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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 NTRS2018

Closed Loop Guidance Trade Study for Space Launch System Block-1B Vehicle

The Space Launch System (SLS) Block-1B vehicle includes a low thrust-to-weight upper stage, which presents challenges to heritage ascent guidance algorithms. A trade study was conducted to evaluate two alternative guidance algorithms: 1) Powered Explicit Guidance (PEG), based on a modified implementation of PEG used on the Block-1 vehicle, and 2) Optimal Guidance (OPGUID), an algorithm developed for Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) and used on Constellation and other Guidance, Navigation, and Controls (GN&C) projects. The design criteria, approach, and results of the trade study are given, as well as other impacts and considerations for Block-1B type missions.

Ahmad, Naeem↗
NASA NTRS2018

Closed Loop Guidance Trade Study for Space Launch System Block-1B Vehicle

NASA is currently building the Space Launch System (SLS) Block-1 launch vehicle for the Exploration Mission 1 (EM-1) test flight. Since EM-1 has an exo-atmospheric flight profile similar to the Space Shuttle, Block-1 guidance utilizes the shuttle-heritage Powered Explicit Guidance (PEG) algorithm. The Block-1 implementation of PEG has been thoroughly tested, and is robust to certain failure scenarios, including loss of a single core engine.

Von der Porten, Paul↗
NASA NTRS1983

Centaur D-1A guidance/software system

The main body of this paper describes the evolution of the Centaur D-1A Guidance and Software System. Specifically, the performance of the explicit guidance equations, using a linear tangent steering law. Inherent flexibility exists in the equations in that they have multimission capability. They can accommodate both Earth-orbital and Earth-escape missions with either one or two Centaur burns. They can also guide for multi-burn orbital missions. The Centaur performance is indicated in terms of optimality (propellant usage), accuracy, flexibility and computer requirements. In the course of the Centaur Guidance development substantial changes and improvements have been made and more improvements are on the way for the Shuttle/Centaur Guidance. It is the intent of this paper to describe, provide insight into, and identify certain unique aspects of the individual Centaur flight profiles. Mission profile(s) are described narratively with some numerical data given in cases where it may be useful.

Gordan, A. L.↗
NASA NTRS1984

Centaur D-1A guidance/software system

The main body of this paper describes the evolution of the Centaur D-1A Guidance and Software System. Specifically, the performance of the explicit guidance equations, using a linear tangent steering law. Inherent flexibility exists in the equations in that they have multimission capability. They can accommodate both earth-orbital and earth-escape missions with either one or two Centaur burns. They can also guide for multi-burn orbital missions. The Centaur performance is indicated in terms of optimality (propellant usage), accuracy, flexibility and computer requirements. In the course of the Centaur Guidance development substantial changes and improvements have been made and more improvements are on the way for the Shuttle/Centaur Guidance. It is the intent of this paper to describe, provide insight into, and identify certain unique aspects of the individual Centaur flight profiles. Mission profile(s) are described narratively with some numerical data given in cases where it may be useful.

Gordan, A. L.↗
NASA NTRS1979

Space Shuttle ascent guidance, navigation, and control

The factors leading to the particular design of the Shuttle guidance, navigation and control software are discussed. The derivation of explicit guidance equations satisfying a wide range of different maneuver constraints and steering equations that create attitude steering errors from the guidance solutions is presented, as are navigation equations, and equations for identifying faulty instruments from sets of redundant instrument measurements.

R. L. Mchenry↗
NASA NTRS2002

Global Landing Site Access Using Atmospheric Skip Trajectories

Mars direct entry, without going into orbit, does not provide global access to all landing site latitudes. Latitudes accessible via direct entry trajectories consist of a ring around the backside of the planet, centered about V infinity. Landing sites outside this ring can be achieved using a modified approach trajectory entering the atmosphere over the South Pole "aerocapture fashion" that will skip out to an altitude above the atmosphere and then re-enter the atmosphere a second time and continue to toward the North Pole. The first aerocapture maneuver is aligned to provide an exit orbit that contains the desired landing site with an apoapsis computed to provide proper ranging for the second entry. A powered maneuver is utilized during the exoatmospheric phase to remove altitude and flight path deviations due to uncertainties in the atmosphere occurring during the first entry. Three guidance schemes are required for global landing site access analysis. Aerocapture guidance was used for the first atmospheric entry, Shuttle Powered Explicit Guidance was used for the exoatmospheric maneuver, and Apollo Derived Entry Guidance was used for the second atmospheric entry. An altimeter to update the onboard navigation state after the first atmospheric entry, was required to remove accumulated deadreckoning navigation errors and achieve reasonable range errors at chute deploy.

