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NASA Alternate Access to Station Service Concept

The evolving nature of the NASA space enterprise compels the agency to develop new and innovative space systems concepts. NASA, working with increasingly strained budgets and a declining manpower base, is attempting to transform from operational activities to procurement of commercial services. NASA's current generation reusable launch vehicle, the Shuttle, is in transition from a government owned and operated entity to a commercial venture to reduce the civil servant necessities for that program. NASA foresees its second generation launch vehicles being designed and operated by industry for commercial and government services. The "service" concept is a pioneering effort by NASA. The purpose the "service" is not only to reduce the civil servant overhead but will free up government resources for further research - and enable industry to develop a space business case so that industry can sustain itself beyond government programs. In addition, NASA desires a decreased responsibility thereby decreasing liability. The Second Generation Reusable Launch Vehicle (RLV) program is implementing NASA's Space Launch Initiative (SLI) to enable industry to develop the launch vehicles of the future. The Alternate Access to Station (AAS) project office within this program is chartered with enabling industry to demonstrate an alternate access capability for the International Space Station (ISS). The project will not accomplish this by traditional government procurement methods, not by integrating the space system within the project office, or by providing the only source of business for the new capability. The project funds will ultimately be used to purchase a service to take re-supply cargo to the ISS, much the same as any business might purchase a service from FedEx to deliver a package to its customer. In the near term, the project will fund risk mitigation efforts for enabling technologies. AAS is in some ways a precursor to the 2nd Generation RLV. By accomplishing ISS resupply with existing technologies, not only will a new category of autonomous vehicles deliver cargo, but a commercial business base will be incubated that will improve the likelihood of commercial convergence with the next generation of RLVs. Traditional paradigms in government management and acquisition philosophy are being challenged in order to bring about the objective of the AAS project. The phased procurement approach is proving to be the most questionable aspect to date. This work addresses the fresh approach AAS is adopting in management and procurement through a study of the AAS history, current solutions, key technologies, procurement complications, and an incremental forward plan leading to the purchase of a service to deliver goods to ISS. Included in this work is a discussion of the Commercial Space Act of 1998 and how it affects government purchase of space launch and space vehicle services. Industry should find these topics pertinent to their current state of business.

Bailey, Michelle D.↗

Development of the Architectural Simulation Model for Future Launch Systems and its Application to an Existing Launch Fleet

A significant portion of lifecycle costs for launch vehicles are generated during the operations phase. Research indicates that operations costs can account for a large percentage of the total life-cycle costs of reusable space transportation systems. These costs are largely determined by decisions made early during conceptual design. Therefore, operational considerations are an important part of vehicle design and concept analysis process that needs to be modeled and studied early in the design phase. However, this is a difficult and challenging task due to uncertainties of operations definitions, the dynamic and combinatorial nature of the processes, and lack of analytical models and the scarcity of historical data during the conceptual design phase. Ultimately, NASA would like to know the best mix of launch vehicle concepts that would meet the missions launch dates at the minimum cost. To answer this question, we first need to develop a model to estimate the total cost, including the operational cost, to accomplish this set of missions. In this project, we have developed and implemented a discrete-event simulation model using ARENA (a simulation modeling environment) to determine this cost assessment. Discrete-event simulation is widely used in modeling complex systems, including transportation systems, due to its flexibility, and ability to capture the dynamics of the system. The simulation model accepts manifest inputs including the set of missions that need to be accomplished over a period of time, the clients (e.g., NASA or DoD) who wish to transport the payload to space, the payload weights, and their destinations (e.g., International Space Station, LEO, or GEO). A user of the simulation model can define an architecture of reusable or expendable launch vehicles to achieve these missions. Launch vehicles may belong to different families where each family may have it own set of resources, processing times, and cost factors. The goal is to capture the required resource levels of the major launch elements and their required facilities. The model s output can show whether or not a certain architecture of vehicles can meet the launch dates, and if not, how much the delay cost would be. It will also produce aggregate figures of missions cost based on element procurement cost, processing cost, cargo integration cost, delay cost, and mission support cost. One of the most useful features of this model is that it is stochastic where it accepts statistical distributions to represent the processing times mimicking the stochastic nature of real systems.

