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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 199 records · Page 11
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS2014

Fatigue‐Related Countermeasures for Long‐Duration Exploration Missions

The NASA Human Research Program's (HRP) Behavioral Health and Performance Element (BHP) supports and conducts research to mitigate deleterious outcomes related to fatigue, sleep loss, circadian desynchronization, and work overload. Objective evidence indicates that within the context of the International Space Station (ISS), sleep is reduced and there is circadian misalignment. Despite chronic sleep loss and high workloads; however, astronauts successfully complete their missions. Contributing to their success is not only the tremendous skills and capabilities of each astronaut, but also the collaborative team efforts amongst the crew, between flight and ground crews, and through real‐time care provided by medical personnel. It is anticipated that risks to human health and performance will increase in the context of exploration missions, where crewmembers will venture to deep space for extended durations and in small vehicles with limited communication with home. Hence, fatigue‐related countermeasures are being developed and/or validated that include unobtrusive monitoring technologies to detect fatigue‐related performance decrements, environmental countermeasures, and sleep education and training for flight and ground crews. Given that fatigue is an issue in current ISS missions, the BHP works collaboratively with Space Medicine operations to collect data in the operational environment, to validate fatigue-related countermeasures, and provide evidence‐based mitigations. Our presentation will summarize fatigue‐related operational research that is underway through NASA's BHP in partnership with its operational counterparts. Efforts include studies evaluating the effects of hypnotics, lighting protocols as countermeasures for circadian entrainment, and investigations involving education and training. This presentation will further identify, based on flight and terrestrial evidence, additional sleep and circadian countermeasures that may still be needed to support exploration missions. Lessons learned from transitioning research deliverables into ISS operations will also be discussed.

Whitmire, A.↗
DOE OSTI2025

Modernizing to an AI-Ready Control System

The Accelerator Controls Operations Research Network (ACORN) project will modernize the accelerator control system and upgrade power supplies to enable future operations of the Fermilab Accelerator Complex with megawatt proton beams. By focusing on MLOps, ACORN enables full integration of AI into the control system to allow safe and reliable improvements to accelerator beam operations.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗
NASA NTRS2019

Small Satellites for NASA Earth Science

NASA’s Earth Science Division (ESD) seeks to develop a scientific understanding of Earth and its response to natural and human-induced changes. Earth is a system comprised of diverse components interacting in complex ways. Understanding Earth’s atmosphere, surface and interior, oceans and surface water, ice and snow, and life as a single connected system is necessary in order to improve our predictions of climate, weather, and natural hazards. The ESD’s Flight Program consists of a coordinated series of satellite and airborne systems providing long and short-term, global and regional observations. In addition, the Flight Program provides infrastructure for operating these missions, processing their scientific data, and distributing them on a free and open basis to researchers, operational users, and the public. The Flight Program currently has 24 operating Earth observing space missions and instruments. There are 18 more missions and instruments planned for launch over the next five years. These comprise missions recommended by the National Academies 2017 Earth Science Decadal Survey, missions and selected instruments to ensure availability of key climate data sets, operational missions to sustain the land imaging provided by the Landsat system, and small-sized competitively selected orbital and instrument missions of opportunity belonging to the Earth Venture (EV) program. The Earth Science Decadal Survey, released in early 2018, recommended four new Flight Program elements in addition to the above activities that comprise the Program of Record (POR). Small satellites (~500 kg or less) are essential components of these activities. Presently, there is an increasing use of micro and nanosatellites (or CubeSats) in constellations to support NASA ESD’s scientific objectives. These include the Cyclone Global Navigation Satellite System (CYGNSS) for observing tropical cyclone intensification and genesis factors, the Timed-Resolved Observations of Precipitation structure and storm Intensity with a Constellation of Smallsats (TROPICS) mission, and the Polar Radiant Energy in the Far InfraRed Experiment (PREFIRE) CubeSat mission. ESD small satellite initiatives like the Small Satellite Constellation Data Buy and Venture Class Launch Services (VCLS) are also underway. The Earth Science Technology Office’s (ESTO) In-Space Validation of Earth Science Technologies (InVEST) and the Venture Technology program elements have launched seven 3U and 6U CubeSat missions to validate advanced instruments and related technologies. An equivalent number of InVEST and other technology demonstration CubeSats are being prepared for launch in the next year. An overview of plans and current status including topics related to small satellite enabling activities will be presented.

