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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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At least 397 records · Page 22
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NASA NTRS1999

Design of a Formation of Earth-Orbiting Satellites: The Auroral Lites Mission

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) has proposed a set of spacecraft flying in close formation around the Earth in order to measure the behavior of the auroras. The mission, named Auroral Lites, consists of four spacecraft configured to start at the vertices of a tetrahedron, flying over three mission phases. During the first phase, the distance between any two spacecraft in the formation is targeted at 10 kilometers (km). The second mission phase is much tighter, requiring satellite interrange spacing targeted at 500 meters. During the final phase of the mission, the formation opens to a nominal 100-km interrange spacing. In this paper, we present the strategy employed to initialize and model such a close formation during each of these phases. The analysis performed to date provides the design and characteristics of the reference orbit, the evolution of the formation during Phases I and II, and an estimate of the total mission delta-V budget. AI Solutions' mission design tool, FreeFlyer, was used to generate each of these analysis elements. The tool contains full force models, including both impulsive and finite duration maneuvers. Orbital maintenance can be fully modeled in the system using a flexible, natural scripting language built into the system. In addition, AI Solutions is in the process of adding formation extensions to the system facilitating mission analysis for formations like Auroral Lites. We will discuss how FreeFlyer is used for these analyses.

Hametz, Mark E.↗
NASA NTRS1999

Design of a Formation of Earth Orbiting Satellites: The Auroral Lites Mission

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) has proposed a set of spacecraft flying in close formation around the Earth in order to measure the behavior of the auroras. The mission, named Auroral Lites, consists of four spacecraft configured to start at the vertices of a tetrahedron, flying over three mission phases. During the first phase, the distance between any two spacecraft in the formation is targeted at 10 kilometers (km). The second mission phase is much tighter, requiring satellite interrange spacing targeted at 500 meters. During the final phase of the mission, the formation opens to a nominal 100-km interrange spacing. In this paper, we present the strategy employed to initialize and model such a close formation during each of these phases. The analysis performed to date provides the design and characteristics of the reference orbit, the evolution of the formation during Phases I and II, and an estimate of the total mission delta-V budget. AI Solutions' mission design tool, FreeFlyer(R), was used to generate each of these analysis elements. The tool contains full force models, including both impulsive and finite duration maneuvers. Orbital maintenance can be fully modeled in the system using a flexible, natural scripting language built into the system. In addition, AI Solutions is in the process of adding formation extensions to the system facilitating mission analysis for formations like Auroral Lites. We will discuss how FreeFlyer(R) is used for these analyses.

Hametz, Mark E.↗
NASA NTRS2007

A Multibody Slosh Analysis for the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter

The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) undergoes a series of thruster maneuvers to attain lunar orbit. The first of the series of lunar orbit insertion (LOI) maneuvers is crucial to the success of the mission. Therefore, it is important to characterize the disturbances acting on the spacecraft during this phase of the mission. This paper focuses on the internal disturbance force caused by fuel slosh and its impact on attitude control. During the first LOI maneuver (LOI-1), approximately 50% of the total fuel mass is used or roughly 25% of the spacecraft s wet mass, during the 38-minute burn. The forces imparted on the spacecraft from the fuel are dependent on the fill level of the two fuel tanks. During LOI-1, the fill level in both tanks varies greatly and thus so does the disturbance level caused by the fuel. It is therefore necessary to account for the time-varying mass properties of the spacecraft and the effects of the varying fuel levels during the entire 38-minute maneuver. Two simulations are developed in Mathworks s Simulink to analyze the fuel slosh effect. The first model, a baseline model, is a rigid body dynamics model where the fuel slosh is not modeled. The second is a multibody model, developed using a multibody dynamics toolbox, where each of the two fuel tanks and the remaining spacecraft body are treated as separate rigid bodies. The simulations are executed in a piece-wise fashion to account for the time-varying mass properties, and to accommodate the multibody toolbox. Disturbances caused by fuel slosh during both lunar and mission orbit insertions will be analyzed through simulation of different dynamics models. Results of the analysis will show the effects of the slosh disturbance on the spacecraft s attitude.

