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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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NASA NTRS2010

Telecommunications Relay Support of the Mars Phoenix Lander Mission

The Phoenix Lander, first of NASA's Mars Scout missions, arrived at the Red Planet on May 25, 2008. From the moment the lander separated from its interplanetary cruise stage shortly before entry, the spacecraft could no longer communicate directly with Earth, and was instead entirely dependent on UHF relay communications via an international network of orbiting Mars spacecraft, including NASA's 2001 Mars Odyssey (ODY) and Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) spacecraft, as well as ESA's Mars Express (MEX) spacecraft. All three orbiters captured critical event telemetry and/or tracking data during Phoenix Entry, Descent and Landing. During the Phoenix surface mission, ODY and MRO provided command and telemetry services, far surpassing the original data return requirements. The availability of MEX as a backup relay asset enhanced the robustness of the surface relay plan. In addition to telecommunications services, Doppler tracking observables acquired on the UHF link yielded an accurate position for the Phoenix landing site.

Edwards, Charles D., Jr.↗
NASA NTRS2010

Implementation of a Relay Coordination System for the Mars Network

Mars network relay operations involve the coordination of lander and orbiter teams through long-term and short-term planning, tactical changes and post-pass analysis. Much of this coordination is managed through email traffic and point-to-point file data exchanges. It is often difficult to construct a complete and accurate picture of the relay situation at any given moment, as there is no centralized store of correlated relay data. The Mars Relay Operations Service (MaROS) is being implemented to address the problem of relay coordination for current and next-generation relay missions. The service is provided for the purpose of coordinating communications sessions between landed spacecraft assets and orbiting spacecraft assets at Mars. The service centralizes a set of functions previously distributed across multiple spacecraft operations teams, and as such greatly improves visibility into the end-to-end strategic coordination process. Most of the process revolves around the scheduling of communications sessions between the spacecraft during periods of time when a landed asset on Mars is geometrically visible by an orbiting spacecraft. These "relay" sessions are used to transfer data both to and from the landed asset via the orbiting asset on behalf of Earth-based spacecraft operators. This paper will discuss the relay coordination problem space, overview the architecture and design selected to meet system requirements, and describe the first phase of system implementation

Allard, Daniel A.↗
NASA NTRS2011

Implementing Strategic Planning Capabilities Within the Mars Relay Operations Service

Since the Mars Exploration Rovers (MER), Spirit and Opportunity, began their travels across the Martian surface in January of 2004, orbiting spacecraft such as the Mars 2001 Odyssey orbiter have relayed the majority of their collected scientific and operational data to and from Earth. From the beginning of those missions, it was evident that using orbiters to relay data to and from the surface of Mars was a vastly more efficient communications strategy in terms of power consumption and bandwidth compared to direct-to-Earth means. However, the coordination between the various spacecraft, which are largely managed independently and on differing commanding timelines, has always proven to be a challenge. Until recently, the ground operators of all these spacecraft have coordinated the movement of data through this network using a collection of ad hoc human interfaces and various, independent software tools. The Mars Relay Operations Service (MaROS) has been developed to manage the evolving needs of the Mars relay network, and specifically to standardize and integrate the relay planning and coordination data into a centralized infrastructure. This paper explores the journey of developing the MaROS system, from inception to delivery and acceptance by the Mars mission users.

tactical planning↗
NASA NTRS1993

Mars 1994/1996: The French navigation tasks

In the fall of 1994, Russia will launch a spacecraft to Mars. France is involved in many scientific experiments which are onboard the spacecraft, as PI or CI. Some days before the Mars orbit insertion maneuver, two small stations and two penetrators will be injected into an entry trajectory. They will carry out for at least six months in situ analysis on the Martian surface. Two years later, a second spacecraft will be launched. It will carry the French balloon and a small rover. The scientific data of these landers will be relayed to earth via the spacecraft. However, during the first 20 days of their mission, Mars Observer will be used. To this end, a Mars balloon relay will be used, which will receive the data from the landers and store them into the memory of the Mars Observer camera. The spacecraft will also be used to localize the landers with the help of relative one-way Doppler measurements. An international cooperative is set up for this process, including JPS, Russian ballistic centers (Babakine, Institute of Applied Mathematics, Moscow Flight Control Center), and CNES Toulouse. Another task dedicated to the space mathematics division of CNES is to support the French scientists to prepare their telecommands and to analyze their telemetry. This second part is integrated into the French ground segment created for the Mars 94/96 mission. This paper describes the method used in CNES for the localization process, the support provided to the scientists, and the links for the data exchange.

