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NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Insights into Long-Term Global Precipitation from IMERG and GPCP

Multiple satellite-based datasets provide estimates of the long-term record of global precipitation. Each necessarily includes both the real atmospheric behavior and a collection of artifacts driven by the input data sources and design choices in the retrievals and dataset construction. For this presentation, the Integrated Multi-satellitE Retrievals for GPM (IMERG) products from the Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) mission’s U.S. Science Team are designed as a modern High-Resolution Precipitation Product (HRPP), while the Global Precipitation Climatology Project’s (GPCP) products are designed as a modern Climate Data Record (CDR). Although they share some common input data sources, the computational process for each is rather different. Comparing the precipitation estimates from each algorithm gives us insights into likely artifacts and the natural variations that are common to both. The goal of an HRPP is to give the best estimate of precipitation at each time step in the dataset, generally meaning that “all possible available” data are used. In contrast, the CDR is intended to provide a precipitation record that has relatively homogeneous statistics, necessary for climate analysis. Each analysis strives for both goals, of course, but this means that the HRPP uses the disparate collection of satellites whose statistics don’t quite match the ideal record, while the CDR is computed from fewer satellites that provide a relatively homogeneous set of precipitation statistics. This presentation employs the current versions of the IMERG and GPCP products, V07B and V3.2, respectively. A variety of analyses have demonstrated that IMERG has more artifacts, as expected, which tend to result from changes in the source of intercalibration for the various input satellites, namely the Combined Radar-Radiometer Algorithm using TMI and PR during the TRMM era and using GMI and DPR-Ku during the GPM era. As well, a shift occurs when the altitudes of the TRMM and GPM satellites change as a result of orbit boosts. For the most part the mean precipitation shows good continuity across these boundaries, but there are noticeable changes in the respective histograms. The latter has taken on more importance in recent years due to increased scrutiny on extremes which implicitly focus on the upper end of the precipitation histograms. The GPCP product is more homogeneous, with only one major change in calibrator, transitioning from the SSMI series of satellites to the SSMIS series of satellites in 2009. The GPCP analysis does a good job of minimizing artifacts in the means at this boundary, while the histograms show a smaller, but still noticeable shift in the histograms, a result that is similar to data boundaries in IMERG. The GPCP Daily, which is a month-by-month rescaling of the daily accumulated IMERG Final product, shows more consistency than the equivalent daily IMERG, but inherits the histogram shifts from IMERG. Given this overlay of artifacts, there is enough consistency between the products to illustrate some important long-term variations, including interannual variations, not all of which are easily attributable to ENSO events, and trends that are large regionally, but comparatively small when averaged across the globe.

precipitation↗

NASA NTRS1993

A microbased shared virtual world prototype

Virtual reality (VR) allows sensory immersion and interaction with a computer-generated environment. The user adopts a physical interface with the computer, through Input/Output devices such as a head-mounted display, data glove, mouse, keyboard, or monitor, to experience an alternate universe. What this means is that the computer generates an environment which, in its ultimate extension, becomes indistinguishable from the real world. 'Imagine a wraparound television with three-dimensional programs, including three-dimensional sound, and solid objects that you can pick up and manipulate, even feel with your fingers and hands.... 'Imagine that you are the creator as well as the consumer of your artificial experience, with the power to use a gesture or word to remold the world you see and hear and feel. That part is not fiction... three-dimensional computer graphics, input/output devices, computer models that constitute a VR system make it possible, today, to immerse yourself in an artificial world and to reach in and reshape it.' Our research's goal was to propose a feasibility experiment in the construction of a networked virtual reality system, making use of current personal computer (PC) technology. The prototype was built using Borland C compiler, running on an IBM 486 33 MHz and a 386 33 MHz. Each game currently is represented as an IPX client on a non-dedicated Novell server. We initially posed the two questions: (1) Is there a need for networked virtual reality? (2) In what ways can the technology be made available to the most people possible?