Shah, Neerav↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

James Webb Space Telescope Navigation Optimization Challenges

The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) is a NASA flagship mission launched on December 25, 2021. The early orbit phase was highlighted by three midcourse correction burns that were performed to maneuver the vehicle into a libration orbit at the second Sun-Earth-Moon (SEM) libration point (L2). During the coast to L2, the vehicle’s primary observatory and sunshield were deployed. Once the tennis-court-sized sunshield was unfurled and tensioned into place, the large area exposed to solar radiation pressure (SRP) dictated that the SRP force model would need to account for the vehicle’s geometry, reflective properties, and orientation relative to the Sun. Following the insertion of JWST into its L2 libration orbit on January 24, 2022, the commissioning phase for the vehicle’s observatory commenced along with the first cycle of routine station-keeping maneuvers. The NASA Goddard Space Flight Center’s Flight Dynamics Facility (FDF) provides navigation services for the JWST mission. The FDF serves as the prime or backup navigation operations center for more than 30 active missions spanning a wide array of flight regimes performing orbit determination, maneuver planning, trajectory optimization, and tracking data evaluation. Definitive orbit determination for JWST is performed by the FDF using an Extended Kalman Filter (EKF) to estimate the vehicle’s trajectory and reflective properties using Deep Space Network (DSN) TRK-2-34 tracking data and spacecraft attitude telemetry. For the purposes of orbit prediction and station-keeping maneuver targeting, the sensitivity of the SRP force to the vehicle’s orientation requires that predictive attitude information must be incorporated to generate accurate orbit predictions and maneuver plans. Predictive attitude plans are provided to the FDF by the JWST Spacecraft Operations Center (SOC). Short-term (28 day) orbit predictions are propagated using a Short Range Attitude Plan (SRAP) to model the vehicle’s future attitude states for up to a week. SRAP attitude data is highly reliable, as it reflects finalized planned attitude states that the vehicle will be commanded to attain during the ensuing week. A Long Range Attitude Plan (LRAP) can be implemented to model predicted attitude states beyond one week, but these predictions are tentative and subject to revision due to changes in science operations plans. Instead, a conservative approach of applying a Sun-Pointing Neutral (SPN) attitude configuration is utilized for long-term (2 year) orbit predictions where reliable planned attitude data is not available. SPN attitude mode aligns the net SRP force along the JWST-to-Sun vector where it becomes independent of the vehicle’s angle of rotation about this vector, defined as the Sun yaw. Given the dynamic instability of the libration orbit, station-keeping thrust must be applied in either the sunward or anti-sunward direction to balance the resulting orbit. The attitude constraints of the vehicle also impose limits on the available pointing directions for station-keeping thrusters. The thrusters cannot be aligned with the optimal pointing direction for sunward maneuvers, rendering sunward maneuvers to be significantly less fuel efficient than anti-sunward maneuvers. Consequently, station-keeping maneuvers must be targeted to balance the orbit while ensuring that the next maneuver will also be performed in the anti-sunward direction to optimize propellant usage. When targeting a station-keeping maneuver, the attitude and SRP modeling configuration which is applied to the predicted post-maneuver trajectory will dictate the direction of the subsequent station-keeping maneuver, assuming nominal propulsion system performance. If the predicted post-maneuver attitude states result in an SRP model which under-predicts the cumulative SRP impact on the post-maneuver orbit, a targeted anti-sunward maneuver will be larger than necessary and the next maneuver will need to be executed sunward in order to compensate. In contrast, an anti-sunward maneuver which is targeted using an SRP model which over-predicts the cumulative SRP impact will achieve station-keeping while ensuring that the next maneuver will likewise be performed anti-sunward. For this reason, station-keeping maneuvers are targeted while applying the SPN attitude mode, as this mode entails the largest possible SRP area cross-section and therefore a larger modeled cumulative SRP impact. This paper documents the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center’s FDF support for JWST on-orbit operations and the analysis projects undertaken utilizing the experiences and data accumulated throughout the first full year of routine science operations. The results of these analysis efforts have been used to implement improvements to orbit prediction accuracy and maneuver efficiency which have the potential to prolong the lifespan of JWST to continue to conduct ground-breaking infrared astronomy for decades to come.