Rabadi, Ghaith↗

Designing for a new era of launch vehicle operational efficiency

It is pointed out that early recognition of operational requirements and assessment of their effects provides the best chance of designing an economically viable future space transportation system (FSTS). Operational factors which may influence configuration design include fleet size, operation mode, refurbishment, and the resource requirements. FTST has a simplified operational role compared to the Space Shuttle, which, in addition to transportation, must perform experiments, support payloads, and stay long on orbit. In the future a space station will perform many of these tasks. The FSTS comprises a two-stage fully reusable launch vehicle designed to carry 150,000 lb to a space station, off-load, and return. It would always be launched fully loaded, and its cargo would be processed and redistributed at the space station. Attention is given to ground servicing, flight operations, rendezvous-compatible orbits, launch windows, standard trajectories, entry windows, operational costs, the mission model, and resource requirements.

Talay, T. A.↗

Enabling Open and Interoperable Science: Multi-Omics Data Processing Platform with NASA GeneLab Standardized Bioinformatics Workflows for Space and Earth Research

Multi-omics biological data continues to be generated at an astounding pace. Genomics, transcriptomics, metabolomics, and proteomics, or collectively known as multi-omics data, are used to assess biological functions, and provide invaluable insights into human, animal, plant, and environmental health both on Earth and in Space. Despite the abundance of these valuable data, the need for bioinformatics expertise, particularly as it relates to the niche filed of space biology, and a lack of accessible resources for processing these data limit their usefulness in deriving biological insights. The NASA Open Science Data Repository (OSDR) provides access to omics data from various spaceflight and analog studies. To enhance the accessibility and reusability of these data, GeneLab (part of OSDR) designs and implements standardized, community-driven, open-source bioinformatics workflows to transform raw omics data into standardized processed data. Currently, GeneLab-processed data from hundreds of space studies have been reused for meta-analyses. This has led to new insights and scientific publications that extend beyond the initial research, thereby enriching our understanding of molecular-scale biological responses to the space environment. To make these bioinformatics workflows open and accessible, GeneLab teamed up with DOE-funded initiatives, including the National Microbiome Data Collaborative (NMDC), to create the NASA EDGE [Empowering the Development of Genomics Expertise] Bioinformatics web-based platform. NASA EDGE utilizes shared compute resources to run the GeneLab standardized bioinformatics workflows, which eliminates the need for researchers to have their own high performance computing cluster. The web-based platform makes complicated biological analyses incredibly easy to perform, thus expanding the reach of these analyses to bioinformatics novices, students, and even citizen scientists enabling them to contribute to scientific discoveries and progress. The authors will demonstrate how the NASA EDGE platform can be used to process microbial omics data hosted on OSDR as well as user-generated omics datasets using GeneLab’s standard workflows.

Amanda M. Saravia-Butler↗

Software Process Assessment (SPA)

NASA's environment mirrors the changes taking place in the nation at large, i.e. workers are being asked to do more work with fewer resources. For software developers at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC), the effects of this change are that we must continue to produce quality code that is maintainable and reusable, but we must learn to produce it more efficiently and less expensively. To accomplish this goal, the Data Systems Technology Division (DSTD) at GSFC is trying a variety of both proven and state-of-the-art techniques for software development (e.g., object-oriented design, prototyping, designing for reuse, etc.). In order to evaluate the effectiveness of these techniques, the Software Process Assessment (SPA) program was initiated. SPA was begun under the assumption that the effects of different software development processes, techniques, and tools, on the resulting product must be evaluated in an objective manner in order to assess any benefits that may have accrued. SPA involves the collection and analysis of software product and process data. These data include metrics such as effort, code changes, size, complexity, and code readability. This paper describes the SPA data collection and analysis methodology and presents examples of benefits realized thus far by DSTD's software developers and managers.

