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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 109 records · Page 6
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1986

Surface drilling technologies for Mars

We propose rock drilling and coring conceptual designs for the surface activities associated with a manned Mars mission. Straightforward extensions of equipment and procedures used on Earth are envisioned for the sample coring and shallow high explosive shot holes needed for tunneling and seismic surveying. A novel rocket exhaust jet piercing method is proposed for very rapid drilling of shot holes required for explosive excavation of emergency radiation shelters. Summaries of estimated equipment masses and power requirements are provided, and the indicated rotary coring rigs are scaled from terrestrial equipment and use compressed C02 from the Martian atmosphere for core bit cooling and cuttings removal. A mass of 120 kg and power of 3 kW(e) are estimated for a 10 m depth capability. A 100 m depth capacity core rig requires about 1150 kg and 32 kw(e). The rocket exhaust Jet equipment devised for shallow (3m) explosive emplacement shot holes requires no surface power beyond an electrical ignition system, and might have a 15 kg mass.

J D Blacic↗
NASA NTRS1989

Calculating Trajectories And Orbits

Double-Precision Trajectory Analysis Program, DPTRAJ, and Orbit Determination Program, ODP, developed and improved over years to provide highly reliable and accurate navigation capability for deep-space missions like Voyager. Each collection of programs working together to provide desired computational results. DPTRAJ, ODP, and supporting utility programs capable of handling massive amounts of data and performing various numerical calculations required for solving navigation problems associated with planetary fly-by and lander missions. Used extensively in support of NASA's Voyager project. DPTRAJ-ODP available in two machine versions. UNIVAC version, NPO-15586, written in FORTRAN V, SFTRAN, and ASSEMBLER. VAX/VMS version, NPO-17201, written in FORTRAN V, SFTRAN, PL/1 and ASSEMBLER.

Alderson, Daniel J.↗
NASA NTRS1998

The Development of the Joint NASA GSFC and the National Imagery and Mapping Agency (NIMA) Geopotential Model EGM96

The NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC), the National Imagery and Mapping Agency (NIMA), and The Ohio State University (OSU) have collaborated to develop an improved spherical harmonic model of the Earth's gravitational potential to degree 360. The new model, Earth Gravitational Model 1996 (EGM96), incorporates improved surface gravity data, altimeter-derived gravity anomalies from ERS-1 and from the GEOSAT Geodetic Mission (GM), extensive satellite tracking data-including new data from Satellite Laser Ranging (SLR), the Global Postioning System (GPS), NASA's Tracking and Data Relay Satellite System (TDRSS), the French DORIS system, and the US Navy TRANET Doppler tracking system-as well as direct altimeter ranges from TOPEX/POSEIDON (T/P), ERS-1, and GEOSAT. The final solution blends a low-degree combination model to degree 70, a block-diagonal solution from degree 71 to 359, and a quadrature solution at degree 360. The model was used to compute geoid undulations accurate to better than one meter (with the exception of areas void of dense and accurate surface gravity data) and realize WGS84 as a true three-dimensional reference system. Additional results from the EGM96 solution include models of the dynamic ocean topography to degree 20 from T/P and ERS-1 together, and GEOSAT separately, and improved orbit determination for Earth-orbiting satellites.

Lemoine, F. G.↗
NASA NTRS2001

LOX System Prestart Conditioning on X-34

The X-34 is a reusable launch vehicle that will be carried underneath an airplane to altitude of 35000 feet where it will be launched. It utilizes a single Fastrac 60K rocket engine for propulsion. This engine burns RP-1 and Lox as propellants and has a single shaft Lox and RP-1 turbopump. With these features there are three important requirements that must be met during the prestart thermal conditioning of this engine and feed system. First, the Lox temperature prior to starting the engine must be cold enough to be in the predefined start box at that pressure. Second, the RP-1 in the single shaft turbopump in close proximity to the lox must not freeze significantly where it effects turbopump or engine operation. Third, the chill phase of the prestart countdown has been allocated 700lb of Lox which if exceeded starts to effect mission performance. Extensive testing and analysis has been performed to evaluate the chill characteristics of the Fastrac Engine as well as test facilities and X-34 Lox feed and bleed systems.