Flight Dynamics↗
NASA NTRS1987

An analysis of a candidate control algorithm for a ride quality augmentation system

This paper presents a detailed analysis of a candidate algorithm for a ride quality augmentation system. The algorithm consists of a full-state feedback control law based on optimal control output weighting, estimators for angle of attack and sideslip, and a maneuvering algorithm. The control law is shown to perform well by both frequency and time domain analysis. The rms vertical acceleration is reduced by about 40 percent over the whole mission flight envelope. The estimators for the angle of attack and sideslip avoid the often inaccurate or costly direct measurement of those angles. The maneuvering algorithm will allow the augmented airplane to respond to pilot inputs. The design characteristics and performance are documented by the closed-loop eigenvalues; rms levels of vertical, lateral, and longitudinal acceleration; and representative time histories and frequency response.

Suikat, Reiner↗
NASA NTRS1997

Dynamic Analysis of a Two Member Manipulator Arm

Attenuating start-up and stopping vibrations when maneuvering large payloads attached to flexible manipulator systems is a great concern for many space missions. To address this concern, it was proposed that the use of smart materials, and their applications in smart structures, may provide an effective method of control for aerospace structures. In this paper, a modified finite element model has been developed to simulate the performance of piezoelectric ceramic actuators, and was applied to a flexible two-arm manipulator system. Connected to a control voltage, the piezoelectric actuators produce control moments based on the optimal control theory. The computer simulation modeled the end-effector vibration suppression of the NASA manipulator testbed for berthing operations of the Space Shuttle to the Space Station. The results of the simulation show that the bonded piezoelectric actuators can effectively suppress follow-up vibrations of the end-effector, stimulated by some external disturbance.

McGinley, Mark↗
NASA NTRS2021

Nonlinear Navigation Analysis for a Europa Lander Mission Concept

Navigation strategies typically use linearized techniques to predict maneuver statistics. This method has been successfully employed on numerous high-energy trajectories, but may not be valid for low-energy ones due to the highly non-linear environment. We explore nonlinear navigational techniques applied to a Europa Lander concept by assessing trajectory sensitivity. The linearity assumption is tested at different phases of the endgame trajectory. Maneuver strategies and placement are considered to improve the delivery to Europa. Several cases of non-linear statistical maneuver Monte Carlo simulations are conducted to optimize maneuvers and compare ∆V statistics against conventional linear simulations.

Hernandez, Sonia↗
NASA NTRS2016

Optimizing Mars Sphere of Influence Maneuvers for NASA's Evolvable Mars Campaign

NASA's Human Spaceflight Architecture Team is refining human exploration architectures that will extend human presence to the Martian surface. For both Mars orbital and surface missions, NASA's Evolvable Mars Campaign assumes that cargo and crew can be delivered repeatedly to the same destination. Up to this point, interplanetary trajectories have been optimized to minimize the total propulsive requirements of the in-space transportation systems, while the pre-deployed assets and surface systems are optimized to minimize their respective propulsive requirements separate from the in-space transportation system. There is a need to investigate the coupled problem of optimizing the interplanetary trajectory and optimizing the maneuvers within Mars's sphere of influence. This paper provides a description of the ongoing method development, analysis and initial results of the effort to resolve the discontinuity between the interplanetary trajectory and the Mars sphere of influence trajectories. Assessment of Phobos and Deimos orbital missions shows the in-space transportation and crew taxi allocations are adequate for missions in the 2030s. Because the surface site has yet to be selected, the transportation elements must be sized to provide enough capability to provide surface access to all landing sites under consideration. Analysis shows access to sites from elliptical parking orbits with a lander that is designed for sub-periapsis landing location is either infeasible or requires expensive orbital maneuvers for many latitude ranges. In this case the locus of potential arrival perigee vectors identifies the potential maximum north or south latitudes accessible. Higher arrival velocities can decrease reorientation costs and increase landing site availability. Utilizing hyperbolic arrival and departure vectors in the optimization scheme will increase transportation site accessibility and provide more optimal solutions.

