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An ESR study of the UV degradation of FEP

Spacecraft in low earth orbit are subjected to significant levels of high energy radiation, including ultraviolet (UV) and visible ultraviolet (VUV) wavelengths. The effects of UV radiation are enhanced over those at the surface of the earth, where the only incident wavelengths are greater than 290 nm. In low earth orbit the incident UV wavelengths extend below 290 nm into the VUV region, where the Lyman alpha-emissions of atomic hydrogen occur at 121 nm. In addition to electromagnetic radiation, in low earth orbit polymer materials may also be subjected to atomic oxygen particle radiation, which will result in direct oxidation of the polymer.

G. A. George

The Chemical Composition of the Cores of the Terrestrial Planets and the Moon

Using models of the quasi-chemical theory of solutions, the activity coefficients of silicon are calculated in the melts Fe-Si, Ni-Si, and Fe-Ni-Si. The calculated free energies of solution of liquid nickel and silicon in liquid iron in the interval 0 to 1400 kbar and 1500 to 4000 K, shows that Fe-Ni-Si alloy is stable under the conditions of the outer core of the Earth and the cores of the terrestrial planets. The oxidation-reduction conditions are studied, and the fugacity of oxygen in the mantles of the planets and at the core-mantle boundary are calculated. The mechanism of reduction of silicon is analyzed over a broad interval of P and T. The interaction between the matter of the core and mantle is studied, resulting in the extraction of silicon from the mantle and its solution in the material of the core. It is concluded that silicon can enter into the composition of the outer core of the Earth and Venus, but probably does not enter into the composition of the cores of Mercury, Mars, and the Moon, if in fact the latter possesses one.

O L Kuskov

Electrochemistry-based Battery Modeling for Prognostics

Batteries are used in a wide variety of applications. In recent years, they have become popular as a source of power for electric vehicles such as cars, unmanned aerial vehicles, and commericial passenger aircraft. In such application domains, it becomes crucial to both monitor battery health and performance and to predict end of discharge (EOD) and end of useful life (EOL) events. To implement such technologies, it is crucial to understand how batteries work and to capture that knowledge in the form of models that can be used by monitoring, diagnosis, and prognosis algorithms. In this work, we develop electrochemistry-based models of lithium-ion batteries that capture the significant electrochemical processes, are computationally efficient, capture the effects of aging, and are of suitable accuracy for reliable EOD prediction in a variety of usage profiles. This paper reports on the progress of such a model, with results demonstrating the model validity and accurate EOD predictions.

battery

Adaptation and Response in Drylands (ARID): A Dryland Research Agenda and Campaign Strategy

Dryland ecosystems cover 41% of Earth’s land surfaces, account for 44% of cultivated lands and 60% of food sources, and make large contributions to the global water and carbon cycles. However, these ecosystems are experiencing unprecedented extremes including heatwaves, floods, and droughts as well as hotter temperatures and often declining water resource availability. These ecosystems are some of the most challenging to monitor given their high temporal variability with rapid response to their environment as well as vast spatial variability with intermixing of different plant species and life forms amongst bare soil coverage. The Adaptation and Response in Drylands (ARID) campaign was selected by National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) as a scoping study to develop a research agenda for a dryland field campaign. Here, we detail our ARID science research agenda and implementation plan that were developed based on an extensive community engagement effort in over 160 events with over a thousand scientists, land managers, and Tribal communities between 2023 and 2024. The selected science themes cover drought and climate variability, ecosystem structure, function, and biodiversity, carbon cycle interannual variability and trends, and social ecological systems (land management and adaptation). We then detail our remote sensing, modeling, and field-based strategies to capture high temporal and high spatial resolution processes. Finally, our implementation strategy is presented which includes focus area selections in a core intensive western U.S. domain and distributed international domains. This strategy includes our overarching guiding principles of using multi-temporal airborne acquisitions and super sites as well as enhancing land management in co-development with end-user partners. While originally developed for NASA, our ARID report creates a blueprint for any future dryland field campaign, at any scale, that can be implemented widely for foundational and applied science objectives.

drylands

NASA POWER: Providing Analysis-Ready, Cloud-Optimized Data for AI /ML Training and Applications in Earth Science

