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NASA NTRS2020

Mars Ascent Vehicle Hybrid Propulsion Configuration

As part of a Mars Sample Return (MSR) campaign, two Mars Ascent Vehicle (MAV) configurations have been designed in parallel. Each ascent vehicle configuration has a different propulsion system which ultimately leads to two unique vehicle designs. As part of a Preliminary Architecture Assessment (PAA), these vehicle designs were developed to the same level of maturity in order to inform the selection of one of the vehicles as the point of departure design for the campaign. The selection will be made in November 2019. The initial MSR architecture called for a hybrid-based propulsion MAV. This type of propulsion system calls for a solid wax motor that would utilize liquid MON-25 as an oxidizer. Hybrid rocket propulsion allows for more flexibility than traditional solid or liquid propulsion options, and typically benefits from the advantages of both. A hybrid motor can be throttled and shut down easily, and avoids significant risk in manufacturing and handling. On a theoretical level, hybrid motors perform at a higher specific impulse (Isp) than solid motors. The primary disadvantage of hybrid motors comes from additional complexity and significantly less flight heritage and low Technology Readiness Level (TRL). This paper describes the design of the hybrid propulsion configuration. An additional paper will be published describing the design of the solid propulsion configuration1. The hybrid propulsion configuration MAV was developed in 2019 by NASA Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) in association with NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). It features a Single Stage to Orbit (SSTO) design with an SP7A solid wax fuel and MON-25 liquid oxidizer. The liquid portion of the vehicle allows for a Liquid Injection Thrust Vector Controller (LITVC) as well as hypergolic propellant additives for ignition. The vehicle was designed to deliver approximately 0.31kg of Martian geological samples to a circular orbit at Mars of 343km at a 25o inclination. Although hybrid propulsion in general has been used on launch vehicles in the past, the integrated vehicle subsystems that operate in conjunction with these propulsion elements do not typically operate in a Martian environment, which in this application can get as cold as -40oC. The PAA advanced the maturity of these subsystems by performing detailed design and analysis on the vehicle with respect to structures and mechanisms, Guidance/Navigation/Control (GNC) systems, avionics, Reaction Control System (RCS), LITVC, thermal environments, and advanced Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD). This paper will summarize the results of these studies.

Yaghoubi, Darius↗

NASA NTRS1990

NASA's Advanced Space Transportation System launch vehicles

An account is given of NASA's Advanced Space Transportation System plans, with a view to the support systems that must be evolved in order to implement such long-term mission requirements; these encompass space-based infrastructure for orbital transfer operations between LEO and GEO, and for operations from LEO to lunar orbit and to Mars. These mission requirements are addressed by the NASA Civil Needs Data Base in order to promote multiple applications. The requisite near-term lift capacity to LEO could be achieved through the development of the Shuttle-derived, unmanned Shuttle-C cargo launch system. Longer-term transportation studies are concerned with the Next Manned Transportation System and Space Transfer Vehicles.

Branscome, Darrell R.↗

NASA NTRS2016

Integrated Pressure-Fed Liquid Oxygen / Methane Propulsion Systems - Morpheus Experience, MARE, and Future Applications

An integrated liquid oxygen (LOx) and methane propulsion system where common propellants are fed to the reaction control system and main engines offers advantages in performance, simplicity, reliability, and reusability. LOx/Methane provides new capabilities to use propellants that are manufactured on the Mars surface for ascent return and to integrate with power and life support systems. The clean burning, non-toxic, high vapor pressure propellants provide significant advantages for reliable ignition in a space vacuum, and for reliable safing or purging of a space-based vehicle. The NASA Advanced Exploration Systems (AES) Morpheus lander demonstrated many of these key attributes as it completed over 65 tests including 15 flights through 2014. Morpheus is a prototype of LOx/Methane propellant lander vehicle with a fully integrated propulsion system. The Morpheus lander flight demonstrations led to the proposal to use LOx/Methane for a Discovery class mission, named Moon Aging Regolith Experiment (MARE) to land an in-situ science payload for Southwest Research Institute on the Lunar surface. Lox/Methane is extensible to human spacecraft for many transportation elements of a Mars architecture. This paper discusses LOx/Methane propulsion systems in regards to trade studies, the Morpheus project experience, the MARE NAVIS (NASA Autonomous Vehicle for In-situ Science) lander, and future possible applications. The paper also discusses technology research and development needs for Lox/Methane propulsion systems.

