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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 73 records · Page 4
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1997

NASA/JSC orbital debris models

The orbital debris models developed within the framework of the NASA Johnson Space Center's (JSC's) orbital debris program, are categorized as environment definition and risk assessment models. The EVOLVE, CHAIN and the orbital debris engineering model 1996 (ORDEM96) computer programs determine the past, present and future orbital particulate environment, while the BUMPER and debris assessment software (DAS) computer programs provide a means for evaluating the risks of specific space missions. These models are presented. To support these models and to conduct specialized analyses, NASA/JSC employs a range of auxiliary models, including explosion and collision satellite breakup models, hypervelocity impact ballistic limit models, orbit propagation and decay models, space traffic models and solid rocket motor effluent models.

Johnson, Nicholas↗
NASA NTRS2010

Space Medicine in the Human System Integration Process

This slide presentation reviews the importance of integration of space medicine in the human system of lunar exploration. There is a review of historical precedence in reference to lunar surface operations. The integration process is reviewed in a chart which shows the steps from research to requirements development, requirements integration, design, verification, operations and using the lessons learned, giving more information and items for research. These steps are reviewed in view of specific space medical issues. Some of the testing of the operations are undertaken in an environment that is an analog to the exploration environment. Some of these analog environments are reviewed, and there is some discussion of the benefits of use of an analog environment in testing the processes that are derived.

Scheuring, Richard A.↗
DOE OSTI2024

Quantum Liouville theorem based on Haar measure

Liouville theorem (L theorem) reveals robust incompressibility of the distribution function in phase space, given arbitrary potentials. However, its quantum generalization, Wigner flow, is compressible, i.e., L theorem is only conditionally true (e.g., for perfect Harmonic potential). Here, we develop quantum L theorem (rigorous incompressibility) for arbitrary potentials (interacting or not) in Hamiltonians. Haar measure, instead of symplectic measure dp$\bigwedge$dq used in Wigner’s scheme, plays a central role. The argument is based on general measure theory, independent of specific spaces or coordinates. Comparison of classical and quantum is made: for instance, here we address why Haar measure and metric preservation do not work in the classical case. Applications of the theorems in statistics, topological phase transition, ergodic theory, etc., are discussed.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
NASA NTRS1993

Space environment durability of beta cloth in LDEF thermal blankets

Beta cloth performance for use on long-term space vehicles such as Space Station Freedom (S.S. Freedom) requires resistance to the degrading effects of the space environment. The major issues are retention of thermal insulating properties through maintaining optical properties, preserving mechanical integrity, and generating minimal particulates for contamination-sensitive spacecraft surfaces and payloads. The longest in-flight test of beta cloth's durability was on the Long Duration Exposure Facility (LDEF), where it was exposed to the space environment for 68 months. The LDEF contained 57 experiments which further defined the space environment and its effects on spacecraft materials. It was deployed into low-Earth orbit (LEO) in Apr. 1984 and retrieved Jan. 1990 by the space shuttle. Among the 10,000 plus material constituents and samples onboard were thermal control blankets of multilayer insulation with a beta cloth outer cover and Velcro attachments. These blankets were exposed to hard vacuum, thermal cycling, charged particles, meteoroid/debris impacts, ultraviolet (UV) radiation, and atomic oxygen (AO). Of these space environmental exposure elements, AO appears to have had the greatest effect on the beta cloth. The beta cloth analyzed in this report came from the MSFC Experiment S1005 (Transverse Flat-Plate Heat Pipe) tray oriented approximately 22 deg from the leading edge vector of the LDEF satellite. The location of the tray on LDEF and the placement of the beta cloth thermal blankets are shown. The specific space environment exposure conditions for this material are listed.

