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Considerations for Medical Transport from the Space Station via an Assured Crew Return Vehicle (ACRV)

In developing a permanently crewed space station, the importance of medical care has been continually reaffirmed; and the health maintenance facility (HMF) is an integral component. It has diagnostic, therapeutic, monitoring, and information management capability. It is designed to allow supportive care for: (1) non-life-threatening illnesses; e.g., headache, lacerations; (2) moderate to severe, possibly life-threatening illnesses; e.g., appendicitis, kidney stones; and (3) severe, incapacitating, life-threatening illnesses; e.g., major trauma, toxic exposure. Since the HMF will not have a general surgical capability, the need for emergency escape and recovery methods has been studied. Medical risk assessments have determined that it is impossible to accurately predict the incidence of crewmember illness/injury. A best estimate is 1:3 per work-year, with 1% of these needing an ACRV. For an eight-person crew, this means that one assured crew return vehicle (ACRV) will be used every 4 to 12 years. The ACRV would serve at least three basic objectives as: (1) a crew return if the space shuttle is unavailable; (2) an escape vehicle from a major time-critical space station emergency; and (3) a full or partial crew return vehicle for a medical emergency. The focus of this paper is the third objective for the ACRV.

Stepaniak, Philip↗

Digital Human Modeling

The development of models to represent human characteristics and behaviors in human factors is broad and general. The term "model" can refer to any metaphor to represent any aspect of the human; it is generally used in research to mean a mathematical tool for the simulation (often in software, which makes the simulation digital) of some aspect of human performance and for the prediction of future outcomes. This section is restricted to the application of human models in physical design, e.g., in human factors engineering. This design effort is typically human interface design, and the digital models used are anthropometric. That is, they are visual models that are the physical shape of humans and that have the capabilities and constraints of humans of a selected population. They are distinct from the avatars used in the entertainment industry (movies, video games, and the like) in precisely that regard: as models, they are created through the application of data on humans, and they are used to predict human response; body stresses workspaces. DHM enable iterative evaluation of a large number of concepts and support rapid analysis, as compared with use of physical mockups. They can be used to evaluate feasibility of escape of a suited astronaut from a damaged vehicle, before launch or after an abort (England, et al., 2012). Throughout most of human spaceflight, little attention has been paid to worksite design for ground workers. As a result of repeated damage to the Space Shuttle which adversely affected flight safety, DHM analyses of ground assembly and maintenance have been developed over the last five years for the design of new flight systems (Stambolian, 2012, Dischinger and Dunn Jackson, 2014). The intent of these analyses is to assure the design supports the work of the ground crew personnel and thereby protect the launch vehicle. They help the analyst address basic human factors engineering questions: can a worker reach the task site from the work platform provided; can she or he see the task site; can she or he control tools, which, if dropped, might damage the system? Figure 7.3.1 provides an example of such analysis for a future NASA launch vehicle. [figure 7.3.1 here] In-space systems for operation by astronauts have long been targets for DHM analysis, given the focus on mission success and concerns for astronaut safety. Figure 7.3.2 illustrates the analysis of the design to support astronaut tasks for an International Space Station glovebox. [Figure 7.3.2 here] Use by

