologies they have identified as needed to achieve those plans. The overall methodology used to develop a civil space technology strategy is discussed. The technical details of the 1991 strategic plan are described, ending with a review of civil space R&T priorities. The fourth chapter describes how the strategic plan is annually translated into the OAST Space R&T Program, with a summary of the fiscal year 1992 program. The ITP concludes with a discussion of requirements for technology development coordination and strategies for facilitating the transfer of civil space technology to the private sector. Several appendices also are attached that provide further information regarding budget implications of the strategic plan, organizational roles, and other topics.

Cardiovascular Countermeasures for Exploration-Class Space Flight Missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Charles, John B.

2004-01-01

Astronaut missions to Mars may be many years or even decades in thc future but current and planned efforts can be extrapolated to required treatments and prophylaxis for delerious efforts of prolonged space flight on the cardiovascular system. The literature of candidate countermeasures was considered in combination with unpublished plans for countermeasure implementation. The scope of cardiovascular countermeasures will be guided by assessments of the efficacy of mechanical, physiological and pharmacological approaches in protecting the cardiovascular capacities of interplanetary crewmembers. Plans for countermeasure development, evaluation and validation will exploit synergies among treatment modalities with the goal of maximizing protective effects while minimizing crew time and in-flight resource use. Protection of the cardiovascular capacity of interplanetary crewmembers will become more effective and efficient over the next few decades, but trade-offs between cost and effectiveness of efficiency are always possible if the increased level of risk can be accepted.

The NASA Materials Science Research Program - It's New Strategic Goals and Plans

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Schlagheck, Ronald A.

2003-01-01

In 2001, the NASA created a separate science enterprise, the Office of Biological and Physical Research (OBPR), to perform strategical and fundamental research bringing together physics, chemistry, biology, and engineering to solve problems needed for future agency mission goals. The Materials Science Program is one of basic research disciplines within this new Enterprise's Division of Physical Sciences Research. The Materials Science Program participates to utilize effective use of International Space Station (ISS) experimental facilities, target new scientific and technology questions, and transfer results for Earth benefits. The program has recently pursued new investigative research in areas necessary to expand NASA knowledge base for exploration of the universe, some of which will need access to the microgravity of space. The program has a wide variety of traditional ground and flight based research related types of basic science related to materials crystallization, fundamental processing, and properties characterization in order to obtain basic understanding of various phenomena effects and relationships to the structures, processing, and properties of materials. A summary of the types and sources for this research is presented and those experiments planned for the space. Areas to help expand the science basis for NASA future missions are described. An overview of the program is given including the scope of the current and future NASA Research Announcements with emphasis on new materials science initiatives. A description of the planned flight experiments to be conducted on the International Space Station program along with the planned facility class Materials Science Research Rack (MSRR) and Microgravity Glovebox (MSG) type investigations.

The MSFC Collaborative Engineering Process for Preliminary Design and Concept Definition Studies

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mulqueen, Jack; Jones, David; Hopkins, Randy

2011-01-01

This paper describes a collaborative engineering process developed by the Marshall Space Flight Center's Advanced Concepts Office for performing rapid preliminary design and mission concept definition studies for potential future NASA missions. The process has been developed and demonstrated for a broad range of mission studies including human space exploration missions, space transportation system studies and in-space science missions. The paper will describe the design team structure and specialized analytical tools that have been developed to enable a unique rapid design process. The collaborative engineering process consists of integrated analysis approach for mission definition, vehicle definition and system engineering. The relevance of the collaborative process elements to the standard NASA NPR 7120.1 system engineering process will be demonstrated. The study definition process flow for each study discipline will be will be outlined beginning with the study planning process, followed by definition of ground rules and assumptions, definition of study trades, mission analysis and subsystem analyses leading to a standardized set of mission concept study products. The flexibility of the collaborative engineering design process to accommodate a wide range of study objectives from technology definition and requirements definition to preliminary design studies will be addressed. The paper will also describe the applicability of the collaborative engineering process to include an integrated systems analysis approach for evaluating the functional requirements of evolving system technologies and capabilities needed to meet the needs of future NASA programs.

NASA's future space power needs and requirements

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Schnyer, A. D.; Sovie, Ronald J.

1990-01-01

The National Space Policy of 1988 established the U.S.'s long-range civil space goals, and has served to guide NASA's recent planning for future space mission operations. One of the major goals was to extend the human presence beyond earth's boundaries and to advance the scientific knowledge of the solar system. A broad spectrum of potential civil space mission opportunities and interests are currently being investigated by NASA to meet the espoused goals. Participation in many of these missions requires power systems with capabilities far beyond what exists today. In other mission examples, advanced power systems technology could enhance mission performance significantly. Power system requirements and issues that need resolution to ensure eventual mission accomplishment are addressed, in conjunction with the ongoing NASA technology development efforts and the need for even greater innovative efforts to match the ambitious solar exploration mission goals. Particular attention is given to potential lunar surface operations and technology goals, based on investigations to date. It is suggested that the nuclear reactor power systems can best meet long-life requirements as well as dramatically reduce the earth-surface-to-lunar-surface transportation costs due to the lunar day/night cycle impact on the solar system's energy storage mass requirements. The state of the art of candidate power systems and elements for the lunar application and the respective exploration technology goals for mission life requirements from 10 to 25 years are examined.

Towards consolidated science requirements for a next generation gravity field mission

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pail, R.; Braitenberg, C. F.; Eicker, A.; Floberghagen, R.; Forsberg, R.; Haagmans, R.; Horwath, M.; Kusche, J.; Labrecque, J. L.; Panet, I.; Rolstad Denby, C.; Schröter, J.; Wouters, B.

2013-12-01

As a joint initiative of the IAG (International Association of Geodesy) Sub-Commissions 2.3 and 2.6, the GGOS (Global Geodetic Observing System) Working Group on Satellite Missions, and the IUGG (International Union of Geodesy and Geophysics), we target on the consolidation of science requirements for a next generation gravity field mission (beyond GRACE-FO). Several future gravity field studies have resulted in quite different performance numbers as a target for a future gravity mission (2025+), and a consolidation within the different user groups is required, under the boundary condition of the technical feasibility of the mission concepts and before the background of double- and multi-pair formations. Therefore, this initiative shall concentrate on the consolidation of the science requirements, and should result in a document that can be used as a solid basis for further programmatic and technological developments. Based on limited number of realistic mission scenarios, a consolidated view on the science requirements within the international user communities shall be derived, research fields that could not be tackled by current gravity missions shall be identified, and the added value (qualitatively and quantitatively) of these scenarios with respect to science return shall be evaluated. The final science requirements shall be agreed upon during a workshop which is planned for the second half of 2014. In this contribution, the mission scenarios will be discussed and first results of the consolidation process will be presented.

Planning For Multiple NASA Missions With Use Of Enabling Radioisotope Power

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

S.G. Johnson; K.L. Lively; C.C. Dwight

Since the early 1960’s the Department of Energy (DOE) and its predecessor agencies have provided radioisotope power systems (RPS) to NASA as an enabling technology for deep space and various planetary missions. They provide reliable power in situations where solar and/or battery power sources are either untenable or would place an undue mass burden on the mission. In the modern era of the past twenty years there has been no time that multiple missions have been considered for launching from Kennedy Space Center (KSC) during the same year. The closest proximity of missions that involved radioisotope power systems would bemore » that of Galileo (October 1989) and Ulysses (October 1990). The closest that involved radioisotope heater units would be the small rovers Spirit and Opportunity (May and July 2003) used in the Mars Exploration Rovers (MER) mission. It can be argued that the rovers sent to Mars in 2003 were essentially a special case since they staged in the same facility and used a pair of small launch vehicles (Delta II). This paper examines constraints on the frequency of use of radioisotope power systems with regard to launching them from Kennedy Space Center using currently available launch vehicles. This knowledge may be useful as NASA plans for its future deep space or planetary missions where radioisotope power systems are used as an enabling technology. Previous descriptions have focused on single mission chronologies and not analyzed the timelines with an emphasis on multiple missions.« less

Development of Electric Field and Plasma Wave Investigations for Future Space Weather Missions: ERG, SCOPE, and beyond

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kasaba, Y.; Kumamoto, A.; Ono, T.; Misawa, H.; Kojima, H.; Yagitani, S.; Kasahara, Y.; Ishisaka, K.

2009-04-01

The electric field and plasma wave investigation is important for the clarification of global plasma dynamics and energetic processes in the planetary Magnetospheric studies. We have several missions which will contribute those objectives. the small-sized radiation belt mission, ERG (Energization and Radiation in Geospace), the cross-scale formation flight mission, SCOPE, the BepiColombo mission to Mercury, and the small-sized and full-scale Jovian mission in future. Those will prevail the universal plasma mechanism and processes in the space laboratory. The main purposes of electric field and plasma wave observation for those missions are: (1) Examination of the theories of high-energy particle acceleration by plasma waves, (2) identification of the origin of electric fields in the magnetosphere associated with cross-scale coupling processes, (3) diagnosis of plasma density, temperature and composition, and (4) investigation of wave-particle interaction and mode conversion processes. Simultaneous observation of plasma waves and energetic particles with high resolution will enable us to investigate the wave-particle interaction based on quasi-linear theory and non-linear models. In this paper, we will summarize the current plan and efforts for those future activities. In order to achieve those objectives, the instrument including sensitive sensors (the long wire / stem antennae, the search-coil / loop antennae) and integrated receiver systems are now in development, including the direct identification of nonlinear wave-particle interactions associated will be tried by Wave-particle Correlator. And, as applications of those development, we will mention to the space interferometer and the radar sounder technologies.

Tracking the Short Term Planning (STP) Development Process

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Price, Melanie; Moore, Alexander

2010-01-01

Part of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration?s mission is to pioneer the future in space exploration, scientific discovery and aeronautics research is enhanced by discovering new scientific tools to improve life on earth. Sequentially, to successfully explore the unknown, there has to be a planning process that organizes certain events in the right priority. Therefore, the planning support team has to continually improve their processes so the ISS Mission Operations can operate smoothly and effectively. The planning support team consists of people in the Long Range Planning area that develop timelines that includes International Partner?s Preliminary STP inputs all the way through to publishing of the Final STP. Planning is a crucial part of the NASA community when it comes to planning the astronaut?s daily schedule in great detail. The STP Process is in need of improvement, because of the various tasks that are required to be broken down in order to get the overall objective of developing a Final STP done correctly. Then a new project came along in order to store various data in a more efficient database. "The SharePoint site is a Web site that provides a central storage and collaboration space for documents, information, and ideas."

Observations of Crew Dynamics During Mars Analog Simulations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cusack, Stacy L.

2009-01-01

Crewmembers on Mars missions will face new and unique challenges compared to those in close communications proximity to Mission Control centers. Crews on Mars will likely become more autonomous and responsible for their day-to-day planning. These explorers will need to make frequent real time decisions without the assistance of large ground support teams. Ground-centric control will no longer be an option due to the communications delays. As a result of the new decision making model, crew dynamics and leadership styles of future astronauts may become significantly different from the demands of today. As a volunteer for the Mars Society on two Mars analog missions, this presenter will discuss observations made during isolated, surface exploration simulations. The need for careful crew selections, not just based on individual skill sets, but on overall team interactions becomes apparent very quickly when the crew is planning their own days and deciding their own priorities. Even more important is the selection of a Mission Commander who can lead a team of highly skilled individuals with strong and varied opinions in a way that promotes crew consensus, maintains fairness, and prevents unnecessary crew fatigue.

The Keys to Successful Extended Missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Seal, David A.; Manor-Chapman, Emily A.

2012-01-01

Many of NASA's successful missions of robotic exploration have gone on to highly productive mission extensions, from Voyager, Magellan, Ulysses, and Galileo, to the Mars Exploration Rovers Spirit and Opportunity, a variety of Mars orbiters, Spitzer, Deep Impact / EPOXI, and Cassini. These missions delivered not only a high science return during their prime science phase, but a wealth of opportunities during their extensions at a low incremental cost to the program. The success of such mission extensions can be traced to demonstration of new and unique science achievable during the extension; reduction in cost without significant increase in risk to spacecraft health; close inclusion of the science community and approval authorities in planning; intelligent design during the development and prime operations phase; and well crafted and conveyed extension proposals. This paper discusses lessons learned collected from a variety of project leaders which can be applied by current and future missions to maximize their chances of approval and success.

Development of a NASA 2018 Mars Landed Mission Concept

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wilson, M. G.; Salvo, C. G.; Abilleira, F.; Sengstacken, A. J.; Allwood, A. G.; Backes, P. G.; Lindemann, R. A.; Jordan, J. F.