Linton, Roger C.↗
NASA NTRS1992

Life sciences and space research XXIV(4) - Natural and artificial ecosystems; Proceedings of the Topical Meeting of the Interdisciplinary Scientific Commission F (Meetings F10, F11, F1 and F12) of the COSPAR 28th Plenary Meeting, The Hague, Netherlands, June 25-July 6, 1990

The present conference on natural and artificial ecosystems and their application to space research encompasses both in-flight and ground-based issues of recycling and control in regenerative life support, the relationships of productivity and facility design in higher plant growth, life-support systems for manned missions to Mars, and biochemical engineering applications in space. Specific issues addressed include interface problems between material recycling systems and plants, temperature and humidity control on a lunar base, the CELSS Test-Facility Project, achieving closure in plant-growth facilities, and life-support systems for Mars transit. Also addressed are a closed equilibrated biological aquatic system, a simulated Mars outpost in the Antarctica dry valleys, analyses of human kidney-cell populations separated on the space shuttle, and the evolution of a phase-separated gravity-independent bioreactor.

Macelroy, R. D.↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

The Current State and Future of the Former Central Nervous System Risk Managed by Space Radiation Element Part of NASA’s Human Research Program

Historically, the Space Radiation Element, as part of the NASA Human Research Program, was responsible for the scientific strategy and funding of research focused on characterizing and mitigating the effects of space radiation exposure on the central nervous system (CNS). During the past few years, there have been two major changes that have affected the management of the science associated with the CNS risk. The first major change was the integration of several related risks: CNS (C), behavioral medicine (B), and sensorimotor (S) to be managed as an integrated effort called CBS. CBS was formed to accelerate research on combined spaceflight stressors, specifically space radiation, microgravity, isolation, and confinement. CBS was managed by Human Factors and Behavioral Performance (HFBP) with support and inputs from Space Radiation as well as Human Health Countermeasures. Secondly, and more recently, the CNS risk was absorbed by the behavioral medicine risk currently also held by HFPB. As a result, the gaps associated with CNS were removed and aspects of them are represented in the BMED gaps (link). However, due to recent changes in element leadership, budget, and timeline, extensive restructuring of CBS is in progress. In addition, in an effort to harmonize datasets to be used in modeling efforts, an Animal Standardization TIM was held in June 2021 to standardize the type of behavioral and cognitive tasks as well as experimental set-ups used in animal models of future funded research. This presentation is an effort to communicate with the radiation research community concerning the strategy, management, and future of the former central nervous system risk and the role of the Space Radiation Element.

Janice A Zawaski↗
NASA NTRS2021

The Current State and Future of the Former Central Nervous System Risk Managed by Space Radiation Element Part of NASA’s Human Research Program

Historically, the Space Radiation Element, as part of the NASA Human Research Program, was responsible for the scientific strategy and funding of research focused on characterizing and mitigating the effects of space radiation exposure on the central nervous system (CNS). During the past few of years, there have been two major changes that have affected the management of the science associated with the CNS risk. The first major change was the integration of several related risks: CNS (C), Behavioral medicine (B), and sensorimotor (S) to be managed as an integrated effort called CBS. CBS was formed to accelerate research on combined spaceflight stressors, specifically space radiation, microgravity, isolation, and confinement. CBS was managed by Human Factors and Behavioral Performance (HFBP) with support and inputs from Space Radiation as well as Human Health Countermeasures. Secondly, and more recently, the CNS risk was absorbed by the behavioral medicine risk currently also held by HFPB. As a result, the gaps associated with CNS were removed and aspects of them are represented in the BMED gaps (link). However, due to recent changes in element leadership, budget, and timeline, extensive restructuring of CBS is in progress. In addition, in an effort to harmonize datasets to be used in modelling efforts, an Animal Standardization TIM was held in June 2021 to standardize the type of behavioral and cognitive tasks as well as experimental set-ups. This presentation is an effort to communicate with the radiation research community concerning the strategy, management, and future of the former central nervous system risk and the role of the Space Radiation Element.

central nervous system↗
NASA NTRS1974

Non-equilibrium stagnation region aerodynamic heating of hypersonic glide vehicles

A simple method of predicting aerodynamic heating and corresponding radiation equilibrium surface temperature-time histories for critical locations on space shuttle orbiter-type vehicles is presented. The method is based on a generalization of correlation equations developed earlier by Rosner for predicting the energy transfer and radiation equilibrium temperatures of surfaces with arbitrary catalytic activity and total hemispheric emittance. Recently obtained experimental data for O and N atom recombination probabilities on candidate material surfaces above 1000 K are used to assess nonequilibrium effects for a range of nose radii and a specific space shuttle re-entry trajectory. It is concluded that low catalytic activity will be especially important in locations of large effective nose radii by both increasing oxidation-resistant coating lifetime and reducing energy transfer into the vehicle.