As global demand for sustainable development grows, the integration of Earth Observation (EO) data into decision making frameworks has become a primary objective for the scientific community. The NASA Prediction of Worldwide Energy Resources (POWER) project serves as a bridge between NASA EO data and the specialized needs of the renewable energy, sustainable infrastructure and agroclimatology communities. In this poster presentation we will present an overview of POWER data products and services along with its use in diverse research to decision-making workflows. By providing over 40 years of high-resolution historical, hourly and daily solar and meteorological data, POWER transforms satellite observations and global model reanalysis into actionable, Analysis-Ready Dataset (ARD). Currently, the project delivers over 250 industry-friendly parameters to the users from different NASA datasets like CERES SYN1Deg, MERRA-2, and IMERG alongside downscaled CMIP6 climate model data, fulfilling over 16 million requests from 50,000 unique users monthly. To ensure data quality and traceability, these parameters are rigorously validated against the ground-based observations from the Baseline Surface Radiation Network (BSRN) and the Global Surface Summary of the Day (GSOD) – these results will be discussed in the presentation. A newly introduced web-based PaRameter Uncertainty ViEwer (PRUVE) tool will be presented that provides an online validation platform to the users that benchmarks satellite-based and assimilation data products against these surface measurements. To reduce technical barriers to data adoption, POWER data is accessible through RESTful APIs, ESRI ArcGIS Image Services, a web-based Data Access Viewer tool, allowing users to visualize, validate and apply the dataset. For efficient data delivery POWER data is cloud-optimized into Zarr datastore accessible through NASA managed Amazon S3 ensures high-performance allowing users to integrate EO directly into operational pipelines. These customized services will be presented. Use cases from application will be presented from the energy sector - such as for design of generation systems, performance monitoring of solar power plants, in infrastructure sector- optimizing building energy efficiency and thermal comfort, in agriculture – such as driving crop simulation and yield forecasting models to enable climate resilient farming. Furthermore, the shift toward machine learning (ML) in EO research that has positioned POWER as a key provider for training datasets which will be discussed. Use-cases will be presented to showcase how NASA data is enabling the development of predictive tools for climate variability and resource management. The poster will present POWER’s future plans including technology development to enhance data traceability and reproducibility and improving I/O performance to support the rapid integration of new EO products, ensuring that POWER remains a robust scalable backend for the evolving landscape of AI-driven Earth Science. Additionally, POWER is developing an AI Agent and an MCP-Server to enable industry AI-Agentic workflows.

Neha Khadka

NASA aerospace battery system program initiation

Preflight and flight battery system problems in flight programs at NASA created high-level concern and interest in the current battery technology status. As a result, NASA conducted an in-house review of problems experienced both internally and by other government users. The derived issues which encompassed the programmatic scope from cell manufacturing to in-flight operations of the system are discussed. From the identified deficiencies, a modestly scaled battery program was established to alleviate or minimize the risks of future occurrences.

Schulze, Norman R.

"Long Life" Dc Brush Motor for Use on the Mars Surveyor Program

DC brush motors have several qualities which make them very attractive for space flight applications. Their mechanical commutation is simple and lightweight, requiring no external sensing and control in order to function properly. They are extremely efficient in converting electrical energy into mechanical energy. Efficiencies over 80% are not uncommon, resulting in high power throughput to weight ratios. However, the inherent unreliability and short life of sliding electrical contacts, especially in vacuum, have driven previous programs to utilize complex brushless DC or the less efficient stepper motors. The Mars Surveyor Program (MSP'98) and the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) have developed a reliable "long life" brush type DC motor for operation in low temperature, low pressure CO2 and N2, utilizing silver-graphite brushes. The original intent was to utilize this same motor for SRTM's space operation, but the results thus far have been unsatisfactory in vacuum. This paper describes the design, test, and results of this development.

David Braun

Comparison Testing and Analysis of Braided Cords Constructed from Varying Kevlar Fiber Types

Material advancements move quickly, resulting in material obsolescence issues that require parachute engineers to understand how the material properties change with a material upgrade and if there are expected impacts to overall performance of the parachute. The objective of this test was to measure the elongation of different Kevlar types at both the cord-level and at the yarn-level to determine if a change in Kevlar type impacted parachute performance. An Instron machine with a pin-to-pin connection was used to measure load and displacement time histories for various Kevlar cord and yarn samples in a cyclic load profile. Twenty-four cord samples and twenty-four yarn samples were tested; each sample was cycled five times to the relevant maximum load (either to breaking strength or to the 30% peak load expected in flight). In addition to the Instron measurements, a photogrammetric technique was also implemented to measure elongation of the samples using button targets. Modulus test data shows approximately a 10% difference in elongation between Kevlar 29AP and Kevlar 129, and another 10% difference in elongation between Kevlar 29 and Kevlar 29AP. Although this is a measurable change in modulus, the effect on parachute performance is likely small, particularly for non-primary structure elements of relatively small length. This test campaign provides an example of the type of testing and analysis that parachute engineers could do to understand how material upgrades affect performance of their systems.