Rosenberg, Linda H.↗

Achieving reutilization of scheduling software through abstraction and generalization

Reutilization of software is a difficult goal to achieve particularly in complex environments that require advanced software systems. The Request-Oriented Scheduling Engine (ROSE) was developed to create a reusable scheduling system for the diverse scheduling needs of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). ROSE is a data-driven scheduler that accepts inputs such as user activities, available resources, timing contraints, and user-defined events, and then produces a conflict-free schedule. To support reutilization, ROSE is designed to be flexible, extensible, and portable. With these design features, applying ROSE to a new scheduling application does not require changing the core scheduling engine, even if the new application requires significantly larger or smaller data sets, customized scheduling algorithms, or software portability. This paper includes a ROSE scheduling system description emphasizing its general-purpose features, reutilization techniques, and tasks for which ROSE reuse provided a low-risk solution with significant cost savings and reduced software development time.

Wilkinson, George J.↗

Martian Moons and Space Transportation Using Chemical and Electric Propulsion Options

Using chemical and nuclear electric propulsion for the exploration of the Martian moons will be investigated. Both oxygen/hydrogen chemical propulsion and nuclear electric propulsion with 500 kilowatt electric (kWe) to 10 megawatt electric (MWe) reactors will be assessed. The initial masses, propellant masses, and trip times for a variety of space vehicle payload masses will be compared. For high energy orbital transfer, the nuclear electric propulsion vehicles required a small fraction of the propellant mass over oxygen/hydrogen orbital transfer vehicles (OTVs). The moons, Phobos and Deimos, may hold resources for refueling future space vehicles. In-situ resource utilization (ISRU) can be a powerful method of reducing Earth dependence on space vehicle propellants, liquid water, and breathing gases. Historical studies have identified the potential of water in carbonaceous chondrites on the moons. The moon-derived propellants OTVs that move payloads between the moons and to other important operational Mars orbits. Also, the propellants have been suggested to support reusable Mars landers. To extract the water, the mined mass, its volume and the mining time were estimated. The water mass fraction may be as low as 2x10 −4 . Very large masses were needed to be extracted for up to 100 MT of water.

In-situ resource utilization↗

OAST Space Theme Workshop. Volume 2: Theme summary. 6: Advanced transportation systems. A: Theme statement. B. 26 April 1976 presentation. C. Theme summary. D. Initiative actions

Technology requirements for an integrated space transportation system capability which will allow the nation to use space efficiently, reliably, and routinely in the years between 1985 and 2000 with a significant return on invested resources will build on the currently defined space transportation system using shuttle, the IUS, and the advanced upper stage such as the solar electric propulsion system. Contributing technologies should include those which support (1) total reusability with minimal refurbishment; (2) responsiveness to high launch rate requirements when operation and energy are the predominant recurring costs; and (3) maximum flexibility in operation between earth and LEO and between LEO and GEO. Initiatives undertaken to advance the heavy lift to launch vehicles, single stage to orbit vehicles, and orbit transfer vehicles are listed.

Source record↗

Remote Measurement of Pollution - A 40-Year Langley Retrospective: Temperature and Gaseous Species - Part 1

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) phased down its Apollo Moon Program after 1970 in favor of a partly reusable Space Shuttle vehicle that could be used to construct and supply a manned, Earth-orbiting Space Station. Applications programs were emphasized in response to the growing public concern about Earth's finite natural resources and the degradation of its environment. Shortly thereafter, a workshop was convened in Norfolk, Virginia, on Remote Measurement of Pollution (or RMOP), and its findings are in a NASA Special Publication (NASA SP-285). The three primary workshop panels and their chairmen were focused on trace gas species (Will Kellogg), atmospheric particulates or aerosols (Verner Suomi), and water pollution (Gifford Ewing). Many of the workshop participants were specialists in the techniques that might be employed for the regional to global-scale, remote measurements from an Earth-orbiting satellite. The findings and recommendations of the RMOP Report represent the genesis of and a blueprint for the satellite, atmospheric sensing programs within NASA for nearly two decades. This paper is a brief, 40-year retrospective of those instrument developments that were an outgrowth of the RMOP activity. Its focus is on satellite measurement capabilities for temperature and gaseous species that were demonstrated by atmospheric technologists at the Langley Research Center. Limb absorption by solar occultation, limb infrared radiometry, and gas filter correlation radiometry techniques provided significant science data, so they are emphasized in this review.