Rosner, D. E.↗
NASA NTRS1977

Long Duration Exposure Facility - A unique mode of Shuttle utilization

The Long Duration Exposure Facility (LDEF) is a Shuttle-transported, reusable, essentially passive facility with accommodations for a wide variety of experiments which require a free-flying carrier for exposure in space. Specifically, the LDEF is tailored to provide low-cost accommodations for experiments which have modest requirements for electrical power and data systems, and for experiments which benefit from postflight laboratory investigations with the retrieved experiment hardware. Each experiment for LDEF will be totally self-contained in a tray. As the interface with the facility has been minimized, the LDEF experimenters will be freed from many of the requirements which have complicated development of space experiments in the past.

Kinard, W. H.↗
NASA NTRS1991

On the wall-normal velocity of the compressible boundary-layer equations

Numerical methods for the compressible boundary-layer equations are facilitated by transformation from the physical (x,y) plane to a computational (xi,eta) plane in which the evolution of the flow is 'slow' in the time-like xi direction. The commonly used Levy-Lees transformation results in a computationally well-behaved problem for a wide class of non-similar boundary-layer flows, but it complicates interpretation of the solution in physical space. Specifically, the transformation is inherently nonlinear, and the physical wall-normal velocity is transformed out of the problem and is not readily recovered. In light of recent research which shows mean-flow non-parallelism to significantly influence the stability of high-speed compressible flows, the contribution of the wall-normal velocity in the analysis of stability should not be routinely neglected. Conventional methods extract the wall-normal velocity in physical space from the continuity equation, using finite-difference techniques and interpolation procedures. The present spectrally-accurate method extracts the wall-normal velocity directly from the transformation itself, without interpolation, leaving the continuity equation free as a check on the quality of the solution. The present method for recovering wall-normal velocity, when used in conjunction with a highly-accurate spectral collocation method for solving the compressible boundary-layer equations, results in a discrete solution which is extraordinarily smooth and accurate, and which satisfies the continuity equation nearly to machine precision. These qualities make the method well suited to the computation of the non-parallel mean flows needed by spatial direct numerical simulations (DNS) and parabolized stability equation (PSE) approaches to the analysis of stability.

Pruett, C. David↗
NASA NTRS2014

Biomaterials Out of Thin Air: In Situ, On-Demand Printing of Advanced Biocomposites: A New Materials Design and Production Technique Using 3D-Printed Arrays of Bioengineered Cells

