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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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NASA NTRS1986

The Cassini mission

An assessment study of a Saturn-Orbiter plus Titan-probe mission was made. The NASA Solar System Exploration Committee (SSEC) had recommended two separate missions to the Saturn system, in keeping with its charter to design low-cost, dedicated planetary missions. These were a Titan probe, to be carried by a small spacecraft that would include some type of radar mapping device, and a Saturn Orbiter that would be a more sophisticated spacecraft, to be launched separately. A Saturn orbiter and a Titan probe are combined in a single mission that would be carried out in collaboration with NASA. It is this proposal, called the Cassini Project, which was approved by NASA and ESA for an assessment study to be carried out over the next year and a half. Details of the Cassini mission are discussed.

Owen, Tobias↗
NASA NTRS2016

Trajectories for Flyby Sample Return at Saturn's Moons

Ballistic trajectories are computed which would enable a sample return mission to Titan or Enceladus without capturing, descending, or landing. The low-cost mission concept utilizes a free return trajectory that also involves a close flyby of the moon. This work extends the concept, and related trajectory analysis methodology, previously applied to a Europa mission. Specifically, a broad search algorithm is employed to systematically locate potentially feasible itineraries over an entire Saturn period. High-quality approximate solutions are then optimized to be continuous using high-fidelity dynamics. Techniques and software from the Europa analysis, were readily adapted and able to find numerous mission enabling trajectories. A direct mission to Titan is possible with flight time under 16 years and Earth-relative speeds below 11.0 km/sec. The VEEGA option is shown to substantially reduce launch C3, but flight times exceed 21 years. Unfortunately, an Enceladus mission requires a flight time of 25 years or more, and incurs fairly high relative speeds. Nevertheless, an optimized reference mission is computed.

Jones, Drew Ryan↗
NASA NTRS2015

Long-Term Cryogenic Propellant Storage for the Titan Orbiter Polar Surveyor (TOPS) Mission

Cryogenic propellants such as liquid hydrogen (LH2) and liquid oxygen (LOX) can dramatically enhance NASAs ability to explore the solar system because of their superior specific impulse (Isp) capability. Although these cryogenic propellants can be challenging to manage and store, they allow significant mass advantages over traditional hypergolic propulsion systems and are therefore technically enabling for many planetary science missions. New cryogenic storage techniques such as subcooling and the use of advanced insulation and low thermal conductivity support structures will allow for the long term storage and use of cryogenic propellants for solar system exploration and hence allow NASA to deliver more payloads to targets of interest, launch on smaller and less expensive launch vehicles, or both. Employing cryogenic propellants will allow NASA to perform missions to planetary destinations that would not be possible with the use of traditional hypergolic propellants. These new cryogenic storage technologies were implemented in a design study for the Titan Orbiter Polar Surveyor (TOPS) mission, with LH2 and LOX as propellants, and the resulting spacecraft design was able to achieve a 43 launch mass reduction over a TOPS mission, that utilized a conventional hypergolic propulsion system with mono-methyl hydrazine (MMH) and nitrogen tetroxide (NTO) propellants. This paper describes the cryogenic propellant storage design for the TOPS mission and demonstrates how these cryogenic propellants are stored passively for a decade-long Titan mission.

Cryogenic Propellant Storage↗
NASA NTRS1992

Cassini: A mission to Saturn and Titan

The Cassini spacecraft that will carry out a detailed exploration of the Saturnian system is described. The spacecraft is composed of a Saturn orbiter and a Titan atmospheric probe called Huygens. The scientific objectives and investigations developed for the accommodation phase of the mission are discussed. The preferred trajectories available for transit to Saturn are discussed along with Titan specific features of the tour of the Saturnian system.

Matson, Dennis L.↗
NASA NTRS2018

Cassini Orbit Determination Operations Through The Final Titan Flybys and The Mission Grand Finale (February 2016 - September 2017)

This paper reports on the orbit determination performance for the final 1.5 years of the Cassini Solstice mission, including the mission’s Grand Finale. During this period, Cassini encountered its final eleven targeted flybys of Titan (T116-T126) and executed its last 62 orbits of Saturn. In these final months, the spacecraft’s inclination was gradually raised from near equatorial to near 63 degrees, critical inclination, to prevent the line of apsides from rotating out of Titan’s orbital plane. Critical inclination enables continued Titan flybys, the last of which places Cassini on an impact trajectory with Saturn, thereby satisfying planetary protection requirements. In this reporting period, the orbit period moved from 16 days to nearly 32 and, for the final 6 months, it was brought down to less than 7 days. By design, the spacecraft entered the Saturn atmosphere on its final orbit and vaporized on September 15, 2017. We also report on the particular challenges associated with a stellar occultation, a flyby of Saturn’s rocks, and the last revolutions of the mission’s Grand Finale.

