SEARCH · Search NASA
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.
Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.
In November 2000, the decision was finalized to delay launch to the Genesis mission from February 2001 until sometime in the following summer. Given the nature of libration point trajectories and the unique characteristics of the Genesis mission, a complete redesign of the trajectory is required. The design procedure along with the application to the Genesis redesign is discussed and the new baseline solution is presented.
Dragonfly is a NASA New Frontiers Program mission, led by Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL), that will deliver a rotorcraft lander to Saturn’s moon, Titan, which uses a Genesis derived entry vehicle shape. During the Genesis mission, there were concerns with the dynamic stability of the configuration leading to testing at the Aeroballistic Research Facility at Eglin Air Force Base and Dragonfly shares these concerns given the similarity of the entry vehicle shapes. The focus of this paper is to compare the dynamics observed in the ballistic range shots from 1999 against the dynamics from simulation using the Program to Optimize Trajectories II (POST2). This analysis provides a confirmation that the aerodynamics developed during the Genesis mission, especially from ballistic range shots, is being used properly in the Dragonfly mission entry aerodynamics database.
The Array Collectors of the Genesis spacecraft collected bulk solar wind (SW), as well as three subsets of SW (fast, slow, and coronal mass ejection) in a variety of materials. In all cases the SW implant peaked within < 0.2 microns of the surface. So, when the sample return capsule crashed on landing, cleaning the surfaces for analysis became an extremely difficult, but imperative, task. One collector material was “sapphire”, commercial single crystal corundum. Only ~7.7% of the Genesis Array collectors were sapphire (SAP) but a much higher percentage survived the crash. In fact, surviving bulk SW sapphire collectors have an average area ~10x that of their silicon counterparts since SAP is physically tough, and hard (MOHS 9, by definition) as well as is chemically inert. So, SAP is a good candidate for analytical techniques for measuring SW that require clean areas larger than a millimeter; e.g., synchrotron TXRF and INAA. It is also possible to measure SW in SAP using laser ablation and secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) and, recently, more researchers are choosing to analyze sapphire. Thus, removing surface contamination from SAP could enable many research projects. This report extends the task presented in Schmeling et al. ([4]) that used polishing compounds to remove contamination from Genesis sapphire. It focuses on how polishing with their two top candidates (colloidal silica and cerium oxide) affects the SW layer in SAP.
This presentation reviews the GPS ENvironmental and Earth Science Information System (GENESIS). The objectives of GENESIS are outlined (1) Data Archiving, searching and distribution for science data products derived from Space borne TurboRogue Space Receivers for GPS science and other ground based GPS receivers, (2) Data browsing using integrated visualization tools, (3) Interactive web/java-based data search and retrieval, (4) Data subscription service, (5) Data migration from existing GPS archived data, (6) On-line help and documentation, and (7) participation in the WP-ESIP federation. The presentation reviews the products and services of Genesis, and the technology behind the system.
One of the scientists studying the formation of planets is Don Burnett, principal investigator of the Genesis mission. He designed a NASA project to collect a sample of solar material that may help scientists answer important and puzzling questions. In August 2002, NASA launched the Genesis spacecraft. The spacecraft is not a time machine; it cannot go back to the time of formation of the solar system. What it will do is the next best thing. The Genesis spacecraft will journey toward the sun. It will go to a place outside the Earth's magnetic field where the Earth and sun gravities are balanced. While in orbit, the spacecraft will bathe in solar wind that is flung out from the sun. Solar wind particles are similar to material from which the planets formed, and are atoms, ions, or high-energy particles.
Subdivision of Genesis collectors is necessary to maximize the science return of the mission and retain a representative subset of the collection to archive for the future. The ability to verify important scientific results and resolve experiment anomalies through experiment replication and independent experimental techniques requires a method for subdividing individual sample collectors so that equivalent samples are made available. In addition, subdividing the Genesis collectors is required to accommodate the size limitations of many analytical systems. Samples allocated for analysis are likely to be small sections of individual collectors. Subdivision of returned Genesis solar wind samples must be performed in a manner having minimum impact on the accuracy and interpretation of analytical information obtained from these samples. It is also necessary that we ensure that consequences of any processing are well understood and documented. half of the collectors are actually thin coatings on silicon and sapphire substrates. Most of these are merely physically deposited coatings with limited adhesion and hardness, complicating the handling of these collectors. Finally, the concentrator targets, which are to be evaluated to address the highest priority goals of the mission, represent all of these difficulties and require cutting to greater precision as a result of the extremely limited quantities available.
