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NASA NTRS2012

Making an Informed Decision on Freshwater Management by Integrating Remote Sensing Data with Traditional Data

The US National Research Council (NRC) recommended that: "The U.S. government, working in concert with the private sector, academe, the public, and its international partners, should renew its investment in Earth-observing systems and restore its leadership in Earth science and applications." in response to the NASA Earth Science Division's request to prioritize research areas, observations, and notional missions to make those objectives. In this presentation, we will discuss our approach to connect remote sensing science to decision support applications by establishing a framework to integrate direct measurements, earth system models, inventories, and other information to accurately estimate fresh water resources in global, regional, and local scales. We will discuss our demonstration projects and lessons learned from the experience. Deploying a monitoring system that offers sustained, accurate, transparent and relevant information represents a challenge and opportunity to a broad community spanning earth science, water resource accounting and public policy. An introduction to some of the scientific and technical infrastructure issues associated with monitoring systems is offered here to encourage future treatment of these topics by other contributors as a concluding remark.

climate↗

NASA NTRS2008

Recent Insights into the Nature of Turbulence in the Solar Wind

During the past several years, studies of solar wind turbulence using data from Cluster and other spacecraft, and results from new numerical simulations, have revealed new aspects of solar wind turbulence. I will try to highlight some of that research. At the shortest length scales and highest frequencies, there is renewed interest in determining how the turbulence dissipates, e.g., whether by kinetic Alfven waves or whistler turbulence. Finding observational evidence for exponential damping of solar wind fluctuations has proven challenging. New studies using a combination of flux gate and search coil magnetometer data from Cluster have extended this search (in the spacecraft frame of reference) to more than 10 Hertz. New models and simulations are also being used to study the dissipation. A detailed study of fluctuations in the magnetosheath suggests that turbulent dissipation could be occurring at very thin current sheets as had been suggested by two-dimensional MHD simulations more than 20 years ago. Data from the four Cluster spacecraft, now at their maximum separation of 10,000 km provide new opportunities to investigate the symmetry properties, scale lengths, and the relative proportion of magnetic energy in parallel and perpendicular wave numbers of solar wind turbulence. By utilizing well-calibrated electron data, it has been possible to take advantage of the tetrahedral separation of Cluster in the solar wind near apogee to measure directly the compressibility and vorticity of the solar wind plasma.

Goldstein, Melvun L.↗

NASA NTRS2013

Advanced Seal Sessions I and II

As aircraft operators continue to seek higher fuel efficiency, lower emissions, and longer on-wing performance, turbine engine designers are scrutinizing all components for areas of improvement. To achieve overall goals, turbine pressure ratios and by-pass ratios continue to climb. Also, designers are seeking to minimize parasitic and cooling flows to extract the most useful work out of the flow stream, placing a renewed interest on seal technology and secondary flow path management. In the area of future manned spacecraft, advancements are being examined for both habitat seals and re-entry thermal protection system thermal barrierseals. For long duration space craft, designers are continuing to look for savings in parasitic losses to reduce the amount of cabin re-supply air that needs to be brought along. This is placing greater demands on seal designs and materials to exhibit low leakage and be resistant to space environments. For future missions to and from distant planets, the re-entry heating will be higher than for low-earth orbit or lunar return motivating advanced thermal barrier development. This presentation will provide an overview of the seal challenges and opportunities in these diverse areas.

turbine engines↗

NASA NTRS2014

Novel Catalysts and Processing Technologies for Production of Aerospace Fuels from Non-Petroleum Raw Materials