Bonneau, Frederic↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

NASA Capture, Containment, and Return System: Bringing Mars Samples to Earth

The Capture, Containment, and Return System (CCRS) project is NASA’s last step in bringing back Mars samples. CCRS will close a decades-long multi-mission and multi-agency effort to bring Mars surface samples back to Earth for scientific studies. CCRS will launch in 2027 on the European Earth Return Orbiter (ERO) spacecraft, which will provide communications relay for the Mars Sample Return ground missions, Perseverance rover and the Sample Retrieval Lander (SRL) (to be launched in 2028). The main mission for CCRS begins when the first-ever orbital planetary capture operation occurs with CCRS catching and securing the Orbiting Sample (OS)in low Mars orbit. From this point, the system will perform additional "firsts": it will autonomously contain the OS with heat-shrink-fit, sterilize the outside surface, and assemble the Earth entry capsule, named Earth Entry System (EES), in orbit around Mars using a gantry mechanism. At approximately 2.8 Lunar distances from Earth, or 3-days from entry into Earth’s atmosphere, CCRS will open its micrometeoroid shield and release the EES on a ballistic trajectory to Earth. The EES is designed to be a fully passive system that will enter the atmosphere and land without parachute at the Utah Test and Training Range (UTTR).

Mars mission, Sample return, Mission design↗
NASA NTRS1996

Return to the Red Planet

In November 1996, NASA and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory will begin America's return to Mars after a 20-year absence by launching the Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) spacecraft. This mission will usher in a new and exciting era of scientific missions to study the red planet.

Altimeter Thermal Emission Spectrometer Magnetomet↗
NASA NTRS2016

MarCO: Interplanetary Mission Development on a CubeSat Scale

Shortly after JPL’s Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport (InSight) mission launches, separates, and commences its cruise phase, two CubeSats will deploy from the launch vehicle’s upper stage and begin independent flight to Mars (Fig. 1). During InSight’s entry, descent, and landing (EDL) sequence, these twin Mars Cube One (MarCO) spacecraft will fly 3,500 km above the Martian surface, recording and relaying InSight UHF radio data to the Deep Space Network (DSN) on Earth1. MarCO is a twin CubeSat mission developed by the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) to accompany the InSight (Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport) Mars mission lander. MarCO's primary mission objective is to launch with InSight and independently fly to Mars to serve as a communications relay during InSight's entry, descent, and landing (EDL) phase. MarCO represents a new type of deep space mission: CubeSats at Mars. Building on the development of JPL's first interplanetary CubeSat project, the Interplanetary Nano-Spacecraft Pathfinder in Relevant Environment (INSPIRE), MarCO further refined the approach to hardware, software, and ground architecture development to solve the challenges of quickly building low-budget spacecraft to fly to Mars. The greatest constraint, beyond others typical of CubeSat missions, was time. The duration between MarCO's conception to completion of spacecraft assembly was less than two years - an unprecedented schedule for any planetary mission to date. Through necessity, MarCO has built on previous experience, procedures, systems, and development methodologies, defining a new niche for supporting larger primary missions. The MarCO spacecraft are poised to write a new chapter in deep space exploration. Originally slated to launch and reach Mars in 2016, the InSight mission schedule subsequently slipped to 2018. During the original landing of InSight, Earth would not be in view, and no orbiter around Mars would have been in position to both receive UHF EDL data and simultaneously relay it back to Earth. It was from this obstacle that MarCO was conceived. Regardless of any changes to InSight’s 2018 EDL configuration geometry, MarCO is still expected to fly and serve in the same capacity as originally designed: the first CubeSat mission to Mars. CubeSats have historically been firmly in the domain of universities and small companies. As first conceived, they served as a platform upon which to teach all aspects of the space mission lifecycle. JPL took on this mission type with Interplanetary Nano-Spacecraft Pathfinder in Relevant Environment2 (INSPIRE), moving the concept into a new domain: deep space. Building from the INSPIRE platform and lessons learned, MarCO addressed new challenges in the domain of planetary missions: independent interplanetary flight and navigation, integration with a large-scale mission, long-distance and long-delay communication, short development time, and a small development team. Of these, the greatest constraint was schedule: only 18 months passed from conception of mission concept until delivery of fully assembled and tested flight hardware. Careful selection of mission team, along with extensive use of off-the-shelf equipment, and streamlining automated processes, was essential. This achievement represents the next step in the evolution of CubeSats beyond low-Earth orbit.

Werne, Thomas↗
NASA NTRS2012

Spacecraft Status Report: 2001 Mars Odyssey

Fourth extension of Odyssey mission continues, with orbital science investigations and relay services for landed assets. Mitigation of aging IMU and UHF transceiver. ODY has responded to Program Office/board recommendations. All Stellar mode has been certified for flight operations and is now standard for nadir point operations on the A-side. Investigating options to mitigate aging Battery. Gradual transfer to a later LMST orbit node to shorten eclipse durations. Reduce spacecraft loads during the longer eclipses. Optimize battery performance. ODY is preparing for E5 Proposal and Planetary Science Division FY12 Senior Review activities. ODY is on track to support MSL EDL and surface operations. ODY is managing consumables in order to remain in operations until 2020.

inter-annual variations↗
NASA NTRS2019

Using telemetry to navigate the MarCO cubesats to Mars

The two MarCO “cubesat” spacecraft were launched alongside NASA’s InSight in May 2018, operating primarily as a technology demonstrator for small satellites in deep space, with a nominal (but experimental) mission to provide relay support for the primary spacecraft during entry, descent, and landing at Mars. Due to their small size and experimental nature, extensive use of telemetry beyond that commonly used by deep space missions was necessary to complete adequate orbit determination. In particular, telemetry was valuable in two areas: use of wheel speeds during thruster calibrations to improve knowledge of individual thruster force levels, and the use of propellant temperature and pressure data to correctly model small thrusting events on board the vehicle.