Pitts, Gerald↗

NASA NTRS2024

ENLIGHTEN: Electrical Network Line Inspection Guided by High-Speed Technology & Electromagnetic Navigation

Natural disasters are a major cause of power outages, primarily due to their damage to power line infrastructure. As a result, the current state of power maintenance, with a heavy reliance on manual labor, is in trouble. Its lack of speed and autonomy must be addressed to ensure power security for households and institutions worldwide. This innovative approach explores how High-Speed Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (HSUAV) technology can inspect power line infrastructure rapidly in response to natural disaster scenarios. The HSUAV technology will be accompanied by enhanced sensory equipment including light detection and ranging (LiDAR), thermal imaging, and electromagnetic field (EMF) navigation. It would also be supplemented by innovative forms of machine learning models and recharging systems to efficiently detect anomalies in power line infrastructure. The proposed system, ENLIGHTEN, can help restore power in affected communities after a devastating natural disaster, greatly improving relief efforts. In the future, ENLIGHTEN can be expanded beyond the United States and shared worldwide, effectively mitigating the consequences on a larger scale.

UAV systems, Power line management, Natural disast↗

NASA NTRS2015

Modular Stirling Radioisotope Generator

High efficiency radioisotope power generators will play an important role in future NASA space exploration missions. Stirling Radioisotope Generators (SRG) have been identified as a candidate generator technology capable of providing mission designers with an efficient, high specific power electrical generator. SRGs high conversion efficiency has the potential to extend the limited Pu-238 supply when compared with current Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generators (RTG). Due to budgetary constraints, the Advanced Stirling Radioisotope Generator (ASRG) was canceled in the fall of 2013. Over the past year a joint study by NASA and DOE called the Nuclear Power Assessment Study (NPAS) recommended that Stirling technologies continue to be explored. During the mission studies of the NPAS, spare SRGs were sometimes required to meet mission power system reliability requirements. This led to an additional mass penalty and increased isotope consumption levied on certain SRG-based missions. In an attempt to remove the spare power system, a new generator architecture is considered which could increase the reliability of a Stirling generator and provide a more fault-tolerant power system. This new generator called the Modular Stirling Radioisotope Generator (MSRG) employs multiple parallel Stirling convertor/controller strings, all of which share the heat from the General Purpose Heat Source (GPHS) modules. For this design, generators utilizing one to eight GPHS modules were analyzed, which provide about 50 to 450 watts DC to the spacecraft, respectively. Four Stirling convertors are arranged around each GPHS module resulting in from 4 to 32 Stirling/controller strings. The convertors are balanced either individually or in pairs, and are radiatively coupled to the GPHS modules. Heat is rejected through the housing/radiator which is similar in construction to the ASRG. Mass and power analysis for these systems indicate that specific power may be slightly lower than the ASRG and similar to the MMRTG. However, the reliability should be significantly increased compared to ASRG.

Stirling Cycle↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Investigating Biological Responses to Deep Space Radiation for Missions Beyond Low Earth Orbit (LEO) using Yeast

To enable long-term spaceflight missions and establish habitation on the Moon and Mars, we require a comprehensive understanding of the effects of chronic deep space radiation exposure on humans. BioSentinel is NASA’s first biological CubeSat to venture beyond Low Earth Orbit (LEO). It utilizes Saccharomyces cerevisiae (budding yeast) as a model organism to study biological responses to deep space radiation. Yeast share significant genetic homology with humans, including basic cellular metabolism and DNA repair mechanisms. In addition, unlike human cell cultures, yeast can survive the duration and constraints of a deep space mission. BioSentinel measures biological responses using an optical system and alamarBlue oxidation-reduction (redox) dye. Two strains of yeast are studied - a wild-type and a rad51 mutant strain that is deficient in DNA repair. Changes in metabolism and growth are monitored throughout the nominal 6-month mission. Preliminary tests indicate a significant change in the alamarBlue response to low-dose ionizing radiation (IR). Additionally, rad51 cells have shown an IR dose-dependent decrease in glucose uptake and accumulation of oxidized NADH (NAD+). These biomolecules are involved in reactions responsible for basic cell processes, including growth and development, signaling, and respiration. The current study expanded upon previous data by exposing yeast to deep space-relevant radiation. Glucose and NADH/NAD+ assays were conducted on yeast subjected to varying dosages of high-energy Fe-56 and simulated galactic cosmic rays (GCRs). The resulting data was analyzed using Excel and GraphPad Prism. A particular focus was to identify biomolecules resulting from aerobic respiration, which requires the presence of oxygen, or anaerobic processes. As long-term spaceflight missions draw near, it is increasingly important to characterize biological processes affected by the conditions of deep space. Studying biomolecular damage caused by deep space radiation may enable the development of engineering controls or biomedical therapeutics that mitigate health complications for future astronauts.