Transportation fuels production (including aerospace propellants) from non-traditional sources (gases, waste materials, and biomass) has been an active area of research and development for decades. Reducing terrestrial waste streams simultaneous with energy conversion, plentiful biomass, new low-cost methane sources, and/or extra-terrestrial resource harvesting and utilization present significant technological and business opportunities being realized by a new generation of visionary entrepreneurs. We examine several new approaches to catalyst fabrication and new processing technologies to enable utilization of these nontraditional raw materials. Two basic processing architectures are considered: a single-stage pyrolysis approach that seeks to basically re-cycle hydrocarbons with minimal net chemistry or a two-step paradigm that involves production of supply or synthesis gas (mainly carbon oxides and H2) followed by production of fuel(s) via Sabatier or methanation reactions and/or Fischer-Tröpsch synthesis. Optimizing the fraction of product stream relevant to targeted aerospace (and other transportation) fuels via modeling, catalyst fabrication and novel reactor design are described. Energy utilization is a concern for production of fuels for either terrestrial or space operations; renewable sources based on solar energy and/or energy efficient processes may be mission enabling. Another important issue is minimizing impurities in the product stream(s), especially those potentially posing risks to personnel or operations through (catalyst) poisoning or (equipment) damage. Technologies being developed to remove (and/or recycle) heteroatom impurities are briefly discussed as well as the development of chemically robust catalysts whose activities are not diminished during operation. The potential impacts on future missions by such new approaches as well as balance of system issues are addressed.

space processing↗

NASA NTRS2014

Novel Catalysts and Processing Technologies for Production of Aerospace Fuels from Non-Petroleum Raw Materials

Transportation fuels production (including aerospace propellants) from non-traditional sources (gases, waste materials, and biomass) has been an active area of research and development for decades. Reducing terrestrial waste streams simultaneous with energy conversion, plentiful biomass, new low-cost methane sources, and/or extra-terrestrial resource harvesting and utilization present significant technological and business opportunities being realized by a new generation of visionary entrepreneurs. We examine several new approaches to catalyst fabrication and new processing technologies to enable utilization of these non-traditional raw materials. Two basic processing architectures are considered: a single-stage pyrolysis approach that seeks to basically re-cycle hydrocarbons with minimal net chemistry or a two-step paradigm that involves production of supply or synthesis gas (mainly carbon oxides and hydrogen) followed by production of fuel(s) via Sabatier or methanation reactions and/or Fischer-Tropsch synthesis. Optimizing the fraction of product stream relevant to targeted aerospace (and other transportation) fuels via modeling, catalyst fabrication and novel reactor design are described. Energy utilization is a concern for production of fuels for either terrestrial or space operations; renewable sources based on solar energy and/or energy efficient processes may be mission enabling. Another important issue is minimizing impurities in the product stream(s), especially those potentially posing risks to personnel or operations through (catalyst) poisoning or (equipment) damage. Technologies being developed to remove (and/or recycle) heteroatom impurities are briefly discussed as well as the development of chemically robust catalysts whose activity are not diminished during operation. The potential impacts on future missions by such new approaches as well as balance of system issues are addressed.

propellants↗

NASA NTRS1999

NASA Space Biology Research Associate Program for the 21st Century

The Space Biology Research Associate Program for the 21st Century provided a unique opportunity to train individuals to conduct biological research in hypo- and hyper-gravity, and to conduct ground-based research. This grant was developed to maximize the potential for Space Biology as an emerging discipline and to train a cadre of space biologists. The field of gravitational and space biology is rapidly growing at the future of the field is reflected in the quality and education of its personnel. Our chief objective was to train and develop these scientists rapidly and in a cost effective manner. The program began on June 1, 1980 with funding to support several Research Associates each year. 113 awards, plus 1 from an independently supported minority component were made for the Research Associates program. The program was changed from a one year award with a possibility for renewal to a two year award. In 1999, the decision was made by NASA to discontinue the program due to development of new priorities for funding. This grant was discontinued because of the move of the Program Director to a new institution; a new grant was provided to that new institution to allow completion of the training of the remaining 2 research associates in 1999. After 1999, the program will be discontinued.