Hurlbert, Eric↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Vertical Lunar Regolith Conveying as A Flight Experiment in Simulated Lunar-Gravity

regolith↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Vertical Lunar Regolith Conveying as a Flight Experiment in Simulated Lunar-Gravity

Regolith conveying will be an essential task for supplying regolith feedstock to In-Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU) reactor systems for regolith processing on the Moon and Mars. The Vertical Lunar Regolith Conveyor (VLRC) is a technology being developed at NASA Kennedy Space Center (KSC) as a regolith transport task for the GCD ISRU FLEET project led by NASA Glenn Research Center (GRC). Single test loop versions of the VLRC are being developed at NASA KSC as a technology demonstration for a flight experiment. The NASA Flight Opportunities program selected the VLRC for a technology demonstration opportunity on a future Blue Origin New Shepard suborbital launch vehicle to study regolith transport physics in a relevant environment in a vacuum chamber under simulated lunar gravity conditions in order to advance its technology readiness level (TRL) for future space applications. The VLRC system includes four primary subsystems to achieve the objectives of the lunar gravity (Lunar-G) flight experiment. (1) An eccentric vibratory conveyor stack to convey regolith particles consisting of three single-loop helical surface conveyors with each actuated by two vibratory motors that vibrate in unison. One of the three single-loops contains a 0.8°-3.1° inclined helical path and the other two contain a 1.6°-6.2° incline. (2) A stick-slip conveyor stack to convey regolith particles consisting of three single-loop helical surface conveyors with each actuated by the same motor to move in unison in a stick-slip motion. One of the three single-loops contains a 0.8°-3.1° inclined helical path and the other two contain a 1.6°-6.2° incline. (3) A regolith containment system to contain the regolith in each single-loop track during launch before the start of the experiment using containment caps that will be lifted in unison at the start of Lunar-G. (4) COTS cameras will record the motion of regolith and tracer particles. Post-flight analysis of the videos will be used to determine convey speeds and flow rates. The VLRC experiment will use the well-known technique of Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) image analysis to determine the velocity of tracer particles entrained in the regolith flow. This velocity will be used to calculate the mass flow rate of the regolith being conveyed.

ISRU↗

NASA NTRS2002

Technology Development and Advanced Planning for Curation of Returned Mars Samples