Kyra Keenan↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

6 um Pulsed OP-GaAs OPO Laser for Unambiguous Water Ice Detection on the Moon and Other Planetary Bodies

NASA demands a laser transmitter for planetary remote sensing to detect water-ice on the Moon and other planetary bodies. Based on the measurement of the Moon Mineralogy Mapper (M3) instrument, the discovery of water ice on the Moon was acclaimed, but the measurement is disputed because OH- and/or H2O-bearing materials share the absorption line around 3 μm wavelength. Lunar Flashlight, another mission project exploring the surface of Moon which will be launched later this year, enables to map the minerals on dark area of the Moon, but could not resolve the above-mentioned ambiguity. The absorption of 6.08 μm light is uniquely associated with the bending resonance of H2O since there is no comparable vibration in confounding OH-bearing materials. 6.08 μm laser between the atmospheric windows: middle-wave infrared (3-5 μm) and long-wave infrared (8-12 μm) has not been commercially available. Our approach is a Q-switched Ho:YLF laser pumped the orientation-pattern Gallium Arsenide optical parametric oscillator (OP-GaAs OPO) for generating high-energy laser pulses at the wavelength of 6.08 μm. In the current design, a 1.94 μm Tm:fiber is used as the pump source. In the compact design, a 1.94 μm laser diode will replace the Tm:fiber laser as the pump source. We will combine this proposed mid-infrared laser with the latest HgCdTe avalanche photodiode (APD) array to design a lidar for detecting water ice on the Moon and Mars from their respective orbits, enabling novel science and in-situ resource utilization. Our instrument is an enabling technology aboard the Artemis program and others.

mid-infrared laser↗

NASA NTRS1994

Integrating planning and reactive control

Our research is developing persistent agents that can achieve complex tasks in dynamic and uncertain environments. We refer to such agents as taskable, reactive agents. An agent of this type requires a number of capabilities. The ability to execute complex tasks necessitates the use of strategic plans for accomplishing tasks; hence, the agent must be able to synthesize new plans at run time. The dynamic nature of the environment requires that the agent be able to deal with unpredictable changes in its world. As such, agents must be able to react to unanticipated events by taking appropriate actions in a timely manner, while continuing activities that support current goals. The unpredictability of the world could lead to failure of plans generated for individual tasks. Agents must have the ability to recover from failures by adapting their activities to the new situation, or replanning if the world changes sufficiently. Finally, the agent should be able to perform in the face of uncertainty. The Cypress system, described here, provides a framework for creating taskable, reactive agents. Several features distinguish our approach: (1) the generation and execution of complex plans with parallel actions; (2) the integration of goal-driven and event driven activities during execution; (3) the use of evidential reasoning for dealing with uncertainty; and (4) the use of replanning to handle run-time execution problems. Our model for a taskable, reactive agent has two main intelligent components, an executor and a planner. The two components share a library of possible actions that the system can take. The library encompasses a full range of action representations, including plans, planning operators, and executable procedures such as predefined standard operating procedures (SOP's). These three classes of actions span multiple levels of abstraction.

Wilkins, David E.↗

NASA NTRS2011

Qualification of Electrical Ground Support Equipment for New Space Programs

With the Space Shuttle program coming to an end, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is moving to a new space flight program that will allow expeditions beyond low earth orbit. The space vehicles required to comply with these missions will be carrying heavy payloads. This implies that the Earth departure stage capabilities must be of higher magnitudes, given the current propulsion technology. The engineering design of the new flight hardware comes with some structural, thermal, propulsion and other subsystems' challenges. Meanwhile, the necessary ground support equipment (GSE) used to test, validate, verify and process the flight hardware must withstand the new program specifications. This paper intends to provide the qualification considerations during implementation of new electrical GSE for space programs. A team of engineers was formed to embark on this task, and facilitate the logistics process and ensure that the electrical, mechanical and fluids subsystems conduct the proper level of testing. Ultimately, each subsystem must certify that each piece of ground support equipment used in the field is capable of withstanding the strenuous vibration, acoustics, environmental, thermal and Electromagnetic Interference (EMf) levels experienced during pre-launch, launch and post-launch activities. The benefits of capturing and sharing these findings will provide technical, cost savings and schedule impacts infon11ation to both the technical and management community. Keywords: Qualification; Testing; Ground Support Equipment; Electromagnetic Interference Testing; Vibration Testing; Acoustic Testing; Power Spectral Density.