Goode, Brian K.↗
NASA NTRS2002

STS-111 Mission Highlights Resource Tape: Flight Days 1 - 4 - Part 1 of 4

This video, Part 1 of 4, shows the activities of the STS-111 crew (Kenneth Cockrell, Commander; Paul Lockhart, Pilot; Franklin Chang-Diaz, Phillipe Perrin, Mission Specialists) during flight days 1 through 4. Also shown are the incoming Expedition 5 (Valeri Korzun, Commander; Peggy Whitson, NASA ISS Science Officer; Sergei Treschev, Flight Engineer) and outgoing Expedition 4 (Yuri Onufriyenko, Commander; Carl Walz, Daniel Bursch, Flight Engineers) crews of the ISS (International Space Station). The activities from other flight days can be seen on 'STS-111 Mission Highlights Resource Tape' Part 2 of 4 (internal ID 2002139469), 'STS-111 Mission Highlights Resource Tape' Part 3 of 4 (internal ID 2002139468), and 'STS-111 Mission Highlights Resource Tape' Part 4 of 4 (internal ID 2002139474). The primary activity of flight day 1 is the launch of Space Shuttle Endeavour. The crew is seen before the launch at a meal and suit-up, and some pre-flight procedures are shown. Perrin holds a sign with a personalized message. The astronauts communicate with Mission Control extensively after launch, and an inside view of the shuttle cabin is shown. The replays of the launch include close-ups of the nozzles at liftoff, and the fall of the solid rocket boosters and the external fuel tank. Flight day 2 shows footage of mainland Asia at night, and daytime views of the eastern United States and Lake Michigan. Flight day three shows the Endeavour orbiter approaching and docking with the ISS. After the night docking, the crews exchange greetings, and a view of the Nile river and Egypt at night is shown. On flight day 4, the MPLM (Multi-Purpose Logistics Module) Leonardo was temporarily transferred from Endeavour's payload bay to the ISS.

Source record↗
NASA NTRS2003

Intercomparison of Atmospheric Radiation Schemes for the Lower Martian Atmosphere

Interpretation of the vast data flow from the recent and ongoing Mars missions requires extensive modeling activity to support the investigations and conclusions drawn from the observations. We have initiated a campaign to compare atmospheric radiation schemes for the lower Martian atmosphere with leastcompromise reference line-by-line calculations (Meadows and Crisp 1996, Crisp 1986). By using fixed reference conditions we are introducing an intercomparison framework to enable atmospheric modeling teams to compare their modeling results with the reference line-by-line calculations, and to improve their models. The atmosphere of Mars is thin and therefore its response to local radiative forcing is strong when compared to that of the Earth s troposphere. Airborne dust and also the water vapor give significant contributions to the radiative fluxes. Thus models of the Martian atmosphere should have fairly accurate radiative transfer (RT) algorithms. This is specifically important for the net radiative flux at the surface, which is the main driver for the surface temperature evolution, since the surface turbulent fluxes are small due to the thin atmosphere (e.g. Haberle et al. 1993, Savij arvi 1991a, Savij arvi 1991b, Savij arvi 1999). However, the accuracy of the RT schemes has not been rigorously tested in many cases as reference calculations have been rare. We introduce a set of reference cases for Martian atmospheric conditions with profiles for temperature, pressure, dust optical depth (Conrath 1975, Clancy et al. 1995, OckertBell et al. 1997, Smith et al. 2000), water, CO2,O3,CO and O2 (Table 1). The reference atmosphere uses a diurnally and globally averaged thermal structure derived from Mariner 9 IRIS observations acquired during late southern summer. Thermal structures for nighttime and daytime conditions will be included shortly. Computationally expensive reference simulations were performed by applying a spectrum resolving (line-by-line multiple scattering) model, SRM, to give the least-compromise base for comparisons. We call for other groups to join in future comparisons. This resembles the International Comparison of Radiation Codes for Climate Models (ICRCCM; e.g. Ellingson and Fouquart 1991, Ellingson et al. 1991). The ICRCCM led to many improvements in the Earth GCM radiation codes. The intercomparison framework presented in this paper is a step toward that direction for Mars. We have already five modeling teams participating in this intercomparison exercice. Additional teams investigating the Martian atmosphere are cordially invited to join this effort of comparing the radiation schemes in fixed conditions. The results achieved will be reported and some additional features to be included in the intercomparison will be discussed.

