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NASA NTRS2013

Mission Design for Global Mapping Orbits at Primitive Bodies

Global mapping campaigns are part of most primitive body exploration missions. However, designing a mapping orbit without station keeping maneuvers is challenging due to the highly perturbed environment near small bodies. In this paper, we present a new design methodology to support mapping campaigns using 'quasi-terminator' orbits, a class of quasi-periodic orbits that exist in the vicinity of the well-known terminator orbits. The inherent stability of quasi-terminator trajectories and their wide variety of viewing geometries make them a very compelling option for mapping campaigns. A high-fidelity test case solution is also presented to prove the existence of these mapping orbits in full ephemeris.

quasi-periodic orbits↗

NASA NTRS2010

Lunar Topographic Mapping Using a New High Resolution Mode for the GSSR Radar

Mapping the Moon's topography using Earth based radar interferometric measurements by the Goldstone Solar System Radar (GSSR) has been done several times since the mid 1990s. In 2008 we reported at this conference the generation of lunar topographic maps having approximately 4 m height accuracy at a horizontal posting of 40 m. Since then GSSR radar has been improved to allow 40 MHz bandwidth imaging and consequently obtained images and interferograms with a resolution of about 4 m in range by 5 m in azimuth. The long synthetic aperture times of approximately 90 minutes in duration necessitated a migration from range/Doppler image formation techniques to spotlight mode processing and autofocusing methods. The improved resolution imagery should permit the generation of topographic maps with a factor of two better spatial resolution with about same height accuracy. Coupled the with the recent availability of new lidar topography maps of the lunar surface made by orbiting satellites of Japan and the United States the geodetic control of the radar generated maps products can be improved dramatically. This paper will discuss the hardware and software improvements made to the GSSR and present some of the new high resolution products.

interferometry↗

NASA NTRS2011

Hyperspectral Mapping of the Invasive Species Pepperweed and the Development of a Habitat Suitability Model

Mapping and predicting the spatial distribution of invasive plant species is central to habitat management, however difficult to implement at landscape and regional scales. Remote sensing techniques can reduce the impact field campaigns have on these ecologically sensitive areas and can provide a regional and multi-temporal view of invasive species spread. Invasive perennial pepperweed (Lepidium latifolium) is now widespread in fragmented estuaries of the South San Francisco Bay, and is shown to degrade native vegetation in estuaries and adjacent habitats, thereby reducing forage and shelter for wildlife. The purpose of this study is to map the present distribution of pepperweed in estuarine areas of the South San Francisco Bay Salt Pond Restoration Project (Alviso, CA), and create a habitat suitability model to predict future spread. Pepperweed reflectance data were collected in-situ with a GER 1500 spectroradiometer along with 88 corresponding pepperweed presence and absence points used for building the statistical models. The spectral angle mapper (SAM) classification algorithm was used to distinguish the reflectance spectrum of pepperweed and map its distribution using an image from EO-1 Hyperion. To map pepperweed, we performed a supervised classification on an ASTER image with a resulting classification accuracy of 71.8%. We generated a weighted overlay analysis model within a geographic information system (GIS) framework to predict areas in the study site most susceptible to pepperweed colonization. Variables for the model included propensity for disturbance, status of pond restoration, proximity to water channels, and terrain curvature. A Generalized Additive Model (GAM) was also used to generate a probability map and investigate the statistical probability that each variable contributed to predict pepperweed spread. Results from the GAM revealed distance to channels, distance to ponds and curvature were statistically significant (p < 0.01) in determining the locations of suitable pepperweed habitats.

Pepperweed↗

NASA NTRS2018

Temperature Mapping Above and Below Air Film-Cooled Thermal Barrier Coatings Using Phosphor Thermometry

