Engineering topics

Henderson, Robin N.

Publications and source records attributed to Henderson, Robin N..

7 records

NASA NTRS2002

NASA's Commercial Space Centers: Bringing Together Government and Industry for "Out of this World" Benefits

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is making significant effort to accommodate commercial research in the utilization plans of the International Space Station (ISS)[1]. NASA is providing 30% of the research accommodations in the ISS laboratory modules to support commercial endeavors. However, the availability of resources alone does not necessarily translate into significant private sector participation in NASA's ISS utilization plans. Due to the efforts of NASA's Commercial Space Centers (CSC's), NASA has developed a very robust plan for involving the private sector in ISS utilization activities. Obtaining participation from the private sector requires a demonstrated capability for obtaining commercially significant research results. Since 1985, NASA CSC's have conducted over 200 commercial research activities aboard parabolic aircraft, sounding rockets, the Space Shuttle, and the ISS. The success of these activities has developed substantial investment from private sector companies in commercial space research.

Robinson, R. Keith↗

NASA NTRS2002

First Commerical Operations on the International Space Station

As part of NASA's mission of furthering the commercial development of space, the Space Product Development Office has sponsored the flight of seven commercial payloads to the International Space Station (ISS) during calendar year 2001. Most of these payloads, which are among the first users of this new laboratory, build upon successful commercial investigations that previously were restricted to the limited flight duration of the Space Shuttle. These commercial operations range from multi-media, in the form of Dreamtime, to biotechnology such as in Advanced Astroculture, to advanced materials such as Zeolite Crystal Growth. Industry investment in the commercial program has continued to remain high, while awaiting long term access to space, which the ISS provides. While the majority of early commercial use of the ISS is in the area of biotechnology, there is a significant shift towards commercial materials research over the next two years. In order to take fall advantage of the ISS, much of the commercial hardware is designed to be left on Station, while the Shuttle brings samples up and down. This not only makes good use of this valuable space resource, it has the added benefit of having commercial hardware available on the ISS for scientific users. In order to provide benefit to the entire NASA microgravity program, the scientific community on a space available basis can use a variety of commercial apparatus at very low cost. In addition to the solution crystal growth capability of Creosote Crystal Growth, in 2002 containerless processing will be available in the form of Space-DRUMS, and in 2003, thermophysical properties research can be performed in the Vulcan furnace. The first commercial operations on the ISS provides not only a much needed capability to the commercial development of space program, it also has the potential to augment the science program as well.

Nall, Mark E.↗

NASA NTRS2002

Benefits Awareness: Educating Industry, Finance, and the Public About Space Commercialization

For space to be truly commercialized, businesses of all sizes and types must be involved, from foundries to agricultural research initiatives. Achieving this goal, however, requires three separate but integrated educational efforts to support it. The first is to educate industry leaders about the possibilities available through such research, while dispelling some of the myths and misinformation educate the financial community about the economic benefits that result both from the research and the leveraging of private research dollars through the use of space and microgravity research. The third is to educate the public about the tangible benefits that come directly to them from such efforts, the economic benefits to national economies from same, and the other less tangible benefits that will cascade from commercial operations. Together, these steps will educate and provide the framework necessary to help advance space commercialization.

Powers, Blake↗

NASA NTRS2002

Commercial Research and Development: Power to Explore, Opportunities from Discovery