A-M Harri↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Aerodynamic Decelerators for Planetary Exploration: Past, Present, and Future

In this paper, aerodynamic decelerators are defined as textile devices intended to be deployed at Mach numbers below five. Such aerodynamic decelerators include parachutes and inflatable aerodynamic decelerators (often known as ballutes). Aerodynamic decelerators play a key role in the Entry, Descent, and Landing (EDL) of planetary exploration vehicles. Among the functions performed by aerodynamic decelerators for such vehicles are deceleration (often from supersonic to subsonic speeds), minimization of descent rate, providing specific descent rates (so that scientific measurements can be obtained), providing stability (drogue function - either to prevent aeroshell tumbling or to meet instrumentation requirements), effecting further aerodynamic decelerator system deployment (pilot function), providing differences in ballistic coefficients of components to enable separation events, and providing height and timeline to allow for completion of the EDL sequence. Challenging aspects in the development of aerodynamic decelerators for planetary exploration missions include: deployment in the unusual combination of high Mach numbers and low dynamic pressures, deployment in the wake behind a blunt-body entry vehicle, stringent mass and volume constraints, and the requirement for high drag and stability. Furthermore, these aerodynamic decelerators must be qualified for flight without access to the exotic operating environment where they are expected to operate. This paper is an introduction to the development and application of aerodynamic decelerators for robotic planetary exploration missions (including Earth sample return missions) from the earliest work in the 1960s to new ideas and technologies with possible application to future missions. An extensive list of references is provided for additional study.

Juan R Cruz↗
NASA NTRS2007

Lessons Learned from Seven Space Shuttle Missions

Much can be learned from well-written descriptions of the technical and organizational factors that lead to an accident. Subsequent analysis by third parties of investigation reports and associated evidence collected during the investigations can lead to additional insight. Much can also be learned from documented close calls that do not result in loss of life or a spacecraft, such as the Mars Exploration Rover Spirit software anomaly, the SOHO mission interruption, and the NEAR burn anomaly. Seven space shuttle incidents fall into the latter category: Rendezvous Target Failure On STS-41B; Rendezvous Radar Anomaly and Trajectory Dispersion-STS-32 ;Rendezvous Lambert Targeting Anomaly-STS-49; Rendezvous Lambert Targeting Anomaly-STS-51; Zero Doppler Steering Maneuver Anomaly-STS-59; Excessive Propellant Consumption During Rendezvous-STS-69; Global Positioning System Receiver and Associated Shuttle Flight Software Anomalies-STS-91 Procedural work-arounds or software changes prevented them from threatening mission success. Extensive investigations, which included the independent recreation of the anomalies by multiple Shuttle Program organizations, were the key to determining the cause, accurately assessing risk, and identifying software and software process improvements. Lessons learned from these incidents not only validated long-standing operational best practices, but serve to promote discussion and mentoring among Program personnel and are applicable to future space flight programs.

Goodman, John↗
NASA NTRS2010

Impact of Water Recovery from Wastes on the Lunar Surface Mission Water Balance

Future extended lunar surface missions will require extensive recovery of resources to reduce mission costs and enable self-sufficiency. Water is of particular importance due to its potential use for human consumption and hygiene, general cleaning, clothes washing, radiation shielding, cooling for extravehicular activity suits, and oxygen and hydrogen production. Various water sources are inherently present or are generated in lunar surface missions, and subject to recovery. They include: initial water stores, water contained in food, human and other solid wastes, wastewaters and associated brines, ISRU water, and scavenging from residual propellant in landers. This paper presents the results of an analysis of the contribution of water recovery from life support wastes on the overall water balance for lunar surface missions. Water in human wastes, metabolic activity and survival needs are well characterized and dependable figures are available. A detailed life support waste model was developed that summarizes the composition of life support wastes and their water content. Waste processing technologies were reviewed for their potential to recover that water. The recoverable water in waste is a significant contribution to the overall water balance. The value of this contribution is discussed in the context of the other major sources and loses of water. Combined with other analyses these results provide guidance for research and technology development and down-selection.