2010-01-01

Fundamental to NASA's Mars Exploration Program (MEP) is an ongoing development of an integrated and coordinated set of possible future candidate missions that meet fundamental science and programmatic objectives of NASA and the Mars scientific community. In the current planning horizon of the NASA MEP, a landed mobile surface exploration mission launching in the 2018 Mars launch opportunity exists as a candidate project to meet MEP in situ science and exploration objectives. This paper describes the proposed mission science objectives and the mission implementation concept developed for the 2018 opportunity. As currently envisioned, this mission concept seeks to explore a yet-to-be-selected site with high preservation potential for physical and chemical biosignatures, evaluate paleoenvironmental conditions, characterize the potential for preservation of biosignatures, and access multiple sequences of geological units in a search for evidence of past life and/or prebiotic chemistry at a site on Mars.

Precise positioning with sparse radio tracking: How LRO-LOLA and GRAIL enable future lunar exploration

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mazarico, E.; Goossens, S. J.; Barker, M. K.; Neumann, G. A.; Zuber, M. T.; Smith, D. E.

2017-12-01

Two recent NASA missions to the Moon, the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) and the Gravity Recovery and Interior Laboratory (GRAIL), have obtained highly accurate information about the lunar shape and gravity field. These global geodetic datasets resolve long-standing issues with mission planning; the tidal lock of the Moon long prevented collection of accurate gravity measurements over the farside, and deteriorated precise positioning of topographic data. We describe key datasets and results from the LRO and GRAIL mission that are directly relevant to future lunar missions. SmallSat and CubeSat missions especially would benefit from these recent improvements, as they are typically more resource-constrained. Even with limited radio tracking data, accurate knowledge of topography and gravity enables precise orbit determination (OD) (e.g., limiting the scope of geolocation and co-registration tasks) and long-term predictions of altitude (e.g., dramatically reducing uncertainties in impact time). With one S-band tracking pass per day, LRO OD now routinely achieves total position knowledge better than 10 meters and radial position knowledge around 0.5 meter. Other tracking data, such as Laser Ranging from Earth-based SLR stations, can further support OD. We also show how altimetry can be used to substantially improve orbit reconstruction with the accurate topographic maps now available from Lunar Orbiter Laser Altimeter (LOLA) data. We present new results with SELENE extended mission and LRO orbits processed with direct altimetry measurements. With even a simple laser altimeter onboard, high-quality OD can be achieved for future missions because of the datasets acquired by LRO and GRAIL, without the need for regular radio contact. Onboard processing of altimetric ranges would bring high-quality real-time position knowledge to support autonomous operation. We also describe why optical ranging transponders are ideal payloads for future lunar missions, as they can address both communication and navigation needs with little resources.

The Development of NASA's Fault Management Handbook

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dennehy, Cornelius J.; Fesq, Lorraine M.; Barth, Timothy; Clark, Micah; Day, John; Fretz, Kristen; Friberg, Kenneth; Johnson, Stephen; Hattis, Philip; McComas, David;

An Exploration of Radiation Physics in Electromagnetics

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lee, Katherine K.

2005-01-01

Contents include the following: NASA's Missions and Aeronautics Research. Today's Air Traffic Control System. Development of Decision-Support Tools. The Center-TRACON Automation System (CTAS). The Traffic Management Advisor (TMA). The Multi-Center Traffic Management Advisor (McTMA). The Surface Management System (SMS). Future Directions: The Joint Planning and Development Office.

Dorothy M. Schirtzinger: Librarian of the Year, 1996.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Berry, John

1997-01-01

Profiles Dorothy M. Schirtzinger, library director at the Lee County Library System (LCLS) in Fort Myers, Florida. Discusses her education and early jobs; mentors; the educational mission of the library; increases and developments in staff, branches, budget, and in-library and outreach programs; automation; federal funding; and future plans. (AEF)

Advanced Education and Technology Business Plan, 2010-13. Highlights

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Alberta Advanced Education and Technology, 2010

2010-01-01

The Ministry of Advanced Education and Technology envisions Alberta's prosperity through innovation and lifelong learning. Advanced Education and Technology's mission is to lead the development of a knowledge-driven future through a dynamic and integrated advanced learning and innovation system. This paper presents the highlights of the business…

Advanced Education and Technology Business Plan, 2011-14

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Alberta Advanced Education and Technology, 2011

2011-01-01

Advanced Education and Technology's mission is to lead the development of a knowledge-driven future through a dynamic and integrated advanced learning and innovation system. Its core businesses are to: (1) provide strategic leadership for Campus Alberta and Alberta Innovates; and (2) engage learners, industry and the community in learning…

Hubble Space Telescope. Update: 18 months in orbit

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1990-01-01

In April 1990, Space Shuttle Discovery launched the Hubble Space Telescope (HST). An 18 month in-orbit update of the operations and performance of the HST is presented. Numerous color photographs are shown of objects already observed, and mission plans are presented for future observations by the HST.

Pioneer 11's encounter with Jupiter and mission to Saturn

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dyer, J. W.

1975-01-01

Plans for Pioneer 11's approach to Saturn are described. A flyby somewhat parallel to the ring plane is being proposed as an interim target, with a future option held for a possible high risk (or suicide) plunge through the nearly transparent space between Saturn and its rings.

A space crane concept for performing on-orbit assembly

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dorsey, John T.

1992-01-01

The topics are presented in viewgraph form and include: in-space assembly and construction enhances future mission planning flexibility; in-space assembly and construction facility concept; space crane concept with mobile base; fundamental characteristics; space crane research approach; spacecraft component positioning and assembly test-bed; and articulating joint testbed.

The Association for Educational Communications and Technology: Division of School Media Specialists.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Miller, Mary Mock

1993-01-01

Reports on the Division of School Media Specialists of the Association for Educational Communications and Technology (AECT). Highlights include the mission statement; publications; board members and committee chairs; activities at the AECT conferences; and future concerns, including public relations and marketing plans for media specialists and…

Experiential Education and Empowerment Evaluation: Mars Rover Educational Program Case Example.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fetterman, David; Bowman, Cassie

2002-01-01

Empowerment evaluation helps people improve their programs using self-evaluation. Empowerment evaluation has three steps: establishing a mission; taking stock of the most significant activities; and planning for the future by establishing goals, strategies, and criteria for evidence. A NASA experiential program for small, distributed groups of…

Transport and Use of a Centaur Second Stage in Space

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Strong, James M.; Morgowicz, Bernard; Drucker, Eric; Tompkins, Paul D.; Kennedy, Brian; Barber, Robert D,; Luzod, Louie T.; Kennedy, Brian Michael; Luzod, Louie T.

2010-01-01

As nations continue to explore space, the desire to reduce costs will continue to grow. As a method of cost reduction, transporting and/or use of launch system components as integral components of missions may become more commonplace in the future. There have been numerous scenarios written for using launch vehicle components (primarily space shuttle used external tanks) as part of flight missions or future habitats. Future studies for possible uses of launch vehicle upper stages might include asteroid diverter using gravity orbital perturbation, orbiting station component, raw material at an outpost, and kinetic impactor. The LCROSS (Lunar CRater Observation and Sensing Satellite) mission was conceived as a low-cost means of determining whether water exists at the polar regions of the moon. Manifested as a secondary payload with the LRO (Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter) spacecraft aboard an Atlas V launch vehicle, LCROSS guided its spent Centaur Earth Departure Upper Stage (EDUS) into the lunar crater Cabeu's, as a kinetic impactor. This paper describes some of the challenges that the LCROSS project encountered in planning, designing, launching with and carrying the Centaur upper stage to the moon.

ExoMars Mission 2016, Orbiter Module Power System Architecture (Based On An Unregulated Bus & MPPT Controlled Step-Down Voltage Regulators)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Digoin, JJ.; Boutelet, E.

2011-10-01

The main objective of the ExoMars program is to demonstrate key flight in situ enabling technologies in support of the European ambitions for future exploration missions and to pursue fundamental scientific investigations. Two missions are foreseen within the ExoMars program for the 2016 and 2018 launch opportunities to Mars. The 2016 mission is an ESA led mission that will supply a Mars Orbiter Module (OM) carrying an Entry Descent module (EDM) and NASA/ESA scientific instruments. The 2018 mission is a NASA led mission bringing one ESA rover and one NASA rover onto the Mars surface. This paper presents the OM Electrical Power Sub- system (EPS) design achieved at the end of pre- development phase. The main aspects addressed are: - EPS major constraints due to mission and environment, a succinct description of the power units, - Trade-off analyses results leading to the selected EPS architecture, - Preliminary results of electrical and energy simulations, - EPS units development plan.

Propellantless Propulsion Technologies for In-Space Transportation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Johnson, Les; Cook, Stephen (Technical Monitor)

2001-01-01

In order to implement the ambitious science and exploration missions planned over the next several decades, improvements in in-space transportation and propulsion technologies must be achieved. For robotic exploration and science missions, increased efficiencies of future propulsion systems are critical to reduce overall life-cycle costs. Future missions will require 2 to 3 times more total change in velocity over their mission lives than the NASA Solar Electric Technology Application Readiness (NSTAR) demonstration on the Deep Space 1 mission. Rendezvous and return missions will require similar investments in in-space propulsion systems. New opportunities to explore beyond the outer planets and to the stars will require unparalleled technology advancement and innovation. The Advanced Space Transportation Program (ASTP) is investing in technologies to achieve a factor of 10 reduction in the cost of Earth orbital transportation and a factor of 2 or 3 reduction in propulsion system mass and travel time for planetary missions within the next 15 years. Since more than 70% of projected launches over the next 10 years will require propulsion systems capable of attaining destinations beyond Low Earth Orbit, investment in in-space technologies will benefit a large percentage of future missions. Some of the most promising technologies for achieving these goals use the environment of space itself for energy and propulsion and are generically called, "propellantless" because they do not require on-board fuel to achieve thrust. An overview of the state-of-the-art in propellantless propulsion technologies such as solar and plasma sails, electrodynamic and momentum transfer tethers, and aeroassist and aerocapture will be described. Results of recent earth-based technology demonstrations and space tests will also be discussed.

Venus entry probe technology reference mission

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

van den Berg, M. L.; Falkner, P.; Atzei, A. C.; Phipps, A.; Mieremet, A.; Kraft, S.; Peacock, A.

The Venus Entry Probe is one of ESA's Technology Reference Missions (TRM). TRMs are model science-driven missions that are, although not part of the ESA science programme, able to provide focus to future technology requirements. This is accomplished through the study of several technologically demanding and scientifically meaningful mission concepts, which are strategically chosen to address diverse technological issues. The TRMs complement ESA's current mission specific development programme and allow the ESA Science Directorate to strategically plan the development of technologies that will enable potential future scientific missions. Key technological objectives for future planetary exploration include the use of small orbiters and in-situ probes with highly miniaturized and highly integrated payload suites. The low resource, and therefore low cost, spacecraft allow for a phased strategic approach to planetary exploration. The aim of the Venus Entry Probe TRM (VEP) is to study approaches for low cost in-situ exploration of the Venusian atmosphere. The mission profile consists of two minisats. The first satellite enters low Venus orbit. This satellite contains a highly integrated remote sensing payload suite primarily dedicated to support the in-situ atmospheric measurements of the aerobot. The second minisat enters deep elliptical orbit, deploys the aerobot, and subsequently operates as a data relay, data processing and overall resource allocation satellite. The micro-aerobot consists of a long-duration balloon that will analyze the Venusian middle cloud layer at an altitude of ˜ 55 km, where the environment is relatively benign (T = 20 C and p = 0.45 bars). The balloon will deploy a swarm of active ballast probes, which determine vertical profiles of selected properties of the lower atmosphere. In this presentation, the mission objectives and profile of the Venus Entry Probe TRM will be given as well as the key technological challenges.

Human-Automation Integration: Principle and Method for Design and Evaluation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Billman, Dorrit; Feary, Michael

2012-01-01

Future space missions will increasingly depend on integration of complex engineered systems with their human operators. It is important to ensure that the systems that are designed and developed do a good job of supporting the needs of the work domain. Our research investigates methods for needs analysis. We included analysis of work products (plans for regulation of the space station) as well as work processes (tasks using current software), in a case study of Attitude Determination and Control Officers (ADCO) planning work. This allows comparing how well different designs match the structure of the work to be supported. Redesigned planning software that better matches the structure of work was developed and experimentally assessed. The new prototype enabled substantially faster and more accurate performance in plan revision tasks. This success suggests the approach to needs assessment and use in design and evaluation is promising, and merits investigatation in future research.

Space Station Mission Planning System (MPS) development study. Volume 1: Executive summary

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Klus, W. J.

1987-01-01

The basic objective of the Space Station (SS) Mission Planning System (MPS) Development Study was to define a baseline Space Station mission plan and the associated hardware and software requirements for the system. A detailed definition of the Spacelab (SL) payload mission planning process and SL Mission Integration Planning System (MIPS) software was derived. A baseline concept was developed for performing SS manned base payload mission planning, and it was consistent with current Space Station design/operations concepts and philosophies. The SS MPS software requirements were defined. Also, requirements for new software include candidate programs for the application of artificial intelligence techniques to capture and make more effective use of mission planning expertise. A SS MPS Software Development Plan was developed which phases efforts for the development software to implement the SS mission planning concept.