SotoToro, Felix A.↗

NASA NTRS2016

Internship at the Office of the Chief Scientist

The NASA Ames Research Center (ARC) Office of the Chief Scientist (OCS) is part of the Center Management. The OCS adds value to the organization by encouraging and facilitating innovation and value to the Agency, Nation, and the scientific community through its well-developed, diverse, and strategically formed charter. The OCS provides the Center with the oversight and advice by facilitating and evaluating the Scientific Innovation Fund (SIF) and promoting science-based research partnerships. Additionally, the Office contributes to to the Agency by organizing annual Summer Series Colloquia, Workshops, and support to the Early Career Network, which allows for international and inter-agency collaborations. Working at the OCS allowed me to further learn about the working of the Office and how the Office engages and provides guidance with rest of the Center and the Agency. As part of my internship, I am working on developing the initial infrastructure required for the organization of the Standardized Distributed Workshop and further developing the layout for the Hibernation Workshop. The Standardized Distributed System workshop will investigate the scope of developing and using standardized distributed systems for a wide range of applications including satellite systems, aerospace-oriented systems, water-based systems, automobiles, and various other robotics applications. The goal of this workshop is to determine the feasibility of developing a standardized distributed system that can be customized for different technological applications, which will enable resource sharing, openness, robustness, and fault tolerance. This workshop will bring together experts from different fields, including satellite operations, unmanned aerial vehicles, aircraft operation and management, and artificial intelligence to provide a global evaluation of the aspects associated with the development and adoption of distributed systems. The workshop will also guide the participants through state of the art distributed systems, discuss some of the challenges in designing control systems with a distributed structure, and consider the future of distributed system based technologies for future applications. Additionally, I am also working on finalizing the details and documentation for the proposed Hibernation Workshop. This workshop will address the phenomenon of hibernation through three major aspects: hibernation on Earth, hibernation in space, and knowledge gaps in the approaches to future deep space exploration. The primary objective of the workshop is to explore the current state of science in the area of hibernation, and as a scientific community, explore the gaps and challenges preventing this scientific field from advancing to the next level. This workshop will consist of presentations, panel discussions, and breakout sessions focused on addressing this scientific field, and bringing experts from educational and commercial sectors together. As a part of my internship report, I will be document the process of planning these workshops and further provide a brief summary of my experience with the 2016 NASA Ames Summer Series and various professional visits.

ISU↗

NASA NTRS1997

An Undergraduate Intern Program at PACES

The University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) established the Pan American Center for Earth and Environmental Studies (PACES) in 1995 to conduct basic and applied research that contributes to NASA's Mission to Planet Earth. Specifically, PACES provides a repository of remote sensing and other information that supports investigations into an improved understanding of geological, ecological and environmental processes occurring in the southwestern United States and Northern Mexico. Approximately 85% of UTEP's students come from El Paso County, a fast growing urban region representative of many large cities in the Southwest that have, or will soon have, a majority of their population composed of groups currently underrepresented in the scientific and technical workforce. UTEP's student population has an ethnic distribution (63% Hispanic, 32% Anglo, 3% African American, 1.5 % Asian American, and less than 1% Native American) that closely matches the demographics of the region it serves. Thus, UTEP has a mission to serve a multicultural population where minority students comprise the majority. Most Hispanic students at UTEP are primarily of Mexican origin. A large number are first or second-generation U.S. citizens. Characteristics that unite Hispanic students, in particular those of Mexican-origin, are a strong sense of family loyalty and a belief that all family members are responsible for contributing to the economic stability and well-being of the family. Most of their families are larger in number than the national average, and a variety of generations live together or share considerable resources. Thus, many young people feel an obligation and a desire to go to work at a young age and to continue working while in college, thereby assisting their parents and other family members. Older siblings understand that they have responsibilities to do household chores, to aid their younger siblings economically, and to assist elderly family members. This "work ethic" within the context of family responsisilities is often viewed as being as important as higher education aspirations by both parents and university students. As a consequence, much effort at UTEP has been placed in recent years upon creating opportunities for students to earn income while working on campus as undergraduate research assistants on research projects related to their majors. Work assignments of this sort serve to promote retention efforts, to introduce students with the possibility of graduate study and to develop students professionally. Also, the involvement of students in group-oriented research projects at UTEP which require frequent oral and written reports has been proven beneficial at promoting communication skills of students. Because an estimated 60% of UTEP's students are first-generation college students, many are often uncertain graduate education.