Fisher, John W.↗
NASA NTRS2017

Development of Lightweight CubeSat with Multi-Functional Structural Battery Systems

This collaborative multi-disciplinary effort aims to develop a lightweight, 1-unit (1U) CubeSat (10x10x10 cm) which utilizes improved and fully integrated structural battery materials for mission life extension, larger payload capability, and significantly reduced mass.The electrolytic carbon fiber material serves the multifunctional capacitive energy system as both a lightweight, load bearing structure and an electrochemical battery system. This implementation will improve traditional multifunctional energy storage concepts with a highly effective energy storage capability.

Light-weight CubeSat↗
NASA NTRS2019

Textile Antennas for Space Environment

This presentation will discuss design and testing of a textile patch antenna for extreme space environments to support the Exploration Extravehicular Mobility Unit (xEMU). The xEMU Project is responsible for the design and delivery of an Exploration-class space suit, which will be demonstrated on the International Space Station (ISS), with future extensibility to missions in cislunar orbit and on the lunar surface. In an effort to reduce mass and volume while increasing redundancy, two textile UHF antenna will be placed on the xEMU, replacing the current single UHF antenna on the EMU. The purpose of this presentation is to discuss the challenges with designing and certifying textile antennas for extreme space environments and the solutions we have implemented to address them.

Yang, Amy↗
NASA NTRS1996

Cassini Stellar Reference Unit: Performance Test Approach and Results

The Cassini Stellar Reference Unit (SRU) is the prime attitude determination sensor on the Cassini spacecraft...To ensure that the SRU will operate within specification for the entire mission, an extensive test program has been undertaken to characterize the SRU performance prior to launch and to quantify any expected performance degradation. Results from several eomplimentary test programs are presented and compared with pre-test performance predictions.

star↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Space Technology Mission Directorate - Game Changing Development Program: FY22 Dust Mitigation Standards Annual Review Presentation

Develop an accessible, understandable, comprehensive, and refereed guide to avoiding lunar dust problems during surface operations, both for inexperienced mechanisms designers in academia or small companies *and* for seasoned mission veterans. Extensive references into the detailed technical literature provide a “how to” lunar dust mitigation reference.

Dust Mitigation↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Comparison of Wind-Tunnel and Flight Unsteady Pressure Stochastic Characteristics for the Space Launch System Artemis I Flight

Over the course of more than ten years, numerous wind-tunnel tests have been conducted to acquire data for characterizing the unsteady pressure environments expected to act on the Space Launch System Block 1 crew launch vehicle during ascent. These wind-tunnel tests of highly-instrumented rigid models are the current standard for the estimation of unsteady environments. Following the successful launch of the Artemis I mission, the extensive flight data acquired can be analyzed to evaluate the accuracy of unsteady pressure environments predicted in subscale wind-tunnel testing in comparison to the flight test data. In this paper, analyses focusing on data from several Space Launch System wind-tunnel tests and the Artemis I flight test are presented, including assessments of test-to-test, tunnel-to-tunnel, and tunnel-to-flight stochastic characteristics and preflight modeling validity based on wind-tunnel testing. In general, the fluctuating pressure environments measured during the several preflight subscale wind-tunnel tests compare favorably and provide relatively accurate estimates of the environments measured during flight. Discrepancies in fluctuating magnitudes, spatial extent of regions of unsteadiness, and narrowband frequency peaks are noted in the multibody region aft of the solid rocket booster forward attachment to the core stage.

wind-tunnel↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Comparison of Wind-Tunnel and Flight Unsteady Pressure Stochastic Characteristics for the Space Launch System Artemis I Flight