Dischinger, H. Charles, Jr.↗

Early Assessments of Crew Timelines for the Lunar Surface Habitat

As NASA progresses towards sustained crewed space missions, crew timelines will become increasingly important to achieving mission goals. While it is desirable to spend as much time as possible during crewed space missions on science activities and experiments, there are a large number of activities that crew members must perform each day in order to maintain both crew and vehicle health and safety. The time available for science activities in space is highly dependent on mandatory tasks required for crew and vehicle health and safety. The different crewed activities need to be planned accordingly long before the start of a mission in order to optimize crew time for science. To begin assessing the potential crew time for available for science, an understanding of the requirements to maintain crew and vehicle health and safety is needed. These additional activities may include sleep, exercise, vehicle maintenance, logistics handling, crew personal time, as well as many other tasks. The remaining time outside of these required tasks, within a reasonable crew work schedule, can be dedicated to science operations. This paper will detail a collaborative effort to analyzing crew times for sustained spaceflight missions and how the results of that analysis are applied to the crew timeline for the proposed Lunar Surface Habitat (SH).To determine the crew time for all of these required activities, an analysis was conducted utilizing defined agency requirements and historical crewed mission data. Predicted crew activity times were integrated into a daily schedule in order to optimize the crew’s time during the mission. This methodology was utilized to produce expected crew timelines for NASA’s proposed Artemis Base Camp (ABC) missions. The current plans for the ABC contain two different sustained habitats, the Pressurized Rover (PR) and the Surface Habitat (SH). While the crew are separated between the two habitats, the timelines for each element are dependent on the other element’s operations, so the two element timelines are formed in conjunction with one another. The results described in this paper, however, will focus solely on the crew timeline in the SH. This paper will explain the methodology behind predicting the required crew time spent in the SH for each activity, and the process of incorporating these predicted crew times into a coherent schedule.

Crew Time↗

Improving Efficacy and Safety of Pharmacological Treatment Through Precision Health and Pharmacogenomics

INTRODUCTION: Future spaceflight will require increased crew medical autonomy as exploration class missions expand in duration and distance from Earth, especially for Mars missions. As mission duration increases, it will be essential to have appropriate amounts of effective medication to ensure the maintenance of crew health and performance. Conversely, mass and volume constraints will become more severe as future spaceflight expands beyond low Earth orbit, where resupply is difficult or becomes impossible. These constraints thus convey an urgency to tailor medications for individual crewmembers and further examine appropriate dosing regimens. BACKGROUND: Precision Health is an exciting area of medicine focused on maintaining an individual’s health and performance through in-depth understanding of an individual’s unique clinical and environmental history, genetic makeup, and molecular profiles. This approach can be adapted to better predict, monitor, and address physiological responses to the spaceflight environment. A subset of this field is pharmacogenomics (PGX), the study of how the expressed genome impacts drug responses with the goal of prescribing the right dose of the right drug at the right time. Specifically, PGX testing provides valuable information on an individual’s precise allelic variations to guide physicians in making informed decisions on drug choice and dosing to avoid adverse events and maximize efficacy. The study goal was to identify which current space pharmacy drugs could be evaluated using PGX testing and to understand the potential impact on the health and wellness of the astronaut population. Additionally, we sought to evaluate clinically available FDA-approved PGX testing solutions to better understand its applicability. METHODS: A complete list of drugs on the ISS was analyzed for risk and likelihood of drug failure and PGX actionability. This analysis encompassed both astronauts’ personal medications, including supplements and over the counter drugs (n=151) contained in the ISS medical accessory kit (IMAK), and ISS MedKit formulary medications (n=95). Duplicate medications and different formulations were removed, which resulted in a total of 157 drugs used in the subsequent analysis. A 5x5 risk assessment table was produced by examining the likelihood of drug failure compared to the consequence of drug failure (LxC). Likelihood of individual drug failure was defined by whether existing processes are sufficient to prevent ineffective treatment or impactful side effect events, as ranked from 1 (very low, can easily be prevented) to 5 (very high, cannot be prevented) during a Mars mission. In contrast, the consequence of drug failure was defined by impact to safety, schedule, cost, or technical criteria and ranked from 1 (very low) to 5 (very high). An assessment of PGX reference laboratories is currently underway to evaluate sample requirements, benefit analysis (cost vs. utility of allele variant analysis), relevance to inflight medication usage, quality of reporting in enabling clinical application, and ease of integration into electronic medical records. RESULTS: Risk assessments (LxC 5x5 table) indicated 128 medications were in the green zone where risk is acceptable, with the remaining 29 of the medications in the yellow or red zone driven predominantly due to drug failure or safety concerns. We found that current PGX testing results could impact 21% of the total medications in the ISS MedKit and IMAK; of these, 9 medications currently have direct clinically actionable guidance available. Results of the clinical PGX solution evaluations as related to these medications will be presented. CONCLUSION: PGX testing has demonstrated clear benefits in terrestrial medicine and clinical environments for the selection of proper medications, avoiding adverse drug reactions, and maximizing drug efficacy. We propose that similar benefits would be bestowed on the astronaut and commercial spaceflight passenger population by performing preemptive preflight PGX testing to reduce risk of mission failure due to ineffective or toxic medications, improve drug efficacy, and further open the door to countermeasure research. For example, PGX results could allow tailoring of specific medications at optimal doses more precisely to each individual astronaut, particularly in areas of space motion sickness, sleep aids, and analgesics. An additional benefit is that PGX results could provide information for better planning of the components of a space pharmacy for deep space missions to be more effective and efficient in the utilization of limited pharmaceutical resources. Finally, while PGX testing of the astronaut corps is not currently conducted, this approach could provide immediate impact in support of mission success by reducing risks, optimizing astronaut performance, and providing valuable insights into long-term astronaut health. Such advancements in clinical decision making are important next steps in building dynamic individual risk profiles for astronauts, increasing selection of the best treatment choice, and providing tailored countermeasures for individual crewmembers.