Martin-Mur, Tomas↗
NASA NTRS2018

Next Generation Relay Services at Mars via an International Relay Network

Nearly all data acquired by vehicles on the surface of Mars are returned to Earth via Mars orbiters – more than 1.7 terabits so far. Successful communication between the various spacecraft is achieved via the careful implementation of internationally recognized CCSDS telecommunications protocols and the use of planning and coordination services provided by NASA’s Mars Program Office and the Multimission Ground Systems and Services (MGSS) Program at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, CA. This modern Mars relay network has evolved since its inception in 2004 with the addition and loss of several missions, but it has fundamentally remained unchanged. Ground interfaces between the various spacecrafts’ mission operations centers on Earth remain largely unique for each participant, each mission maintains its own interfaces with deep space communications networks (e.g. DSN, ESTRACK), which are similar but still unique; and relay sessions at Mars require careful ground planning, coordination, and implementation. This paper will discuss the existing architecture and consider how several technologies may be applied to the next generation of relay services at Mars. Ultimately, these are expected to lead to the implementation of a delay and disruption tolerant network at Mars, a precursor to becoming a major element in an emerging Solar System Internet.

Edwards, Charles D. Jr↗
NASA NTRS2002

In-flight testing of onboard UHF equipment

This paper proposes a plan to allow future flight projects to accomplish in-flight testing of on-board UHF equipment which the spacecraft carries for local relay link use at planet Mars only. This plan relies on onboard self-testing to verify receiver functional capabilities at various data rates, and on RF testing with narrow band CW signals transmitted at selected frequencies from an Earth station, non-interfering to existing UHF users, to verify the RF performance of antenna and microwave equipment. The Mars mission planners at JPL have accepted this concept as reasonable. The plan will be practical to implement with a frequency agile local link transceiver, like the next generation UHF transceiver being developed at JPL. The user can test it at one frequency and operate it at a different frequency within the operating range. Possible frequencies for uplink testing are identified. Further effort is needed to select specific test frequencies that will be agreeable to the users to which these bands are allocated.

UHF in-flight testing↗
NASA NTRS2006

End-to-end information system concept for the Mars Telecommunications Orbiter

The Mars Telecommunications Orbiter (MTO) was intended to provide high-performance deep space relay links to landers, orbiters, sample-return, missions, and approaching spacecraft in the vicinity of Mars, to demonstrate interplanetary laser communications, to demonstrate autonomous navigation, and to carry out is own science investigations.

EEIS↗
NASA NTRS2006

End-to-end information system concept for the Mars Telecommunications Orbiter

The Mars Telecommunications Orbiter (MTO) was intended to provide high-performance deep space relay links to landers, orbiters, sample-return missions, and approaching spacecraft in the vicinity of Mars, to demostrate interplanetary laser communications, to demonstrate autonomous navigation, and to carry out its own science investigations.

MTO↗
NASA NTRS2006

UHF Relay Antenna Measurements on Phoenix Mars Lander Mockup

The Phoenix Lander, a NASA Discovery mission which lands on Mars in the spring of 2008, will rely entirely on UHF relay links between it and Mars orbiting assets, (Odyssey and Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO)), to communicate with the Earth. As with the Mars Exploration Rover (MER) relay system, non directional antennas will be used to provide roughly emispherical coverage of the Martian sky. Phoenix lander deck object pattern interference and obscuration are significant, and needed to be quantified to answer system level design and operations questions. This paper describes the measurement campaign carried out at the SPAWAR (Space and Naval Warfare Research) Systems Center San Diego (SSC-SD) hemispherical antenna range, using a Phoenix deck mockup and engineering model antennas. One goal of the measurements was to evaluate two analysis tools, the time domain CST, and the moment method WIPL-D software packages. These would subsequently be used to provide pattern analysis for configurations that would be difficult and expensive to model and test on Earth.

scattering↗
NASA NTRS2005

Mars Odyssey Mission Status

The status of the Mars Odyssey Mission is discussed, including mission statistics, science data return, UHF relay support, consumables and expected lifetime, spacecraft activity, safe mode operation, and mission scheduling.

Odyssey↗
NASA NTRS2019

Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter maneuver plan for Mars 2020 entry, descent, and landing support and beyond

The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) spacecraft continues to perform valuable science observations at Mars, provide telecommunication relay for surface assets, and characterize landing sites for future missions. MRO provided primary relay support for the InSight Mission during Entry, Descent, and Landing (EDL) on November26, 2018. This paper discusses the current maneuver plan to support Mars 2020 EDL and maintain MRO’s orbit for science operations through 2028.

Menon, Premkumar R.↗