Integration of Planetary Protection Activities

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Race, Margaret S.

2000-01-01

Research and activities under this grant have focused on a systematic examination and analysis of critical questions likely to impact planetary protection (PP) controls and implementation for Mars sample return missions (MSR). Four areas in the non-scientific and social realms were selected for special attention because of their importance to future mission planning and concern about critical timing or possible economic impacts on MSR mission implementation. These include: (1) questions of legal uncertainty and the decision making process, (2) public perception of risks associated with sample return, (3) risk communication and Education/Public Outreach , and (4) planetary protection implications of alternative mission architectures, for both robotic and human sample return missions. In its entirety, NAG 2-986 has encompassed three categories of activity: (1) research and analysis (Race), (2) subcontracted research (MacGregor/Decision Research), and (3) consulting services.

Life sciences experiments in the first Spacelab mission

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Huffstetler, W. J.; Rummel, J. A.

1978-01-01

The development of the Shuttle Transportation System (STS) by the United States and the Spacelab pressurized modules and pallets by the European Space Agency (ESA) presents a unique multi-mission space experimentation capability to scientists and researchers of all disciplines. This capability is especially pertinent to life scientists involved in all areas of biological and behavioral research. This paper explains the solicitation, evaluation, and selection process involved in establishing life sciences experiment payloads. Explanations relative to experiment hardware development, experiment support hardware (CORE) concepts, hardware integration and test, and concepts of direct Principal Investigator involvement in the missions are presented as they are being accomplished for the first Spacelab mission. Additionally, discussions of future plans for life sciences dedicated Spacelab missions are included in an attempt to define projected capabilities for space research in the 1980s utilizing the STS.

Spaceborne studies of ocean circulation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Patzert, W. C.

1984-01-01

The history and near-term future of ocean remote sensing to study ocean circulation are examined. Seasat provided the first-ever global data sets of sea surface topography (altimeter) and marine winds (scatterometer) and laid the foundation for the next generation of satellite missions planned for the late 1980s. The future missions are the next generation of altimeter and scatterometer to be flown aboard TOPEX (TOPography EXperiment) and NROSS (Navy Remote Sensing System), respectively. The data from these satellites will be coordinated with measurements made at sea to determine the driving forces of ocean circulation and to study the oceans' role in climate variability. The significance of such studies to such matters as climatic changes, fisheries, commerce, waste disposal, and national defense is noted.

The NASA Langley Mars Tumbleweed Rover Prototype

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Antol, Jeffrey; Chattin, Richard L.; Copeland, Benjamin M.; Krizann, Shawn A.

2005-01-01

Mars Tumbleweed is a concept for an autonomous rover that would achieve mobility through use of the natural winds on Mars. The wind-blown nature of this vehicle make it an ideal platform for conducting random surveys of the surface, scouting for signs of past or present life as well as examining the potential habitability of sites for future human exploration. NASA Langley Research Center (LaRC) has been studying the dynamics, aerodynamics, and mission concepts of Tumbleweed rovers and has recently developed a prototype Mars Tumbleweed Rover for demonstrating mission concepts and science measurement techniques. This paper will provide an overview of the prototype design, instrumentation to be accommodated, preliminary test results, and plans for future development and testing of the vehicle.

Monitoring the implementation of the national institutes of Health Strategic Plan for Women's Health and Sex/gender Differences research: Strategies and Successes

PubMed Central

Tingen, Candace; Nagel, Joan D.

2013-01-01

Building upon the legacy of the previous two National Institutes of Health (NIH) women's health research agenda–setting reports,1,2 the Office of Research on Women's Health (ORWH) released the third NIH scientific agenda for women's health and sex differences research in September 2010, entitled Moving Into The Future With New Dimensions and Strategies: A Vision for 2020 For Women's Health Research.3 Within NIH, ORWH is part of the Division of Program Coordination, Planning, and Strategic Initiatives, residing in the Office of the Director; ORWH is charged with coordinating women's health research in collaboration with the 27 Institutes and Centers (ICs) that make up NIH, each of which has a distinct mission and identity. Of note, the 2010 research agenda, or strategic plan, is the women's health research agenda for NIH overall, cutting across the missions of all the ICs. As such, it serves as a map to guide new efforts as well as continue collaborations within NIH in order to fulfill the NIH mission to seek fundamental knowledge about the nature and behavior of living systems and to apply that knowledge to enhance health, lengthen life, and reduce illness and disability. Through the framework of the strategic plan, in partnership with the NIH ICs, the Office of the Director, and the Advisory Committees (Figure 1), ORWH leads efforts to meet this mission as it relates to women's health. PMID:24416693

Future of robotic space exploration: visions and prospects

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Haidegger, Tamas

Autonomous and remote controlled mobile robots and manipulators have already proved their utility throughout several successful national and international space missions. NASA and ESA both sent robots and probes to Mars and beyond in the past years, and the Space Shuttle and Space Station Remote Manipulator Systems brought recognition to CSA. These achievements gained public attention and acknowledgement; however, all are based on technologies developed decades ago. Even the Canadian Dexter robotic arm-to be delivered to the International Space Station this year-had been completed many years ago. In the past decade robotics has become ubiquitous, and the speed of development has increased significantly, opening space for grandiose future plans of autonomous exploration missions. In the mean time, space agencies throughout the world insist on running their own costly human space flight programs. A recent workshop at NASA dealing with the issue stated that the primary reason behind US human space exploration is not science; rather the USA wants to maintain its international leadership in this field. A second space-race may fall upon us, fueled by the desire of the developing space powers to prove their capabilities, mainly driven by national pride. The aim of the paper is to introduce the upcoming unmanned space exploration scenarios that are already feasible with present day robotic technology and to show their humandriven alternatives. Astronauts are to conquer Mars in the foreseeable future, in but robots could go a lot further already. Serious engineering constraints and possibilities are to be discussed, along with issues beyond research and development. Future mission design planning must deal with both the technological and political aspects of space. Compromising on the scientific outcome may pay well by taking advantage of public awareness and nation and international interests.

An Assessment of the Issues and Concerns Associated with the Analysis of Ice-bearing Samples by the 2009 Mars Science Laboratory

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Beaty, D. W.; Miller, S. L.; Bada, J. L.; Bearman, G. H.; Black, P. B.; Bruno, R. J.; Carsey, F. D.; Conrad, P. G.; Daly, M.; Fisher, D.

2003-01-01

In early 2003, the Mars Icy Sample Team (MIST) was formed to address several questions related to the acquisition and analysis of ice-bearing samples on the surface of Mars by a robotic mission. These questions were specifically framed in the context of planning for the 2009 Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) lander, but the answers will also also have value in planning other future landed investigations.

A trajectory planning scheme for spacecraft in the space station environment. M.S. Thesis - University of California

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Soller, Jeffrey Alan; Grunwald, Arthur J.; Ellis, Stephen R.

1991-01-01

Simulated annealing is used to solve a minimum fuel trajectory problem in the space station environment. The environment is special because the space station will define a multivehicle environment in space. The optimization surface is a complex nonlinear function of the initial conditions of the chase and target crafts. Small permutations in the input conditions can result in abrupt changes to the optimization surface. Since no prior knowledge about the number or location of local minima on the surface is available, the optimization must be capable of functioning on a multimodal surface. It was reported in the literature that the simulated annealing algorithm is more effective on such surfaces than descent techniques using random starting points. The simulated annealing optimization was found to be capable of identifying a minimum fuel, two-burn trajectory subject to four constraints which are integrated into the optimization using a barrier method. The computations required to solve the optimization are fast enough that missions could be planned on board the space station. Potential applications for on board planning of missions are numerous. Future research topics may include optimal planning of multi-waypoint maneuvers using a knowledge base to guide the optimization, and a study aimed at developing robust annealing schedules for potential on board missions.

Integrated payload and mission planning, phase 3. Volume 1: Integrated payload and mission planning process evaluation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sapp, T. P.; Davin, D. E.

1977-01-01

The integrated payload and mission planning process for STS payloads was defined, and discrete tasks which evaluate performance and support initial implementation of this process were conducted. The scope of activity was limited to NASA and NASA-related payload missions only. The integrated payload and mission planning process was defined in detail, including all related interfaces and scheduling requirements. Related to the payload mission planning process, a methodology for assessing early Spacelab mission manager assignment schedules was defined.

Human Factor Studies on a Mars Analogue During Crew 100b International Lunar Exploration Working Group EuroMoonMars Crew: Proposed New Approaches for Future Human Space and Interplanetary Missions.

PubMed

Rai, Balwant; Kaur, Jasdeep

2012-11-01

Knowing the risks, costs, and complexities associated with human missions to Mars, analogue research can be a great (low-risk) tool for exploring the challenges associated with the preparation for living, operating, and undertaking research in interplanetary missions. Short-duration analogue studies, such as those being accomplished at the Mars Desert Research Station (MDRS), offer the chance to study mission operations and human factors in a simulated environment, and therefore contribute to exploration of the Moon and Mars in planned future missions. This article is based upon previously published articles, abstracts, and presentations by a series of independent authors, human factor studies performed on mars analogue station by Crew 100B. The MDRS Crew 100B performed studies over 15 days providing a unique insight into human factor issues in simulated short-duration Mars mission. In this study, 15 human factors were evaluated and analyzed by subjective and objective means, and from the summary of results it was concluded that optimum health of an individual and the crew as a whole is a necessity in order to encourage and maintain high performance and the satisfaction of project goals.

Human Factor Studies on a Mars Analogue During Crew 100b International Lunar Exploration Working Group EuroMoonMars Crew: Proposed New Approaches for Future Human Space and Interplanetary Missions

PubMed Central

Rai, Balwant; Kaur, Jasdeep

2012-01-01

Knowing the risks, costs, and complexities associated with human missions to Mars, analogue research can be a great (low-risk) tool for exploring the challenges associated with the preparation for living, operating, and undertaking research in interplanetary missions. Short-duration analogue studies, such as those being accomplished at the Mars Desert Research Station (MDRS), offer the chance to study mission operations and human factors in a simulated environment, and therefore contribute to exploration of the Moon and Mars in planned future missions. This article is based upon previously published articles, abstracts, and presentations by a series of independent authors, human factor studies performed on mars analogue station by Crew 100B. The MDRS Crew 100B performed studies over 15 days providing a unique insight into human factor issues in simulated short-duration Mars mission. In this study, 15 human factors were evaluated and analyzed by subjective and objective means, and from the summary of results it was concluded that optimum health of an individual and the crew as a whole is a necessity in order to encourage and maintain high performance and the satisfaction of project goals. PMID:23181225

An Overview of Future NASA Missions, Concepts, and Technologies Related to Imaging of the World's Land Areas

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Salomonson, Vincent V.

1999-01-01

In the near term NASA is entering into the peak activity period of the Earth Observing System (EOS). The EOS AM-1 /"Terra" spacecraft is nearing launch and operation to be followed soon by the New Millennium Program (NMP) Earth Observing (EO-1) mission. Other missions related to land imaging and studies include EOS PM-1 mission, the Earth System Sciences Program (ESSP) Vegetation Canopy Lidar (VCL) mission, the EOS/IceSat mission. These missions involve clear advances in technologies and observational capability including improvements in multispectral imaging and other observing strategies, for example, "formation flying". Plans are underway to define the next era of EOS missions, commonly called "EOS Follow-on" or EOS II. The programmatic planning includes concepts that represent advances over the present Landsat-7 mission that concomitantly recognize the advances being made in land imaging within the private sector. The National Polar Orbiting Environmental Satellite Series (NPOESS) Preparatory Project (NPP) is an effort that will help to transition EOS medium resolution (herein meaning spatial resolutions near 500 meters), multispectral measurement capabilities such as represented by the EOS Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) into the NPOESS operational series of satellites. Developments in Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) and passive microwave land observing capabilities are also proceeding. Beyond these efforts the Earth Science Enterprise Technology Strategy is embarking efforts to advance technologies in several basic areas: instruments, flight systems and operational capability, and information systems. In the case of instruments architectures will be examined that offer significant reductions in mass, volume, power and observational flexibility. For flight systems and operational capability, formation flying including calibration and data fusion, systems operation autonomy, and mechanical and electronic innovations that can reduce spacecraft and subsystem resource requirements. The efforts in information systems will include better approaches for linking multiple data sets, extracting and visualizing information, and improvements in collecting, compressing, transmitting, processing, distributing and archiving data from multiple platforms. Overall concepts such as sensor webs, constellations of observing systems, and rapid and tailored data availability and delivery to multiple users comprise and notions Earth Science Vision for the future.

Status of NASA's Advanced Radioisotope Power Conversion Technology Research and Development

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wong, Wayne A.; Anderson, David J.; Tuttle, Karen L.; Tew, Roy C.