Merrill, Raymond G.↗
NASA NTRS1992

Nonlinear stability and control study of highly maneuverable high performance aircraft, phase 2

Research leading to the development of new nonlinear methodologies for the adaptive control and stability analysis of high angle of attack aircraft such as the F-18 is discussed. The emphasis has been on nonlinear adaptive control, but associated model development, system identification, stability analysis, and simulation were studied in some detail as well. Studies indicated that nonlinear adaptive control can outperform linear adaptive control for rapid maneuvers with large changes in angle of attack. Included here are studies on nonlinear model algorithmic controller design and an analysis of nonlinear system stability using robust stability analysis for linear systems.

Mohler, R. R.↗
NASA NTRS1964

Sonic Booms from Aircraft in Maneuvers

Superboom measurements and calculated pressure patterns have been made for fighter aircraft in level accelerated flight and in turn maneuvers. A summary of the main findings of these superboom studies, qualitative comparisons with analysis, and a physical explanation of some of the observed phenomena are presented. From 2 to 6 booms were observed (compared with normally overserved 2 booms for steady flight), and pressure-buildup factors of from 2 to 4 were measured (depending on the type of maneuver and the location of the observer).The relative positions of the multiple shocks were predicted within 1,000 feet, and the location of the initial superboom impact was found to be predictable within about ±2 miles when the temperature profile and airplane position information were available.

SONIC BOOM↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

NASA CARA Prelaunch Analysis and Process

NASA implemented an official Procedural Requirement (NPR) 8079.1 in June 2023, establishing the minimum collision avoidance requirements and associated operational protocols for NASA space flight programs, projects, and spacecraft to protect the space environment by reducing the risk of collision to an acceptable level. Part of the requirement employs a two-fold approach to analyze the satellite design process with conjunction assessment and risk mitigation in mind, during the pre-launch process, led by the Conjunction Assessment Risk Analysis (CARA) Program for non-Human Space Flight (HSF) Missions. This presentation outlines CARA coordination with missions, informed by the NPR, that spans early mission development to operations. CARA is an Agency-level resource that provides support to all NASA non-HSF missions. CARA protects the orbital environment from collision between NASA non-HSF missions and other tracked on-orbit objects. During the pre-formulation and formulation phases, NASA missions undergo a series of conjunction assessment analyses captured in the Orbital Collision Avoidance Plan (OCAP) prior to transitioning to the implementation phase (typically at the Preliminary Design Review (PDR) or equivalent). The OCAP analyses consist of a thorough review of the spacecraft(s) orbit selection and placement, deployment, cataloguing performance, trackability, ephemeris generation, conjunction mitigation options, autonomous maneuvering, and risk assessment parameters which are performed by a dedicated CARA Analysis Team. The results of these analyses, CARA’s formal recommendations, and the mission’s methods for implementing them, are documented in the OCAP. The intent of engaging in this process so early in the mission design phase, is to ensure that conjunction assessment is considered from the outset, thus mitigating costly design changes and operational risks down the road. NASA missions are also required to coordinate their operational processes and conjunction mitigation procedures with CARA in a Conjunction Assessment Operations Implementation Agreement (CAOIA). The aim of this process is to document the conjunction assessment screening process, conjunction risk assessment parameters, conjunction mitigation steps, flight dynamics operations concepts and maneuvers, and the communication and coordination process between the mission’s project manager and CARA. The intent of the CAOIA document is for it to be completed iteratively, and as missions update these elements, corresponding changes are made in the CAOIA. With this process in place, the engagement and coordination between the missions and CARA from early in the design process into mission operations, helps to ensure that missions not only have a robust conjunction assessment concept of operations to reduce conjunction risk for space sustainability, but are also able to achieve their science goals and have a successful mission.