Pharmacogenomics↗

The polar ionosphere as a source of energetic magnetospheric plasma

Data are presented on an additional ionospheric source composed of ions flowing upward out of the high latitude polar cap with energies in the range of approximately 10 eV to more than about 100 eV. The data are from the energetic ion composition spectrometer (EICS) on board the Dynamics Explorer-1 satellite, launched in August 1981. It is noted that the results presented are not inconsistent with the existence of a polar wind of the type predicted by Axford (1968) since ions with energies less than about 1 eV would have been excluded from the instrument by the generally positive vehicle potential. The results suggest that the polar wind is either modified in mass composition and energy by some as yet unidentified process or is supplemented by a new unrelated source of plasma. What is more, owing to the higher energies, the energetic polar cap ions described here enter the plasma sheet at greater distances than Cowley (1980) estimated and probably represent a significant source of plasma for the maintenance of the plasma sheet.

Shelley, E. G.↗

Large-scale Advanced Prop-fan (LAP) hub/blade retention design report

The Large-scale Advanced Prop-fan (LAP) hub assembly forms a semi-rigid link between the blades, which provide the thrust, and the engine shaft, which provides the torque. The hub and tailshaft is a one piece partially forged part which is carburized, heat treated and machined. A single row ball bearing restrains each of the eight blades in the hub, while the tailshaft secures the propeller to the engine shaft with two cone seats that are preloaded against each other by the Prop-fan retaining nut. The hub also forms the support for the pitch change actuator system, the control and the spinner. The retention transmits the loads from the blades to the hub while allowing the changes in blade pitch. The single row ball bearing retention provides ease of maintenance by allowing individual blade replacement without dissassembly of the hub. It has a through hardened inner race which seats against the aluminum blade shank and an outer race which is integral with the barrel. The outer race area is carburized to achieve the hardness necessary to support the ball loads. The balls are kept from contact with each other by a separator. The rotational speed of the propeller keeps the retention submerged in the oil which is contained in the hub by a seal. Stress and strain analysis, material hardness requirements, weight predictions, and stiffness characteristics are discussed.

Soule, Matthew↗

An analysis of the loads applied to a heavy Space Station rack during translation and rotation tasks

To prepare for Space Station Alpha's on-orbit assembly, maintenance, and resupply, NASA requires information about the crew members' ability to move heavy masses on orbit. Ease of movement in microgravity and orbiter stay time constraints may change the Space Station equipment and outfitting design requirements. Therefore, the time and effort required to perform a particular task and how and where the forces and torque should be applied become critical in evaluating the design effort. Thus, the three main objectives of this investigation were to: (1) quantify variables such as force and torque as they relate to heavy mass handling techniques; (2) predict the time required to perform heavy mass handling tasks; and (3) note any differences between males and females in their ability to manipulate a heavy mass.