2006-01-01

NASA s Advanced Radioisotope Power Systems (RPS) development program is funding the advancement of next generation power conversion technologies that will enable future missions that have requirements that can not be met by either the ubiquitous photovoltaic systems or by current Radioisotope Power Systems (RPS). Requirements of advanced radioisotope power systems include high efficiency and high specific power (watts/kilogram) in order to meet mission requirements with less radioisotope fuel and lower mass. Other Advanced RPS development goals include long-life, reliability, and scalability so that these systems can meet requirements for a variety of future space applications including continual operation surface missions, outer-planetary missions, and solar probe. This paper provides an update on the Radioisotope Power Conversion Technology Project which awarded ten Phase I contracts for research and development of a variety of power conversion technologies consisting of Brayton, Stirling, thermoelectrics, and thermophotovoltaics. Three of the contracts continue during the current Phase II in the areas of thermoelectric and Stirling power conversion. The accomplishments to date of the contractors, project plans, and status will be summarized.

Exploration Life Support Critical Questions for Future Human Space Missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ewert, Michael K.; Barta, Daniel J.; McQuillan, Jeff

2009-01-01

Exploration Life Support (ELS) is a project under NASA s Exploration Technology Development Program. The ELS Project plans, coordinates and implements the development of advanced life support technologies for human exploration missions in space. Recent work has focused on closed loop atmosphere and water systems for a lunar outpost, including habitats and pressurized rovers. But, what are the critical questions facing life support system developers for these and other future human missions? This paper explores those questions and discusses how progress in the development of ELS technologies can help answer them. The ELS Project includes Atmosphere Revitalization Systems (ARS), Water Recovery Systems (WRS), Waste Management Systems (WMS), Habitation Engineering, Systems Integration, Modeling and Analysis (SIMA), and Validation and Testing, which includes the sub-elements Flight Experiments and Integrated Testing. Systems engineering analysis by ELS seeks to optimize the overall mission architecture by considering all the internal and external interfaces of the life support system and the potential for reduction or reuse of commodities. In particular, various sources and sinks of water and oxygen are considered along with the implications on loop closure and the resulting launch mass requirements.

Aerothermal Instrumentation Loads To Implement Aeroassist Technology in Future Robotic and Human Missions to MARS and Other Locations Within the Solar System

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Parmar, Devendra S.; Shams, Qamar A.

2002-01-01

The strategy of NASA to explore space objects in the vicinity of Earth and other planets of the solar system includes robotic and human missions. This strategy requires a road map for technology development that will support the robotic exploration and provide safety for the humans traveling to other celestial bodies. Aeroassist is one of the key elements of technology planning for the success of future robot and human exploration missions to other celestial bodies. Measurement of aerothermodynamic parameters such as temperature, pressure, and acceleration is of prime importance for aeroassist technology implementation and for the safety and affordability of the mission. Instrumentation and methods to measure such parameters have been reviewed in this report in view of past practices, current commercial availability of instrumentation technology, and the prospects of improvement and upgrade according to the requirements. Analysis of the usability of each identified instruments in terms of cost for efficient weight-volume ratio, power requirement, accuracy, sample rates, and other appropriate metrics such as harsh environment survivability has been reported.

Reducing the Risk of Human Missions to Mars Through Testing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Drake, Bret G.

2007-07-01

During the summer of 2002 the NASA Deputy Administrator charted an internal NASA planning group to develop the rationale for exploration beyond low-Earth orbit. This team, termed the Exploration Blueprint, performed architecture analyses to develop roadmaps for how to accomplish the first steps beyond Low-Earth Orbit through the human exploration of Mars. The previous NASA Exploration Team (NEXT) activities laid the foundation and framework for development of NASA s Integrated Space Plan. The reference missions resulting from the analysis performed by the Exploration Blueprint team formed the basis for requirement definition, systems development, technology roadmapping, and risk assessments for future human exploration beyond low-Earth orbit. Emphasis was placed on developing recommendations on what could be done now to effect future exploration activities. The Exploration Blueprint team embraced the Stepping Stone approach to exploration where human and robotic activities are conducted through progressive expansion outward beyond low- Earth orbit. Results from this study produced a long-term strategy for exploration with near-term implementation plans, program recommendations, and technology investments. Specific results included the development of a common exploration crew vehicle concept, a unified space nuclear strategy, focused bioastronautics research objectives, and an integrated human and robotic exploration strategy. Recommendations from the Exploration Blueprint included the endorsement of the Nuclear Systems Initiative, augmentation of the bioastronautics research, a focused space transportation program including heavy-lift launch and a common exploration vehicle design for ISS and exploration missions, as well as an integrated human and robotic exploration strategy for Mars. Following the results of the Exploration Blueprint study, the NASA Administrator has asked for a recommendation by June, 2003 on the next steps in human and robotic exploration in order to put into context an updated Integrated Space Transportation Plan (post- Columbia) and guide Agency planning. NASA was on the verge of committing significant funding in programs that would be better served if longer term goals were better known including the Orbital Space Plane, research on the ISS, National Aerospace Initiative, Shuttle Life Extension Program, Project Prometheus, as well as a wide range of technology development throughout the Agency. Much of the focus during this period was on integrating the results from the previous studies into more concrete implementation strategies in order to understand the relationship between NASA programs, timing, and resulting budgetary implications. This resulted in an integrated approach including lunar surface operations to retire risk of human Mars missions, maximum use of common and modular systems including what was termed the exploration transfer vehicle, Earth orbit and lunar surface demonstrations of long-life systems, collaboration of human and robotic missions to vastly increase mission return, and high-efficiency transportation systems (nuclear) for deep-space transportation and power. The data provided in this summary viewgraph presentation was developed to begin to address one of the key elements of the emerging implementation strategy, namely how lunar missions help retire risk of human missions to Mars. During this process the scope of the activity broadened into the issue of how testing in general, in various venues including the Moon, can help reduce the risk for Mars missions.

Reducing the Risk of Human Missions to Mars Through Testing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Drake, Bret G.

2007-01-01

During the summer of 2002 the NASA Deputy Administrator charted an internal NASA planning group to develop the rationale for exploration beyond low-Earth orbit. This team, termed the Exploration Blueprint, performed architecture analyses to develop roadmaps for how to accomplish the first steps beyond Low-Earth Orbit through the human exploration of Mars. The previous NASA Exploration Team (NEXT) activities laid the foundation and framework for development of NASA s Integrated Space Plan. The reference missions resulting from the analysis performed by the Exploration Blueprint team formed the basis for requirement definition, systems development, technology roadmapping, and risk assessments for future human exploration beyond low-Earth orbit. Emphasis was placed on developing recommendations on what could be done now to effect future exploration activities. The Exploration Blueprint team embraced the Stepping Stone approach to exploration where human and robotic activities are conducted through progressive expansion outward beyond low- Earth orbit. Results from this study produced a long-term strategy for exploration with near-term implementation plans, program recommendations, and technology investments. Specific results included the development of a common exploration crew vehicle concept, a unified space nuclear strategy, focused bioastronautics research objectives, and an integrated human and robotic exploration strategy. Recommendations from the Exploration Blueprint included the endorsement of the Nuclear Systems Initiative, augmentation of the bioastronautics research, a focused space transportation program including heavy-lift launch and a common exploration vehicle design for ISS and exploration missions, as well as an integrated human and robotic exploration strategy for Mars. Following the results of the Exploration Blueprint study, the NASA Administrator has asked for a recommendation by June, 2003 on the next steps in human and robotic exploration in order to put into context an updated Integrated Space Transportation Plan (post- Columbia) and guide Agency planning. NASA was on the verge of committing significant funding in programs that would be better served if longer term goals were better known including the Orbital Space Plane, research on the ISS, National Aerospace Initiative, Shuttle Life Extension Program, Project Prometheus, as well as a wide range of technology development throughout the Agency. Much of the focus during this period was on integrating the results from the previous studies into more concrete implementation strategies in order to understand the relationship between NASA programs, timing, and resulting budgetary implications. This resulted in an integrated approach including lunar surface operations to retire risk of human Mars missions, maximum use of common and modular systems including what was termed the exploration transfer vehicle, Earth orbit and lunar surface demonstrations of long-life systems, collaboration of human and robotic missions to vastly increase mission return, and high-efficiency transportation systems (nuclear) for deep-space transportation and power. The data provided in this summary viewgraph presentation was developed to begin to address one of the key elements of the emerging implementation strategy, namely how lunar missions help retire risk of human missions to Mars. During this process the scope of the activity broadened into the issue of how testing in general, in various venues including the Moon, can help reduce the risk for Mars missions.

Way Forward for High Performance Payload Processing Development

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Notebaert, Olivier; Franklin, John; Lefftz, Vincent; Moreno, Jose; Patte, Mathieu; Syed, Mohsin; Wagner, Arnaud

2012-08-01

Payload processing is facing technological challenges due to the large increase of performance requirements of future scientific, observation and telecom missions as well as the future instruments technologies capturing much larger amount of data. For several years, with the perspective of higher performance together with the planned obsolescence of solutions covering the current needs, ESA and the European space industry has been developing several technology solutions. Silicon technologies, radiation mitigation techniques and innovative functional architectures are developed with the goal of designing future space qualified processing devices with a much higher level of performance than today. The fast growing commercial market application have developed very attractive technologies but which are not fully suitable with respect to their tolerance to space environment. Without the financial capacity to explore and develop all possible technology paths, a specific and global approach is required to cover the future mission needs and their necessary performance targets with effectiveness.The next sections describe main issues and priorities and provides further detailed relevant for this approach covering the high performance processing technology.

NASA'S Space Launch System Mission Capabilities for Exploration

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Creech, Stephen D.; Crumbly, Christopher M.; Robinson, Kimberly F.

2015-01-01

Designed to enable human space exploration missions, including eventual landings on Mars, NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS) represents a unique launch capability with a wide range of utilization opportunities, from delivering habitation systems into the lunar vicinity to high-energy transits through the outer solar system. Developed with the goals of safety, affordability and sustainability in mind, SLS is a foundational capability for NASA’s future plans for exploration, along with the Orion crew vehicle and upgraded ground systems at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center. Substantial progress has been made toward the first launch of the initial configuration of SLS, which will be able to deliver more than 70 metric tons of payload into low Earth orbit (LEO), greater mass-to-orbit capability than any contemporary launch vehicle. The vehicle will then be evolved into more powerful configurations, culminating with the capability to deliver more than 130 metric tons to LEO, greater even than the Saturn V rocket that enabled human landings on the moon. SLS will also be able to carry larger payload fairings than any contemporary launch vehicle, and will offer opportunities for co-manifested and secondary payloads. Because of its substantial mass-lift capability, SLS will also offer unrivaled departure energy, enabling mission profiles currently not possible. Early collaboration with science teams planning future decadal-class missions have contributed to a greater understanding of the vehicle’s potential range of utilization. This presentation will discuss the potential opportunities this vehicle poses for the planetary sciences community, relating the vehicle’s evolution to practical implications for mission capture. As this paper will explain, SLS will be a global launch infrastructure asset, employing sustainable solutions and technological innovations to deliver capabilities for space exploration to power human and robotic systems beyond our Moon and in to deep space.

NASA's Space Launch System Mission Capabilities for Exploration

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Creech, Stephen D.; Crumbly, Christopher M.; Robinson, Kimberly F.

2015-01-01

Designed to enable human space exploration missions, including eventual landings on Mars, NASA's Space Launch System (SLS) represents a unique launch capability with a wide range of utilization opportunities, from delivering habitation systems into the lunar vicinity to high-energy transits through the outer solar system. Developed with the goals of safety, affordability and sustainability in mind, SLS is a foundational capability for NASA's future plans for exploration, along with the Orion crew vehicle and upgraded ground systems at the agency's Kennedy Space Center. Substantial progress has been made toward the first launch of the initial configuration of SLS, which will be able to deliver more than 70 metric tons of payload into low Earth orbit (LEO), greater mass-to-orbit capability than any contemporary launch vehicle. The vehicle will then be evolved into more powerful configurations, culminating with the capability to deliver more than 130 metric tons to LEO, greater even than the Saturn V rocket that enabled human landings on the moon. SLS will also be able to carry larger payload fairings than any contemporary launch vehicle, and will offer opportunities for co-manifested and secondary payloads. Because of its substantial mass-lift capability, SLS will also offer unrivaled departure energy, enabling mission profiles currently not possible. Early collaboration with science teams planning future decadal-class missions have contributed to a greater understanding of the vehicle's potential range of utilization. This presentation will discuss the potential opportunities this vehicle poses for the planetary sciences community, relating the vehicle's evolution to practical implications for mission capture. As this paper will explain, SLS will be a global launch infrastructure asset, employing sustainable solutions and technological innovations to deliver capabilities for space exploration to power human and robotic systems beyond our Moon and in to deep space.

Multipass Target Search in Natural Environments

PubMed Central

Otte, Michael W.; Sofge, Donald; Gupta, Satyandra K.