Thermal barrier coatings (TBCs) are typically used in conjunction with air film cooling to maximize overall cooling effectiveness and reliability while minimizing sacrifices in engine performance. The effects of thermal barrier coating (TBC) thermal protection and air film cooling effectiveness have usually been studied separately; however, their contributions to combined cooling effectiveness are interdependent and are not simply additive. The combined cooling effectiveness is always less than the sum of the cooling effectiveness of stand-alone TBC protection and stand-alone air film cooling. These diminishing returns arise because adding the thermally insulating TBC between the cooling air and the surface to be cooled reduces the air film cooling effectiveness and because the air film cooling reduces the heat flux through the TBC and therefore reduces the temperature difference sustained across the TBC thickness. Due to these considerations, combined cooling effectiveness must be measured to achieve an optimum balance between TBC thermal protection and air film cooling. In this investigation, temperature mapping above and below air film-cooled TBCs was performed using luminescence lifetime imaging-based phosphor thermometry. Measurements were performed in the NASA GRC Mach 0.3 burner rig on a TBC-coated plate using a scaled-up cooling hole geometry where both the hot mainstream gas temperature and the blowing ratio were varied. Surface temperature maps were obtained from a Cr-doped GdAlO3 thermographic phosphor deposited on the surface of the electron-beam vapor-deposited yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) TBC. From separate plates, temperature maps from the bottom of the TBC were obtained from a thin Er-doped YSZ layer integrated into the TBC below the overlying undoped YSZ. Procedures for temperature and cooling effectiveness mapping above and below the air film-cooled TBC surface are described. Most importantly, these measurements enable mapping the combined cooling effectiveness below the TBC, which is more important than surface cooling effectiveness when there is a barrier coating between the hot mainstream gas and the surface that needs thermal protection. Advantages of the luminescence lifetime imaging method over infrared thermography, as well as its limitations to steady-state conditions are discussed.

cooling effectiveness.↗

NASA NTRS2017

Telecommunication System Design for Interplanetary CubeSat Missions: LunaH-Map

The Lunar Hydrogen Mapper (Luna H-Map) will be one of 13 CubeSats to launch on the first integrated flight of NASA’s Space Launch System and Orion spacecraft in 2018. The goal of the LunaH-Map mission is to map the hydrogen content of the entire South Pole of the moon, including permanently shadowed regions at high resolution. The spacecraft is a 6 U CubeSat and the main instrument is a neutron spectrometer which will be used to perform the measurements required to accomplish the primary science objective. Once LunaH-Map reaches the Moon, the spacecraft will perform a 60 - day science mission, consisting of 141 science orbits during which the measurements will be taken. In the design of the LunaH-Map spacecraft, one of the main challenges is the elecommunication system as the spacecraft needs the ability to relay data during the long cruise phase and during the science phase. In addition, the telecommunication system needs to support the main navigation functions required to reach the Moon and to insert in the highly elliptical orbit required for the science phase. This paper covers the main aspects of the telecommunication design for the mission including: link and coverage analysis, waveform selection and spectral constraints, hardware selection and ground station coordination.

Babuscia, Alessandra↗

NASA NTRS2020

Atacama Cosmology Telescope: Component-separated maps of CMB temperature and the thermal Sunyaev-Zel'dovich effect

Optimal analyses of many signals in the cosmic microwave background (CMB) require map-level extraction of individual components in the microwave sky, rather than measurements at the power spectrum level alone. To date, nearly all map-level component separation in CMB analyses has been performed exclusively using satellite data. In this paper, we implement a component separation method based on the internal linear combination (ILC) approach which we have designed to optimally account for the anisotropic noise (in the 2D Fourier domain) often found in ground-based CMB experiments. Using this method, we combine multi-frequency data from the Planck satellite and the Atacama Cosmology Telescope Polarimeter (ACTPol) to construct the first wide area (≈2100 sq. deg.), arcminute-resolution component-separated maps of the CMB temperature anisotropy and the thermal Sunyaev-Zel'dovich (tSZ) effect sourced by the inverse-Compton scattering of CMB photons off hot, ionized gas. Our ILC pipeline allows for explicit deprojection of various contaminating signals, including a modified blackbody approximation of the cosmic infrared background (CIB) spectral energy distribution. The cleaned CMB maps will be a useful resource for CMB lensing reconstruction, kinematic SZ cross-correlations, and primordial non-Gaussianity studies. The tSZ maps will be used to study the pressure pro les of galaxies, groups, and clusters through cross-correlations with halo catalogs, with dust contamination controlled via CIB deprojection. The data products described in this paper are available on LAMBDA.