Criddle, Kevin↗
NASA NTRS1981

Deep space exploration - The new challenges

Prospects for future planetary exploration missions are examined. The evolution of planetary mission objectives in the U.S. and U.S.S.R. is traced, and planetary mission attempts and results are reviewed. The present situation with regard to planetary and interplanetary spacecraft operating in 1980 and approved deep-space missions for the future is considered, and the good scientific prospects of future Soviet missions are emphasized. Future plans for U.S. missions not yet approved are then discussed, with consideration given to the Venus Orbital Imaging Radar mission, a mission to Halley's comet, a rendezvous with a short-period comet, a Saturn orbiter mission with probes into Saturn and Titan, asteroid missions, gravity-assisted flights to Uranus, Neptune and Pluto, a Mercury orbiter/lander, lunar activities and a program of Mars exploration. The demanding requirements in the fields of automation, instrumentation and data gathering techniques, launch vehicle capabilities and spacecraft propulsion for future possible missions and possible solutions are examined. Finally, recommendations for the simultaneous pursuit of both major missions at the scientific and technological frontier and lesser missions designed to investigate specific scientific questions raised by earlier probes are presented.

French, J. R.↗
NASA NTRS2016

Science Instrument Sensitivities to Radioisotope Power System Environment

Radioisotope Power Systems (RPS) have been and will be enabling or significantly enhancing for many missions, including several concepts identified in the 2011 Planetary Science Decadal Survey. Some mission planners and science investigators might have concerns about possible impacts from RPS-induced conditions upon the scientific capabilities of their mission concepts. To alleviate these concerns, this paper looks at existing and potential future RPS designs, and examines their potential radiation, thermal, vibration, electromagnetic interference (EMI), and magnetic fields impacts on representative science instruments and science measurements. Radiation impacts from RPS on science instruments are of potential concern for instruments with optical detectors and instruments with high-voltage electronics. The two main areas of concern are noise effects on the instrument measurements, and long-term effects of instrument damage. While RPS by their nature will contribute to total radiation dose, their addition for most missions should be relatively small. For example, the gamma dose rate from one Multi-Mission Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generator (MMRTG) would be an order of magnitude lower than the environmental dose rate at Mars, and would have a correspondingly lower contribution to instrument noise and to any permanent damage to payload sensors. Increasing the number of General Purpose Heat Source (GPHS) modules used in an RPS would be expected to increase the generated radiation proportionally; however, the effect of more GPHS modules is mitigated from a strictly linear relationship by self-shielding effects. The radiation field of an RPS is anisotropic due to the deviation of the modules from a point-source-geometry. For particularly sensitive instruments the total radiation dose could be mitigated with separation or application of spot shielding. Though a new, higher-power RPS could generate more heat per unit than current designs, thermal impact to the flight system could be mitigated with shading and pointing if required by the mission. Alternatively, excess heat could prove beneficial in providing needed heat to spacecraft components and instruments in some thermal environments. Vibration for a new higher-power Stirling Radioisotope Generator (SRG) would be expected to be similar to the recent Advanced Stirling Radioisotope Generator (ASRG) design. While vibration should be low, it must be considered and addressed during spacecraft and instrument design. EMI and magnetic fields for new RPS concepts are expected to be low as for the current RPS, but must be considered and addressed if the mission includes sensitive instruments such as magnetometers. The assessment conducted for this paper focused on orbiter instrument payloads for two representative mission concepts- a Titan Saturn System Mission (TSSM) and a Uranus Orbiter and Probe (UOP)-since both of these Decadal Survey concepts would include many diverse instruments on board. Quick-look design studies using notional new RPS concepts were carried out for these two mission concepts, and their specific instrument packages were analyzed for their interactions with new RPS designs. The original Decadal Survey TSSM and UOP concepts did not have complete instrument performance requirements so typical measurement requirements were used where needed. Then, the general RPS environments were evaluated for impacts to various types of instruments. This paper describes how the potential impacts of the RPS on science instruments and measurements were assessed, which impacts were addressed, proposed mitigation strategies against those impacts, and provides an overview of future work.

RPS↗
NASA NTRS2014

SUPERball: Exploring Tensegrities for Planetary Probes

The Dynamic Tensegrity Robotics Lab (DTRL) at NASA Ames Research Center is developing a compliant and distributed tensegrity robotic platform for planetary exploration. Working in collaboration with Ghent University, the DTRL built an untethered prototype robot, the SUPERball. In this work, multiple issues with the current SUPERball design are addressed, when considering an example mission to Titan. Specifically, engineering requirements for the mission are empirically validated, and the current design is extended under these requirements to meet expanded goals.Survival of impact forces under entry, descent, and landing are verified with a physical experiment performed in collaboration with the University of Idaho. Then, concepts for a fully-actuated redesign of SUPERball are generated, compared, and validated against current engineering requirements. This exploratory work moves the SUPERball project toward an eventual flight-ready design.\

Tensegrity↗
NASA NTRS2008

Titan Architecture Baseline Options

This slide presentation reviews the mission architecture for the Titan mission. The presentation includes information on mission architecture options, probe delivery options, and Enceladus lighting.