Stoycos, Lara E.↗

Levitation Performance of Two Opposed Permanent Magnet Pole-Pair Separated Conical Bearingless Motors

In standard motor applications, rotor suspension with traditional mechanical bearings represents the most economical solution. However, in certain high performance applications, rotor suspension without contacting bearings is either required or highly beneficial. Examples include applications requiring very high speed or extreme environment operation, or with limited access for maintenance. This paper expands upon a novel bearingless motor concept, in which two motors with opposing conical air-gaps are used to achieve full five-axis levitation and rotation of the rotor. Force in this motor is created by deliberately leaving the motor s pole-pairs unconnected, which allows the creation of different d-axis flux in each pole pair. This flux imbalance is used to create lateral force. This approach is different than previous bearingless motor designs, which require separate windings for levitation and rotation. This paper examines the predicted and achieved suspension performance of a fully levitated prototype bearingless system.

Kascak, Peter↗

Nuclear Thermal Propulsion Ground Test History

Nuclear Thermal Propulsion (NTP) was started in ~1955 under the Atomic Energy Commission as project Rover and was assigned to Los Alamos National Laboratory. The Nevada Test Site was selected in 1956 and facility construction began in 1957. The KIWI-A was tested on July 1, 1959 for 5 minutes at 70MW. KIWI-A1 was tested on July 8, 1960 for 6 minutes at 85MW. KIWI-A3 was tested on October 10, 1960 for 5 minutes at 100MW. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) was formed in 1958. On August 31, 1960 the AEC and NASA established the Space Nuclear Propulsion Office and named Harold Finger as Director. Immediately following the formation of SNPO, contracts were awarded for the Reactor In Flight Test (RIFT), master plan for the Nuclear Rocket Engine Development Station (NRDS), and the Nuclear Engine for Rocket Vehicle Application (NERVA). From December 7, 1961 to November 30, 1962, the KIWI-B1A, KIWI-B1B, and KIWI-B4A were tested at test cell A. The last two engines were only tested for several seconds before noticeable failure of the fuel elements. Harold Finger called a stop to any further hot fire testing until the problem was well understood. The KIWI-B4A cold flow test showed the problem to be related to fluid dynamics of hydrogen interstitial flow causing fuel element vibrations. President Kennedy visited the NTS one week after the KIWI-B4A failure and got to see the engine starting to be disassembled in the maintenance facility. The KIWI-B4D and KIWI-B4E were modified to not have the vibration problems and were tested in test cell C. The NERVA NRX program started testing in early 1964 with NRX-A1 cold flow test series (unfueled graphite core), NRX-A2 and NRX-A3 power test series up to 1122 MW for 13 minutes. In March 1966, the NRX-EST (Engine System Test) was the first breadboard using flight functional relationship and total operating time of 116 minutes. The NRX-EST demonstrated the feasibility of a hot bleed cycle. The NRX-A5 had multiple start-ups in May-June 1966 with 30.75 minutes accumulative operating time at or above 1GW. The NRX-A6 was tested in December 1969 and ran for 62 minutes at 1100 MW. Each engine had post-test examination and found various structure anomalies which were identified for correction and the fuel element corrosion rate was reduced. The Phoebus series of research reactors began testing at test cell C, in June 1965 with Phoebus 1A. Phoebus 1A operated for 10.5 minutes at 1100 MW before unexpected loss of propellant and leading to an engine breakdown. Phoebus 1B ran for 30 minutes in February of 1967. Phoebus 2A was the highest steady state reactor built at 5GW. Phoebus 2A ran for 12 minutes at 4100 MW demonstrating sufficient power is available. The Peewee test bed reactor was tested November- December 1968 in test cell C for 40 minutes at 500MW with overall performance close to pre-run predictions. The XE' engine was the only engine tested with close to a flight configuration and fired downward into a diffuser at the Engine Test Stand (ETS) in 1969. The XE' was 1100 MW and had ~28 start-ups. The nuclear furnace NF-1 was operated at 44 MW with multiple test runs at 90 minutes in the summer of 1972. The NF-1 was the last NTP reactor tested. The Rover/NERVA program was cancelled in 1973. However, before cancellation, a lot of other engineering work was conducted by Aerojet on a 75, 000 lbf prototype flight engine and by Los Alamos on a ~16,000 lbf "Small Engine" nuclear rocket design. The ground test history of NTP at the NRDS also offers many lessons learned on how best to setup, operate, emergency shutdown, and post-test examine NTP engines. The reactor and engine maintenance and disassembly facilities were used for assembly and inspection of radioactive engines after testing. Most reactor/ engines were run at test cell A or test cell C with open air exhaust. The Rover/NERVA program became aware of a new environmental regulation that would restrict the amount of radioactive particulates allowed to be release in open air and successfully demonstrated a scrubber concept with the NF-1. The ETS stand was the only one with a high altitude test chamber used for XE'. The ETS and other test cells showed the effects the engine's radiation had on the facility materials and instrumentation as well as side effects the ground test facility has back on the engine operation. The breakdown of Phoebus 1A at test cell C showed how the site was cleaned up and back to operation for five more engines before the program was cancelled.