The purpose of preliminary examination of the Genesis sample collectors is to provide information on the condition and availability of collector materials to the science community as a basis for allocation requests. Similarly, the information will be used by the Genesis Sample Allocation sub-committee of CAPTEM to determine the optimum allocation scheme, and by the Genesis Curator to determine the processing sequence for allocation production. The plan includes a decision process and detailed examination and documentation protocol for whole arrays and individual collectors (wafers, concentrator targets, bulk metallic glass, gold foil, and polished aluminum). It also includes a plan for communicating the information obtained to the scientific community. The plan does not include a detailed plan for preliminary examination of the SRC lid foil collectors, the process for removal of individual collectors from their frames, or for the subsequent subdivision of collector materials for allocation.
Inspection of the interior of the Genesis science canister after recovery in Utah, and subsequently at JSC, revealed a darkening on the aluminum canister shield and other canister components. There has been no such observation of film contamination on the collector surfaces, and preliminary spectroscopic ellipsometry measurements support the theory that the films observed on the anodized aluminum components do not appear on the collectors to any significant extent. The Genesis Science Team has made an effort to characterize the thickness and composition of the brown stain and to determine if it is associated with molecular outgassing.Detailed examination of the surfaces within the Genesis science canister reveals that the brown contamination is observed to varying degrees, but only on surfaces exposed in space to the Sun and solar wind hydrogen. In addition, the materials affected are primarily composed of anodized aluminum. A sharp line separating the sun and shaded portion of the thermal closeout panel is shown. This piece was removed from a location near the gold foil collector within the canister. Future plans include a reassembly of the canister components to look for large-scale patterns of contamination within the canister to aid in revealing the root cause.
An overview of the reconstruction analyses performed for the Genesis capsule entry is described. The results indicate that the actual entry prior to the drogue deployment failure was very close to the pre-entry predictions. The capsule landed 8.3 km south of the desired target at Utah Test and Training Range. Analysis on infrared video footage (obtained from the tracking stations) during the descent estimated the onset of the capsule tumble at Mach 0.9. Frequency analysis on the infrared video data indicates that the aerodynamics generated for the Genesis capsule reasonably predicted the drag and static stability. Observations of the heatshield support the pre-entry simulation estimates of a small hypersonic angles-of-attack, since there is very little, if any, charring of the shoulder region or the afterbody. Through this investigation, an overall assertion can be made that all the data gathered from the Genesis entry is consistent with flight performance close to the nominal pre-entry prediction. Consequently, the design principles and methodologies utilized for the flight dynamics, aerodynamics, and aerothermodynamics analyses have been corroborated.
The Genesis spacecraft sampling arrays were exposed to various regimes of solar wind during flight that included: 313.01 days of high-speed wind from coronal holes, 335.19 days of low-speed inter-stream wind, 191.79 days of coronal mass ejections, and 852.83 days of bulk solar wind at Lagrange 1 orbit. Ellipsometry measurements taken at NASA s Johnson Space Center show that all nine flown array materials from the four Genesis regimes have been altered by solar wind exposure during flight. These measurements show significant changes in the optical constant for all nine ultra-pure materials that flew on Genesis when compared with their non-flight material standard. This change in the optical constant (n and k) of the material suggests that the molecular structure of the all nine ultra-pure materials have been altered by solar radiation. In addition, 50 samples of float-zone and czochralski silicon bulk array ellipsometry results were modeled with an effective medium approximation layer (EMA substrate layer) revealing a solar radiation molecular damage zone depth below the SiO2 native oxide layer ranging from 392 to 613 . This bulk solar wind radiation penetration depth is comparable to the depth of solar wind implantation depth of Mg measured by SIMS and SARISA.