Over the course of more than ten years, numerous wind-tunnel tests have been conducted to acquire data for characterizing the unsteady pressure environments expected to act on the Space Launch System Block 1 crew launch vehicle during ascent. These wind-tunnel tests of highly-instrumented rigid models are the current standard for the estimation of unsteady environments. Following the successful launch of the Artemis I mission, the extensive flight data acquired can be analyzed to evaluate the accuracy of unsteady pressure environments predicted in subscale wind-tunnel testing in comparison to the flight test data. In this paper, analyses focusing on data from several Space Launch System wind-tunnel tests and the Artemis I flight test are presented, including assessments of test-to-test, tunnel-to-tunnel, and tunnel-to-flight stochastic characteristics and preflight modeling validity based on wind-tunnel testing. In general, the fluctuating pressure environments measured during the several preflight subscale wind-tunnel tests compare favorably and provide relatively accurate estimates of the environments measured during flight. Discrepancies in fluctuating magnitudes, spatial extent of regions of unsteadiness, and narrowband frequency peaks are noted in the multibody region aft of the solid rocket booster forward attachment to the core stage.

wind-tunnel↗
DOE OSTI2020

Will LISA Detect Harmonic Gravitational Waves from Galactic Cosmic String Loops?

Rapid advancement in the observation of cosmic strings has been made in recent years placing increasingly stringent constraints on their properties, with $G\mu\lesssim 10^{-11}$ from Pulsar Timing Array (PTA). Cosmic string loops with low string tension clump in the Galaxy due to slow loop decay and low gravitational recoil, resulting in great enhancement to loop abundance in the Galaxy. With an average separation of down to just a fraction of a kpc, and the total power of gravitational wave (GW) emission dominated by harmonic modes spanning a wide angular scale, resolved loops located in proximity are powerful, persistent, and highly monochromatic sources of GW with a harmonic signature not replicated by any other sources, making them prime targets for direct detection by the upcoming Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA), whose frequency range is well-matched. Unlike detection of bursts where the detection rate scales with loop abundance, the detection rate for harmonic signal is the result of a complex interplay between the strength of GW emission, loop abundance, and other sources of noise, and is most suitably studied through numerical simulations. We develop a robust and flexible framework for simulating loops in the Galaxy for predicting direct detection of harmonic signal from resolved loops by LISA. Our simulation reveals that the most accessible region in the parameter space consists of large loops $\alpha=0.1$ with low tension $10^{-21}\lesssim G\mu\lesssim 10^{-19}$. Direct detection of field theory cosmic strings is unlikely, with the detection probability $p_{\mathrm{det}}\lesssim 2\%$ for a 1-year mission. An extension suggests that direct detection of cosmic superstrings with a low intercommutation probability is very promising. Searching for harmonic GW signal from resolved loops through LISA observations will potentially place physical constraints on string theory.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
NASA NTRS2002

Applying Strategic Visualization(Registered Trademark) to Lunar and Planetary Mission Design

NASA teams, such as the NASA Exploration Team (NEXT), utilize advanced computational visualization processes to develop mission designs and architectures for lunar and planetary missions. One such process, Strategic Visualization (trademark), is a tool used extensively to help mission designers visualize various design alternatives and present them to other participants of their team. The participants, which may include NASA, industry, and the academic community, are distributed within a virtual network. Consequently, computer animation and other digital techniques provide an efficient means to communicate top-level technical information among team members. Today,Strategic Visualization(trademark) is used extensively both in the mission design process within the technical community, and to communicate the value of space exploration to the general public. Movies and digital images have been generated and shown on nationally broadcast television and the Internet, as well as in magazines and digital media. In our presentation will show excerpts of a computer-generated animation depicting the reference Earth/Moon L1 Libration Point Gateway architecture. The Gateway serves as a staging corridor for human expeditions to the lunar poles and other surface locations. Also shown are crew transfer systems and current reference lunar excursion vehicles as well as the Human and robotic construction of an inflatable telescope array for deployment to the Sun/Earth Libration Point.

Frassanito, John R.↗