Gerrish, Harold P.↗

Load deflection characteristics of inflated structures

A single, closed form relationship to relate load to the deformed dimensions of the horizontal torus was developed. Wall elasticity was included in the analysis, and special care was taken to predict the final footprint area of the loaded structure. The test fixture utilized is shown. The tori used for the bulk of the testing were rubber inner tubes for a 32 and 160 pneumatic tire. The inner tube being tested was plumbed, to a mercury-filled manometer, which had a 50 inch measurement capacity, by use of a special adapter. The adapter fit over the valve stem and allowed air to be added from a shop-air source and to be bled through the standard valve mechanism. In this fashion, tests requiring the maintenance of a constant indication of air pressure could be run with little difficulty.

Baumgarten, J. R.↗

Conversion-Integration of MSFC Nonlinear Signal Diagnostic Analysis Algorithms for Realtime Execution of MSFC's MPP Prototype System

NASA's advanced propulsion system Small Scale Magnetic Disturbances/Advanced Technology Development (SSME/ATD) has been undergoing extensive flight certification and developmental testing, which involves large numbers of health monitoring measurements. To enhance engine safety and reliability, detailed analysis and evaluation of the measurement signals are mandatory to assess its dynamic characteristics and operational condition. Efficient and reliable signal detection techniques will reduce the risk of catastrophic system failures and expedite the evaluation of both flight and ground test data, and thereby reduce launch turn-around time. During the development of SSME, ASRI participated in the research and development of several advanced non- linear signal diagnostic methods for health monitoring and failure prediction in turbomachinery components. However, due to the intensive computational requirement associated with such advanced analysis tasks, current SSME dynamic data analysis and diagnostic evaluation is performed off-line following flight or ground test with a typical diagnostic turnaround time of one to two days. The objective of MSFC's MPP Prototype System is to eliminate such 'diagnostic lag time' by achieving signal processing and analysis in real-time. Such an on-line diagnostic system can provide sufficient lead time to initiate corrective action and also to enable efficient scheduling of inspection, maintenance and repair activities. The major objective of this project was to convert and implement a number of advanced nonlinear diagnostic DSP algorithms in a format consistent with that required for integration into the Vanderbilt Multigraph Architecture (MGA) Model Based Programming environment. This effort will allow the real-time execution of these algorithms using the MSFC MPP Prototype System. ASRI has completed the software conversion and integration of a sequence of nonlinear signal analysis techniques specified in the SOW for real-time execution on MSFC's MPP Prototype. This report documents and summarizes the results of the contract tasks; provides the complete computer source code; including all FORTRAN/C Utilities; and all other utilities/supporting software libraries that are required for operation.