Modulus Testing

Comparison Testing and Analysis of Braided Cords Constructed from Varying Kevlar Fiber Types

Material advancements move quickly, resulting in material obsolescence issues that require parachute engineers to understand how the material properties change with a material upgrade and if there are expected impacts to overall performance of the parachute. The objective of this test was to measure the elongation of different Kevlar types at both the cord-level and at the yarn-level to determine if a change in Kevlar type impacted parachute performance. An Instron machine with a pin-to-pin connection was used to measure load and displacement time histories for various Kevlar cord and yarn samples in a cyclic load profile. Twenty-four cord samples and twenty-four yarn samples were tested; each sample was cycled five times to the relevant maximum load (either to breaking strength or to the 30% peak load expected in flight). In addition to the Instron measurements, a photogrammetric technique was also implemented to measure elongation of the samples using button targets. Modulus test data shows approximately a 10% difference in elongation between Kevlar 29AP and Kevlar 129, and another 10% difference in elongation between Kevlar 29 and Kevlar 29AP. Although this is a measurable change in modulus, the effect on parachute performance is likely small, particularly for non-primary structure elements of relatively small length. This test campaign provides an example of the type of testing and analysis that parachute engineers could do to understand how material upgrades affect performance of their systems.

Parachutes

Chapter 17 - Airframe Tests

This Section outlines the flight testing required to demonstrate that each of the systems installed in an aircraft is suitable for its operational role(s). It is primarily written from the perspective of a military Flight Test Engineer (FTE) but most of the contents are applicable to civil aircraft. Reflecting the introductory nature of this Volume, its scope is limited to systems normally found in all aircraft, e.g., fuel, hydraulic, electrical, etc., systems. The tests described below are usually made under the prevailing ambient conditions and, to assess behaviour under climatic extremes and in all weathers, further testing is conducted as described in Section 18. Tests of the propulsion system are covered separately in Section 23, but for systems associated with specific roles the reader should consult appropriate specialized sources.

J K Appleford

Using Open Innovation in Reducing Risk to Crews

In the exploration of destinations outside of Earth's neighborhood, specifically Mars, scientific and engineering inquiries have occurred by two means; observations from satellites and observations by landed spacecraft. Satellite observations (Mariner, MRO, Mars Odyssey, provide global-scale spatial and temporal data while landed spacecraft (Viking, Mars Pathfinder, Spirit, Opportunity, Phoenix Mars Lander) investigate highly localized areas of the surface of the planet. In preparation for human exploration, extensive knowledge of the surface and atmospheric environments should be known before the first human leaves Earth. The primary goal of performing reconnaissance on Mars on a sub-global scale is to know as much as possible about the environment to which crews will be subjected. At the current rate of launching and landing probes to Mars, it will take a very long time to understand the surface and atmospheric conditions associated with the regions where prospective crews may land. Meanwhile electronics and electrical systems are rapidly getting smaller. One can argue that to acquire the knowledge of the region, one must take hundreds, maybe thousands of measurements simultaneously. One means to perform such a task is to deploy a swarm of sensors. Such a swarm would perform an in-situ assessment of the region. Imagine a close flyby mission to Mars for example, where mini- to micro-sensors are deposited into the atmosphere over half an orbit or more. The sensors, captured by the atmospheric drag and Martian gravity slowly descend buffeted about by Martian winds and weather until they settle on the surface a great time later (think of how long dust takes to settle). As they descend they communicate a vast array of data; temperature, chemistry, pressure, radiation dose, electric or magnetic properties from a region of the planet and an individual sensor need not measure the same quantity as its neighbors. Initially, they could move at the whim of the environment but later versions could have locomotion or propulsion mechanisms. Humans wouldn't need to decide where the sensors go, the sensors do that for themselves. This is a key strength of a sensor swarm. The intelligence relies on the group not on a decision maker on earth. Real time sensor inputs direct what the swarm considers most interesting to investigate resulting in emergent behavior. We issued a $20,000 challenge to the global innovators to provide solutions as to how such a swarm could be initialized and by what protocols and methodologies by which they operate. Over 400 innovators from 49 countries took a look at the problem, with three receiving partial awards for solutions.