Starks, Scott A.↗

NASA NTRS2000

Beyond Coordination: Joint Planning and Program Execution. The IHPRPT Materials Working Group

"Partnership is more than just coordination," stated then-Commander of the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), Major General Dick Paul (USAF-Ret), at this year's National Space and Missile Materials Symposium. His comment referred to the example of the joint planning and program execution provided by the Integrated High Payoff Rocket Propulsion Technology (IHPRPT) Materials Working Group (IMWG). Most people agree that fiscal pressures imposed by shrinking budgets have made it extremely difficult to build upon our existing technical capabilities. In times of sufficient budgets, building advanced systems poses no major difficulties. However, with today's budgets, realizing enhanced capabilities and developing advanced systems often comes at an unaffordable cost. Overcoming this problem represents both a challenge and an opportunity to develop new business practices that allow us to develop advanced technologies within the restrictions imposed by current funding levels. Coordination of technology developments between different government agencies and organizations is a valuable tool for technology transfer. However, rarely do the newly developed technologies have direct applicability to other ongoing programs. Technology requirements are typically determined up-front during the program planning stage so that schedule risk can be minimized. The problem with this process is that the costs associated with the technology development are often borne by a single program. Additionally, the potential exists for duplication of technical effort. Changing this paradigm is a difficult process but one that can be extremely worthwhile should the right opportunity arise. The IMWG is one such example where NASA, the DoD, and industry have developed joint requirements that are intended to satisfy multiple program needs. More than mere coordination, the organizations comprising the group come together as partners, sharing information and resources, proceeding from a joint roadmap.

Stropki, Michael A.↗

NASA NTRS2014

Peru Water Resources: Integrating NASA Earth Observations into Water Resource Planning and Management in Perus La Libertad Region

Developing countries often struggle with providing water security and sanitation services to their populations. An important aspect of improving security and sanitation is developing a comprehensive understanding of the country's water budget. Water For People, a non-profit organization dedicated to providing clean drinking water, is working with the Peruvian government to develop a water budget for the La Libertad region of Peru which includes the creation of an extensive watershed management plan. Currently, the data archive of the necessary variables to create the water management plan is extremely limited. Implementing NASA Earth observations has bolstered the dataset being used by Water For People, and the METRIC (Mapping EvapoTranspiration at High Resolution and Internalized Calibration) model has allowed for the estimation of the evapotranspiration values for the region. Landsat 8 imagery and the DEM (Digital Elevation Model) from the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) sensor onboard Terra were used to derive the land cover information, and were used in conjunction with local weather data of Cascas from Peru's National Meteorological and Hydrological Service (SENAMHI). Python was used to combine input variables and METRIC model calculations to approximate the evapotranspiration values for the Ochape sub-basin of the Chicama River watershed. Once calculated, the evapotranspiration values and methodology were shared Water For People to help supplement their decision support tools in the La Libertad region of Peru and potentially apply the methodology in other areas of need.

Padgett-Vasquez, Steve↗

NASA NTRS2021

The CHIMAERA System for Retrievals of Cloud Top, Optical and Microphysical Properties from Imaging Sensors

Continuity and consistency of geophysical retrieval products obtained from different Earth-observing spaceborne or airborne atmospheric multispectral imagers can be challenging due to inherent differences in the instruments and/or the use of different retrieval algorithms. The Cross-platform HIgh resolution Multi-instrument AtmosphEric Retrieval Algorithms (CHIMAERA) system addresses the latter aspect of the inter-sensor continuity problem for cloud property retrievals by removing retrieval methodology and implementation as a source of inconsistency when applied to instruments that share common measurement capabilities. Transferring an existing retrieval algorithm to a new sensor oftentimes is a nontrivial task, as it is common for an algorithm code to be tightly coupled to the sensor for which it was developed. By creating a clear division between the science algorithm and the instrument I/O codes, CHIMAERA allows easy migration of science algorithms to different sensors. CHIMAERA is built from C and FORTRAN source code, and can operate in a variety of environments ranging from a personal laptop to a high-performance computing environment for near real-time satellite data production. It is highly adaptable, low-maintenance and allows for easy expansion such that adding new instruments into the system requires only instrument-specific I/O and provision of any external lookup tables specific to the instrument's spectral characteristics. CHIMAERA currently supports 14 spaceborne and airborne atmospheric imagers from a single code base, and has been in use since 2007. In this paper we describe the engineering aspects of CHIMAERA and briefly discuss a few examples from its many current applications.