Bryant, Lee↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Guidance Modifications & Enhancement for Space Launch System Block-1 in Support ARTEMIS I and Beyond

As NASA has conducted extensive simulation and testing of the Space Launch System for the Artemis I mission, opportunities were identified for improvements to the Guidance, Navigation and Controls algorithms. These improvements will allow more effective use of the capabilities of the SLS vehicle, and enhance safety of the crew on board. This paper describes several planned updates to the Powered Explicit Guidance algorithm and auxiliary guidance algorithms for Artemis I and subsequent SLS missions.

Naeem Ahmad↗
NASA NTRS2018

Closed Loop Guidance Trade Study for Space Launch System Block-1B Vehicle

NASA is currently building the Space Launch System (SLS) Block-1 launch vehicle for the Exploration Mission 1 (EM-1) test flight. The design of the next evolution of SLS, Block-1B, is well underway. The Block-1B vehicle is more capable overall than Block-1; however, the relatively low thrust-to-weight ratio of the Exploration Upper Stage (EUS) presents a challenge to the Powered Explicit Guidance (PEG) algorithm used by Block-1. To handle the long burn durations (on the order of 1000 seconds) of EUS missions, two algorithms were examined. An alternative algorithm, OPGUID, was introduced, while modifications were made to PEG. A trade study was conducted to select the guidance algorithm for future SLS vehicles. The chosen algorithm needs to support a wide variety of mission operations: ascent burns to LEO, apogee raise burns, trans-lunar injection burns, hyperbolic Earth departure burns, and contingency disposal burns using the Reaction Control System (RCS). Additionally, the algorithm must be able to respond to a single engine failure scenario. Each algorithm was scored based on pre-selected criteria, including insertion accuracy, algorithmic complexity and robustness, extensibility for potential future missions, and flight heritage. Monte Carlo analysis was used to select the final algorithm. This paper covers the design criteria, approach, and results of this trade study, showing impacts and considerations when adapting launch vehicle guidance algorithms to a broader breadth of in-space operations.

Von der Porten, Paul↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Guidance Modifications and Enhancements for Space Launch System Block-1 in Support of Artemis I and Beyond

NASA is currently building the Space Launch System (SLS) Block-1 launch vehicle for the Artemis I test flight. Design of the Artemis II mission, which will use theBlock-1 vehicle to take astronauts around the moon for the first time in decades, is also underway. The Guidance, Navigation, and Controls (GN&C) algorithms will be largely similar for the two missions. However, the extensive simulation and testing campaign for Artemis I has revealed opportunities for improvements in the GN&C algorithms, allowing more effective use of the capabilities of the SLS vehicle, and enhancing safety for the astronauts aboard. This paper will de-scribe several planned algorithm updates for the Artemis II mission. The updates enhance the Powered Explicit Guidance (PEG) algorithm and auxiliary guidance algorithms.

Matt Hawkins↗
NASA NTRS2010

Improved Lunar Lander Handling Qualities Through Control Response Type and Display Enhancements

A piloted simulation that studied the handling qualities for a precision lunar landing task from final approach to touchdown is presented. A vehicle model based on NASA's Altair Lunar Lander was used to explore the design space around the nominal vehicle configuration to determine which combination of factors provides satisfactory pilot-vehicle performance and workload; details of the control and propulsion systems not available for that vehicle were derived from Apollo Lunar Module data. The experiment was conducted on a large motion base simulator. Eight Space Shuttle and Apollo pilot astronauts and three NASA test pilots served as evaluation pilots, providing Cooper-Harper ratings, Task Load Index ratings and qualitative comments. Each pilot flew seven combinations of control response types and three sets of displays, including two varieties of guidance and a nonguided approach. The response types included Rate Command with Attitude Hold, which was used in the original Apollo Moon landings, a Velocity Increment Command response type designed for up-and-away flight, three response types designed specifically for the vertical descent portion of the trajectory, and combinations of these. It was found that Velocity Increment Command significantly improved handling qualities when compared with the baseline Apollo design, receiving predominantly Level 1 ratings. This response type could be flown with or without explicit guidance cues, something that was very difficult with the baseline design, and resulted in approximately equivalent touchdown accuracies and propellant burn as the baseline response type. The response types designed to be used exclusively in the vertical descent portion of the trajectory did not improve handling qualities.