We have completed the proof of concept described in our Phase I proposal, a two-material array of nonstructural proteins. We created an implementation of each step in our technology concept and demonstrated its critical functionality. The biological chassis and printing hardware we created as part of this work can be re-used for future work by inserting a material coding region upstream of the fluorescent tag. Overall, we showed that our technology concept is sound. The mission benefit analyses, as described in our Phase I proposal, are complete and contained in this report. These calculations show that our technology can save hundreds of kilograms of upmass for a potential planetary human habit construction mission: the mass per habitat module can be reduced by approximately one third if the biomaterials are manufactured on Earth and included in the mission upmass, and the full 240 kg per module can be saved if the materials are derived entirely from in situ resources. Mass savings between these two extremes is expected for an actual mission, depending on the level of in situ resource extraction technology. We have shown that continued advancement of this technology concept for use in a space mission environment is justified. Our survey of future development pathways proved extremely informative in light of the lessons learned from our proof of concept work and mission scenario analyses. For example, we were able for the first time to distinguish between the levels of functionality provided by production of structural proteins, other polymers such as polysaccharides, and true organic-inorganic composites such as bone and mineralized shell. This new information represents a significant advance in formulating specific applications, and key enabling technologies, for our proposed concept. We surveyed potential collaborations with other projects and synergies with enabling technologies that are developing. We have received requests for collaboration from other institutions, including labs at Stanford University and Drexel University. We have also received visits from industry, including Organovo, a tissue engineering company, and Autodesk, a major 3D and materials design software company. Finally, we have been in touch with the team behind the 2013 NIAC Phase ll 'Super Ball Bot-Structures for Planetary Landing and Exploration' and are planning to develop our biomaterial printing technology with the goal of enabling tensegrity-based rovers such as theirs to use lighter, more robust materials. A smooth transition from TRL 2 to TRL 3 assumes that the implementations of the technology concept which demonstrate critical functionality are also pathways for future development; while this is the case for most hardware or software projects, the multidisciplinary nature of our project, particularly the biological aspect of it, means that this is not always true. For example, as part of this work we showed that although there are large number of known genetic parts that correspond to non-structural materials, this is not true for sequences for structural organic proteins, let alone biominerals. These realizations allowed us to further subdivide our concept into more detailed development areas, some of which are clearly established at TRL 3, others of which were newly identified sub-technologies moved from TRL 1 to TRL 2. Similarly, although a single feasibility /benefit analysis is sufficient for advancement from TRL 2 to TRL 3, not all potential benefits to a technology concept as broad in scope as ours are apparent at TRL 2. Both our future pathways survey and our proof of concept work highlighted that the true mass savings potential of our technology concept cannot be quantified without modification of existing materials modelling tools to take into account the possibility of positional materials properties customization. Therefore, we have simultaneously both advanced one potential set of applications of our technology concept from TRL 2 to TRL 3 and also identified a previously unknown set of applications and advanced it from TRL 1 to TRL 2. Overall, we have moved the original formulation of our concept forward from TRL 2 to TRL 3, and the expanded formulation of it presented in this document has been advanced from a combination of TRL 1 and early 1RL 2 to an overall late TRL 2. We have also identified the key areas necessary for both short-term and long-term advancement, and made recommendations for specific future work in the most promising directions. With future work on a 1-2 year timeframe to continue advancement to overall TRL 3, we will be well positioned to begin work on a specific space mission technology insertion path.

Biology↗
NASA NTRS1995

An Analytic Approximation to Very High Specific Impulse and Specific Power Interplanetary Space Mission Analysis

A simple, analytic approximation is derived to calculate trip time and performance for propulsion systems of very high specific impulse (50,000 to 200,000 seconds) and very high specific power (10 to 1000 kW/kg) for human interplanetary space missions. The approach assumed field-free space, constant thrust/constant specific power, and near straight line (radial) trajectories between the planets. Closed form, one dimensional equations of motion for two-burn rendezvous and four-burn round trip missions are derived as a function of specific impulse, specific power, and propellant mass ratio. The equations are coupled to an optimizing parameter that maximizes performance and minimizes trip time. Data generated for hypothetical one-way and round trip human missions to Jupiter were found to be within 1% and 6% accuracy of integrated solutions respectively, verifying that for these systems, credible analysis does not require computationally intensive numerical techniques.

Williams, Craig Hamilton↗
NASA NTRS2007

Space Environment Effects on Stability of Medications Flown on Space Shuttles and the International Space Station (ISS)

The purpose is to assess physical and chemical degradation of select pharmaceutical formulations from the Shuttle and ISS medical kits. Eleven pharmaceuticals dispensed as different dosage forms were selected based on their physical / chemical characteristics and susceptibility to environmental factors such as, temperature, humidity and light sensitivity. When available, ground-controls of the study medications with matching brand and lot numbers were used for comparison. Samples retrieved from flight were stored along with their matching controls in a temperature and humidity controlled environmental chamber. Temperature, humidity, and radiation data from the Shuttle and ISS were retrieved from onboard HOBO U12 Temp/RH Data Loggers, and from passive dosimeters. Physical and chemical analyses of the pharmaceuticals were conducted using validated United States Pharmacopeia (USP) methods. Results indicated degradation of 6 of the 11 formulations returned from space flights. Four formulations, Amoxicillin / Clavulanate, promethazine, sulfamethoxazole / trimethoprim, and ciprofloxacin tablets depicted discoloration after flight. Chemical content analyses using High or Ultra Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC / UPLC) methods revealed that dosage forms of Amoxicillin / Clavulanate, promethazine, sulfamethoxazole / trimethoprim, lidocaine, ciprofloxacin and mupirocin contained less than 95% of manufacturer s labeled claim of active drug compound. Shuttle and ISS environments affect stability and shelf life of certain mediations flown on these missions. Data analysis is in progress to examine the effect of specific space flight environmental factors on pharmaceutical stability. The degradation profiles generated from ground studies in analog environments will be useful in establishing predictive shelf-life profiles for medications intended for use during long-term space exploration missions.