Mathew S. Madhavacheril↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Mapping Inundation from Hurricane Florence (2018) with L-Band Synthetic Aperture Radar, Commercial Imagery, and Ancillary Data via Machine Learning Classification

During and after flooding events, mapping the extent of floodwaters aids in the distribution of resources, recovery efforts, and damage assessment practices. Development of a land cover classification system focused on mapping inundation after major hurricane events using synthetic aperture radar (SAR) data could allow for the production of near-real-time inundation mapping, enabling government and emergency response entities to get a preliminary idea of a developing situation. Complimentary optical and SAR images from domestic and foreign entities are brought together through activations of the International Charter: Space and Major Disasters to support response efforts, from true-color, near-infrared, and thermal remote sensing data obtained by NASA, NOAA, and international satellites to the collection of high-resolution true color aerial photography by NOAA and the National Geodetic Survey. In response to Hurricane Florence of 2018, NASA JPL collected numerous swaths of quad-pol L-band SAR data with the Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle Synthetic Aperture Radar (UAVSAR) instrument observing the record-setting river stages across North and South Carolina. The resulting fully-polarized SAR images allow for mapping of inundation extent at a high spatial resolution with a unique advantage over optical imaging stemming from the sensor’s ability to penetrate cloud cover and dense vegetation. In this study, true-color NOAA aerial and commercial satellite imagery are used in conjunction with four UAVSAR data swaths centered on the Lumberton and Cape Fear River basins in southeastern North Carolina to develop a Random Forest classification model focused on mapping open water and floodwater otherwise obscured by vegetation or lingering cloud cover. Ancillary building footprint, transportation route, and population data will also be incorporated into the classification scheme to estimate the societal impacts of flooding based on the proximity of features to detected inundation. Preliminary results from the Hurricane Florence case study will be discussed in addition to the limitations of available validation data for assessment of the classifier’s accuracy.

Alexander M Melancon↗

NASA NTRS2020

The Atacama Cosmology Telescope: A CMB lensing mass map over 2100 square degrees of sky and its cross-correlation with BOSS-CMASS galaxies

We construct cosmic microwave background lensing mass maps using data from the 2014 and 2015 seasons of observations with the Atacama Cosmology Telescope (ACT). These maps cover 2100 square degrees of sky and overlap with a wide variety of optical surveys. The maps are signal dominated on large scales and have fidelity such that their correlation with the cosmic infrared background is clearly visible by eye. We also create lensing maps with thermal Sunyaev-Zel’dovich contamination removed using a novel cleaning procedure that only slightly degrades the lensing signal-to-noise ratio. The cross-spectrum between the cleaned lensing map and the BOSS CMASS galaxy sample is detected at 10-σ significance, with an amplitude of A = 1.02±0.10 relative to the Planck best-fit LCDM cosmological model with fiducial linear galaxy bias. Our measurement lays the foundation for lensing cross-correlation science with current ACT data and beyond.

gravitational lensing↗

NASA NTRS2021

Noise Exposure Maps of Urban Air Mobility

A noise exposure map is “a scaled geographic depiction of an airport, its noise exposure contours, noise-sensitive facilities, and land uses in the airport surrounding area” developed in accordance with the FAA’s 14 Code of Federal Regulation Part 150. This paper is the first to explore the applicability of airport noise exposure maps to Urban Air Mobility (UAM). The FAA’s airport noise compatibility planning program is first described. Then the applicability of the noise exposure map to Urban Air Mobility (UAM) is explored. Finally, new airspace infrastructure, including vertiport locations and UAM routes from NASA’s UAM engineering simulations, and local noise-sensitive facility locations and land use information were collected and processed to develop the noise exposure maps of UAM near the Dallas-Fort Worth area. The DNL noise contours resulting from a six-passenger electric quadrotor prototype vehicle are predicted using NASA’s AIRNOISEUAM software. The noise exposure maps of UAM are generated automatically using Python’s data analysis and visualization libraries. The results have applications for UAM’s noise compatibility planning, noise-reducing route planning, and vertiport location selection

Urban Air Mobility↗

NASA NTRS2021

Noise Exposure Map of Urban Air Mobility

Urban Air Mobility↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Mapping Inundation from Hurricane Florence (2018) with L-Band Synthetic Aperture Radar, Commercial Imagery, and Ancillary Data via Random Forest Classification

Mapping the extent of floodwaters following extreme rainfall aids in the distribution of resources, recovery efforts, and damage assessment practices. Development of a land cover classification system focused on mapping inundation after major hurricane events using synthetic aperture radar (SAR) data could allow for the production of near-real-time inundation mapping, enabling government and emergency response entities to get a preliminary idea of a developing situation. In response to Hurricane Florence of 2018, NASA JPL collected numerous swaths of quad-pol L-band SAR data with the Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle Synthetic Aperture Radar (UAVSAR) instrument observing the record-setting river stages across North and South Carolina. The resulting fully-polarized SAR images allow for mapping of inundation extent at a high spatial resolution with a unique advantage over optical imaging stemming from the sensor’s ability to penetrate cloud cover and dense vegetation. This study seeks to determine how accurately maps of inundation can be generated from L-band SAR imagery through Random Forest classification. Once the extent of water and inundated vegetation is classified, cleanup operations are performed using fuzzy logic to reduce false detections. Estimates of water extent are then combined with datasets describing the distribution of population, buildings, and roads throughout the domain to evaluate societal impacts. Results from the Hurricane Florence case study will be discussed along with the limitations of available validation data for assessment of the classifier’s accuracy.