Mel Ferebee

International Space Station Lithium-Ion Battery Status

When originally launched, the International Space Station (ISS) primary Electric Power System (EPS) used Nickel-Hydrogen (Ni-H2) batteries to store electrical energy. The electricity for the space station is generated by its solar arrays, which charge batteries during insolation for subsequent discharge during eclipse. The Ni-H2 batteries were designed to operate for ten years at a 35% depth of discharge (DOD) maximum during normal operation in a Low Earth Orbit. For service beyond that period, upgraded Li-Ion Orbital Replacement Units (ORUs) were designed. These are the largest Li-Ion batteries ever utilized for a human rated spacecraft. The first set of six Ni-H2 batteries was replaced by Li-Ion batteries in December 2016; the second set of six was launched in September 2018 and installed in March 2019. The third set of six were launched in September 2019. Three batteries were installed in September 2019, with the remaining three to be installed in January 2020. This paper will include a brief overview of the ISS Li-Ion battery system architecture, start up of the second and third set of 6 batteries and the on-orbit status of all 18 batteries, plus the status of the Li-Ion cell life testing.

Lithium-Ion

Space Photovoltaic Research and Technology 1995

The Fourteenth Space Photovoltaic Research and Technology conference was held at the NASA Lewis Research Center from October 24-26, 1995. The abstracts presented in this volume report substantial progress in a variety of areas in space photovoltaics. Technical and review papers were presented in many areas, including high efficiency GaAs and InP solar cells, GaAs/Ge cells as commercial items, high efficiency multiple bandgap cells, solar cell and array technology, heteroepitaxial cells, thermophotovoltaic energy conversion, and space radiation effects. Space flight data on a variety of cells were also presented.

Geoffrey Landis

Bipolar battery construction

A lightweight, bipolar battery construction for lead acid batteries in which a plurality of thin, rigid, biplates each comprise a graphite fiber thermoplastic composition in conductive relation to lead stripes plated on opposite flat surfaces of the plates, and wherein a plurality of nonconductive thermoplastic separator plates support resilient yieldable porous glass mats in which active material is carried, the biplates and separator plates with active material being contained and maintained in stacked assembly by axial compression of the stacked assembly. A method of assembling such a bipolar battery construction.

Rippel, Wally E.

Influences of Introduced Yttrium Oxide Particles on Superalloy 718

Additive manufacturing has proven useful for introducing oxide particles into superalloys, to provide oxide dispersion strengthening (ODS) at high temperatures. This study screened how such an approach can influence microstructure and failure modes for superalloy 718. The objective of this study was to compare tensile and creep failure modes for additively manufactured superalloy 718 having introduced oxide particles. Fine yttrium-oxide (yttria) particles were introduced into 718 powder using two different powder mixing methods. Additive manufacturing by laser powder bed fusion was then used to prepare specimen blanks for each case, oriented parallel and transverse to the building direction. These were subsequently given consistent stress relief, hot isostatic pressurization, and final heat treatments, then subjected to tensile and creep tests at varied temperatures. Additively manufactured 718 without ODS (“no-ODS”) had nearly equiaxed grains at 50 μm in width. Roll-mixed ODS material had a bimodal grain size distribution, with fine grains at 9 μm and coarse grains at 66 μm in average width. The fine grains were elongated about 5x in the building direction. Acoustic-mixed ODS materials had grains at 10 μm in width that were elongated about 10x in the build direction. Compared to no-ODS, roll-mixed and acoustic mixed ODS materials did not show improved tensile strengths at room temperature, 760 °C, and 1093 °C. The tensile failure strains parallel to the building direction of roll-mixed ODS material were lowest in these tests. Flattened clumps of yttria had formed transverse to the building direction in roll-mixed material, which were easily cracked. Creep rupture response at 760 °C in the building direction was highest for acoustic-mixed material test. Creep tests at 1093 °C showed varied results, with low rupture lives associated with enhanced cavitation at grain boundaries and surface oxidation. Transverse to the building direction, all three materials had low failure strains in tests at 760 °C. The elongated grain boundaries failed readily in all transverse specimens tested at 760 °C and 1093 °C.