Neeck, Steven P.↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

TPSAS-NF1676L-18493-DND

The Air Traffic Operations Lab is a multi-fidelity, part-task, aircraft and air traffic operations simulation facility. Used to explore interactions between new airborne and ground-based tools in a NextGeneration ATC environment, including: - Concept-level flight operations research, looking at human decision making, situation awareness, transfer of authority/responsibility, etc. - Performance impact assessments of new operational concepts on the National Airspace System (NAS) - Rapid prototyping of new flight deck tools and automation - Concept-level safety assessments - Identification and evaluation of future communication, navigation, and surveillance (CNS) infrastructure requirements - Controller-pilot data link - Precision trajectory-based ops - Air-to-air data exchange

Michael T Palmer↗
NASA NTRS1999

Engineered Solutions to Reduce Occupational Noise Exposure at the NASA Glenn Research Center: A Five-Year Progress Summary (1994-1999)

At the NASA John H. Glenn Research Center at Lewis Field (formerly the Lewis Research Center), experimental research in aircraft and space propulsion systems is conducted in more than 100 test cells and laboratories. These facilities are supported by a central process air system that supplies high-volume, high-pressure compressed air and vacuum at various conditions that simulate altitude flight. Nearly 100,000 square feet of metalworking and specialized fabrication shops located on-site produce prototypes, models, and test hardware in support of experimental research operations. These activities, comprising numerous individual noise sources and operational scenarios, result in a varied and complex noise exposure environment, which is the responsibility of the Glenn Research Center Noise Exposure Management Program. Hearing conservation, community noise complaint response and noise control engineering services are included under the umbrella of this Program, which encompasses the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) standard on occupational noise exposure, Sec. 29CFR 1910.95, as well as the more stringent NASA Health Standard on Hearing Conservation. Prior to 1994, in the absence of feasible engineering controls, strong emphasis had been placed on personal hearing protection as the primary mechanism for assuring compliance with Sec. 29CFR 1910.95 as well as NASA's more conservative policy, which prohibits unprotected exposure to noise levels above 85 dB(A). Center policy and prudent engineering practice required, however, that these efforts be extended to engineered noise controls in order to bring existing work areas into compliance with Sec. 29CFR 1910.95 and NASA's own policies and to ensure compliance for new installations. Coincident with the establishment in 1995 of a NASA wide multi-year commitment of funding for environmental abatement projects, the Noise Exposure Management Program was established, with its focus on engineering approaches to reducing occupational and community noise exposure. The organization and mission of this Program were documented shortly after its inception, and individual programmatic components have been the subject of subsequent papers. This paper summarizes the status and accomplishments of the engineering aspects of the Program from a five-year retrospective viewpoint and includes a review of retrofit noise control solution strategies, which have not been previously documented.

Cooper, Beth A.↗
NASA NTRS2015

Risk of Impaired Control of Spacecraft/Associated Systems and Decreased Mobility Due to Vestibular/Sensorimotor Alterations Associated with Space flight

Control of vehicles and other complex systems is a high-level integrative function of the central nervous system (CNS). It requires well-functioning subsystem performance, including good visual acuity, eye-hand coordination, spatial and geographic orientation perception, and cognitive function. Evidence from space flight research demonstrates that the function of each of these subsystems is altered by removing gravity, a fundamental orientation reference, which is sensed by vestibular, proprioceptive, and haptic receptors and used by the CNS for spatial orientation, posture, navigation, and coordination of movements. The available evidence also shows that the degree of alteration of each subsystem depends on a number of crew- and mission-related factors. There is only limited operational evidence that these alterations cause functional impacts on mission-critical vehicle (or complex system) control capabilities. Furthermore, while much of the operational performance data collected during space flight has not been available for independent analysis, those that have been reviewed are somewhat equivocal owing to uncontrolled (and/or unmeasured) environmental and/or engineering factors. Whether this can be improved by further analysis of previously inaccessible operational data or by development of new operational research protocols remains to be seen. The true operational risks will be estimable only after we have filled the knowledge gaps and when we can accurately assess integrated performance in off-nominal operational settings (Paloski et al. 2008). Thus, our current understanding of the Risk of Impaired Control of Spacecraft/Associated Systems and Decreased Mobility Due to Vestibular/Sensorimotor Alterations Associated with Space flight is limited primarily to extrapolation of scientific research findings, and, since there are limited ground-based analogs of the sensorimotor and vestibular changes associated with space flight, observation of their functional impacts is limited to studies performed in the space flight environment. Fortunately, many sensorimotor and vestibular experiments have been performed during and/or after space flight missions since 1959 (Reschke et al. 2007). While not all of these experiments were directly relevant to the question of vehicle/complex system control, most provide insight into changes in aspects of sensorimotor control that might bear on the physiological subsystems underlying this high-level integrated function.