NASA Johnson Space Center (JSC) curates extraterrestrial samples, providing the international science community with lunar rock and soil returned by the Apollo astronauts, meteorites collected in Antarctica, cosmic dust collected in the stratosphere, and hardware exposed to the space environment. Curation comprises initial characterization of new samples, preparation and allocation of samples for research, and clean, secure long-term storage. The foundations of this effort are the specialized cleanrooms (class 10 to 10,000) for each of the four types of materials, the supporting facilities, and the people, many of whom have been doing detailed work in clean environments for decades. JSC is also preparing to curate the next generation of extraterrestrial samples. These include samples collected from the solar wind, a comet, and an asteroid. Early planning and R\&D are underway to support post-mission sample handling and curation of samples returned from Mars. One of the strong scientific reasons for returning samples from Mars is to search for evidence of current or past life in the samples. Because of the remote possibility that the samples may contain life forms that are hazardous to the terrestrial biosphere, the National Research Council has recommended that all samples returned from Mars be kept under strict biological containment until tests show that they can safely be released to other laboratories. It is possible that Mars samples may contain only scarce or subtle traces of life or prebiotic chemistry that could readily be overwhelmed by terrestrial contamination . Thus, the facilities used to contain, process, and analyze samples from Mars must have a combination of high-level biocontainment and organic / inorganic chemical cleanliness that is unprecedented. JSC has been conducting feasibility studies and developing designs for a sample receiving facility that would offer biocontainment at least the equivalent of current maximum containment BSL-4 (BioSafety Level 4) laboratories, while simultaneously maintaining cleanliness levels equaling those of state-of-the-art cleanrooms. Unique requirements for the processing of Mars samples have inspired a program to develop handling techniques that are much more precise and reliable than the approach (currently used for lunar samples) of employing gloved human hands in nitrogen-filled gloveboxes. Individual samples from Mars are expected to be much smaller than lunar samples, the total mass of samples returned by each mission being 0.5- 1 kg, compared with many tens of kg of lunar samples returned by each of the six Apollo missions. Smaller samples require much more of the processing to be done under microscopic observation. In addition, the requirements for cleanliness and high-level containment would be difficult to satisfy while using traditional gloveboxes. JSC has constructed a laboratory to test concepts and technologies important to future sample curation. The Advanced Curation Laboratory includes a new-generation glovebox equipped with a robotic arm to evaluate the usability of robotic and teleoperated systems to perform curatorial tasks. The laboratory also contains equipment for precision cleaning and the measurement of trace organic contamination.

Lindstrom, David J.↗

NASA NTRS2019

Beaconless Optical Communication System Constraints

Deep-space optical communication will enable increased science return and public engagement for robotic and manned missions. The IROC project is studying a beaconless optical communication system for Mars data downlink. A star tracker provides the optical communications pointing information in place of an uplink targeting beacon. The configuration presented in this paper includes a star tracker that is aligned co-boresighted with the optical communication axis. This co-boresight configuration was not discussed in prior work, as it was assumed that large Sun-Probe-Earth keep-out angle requirements for operation of the star tracker would cause significant communication outages. In this paper it is shown that the use of an optimal mechanical mounting angle combined with an advanced star tracker has the capability to yield up to 92% communication availability for an example five-year Mars mission.

Aretskin-Hariton, Eliot D.↗

NASA NTRS2007

Planetary Entry Probes and Mass Spectroscopy: Tools and Science Results from In Situ Studies of Planetary Atmospheres and Surfaces

Probing the atmospheres and surfaces of the planets and their moons with fast moving entry probes has been a very useful and essential technique to obtain in situ or quasi in situ scientific data (ground truth) which could not otherwise be obtained from fly by or orbiter only missions and where balloon, aircraft or lander missions are too complex and costly. Planetary entry probe missions have been conducted successfully on Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Titan after having been first demonstrated in the Earth's atmosphere. Future missions will hopefully also include more entry probe missions back to Venus and to the outer planets. 1 he success of and science returns from past missions, the need for more and better data, and a continuously advancing technology generate confidence that future missions will be even more successful with respect to science return and technical performance. I'he pioneering and tireless work of Al Seiff and his collaborators at the NASA Ames Research Center had provided convincing evidence of the value of entry probe science and how to practically implement flight missions. Even in the most recent missions involving entry probes i.e. Galileo and Cassini/Huygens A1 contributed uniquely to the science results on atmospheric structure, turbulence and temperature on Jupiter and Titan.

Niemann, Hasso B.↗

NASA NTRS1988

Manned Mars Mission program concepts

This paper describes the SRS Manned Mars Mission and Program Analysis study designed to support a manned expedition to Mars contemplated by NASA for the purposes of initiating human exploration and eventual habitation of this planet. The capabilities of the interactive software package being presently developed by the SRS for the mission/program analysis are described, and it is shown that the interactive package can be used to investigate the impact of various mission concepts on the sensitivity of mass required in LEO, schedules, relative costs, and risk. The results, to date, indicate the need for an earth-to-orbit transportation system much larger than the present STS, reliable long-life support systems, and either advanced propulsion or aerobraking technology.

Hamilton, E. C.↗

NASA NTRS2016

Robots for Astrobiology!