2017-01-01

Consider a disaster scenario where search and rescue workers must search difficult to access buildings during an earthquake or flood. Often, finding survivors a few hours sooner results in a dramatic increase in saved lives, suggesting the use of drones for expedient rescue operations. Entropy can be used to quantify the generation and resolution of uncertainty. When searching for targets, maximizing mutual information of future sensor observations will minimize expected target location uncertainty by minimizing the entropy of the future estimate. Motion planning for multi-target autonomous search requires planning over an area with an imperfect sensor and may require multiple passes, which is hindered by the submodularity property of mutual information. Further, mission duration constraints must be handled accordingly, requiring consideration of the vehicle’s dynamics to generate feasible trajectories and must plan trajectories spanning the entire mission duration, something which most information gathering algorithms are incapable of doing. If unanticipated changes occur in an uncertain environment, new plans must be generated quickly. In addition, planning multipass trajectories requires evaluating path dependent rewards, requiring planning in the space of all previously selected actions, compounding the problem. We present an anytime algorithm for autonomous multipass target search in natural environments. The algorithm is capable of generating long duration dynamically feasible multipass coverage plans that maximize mutual information using a variety of techniques such as ϵ-admissible heuristics to speed up the search. To the authors’ knowledge this is the first attempt at efficiently solving multipass target search problems of such long duration. The proposed algorithm is based on best first branch and bound and is benchmarked against state of the art algorithms adapted to the problem in natural Simplex environments, gathering the most information in the given search time. PMID:29099087

Artificial intelligence techniques for scheduling Space Shuttle missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Henke, Andrea L.; Stottler, Richard H.

1994-01-01

Planning and scheduling of NASA Space Shuttle missions is a complex, labor-intensive process requiring the expertise of experienced mission planners. We have developed a planning and scheduling system using combinations of artificial intelligence knowledge representations and planning techniques to capture mission planning knowledge and automate the multi-mission planning process. Our integrated object oriented and rule-based approach reduces planning time by orders of magnitude and provides planners with the flexibility to easily modify planning knowledge and constraints without requiring programming expertise.

AI in space: Past, present, and possible futures

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rose, Donald D.; Post, Jonathan V.

1992-01-01

While artificial intelligence (AI) has become increasingly present in recent space applications, new missions being planned will require even more incorporation of AI techniques. In this paper, we survey some of the progress made to date in implementing such programs, some current directions and issues, and speculate about the future of AI in space scenarios. We also provide examples of how thinkers from the realm of science fiction have envisioned AI's role in various aspects of space exploration.

A 32-GHz solid-state power amplifier for deep space communications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wamhof, P. D.; Rascoe, D. L.; Lee, K. A.; Lansing, F. S.

1994-01-01

A 1.5-W solid-state power amplifier (SSPA) has been demonstrated as part of an effort to develop and evaluate state-of-the-art transmitter and receiver components at 32 and 35 GHz for future deep space missions. Output power and efficiency measurements for a monolithic millimeter-wave integrated circuit (MMIC)-based SSPA are reported. Technical design details for the various modules and a thermal analysis are discussed, as well as future plans.

Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) Mission

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-02-23

Envelopes with stamps depicting various space missions are shown at the visitor's center of the Tanegashima Space Center (TNSC), Sunday, Feb. 23, 2014, Tanegashima Island, Japan. A Japanese H-IIA rocket carrying the NASA-Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) Core Observatory is planned for launch from the space center on Feb. 28, 2014. Once launched, the GPM spacecraft will collect information that unifies data from an international network of existing and future satellites to map global rainfall and snowfall every three hours. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)

NASA' s life sciences and space radiation biology.

PubMed

Rambaut, P; Nicogossian, A

1984-01-01

Plans for the various missions in which men and women are expected to participate during the next 10 years are outlined. Such missions include flights of up to three months duration in low earth orbit as well as possible short excursions to geosynchronous orbit. Research activities are described which cover the full spectrum of physiological and psychological responses to space flight. These activities are shown to contribute to the ongoing Shuttle program and the future Space Station. The paper includes a summary of the major technical thrusts needed to support extended habitation in space.

Japan's launch vehicle program update

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tadakawa, Tsuguo

1987-06-01

NASDA is actively engaged in the development of H-I and H-II launch vehicle performance capabilities in anticipation of future mission requirements. The H-I has both two-stage and three-stage versions for medium-altitude and geosynchronous orbits, respectively; the restart capability of the second stage affords considerable mission planning flexibility. The H-II vehicle is a two-stage liquid rocket primary propulsion design employing two solid rocket boosters for secondary power; it is capable of launching two-ton satellites into geosynchronous orbit, and reduces manufacture and launch costs by extensively employing off-the-shelf technology.

Developing a taxonomy for mission architecture definition

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Neubek, Deborah J.

1990-01-01

The Lunar and Mars Exploration Program Office (LMEPO) was tasked to define candidate architectures for the Space Exploration Initiative to submit to NASA senior management and an externally constituted Outreach Synthesis Group. A systematic, structured process for developing, characterizing, and describing the alternate mission architectures, and applying this process to future studies was developed. The work was done in two phases: (1) national needs were identified and categorized into objectives achievable by the Space Exploration Initiative; and (2) a program development process was created which both hierarchically and iteratively describes the program planning process.

Design of Mariner 9 Science Sequences using Interactive Graphics Software

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Freeman, J. E.; Sturms, F. M, Jr.; Webb, W. A.

1973-01-01

This paper discusses the analyst/computer system used to design the daily science sequences required to carry out the desired Mariner 9 science plan. The Mariner 9 computer environment, the development and capabilities of the science sequence design software, and the techniques followed in the daily mission operations are discussed. Included is a discussion of the overall mission operations organization and the individual components which played an essential role in the sequence design process. A summary of actual sequences processed, a discussion of problems encountered, and recommendations for future applications are given.

Geographic Information Systems and Martian Data: Compatibility and Analysis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jones, Jennifer L.

2005-01-01

Planning future landed Mars missions depends on accurate, informed data. This research has created and used spatially referenced instrument data from NASA missions such as the Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) on the Mars Odyssey Orbiter and the Mars Orbital Camera (MOC) on the Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Orbiter. Creating spatially referenced data enables its use in Geographic Information Systems (GIS) such as ArcGIS. It has then been possible to integrate this spatially referenced data with global base maps and build and populate location based databases that are easy to access.

Magellan aerobrake navigation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Giorgini, Jon; Wong, S. Kuen; You, Tung-Han; Chadbourne, Pam; Lim, Lily

1995-01-01

The Magellan spacecraft has been aerobraked into a 197 x 541 km near-circular orbit around Venus from which it is conducting a high-resolution gravity mapping mission. This was the first interplanetary aerobrake maneuver and involved flying the spacecraft through the upper reaches of the Venusian atmosphere 730 times over a 70 day period. Round-trip light-time varied from 9.57 to 18.83 minutes during this period. Navigation for this dynamic phase of the Magellan mission was planned and executed in the face of budget-driven down-sizing with all spacecraft safe modes disabled and a flight-team one-third the size of comparable interplanetary missions. Successful execution of this manuever using spacecraft hardware not designed to operate in a planetary atmosphere, demonstrated a practical cost-saving technique for both large and small future interplanetary missions.

Trash to Supply Gas (TtSG) Project Overview

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hintze, Paul; Santiago-Maldonado, Edgardo; Kulis, Michael J.; Lytle, John K.; Fisher, John W.; Vaccaro, Helen; Ewert, Michael K.; Broyan, James L.

2012-01-01

Technologies that reduce logistical needs are a key to long term space missions. Currently, trash and waste generated during a mission is carried during the entire roundtrip mission or stored inside a logistic module which is de-orbited into Earth's atmosphere for destruction. The goal of the Trash to Supply Gas (TtSG) project is to develop space technology alternatives for converting trash and other waste materials from human spaceflight into high-value products that might include propellants or power system fuels in addition to life support oxygen and water. In addition to producing a useful product from waste, TtSG will decrease the volume needed to store waste on long term space missions. This paper presents an overview of the TtSG technologies and future plans for the project.

Application of State Analysis and Goal-based Operations to a MER Mission Scenario

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Morris, John Richard; Ingham, Michel D.; Mishkin, Andrew H.; Rasmussen, Robert D.; Starbird, Thomas W.

2006-01-01

State Analysis is a model-based systems engineering methodology employing a rigorous discovery process which articulates operations concepts and operability needs as an integrated part of system design. The process produces requirements on system and software design in the form of explicit models which describe the system behavior in terms of state variables and the relationships among them. By applying State Analysis to an actual MER flight mission scenario, this study addresses the specific real world challenges of complex space operations and explores technologies that can be brought to bear on future missions. The paper first describes the tools currently used on a daily basis for MER operations planning and provides an in-depth description of the planning process, in the context of a Martian day's worth of rover engineering activities, resource modeling, flight rules, science observations, and more. It then describes how State Analysis allows for the specification of a corresponding goal-based sequence that accomplishes the same objectives, with several important additional benefits.

Application of State Analysis and Goal-Based Operations to a MER Mission Scenario

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Morris, J. Richard; Ingham, Michel D.; Mishkin, Andrew H.; Rasmussen, Robert D.; Starbird, Thomas W.

2006-01-01

State Analysis is a model-based systems engineering methodology employing a rigorous discovery process which articulates operations concepts and operability needs as an integrated part of system design. The process produces requirements on system and software design in the form of explicit models which describe the behavior of states and the relationships among them. By applying State Analysis to an actual MER flight mission scenario, this study addresses the specific real world challenges of complex space operations and explores technologies that can be brought to bear on future missions. The paper describes the tools currently used on a daily basis for MER operations planning and provides an in-depth description of the planning process, in the context of a Martian day's worth of rover engineering activities, resource modeling, flight rules, science observations, and more. It then describes how State Analysis allows for the specification of a corresponding goal-based sequence that accomplishes the same objectives, with several important additional benefits.

Bitsy Thinks Big

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2001-01-01

AeroAstro, of Herndon, Virginia, developed a nanospacecraft core module capable of developing recyclable spacecraft designs using standard interfaces. From this core module, known as the Bitsy(TM) kernel, custom spacecraft are able to connect mission-specific instruments and subsystems for variation in mission usage. The nanospacecraft core module may be used in conjunction with an existing microsatellite bus or customized to meet specific requirements. Building on this premise, AeroAstro has developed a line of satellite communications equipment, sun sensors, and Lithium-Ion batteries which are all incorporated in its complete line of mission-specific nanospacecraft. The Bitsy technology is also a key component in AeroAstro#s satellite inspection products and orbital transfer services. In the future, AeroAstro plans to market an even less expensive version of the Bitsy technology. The plan, which is targeted to universities, markets a sort of "satellite in a kit," for less than $1 million. This technology would allow universities to build true space hardware for a fraction of the cost of launching a regular satellite.

RESOLVE Mission Architecture for Lunar Resource Prospecting and Utilization

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

George, J. A.; Mattes, G. W.; Rogers, K. N.; Magruder, D. F.; Paz, A. J.; Vaccaro, H. M.; Baird, R. S.; Sanders, G. B.; Smith, J. T.; Quinn, J. W.;

Second Shuttle Join NASA's STS Fleet: Challenger Launches First New Tracking Satellite

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1983-01-01

NASA made a major stride in readying a second delivery vehicle for its Space Transportation System (STS) fleet with the perfect landing of Shuttle Orbiter Challenger at Edwards Air Force Base, California, April 9, 1983. Besides being the first flight test of Challenger's performance, the mission marked the orbiting of the first spacecraft in NASA's new Tracking and Data Relay Satellite System (TDRSS). The new family of orbiting space communications platforms is essential to serve future Shuttle missions. Although the Inertial Upper Stage (IUS) second stage engine firing failed to place TDRS in its final 35,888 kilometer (22,300 mile) geosynchronous orbit, its release from the orbiter cargo bay went as planned. Launch officials were confident they can achieve its planned orbit in a matter of weeks.

Mission Success for Combustion Science

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Weiland, Karen J.

2004-01-01

This presentation describes how mission success for combustion experiments has been obtained in previous spaceflight experiments and how it will be obtained for future International Space Station (ISS) experiments. The fluids and combustion facility is a payload planned for the ISS. It is composed of two racks: the fluids Integrated rack and the Combustion INtegrated Rack (CIR). Requirements for the CIR were obtained from a set of combustion basis experiments that served as surrogates for later experiments. The process for experiments that fly on the ISS includes proposal selection, requirements and success criteria definition, science and engineering reviews, mission operations, and postflight operations. By following this process, the microgravity combustion science program has attained success in 41 out of 42 experiments.

Space - The long range future

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Von Puttkamer, J.

1985-01-01

Space exploration goals for NASA in the year 2000 time frame are examined. A lunar base would offer the opportunity for continuous earth viewing, further cosmogeochemical exploration and rudimentary steps at self-sufficiency in space. The latter two factors are also compelling reasons to plan a manned Mars base. Furthermore, competition and cooperation in a Mars mission and further interplanetary exploration is an attractive substitute for war. The hardware requirements for various configurations of Mars missions are briefly addressed, along with other, unmanned missions to the asteroid belt, Mercury, Venus, Jupiter and the moons of Jupiter and Saturn. Finally, long-range technological requirements for providing adequate living/working facilities for larger human populations in Space Station environments are summarized.