Jong, Jen-Yi↗

Development of flat-plate solar collectors for the heating and cooling of buildings

The relevant design parameters in the fabrication of a solar collector for heating liquids were examined. The objective was to design, fabricate, and test a low-cost, flat-plate solar collector with high collection efficiency, high durability, and requiring little maintenance. Computer-aided math models of the heat transfer processes in the collector assisted in the design. The preferred physical design parameters were determined from a heat transfer standpoint and the absorber panel configuration, the surface treatment of the absorber panel, the type and thickness of insulation, and the number, spacing and material of the covers were defined. Variations of this configuration were identified, prototypes built, and performance tests performed using a solar simulator. Simulated operation of the baseline collector configuration was combined with insolation data for a number of locations and compared with a predicted load to determine the degree of solar utilization.

Ramsey, J. W.↗

Evaluation of NASA's end-to-end data systems using DSDS+

The Data Systems Dynamic Simulator (DSDS+) is a software tool being developed by the authors to evaluate candidate architectures for NASA's end-to-end data systems. Via modeling and simulation, we are able to quickly predict the performance characteristics of each architecture, to evaluate 'what-if' scenarios, and to perform sensitivity analyses. As such, we are using modeling and simulation to help NASA select the optimal system configuration, and to quantify the performance characteristics of this system prior to its delivery. This paper is divided into the following six sections: (1) The role of modeling and simulation in the systems engineering process. In this section, we briefly describe the different types of results obtained by modeling each phase of the systems engineering life cycle, from concept definition through operations and maintenance; (2) Recent applications of DSDS+. In this section, we describe ongoing applications of DSDS+ in support of the Earth Observing System (EOS), and we present some of the simulation results generated of candidate system designs. So far, we have modeled individual EOS subsystems (e.g. the Solid State Recorders used onboard the spacecraft), and we have also developed an integrated model of the EOS end-to-end data processing and data communications systems (from the payloads onboard to the principle investigator facilities on the ground); (3) Overview of DSDS+. In this section we define what a discrete-event model is, and how it works. The discussion is presented relative to the DSDS+ simulation tool that we have developed, including it's run-time optimization algorithms that enables DSDS+ to execute substantially faster than comparable discrete-event simulation tools; (4) Summary. In this section, we summarize our findings and 'lessons learned' during the development and application of DSDS+ to model NASA's data systems; (5) Further Information; and (6) Acknowledgements.

Rouff, Christopher↗

Improving Efficacy and Safety of Pharmacological Treatment Through Precision Medicine and Pharmacogenomics for Human Deep Space Exploration