The Genesis concentrator was custom designed to focus solar wind ions primarily for terrestrial isotopic analysis of O-17/O-16 and O-18/O-16 to +/-1%, N-15/N-14 to +/-1%, and secondarily to conduct elemental and isotopic analysis of Li, Be, and B. The circular 6.2 cm diameter concentrator target holder was comprised of four quadrants of highly pure semiconductor materials that included one amorphous diamond-like carbon, one C-13 diamond, and two silicon carbide (SiC). The amorphous diamond-like carbon quadrant was fractured upon impact at Utah Test and Training Range (UTTR), but the remaining three quadrants survived fully intact and all four quadrants hold an important collection of solar wind. The quadrants were removed from the target holder at NASA Johnso n Space Center Genesis Curation Laboratory in April 2005, and have been housed in stainless steel containers under continual nitrogen purge since time of disintegration. In preparation for allocation of a silicon carbide target for oxygen isotope analyses at UCLA, the two SiC targets were photographed for preliminary inspection of macro particle contamination from the hard non-nominal landing as well as characterized by spectroscopic ellipsometry to evaluate thin film contamination. This report is focused on Genesis SiC target sample number 60003.
The Genesis spacecraft launched on 8 August 2001 sampled solar wind environments at L1 from 2001 to 2004. After the Science Capsule door was opened, numerous foils and samples were exposed to the various solar wind environments during periods including slow solar wind from the streamer belts, fast solar wind flows from coronal holes, and coronal mass ejections. The Survey and Examination of Eroded Returned Surfaces (SEERS) program led by NASA's Space Environments and Effects program had initiated access for the space materials community to the remaining Science Capsule hardware after the science samples had been removed for evaluation of materials exposure to the space environment. This presentation will describe the process used to generate a reference radiation Genesis Radiation Environment developed for the SEERS program for use by the materials science community in their analyses of the Genesis hardware.
Measurement of solar composition in the Genesis collectors requires not only high sensitivity but very low blanks; thus, very strict collector contamination minimization was required beginning with mission planning and continuing through hardware design, fabrication, assembly and testing. Genesis started with clean collectors and kept them clean inside of a canister. The mounting hardware and container for the clean collectors were designed to be cleanable, with access to all surfaces for cleaning. Major structural components were made of aluminum and cleaned with megasonically energized ultrapure water (UPW). The UPW purity was >18 M resistivity. Although aluminum is relatively difficult to clean, the Genesis protocol achieved level 25 and level 50 cleanliness on large structural parts; however, the experience suggests that surface treatments may be helpful on future missions. All cleaning was performed in an ISO Class 4 (Class 10) cleanroom immediately adjacent to an ISO Class 4 assembly room; thus, no plastic packaging was required for transport. Persons assembling the canister were totally enclosed in cleanroom suits with face shield and HEPA filter exhaust from suit. Interior canister materials, including fasteners, were installed, untouched by gloves, using tweezers and other stainless steel tools. Sealants/lubricants were not exposed inside the canister, but vented to the exterior and applied in extremely small amounts using special tools. The canister was closed in ISO Class 4, not to be opened until on station at Earth-Sun L1. Throughout the cleaning and assembly, coupons of reference materials that were cleaned at the same time as the flight hardware were archived for future reference and blanks. Likewise reference collectors were archived. Post-mission analysis of collectors has made use of these archived reference materials.
The majority of surface particles were found to be < 5 microns in diameter with increasing numbers close to the optical resolution limit of 0.3 microns. Acceleration grid EDS results show that the majority of materials appear to be from the SRC shell and SLA materials which include carbon-carbon fibers and Si-rich microspheres in a possible silicone binder. Other major debris material from the SRC included white paint, kapton, collector array fragments, and Al. Image analysis also revealed that SRC materials were also found mixed with the Utah mud and salt deposits. The EDS analysis of the acceleration grid showed that particles < 1 m where generally carbon based particles. Chemical cleaning techniques with Xylene and HF in an ultrasonic bath are currently being investigated for removal of small particles by the Genesis science team as well as ultra-pure water megasonic cleaning by the JSC team [4]. Removal of organic contamination from target materials is also being investigated by the science team with the use of UV-ozone cleaning devices at JSC and Open University [5]. In preparation for solar wind oxygen analyses at UCLA and Open University [1, 2], surface particle contamination on three Genesis concentrator targets was closely examined to evaluate cleaning strategies. Two silicon carbide (Genesis sample # 60001 and 60003) and one chemical vapor deposited (CVD) 13C concentrator target (60002) were imaged and mosaic mapped with optical microscopes. The resulting full target mosaic images and particle feature maps were subsequently compared with non-flight, but flight-like, concentrator targets and sample return capsule (SRC) materials. Contamination found on the flown concentrator acceleration grid was further examined using a scanning electron microscope (SEM). Energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) for particle identification was subsequently compared with the optical images from the flown targets. Figure 1 show that all three targets imaged in this report are fully intact and do not show any signs of material fractures. However, previous ellipsometry results and overview imaging of both flown SiC targets show a solar wind irradiation gradient from the center focal point to the outer edge [3]. In addition, due to the hard landing, each target has experienced varying degrees of impacts, scratches, and particle debris from the spacecraft and Utah impact site.