Alexander Melancon↗

NASA NTRS2022

Mapping Firn Saturation over Greenland using NASA’s Soil Moisture Active Passive Satellite

Mapping the spatial extent of recently identified englacial hydrological features (i.e., ice slabs and perennial firn aquifers) formed by meters-thick water-saturated firn layers over the percolation facies of the Greenland Ice Sheet using L-band microwave radiometry has recently been demonstrated. However, these initial maps are binary, and do not provide a parameter to estimate the spatial variability in the thickness and volumetric fraction of meltwater stored within the firn pore space. Here, we exploit enhanced-resolution vertical-polarization L-band brightness temperature (T^(B)_(V)) imagery (2015–2019) generated using observations collected over Greenland by NASA’s Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) satellite and a simple two-layer L-band brightness temperature model. We map water-saturated firn layers via a “firn saturation” parameter, and interpret our results together with ice slab and perennial firn aquifer spatial extents, estimates of snow accumulation simulated via the Regional Atmospheric Climate Model (RACMOp2.3), and airborne radar surveys collected via NASA’s Operation IceBridge (OIB) campaigns. We find that variable firn saturation parameter values are mapped in lower snow accumulation ice slab areas in western, northern, and northeastern Greenland, where firn is colder and water-saturated firn layers seasonally refreeze as solid-ice. Higher firn saturation parameter values are mapped in higher snow accumulation perennial firn aquifer areas in southeastern, southern, and northwestern Greenland, where firn is near the melting point, and meters-thick water-saturated firn layers exist. Our results have implications for identifying expansive englacial reservoirs that store significant volumes of meltwater in locations that are vulnerable to meltwater-induced hydrofracturing and accelerated outlet glacier flow year-round.

Greenland ice sheet↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

NASA GSFC Flood Mapping System (In beta testing)

The authors are developing the NASA GSFC Flood Mapping System, designed to provide near real time, on-demand satellite-based products to disaster management practitioners for requests provided through a website interface. The initial version of the system, which only provides products based on Planetscope data provided by Planet Labs to NASA through the NASA CSDA Program, is currently being beta tested in partnership with the disaster management community and interested research partners. Products include images, NDWI maps, NDVI maps, and water extent maps for flood scenes of interest, the same four products for a specified reference scene, and water extent change maps based on the flood scenes and reference scenes. The team’s vision for the system includes adding products based on all appropriate sources of data that are available at no cost to the project (Landsat, Sentinel-1, Sentinel-2), and obtaining funding for commercial SAR data to provide products in the case where none of the “no-cost” data meets end-user needs. We provide an overview of the system, and discuss the products offered, lessons learned from initial testing, and plans to evolve the system in accordance with our overall vision and the lessons learned.

F. Policelli↗

NASA NTRS2021

Multi-Resolution Elevation Mapping and Safe Landing Site Detection with Applications to Planetary Rotorcraft

In this paper, we propose a resource-efficient approach to provide an autonomous UAV with an on-board perception method to detect safe, hazard-free landing sites during flights over complex 3D terrain. We aggregate 3D measurements acquired from a sequence of monocular images by a Structure-from-Motion approach into a local, robot-centric, multi-resolution elevation map of the overflown terrain, which fuses depth measurements according to their lateral surface resolution (pixel-footprint) in a probabilistic framework based on the concept of dynamic Level of Detail. Map aggregation only requires depth maps and the associated poses, which are obtained from an on-board Visual Odometry algorithm. An efficient landing site detection method then exploits the features of the underlying multi-resolution map to detect safe landing sites based on the slope, roughness, and quality of the reconstructed terrain surface. The evaluation of the performance of the mapping and landing site detection modules are analyzed independently and jointly in simulated and realworld experiments in order to establish the efficacy of the proposed approach.