Bloomberg, Jacob J.↗
NASA NTRS1988

Zero/zero rotorcraft certification issues. Volume 3: Working group results

This report analyzes the Zero/Zero Rotorcraft Certification Issues from the perspectives of manufacturers, operators, researchers and the FAA. The basic premise behind this analysis is that zero/zero, or at least extremely low visibility, rotorcraft operations are feasible today from both a technological and an operational standpoint. The questions and issues that need to be resolved are: What certification requirements do we need to ensure safety. Can we develop procedures which capitalize on the performance and maneuvering capabilities unique to rotorcraft. Will extremely low visibility operations be economically feasible. This is Volume 3 of three. It provides the issue-by-issue deliberations of the experts involved in the Working Groups assigned to deal with them in the Issues Forum.

Adams, Richard J.↗
NASA NTRS2010

Challenges in Transitioning Research Data to Operations: The SPoRT Paradigm

Established in 2002 to demonstrate the weather and forecasting application of real-time EOS measurements, the NASA Short-term Prediction Research and Transition (SPoRT) program has grown to be an end-to-end research to operations activity focused on the use of advanced NASA modeling and data assimilation approaches, nowcasting techniques, and unique high-resolution multispectral data from EOS satellites to improve short-term weather forecasts on a regional and local scale. With the ever-broadening application of real-time high resolution satellite data from current EOS and planned NPP, JPSS, and GOES-R sensors to weather forecast problems, significant challenges arise in the acquisition, delivery, and integration of the new capabilities into the decision making process of the operational weather community. For polar orbiting sensors such as MODIS, AIRS, VIIRS, and CRiS, the use of direct broadcast ground stations is key to the real-time delivery of the data and derived products in a timely fashion. With the ABI on the geostationary GOES-R satellite, the data volume will likely increase by a factor of 5- 10 from current data streams. However, the high data volume and limited bandwidth of end user facilities presents a formidable obstacle to timely access to the data. This challenge can be addressed through the use of subsetting techniques, innovative web services, and the judicious selection of data formats. Many of these approaches have been implemented by SPoRT for the delivery of real-time products to NWS forecast offices and other weather entities. Once available in decision support systems like AWIPS II, these new data and products must be integrated into existing and new displays that allow for the integration of the data with existing operational products in these systems. SPoRT is leading the way in demonstrating this enhanced capability. This paper will highlight the ways SPoRT is overcoming many of the challenges presented by the enormous data volumes of current and future satellite systems to get unique high quality research data into the operational weather environment.

Jedloved, Gary J.↗
DOE OSTI2026

Accelerating Discovery to Deployment: Argonne's Materials Engineering Research Facility (MERF) and Its Role in Scaling Materials Technologies for Water and Resource Solutions

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) national laboratories represent a unique class of government‐owned, contractor‐operated research institutions dedicated to conducting research and development (R&D) related activities that address national priorities, supporting and advancing the DOE mission. They play a vital role in sustaining U.S. innovation capacity, stewarding the nation's technical base, and nurturing science and technologies. In this perspective, we highlight the processing science and scaleup capabilities of the Materials Engineering Research Facility (MERF) at DOE's Argonne National Laboratory to demonstrate how DOE National Laboratories bridge fundamental science and applied technology development to accelerate deployment. Case studies are presented on selective membranes for critical mineral recovery, sensors for per‐ and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) detection, surface functionalization via atomic layer deposition (ALD) and sequential infiltration synthesis (SIS), and lithium recovery from battery recycling waste streams using a novel electrodialysis process. These examples underscore MERF's role in translating innovative technologies into practical solutions for renewable water and critical resource recovery, which also leverage Argonne's analytical and computational capabilities. This perspective also outlines mechanisms for collaborating with the DOE national laboratories to strengthen partnerships across government, the national laboratories, academia, and industry.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2024