Mueller, Eric Richard↗
NASA NTRS1976

Dispersion analysis for baseline reference mission 3A with 400,000 foot entry interface altitude

A dispersion analysis considering 3 beta uncertainties in platform, vehicle, and environmental parameters is described. Powered explicit guidance used to develop closed loop steering commands, the nominal profile, and entry interface conditions are discussed. The groundrules and assumptions for the analysis are reviewed. The results presented include dispersion data at specific time slices from liftoff to entry interface, covariance matrices, summary data, and exchange ratios.

Snow, L. S.↗
NASA NTRS1989

Minimum-variance reduced-order estimation algorithms from Pontrygin's minimum principle

A uniform derivation of minimum-variance reduced-order (MVRO) filter-smoother algorithms from Pontrygin's Minimum Principle is presented. An appropriate performance index for a general class of reduced order estimation problem is formulated herein to yield optimal results over the entire time interval of estimation. These results provide quantitative criteria for measuring the performance of certain classes of heuristically designed, suboptimal reduced-order estimators as well as explicit guidance to the suboptimal filter design process with both continuous and discrete filter-smoother algorithms being considered. By the duality principle, the algorithms of reduced-order estimation can be easily extended to the deterministic problems of optimal control (i.e., the regulator and linear tracking problem).

Ebrahimi, Yaghoob S.↗
NASA NTRS2018

PEG Enhancement for EM1 and EM2+ Missions

NASA is currently building the Space Launch System (SLS) Block-1 launch vehicle for the Exploration Mission 1 (EM-1) test flight. The next evolution of SLS, the Block-1B Exploration Mission 2 (EM-2), is currently being designed. The Block-1 and Block-1B vehicles will use the Powered Explicit Guidance (PEG) algorithm. Due to the relatively low thrust-to-weight ratio of the Exploration Upper Stage (EUS), certain enhancements to the Block-1 PEG algorithm are needed to perform Block-1B missions. In order to accommodate mission design for EM-2 and beyond, PEG has been significantly improved since its use on the Space Shuttle program. The current version of PEG has the ability to switch to different targets during Core Stage (CS) or EUS flight, and can automatically reconfigure for a single Engine Out (EO) scenario, loss of communication with the Launch Abort System (LAS), and Inertial Navigation System (INS) failure. The Thrust Factor (TF) algorithm uses measured state information in addition to a priori parameters, providing PEG with an improved estimate of propulsion information. This provides robustness against unknown or undetected engine failures. A loft parameter input allows LAS jettison while maximizing payload mass. The current PEG algorithm is now able to handle various classes of missions with burn arcs much longer than were seen in the shuttle program. These missions include targeting a circular LEO orbit with a low-thrust, long-burn-duration upper stage, targeting a highly eccentric Trans-Lunar Injection (TLI) orbit, targeting a disposal orbit using the low-thrust Reaction Control System (RCS), and targeting a hyperbolic orbit. This paper will describe the design and implementation of the TF algorithm, the strategy to handle EO in various flight regimes, algorithms to cover off-nominal conditions, and other enhancements to the Block-1 PEG algorithm. This paper illustrates challenges posed by the Block-1B vehicle, and results show that the improved PEG algorithm is capable for use on the SLS Block 1-B vehicle as part of the Guidance, Navigation, and Control System.

Von der Porten, Paul↗
NASA NTRS2018

Gaps in Thermal Design Guidelines in the Goddard Space Flight Center GOLD Rules

The GSFC (Goddard Space Flight Center) GOLD Rules (Goddard Open Learning Design; GSFC-STD-1000) provide a reasonably comprehensive list of guidelines for the design and testing of spacecraft and instruments based on the long heritage of successful GSFC missions. In general, all GSFC missions are required to comply with the GOLD Rules across a number of subsystems or to seek waivers to particular GOLD rules where compliance is not practical, either due to the risk posture of a mission or the cost and/or schedule associated with compliance. In thermal subsystems, GOLD Rules are applied to design margins throughout the project life cycle and include temperature margins, heater power margins, and two-phase transport margins. However, no explicit guidance is provided for two thermal design aspects: heater control authority (for stability requirements) and cryogenic design margins (which are often not reasonable to express in terms of temperatures). This can lead to ambiguity and inconsistency among projects when demonstrating GOLD Rules compliance. Two current GSFC projects, TIRS-2 (Thermal InfraRed Sensor 2) and WFIRST (Wide Field InfraRed Survey Telescope), are both missions with cryogenic aspects and active thermal control for stability. This paper seeks to outline the characterization of cryogenic margins during the design process for TIRS-2 and WFIRST as well as the project derived guidelines for heater control authority margin. This effort serves as potential first steps for updating the GOLD Rules to address these two areas in guiding thermal designs at GSFC.