The search for life and its study is known as astrobiology. Conducting that search on other planets in our Solar System is a major goal of NASA and other space agencies, and a driving passion of the community of scientists and engineers around the world. We practice for that search in many ways, from exploring and studying extreme environments on Earth, to developing robots to go to other planets and help us look for any possible life that may be there or may have been there in the past. The unique challenges of space exploration make collaborations between robots and humans essential. The products of those collaborations will be novel and driven by the features of wholly new environments. For space and planetary environments that are intolerable for humans or where humans present an unacceptable risk to possible biologically sensitive sites, autonomous robots or telepresence offer excellent choices. The search for life signs on Mars fits within this category, especially in advance of human landed missions there, but also as assistants and tools once humans reach the Red Planet. For planetary destinations where we do not envision humans ever going in person, like bitterly cold icy moons, or ocean worlds with thick ice roofs that essentially make them planetary-sized ice caves, we will rely on robots alone to visit those environments for us and enable us to explore and understand any life that we may find there. Current generation robots are not quite ready for some of the tasks that we need them to do, so there are many opportunities for roboticists of the future to advance novel types of mobility, autonomy, and bio-inspired robotic designs to help us accomplish our astrobiological goals. We see an exciting partnership between robotics and astrobiology continually strengthening as we jointly pursue the quest to find extraterrestrial life.

Robotics↗

NASA NTRS2020

A Simulation Framework for Precision Landing and Hazard Avoidance Technology Assessments

To meet NASA’s challenge to return humans to the Moon in 2024 and establish a sustainable presence in 2028 requires advances in autonomous spacecraft navigation. The Safe and Precise Landing Integrated Capabilities Evolution (SPLICE) project, which leverages previous work at NASA to develop multi-mission precision landing and hazard avoidance technologies, is using a multi-faceted approach to achieve the advanced landing requirements. In addition to increasing the technology readiness level of key sensors and developing high performance space computing, SPLICE uses simulations to determine navigation requirements and evaluate sensor performance. The effort evaluates various precision landing concepts of operations, not only for the lunar human and robotic missions, but also for potential missions to other solar system destinations. This paper summarizes the six degree-of-freedom high fidelity simulation framework, trajectory design methodology, and sensor models being considered for a variety of precision lander missions. Initial results of the navigation sensor performance for a human Mars mission are presented. Finally, trade and sensitivity studies are outlined for future work to fully characterize sensor performance assumptions and modifications required to achieve precision landing and hazard avoidance.

Alicia Dwyer Cianciolo↗

NASA NTRS2004

Biology and The Future of Mars

It is possible that at some time in the future we might recreate a habitable climate on Mars returning it to the life-bearing state it may have enjoyed early in its history. Our studies of Mars are still in a preliminary state but everything we have learned suggests that it may he possible to restore Mars to a habitable climate. Long part of the intersection of science and fiction (eg. Clarke, 1995), serious studies of planetary ecosynthesis on Mars began after the results of the Viking mission indicated that all the compounds needed for life were present on the surface of Mars is some accessible form (Averner and MacElroy, 1976; McKay et al., 1991; Fogg, 1995). Recent work has focused on the use of climate models to compute the timescales to warm Mars (McKay et al., 1991 ; McKay and Marinova, 2001). Planetary ecosynthesis on Mars has implications for the objectives and conduct of robotic and human exploration. In particular the question of forward contamination must be considered in a new way if we wish to control the introduction of life to Mars in advance of planetary ecosynthesis.