Sonnenfeld, Gerald↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Electrochemical Recycling of CO2

Carbon dioxide (CO2) is a molecule that plays multiple roles in our universe. Currently, its impact on global warming has rightfully given CO2 a label as a harmful waste product that must be amply handled. Nonetheless, under other circumstances, and from other perspectives, CO2 could be regarded as a valuable resource. As example, in nature CO2 is an essential building block in photosynthesis ultimately yielding molecules and materials that we harvest for numerous applications ranging from energy storage and construction to medicines and food. In a similar manner, there is a growing interest to utilize atmospheric CO2 to generate renewable fuels and platform chemicals through artificial processes. These processes can replace fossil based industrial processes on earth alleviating climate impact, but they can also find uses far away from our planet. In space, CO2 is an important source of precious oxygen, however, it can also serve as feedstock for carbon-based molecules and materials that are needed to sustain societies at distant planets such as Mars. In this presentation, I will discuss the contemporary understanding of electrochemical reduction of CO2 for selective production of desired molecules. We will zoom in to the very atomic scale to gain mechanistic understanding of how the structure and composition of the cathode electrode affects product distributions. This information is used as guide in the design of new materials that convert CO2 more efficiently and more selectively. On this basis, opportunities for recycling CO2 under different conditions will be discussed, as will remaining challenges for the ultimate application towards the sustainable human living on earth and in space.

electrochemistry↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Suborbital Testing of the OSCAR Trash-to-Gas System

With the sustained human exploration of nearby celestial bodies on the horizon, a renewed outlook on crew waste management must be realized. Current waste management strategies aboard the International Space Station become impractical as we venture beyond low Earth orbit. Furthermore, for future exploration missions, extracting resources from various waste streams becomes increasingly advantageous. One method of combatting the long-duration waste management problem is by thermally degrading solid and liquid crew waste items into a chemically inert, ventable gas stream, a process known as Trash-to-Gas. The Orbital Syngas/Commodity Augmentation Reactor (OSCAR) is the state-of-the-art Trash-to-Gas system which has been designed to explore microgravity Trash-to-Gas concepts for improved mass/volume reduction and resource recovery from waste. OSCAR is a subscale testbed design that supports the NASA Logistics Reduction project under the Advanced Exploration Systems Program and Space Technology Mission Directorate Flight Opportunities Program to determine the feasibility of Trash-to-Gas technology for future use on long duration space missions. OSCAR has flown on two suborbital flight demonstrations aboard Blue Origin’s New Shepard launch vehicle. This paper presents a high-level comparative analysis of these microgravity test campaigns with Earth gravity laboratory experiments. Solid-to-gas conversion, gas production & composition, and reactor temperature & pressure are compared to highlight the operational factors and performance differences within the microgravity environment for future optimization.

Ray P Pitts↗

NASA NTRS1986

Space solar cell research: Problems and potential

The value of a passive, maintenance-free, renewable energy source was apparent in the early days of the space program, and the silicon solar cell was pressed into service. Efficiencies of those early space solar arrays were low, and lifetimes shorter than hoped for, but within a decade significant advances had been made in both areas. Better performance was achieved through improvements in silicon single crystal material, better device designs, and a better understanding of the factors that affect the performance of a solar cell in space. Chief among the latter, particularly for the mid-to-high altitude (HEO) and geosynchronous (GEO) orbits, are the effects of the naturally occurring particulate radiation environment. Although not as broadly important to the photovoltaic community at large as increased efficiency, the topic of radiation damage is critically important to use of solar cells in space, and is a major component of the NASA research program in space photovoltaics. A brief overview of some of the opportunities and challenges for space photovoltaic applications is given, and some of the current research directed at achieving high efficiency and controlling radiation damage in space solar cells is discussed.

Flood, D. J.↗

NASA NTRS2011

Environmental Signatures for Habitability: What to Measure and How to Rank the Habitability Potential of Mars