Galina (Gala) Wind↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Scenario-Based Task Design for Airline Pilot Anticipatory Behaviors: Asynchronous Assessment of Complex Cognitive Skills

Airline pilots must anticipate potential threats to passenger safety and efficient flight. Such anticipation needs to occur at both the system and individual levels, yet no formal training for these anticipatory behaviors currently exists. The emerging field of resilience engineering provides a framework to explore this problem. Given the complex nature of this problem, the assessment portion of the project constituted a challenge. Simulator time is expensive as simulators are costly to run, and they are extremely limited in number. Also, by the nature of their work, pilots as a group are hard to connect with in person; thus, asynchronous methods were adopted. Further, to ensure that authentic pilot behaviors were observed, task-based scenarios were used rather than focus group or interview protocols. This session explores the design of asynchronous learning and a measure for assessing pilot anticipatory behaviors outside of a simulator to help design learning opportunities for pilots. The scenario-based and active assessment items will be discussed in detail, and demonstrations of these items will be shared. These items constitute the bulk of the challenge for this work. At the time of this writing, data is being collected to assess the effectiveness of the interactive training module and validate the measures. This data will be analyzed and presented as part of the session. This will include any linkages between the scenario-based and traditional assessment items.

task design↗

NASA NTRS2009

Providing Oxygen for the Crew of a Lunar Outpost

Oxygen (O2) is obviously essential for human space missions, but it is important to examine all the different ways it will be used and the potential sources that it may come from. This effort will lead to storage and delivery requirements and help to determine the optimum architecture from an overall systems engineering point of view. Accounting for all the oxygen in a Lunar Outpost mission includes meeting the metabolic needs of the crew while in the surface Habitat, leakage through the Habitat or Pressurized Rover walls, recharge of the space suit backpack and emergency situations. Current plans indicate that both primary and secondary O2 bottles for the space suit will be filled to a pressure of 20.7 MPa (3000 psia). Other uses of O2 require much lower pressure. Sources of O2 at a Lunar Outpost include compressed or liquefied O2 brought along specifically for life support, scavenged O2 from the Lander propulsion system, recovered O2 from waste water or exhaled carbon dioxide and O2 mined from the moon itself. Previously, eight technology options were investigated to provide the high pressure space suit O2. High pressure O2 storage was treated as the baseline technology and compared to the other seven. The other seven were cryogenic storage followed by high pressure vaporization, scavenging liquid oxygen (LOX) from Lander followed by vaporization, LOX delivery followed by sorption compression, low pressure water electrolysis followed by mechanical compression, high pressure water electrolysis, sharing a high pressure electrolyzer with a regenerative fuel cell power system, and making use of In- Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU). This system-level analysis was conducted by comparing equivalent system mass of the eight technologies in open and closed loop life support architectures. The most promising high pressure O2 generation technologies were recommended for development. Updates and an expansion of the earlier study have been made and the results are reported in this paper. Examples of recent analyses include feasibility of recovering space suit purge O2 in a Pressurized Rover and using sub-critical LOX for primary supply while using high-pressure gaseous O2 as the secondary supply for the space-suit. Preliminary analysis on scavenging LOX from the Lander and delivering it to the Habitat has also been incorporated into this integrated lunar fluids analysis

Ewert, Michael K.↗

NASA NTRS2017

Exploration Medical Capability System Engineering Introduction and Vision

Human exploration missions to beyond low Earth orbit destinations such as Mars will require more autonomous capability compared to current low Earth orbit operations. For the medical system, lack of consumable resupply, evacuation opportunities, and real-time ground support are key drivers toward greater autonomy. Recognition of the limited mission and vehicle resources available to carry out exploration missions motivates the Exploration Medical Capability (ExMC) Element's approach to enabling the necessary autonomy. The Element's work must integrate with the overall exploration mission and vehicle design efforts to successfully provide exploration medical capabilities. ExMC is applying systems engineering principles and practices to accomplish its integrative goals. This talk will briefly introduce the discipline of systems engineering and key points in its application to exploration medical capability development. It will elucidate technical medical system needs to be met by the systems engineering work, and the structured and integrative science and engineering approach to satisfying those needs, including the development of shared mental and qualitative models within and external to the human health and performance community. These efforts are underway to ensure relevancy to exploration system maturation and to establish medical system development that is collaborative with vehicle and mission design and engineering efforts.