McKay, Christopher P.↗

NASA NTRS2005

Tool for Sizing Analysis of the Advanced Life Support System

Advanced Life Support Sizing Analysis Tool (ALSSAT) is a computer model for sizing and analyzing designs of environmental-control and life support systems (ECLSS) for spacecraft and surface habitats involved in the exploration of Mars and Moon. It performs conceptual designs of advanced life support (ALS) subsystems that utilize physicochemical and biological processes to recycle air and water, and process wastes in order to reduce the need of resource resupply. By assuming steady-state operations, ALSSAT is a means of investigating combinations of such subsystems technologies and thereby assisting in determining the most cost-effective technology combination available. In fact, ALSSAT can perform sizing analysis of the ALS subsystems that are operated dynamically or steady in nature. Using the Microsoft Excel spreadsheet software with Visual Basic programming language, ALSSAT has been developed to perform multiple-case trade studies based on the calculated ECLSS mass, volume, power, and Equivalent System Mass, as well as parametric studies by varying the input parameters. ALSSAT s modular format is specifically designed for the ease of future maintenance and upgrades.

Yeh, Hue-Hsie Jannivine↗

NASA NTRS2015

HAVOC: High Altitude Venus Operational Concept - An Exploration Strategy for Venus

The atmosphere of Venus is an exciting destination for both further scientific study and future human exploration. A lighter-than-air vehicle can carry either a host of instruments and probes, or a habitat and ascent vehicle for a crew of two astronauts to explore Venus for up to a month. The mission requires less time to complete than a crewed Mars mission, and the environment at 50 km is relatively benign, with similar pressure, density, gravity, and radiation protection to the surface of Earth. A recent internal NASA study of a High Altitude Venus Operational Concept (HAVOC) led to the development of an evolutionary program for the exploration of Venus, with focus on the mission architecture and vehicle concept for a 30 day crewed mission into Venus's atmosphere. Key technical challenges for the mission include performing the aerocapture maneuvers at Venus and Earth, inserting and inflating the airship at Venus, and protecting the solar panels and structure from the sulfuric acid in the atmosphere. With advances in technology and further refinement of the concept, missions to the Venusian atmosphere can expand humanity's future in space.

Arney, Dale↗

NASA NTRS2016

A Year in Space: Early Results and Lessons Learned from the First Year-Long Expedition Aboard the International Space Station

Two ISS crewmembers recently completed the first year-long orbital stay in two decades. International cooperation was central to the success of Mikhail Kornienko from Russia and Scott Kelly from the United States. Their expedition leveraged current mission experience and capitalized on recent advances in health monitoring technology. This unique effort began in 2012 when the program managers of the ISS partner nations adopted two separate goals: greater multilateral cooperation to increase efficiency of inflight research and a year-long expedition to gain familiarity with in-flight durations approaching that required for a Mars mission. These goals were unified when a set of bilateral Russian and American human research investigations was assigned to the year-long mission, augmented by additional investigations from Europe and Japan. For example, Kelly was assigned 18 investigations (twice the complement on standard six-month missions) including two joint U.S.-Russian studies, and two Russian and two Japanese studies. The core set of American investigations was a repetition of six studies Kelly had done on his previous six-month ISS mission, to allow a direct comparison of physiological and behavioral responses of the longer and shorter durations in this single individual. The remainder of his assignments plus those of Kornienko were drawn from currently active national investigations documenting human adaptation to long-duration spaceflight factors or effectiveness of countermeasures against known deleterious adaptations. The two joint U.S.-Russian investigations were the flagship biomedical studies of the year-long expedition. The "Fluid Shifts" study collocated American research equipment alongside a Russian operational stressor device to document the pattern and impacts of the headward fluid shift long known to occur in weightlessness, including its role in ocular changes recently observed in some astronauts. The "Field Test" study investigated the ability of the astronaut and cosmonaut to perform rudimentary tasks requiring sensorimotor coordination immediately after landing to define human capabilities soon after landing on Mars after an extended transit. Both investigations were highly successful in large part to the thorough integration of the implementation processes of the two partners. Kelly's assignment as the one-year crewmember also provided a serendipitous opportunity for the "Twins Study" comparing changes in his body at the genetic level with those occurring on Earth in his identical twin brother Mark Kelly. Data analysis from this expedition will commence in earnest after frozen in-flight samples are delivered to Earth in May aboard a commercial cargo spacecraft. Detailed results are expected in early 2017. Preliminary results and implementation improvements will be reviewed in this presentation.