Daniels, Vernie↗
NASA NTRS2012

Space Environments and Spacecraft Effects Organization Concept

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is embarking on a course to expand human presence beyond Low Earth Orbit (LEO) while also expanding its mission to explore the solar system. Destinations such as Near Earth Asteroids (NEA), Mars and its moons, and the outer planets are but a few of the mission targets. Each new destination presents an opportunity to increase our knowledge of the solar system and the unique environments for each mission target. NASA has multiple technical and science discipline areas specializing in specific space environments disciplines that will help serve to enable these missions. To complement these existing discipline areas, a concept is presented focusing on the development of a space environments and spacecraft effects (SENSE) organization. This SENSE organization includes disciplines such as space climate, space weather, natural and induced space environments, effects on spacecraft materials and systems and the transition of research information into application. This space environment and spacecraft effects organization will be composed of Technical Working Groups (TWG). These technical working groups will survey customers and users, generate products, and provide knowledge supporting four functional areas: design environments, engineering effects, operational support, and programmatic support. The four functional areas align with phases in the program mission lifecycle and are briefly described below. Design environments are used primarily in the mission concept and design phases of a program. Engineering effects focuses on the material, component, sub-system and system-level selection and the testing to verify design and operational performance. Operational support provides products based on real time or near real time space weather to mission operators to aid in real time and near-term decision-making. The programmatic support function maintains an interface with the numerous programs within NASA, other federal government agencies, and the commercial sector to ensure that communications are well established and the needs of the programs are being met. The programmatic support function also includes working in coordination with the program in anomaly resolution and generation of lessons learned documentation. The goal of this space environment and spacecraft effects organization is to develop decision-making tools and engineering products to support all mission phases from mission concept through operations by focusing on transitioning research to application. Products generated by this space environments and effects application are suitable for use in anomaly investigations. This paper will describe the scope of the TWGs and their relationship to the functional areas, and discuss an organizational structure for this space environments and spacecraft effects organization.

Edwards, David L.↗
NASA NTRS2010

Human Perception of Ambiguous Inertial Motion Cues

Human daily activities on Earth involve motions that elicit both tilt and translation components of the head (i.e. gazing and locomotion). With otolith cues alone, tilt and translation can be ambiguous since both motions can potentially displace the otolithic membrane by the same magnitude and direction. Transitions between gravity environments (i.e. Earth, microgravity and lunar) have demonstrated to alter the functions of the vestibular system and exacerbate the ambiguity between tilt and translational motion cues. Symptoms of motion sickness and spatial disorientation can impair human performances during critical mission phases. Specifically, Space Shuttle landing records show that particular cases of tilt-translation illusions have impaired the performance of seasoned commanders. This sensorimotor condition is one of many operational risks that may have dire implications on future human space exploration missions. The neural strategy with which the human central nervous system distinguishes ambiguous inertial motion cues remains the subject of intense research. A prevailing theory in the neuroscience field proposes that the human brain is able to formulate a neural internal model of ambiguous motion cues such that tilt and translation components can be perceptually decomposed in order to elicit the appropriate bodily response. The present work uses this theory, known as the GIF resolution hypothesis, as the framework for experimental hypothesis. Specifically, two novel motion paradigms are employed to validate the neural capacity of ambiguous inertial motion decomposition in ground-based human subjects. The experimental setup involves the Tilt-Translation Sled at Neuroscience Laboratory of NASA JSC. This two degree-of-freedom motion system is able to tilt subjects in the pitch plane and translate the subject along the fore-aft axis. Perception data will be gathered through subject verbal reports. Preliminary analysis of perceptual data does not indicate that the GIF resolution hypothesis is completely valid for non-rotational periodic motions. Additionally, human perception of translation is impaired without visual or spatial reference. The performance of ground-base subjects in estimating tilt after brief training is comparable with that of crewmembers without training.