Mindock, J.↗

NASA NTRS2024

Decision Space Modeling: Trade Space Ontology

As the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) works to develop a crewed Moon to Mars Architecture, it is dealing with a large decision space consisting of the overlay of human exploration architectures for both the Moon and for Mars. Efforts are underway to enable reasoning, analysis, and deliberation on this decision space. A critical first step is to develop a model of the decision space, which will then allow for various methods and techniques to be applied in support of the larger architecture decision-making process. The Trade Space Ontology consists of a set of terminologies and relations (an ontology) and a MagicDraw resource that enables documentation of decisions and alternatives. It also provides a means by which decisions and alternatives can be traced to other Systems Engineering artifacts. For documenting alternatives, the Trade Space Ontology adapts the Morphological Matrix methodology to The Systems Modeling Language (SysML) through a profile; custom diagrams are also implemented to simplify the profile's use. With the profile and custom diagrams, system architects can specify options for architecture attributes, as well as compatibility between them, in a compact visual format. While the approach shares similarities to a trade tree, the emphasis at this stage is less on enumerating specific combinations of options and instead on specifying the options and their compatibility. Enumeration of alternatives is performed by an external analysis that operates on an output file from a model constructed using the Trade Space Ontology. For decisions, the Trade Space Ontology provides a way to model generic precedence relationships as well as documenting inputs and outputs. These may include what alternatives, criteria, and rationale are understood to be relevant for each decision. Importantly, the decision-making side of the Trade Space Ontology is defined at a more general level, such that it can be adapted to the specific terms in use by projects and programs at NASA. However, this adaptability also means that less capability is provided ``out-of-the-box'' from installation. Currently the resource includes plugin functionality to enumerate paths through generic precedence relationships between decisions and to export these paths to a spreadsheet. Custom dependency stereotypes are included in the profile to indicate the cross-cutting relationships between the trade space and the architecture decisions, providing a means to map which parts of the trade space enumerate alternatives for a decision, and to identify how the output of a decision may modify the trade space through pruning or down-selection. While the motivating use case for this resource is in human exploration architectures, the broad applicability of the Morphological Matrix methodology indicates that the Trade Space Ontology should also be useful for other activities and tasks at the agency.

Trade Tree↗

NASA NTRS2003

Academy Sharing Knowledge (ASK). The NASA Source for Project Management Magazine, Volume 11, March 2003

APPL is a research-based organization that serves NASA program and project managers, as well as project teams, at every level of development. In 1997, APPL was created from an earlier program to underscore the importance that NASA places on project management and project teams through a wide variety of products and services, including knowledge sharing, classroom and online courses, career development guidance, performance support, university partnerships, and advanced technology tools. ASK Magazine grew out of APPL's Knowledge Sharing Initiative. The stories that appear in ASK are written by the 'best of the best' project managers, primarily from NASA, but also from other government agencies and industry. Contributors to this issue include: Teresa Bailey, a librarian at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Roy Malone, Deputy Director in the Safety and Mission Assurance (S&MA) Office at the NASA Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC), W. Scott Cameron, Capital Systems Manager for the Food and Beverage Global Business Unit of Procter and Gamble, Ray Morgan, recent retiree as Vice President of AeroVironment, Inc., Marty Davis, Program Manager of the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES) at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) in Greenbelt, Maryland, Todd Post, editor of ASK Magazine, and works for EduTech Ltd. in Silver Spring, Maryland, Dr. Owen Gadeken, professor of Engineering Management at the Defense Acquisition University, Ken Schwer, currently the Project Manager of Solar Dynamics Observatory, Dr. Edward Hoffmwan, Director of the NASA Academy of Program and Project Leadership, Frank Snow, a member of the NASA Explorer Program at Goddard Space Flight Center since 1992, Dr. Alexander Laufer, Editor-in-Chief of ASK Magazine and a member of the Advisory Board of the NASA Academy of Program and Project Leadership, Judy Stokley, presently Air Force Program Executive Officer for Weapons in Washington, D.C. and Terry Little, Director of the Kinetic Energy Boost Office of the Missile Defense Agency.

Source record↗