Brockers, Roland↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Development of Luminescence Lifetime-Based Surface Temperature Mapping for Environmental Barrier Coatings

Luminescence lifetime-based temperature mapping for thermal barrier coatings (TBCs) has been previously demonstrated up to temperatures approaching 1200 °C. Advantages of this method include insensitivities to reflected radiation and emissivity uncertainties. Because of a push towards greater efficiency turbine engine operation using higher turbine inlet temperatures, there is an ongoing movement from TBC-coated superalloy turbine engine components to SiC/SiC ceramic matrix composite components protected by environmental barrier coatings (EBCs). The useful application of luminescence lifetime-based temperature mapping to EBCs requires a significant increase in high temperature capability from below 1200 °C up into the 1300 to 1500 °C temperature range where the much higher background thermal radiation is a challenging issue. In addition, the luminescing sensing layer must exhibit thermochemical compatibility with the EBC. To meet these requirements, Er-doped Y 2 SiO 5 was selected as the luminescing sensor layer material both for its enhanced temperature sensitivity above 1300 °C and its compatibility with rare-earth disilicate EBC topcoats. Both localized spot temperature measurements as well as luminescence lifetime imaging-based temperature mapping were demonstrated up to 1560 °C for Er-doped Y 2 SiO 5 disks. In addition, temperature mapping capability was demonstrated from a 15 µm thick Er-doped Y 2 SiO 5 layer at the surface of a Sc 2 Si 2 O 7 based EBC topcoat. Both localized spot and temperature mapping by luminescence lifetime imaging were demonstrated up to 1380 °C (upper temperature limit of this slurry-based layered EBC) with excellent suppression of background thermal radiation and no degradation of the Er-doped Y 2 SiO 5 temperature sensing surface layer. The source of the novel enhanced temperature sensitivity above 1300 °C will be discussed as well as a path towards compatibility between sensing layer and EBC topcoat to higher temperatures.

temperature measurement↗

NASA NTRS2024

Simulated Feasibility of 3D Lightning Mapping from Space

In addition to the awe it inspires, lightning can illuminate the microphysical processes hidden away within deep convection. The current generation of space-based lightning mapping uses mostly 2D optical imaging to connect overall flash characteristics to their parent storm dynamics, but are missing a dimension’s worth of information. With lightning now classified as an essential climate variable, future spaceborne mappers will need improved capabilities to take advantage of the 3D structure of lightning flashes to support meteorological and climate modeling. We report here on a study of the feasibility of implementing a radio frequency (RF)–based network of satellites for 3D lightning mapping in high resolution from low Earth orbit (LEO). Lightning sources are simulated using existing tools of the Lightning Mapping Array (LMA), modified for orbital detection, and spatially reconstructed using a Levenberg-Marquardt geolocation algorithm to assess sources of uncertainty in these solutions. We analyze the benefits and limitations of this approach compared to existing orbital and ground-based methods. Results of this study show that lightning can be mapped in 3D with a vertical location accuracy better than 2 km using as few as five satellites in LEO capable of measuring the time-of-arrival of impulsive RF signals in the very high frequency (VHF) band. The consequence of this study is that high-resolution, spaceborne 3D mapping of lightning is achievable across most of the globe, having crucial implications for our understanding of not only lightning, but also severe weather development, climate science, and more.

CubeSpark↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Caves as Planetary Analogs for GPS Denied, Low-Light Mapping and Navigation in Rugged Environments

KNaCK (Kinematic Navigation and Cartography Knapsack) is a backpack-mounted mobile mapping system. It can map its surroundings in 3 dimensions and localize itself in space using a LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) sensor and SLAM (Simultaneous Localization and Mapping) algorithm. The KNaCK team is leveraging caves as a proving ground to refine technology for mapping and navigation on other worlds while simultaneously advancing the State of the Art for terrestrial cave exploration and study.

LiDAR↗

NASA NTRS2023

TRACER Lightning Mapping Array Field Campaign Report

Our observational contribution to the U.S. Department of Energy Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) user facility’s Tracking Aerosol Convection Interactions Experiment (TRACER) was the deployment of additional Lightning Mapping Array sensors to provide enhanced capability to the Houston Lightning Mapping Array (HLMA) during the TRACER intensive operational period. To that end, the Texas Tech University personnel (Professor Bruning and Dr. Brunner, and graduate students Jessica Souza, David Singewald, Stephanie Weiss, and Matthew Miller) deployed two portable LMA antennae at locations G and B shown in the map below. The map also shows the predicted lightning flash detection efficiency in black contours, as well as color-shaded very-high-frequency (VHF) source detection efficiency, which roughly corresponds to the sensitivity to lightning channel detail.

Tracking Aerosol Convection Interactions Experimen↗