INTRODUCTION: Future spaceflight will require increased crew medical autonomy as exploration class missions expanding duration and distance from Earth, especially for Mars missions. As mission duration increases, it will be even more essential to have appropriate amounts of effective medication to ensure the maintenance of crew health and performance. Conversely, mass and volume constraints will become more severe as future spaceflight expands beyond low Earth orbit, where resupply is difficult or becomes impossible. These constraints thus convey an urgency to further tailor medications included in the spacecraft formulary and increased examination of appropriate dosing regimens. BACKGROUND: Precision Health is an exciting area of cutting-edge research and medicine focused on maintaining an individual’s health and performance through in-depth understanding of an individual’s unique factors and molecular profiles. This approach can be adapted to better predict, monitor, and address physiological responses to the spaceflight environment. One example is the field of pharmacogenomics (PGX),the study of how the expressed genome impacts drug responses with the goal of prescribing the right dose of the right drug at the right time. Specifically, PGX testing provides valuable information on an individual’s precise allelic variations to guide physicians in making informed decisions on pharmaceutical choice and dosing to avoid adverse drug events and maximize pharmacological efficacy. The goal of this study was to evaluate which drugs in the current space pharmacy could be evaluated using PGX testing and to understand the potential impact on the health and wellness of the astronaut population. Additionally, we sought to evaluate clinically available FDA-approved PGX testing solutions to better understand its applicability. METHODS: A complete list of drugs onboard the International Space Station (ISS) was analyzed for risk and likelihood of drug failure and PGX actionability. This analysis encompassed both personal astronaut medications, including supplements and over the counter drugs (n=151) and ISS MedKit formulary medications (n=95). Duplicate medications and different formulations were removed, which resulted in 157 total drugs used in the subsequent analysis. A 5x5 risk assessment table was produced by examining the likelihood of drug failure compared to the consequence of drug failure. Likelihood of individual drug failure was defined by whether existing processes are sufficient to prevent adverse events, as ranked from 1 (very low, can easily be prevented) to 5 (very high, cannot be prevented) during a Mars mission. In contrast, the consequence of drug failure was defined by impact to safety, schedule, cost or technical and ranked from 1 (very low) to 5 (very high).A comprehensive assessment of commercially available PGX solutions is currently underway to evaluate specimen requirements, cost/benefit analysis (cost vs. number of alleles assessed), utility of variant analysis, relevance to inflight medication usage, quality of reporting in enabling clinical application, and ease of integration into electronic medical records. RESULTS: Risk assessments(LxC 5x5 table) indicated29medicationswere in the yellow or red zone driven predominantly by drug failure or safety concerns, with the remainder(n=128)of the medications in the green zone where risk is acceptable. We found that current PGX testing results could impact 21% of the total medications in the ISS MedKit and IMAK; of these, 9 medications currently have direct clinically actionable guidance available. Results of the clinical PGX solution evaluations as related to these medications will be presented. CONCLUSION: PGX testing has demonstrated clear benefits in terrestrial medicine and clinical environments for the selection of proper medications, avoiding adverse drug reactions, and maximizing drug efficacy. We propose that similar benefits would be bestowed on the astronaut and commercial spaceflight passenger population by performing preemptive pre-flight PGX testing to reduce risk of mission failure due to ineffective or toxic medications, improve targeting drug efficacy and safety, and further open the door to countermeasure research exploring PGX-related allelic variants. For example, PGX results could allow tailoring of specific medications at optimal doses more precisely to each individual astronaut, particularly in areas of space motion sickness, sleep aids, and analgesics. An additional benefit is that PGX results could provide information for better planning of the components of a space pharmacy for deep space missions to be more cost effective and more efficient in the utilization of limited pharmaceutical resources. Finally, while PGX testing of the astronaut corps is not currently conducted, this approach could provide immediate impact in support of mission success by reducing risks, optimizing astronaut performance, and providing valuable insights into long-term astronaut health. Such advancements in clinical decision making are important next steps in building dynamic individual risk profiles for astronauts, increasing crew autonomy and providing tailored countermeasures

Alice R W Tang↗

Development of a Space Radiation Monte-Carlo Computer Simulation Based on the FLUKE and Root Codes

