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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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All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1990

Experimental Investigations of Low-Energy (4 to 40 eV) Collisions of O - ( 2 P) Ions and O( 3 P) Atoms With Surfaces

Using a newly-developed, magnetically confined source, low-energy, ground state oxygen negative ions and neutral atoms are generated. The energy range is variable, and atom and neutrals have been generated at energies varying from 2 eV to 40 eV and higher. It was found that the interaction of these low-energy species with a solid magnesium fluoride target leads to optical emissions in the (at least) visible and infrared regions of the spectrum. Researchers describe y details of the photodetachment source, and present spectra of the neutral and ion glows in the wavelength range 250 to 850 nm (for O - ) and 600 to 850 nm (for O), and discuss the variability of the emissions for incident energies between 4 and 40 eV.

A Chutjian↗
NASA NTRS2014

Opportunities to Intercalibrate Radiometric Sensors from International Space Station

Highly accurate measurements of Earth's thermal infrared and reflected solar radiation are required for detecting and predicting long-term climate change. Consideration is given to the concept of using the International Space Station to test instruments and techniques that would eventually be used on a dedicated mission, such as the Climate Absolute Radiance and Refractivity Observatory (CLARREO). In particular, a quantitative investigation is performed to determine whether it is possible to use measurements obtained with a highly accurate (0.3%,with 95%confidence) reflected solar radiation spectrometer to calibrate similar, less accurate instruments in other low Earth orbits. Estimates of numbers of samples useful for intercalibration are made with the aid of yearlong simulations of orbital motion. Results of this study support the conclusion that the International Space Station orbit is ideally suited for the purpose of intercalibration between spaceborne sensors.

Intercalibrate↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Advancing the Oxygen Generation Assembly Design to Increase Reliability and Reduce Costs for a Future Long Duration Mission

The state-of-the-art Oxygen Generation Assembly (OGA) has been reliably producing breathing oxygen for the crew aboard the International Space Station (ISS) for over eight years. Lessons learned from operating the ISS OGA have led to proposing incremental improvements to advance the baseline design for use in a future long duration mission. These improvements are intended to reduce system weight, crew maintenance time and resupply mass from Earth while increasing reliability. The proposed improvements include replacing the cell stack membrane material, deleting the nitrogen purge equipment, replacing the hydrogen sensors, deleting the wastewater interface, replacing the hydrogen dome and redesigning the cell stack power supply. The development work to date will be discussed and forward work will be outlined. Additionally, a redesigned system architecture will be proposed.

Kevin C Takada↗
NASA NTRS1977

Reanalysis of the Apollo Cosmic Gamma-Ray Spectrum in the 0.3 to 10 Mev Energy Region

Additional data obtained from the Apollo 16 and 17 missions, together with collateral calculations on background radiation effects, have made possible an improved subtraction of unwanted backgrounds from the diffuse cosmic gamma ray data previously reported from Apollo 15. As a result, the 1 to 10 MeV spectrum is lowered significantly and connects smoothly with recent data at other energies. The inflection reported previously is much less pronounced and has no more than 1.5 sigma significance. Sky occultation by the Apollo 16 spacecraft shows the bulk of the 0.3 to 1 MeV radiation to be diffuse. The analysis of spurious backgrounds points to important improvements for future experiments designed for this spectral region. A light-weight satellite design can give a fourfold improvement in the signal to noise for such a measurement. Use of an anisotropic central crystal, which spins quickly compared with possible time variations in detector background, would enable sensitive limits to be set on galactic plane and point source contributions.

C S Dyer↗
NASA NTRS1977

Reanalysis of the Apollo Cosmic Gamma-Ray Spectrum in the 0.3 to 10 MeV Energy Region

Additional data obtained from the Apollo 16 and Apollo 17 missions, together with collateral calculations on background radiation effects, have made an improved subtraction of unwanted backgrounds from the diffuse cosmic y-ray data previously reported from Apollo 15 possible. As a result, the 1 to 10 MeV spectrum is lowered significantly and connects smoothly with recent data at other energies. The inflection reported previously is much less pronounced and has no more than a 1.5 σ significance. Sky occultation by the Apollo 16 spacecraft shows the bulk of the 0.3 to 1 MeV radiation to be diffuse. The analysis of spurious backgrounds points to important improvements for future experiments designed for this spectral region.