Preliminary Design and Analysis of the ARES Atmospheric Flight Vehicle Thermal Control System

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gasbarre, J. F.; Dillman, R. A.

2003-01-01

The Aerial Regional-scale Environmental Survey (ARES) is a proposed 2007 Mars Scout Mission that will be the first mission to deploy an atmospheric flight vehicle (AFV) on another planet. This paper will describe the preliminary design and analysis of the AFV thermal control system for its flight through the Martian atmosphere and also present other analyses broadening the scope of that design to include other phases of the ARES mission. Initial analyses are discussed and results of trade studies are presented which detail the design process for AFV thermal control. Finally, results of the most recent AFV thermal analysis are shown and the plans for future work are discussed.

Taking Charge of the Future: The Strategic Plan for the Association of American Medical Colleges.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Association of American Medical Colleges, Washington, DC.

This report outlines five strategic commitments that the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) has adopted to help academic medicine's leaders uphold their institutional missions while adapting to the changes restructuring American medicine. It discusses the achievements and challenges of academic medicine in the changing health care…

Unmanned airship development and remote sensing applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Boschma, James H.

2001-10-01

This paper discusses the development of unmanned airships for military use during the past decade, and the current status of the Small Airship Surveillance System, Low Intensity Target Exploitation (SASS LITE) platform. Topics covered will also include various missions planned and conducted, and technological advances expected to be implemented on unmanned airships in the near future.

Rotorcraft as Mars Scouts

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Young, L. A.; Aiken, E. W.; Gulick, V.; Mancinelli, R.; Briggs, G. A.; Rutkowski, Michael (Technical Monitor)

2002-01-01

A new approach for the robotic exploration of Mars is detailed in this paper: the use of small, ultralightweight, autonomous rotary-wing aerial platforms. Missions based on robotic rotorcraft could make excellent candidates for NASA Mars Scout program. The paper details the work to date and future planning required for the development of such 'Mars rotorcraft.'

Innovations for ISS Plug-In Plan (IPiP) Operations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Moore, Kevin D.

2013-01-01

Limited resources and increasing requirements will continue to influence decisions on ISS. The ISS Plug-In Plan (IPiP) supports power and data for utilization, systems, and daily operations through the Electrical Power System (EPS) Secondary Power/Data Subsystem. Given the fluid launch schedule, the focus of the Plug-In Plan has evolved to anticipate future requirements by judicious development and delivery of power supplies, power strips, Alternating Current (AC) power inverters, along with innovative deployment strategies. A partnership of ISS Program Office, Engineering Directorate, Mission Operations, and International Partners poses unique solutions with existing on-board equipment and resources.

Embedding Temporal Constraints For Coordinated Execution in Habitat Automation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Morris, Paul; Schwabacher, Mark; Dalal, Michael; Fry, Charles

2013-01-01

Future NASA plans call for long-duration deep space missions with human crews. Because of light-time delay and other considerations, increased autonomy will be needed. This will necessitate integration of tools in such areas as anomaly detection, diagnosis, planning, and execution. In this paper we investigate an approach that integrates planning and execution by embedding planner-derived temporal constraints in an execution procedure. To avoid the need for propagation, we convert the temporal constraints to dispatchable form. We handle some uncertainty in the durations without it affecting the execution; larger variations may cause activities to be skipped.

FY16-20 Strategic Plan.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Harwell, Amber Suzanne

2015-07-01

Welcome to our FY16–FY20 Strategic Plan, which both refects our continued dedication to the work we do and reinforces the importance of the integrated Laboratories’ strategic framework to our future. This document is the result of the leadership team’s journey over the past few years in response to the needs of our nation. In an external environment that continues to change, sometimes in unexpected ways, it is critical that our mission areas and our foundation become increasingly synergistic, forming a whole whose parts are interdependent.

Measures of Effectiveness-CONUS Reorganization 1973 (As Pertains to FORSCOM, TRADOC, HSC, OTEA and CAA). Volume 2. Detailed Evaluation Plan and Appendixes A to E

DTIC Science & Technology

1974-11-01

management, organization, and operation of activities designed to achieve the mission/function covered by the measure. An important use of the...presents an evaluation plan designed to assist the Army in the overall assessment of its effectiveness in terms of the goals of the CONUS...ongoing operations plus encourage the design and imple- mentation of any needed changes in the future without excessive delav and turbulence

NASA/Goddard Thermal Technology Overview 2014

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Butler, Daniel; Swanson, Theodore D.

2014-01-01

This presentation summarizes the current plans and efforts at NASA Goddard to develop new thermal control technology for anticipated future missions. It will also address some of the programmatic developments currently underway at NASA, especially with respect to the Technology Development Program at NASA. While funding for basic technology development is still scarce, significant efforts are being made in direct support of flight programs. New technology development continues to be driven by the needs of future missions, and applications of these technologies to current Goddard programs will be addressed. Many of these technologies also have broad applicability to DOD, DOE, and commercial programs. Partnerships have been developed with the Air Force, Navy, and various universities to promote technology development. In addition, technology development activities supported by internal research and development (IRAD) program, the Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR) program, and the NASA Engineering and Safety Center (NESC), are reviewed in this presentation. Specific technologies addressed include; two-phase systems applications and issues on NASA missions, latest developments of electro-hydrodynamically pumped systems, development of high electrical conductivity coatings, and various other research activities. New Technology program underway at NASA, although funding is limited center dot NASA/GSFC's primary mission of science satellite development is healthy and vibrant, although new missions are scarce - now have people on overhead working new missions and proposals center dot Future mission applications promise to be thermally challenging center dot Direct technology funding is still very restricted - Projects are the best source for direct application of technology - SBIR thermal subtopic resurrected in FY 14 - Limited Technology development underway via IRAD, NESC, other sources - Administrator pushing to revive technology and educational programs at NASA - new HQ directorate established

NASA/MOD Operations Impacts from Shuttle Program

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Fitzpatrick, Michael; Mattes, Gregory; Grabois, Michael; Griffith, Holly

2011-01-01

Operations plays a pivotal role in the success of any human spaceflight program. This paper will highlight some of the core tenets of spaceflight operations from a systems perspective and use several examples from the Space Shuttle Program to highlight where the success and safety of a mission can hinge upon the preparedness and competency of the operations team. Further, awareness of the types of operations scenarios and impacts that can arise during human crewed space missions can help inform design and mission planning decisions long before a vehicle gets into orbit. A strong operations team is crucial to the development of future programs; capturing the lessons learned from the successes and failures of a past program will allow for safer, more efficient, and better designed programs in the future. No matter how well a vehicle is designed and constructed, there are always unexpected events or failures that occur during space flight missions. Preparation, training, real-time execution, and troubleshooting are skills and values of the Mission Operations Directorate (MOD) flight controller; these operational standards have proven invaluable to the Space Shuttle Program. Understanding and mastery of these same skills will be required of any operations team as technology advances and new vehicles are developed. This paper will focus on individual Space Shuttle mission case studies where specific operational skills, techniques, and preparedness allowed for mission safety and success. It will detail the events leading up to the scenario or failure, how the operations team identified and dealt with the failure and its downstream impacts. The various options for real-time troubleshooting will be discussed along with the operations team final recommendation, execution, and outcome. Finally, the lessons learned will be summarized along with an explanation of how these lessons were used to improve the operational preparedness of future flight control teams.

NASA Goddard Space Flight Center

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Carter, David; Wetzel, Scott

2000-01-01

The NASA SLR Operational Center is responsible for: 1) NASA SLR network control, sustaining engineering, and logistics; 2) ILRS mission operations; and 3) ILRS and NASA SLR data operations. NASA SLR network control and sustaining engineering tasks include technical support, daily system performance monitoring, system scheduling, operator training, station status reporting, system relocation, logistics and support of the ILRS Networks and Engineering Working Group. These activities ensure the NASA SLR systems are meeting ILRS and NASA mission support requirements. ILRS mission operations tasks include mission planning, mission analysis, mission coordination, development of mission support plans, and support of the ILRS Missions Working Group. These activities ensure than new mission and campaign requirements are coordinated with the ILRS. Global Normal Points (NP) data, NASA SLR FullRate (FR) data, and satellite predictions are managed as part of data operations. Part of this operation includes supporting the ILRS Data Formats and Procedures Working Group. Global NP data operations consist of receipt, format and data integrity verification, archiving and merging. This activity culminates in the daily electronic transmission of NP files to the CDDIS. Currently of all these functions are automated. However, to ensure the timely and accurate flow of data, regular monitoring and maintenance of the operational software systems, computer systems and computer networking are performed. Tracking statistics between the stations and the data centers are compared periodically to eliminate lost data. Future activities in this area include sub-daily (i.e., hourly) NP data management, more stringent data integrity tests, and automatic station notification of format and data integrity issues.

The Need for Analogue Missions in Scientific Human and Robotic Planetary Exploration

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Snook, K. J.; Mendell, W. W.

2004-01-01

With the increasing challenges of planetary missions, and especially with the prospect of human exploration of the moon and Mars, the need for earth-based mission simulations has never been greater. The current focus on science as a major driver for planetary exploration introduces new constraints in mission design, planning, operations, and technology development. Analogue missions can be designed to address critical new integration issues arising from the new science-driven exploration paradigm. This next step builds on existing field studies and technology development at analogue sites, providing engineering, programmatic, and scientific lessons-learned in relatively low-cost and low-risk environments. One of the most important outstanding questions in planetary exploration is how to optimize the human and robotic interaction to achieve maximum science return with minimum cost and risk. To answer this question, researchers are faced with the task of defining scientific return and devising ways of measuring the benefit of scientific planetary exploration to humanity. Earth-based and spacebased analogue missions are uniquely suited to answer this question. Moreover, they represent the only means for integrating science operations, mission operations, crew training, technology development, psychology and human factors, and all other mission elements prior to final mission design and launch. Eventually, success in future planetary exploration will depend on our ability to prepare adequately for missions, requiring improved quality and quantity of analogue activities. This effort demands more than simply developing new technologies needed for future missions and increasing our scientific understanding of our destinations. It requires a systematic approach to the identification and evaluation of the categories of analogue activities. This paper presents one possible approach to the classification and design of analogue missions based on their degree of fidelity in ten key areas. Various case studies are discussed to illustrate the approach.

Mission planning for autonomous systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Pearson, G.

1987-01-01

Planning is a necessary task for intelligent, adaptive systems operating independently of human controllers. A mission planning system that performs task planning by decomposing a high-level mission objective into subtasks and synthesizing a plan for those tasks at varying levels of abstraction is discussed. Researchers use a blackboard architecture to partition the search space and direct the focus of attention of the planner. Using advanced planning techniques, they can control plan synthesis for the complex planning tasks involved in mission planning.

Novel Hybrid CMOS X-ray Detector Developments for Future Large Area and High Resolution X-ray Astronomy Missions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Falcone, Abe

In the coming years, X-ray astronomy will require new soft X-ray detectors that can be read very quickly with low noise and can achieve small pixel sizes over a moderately large focal plane area. These requirements will be present for a variety of X-ray missions that will attempt to address science that was highly ranked by the Decadal Review, including missions with science that over-laps with that of IXO and ATHENA, as well as other missions addressing science topics beyond those of IXO and ATHENA. An X-ray Surveyor mission was recently endorsed by the NASA long term planning document entitled "Enduring Quests, Daring Visions," and a detailed description of one possible realization of such a mission has been referred to as SMART-X, which was described in a recent NASA RFI response. This provides an example of a future mission concept with these requirements since it has high X-ray throughput and excellent spatial resolution. We propose to continue to modify current active pixel sensor designs, in particular the hybrid CMOS detectors that we have been working with for several years, and implement new in-pixel technologies that will allow us to achieve these ambitious and realistic requirements on a timeline that will make them available to upcoming X-ray missions. This proposal is a continuation of our program that has been working on these developments for the past several years.

Self-Aware Vehicles: Mission and Performance Adaptation to System Health

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gregory, Irene M.; Leonard, Charles; Scotti, Stephen J.

2016-01-01

Advances in sensing (miniaturization, distributed sensor networks) combined with improvements in computational power leading to significant gains in perception, real-time decision making/reasoning and dynamic planning under uncertainty as well as big data predictive analysis have set the stage for realization of autonomous system capability. These advances open the design and operating space for self-aware vehicles that are able to assess their own capabilities and adjust their behavior to either complete the assigned mission or to modify the mission to reflect their current capabilities. This paper discusses the self-aware vehicle concept and associated technologies necessary for full exploitation of the concept. A self-aware aircraft, spacecraft or system is one that is aware of its internal state, has situational awareness of its environment, can assess its capabilities currently and project them into the future, understands its mission objectives, and can make decisions under uncertainty regarding its ability to achieve its mission objectives.