conjunction assessment↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

NASA CARA Prelaunch Analysis and Process

NASA implemented an official Procedural Requirement (NPR) 8079.1 in June 2023, establishing the minimum collision avoidance requirements and associated operational protocols for NASA space flight programs, projects, and spacecraft to protect the space environment by reducing the risk of collision to an acceptable level. Part of the requirement employs a two-fold approach to analyze the satellite design process with conjunction assessment and risk mitigation in mind, during the pre-launch process, led by the Conjunction Assessment Risk Analysis (CARA) Program for non-Human Space Flight (HSF) Missions. This presentation outlines CARA coordination with missions, informed by the NPR, that spans early mission development to operations. CARA is an Agency-level resource that provides support to all NASA non-HSF missions. CARA protects the orbital environment from collision between NASA non-HSF missions and other tracked on-orbit objects. During the pre-formulation and formulation phases, NASA missions undergo a series of conjunction assessment analyses captured in the Orbital Collision Avoidance Plan (OCAP) prior to transitioning to the implementation phase (typically at the Preliminary Design Review (PDR) or equivalent). The OCAP analyses consist of a thorough review of the spacecraft(s) orbit selection and placement, deployment, cataloguing performance, trackability, ephemeris generation, conjunction mitigation options, autonomous maneuvering, and risk assessment parameters which are performed by a dedicated CARA Analysis Team. The results of these analyses, CARA’s formal recommendations, and the mission’s methods for implementing them, are documented in the OCAP. The intent of engaging in this process so early in the mission design phase, is to ensure that conjunction assessment is considered from the outset, thus mitigating costly design changes and operational risks down the road. NASA missions are also required to coordinate their operational processes and conjunction mitigation procedures with CARA in a Conjunction Assessment Operations Implementation Agreement (CAOIA). The aim of this process is to document the conjunction assessment screening process, conjunction risk assessment parameters, conjunction mitigation steps, flight dynamics operations concepts and maneuvers, and the communication and coordination process between the mission’s project manager and CARA. The intent of the CAOIA document is for it to be completed iteratively, and as missions update these elements, corresponding changes are made in the CAOIA. With this process in place, the engagement and coordination between the missions and CARA from early in the design process into mission operations, helps to ensure that missions not only have a robust conjunction assessment concept of operations to reduce conjunction risk for space sustainability, but are also able to achieve their science goals and have a successful mission.

conjunction assessment↗
NASA NTRS2003

Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) Orbit Design and Autonomous Maneuvers

The NASA Goddard Space Flight Center's Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) mission will meet a challenge of measuring worldwide precipitation every three hours. The GPM spacecraft, part of a constellation, will be required to maintain a circular orbit in a high drag environment to accomplish this challenge. Analysis by the Flight Dynamics Analysis Branch has shown that the prime orbit altitude of 40% is necessary to prevent ground track repeating. Combined with goals to minimize maneuver impacts to science data collection and enabling reasonable long-term orbit predictions, the GPM project has decided to fly an autonomous maneuver system. This system is a derivative of the successful New Millennium Program technology flown onboard the Earth Observing-1 mission. This paper presents the driving science requirements and goals of the mission and shows how they will be met. Analysis of the orbit optimization and the AV requirements for several ballistic properties are presented. The architecture of the autonomous maneuvering system to meet the goals and requirements is presented along with simulations using a GPM prototype. Additionally, the use of the GPM autonomous system to mitigate possible collision avoidance and to aid other spacecraft systems during navigation outages is explored.

Folta, David↗
NASA NTRS1972

Control system optimization studies. Volume 1: Payload deployment study

An analysis of the critical parameters involved in designing systems for spacecraft maneuvers involved in stationkeeping, docking, orbital assembly, satellite inspection and retrieval, and payload deployment is presented. The fixed base simulation was performed on a hybrid computer and includes a cathode ray tube display so that the maneuvers can be visually monitored by a pilot located in the active vehicle. Both automatic and manual control modes are included and the pilot can switch between the two modes as desired. A complete description of the hybrid simulation is provided and simulation results are described. Major digital subroutines, flow charts, and analog wiring diagrams are provided.

Heeschen, G. M.↗
NASA NTRS1983

Flexible Aircraft Takeoff and Landing Analysis

Flexible Aircraft Takeoff and Landing Analysis Program, FATOLA, simulates aircraft takeoff and landing dynamics. Program includes maneuver logic and autopilots for glide slope, flare, landing, and takeoff and is modular so performance of aircraft in flight and during landing and ground maneuvers can be studied separately or in combination.

Carden, H. D.↗