An overview of the reconstruction analyses performed for the Genesis capsule entry is described. The results indicate that the actual entry prior to the drogue deployment failure was very close to the pre-entry predictions. The capsule landed 8.3 km south of the desired target at Utah Test and Training Range. Analysis on infrared video footage (obtained from the tracking stations) during the descent estimated the onset of the capsule tumble at Mach 0.9. Frequency analysis on the infrared video data indicates that the aerodynamics generated for the Genesis capsule reasonably predicted the drag and static stability. Observations of the heatshield support the pre-entry simulation estimates of a small hypersonic angles-of-attack, since there is very little, if any, charring of the shoulder region or the aftbody. Through this investigation, an overall assertion can be made that all the data gathered from the Genesis entry is consistent with flight performance that was close to the nominal preentry prediction. Consequently, the design principles and methodologies utilized for the flight dynamics, aerodynamics, and aerothermodynamics analyses have been corroborated.
The Genesis mission collected solar wind and brought it back to Earth in order to provide precise knowledge of solar isotopic and elemental compositions. The ions in the solar wind were stopped in the collectors at depths on the order of 10 to a few hundred nanometers. This shallow implantation layer is critical for scientific analysis of the composition of the solar wind and must be preserved throughout sample handling, cleaning, processing, distribution, preparation and analysis. Particles of Genesis wafers, brine from the Utah Testing Range and an organic film have deleterious effects on many of the high-resolution instruments that have been developed to analyze the implanted solar wind. We have conducted a correlative microscopic study of the efficacy of cleaning Genesis samples with megasonically activated ultrapure water and UV/ozone cleaning. Sample 60487, the study sample, is a piece of float-zone silicon from the B/C array approximately 4.995mm x 4.145 mm in size
Since 2005 the Genesis science team has experimented with techniques for removing the contaminant particles and films from the collection surface of the Genesis fragments. A subset of ~40 samples have been designated as "cleaning matrix" samples. These are small samples to which various cleaning approaches are applied and then cleanliness is assessed optically, by TRXRF, SEM, ToF-SIMS, XPS, ellipsometry or other means [1-9]. Most of these sam-ples remain available for allocation, with cleanliness assessment data. This assessment allows evaluation of various cleaning techniques and handling or analytical effects. Cleaning techniques investigated by the Genesis community include acid/base etching, acetate replica peels, ion beam, and CO2 snow jet cleaning [10-16]. JSC provides surface cleaning using UV ozone exposure and ultra-pure water (UPW) [17-20]. The UPW rinse is commonly used to clean samples for handling debris between processing by different researchers. Optical microscopic images of the sample taken before and after UPW cleaning show what has been added or removed during the cleaning process.
Genesis solar wind collectors were comprised of a suite of 15 types of ultrapure materials. The single crystal, pure silicon collectors were fabricated by two methods: float zone (FZ) and Czochralski (CZ). Because of slight differences in bulk purity and surface cleanliness among the fabrication processes and the specific vendor, it is desirable to know which variety of silicon and identity of vendor, so that appropriate reference materials can be used. The Czochralski method results in a bulk composition with slightly higher oxygen, for example. The CZ silicon array wafers that were Genesis-flown were purchased from MEMC Electronics. Most of the Genesis-flown FZ silicon was purchased from Unisil and cleaned by MEMC, although a few FZ wafers were acquired from International Wafer Service (IWS).