The radiation environment in space is a complex problem to model. Trying to extrapolate the projections of that environment into all areas of the internal spacecraft geometry is even more daunting. With the support of our CERN colleagues, our research group in Houston is embarking on a project to develop a radiation transport tool that is tailored to the problem of taking the external radiation flux incident on any particular spacecraft and simulating the evolution of that flux through a geometrically accurate model of the spacecraft material. The output will be a prediction of the detailed nature of the resulting internal radiation environment within the spacecraft as well as its secondary albedo. Beyond doing the physics transport of the incident flux, the software tool we are developing will provide a self-contained stand-alone object-oriented analysis and visualization infrastructure. It will also include a graphical user interface and a set of input tools to facilitate the simulation of space missions in terms of nominal radiation models and mission trajectory profiles. The goal of this project is to produce a code that is considerably more accurate and user-friendly than existing Monte-Carlo-based tools for the evaluation of the space radiation environment. Furthermore, the code will be an essential complement to the currently existing analytic codes in the BRYNTRN/HZETRN family for the evaluation of radiation shielding. The code will be directly applicable to the simulation of environments in low earth orbit, on the lunar surface, on planetary surfaces (including the Earth) and in the interplanetary medium such as on a transit to Mars (and even in the interstellar medium). The software will include modules whose underlying physics base can continue to be enhanced and updated for physics content, as future data become available beyond the timeframe of the initial development now foreseen. This future maintenance will be available from the authors of FLUKA as part of their continuing efforts to support the users of the FLUKA code within the particle physics community. In keeping with the spirit of developing an evolving physics code, we are planning as part of this project, to participate in the efforts to validate the core FLUKA physics in ground-based accelerator test runs. The emphasis of these test runs will be the physics of greatest interest in the simulation of the space radiation environment. Such a tool will be of great value to planners, designers and operators of future space missions, as well as for the design of the vehicles and habitats to be used on such missions. It will also be of aid to future experiments of various kinds that may be affected at some level by the ambient radiation environment, or in the analysis of hybrid experiment designs that have been discussed for space-based astronomy and astrophysics. The tool will be of value to the Life Sciences personnel involved in the prediction and measurement of radiation doses experienced by the crewmembers on such missions. In addition, the tool will be of great use to the planners of experiments to measure and evaluate the space radiation environment itself. It can likewise be useful in the analysis of safe havens, hazard migration plans, and NASA's call for new research in composites and to NASA engineers modeling the radiation exposure of electronic circuits. This code will provide an important complimentary check on the predictions of analytic codes such as BRYNTRN/HZETRN that are presently used for many similar applications, and which have shortcomings that are more easily overcome with Monte Carlo type simulations. Finally, it is acknowledged that there are similar efforts based around the use of the GEANT4 Monte-Carlo transport code currently under development at CERN. It is our intention to make our software modular and sufficiently flexible to allow the parallel use of either FLUKA or GEANT4 as the physics transport engine.

Pinsky, L. S.↗

Integrated Systems Health Management (ISHM) Toolkit

A framework of software components has been implemented to facilitate the development of ISHM systems according to a methodology based on Reliability Centered Maintenance (RCM). This framework is collectively referred to as the Toolkit and was developed using General Atomics' Health MAP (TM) technology. The toolkit is intended to provide assistance to software developers of mission-critical system health monitoring applications in the specification, implementation, configuration, and deployment of such applications. In addition to software tools designed to facilitate these objectives, the toolkit also provides direction to software developers in accordance with an ISHM specification and development methodology. The development tools are based on an RCM approach for the development of ISHM systems. This approach focuses on defining, detecting, and predicting the likelihood of system functional failures and their undesirable consequences.

Venkatesh, Meera↗

Highly reusable space transportation: Approaches for reducing ETO launch costs to $100 - $200 per pound of payload

The Commercial Space Transportation Study (CSTS) suggests that considerable market expansion in earth-to-orbit transportation would take place if current launch prices could be reduced to around $400 per pound of payload. If these low prices can be achieved, annual payload delivered to low earth orbit (LEO) is predicted to reach 6.7 million pounds. The primary market growth will occur in communications, government missions, and civil transportation. By establishing a cost target of $100-$200 per pound of payload for a new launch system, the Highly Reusable Space Transportation (HRST) program has clearly set its sights on removing the current restriction on market growth imposed by today's high launch costs. In particular, achieving the goal of $100-$200 per pound of payload will require significant coordinated efforts in (1) marketing strategy development, (2) business planning, (3) system operational strategy, (4) vehicle technical design, and (5) vehicle maintenance strategy.

Olds, John R.↗

Integrated operations/payloads/fleet analysis (executive summary)

The Integrated Operations/Payloads/Fleet Analysis predicts total national space program costs and launch vehicle traffic assuming either an expendable, a partially reusable or a fully reusable launch vehicle fleet. The payload system costs are estimated and reported for each payload program at the subsystem level, payload program level, user level and national level, providing complete system cost traceability. The analysis determines the primary changes to be expected for space payload programs and space operations in the space shuttle era. When the space shuttle becomes fully operational, not only will launch costs be reduced but refurbished satellite units will be flown instead of new units and maintenance will be performed on failing satellites. It is possible to implement the concepts of satellite refurbishment and maintenance because of the space shuttle's capability to retrieve and return payloads to the earth's surface. The two-way satellite transportation capability is extended to high energy orbits by use of the space shuttle/space tug combination.

Source record↗