mission architecture↗
NASA NTRS2014

Miniature Cryogenic Valves for a Titan Lake Sampling System

The Cassini mission has revealed Titan to be one of the most Earthlike worlds in the Solar System complete with many of the same surface features including lakes, river channels, basins, and dunes. But unlike Earth, the materials and fluids on Titan are composed of cryogenic organic compounds with lakes of liquid methane and ethane. One of the potential mission concepts to explore Titan is to land a floating platform on one of the Titan Lakes and determine the local lake chemistry. In order to accomplish this within the expected mass volume and power budgets there is a need to pursue the development for a low power lightweight cryogenic valves which can be used along with vacuum lines to sample lake liquid and to distribute to various instruments aboard the Lander. To meet this need we have initiated the development of low power cryogenic valves and actuators based on a single crystal piezoelectric flextensional stacks produced by TRS Ceramics Inc. Since the origin of such high electromechanical properties of Relaxor-PT single crystals is due to the polarization rotation effect, (i.e., intrinsic contributions), the strain per volt decrease at cryogenic temperatures is much lower than in standard Lead Zirconate Titanate (PZT) ceramics. This makes them promising candidates for cryogenic actuators with regards to the stroke for a given voltage. This paper will present our Titan Lake Sampling and Sample Handling system design and the development of small cryogenic piezoelectric valves developed to meet the system specifications.

Piezoelectric Devices↗
NASA NTRS1964

Gemini Program Mission Report for Gemini Titan 1 Orbital Heating

Temperature measurements on Gemini-Titan I were recorded by the Manned Spaceflight Network and the Atlantic Missile Range tracking stations during the first , second, third, and fourth orbital passes; however, only data recorded at the Cape Kennedy Telemetry Building II (TEL II) were available for evaluation during the preparation period of the Mission Report for GT-1. Orbital temperatures from the tracking stations in Hawaii, California, Canary Islands, and Carnarvon, have been received and analyzed and the results are presented here as a supplemental report to the Mission Report for GT-1.

Source record↗
NASA NTRS1983

Outer-planet probe/flyby missions

Results are presented for preliminary studies of low-cost outer-planet probe/flyby missions. The scientific rationale for such missions is discussed, along with possible mission modes, spacecraft concepts, launch-vehicle options, and a recommended set of outer-planet missions. Descriptions are given for a 1990 Titan probe/flyby mission and a 1991 Saturn probe/flyby mission. Projected costs are analyzed for these two missions as well as for a 1992 Neptune probe/flyby mission, a 1994 Uranus probe/flyby mission, and a 2003 Pluto flyby mission.

Swenson, B. L.↗
NASA NTRS2004

Human Missions to Europa and Titan - Why Not?

This report describes a long-term development plan to enable human exploration of the outer solar system, with a focus on Europa and Titan. These are two of the most interesting moons of Jupiter and Saturn, respectively, because they are the places in the solar system with the greatest potential for harboring extraterrestrial life. Since human expeditions to these worlds are considered impossible with current capabilities, the proposal of a well-organized sequence of steps towards making this a reality was formulated. The proposed Development Plan, entitled Theseus, is the outcome of a recent multinational study by a group of students in the framework of the Master of Space Studies (MSS) 2004 course at the International Space University (ISU). The Theseus Program includes the necessary development strategies in key scientific and technological areas that are essential for identifying the requirements for the exploration of the outer planetary moons. Some of the topics that are analysed throughout the plan include: scientific observations at Europa and Titan, advanced propulsion and nuclear power systems, in-situ resource utilization, radiation mitigation techniques, closed life support systems, habitation for long-term spaceflight, and artificial gravity. In addition to the scientific and technological aspects of the Theseus Program, it was recognized that before any research and development work may begin, some level of program management must be established. Within this chapter, legal issues, national and international policy, motivation, organization and management, economic considerations, outreach, education, ethics, and social implications are all considered with respect to four possible future scenarios which enable human missions to the outer solar system. The final chapter of the report builds upon the foundations set by Theseus through a case study. This study illustrates how such accomplishments could influence a mission to Europa to search for evidence of life in its subsurface oceans. The future remains unpredictable, as does the realization of any of these possibilities. However, projects such as this remind us that the final frontier for humans is truly outer space, and only our imagination will determine where the frontier stops. We can dream of visiting other planetary systems and perhaps even galaxies, but we must begin closer, and considering the scope of our known universe, Europa and Titan are very close indeed.

FROM↗
NASA NTRS2005

Human Mission to Europa and Titan - Why Not? Executive Summary

Outline a step-by-step Development Plan of the key barriers and their solutions to enable human exploration of the outer solar system. Secondary: Perform a case study which supports and emphasizes the key elements of the Development Plan.

Finarelli, Margaret G.↗
NASA NTRS2005

Montgolfiere balloon missions from Mars and Titan

Montgolfieres, which are balloons that are filled with heated ambient atmospheric gas, appear promising for the exploration of Mars as well as of Saturn's moon, Titan. On Earth, Montgolfieres are also known as 'hot air balloons'. Commercial versions are typically heated by burning propane, although a number of radiant and solar-heated Montgolfieres have been flown on earth by CNES.

Mars↗