Modernizing Fermilab's Accelerator Control Hardware

Modernizing the Fermilab accelerator control system is essential to future operations of the laboratory's accelerator complex. The existing control system has evolved over four decades and uses hardware that is no longer available.The Accelerator Controls Operations Research Network (ACORN) Project will modernize the control system and replace end-of-life power supplies to enable future accelerator complex operations with megawatt particle beams. The ACORN project is planning to replace Fermilab s obsolete CAMAC crate-and-card controls hardware with modern MicroTCA hardware. There are over 2,000 CAMAC cards and over 250 CAMAC crates serving various functions in Fermilab s control system. We will review the existing CAMAC hardware and provide updates on the status of the ACORN project, which includes the conceptual design of the MicroTCA replacement hardware and software tools for supporting the installation of hundreds of MicroTCA crates.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗
NASA NTRS2015

Kinematic and Microphysical Control of Lightning Flash Rate over Northern Alabama

The Deep Convective Clouds and Chemistry (DC3) experiment seeks to examine the relationship between deep convection and the production of nitrogen oxides (NO (sub x)) via lightning (LNO (sub x)). A critical step in estimating LNO (sub x) production in a cloud-resolving model (CRM) without explicit lightning is to estimate the flash rate from available model parameters that are statistically and physically correlated. As such, the objective of this study is to develop, improve and evaluate lightning flash rate parameterizations in a variety of meteorological environments and storm types using radar and lightning mapping array (LMA) observations taken over Northern Alabama from 2005-2012, including during DC3. UAH's Advanced Radar for Meteorological and Operational Research (ARMOR) and the Weather Surveillance Radar - 1988 Doppler (WSR 88D) located at Hytop (KHTX) comprises the dual-Doppler and polarimetric radar network, which has been in operation since 2004. The northern Alabama LMA (NA LMA) in conjunction with Vaisala's National Lightning Detection Network (NLDN) allow for a detailed depiction of total lightning during this period. This study will integrate ARMOR-KHTX dual Doppler/polarimetric radar and NA LMA lightning observations from past and ongoing studies, including the more recent DC3 results, over northern Alabama to form a large data set of 15-20 case days and over 20 individual storms, including both ordinary multicell and supercell convection. Several flash rate parameterizations will be developed and tested, including those based on 1) graupel/small hail volume; 2) graupel/small hail mass, and 3) convective updraft volume. Sensitivity of the flash rate parameterizations to storm intensity, storm morphology and environmental conditions will be explored.

Carey, Lawrence D.↗
NASA NTRS1992

Optimization techniques applied to passive measures for in-orbit spacecraft survivability

The purpose of this research is to provide Space Station Freedom protective structures design insight through the coupling of design/material requirements, hypervelocity impact phenomenology, meteoroid and space debris environment sensitivities, optimization techniques and operations research strategies, and mission scenarios. The goals of the research are: (1) to develop a Monte Carlo simulation tool which will provide top level insight for Space Station protective structures designers; (2) to develop advanced shielding concepts relevant to Space Station Freedom using unique multiple bumper approaches; and (3) to investigate projectile shape effects on protective structures design.

Mog, Robert A.↗
NASA NTRS2018

Comparing and Integrating Constraint Programming and Temporal Planning for Quantum Circuit Compilation

Recently, the makespan-minimization problem of compiling a general class of quantum algorithms into near-term quantum processors has been introduced to the AI community. The research demonstrated that temporal planning is a strong solution approach for the studied class of quantum circuit compilation (QCC) problems. In this paper, we explore the use of methods from operations research, specifically constraint programming (CP), as an alternative and complementary approach to temporal planning. We also extend previous work by introducing two new problem variations that incorporate important characteristics identified by the quantum computing community. We apply temporal planning and CP to the baseline and extended QCC problems as both stand-alone and hybrid approaches. The hybrid method uses solutions found by temporal planning to warm-start CP, leveraging the ability of temporal planning to find satisficing solutions to problems with a high degree of task optionality, an area that CP typically struggles with. These solutions are then used to seed the CP formulation which significantly benefits from inferred bounds on planning horizon and task counts provided by the warm-start. Our extensive empirical evaluation indicates that while stand-alone CP is not competitive with temporal planning, except for the smallest problems, CP in a hybrid setting is beneficial for all temporal planners in all problem classes.