oxide dispersion strengthening

Diagnostics development for the Electric Propulsion Orbital Platform

We describe the development of the diagnostics systems for the first flight of the Electric Propulsion Orbital Platform (EPOP), which will center around the in-flight characterization of a 1.8 kW hydrogen arcjet system. In particular, we discuss a spacecraft communications experiment involving ground-to-spacecraft communications of the EPOP carrier; electrical probe measurements in the arcjet plume; and spectrally resolved plume imaging measurements of the same plume. The communications experiment is designed to measure small noise on the communications link which results from arcjet operation. The other two measurements primarily serve the purpose of characterization of the plume plasma. These measurements will be compared to similar measurements performed in a ground chamber to establish whether systematic differences exist between ground-based and in-flight performance of the arcjet system.

Wilhelmus M. Ruyten

LES-Based Analysis of Film Cooling in a High-Pressure Turbine Rotor Including Effects of Purge and Tip Flow

Accurate modeling of coolant airflows, which form protective films over turbine blades, is essential for designing fuel-efficient and environmentally sustainable gas turbine engines. Excessive coolant reduces thermal efficiency, while insufficient coolant leads to blade overheating and causes damage. Therefore, precise prediction of flow field interactions with cooling air is critical for optimizing turbine performance. This study numerically investigates the cooling effectiveness of purge and film cooling flows within a high-pressure turbine (HPT) rotor using Large Eddy Simulation (LES). The study utilizes NASA Glenn Research Center’s Glenn-HT solver. The simulation models ethe conditions of the Penn State University START rotating rig. A high-fidelity structured mesh comprising up to 800 million cells is employed to resolve high-Reynolds number flow (Re ≈ 350,000) and to capture intricate secondary flow structures, including tip leakage and purge-induced vortices. Film cooling effectiveness computations are highly sensitive to boundary conditions at the cooling holes and to grid resolution. Even with well-resolved grids and included plena, strong mixing challenges traditional eddy viscosity models. To address this, a simplified configuration is simulated: a truncated row of shaped holes on the suction side near the leading edge and a row on the pressure side, both fed from internal plena while the purge slot and tip clearance are also modeled. Two isothermal LES cases are conducted at two distinct wall temperatures, which yield the adiabatic wall temperature and the heat transfer coefficient. The definition and means of computation of the effectiveness is discussed in this paper. The simulations reveal detailed three-dimensional unsteady flow features, including coherent vortical structures and secondary flows originating from the purge cavity. Film cooling effectiveness and Nusselt number distributions are presented for both the blade surface and tip, highlighting regions of elevated heat transfer and complex thermal behavior. These findings underscore the importance of high-resolution LES and realistic boundary conditions in capturing the dynamics of purge and film cooling, offering valuable insights for improving turbine blade design and thermal management strategies.

Secondary Flows

An Efficient Approach to Collect Inlet Characterization Data

This report considers a novel process to acquire performance data for supersonic mixed compression inlets that is faster, and therefore less costly, than the previous one. In the previous process, measurements were recorded in discrete increments. The backpressuring actuator was advanced, there was a pause to allow for airflow fluctuations to diminish, and then the measurements were recorded. While this process was methodical, reliable and accurate, it consumed significant wind-on time. In general, high-speed wind tunnels are expensive to operate considering maintenance, energy and human resource requirements. Furthermore, many facilities, such as blowdown wind tunnels, are limited in the duration that they can maintain the desired test condition. Consequently, a quick method to collect the measurements is desired. A favored approach has the actuator moving in a continuous fashion with measurements recorded as the actuator continuously progresses through the increment points. This approach, identified as the dynamic inlet characteristic data acquisition procedure, uses in situ dynamic high-speed pressure sensors to measure pressure signals. While faster, continuous movement adds dynamic effects to the data. To better understand these dynamic effects and other potential influences, a study was undertaken to compare wind tunnel measurements taken at discrete actuator position points with data gathered during continuous actuator movement. Specially, plots of inlet pressure recovery versus mass capture ratio, or total pressure characteristic curves, were examined. The data were measured during experiments in the NASA Glenn Research Center Abe Silverstein 10- by 10-Foot Supersonic Wind Tunnel (SWT) with an inlet propulsion test article. In this report, the wind tunnel experiment and the study objectives are described. The processes to reduce the data and for analysis are explained. A discussion of the results along with features noted in the data is given. Finally, conclusions from this study that may be used to guide future wind tunnel experiment planning are presented.

Inlet