Charles, J. B.↗

NASA NTRS2013

Airborne Particles: What We Have Learned About Their Role in Climate from Remote Sensing, and Prospects for Future Advances

Desert dust, wildfire smoke, volcanic ash, biogenic and urban pollution particles, all affect the regional-scale climate of Earth in places and at times; some have global-scale impacts on the column radiation balance, cloud properties, atmospheric stability structure, and circulation patterns. Remote sensing has played a central role in identifying the sources and transports of airborne particles, mapping their three-dimensional distribution and variability, quantifying their amount, and constraining aerosol air mass type. The measurements obtained from remote sensing have strengths and limitations, and their value for characterizing Earths environment is enhanced immensely when they are combined with direct, in situ observations, and used to constrain aerosol transport and climate models. A similar approach has been taken to study the role particles play in determining the climate of Mars, though based on far fewer observations. This presentation will focus what we have learned from remote sensing about the impacts aerosol have on Earths climate; a few points about how aerosols affect the climate of Mars will also be introduced, in the context of how we might assess aerosol-climate impacts more generally on other worlds.

aerosol-climate impacts↗

NASA NTRS1987

The spectroscopic chemical and photophysical properties of Martian soils and their analogs

The program of research outlined should advance significantly the understanding of the spectral signal of montmorillonites in general and the variations produced in it by structural and surface ferric and ferrous iron and interlayer water as a function of several environmental conditions that are different between Earth and Mars. In addition, an extensive data base was collected providing spectral characterization of several features (iron, both surface and structural, OH-groups, both structural and from adsorbed water and O(-) centers) that are known, or thought to be, influential in directing the surface activity of these important materials. With this data base with which to assess the results of the Viking labeled release simulation studies, it should be possible to gain important insights into the mechanisms of surface reactivity for this important chemical reaction. The results to be gained from these studies will provide a significant body of ground base truth from which to assess: the presence of smectite clays on Mars; the mineralogical form in which the Martian iron is bound; establish upper limits on the present surface water content of Martian soils; perhaps provide insights on the Martian surface radiation history; and to make strong predictions about the nature of surface chemistry on Mars, if iron-bearing clays are a significant component of the surface mineralogical assemblage.

Coyne, Lelia M.↗

NASA NTRS1989

Electric Propulsion for Manned Mars Exploration

Advanced high-power electric propulsion systems can significantly enhance piloted Mars missions. An increase in the science payload delivered to Mars and the reduction of the total Earth-departure mass are the major system-level benefits of electric propulsion. Other potential benefits are the return of the cargo vehicle to Earth orbit and the availability of high power in Mars orbit for high-power science and communications. Parametric analyses for sizing the cargo mission vehicle for Mars exploration missions are presented. The nuclear-electric propulsion system thruster size, power level, mass, propellant type and payload mass capability are considered in these system-level trade studies. Descriptions of the propulsion system selection issues for both ion and MPD thruster technologies are also discussed. On a manned Mars mission, the total launch mass for an unmanned cargo vehicle in low earth orbit (LEO) can be reduced by up to 50 percent over the baseline oxygen/hydrogen propulsion system. Because the cargo vehicle is sent to Mars prior to the manned mission, the trip time for the vehicle is not a critical factor. By taking advantage of the high specific impulse (I sub sp) of an ion or a Magneto-Plasma-Dynamic (MPD) thruster system, the total LEO mass is reduced from 590,000 kg for the oxygen/hydrogen propulsion system to 309,000 kg for the MPD system and 295,000 kg for the ion system. Many factors must be analyzed in the design of a electric propulsion Mars cargo vehicle. The propellant selection, the number of thrusters, the power level and the specific impulse are among the most important of the parameters. To fully address the electric propulsion system design, trade studies for the differing ion and MPD propulsion system configurations (thruster power levels, number of thrusters, propellants and power systems) must be conducted.

Palaszewski, Bryan↗