quantum circuit compilation↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

A PI’s Guide to Analog Research

Congratulation on being awarded a grant to conduct research in a spaceflight analog! NASA funded research in a Human Research Program (HRP) managed analog environment is very different from research in a traditional laboratory. This presentation will provide a guide to help investigators successfully plan studies for integration and implementation in an HRP analog platform. There are many things to consider when planning a study for implementation in an analog facility and campaign or mission. How do you get from grant approval to data analysis? This is where HRP’s Research Operations and Integration (ROI) team comes in. The ROI team works with sponsoring HRP elements and PI teams to capture requirements and help the PI teams through the phases of research complement development, integration and implementation. A complement is comprised of a group of studies requiring a common platform and/or scenario that are able to be integrated on a noninterference basis for implementation. Properly defining and documenting requirements and study needs is crucial in successful integration and implementation. This presentation will outline and provide the information needed for PI teams to understand the integration process and the role of the ROI team in the successful integration and implementation of their study. Topics to be discussed will include but not be limited to science requirement definition and documentation, NASA IRB submissions, subject recruitment, screening and selection, study integration process, efficiency in data collection and data sharing, daily crew schedules, hardware and software shipping, receipt and checkout, biological sample collection, mission support, data management and receipt of data.

B. Caldwell↗
NASA NTRS2008

Launch and Landing Effects Ground Operations (LLEGO) Model

LLEGO is a model for understanding recurring launch and landing operations costs at Kennedy Space Center for human space flight. Launch and landing operations are often referred to as ground processing, or ground operations. Currently, this function is specific to the ground operations for the Space Shuttle Space Transportation System within the Space Shuttle Program. The Constellation system to follow the Space Shuttle consists of the crewed Orion spacecraft atop an Ares I launch vehicle and the uncrewed Ares V cargo launch vehicle. The Constellation flight and ground systems build upon many elements of the existing Shuttle flight and ground hardware, as well as upon existing organizations and processes. In turn, the LLEGO model builds upon past ground operations research, modeling, data, and experience in estimating for future programs. Rather than to simply provide estimates, the LLEGO model s main purpose is to improve expenses by relating complex relationships among functions (ground operations contractor, subcontractors, civil service technical, center management, operations, etc.) to tangible drivers. Drivers include flight system complexity and reliability, as well as operations and supply chain management processes and technology. Together these factors define the operability and potential improvements for any future system, from the most direct to the least direct expenses.

Source record↗
DOE OSTI2025

Bridging the Gap Between Modern UX Design and Particle Accelerator Control Room Interfaces

Accelerator control systems often represent relatively complex and safety-sensitive human-machine interfaces within process control industries. These systems are technically robust and reflect the cumulative integration of solutions built and adapted across decades. One of the regular, unfortunate casualties of provisional accelerator control system updates is their human-system interfaces (HSIs) which often lag behind modern usability and design standards. An additional challenge is that although there is a multitude of established human factors (HF), and user experience (UX) principles for everyday digital applications, there are very few (if any) established principles for complex and safety-critical applications for an accelerator. This paper argues for the importance of established HF and UX principles (herein referred to as human-centered design principles) into the development of accelerator HSIs, emphasizing the need for clarity, consistency, responsiveness, and cognitive accessibility. Drawing from HF/UX best practices and human-centered design, this paper discusses how these approaches can enhance operator performance, reduce human error, and improve accelerator personnel collaboration. Case studies from Accelerator Control Operations Research Network (ACORN) at Fermilab are explored to demonstrate how interfaces built with human-centered design principles can scale with system complexity while remaining intuitive and efficient for diverse user roles including operators, machine experts, and engineers. By bridging the gap between traditional control system design and modern human-centered design methods, this paper provides a roadmap for evolving accelerator HSIs into more usable, maintainable, and effective tools.

Hill, Rachael [Idaho Natl. Lab.]↗