The environmental signatures for habitability are not necessarily biosignatures, even though on Earth, they are definitive proof of habitability. It is the constant overprint of the chemical signatures of life that makes it difficult to recognize the chemical and physical properties of a potentially habitable environment as distinct from an inhabited one. Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) will soon embark on a mission to Mars to assess its past or present habitability, so it is useful to examine how we measure habitability on Earth and prepare for how that approach may differ for Mars. This exercise includes: (a) articulation of fundamental assumptions about habitability, (b) an inventory of factors that affect habitability, (c) development of metrics, measurement approach and implementation, and (d) a new classification scheme for planetary habitability that goes beyond the binary "yes" or "no." There may be dozens of factors that affect habitability and they can be weighted as a function of specific environment. However a robotic, in situ investigation even on Earth has constraints that prevent the measurement of every environmental factor, so metrics must be reduced to the most relevant subset, given available time, cost, technical feasibility and scientific importance. Many of the factors could be measured with a combination of orbital data and the MSL payload. We propose that, at a minimum, a designation of high habitability potential requires the following conditions be met: (a) thermally stable with respect to extremes and frequency of fluctuation, (b) has more than one energy source, (c) sufficient chemical diversity to make compounds with covalent and hydrogen bonding, (d) can moderate ionizing radiation enough to allow a stable or evolving pool of organic molecules, (e) must have water or other high quality polar solvent, (f) must be able to renew chemical resources (e.g., plate tectonics, volcanism or something else we haven't envisioned). A measurement approach we have taken to measure habitability on Earth is : 1. Study remote sensing data, maps, etc. 2. Decide how big an area to measure. 3. Determine the spatial sampling rate. 4. Determine the temporal sampling rate. 5. Determine the order of measurements 6. Decide where to begin measurements 7. Select locations at field site and proceed While science drives each of the steps, there are additional constraints, e.g., technical, time, cost, safety (risk). This approach is also executable on Mars. Measurement of past habitability is more challenging both for Earth and Mars where access to the past means subsurface access and confrontation with unknowns about preservation of the martian past. Some environments preserve evidence of past habitability better than others, and this is where selection of the landing site to maximize the preservation potential of habitability indicators will be key. Mars presents an opportunity to discover transitional states between habitable or not, and we offer a ranking scale for planetary habitability with Mars as the second test subject: CLASS ONE Uninhabitable and likely has never been so CLASS TWO Has a high potential but no confirmed observation of life (as defined above) CLASS THREE Inhabited (we find life) 3-A Globally inhabited 3-B Primitive life; early in its evolution, but not yet globally established 3-C Exists only in refugia -- planet heading toward class four CLASS FOUR Post-habitable (there once was life, but now it's gone) MSL provides an opportunity to carefully investigate the habitability of at least one site on Mars and it will reveal much about the possible states of planetary habitability

Conrad, Pamela G.↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Rediscovering Apollo Biomedical Data to Support Artemis: The Apollo Records Synthesis Project

With the first crewed missions of the Artemis Program on the horizon, including the return of humans to another planetary surface, the space medicine and research communities have a renewed interest in buying down risk on these missions using historic Apollo datasets. Archivists with NASA’s Life Sciences Data Archive (LSDA) and epidemiologists with the Lifetime Surveillance of Astronaut Health (LSAH) are collaborating on a project aiming at improving access to historic datasets from the Apollo Program. The Apollo Records Synthesis Project (ARSP) seeks to expand the available historic biomedical knowledge base by examining physical records located across a wide range of collections, including examples such as pre-flight and post-flight physicals, lab reports, and handwritten flight surgeon and biomedical engineer logs from Apollo missions. The ARSP team has been able to identify several previously undocumented sources of biomedical information from Apollo missions. In the future, the team will modernize record storage and accessibility of these resources using digitization and natural language processing. This poster will discuss the progress of the project, give context to the dual research-clinical care nature of the records, and highlight the challenges and opportunities in using data from historical records. This poster will also provide information on how researchers can request access to datasets from these records.

life sciences↗

NASA NTRS2024

Rediscovering Apollo Biomedical Data to Support Artemis: The Apollo Records Synthesis Project