Gamma Rays↗
NASA NTRS2015

Empirical Model Development for Predicting Shock Response on Composite Materials Subjected to Pyroshock Loading

The NASA Engineering and Safety Center (NESC) received a request to develop an analysis model based on both frequency response and wave propagation analyses for predicting shock response spectrum (SRS) on composite materials subjected to pyroshock loading. The model would account for near-field environment (approx. 9 inches from the source) dominated by direct wave propagation, mid-field environment (approx. 2 feet from the source) characterized by wave propagation and structural resonances, and far-field environment dominated by lower frequency bending waves in the structure. This report documents the outcome of the assessment.

Steven J Gentz↗
NASA NTRS1962

A Design Solution to the Spacecraft Look-Angle Problem

As the state of the art of the design of spacecraft has progressed, one of the difficult problems which has arisen is the positioning and articulating of spacecraft elements which must “see” in different directions without interference. Some of these elements are: solar panels or collectors, Sun sensors, communication antennas, star seekers, planet tracking and scanning devices, rocket motors, attitude-control jets, and scientific instruments. This Report presents a method of testing a spacecraft design to determine how well it satisfies these look-angle requirements. This method is applied to both simple and complex cases, and examples of its use are presented. A means of assessing spacecraft constraints on trajectories is discussed. The method was developed for the Mariner interplanetary spacecraft, but should be applicable to other cases.

MARINER PROGRAM↗
NASA NTRS2026

Measure sea level air pressure from space to improve knowledge and forecasting of the atmospheric state

Modern numerical weather prediction (NWP) and analysis models require globally-observed meteorological data including sea-level pressure (SLP) for accurate operations. Up until now, SLP has only been measured by in situ instruments from ships, buoys, and ocean platforms. These measurements are sparse with large gaps, leaving models starved of this critical information to constrain the atmospheric state. Recent advancements in differential absorption radar (DAR) provide a path to close this critical observation gap through spaceborne observations in the coming decade, improving the analysis models relied upon for atmospheric research and the weather forecasts depended upon daily for public safety and commerce.

Matthew L Walker McLinden↗
NASA NTRS2005

Introduction to Flight Test Engineering [Introduction Aux Techniques Des Essais En Vol]

Flight test is at the core of what organizations must do in order to validate the operation and systems on an aircraft. While the AGARDograph series 300 and 160 series deal with aspects of this testing, this volume pulls it all together as an introduction to the process required to do effective flight test engineering. This volume was originally published in 1995. Its utility has been proven in that many flight test organizations and universities have requested copies for their engineers and students. It was felt that re-issuing it in a new format designed for electronic publication would be valuable to the community. This second printing changes none of the text, but rather reformats it. All the original references to AGARD (instead of RTO) are left in place so that none of the flavor of the original publication is lost. This is the Introductory Volume to the Flight Test Techniques Series. It is a general introduction to the various activities and aspects of Flight Test Engineering that must be considered when planning, conducting, and reporting a flight test program. Its main intent is to provide a broad overview to the novice engineer or to other people who have a need to interface with specialists within the flight test community. The first two Sections provide some insight into the question of why flight test and give a short history of flight test engineering. Sections 3 through 10 deal with the preparation for flight testing. They provide guidance on the preliminary factors that must be considered; the composition of the test team; the logistic support requirements; the instrumentation and data processing requirements; the flight test plan; the associated preliminary ground tests; and last, but by no means least, discuss safety aspects. Sections 11 through 27 describe the various types of flight tests that are usually conducted during the development and certification of a new or modified aircraft type. Each Section offers a brief introduction to the topic under consideration, and the nature and the objectives of the tests to be conducted. It lists the test instrumentation (and, where appropriate, other test equipment and facilities) required, describes the test maneuvers to be executed, and indicates the way in which the test data is selected, analyzed, and presented. The various activities that should take place between test flights are presented next. Items that are covered are: who to debrief; what type of reports to send where: types of data analysis required for next flight; review of test data to make a comparison to predicted data and some courses of action if there is not good agreement; and comments on selecting the next test flight. The activities that must take place upon completion of the test program are presented. The types of reports and briefings that should take place and a discussion of some of the uses of the flight test data are covered. A brief forecast is presented of where present trends may be leading.