Oceanography and Yacht Racing - A Handful of Competitors, Millions of Spectators

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Griffin, D.; Cresswell, G.; Badcock, K.; Cahill, M.; Rathbone, C.; Turner, P.

2006-07-01

Satellite altimeter measurements of sea level have proven to be far more accurate, and useful, than was hope for when the missions were designed, especially when data from several instruments are combines. In the regard, the experimental missions (ERS1 and 2, Topex/Poseidon, Jason-1 and GFO) have all been a resounding success. Why then, are there not plans already in place to continue and improve on the recent missions? One reason is surely that end-user uptake of the mission products has not yet convincingly justified the costs of future missions. At CSIRO we sought to maximise the awareness, amongst all marine sectors, that mapping ocean currents with sufficient accuracy and detail for operational use is indeed possible, so that the societal benefits of the system would become clear as quickly as possible. We did this using a well know marketing too - sport.

The Weak Stability Boundary, A Gateway for Human Exploration of Space

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mendell, Wendell W.

2000-01-01

NASA plans for future human exploration of the Solar System describe only missions to Mars. Before such missions can be initiated, much study remains to be done in technology development, mission operations and human performance. While, for example, technology validation and operational experience could be gained in the context of lunar exploration missions, a NASA lunar program is seen as a competitor to a Mars mission rather than a step towards it. The recently characterized Weak Stability Boundary in the Earth-Moon gravitational field may provide an operational approach to all types of planetary exploration, and infrastructure developed for a gateway to the Solar System may be a programmatic solution for exploration that avoids the fractious bickering between Mars and Moon advocates. This viewpoint proposes utilizing the concept of Greater Earth to educate policy makers, opinion makers and the public about these subtle attributes of our space neighborhood.

Exploration planning in the context of human exploration and development of the Moon

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Duke, Michael B.; Morrison, Donald A.

1993-01-01

It is widely believed that the next step beyond low Earth orbit in attaining the United States' stated goal of 'Expanding human presence beyond the Earth' should be to reestablish a lunar capability, building on the Apollo program, and preparing the way for eventual human missions to Mars. The Moon offers important questions in planetary and Earth science, can provide a unique platform for making astronomical observations of high resolution and sensitivity, and can be in the development path for unlocking resources of the inner solar system to support space activities and return benefits to Earth. NASA's Office of Exploration has undertaken the planning of future lunar exploration missions with the assistance of the Solar System Exploration Division in matters dealing with the quality of scientific data and the manner in which it will be made available to the scientific community. The initial elements of the proposed program include the Lunar Scout missions, which consist of two small identical spacecraft in polar orbit around the Moon, which can accomplish most of the objectives associated with previous proposals for Lunar Polar Orbiters. These missions would be followed by 'Artemis' landers, capable of emplacing up to 200 kg payloads anywhere on the Moon. In addition, the exploration program must incorporate data obtained from other missions, including the Galileo lunar flybys, the Clementine high orbital observations, and Japanese penetrator missions. In the past year, a rather detailed plan for a 'First Lunar Outpost (FLO)' which would place 4 astronauts on the lunar surface for 45 days has been developed as a possible initial step of a renewed human exploration program. In the coming year, the FLO concept will be reviewed and evolved to become more highly integrated with planning for the initial human exploration of Mars, which could come perhaps 5 years after the reestablishment of lunar capability. Both programs could benefit from the common development of systems and subsystems, where that is sensible from a performance perspective.

Revitalization of the NASA Langley Research Center's Infrastructure

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Weiser, Erik S.; Mastaler, Michael D.; Craft, Stephen J.; Kegelman, Jerome T.; Hope, Drew J.; Mangum, Cathy H.

2012-01-01

The NASA Langley Research Center (Langley) was founded in 1917 as the nation's first civilian aeronautical research facility and NASA's first field center. For nearly 100 years, Langley has made significant contributions to the Aeronautics, Space Exploration, and Earth Science missions through research, technology, and engineering core competencies in aerosciences, materials, structures, the characterization of earth and planetary atmospheres and, more recently, in technologies associated with entry, descent, and landing. An unfortunate but inevitable outcome of this rich history is an aging infrastructure where the longest serving building is close to 80 years old and the average building age is 44 years old. In the current environment, the continued operation and maintenance of this aging and often inefficient infrastructure presents a real challenge to Center leadership in the trade space of sustaining infrastructure versus not investing in future capabilities. To address this issue, the Center has developed a forward looking revitalization strategy that ties future core competencies and technical capabilities to the Center Master Facility Plan to maintain a viable Center well into the future. This paper documents Langley's revitalization strategy which integrates the Center's missions, the Langley 2050 vision, the Center Master Facility Plan, and the New Town repair-by-replacement program through the leadership of the Vibrant Transformation to Advance Langley (ViTAL) Team.

NEEMO 21: Tools, Techniques, Technologies and Training for Science Exploration

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Graff, T.; Young, K.; Coan, D.; Merselis, D.; Bellantuono, A.; Dougan, K.; Rodriguez-Lanetty, M.; Nedimyer, K.; Chappell, S.; Beaton, K.;

Campaign-level dynamic network modelling for spaceflight logistics for the flexible path concept

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ho, Koki; de Weck, Olivier L.; Hoffman, Jeffrey A.; Shishko, Robert

2016-06-01

This paper develops a network optimization formulation for dynamic campaign-level space mission planning. Although many past space missions have been designed mainly from a mission-level perspective, a campaign-level perspective will be important for future space exploration. In order to find the optimal campaign-level space transportation architecture, a mixed-integer linear programming (MILP) formulation with a generalized multi-commodity flow and a time-expanded network is developed. Particularly, a new heuristics-based method, a partially static time-expanded network, is developed to provide a solution quickly. The developed method is applied to a case study containing human exploration of a near-Earth object (NEO) and Mars, related to the concept of the Flexible Path. The numerical results show that using the specific combinations of propulsion technologies, in-situ resource utilization (ISRU), and other space infrastructure elements can reduce the initial mass in low-Earth orbit (IMLEO) significantly. In addition, the case study results also show that we can achieve large IMLEO reduction by designing NEO and Mars missions together as a campaign compared with designing them separately owing to their common space infrastructure pre-deployment. This research will be an important step toward efficient and flexible campaign-level space mission planning.

Overview of the Human Exploration Research Analog (HERA)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Neigut, J.

2015-01-01

In 2013, the Human Research Program at NASA began developing a new confinement analog specifically for conducting research to investigate the effects of confinement on the human system. The HERA (Human Exploration Research Analog) habitat has been used for both 7 and 14 day missions to date to examine and mitigate exploration risks to enable safe, reliable and productive human space exploration. This presentation will describe how the Flight Analogs Project developed the HERA facility and the infrastructure to suit investigator requirements for confinement research and in the process developed a new approach to analog utilization and a new state of the art analog facility. Details regarding HERA operations will be discussed including specifics on the mission simulation utilized for the current 14-day campaign, the specifics of the facility (total volume, overall size, hardware), and the capabilities available to researchers. The overall operational philosophy, mission fidelity including timeline, schedule pressures and cadence, and development and implementation of mission stressors will be presented. Research conducted to date in the HERA has addressed risks associated with behavioral health and performance, human physiology, as well as human factors. This presentation will conclude with a discussion of future research plans for the HERA, including infrastructure improvements and additional research capabilities planned for the upcoming 30-day missions in 2016.

Knowledge Engineering for Preservation and Future use of Institutional Knowledge

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Moreman, Douglas; Dyer, John

1996-01-01

This Project has two main thrusts-preservation of special knowledge and its useful representation via computers. NASA is losing the expertise of its engineers and scientists who put together the great missions of the past. We no longer are landing men on the moon. Some of the equipment still used today (such as the RL-10 rocket) was designed decades ago by people who are now retiring. Furthermore, there has been a lack, in some areas of technology, of new projects that overlap with the old and that would have provided opportunities for monitoring by senior engineers of the young ones. We are studying this problem and trying out a couple of methods of soliciting and recording rare knowledge from experts. One method is that of Concept Maps which produces a graphical interface to knowledge even as it helps solicit that knowledge. We arranged for experienced help in this method from John Coffey of the Institute of Human and Machine Technology at the University of West Florida. A second method which we plan to try out in May, is a video-taped review of selected failed missions (e.g., the craft tumbled and blew up). Five senior engineers (most already retired from NASA) will, as a team, analyze available data, illustrating their thought processes as they try to solve the problem of why a space craft failed to complete its mission. The session will be captured in high quality audio and with at least two video cameras. The video can later be used to plan future concept mapping interviews and, in edited form, be a product in itself. Our computer representations of the amassed knowledge may eventually, via the methods of expert systems, be joined with other software being prepared as a suite of tools to aid future engineers designing rocket engines. In addition to representation by multimedia concept maps, we plan to consider linking vast bodies of text (and other media) by hypertexting methods.

Probabilistic Assessment of Cancer Risk for Astronauts on Lunar Missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kim, Myung-Hee Y.; Cucinotta, Francis A.

2009-01-01

During future lunar missions, exposure to solar particle events (SPEs) is a major safety concern for crew members during extra-vehicular activities (EVAs) on the lunar surface or Earth-to-moon transit. NASA s new lunar program anticipates that up to 15% of crew time may be on EVA, with minimal radiation shielding. For the operational challenge to respond to events of unknown size and duration, a probabilistic risk assessment approach is essential for mission planning and design. Using the historical database of proton measurements during the past 5 solar cycles, a typical hazard function for SPE occurrence was defined using a non-homogeneous Poisson model as a function of time within a non-specific future solar cycle of 4000 days duration. Distributions ranging from the 5th to 95th percentile of particle fluences for a specified mission period were simulated. Organ doses corresponding to particle fluences at the median and at the 95th percentile for a specified mission period were assessed using NASA s baryon transport model, BRYNTRN. The cancer fatality risk for astronauts as functions of age, gender, and solar cycle activity were then analyzed. The probability of exceeding the NASA 30- day limit of blood forming organ (BFO) dose inside a typical spacecraft was calculated. Future work will involve using this probabilistic risk assessment approach to SPE forecasting, combined with a probabilistic approach to the radiobiological factors that contribute to the uncertainties in projecting cancer risks.

Geographic data from space

USGS Publications Warehouse

Alexander, Robert H.

1964-01-01

Space science has been called “the collection of scientific problems to which space vehicles can make some specific contributions not achievable by ground-based experiments.” Geography, the most spatial of the sciences, has now been marked as one of these “space sciences.” The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is sponsoring an investigation to identify the Potential geographic benefits from the nation’s space program. This is part of NASA’s long-range inquiry to determine the kinds of scientific activities which might profitably be carried out on future space missions. Among such future activities which are now being planned by NASA are a series of manned earth orbital missions, many of which would be devoted to research. Experiments in physics, astronomy, geophysics, meteorology, and biology are being discussed for these long-range missions. The question which is being put to geographers is, essentially, what would it mean to geographic research to have an observation satellite (or many such satellites) orbiting the earth, gathering data about earth-surface features and environments?

Advanced warfighter machine interface (Invited Paper)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Franks, Erin

2005-05-01

Future military crewmen may have more individual and shared tasks to complete throughout a mission as a result of smaller crew sizes and an increased number of technology interactions. To maintain reasonable workload levels, the Warfighter Machine Interface (WMI) must provide information in a consistent, logical manner, tailored to the environment in which the soldier will be completing their mission. This paper addresses design criteria for creating an advanced, multi-modal warfighter machine interface for on-the-move mounted operations. The Vetronics Technology Integration (VTI) WMI currently provides capabilities such as mission planning and rehearsal, voice and data communications, and manned/unmanned vehicle payload and mobility control. A history of the crewstation and more importantly, the WMI software will be provided with an overview of requirements and criteria used for completing the design. Multiple phases of field and laboratory testing provide the opportunity to evaluate the design and hardware in stationary and motion environments. Lessons learned related to system usability and user performance are presented with mitigation strategies to be tested in the future.

An instrument thermal data base system. [for future shuttle missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bartoszek, J. T.; Csigi, K. I.; Ollendorf, S.; Oberright, J. E.

1981-01-01

The rationale for the implementation of an Instrument Thermal Data Base System (ITDBS) is discussed and the potential application of a data base management system in support of future space missions, the design of scientific instruments needed, and the potential payload groupings is described. Two basic data files are suggested, the first containing a detailed narrative information list pertaining to design configurations and optimum performance of each instrument, and the second consisting of a description of the parameters pertinent to the instruments' thermal control and design in the form of a summary record of coded information, and serving as a recall record. The applicability of a data request sheet for preliminary planning is described and is concluded that the proposed system may additionally prove to be a method of inventory control.