life sciences↗

NASA NTRS2004

The Science Goals of NASA's Exploration Initiative

The recently released policy directive, "A Renewed Spirit of Discovery: The President's Vision for U. S. Space Exploration," seeks to advance the U. S. scientific, security and economic interest through a program of space exploration which will robotically explore the solar system and extend human presence to the Moon, Mars and beyond. NASA's implementation of this vision will be guided by compelling questions of scientific and societal importance, including the origin of our Solar System and the search for life beyond Earth. The Exploration Roadmap identifies four key targets: the Moon, Mars, the outer Solar System, and extra-solar planets. First, a lunar investigation will set up exploration test beds, search for resources, and study the geological record of the early Solar System. Human missions to the Moon will serve as precursors for human missions to Mars and other destinations, but will also be driven by their support for furthering science. The second key target is the search for past and present water and life on Mars. Following on from discoveries by Spirit and Opportunity, by the end of the decade there will have been an additional rover, a lander and two orbiters studying Mars. These will set the stage for a sample return mission in 2013, increasingly complex robotic investigations, and an eventual human landing. The third key target is the study of underground oceans, biological chemistry, and their potential for life in the outer Solar System. Beginning with the arrival of Cassini at Saturn in July 2004 and a landing on Titan in 2006, the next decade will see an extended investigation of the Jupiter icy moons by a mission making use of Project Prometheus, a program to develop space nuclear power and nuclear-electric propulsion. Finally, the search for Earth-like planets and life includes a series of telescopic missions designed to find and characterize extra-solar planets and search them for evidence of life. These missions include HST and Spitzer, operating now; Kepler, SIM, JWST, and TPF, currently under development; and the vision missions, Life Finder and Planet Imager, which will possibly be constructed in space by astronauts.

Gardner, Jonathan P.↗

NASA NTRS1986

Space solar cell research - Problems and potential

The value of a passive, maintenance-free, renewable energy source was immediately recognized in the early days of the space program, and the silicon solar cell, despite its infancy, was quickly pressed into service. Efficiencies of those early space solar arrays were low, and lifetimes shorter than hoped for, but within a decade significant advances had been made in both areas. Better performance was achieved because of a variety of factors, ranging from improvements in silicon single crystal material, to better device designs, to a better understanding of the factors that affect the performance of a solar cell in space. Chief among the latter, particularly for the mid-to-high altitude (HEO) and geosynchronous (GEO) orbits, are the effects of the naturally occurring particulate radiation environment. Although not as broadly important to the photovoltaic community at large as increased efficiency, the topic of radiation damage is critically important to use of solar cells in space, and is a major component of the NASA research program in space photovoltaics. This paper will give a brief overview of some of the opportunities and challenges for space photovoltaic applications, and will discuss some of the current reseach directed at achieving high efficiency and controlling the effects of radiation damage in space solar cells.

Flood, Dennis J.↗

NASA NTRS2024

Dynamic Orbital Slingshot for Rendezvous with Interstellar Objects

The solar sail “statite” concept presents a potential means to study interstellar objects (ISOs). A new class of asteroids and comets, ISOs offer a unique scientific opportunity to answer fundamental scientific questions about the origin of solar system volatiles, the compositions of exo-solar systems, and the transfer rates of material between solar systems. Unfortunately, they are also challenging to study due to their high excess energies and the short lead time offered by present detection infrastructure. By using its solar sail to “hover” in place, a statite is able to await the discovery of an ISO and, when called upon, convert the enormous potential energy of its stationary state into the velocity necessary to rendezvous with the targeted comet or asteroid. The investigation completed in Phase I focused on establishing the viability of the proposed mission concept. To do so, optimal trajectories to the two known ISOs were demonstrated and the relationship between statite placement and the resulting trajectory was explored. Post-launch trajectories from the Earth to strategic statite states were also shown to be feasible. Concurrently with these efforts, a thorough review of published ISO population estimates was conducted and preliminary steps towards creating a database of synthetic ISO ephemerides were completed. If renewed for a Phase II, this will be used to characterize the capabilities of the statite concept.

NIAC Phase I↗

NASA NTRS1996

Surveying Dead Trees and CO2-Induced Stressed Trees Using AVIRIS in the Long Valley Caldera