The technical and economic goals of commercial use of space are laudable, and are addressed as a high priority by almost every national space program and most major aerospace companies the world over. Yet, the focus of most organizational agendas and discussions tends to focus on one or two very narrow enabling aspects of this potentially large technological and economic opportunity. While government sponsored commercial launch activities and private space platforms are an integral part of efforts to leverage the commercial use of space, these activities are possibly one of the smallest parts of creating, a viable and sustainable market for the commercial use of space. Most of the current programs usually do not appropriately address some of the critical issues of the current, already interested, potential space user communities. Current programs place the focus of the majority of the user requirements on the vehicle payload weight and mass performance considerations as the primary payload economical factor in providing a commercial market with a stimulating price for gaining access to the space environment. The larger user challenges of transformation from Earth-based research and development approaches to space environment approaches are not addressed early enough in programs to impact the new business considerations of potential users. Currently, space-based research and development user activities require a large user investment in time, in development of new areas of support expertise, in development of new systems, in risk of schedule to completion, and in long term capital positioning. The larger opportunities for stimulating a strong market driven interest in commercial use of space that could result from the development of vehicle payload "leap ahead technologies" for users are being missed, and there is a real risk of limiting the potentially broader market base to support a more technologically advanced and economically lucrative outcome. A major driving force for strengthening the commercial space activities is not only the technological advances in launch vehicle, or newer satellites, but the myriad of enabling payloads technologies that could, as a goal, result in an almost transparent facilitation to regular CD a, -n access to space and microgravity environments by the future users from the existing Earth-based research and development organizations market segments. Rather than focusing only on developing high lift performance launch vehicles and then developing payloads to fit them, the real focus from a business model perspective should to be on the customer payloads requirements, and on designing launch vehicles and platforms systems for a space transportation and facility infrastructure to support all aspects of the business model for the user market. To harness the full potential of space commercialization, new efforts need to be made to comprehensively examine all the critical business model areas for commercial research, development, and manufacturing in space so as to identify specific products and efforts; to determine how such operations must be both similar to and different from current Earth-based activities; to evaluate the enabling technological devices, processes and efforts so that like efforts can be addressed in a synergistic fashion for maximum user cost effectiveness; to delineate the services that are both needed and can be provided by such activities; and to use this information to drive design and development of space commercialization efforts and policy.

Casas, Joseph C.↗

NASA NTRS2002

Space Product Development: NASA Partnering With Industry For Out of This World Results

True space commercialization can only be achieved through having the broadest possible industrial participation. Commercial paradigms focused simply on commercial launch operations are not viable since there are limited payload launch opportunities in terms of satellites and similar vehicles, and there are not yet sufficient markets to support large-scale operations and innovation. What is required to expand commercial operations to the point of viability is a broad base of industry that understands the opportunities of commercial space and microgravity operations, and is eager to take advantage of it. Interesting non-aerospace companies in commercial space and microgravity research or operations is a major challenge, since these companies must be educated about the opportunities, introduced into the process in an effective and comfortable manner, and encouraged to continue and expand their work in this area. The NASA Space Product Development Program does this through fifteen Commercial Space Centers located across the United States, each focusing on a different area of interest to industry rather than of interest to NASA. These Centers serve as a consortium of industry, academia, and government, bringing the synergistic effects of membership to the benefit of all. This paper will discuss the guiding philosophies of this program, its organization, the successes obtained by industry in a variety of fields, and the success NASA is experiencing in building the broad base of industry needed to achieve true space commercialization.

Nall, Mark E.↗

NASA NTRS2001

Flight Manifesting Process for NASA Microgravity Payloads

The objective of NASA's Microgravity Research Program is to utilize the low gravity environment of space to explore the nature of physical phenomena that contributes to progress in science and technology on Earth. Under the oversight of NASA Headquarters, the Microgravity Research Program Office (MRPO) at the Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) assumes all program management responsibilities associated with Microgravity Research and Space Product Development. One program management responsibility that plays a vital role to the success of the MRPO is the flight manifesting process for MRPO-sponsored payloads. In this paper, the authors will examine the various processes utilized by MRPO personnel in acquiring flight opportunities for MRPO-sponsored payloads.

Matisak, Brian↗

NASA NTRS2000

NASA's Microgravity Research Program

The Fiscal Year 1999 Annual Report describes key elements of the NASA Microgravity Research Program. The Program's goals, approach taken to achieve those goals, and program resources are summarized. A review of the Program's status at the end of FY1999 and highlights of the ground-and-flight research are provided.

Woodard, Dan R.↗