Zhang, Guan-Lu↗
NASA NTRS2012

An Overview of the Space Environments and Spacecraft Effects Organization Concept

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is embarking on a course to expand human presence beyond Low Earth Orbit (LEO) while also expanding its mission to explore our Earth, and the solar system. Destinations such as Near Earth Asteroids (NEA), Mars and its moons, and the outer planets are but a few of the mission targets. Each new destination presents an opportunity to increase our knowledge on the solar system and the unique environments for each mission target. NASA has multiple technical and science discipline areas specializing in specific space environments fields that will serve to enable these missions. To complement these existing discipline areas, a concept is presented focusing on the development of a space environment and spacecraft effects (SESE) organization. This SESE organization includes disciplines such as space climate, space weather, natural and induced space environments, effects on spacecraft materials and systems, and the transition of research information into application. This space environment and spacecraft effects organization will be composed of Technical Working Groups (TWG). These technical working groups will survey customers and users, generate products, and provide knowledge supporting four functional areas: design environments, engineering effects, operational support, and programmatic support. The four functional areas align with phases in the program mission lifecycle and are briefly described below. Design environments are used primarily in the mission concept and design phases of a program. Environment effects focuses on the material, component, sub-system, and system-level response to the space environment and include the selection and testing to verify design and operational performance. Operational support provides products based on real time or near real time space weather to mission operators to aid in real time and near-term decision-making. The programmatic support function maintains an interface with the numerous programs within NASA, other federal government agencies, and the commercial sector to ensure that communications are well established and the needs of the programs are being met. The programmatic support function also includes working in coordination with the program in anomaly resolution and generation of lessons learned documentation. The goal of this space environment and spacecraft effects organization is to develop decision-making tools and engineering products to support all mission phases from mission concept through operations by focusing on transitioning research to application. Products generated by this space environments and effects application are suitable for use in anomaly investigations. This paper will describe the scope and purpose of the space environments and spacecraft effects organization and describe the TWG's and their relationship to the functional areas.

Edwards, David L.↗
NASA NTRS2011

Flight Dynamics Operations: Methods and Lessons Learned from Space Shuttle Orbit Operations

The Flight Dynamics Officer is responsible for trajectory maintenance of the Space Shuttle. This paper will cover high level operational considerations, methodology, procedures, and lessons learned involved in performing the functions of orbit and rendezvous Flight Dynamics Officer and leading the team of flight dynamics specialists during different phases of flight. The primary functions that will be address are: onboard state vector maintenance, ground ephemeris maintenance, calculation of ground and spacecraft acquisitions, collision avoidance, burn targeting for the primary mission, rendezvous, deorbit and contingencies, separation sequences, emergency deorbit preparation, mass properties coordination, payload deployment planning, coordination with the International Space Station, and coordination with worldwide trajectory customers. Each of these tasks require the Flight Dynamics Officer to have cognizance of the current trajectory state as well as the impact of future events on the trajectory plan in order to properly analyze and react to real-time changes. Additionally, considerations are made to prepare flexible alternative trajectory plans in the case timeline changes or a systems failure impact the primary plan. The evolution of the methodology, procedures, and techniques used by the Flight Dynamics Officer to perform these tasks will be discussed. Particular attention will be given to how specific Space Shuttle mission and training simulation experiences, particularly off-nominal or unexpected events such as shortened mission durations, tank failures, contingency deorbit, navigation errors, conjunctions, and unexpected payload deployments, have influenced the operational procedures and training for performing Space Shuttle flight dynamics operations over the history of the program. These lessons learned can then be extended to future vehicle trajectory operations.

Cutri-Kohart, Rebecca M.↗