Modeling↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Vision-Based Distributed Sensing at Vertiports for Advanced Air Mobility and Urban Air Mobility Approach and Landing

Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) encompasses a broad vision for air transportation, including Urban Air Mobility (UAM) as a subset. AAM aims to create a more connected and efficient transportation network across various geographical settings. However, navigating AAM aircraft in GPS-denied or degraded environments during approach and landing is challenging. Traditional vision aids like glideslopes and localizers are limited in vertiport environments due to narrow beam constraints and reduced landing angle options. This paper addresses the need for accurate navigation solutions at vertiports by proposing a vision-based distributed sensing (VIDIS) system utilizing cameras with bundle adjustment to assist incoming AAM aircraft during approach and landing while monitoring surface movements to enhance safety and efficiency. Key focus areas for current and future vertiport developers include identifying suitable sensor types and infrastructure standards to support AAM operations and including vertiport markings as vision-based navigation aids. The proposed system offers a novel approach to overcoming navigation challenges in AAM operations, particularly in urban settings where traditional aids may be insufficient. Preliminary simulation results with distributed cameras demonstrate promising outcomes for implementing bundle adjustment techniques to enhance vision-based navigation solutions at vertiports. Generating waypoint-based trajectories via waypoint integration using explicit guidance synthesis (WINGS) creates smooth AAM trajectories for landing at vertiports by using the current waypoint's terminal conditions as the initial conditions for the next waypoint. Combining bundle adjustment's ground-based solution of vertiport features with WINGS, Coplanar Pose from Orthography and Scaling with Iterations (COPOSIT), and an extended Kalman filter (EKF) estimates the state of an incoming aircraft during approach and landing at vertiports. Future work includes testing VIDIS in a high-fidelity simulation and with real-world data.

Distributed sensing↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Vision-Based Distributed Sensing at Vertiports for Advanced Air Mobility and Urban Air Mobility Approach and Landing

Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) encompasses a broad vision for air transportation, including Urban Air Mobility (UAM) as a subset. AAM aims to create a more connected and efficient transportation network across various geographical settings. However, navigating AAM aircraft in GPS-denied or degraded environments during approach and landing is challenging. Traditional vision aids like glideslopes and localizers are limited in vertiport environments due to narrow beam constraints and reduced landing angle options. This paper addresses the need for accurate navigation solutions at vertiports by proposing a vision-based distributed sensing (VIDIS) system utilizing cameras with bundle adjustment to assist incoming AAM aircraft during approach and landing while monitoring surface movements to enhance safety and efficiency. Key focus areas for current and future vertiport developers include identifying suitable sensor types and infrastructure standards to support AAM operations and including vertiport markings as vision-based navigation aids. The proposed system offers a novel approach to overcoming navigation challenges in AAM operations, particularly in urban settings where traditional aids may be insufficient. Preliminary simulation results with distributed cameras demonstrate promising outcomes for implementing bundle adjustment techniques to enhance vision-based navigation solutions at vertiports. Generating waypoint-based trajectories via waypoint integration using explicit guidance synthesis (WINGS) creates smooth AAM trajectories for landing at vertiports by using the current waypoint's terminal conditions as the initial conditions for the next waypoint. Combining bundle adjustment's ground-based solution of vertiport features with WINGS, Coplanar Pose from Orthography and Scaling with Iterations (COPOSIT), and an extended Kalman filter (EKF) estimates the state of an incoming aircraft during approach and landing at vertiports. Future work includes testing VIDIS in a high-fidelity simulation and with real-world data.

Distributed sensing↗
NASA NTRS2013

Explicit Low-Thrust Guidance for Reference Orbit Targeting

The problem of a low-thrust spacecraft controlled to a reference orbit is addressed in this paper. A simple and explicit low-thrust guidance scheme with constrained thrust magnitude is developed by combining the fundamental equations of motion for constrained systems from analytical dynamics with a Lyapunov-based method. Examples are given for a spacecraft controlled to a reference trajectory in the circular restricted three body problem.

low-thrust guidance↗