Remsberg, Ellis E.↗

Metals and Oxygen Mining from Meteorites, Asteroids and Planets using Reusable Ionic Liquids

In order for humans to explore beyond Low Earth Orbit both safely and economically, it will be essential to learn how to make use of in situ materials and energy in an environment much different than on earth. Precursor robotic missions will be necessary to determine what resources will be available and to demonstrate the capabilities for their use. To that end, we have recently been studying acidic Ionic Liquid (IL) systems for use in a low temperature (< 200 C) process to solubilize regolith, and to extract, as water, the oxygen available in metal oxides. Using this method, we have solubilized lunar regolith simulant (JSC-1A), as well as extraterrestrial materials in the form of meteorites, and have extracted up to 80% of the available oxygen. Moreover, by using a hydrogen gas electrode, we have shown that the IL can be regenerated at the anode and metals (e.g. iron) can be plated onto the cathode. These results indicate that IL processing is an excellent candidate for extracting oxygen in situ, for life support and propulsion, and for extracting metals to be used as feedstock in fabrication processes. We have obtained small amounts of meteorite materials believed by meteoriticists to have originated from our moon, Mars, and the asteroid Vesta, and were able to solubilize those using acidic IL systems. From the Vesta meteorite, we were able to extract about 60% of the available oxygen as water. As far as is known, this is the first time that extraterrestrial/earth hybrid water has been obtained. NMR analysis provided proof that the liquid retrieved is indeed water. We have also been able to electro-plate nickel and iron contained in meteorite material. By varying voltage they can be plated separately (electro-winning), and we plan to soon have sufficient quantities to form usable parts utilizing the additive manufacturing process.

Karr, Laurel J.↗

Liquid Nitrogen Testing of ISRU Liquefaction Methods in Unsteady Applications

To enable NASA’s planned long duration missions, the agency is putting emphasis on reusable cryogenic systems. Such systems will require replenishing of cryogens on-orbit via a cryogenic tanker or refueling depot, and potentially on the lunar or Martian surfaces with the utilization of in-situ resources. Surface replenishing requires the in-situ production of gaseous oxygen (and hydrogen if on the lunar surface), followed by liquefaction and storage. Funded by NASA’s Advanced Exploration Systems, and managed under the Advanced Cis-Lunar Space Capability Project, the Cryogenic Fluid In-Situ Liquefaction for Landers (CryoFILL) multi center team was formed to develop a liquefaction and storage system that is efficient, reliable and scalable. This presentation will demonstrate the liquefaction and storage of “In-Situ like” propellant via a Tube-On-Tank Heat Exchanger integrated with Active Cooling (cryocooler) (verify proof of concept and obtain relevant data for model validation) and gather lessons learned from “brassboard” testing which will be applied to future liquefaction system prototype testing, then eventually to an end-to-end demonstration.

Stephens, J. R.↗

Reusable Rack Interface Controller Common Software for Various Science Research Racks on the International Space Station

The purpose of the EXPRESS (Expedite the PRocessing of Experiments to Space Station) rack project is to provide a set of predefined interfaces for scientific payloads which allow rapid integration into a payload rack on International Space Station (ISS). VxWorks' was selected as the operating system for the rack and payload resource controller, primarily based on the proliferation of VME (Versa Module Eurocard) products. These products provide needed flexibility for future hardware upgrades to meet everchanging science research rack configuration requirements. On the International Space Station, there are multiple science research rack configurations, including: 1) Human Research Facility (HRF); 2) EXPRESS ARIS (Active Rack Isolation System); 3) WORF (Window Observational Research Facility); and 4) HHR (Habitat Holding Rack). The RIC (Rack Interface Controller) connects payloads to the ISS bus architecture for data transfer between the payload and ground control. The RIC is a general purpose embedded computer which supports multiple communication protocols, including fiber optic communication buses, Ethernet buses, EIA-422, Mil-Std-1553 buses, SMPTE (Society Motion Picture Television Engineers)-170M video, and audio interfaces to payloads and the ISS. As a cost saving and software reliability strategy, the Boeing Payload Software Organization developed reusable common software where appropriate. These reusable modules included a set of low-level driver software interfaces to 1553B. RS232, RS422, Ethernet buses, HRDL (High Rate Data Link), video switch functionality, telemetry processing, and executive software hosted on the FUC computer. These drivers formed the basis for software development of the HRF, EXPRESS, EXPRESS ARIS, WORF, and HHR RIC executable modules. The reusable RIC common software has provided extensive benefits, including: 1) Significant reduction in development flow time; 2) Minimal rework and maintenance; 3) Improved reliability; and 4) Overall reduction in software life cycle cost. Due to the limited number of crew hours available on ISS for science research, operational efficiency is a critical customer concern. The current method of upgrading RIC software is a time consuming process; thus, an improved methodology for uploading RIC software is currently under evaluation.