Test facilities↗
NASA NTRS2026

Improvement in the Thermal-to-Structural Model Mapping Process for Integrated Modeling for the Roman Space Telescope

Integrated Modeling has been a key component of verifying optical requirements for the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope (RST) that are either impossible or impractical to verify exclusively through ground testing. Two major areas for integrated Modeling are Jitter and Thermal Distortion that require the exchanges of model performance predictions across disciplines. In both cases, distortions are impressed on optical models to evaluate the impact on boresight alignment and wave front error. In the case of Jitter, the disturbances are driven by reactions to motions most often from actuators; however, in the case of thermal distortion, the motions are driven by thermal expansion or contraction as a result of changing temperatures. This then requires a link further upstream to the thermal model, which is used to predict the thermal performance and temperature gradients and stability. The process for mapping temperatures from a thermal model to a corresponding structural model has been performed numerous times through the RST project lifecycle, with improvements in the accuracy, verification, and effort sought throughout. This paper describes some of the recent improvements to the process, including: capture of the visualization parameters, automatic generation of the mapped images for both the thermal and structural model groupings, and reduction in the effort to assemble the full set of mapped temperatures. These upgrades have greatly reduced the manual effort associated with thermal mapping and allowed for faster turn-around of Integrated Modeling predictions.

Thermal Mapping↗
NASA NTRS1995

Analysis of Gas Absorption to A Thin Liquid Film in the Presence of A Zero-Order Chemical Reaction

The paper presents a detailed theoretical analysis of the process of gas absorption to a thin liquid film adjacent to a horizontal rotating disk. The film is formed by the impingement of a controlled liquid jet at the center of the disk and subsequent radial spreading of liquid along the disk. The chemical reaction between the gas and the liquid film can be expressed as a zero-order homogeneous reaction. The process was modeled by establishing equations for the conservation of mass, momentum, and species concentration and solving them analytically. A scaling analysis was used to determine dominant transport processes. Appropriate boundary conditions were used to solve these equations to develop expressions for the local concentration of gas across the thickness of the film and distributions of film height, bulk concentration, and Sherwood number along the radius of the disk. The partial differential equation for species concentration was solved using the separation of variables technique along with the Duhamel's theorem and the final analytical solution was expressed using confluent hypergeometric functions. Tables for eigenvalues and eigenfunctions are presented for a number of reaction rate constants. A parametric study was performed using Reynolds number, Ekman number, and dimensionless reaction rate as parameters. At all radial locations, Sherwood number increased with Reynolds number (flow rate) as well as Ekman number (rate of rotation). The enhancement of mass transfer due to chemical reaction was found to be small when compared to the case of no reaction (pure absorption), but the enhancement factor was very significant when compared to pure absorption in a stagnant liquid film. The zero-order reaction processes considered in the present investigation included the absorption of oxygen in aqueous alkaline solutions of sodiumdithionite and rhodium complex catalyzed carbonylation of methanol. Present analytical results were compared to previous theoretical results for limiting conditions, and were found to have very good agreement.

S Rajagopalan↗
NASA NTRS1965

Lunar and Planetary X-Ray Diffraction Program: Progress Report of Research and Instrument Development, July 1964 to March 1965

The Lunar and Planetary X-Ray Diffraction Program consists of three concurrent efforts aimed at rapid development of a first-generation flight-instrument system, evaluation of potential advances in diffractometer components for a possible second-generation instrument, and full investigation of the capabilities and limitations of rock analysis by X-ray diffraction. More complete descriptions of each of these studies are given below; the papers which follow are grouped according to these subjects in Sections II through V.

PETROLOGY↗
NASA NTRS2025

Radiation-Resistant Ti/BN Coatings: Insights From 171 Days Exposure to Space Radiation and Atomic Oxygen in Low Orbit

Atmospheric Plasma Spray (APS) and Vacuum Plasma Spray (VPS) techniques were used to develop Ti/2 vol.% hBN coatings, for extreme space environments and tested aboard the International Space Station as part of the MISSE-17 (Materials International Space Station Experiments) program. The coatings were exposed to atomic oxygen, space radiation, and low-orbit thermal cycling. VPS coatings showed a 56% increase in microhardness, a 26% rise in elastic modulus, minimal porosity and crack density changes compared to APS coatings. The change in mechanical properties is attributed to the formation of TiO, TiO₂ and TiN from nitrogen retention, alongside radiation-induced dislocations, which enhanced surface hardening. The oxidation of titanium led to the formation of TiO and TiO₂, while boron nitride was retained and underwent transmutation in VPS coatings. XPS and EDS analyses confirmed the enhanced space-environment resistance of VPS coatings, making them ideal for long-term spacecraft protection in lunar and Martian conditions.