Strategic Plan. Volume 1

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2002-01-01

The purpose of this document is to present the strategic plan and associated organizational structure that the National Space Biomedical Research Institute (NSBRI) will utilize to achieve the defined mission and objectives provided by NASA. Much of the information regarding the background and establishment of the NSBRI by NASA has been provided in other documentation and will not be repeated in this Strategic Plan. This Strategic Plan is presented in two volumes. Volume I (this volume) begins with an Introduction (Section 2) that provides the Institute's NASA-defined mission and objectives, and the organizational structure adopted to implement these through three Strategic Programs: Countermeasure Research; Education, Training and Outreach; and Cooperative Research and Development. These programs are described in Sections 3 to 5. Each program is presented in a similar way, using four subsections: Goals and Objectives; Current Strategies; Gaps and Modifications; and Resource Requirements. Section 6 provides the administrative infrastructure and total budget required to implement the Strategic Programs and assures that they form a single cohesive plan. This plan will ensure continued success of the Institute for the next five years. Volume II of the Strategic Plan provides an in-depth analysis of the current and future strategic programs of the 12 current NSBRI teams, including their goals, objectives, mutual interactions and schedules.

The NASA Materials Science Research Program: It's New Strategic Goals and Opportunities

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Schlagheck, Ronald A.; Stagg, Elizabeth

2004-01-01

In the past year, the NASA s Office of Biological and Physical Research (OBPR) has formulated a long term plan to perform strategical and fundamental research bringing together physics, chemistry, biology, and engineering to solve problems needed for current and future agency mission goals. Materials Science is one of basic disciplines within the Enterprise s Division of Physical Sciences Research. The Materials Science Program participates to utilize effective use of International Space Station (ISS) and various world class ground laboratory facilities to solve new scientific and technology questions and transfer these results for public and agency benefits. The program has recently targeted new investigative research in strategic areas necessary to expand NASA knowledge base for exploration of the universe and some of these experiments will need access to the microgravity of space. The program is implementing a wide variety of traditional ground and flight based research related types of fundamental science related to materials crystallization, fundamental processing, and properties characterization in order to obtain basic understanding of various phenomena effects and relationships to the structures, processing, and properties of materials. , In addition new initiatives in radiation protection, materials for propulsion and In-space fabrication and repair focus on research helping the agency solve problems needed for future transportation into the solar system. A summary of the types and sources for this research is presented including those experiments planned for a low gravity environment. Areas to help expand the science basis for NASA future missions are described. An overview of the program is given including the scope of the current and future NASA Research Announcements with emphasis on new materials science initiatives. A description of the planned flight experiments to be conducted on the International Space Station program along with the planned facility class Materials Science Research Rack (MSRR) and Microgravity Glovebox (MSG) type investigations. Some initial results from the first three materials experiments are given.

New Strategy and Innovative Projects at the National Biosurveillance Integration Center

PubMed Central

Bennett, Steven; Quitugua, Teresa

2013-01-01

Objective Enhance knowledge of the vision, mission, strategic goals, and objectives of the National Biosurveillance Integration Center (NBIC). Learn about innovative biosurveillance projects ongoing in NBIC. Introduction For a number of years, the federal government has provided biosurveillance in various domains within different departments and agencies. Congress recognized the need for a means of integrating these separate information sources into a more useable resource by chartering NBIC within the Department of Homeland Security. Methods NBIC engaged the biosurveillance community within and beyond the federal government through a series of extensive discussions, workshops, and symposia to define a strategy for future development of integrated biosurveillance activities grounded in legislative and presidential direction. The NBIC Strategic Plan was extensively reviewed by the twelve federal Departments that comprise the National Biosurveillance Integration System (NBIS) as well as the White House Office of Management and Budget. The NBIC Strategic Plan is currently being revised for release of a public version. The NBIC also engaged partners in the development of projects designed to develop and test new approaches to biosurveillance. Results The NBIC Strategic Plan was delivered to Congress in August, 2012. The plan explains the Center’s approach, why it is needed, and how it seeks to execute the mission of integrating national biosurveillance information to provide relevant and timely information that effectively supports decision making. Projects are underway involving text analyses of emergency medical system data, changes to poison control center data collection and analysis, and the application of machine learning to social media analyses. A sub-working group of the NBIS has been established to guide selection of future pilot project areas to address prioritized requirements for integrated biosurveillance. Conclusions NBIC has increased flexibility in its commitment to collaboration and coordination, engaged in bold new approaches, and is defining requirements that will encourage buy-in and support of the users across the levels of government and the private sector. With success in its mission, NBIC will support its partners’ missions and provide relevant and timely information that effectively supports decision making.

EVA Systems Technology Gaps and Priorities 2017

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Johnson, Brian J.; Buffington, Jesse A.

2017-01-01

Performance of Extra-Vehicular Activities (EVA) has been and will continue to be a critical capability for human space flight. Human exploration missions beyond LEO will require EVA capability for either contingency or nominal activities to support mission objectives and reduce mission risk. EVA systems encompass a wide array of products across pressure suits, life support systems, EVA tools and unique spacecraft interface hardware (i.e. EVA Translation Paths and EVA Worksites). In a fiscally limited environment with evolving transportation and habitation options, it is paramount that the EVA community's strategic planning and architecture integration products be reviewed and vetted for traceability between the mission needs far into the future to the known technology and knowledge gaps to the current investments across EVA systems. To ascertain EVA technology and knowledge gaps many things need to be brought together, assessed and analyzed. This includes an understanding of the destination environments, various mission concept of operations, current state of the art of EVA systems, EVA operational lessons learned, and reference advanced capabilities. A combined assessment of these inputs should result in well-defined list of gaps. This list can then be prioritized depending on the mission need dates and time scale of the technology or knowledge gap closure plan. This paper will summarize the current state of EVA related technology and knowledge gaps derived from NASA's Exploration EVA Reference Architecture and Operations Concept products. By linking these products and articulating NASA's approach to strategic development for EVA across all credible destinations an EVA could be done in, the identification of these gaps is then used to illustrate the tactical and strategic planning for the EVA technology development portfolio. Finally, this paper illustrates the various "touch points" with other human exploration risk identification areas including human health and performance.

Enhancements and Evolution of the Real Time Mission Monitor

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Goodman, Michael; Blakeslee, Richard; Hardin, Danny; Hall, John; He, Yubin; Regner, Kathryn

2008-01-01

The Real Time Mission Monitor (RTMM) is a visualization and information system that fuses multiple Earth science data sources, to enable real time decision-making for airborne and ground validation experiments. Developed at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Marshall Space Flight Center, RTMM is a situational awareness, decision-support system that integrates satellite imagery, radar, surface and airborne instrument data sets, model output parameters, lightning location observations, aircraft navigation data, soundings, and other applicable Earth science data sets. The integration and delivery of this information is made possible using data acquisition systems, network communication links, network server resources, and visualizations through the Google Earth virtual globe application. RTMM has proven extremely valuable for optimizing individual Earth science airborne field experiments. Flight planners, mission scientists, instrument scientists and program managers alike appreciate the contributions that RTMM makes to their flight projects. We have received numerous plaudits from a wide variety of scientists who used RTMM during recent field campaigns including the 2006 NASA African Monsoon Multidisciplinary Analyses (NAMMA), 2007 Tropical Composition, Cloud, and Climate Coupling (TC4), 2008 Arctic Research of the Composition of the Troposphere from Aircraft and Satellites (ARCTAS) missions, the 2007-2008 NOAA-NASA Aerosonde Hurricane flights and the 2008 Soil Moisture Active-Passive Validation Experiment (SMAP-VEX). Improving and evolving RTMM is a continuous process. RTMM recently integrated the Waypoint Planning Tool, a Java-based application that enables aircraft mission scientists to easily develop a pre-mission flight plan through an interactive point-and-click interface. Individual flight legs are automatically calculated for altitude, latitude, longitude, flight leg distance, cumulative distance, flight leg time, cumulative time, and satellite overpass intersections. The resultant flight plan is then generated in KML and quickly posted to the Google Earth-based RTMM for interested scientists to view the planned flight track and then compare it to the actual real time flight progress. A description of the system architecture, components, and applications along with reviews and animations of RTMM during the field campaigns, plus planned enhancements and future opportunities will be presented.

Enhancements and Evolution of the Real Time Mission Monitor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Goodman, M.; Blakeslee, R.; Hardin, D.; Hall, J.; He, Y.; Regner, K.

2008-12-01

The Real Time Mission Monitor (RTMM) is a visualization and information system that fuses multiple Earth science data sources, to enable real time decision-making for airborne and ground validation experiments. Developed at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Marshall Space Flight Center, RTMM is a situational awareness, decision-support system that integrates satellite imagery, radar, surface and airborne instrument data sets, model output parameters, lightning location observations, aircraft navigation data, soundings, and other applicable Earth science data sets. The integration and delivery of this information is made possible using data acquisition systems, network communication links, network server resources, and visualizations through the Google Earth virtual earth application. RTMM has proven extremely valuable for optimizing individual Earth science airborne field experiments. Flight planners, mission scientists, instrument scientists and program managers alike appreciate the contributions that RTMM makes to their flight projects. RTMM has received numerous plaudits from a wide variety of scientists who used RTMM during recent field campaigns including the 2006 NASA African Monsoon Multidisciplinary Analyses (NAMMA), 2007 Tropical Composition, Cloud, and Climate Coupling (TC4), 2008 Arctic Research of the Composition of the Troposphere from Aircraft and Satellites (ARCTAS) missions, the 2007-2008 NOAA-NASA Aerosonde Hurricane flights and the 2008 Soil Moisture Active-Passive Validation Experiment (SMAP-VEX). Improving and evolving RTMM is a continuous process. RTMM recently integrated the Waypoint Planning Tool, a Java-based application that enables aircraft mission scientists to easily develop a pre-mission flight plan through an interactive point-and-click interface. Individual flight legs are automatically calculated for altitude, latitude, longitude, flight leg distance, cumulative distance, flight leg time, cumulative time, and satellite overpass intersections. The resultant flight plan is then generated in KML and quickly posted to the Google Earth-based RTMM for planning discussions, as well as comparisons to real time flight tracks in progress. A description of the system architecture, components, and applications along with reviews and animations of RTMM during the field campaigns, plus planned enhancements and future opportunities will be presented.

Air Force Research Laboratory space technology strategic investment model: analysis and outcomes for warfighter capabilities

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Preiss, Bruce; Greene, Lloyd; Kriebel, Jamie; Wasson, Robert

2006-05-01

The Air Force Research Laboratory utilizes a value model as a primary input for space technology planning and budgeting. The Space Sector at AFRL headquarters manages space technology investment across all the geographically disparate technical directorates and ensures that integrated planning is achieved across the space community. The space investment portfolio must ultimately balance near, mid, and far-term investments across all the critical space mission areas. Investment levels and growth areas can always be identified by a typical capability analysis or gap analysis, but the value model approach goes one step deeper and helps identify the potential payoff of technology investments by linking the technology directly to an existing or potential concept. The value of the technology is then viewed from the enabling performance perspective of the concept that ultimately fulfills the Air Force mission. The process of linking space technologies to future concepts and technology roadmaps will be reviewed in this paper, along with representative results from this planning cycle. The initial assumptions in this process will be identified along with the strengths and weaknesses of this planning methodology.

National Facilities study

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1994-01-01

This study provides a set of recommendations for improving the effectiveness of our nation's aeronautics and space facilities. The study plan considers current and future government and commercial needs as well as DOD and NASA mission requirements through the year 2023. It addresses shortfalls in existing capabilities, new facility requirements, upgrades, consolidations, and phase-out of existing facilities. If the recommendations are implemented, they will provide world-class capability where it is vital to our country's needs and make us more efficient in meeting future needs.

Launching the Future of Science and Exploration

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Shivers, Charles H.

2009-01-01

This slide presentation reviews the impact that NASA and more specifically the Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) has had in science and exploration of Earth. the moon, the solar system and the universe. Some of the contributions that MSFC has made to NASA's missions and the plans for future explorations are reviewed. Also there are views of the contributions to improvement of human life on earth and the impact of the understanding of some natural phenomena made possible by the technology and scientific discoveries of MSFC.

NASA Utilization of the International Space Station and the Vision for Space Exploration

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Robinson, Julie A.; Thumm, Tracy L.; Thomas, Donald A.

2006-01-01

In response to the U.S. President s Vision for Space Exploration (January 14, 2004), NASA has revised its utilization plans for ISS to focus on (1) research on astronaut health and the development of countermeasures that will protect our crews from the space environment during long duration voyages, (2) ISS as a test bed for research and technology developments that will insure vehicle systems and operational practices are ready for future exploration missions, (3) developing and validating operational practices and procedures for long-duration space missions. In addition, NASA will continue a small amount of fundamental research in life and microgravity sciences. There have been significant research accomplishments that are important for achieving the Exploration Vision. Some of these have been formal research payloads, while others have come from research based on the operation of International Space Station (ISS). We will review a selection of these experiments and results, as well as outline some of ongoing and upcoming research. The ISS represents the only microgravity opportunity to perform on-orbit long-duration studies of human health and performance and technologies relevant for future long-duration missions planned during the next 25 years. Even as NASA focuses on developing the Orion spacecraft and return to the moon (2015-2020), research on and operation of the ISS is fundamental to the success of NASA s Exploration Vision.