Lu, George C.↗

On-orbit maintenance and repair - New era in space research and industrialization

During the seventies, NASA was developing a multifunction, economical spacecraft complete with ground and spaceborne support equipment, software, and necessary documentation to facilitate a large variety of space missions on a routine and cost effective basis. In order to reduce costs and time requirements, research was conducted to identify new approaches to a reusable, low-cost spacecraft design. The result of these studies was the development of the Multimission Modular Spacecraft (MMS). Three MMS spacecraft are currently operating in orbit. These spacecraft include the two Landsat-D earth resources satellites, Landsat-4 and -5, and the Solar Maximum Mission (SMM) spacecraft. Attention is given to details regarding the MMS, the STS-41C SMM repair mission, and failure modes and component degradation.

Cepollina, F.↗

Operational awareness in future space transportation system concepts and technology selections

An analysis of operations for a two-stage, fully reusable future space transportation system has been performed, and the results are discussed. The value of conducting an analysis of operations in the conceptual design phase to produce a highly productive system was demonstrated by obtaining estimated reductions in resources and ground turnaround time and comparing them with estimated mature Shuttle program requirements. Cooperative efforts by users, future vehicle designers, and operations analysts during the conceptual design phase are shown to produce an efficient vehicle design with broad market potential. The synergistic effects of vehicle design configuration, subsystems, and procedures can enhance productivity of the transportation system as measured by flexibility, availability, and viability. Advanced technologies and subsystems beneficial to such a system are identified.

Eide, D. G.↗

Spaceborne computer executive routine functional design specification. Volume 2: Computer executive design for space station/base

The computer executive functional system design concepts derived from study of the Space Station/Base are presented. Information Management System hardware configuration as directly influencing the executive design is reviewed. The hardware configuration and generic executive design requirements are considered in detail in a previous report (System Configuration and Executive Requirements Specifications for Reusable Shuttle and Space Station/Base, 9/25/70). This report defines basic system primitives and delineates processes and process control. Supervisor states are considered for describing basic multiprogramming and multiprocessing systems. A high-level computer executive including control of scheduling, allocation of resources, system interactions, and real-time supervisory functions is defined. The description is oriented to provide a baseline for a functional simulation of the computer executive system.

Kennedy, J. R.↗

Current NASA In-Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU) Strategic Vision