Since 1980 the Long Valley Caldera in the eastern Sierra Nevada (California) has shown signs of renewed volcanic activity. Frequent earthquakes, a re-inflation of the caldera, hydrothermal activity and gas emissions are the outer symptoms of this renewed activity. In 1990 and 1991 several areas of dying trees were found around Mammoth Mountain. The cause of the die off of the trees was first sought in the persistent drought in the preceding years. However, the trees died regardless of age and species. Farrar et al. (1995) started a soil-gas survey in 1994 in the dead-tree areas and found carbon dioxide concentrations ranging from 30 to 96% at soil depths between 30 and 60 cm. CO2 concentrations in the atmosphere are usually around 0.03% and in the soil profile CO2 levels do commonly not exceed 4 to 5%. Although not much is known about the effect of high levels of carbon dioxide in the soil profile on roots, it is most likely that the trees are dying due to oxygen deprivation: the CO2 drives the oxygen out of the soil. So far, four sites of dead trees have been mapped around Mammoth Mountain. The two largest dying trees sites are located near Horseshoe Lake and near Mammoth Mountain Main Lodge covering approximately an area of 10 and 8 ha respectively. Analysis of the gas composition regarding the He-3/He-4 ratio and the percentage biogenic carbon reveals the source of the gas: the magma body beneath the Long Valley Caldera. Until recently it was not known that volcanoes release abundant carbon dioxide from their flanks as diffuse soil emanations. As a result of the magma gas emission around Mammoth Mountain there is an excellent sequence of dead trees, stressed trees, healthy trees and bare soil surfaces. This research site provides excellent opportunities to: (1) Study the capabilities of imaging spectrometry to map stressed (and dead) pine and fir species; (2) Study methods to separate the vivid vegetation, stressed vegetation and dead vegetation from the soil background of glacial deposits and crystalline rocks. The dead tree areas are located on the flanks of Mammoth Mountain (N:37 deg 37' 45" and W:119 deg 02' 05") at an elevation between 2600 and 3000 meters. The area is covered by an open type of Montane Forest. The dominant tree species are Lodgepole Pine (Pinus contorta), the Red Fir (Abies magnifica) and the Jeffrey Pine (Pinus jeffreyi). The soil surface near Horseshoe Lake is generally fairly bright. The surface is covered by glacial deposits (till) consisting mainly of weathered granitic rocks.

deJong, Steven M.↗

NASA NTRS2018

NASA's Space Launch System: Unprecedented Payload Capabilities

As part of a renewed focus on deep space exploration, NASA and its private sector and international partners are building a new super heavy-lift launch vehicle, the Space Launch System (SLS), as well as the new Orion crew vehicle, and upgrading launch facilities at Kennedy Space Center. Progress made on the Block 1 vehicle, as well as its expected performance metrics and fiscal support from the U.S. administration and Congress, have opened up additional manifest possibilities that the Agency continues to evaluate. Offering a combination of power, payload capacity and departure energy unmatched in contemporary boosters, the SLS family of launch vehicles features the world's most-proven propulsion system: solid rocket boosters and RS-25 main engines with a modified existing cryogenic in-space stage. The initial SLS configuration, Block 1, will deliver at least 26 metric tons (t) of payload to trans-lunar injection (TLI). The vehicle's flexible architecture will enable the rocket to evolve over the next decade to meet the most demanding deep space mission requirements. The second configuration, Block 1B, will deliver at least 34 to 40 t to TLI, depending on whether the crewed or cargo variant is selected. Although designed to facilitate human exploration of deep space, the vehicle also provides game-changing benefits for large science payloads and even harnesses excess capacity to provide small satellites with affordable access to deep space. For the first integrated mission of SLS and Orion, launching from Kennedy Space Center in fiscal year 2020, SLS Block 1 will send Orion on a 25.5-day mission to a distant retrograde lunar orbit with the primary objective to test and validate new systems and procedures. That first mission, called Exploration Mission-1 (EM-1), also has 13 6U-class CubeSat payloads manifested. Those payloads, which will carry out a variety of scientific experiments and technology demonstrations, will deploy in several locations along the trajectory after Orion has separated from SLS. Contractors and suppliers have made significant progress since last year manufacturing the Block 1 vehicle for EM-1. The upper stage and adapters are complete as are the four RS-25 engines. All other major components are constructed and being outfitted for flight. In fact, hardware for the second flight is currently being manufactured at locations across the United States. This paper will outline hardware, avionics and testing progress toward the first and second flights of SLS. Manifest opportunities for primary, co-manifested and secondary payloads will be discussed. An in-depth look at payload utilization and integration will be provided, as well as lessons learned from installing a secondary payload deployment system for EM-1.

Creech, Steve↗