Abhijith Kunneparambil Sukumaran↗
NASA NTRS2026

Methods for Validation of Random Uncertainty Estimates and Their Applications to Ozone Profiles From Limb-Viewing Satellite Instruments

For satellite measurements of atmospheric composition, the random uncertainty estimates provided by retrieval algorithms might be imperfect due to various approximations used in the retrievals or the presence of unknown error sources. This paper presents an overview of the methods used for the validation of random uncertainty estimates. All methods discussed in this study are categorized, and assumptions and limitations of each method are discussed. This overview evaluates these methods in application to ozone profile measurements from limb and occultation satellite instruments and provides practical illustrations of random uncertainty validation.

Viktoria F Sofieva↗
NASA NTRS1994

What to Do Until the Money Runs Out: A Refinement Framework for Cognitive Engineering in the Real World

A case study is presented to illustrate some of the problems of applying cognitive science to complex human-machine systems. Disregard for facts about human cognition often undermines the safety, reliability, and cost-effectiveness of complex systems. Yet single-point methods (for example, better user-interface design), whether rooted in computer science or in experimental psychology, fall far short of addressing systems-level problems in a timely way using realistic resources. A model-based methodology is proposed for organizing and prioritizing the cognitive engineering effort, focusing appropriate expertise on major problems first, then moving to more sophisticated refinements if time and resources permit. This case study is based on a collaborative effort between the Human Factors Division at NASA-Ames and the Spaceborne Imaging Radar SIR-C/X-Band Synthetic Aperture Radar (SIR-C/X-SAR) Project at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), California institute of Technology. The first SIR-C/X-SAR Shuttle mission flew successfully in April, 1994. A series of such missions is planned to provide radar data to study Earth's ecosystems, climatic and geological processes, hydrologic cycle, and ocean circulation. In addition to JPL and NASA personnel, the SIR-C/X-SAR operations team included Scientists and engineers from the German and Italian space agencies.

Shafto, Michael G.↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

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↗
NASA NTRS2026

Performance Optimization for Lunar Extravehicular Activity Readiness (POLAR) Study: Methods Paper

To better understand which aspects of physical fitness may be most related to performance during Lunar surface operations and thereby help to inform the current NASA fitness standards, much can be learned from fields encompassing the “tactical athlete.” Other physically demanding professions such as law enforcement, military, or rescue professionals often require candidates to meet occupationally-relevant fitness standards. The determination of such standards is a multistep process, including both objective and subjective measures, to determine tasks essential to occupational performance and identify the minimal fitness profile needed to meet physical demands of the job. Notably, fitness is only one component which may contribute to the demands of astronaut selection, flight assignment, and occupational performance. Utilizing a framework to systematically determine which domains of fitness most contribute to relevant job tasks can aid in the refinement of current NASA-STD-3001 fitness standards. Therefore, NASA’s Exercise Physiology & Countermeasures Laboratory conducted the Performance Optimization for Lunar Extravehicular Activity Readiness (POLAR) study to identify and examine a comprehensive list of fitness tests (including NASA-STD-3001 assessments: 1-Repetition Maximum [1-RM] bench press and deadlift) and determine preliminary relationships between identified fitness parameters and novel Artemis-relevant tasks to help inform future investigations for the continued development of aerobic and muscular fitness standards for surface EVAs. This was accomplished through 1) a review of the literature relating fitness assessments to simulated or real EVA performance to identify fitness tests that are most correlated with simulated EVA task performance; 2) a task analysis following a modified framework for physical employment standards development to down select mission critical tasks; and 3) development and pilot testing of a novel, portable Artemis-relevant EVA task circuit to relate to a battery of fitness assessments. The current report describes the methodology used to complete the task analysis, EVA task circuit development, and the pilot study.

Nicole C Strock↗