Perform development to TRL 5/6 through ground demonstration in relevant environment. Perform component/subscale subsystem flight demonstrations on small/mid-size landers. Assess and characterize water in volatiles in lunar polar shadowed regions and craters. Reduce risk of ISRU for mission critical consumables through Integrated End-to-End Flight Demonstrations (pilot scale). Establish initial Human Mission Scale production capability to promote sustainable operations and as anchor for commercial involvement. Identify and characterize polar region environment and resources/volatiles for Science and future Exploration/Commercial applications. Provide ground-truth physical, mineral, and water/volatile resource characteristic information at multiple locations to provide geological context for science-focused theories of volatile placement and initial mining assessments.Test technologies and processes to reduce risk of future extraction/mining systems. Quantify concentration and lateral/vertical distribution of resources/volatiles. Utilize ISRU capabilities to Extend and Enhance Human Lunar Exploration Missions. Provide oxygen (and fuel) to enable reusable human lunar lander (10+ MT/yr O2)Process carbon-based crew waste/trash into gases and propellants; can reduce logistics while minimizing public perception issues (alternative is conversion to radiation shielding). Scavenge unused propellants and hardware from spent landers. Metal extraction from regolith as feedstock for in situ and in space manufacturing demonstrations. Civil engineering and construction aimed at future outpost/infrastructure build-up. Develop and Demonstrate ISRU for Human Mars Missions. ISRU for propellant production (10-15 MT/yr); Liquefy, store, transfer, and refuel ascent vehicle. Use Moon for operational experience and mission validation for Mars: Pre-deployment & remote activation and operation without crew. Storing and transferring mission consumables Landing crew with empty tanks with ISRU propellants already made and waiting. Support/Promote Commercialization of Space. Large scale polar ice mining (100+ MT/yr water)O2/H2 propulsion for landers/cis-lunar transportation with surface and in space depots. In situ construction and energy expansion at mining and human outpost site(s). ISRU Ground Development. Develop and advance ISRU technologies to enable acquisition of resources and processing into mission consumables. Utilize Multi-center collaboration with a portfolio that includes internal NASA work, external contracts, and collaborative agreements/partnerships. Where appropriate, develop lunar ISRU components and subsystems with a Mars-forward application. Engage industry through public-private partnerships to lay the foundation for long-term lunar and space economic development. Spin-in/spin-out technologies for terrestrial applications and industry (mining, oil & gas, alternative energy, construction). Flight Demonstration Path to Operational ISRU. Utilize small demonstrations with near off-the-shelf hardware to obtain critical information quickly on lunar resources and operations. Demonstrate critical technologies and processes that interact with lunar materials and environments. Perform 'pilot plant' demonstrations at architecture relevant scales and durations to reduce the risk for ISRU-provided products for critical human mission applications.

In-situ Resource Utilization↗

Mars Sample Return and Flight Test of a Small Bimodal Nuclear Rocket and ISRU Plant

A combined Nuclear Thermal Rocket (NTR) flight test and Mars Sample Return mission (MSR) is explored as a means of "jump-starting" NTR development. Development of a small-scale engine with relevant fuel and performance could more affordably and quickly "pathfind" the way to larger scale engines. A flight test with subsequent inflight postirradiation evaluation may also be more affordable and expedient compared to ground testing and associated facilities and approvals. Mission trades and a reference scenario based upon a single expendable launch vehicle (ELV) are discussed. A novel "single stack" spacecraft/lander/ascent vehicle concept is described configured around a "top-mounted" downward firing NTR, reusable common tank, and "bottom-mount" bus, payload and landing gear. Requirements for a hypothetical NTR engine are described that would be capable of direct thermal propulsion with either hydrogen or methane propellant, and modest electrical power generation during cruise and Mars surface insitu resource utilization (ISRU) propellant production.

George, Jeffrey A.↗

NASA’s Artemis Human Landing Systems: Enabling Lunar Exploration

On March 26, 2019, in keeping with Space Policy Directive-1, NASA was charged with landing the first woman and the next man on the South Pole of the Moon by 2024, followed by a sustained presence on and around the Moon by 2028. NASA’s Human Landing System (HLS) Program is responsible for the transportation in deep space to carry humans to and from the surface of the Moon, to be designed and developed by American companies for NASA’s Artemis lunar exploration program. On April 30, 2020, NASA announced the awardees for NASA’s Human Landing System contracts under Appendix H of the NextSTEP-2 Broad Agency Announcement: A Blue Origin-led team including Lockheed Martin, Northrup Grumman, and Draper; Dynetics (a Leidos company); and SpaceX. The companies began work in a multi-month base period during which NASA teams will work with the companies to streamline requirements, to establish standards and methods, to review required products and to share the NASA’s expertise in human spaceflight systems development. Following the base period, which ends in the spring of 2021, NASA will determine which company or companies will develop Artemis human landing systems for the initial demonstration missions, including the goal of landing on the Moon in 2024.This paper examines how the Human Landing System program is at the center of NASA’s Artemis lunar exploration program, designed to yield groundbreaking science, develop and utilize lunar surface resources and leverage the Moon as a proving ground for future Mars missions. While achieving the 2024 goal requires a focus on speed and the use of mature technologies, planning toward sustained operations to and from the lunar surface requires a focus on reliability and reusability.

Lisa Watson-Morgan↗