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Mathematical Characterization of Battery Models

The purpose of this document is to demonstrate the use of the Extended Kalman Filter as a tool for battery state estimation and the estimation of battery state of charge. The mathematical details based on the equivalent circuit model are presented followed by an electrochemical engineering model. A simplified first-order model is used to demonstrate the procedure followed by second and third-order models. Next a simplified electrochemistry model is presented along with observer development. State observability is calculated for the simpler equivalent circuit models and the simplified electrochemistry model. An outline of the battery model parameter identification method is presented, and model performance based on experimental and flight data is demonstrated.

Battery

Proactive Wildfire Management: A Remote Sensing and Multimodal CNN-MLP Architecture for Ignition Risk Forecasting

As the frequency and intensity of wildfires increase, with fire seasons now starting earlier and ending later than they have over the past decades, current monitoring systems, such as lookout towers and satellites, are hindered by cloud cover, low-resolution imagery, and static data gaps that fail to track vegetation moisture levels fast enough to catch rapid pre-ignition changes. This report proposes a Machine Learning-enabled Wildfire Ignition Prediction framework that combines satellite monitoring with dynamic and high-resolution remote sensing from Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) swarms. The method would use multispectral and thermal data from the Landsat program to create a baseline for vegetation health, calculating a two-band Enhanced Vegetation Index (EVI2) and the moisture content of the vegetation. These inputs will later be fused with microscale UAV weather data, including thermal hotspots found through thick canopies, hyperspectral chemical signatures of pre-visual combustion, and local weather streams. The multispectral satellite, multispectral Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR), and thermal data would then be processed through a Convolutional Neural Network (CNN), alongside a Multilayer Perceptron (MLP) for the micro-weather telemetry. The outputs of these networks would be fused into a single feature representation and passed through a final prediction network to generate real-time ignition risk scores and hotspot alerts. Model performance would be assessed using standard classification metrics, including a Receiver Operating Characteristic - Area Under the Curve (ROC AUC) and F1 score. This system would allow first responders to identify high-risk zones and intervene before ignition occurs, improving emergency response time compared to current approaches.

machine learning

Performance Assessment of LunaNet’s Augmented Forward Signal

LunaNet provides a common set of interoperable specifications for communication and position, navigation and time (PNT) services and interfaces soon to be implemented in lunar vicinity. The LunaNet Interoperability Specification (LNIS) provides the design for the GNSS-like Augmented Forward Signal (AFS), which enables orbiting and surface users in lunar space, such as Artemis, to estimate their position, velocity, and time. The specification of AFS defines two orthogonal signal components on a single carrier: the in-phase component (AFS-I), a lower-chip-rate data channel tailored for applications where low SWaP (Size, Weight, and Power) is critical (e.g., IoT devices or search and rescue), and the quadrature component (AFS-Q), a high-chip-rate data-less pilot signal for high-precision, robust lunar navigation and positioning applications. An initial description of AFS was provided in LNIS 2023, with initial analysis results shown in Dafesh 2024 and Dafesh 2025, and the current signal in space description provided in LNIS 2025. As part of NASA's Lunar Communication Relay and Navigation Systems (LCRNS) project, this work expands upon the initial analysis results and proposes a new expanded set of AFS-Q spreading codes that exceed the cross-correlation and autocorrelation sidelobe performance of L1C and other GNSS signals, while providing additional expansion capabilities for future service satellites. A set of 420 codes was selected from a Weil-based code derived from the prime number 10247, which is larger than the 10243 prime number used to derive BeiDou’s B1C Weil sequences. Both the initial set of 210 codes and the expanded set of 420 codes are shown to provide the best cross-correlation of any 10230-chip satellite navigation codes. The performance is demonstrated for hierarchical sets of spreading codes optimized and organized in sets of 30 codes. The work also compares LunaNet’s AFS to terrestrial GNSS signals in terms of acquisition, tracking, and data demodulation performance. Performance is evaluated for receivers that only track the 1.023 MCPS data channel spreading code for low SWaP IoT use cases, as well as for receivers that track both the 1.023 MCPS data channel and the 5.115 MCPS pilot channel spreading code for high-performance use cases. Performance is assessed in the presence of interference and thermal noise. The analysis is performed in terms of expected operating conditions on the lunar surface. Several unique flexibility aspects of the augmented forward signal are described, including the use of the Q channel’s secondary and tertiary codes to enable variable coherent integrations during acquisition. This is compared to GNSS signals such as L5/E5 and MBOC in terms of achievable processing gain for interference mitigation versus acquisition complexity. The work details acquisition and tracking techniques used to optimally acquire and track the primary, secondary, and tertiary codes on the Q channel, as well as acquisition of the I channel spreading code. Acquisition of the 8 ms, Q channel spreading code is also compared to joint acquisition of the I and Q channel primary codes in noise and interference environments

LCRNS

Performance Assessment of LunaNet’s Augmented Forward Signal

LunaNet provides a common set of interoperable specifications for communication and position, navigation and time (PNT) services and interfaces soon to be implemented in lunar vicinity. The LunaNet Interoperability Specification (LNIS) provides the design for the GNSS-like Augmented Forward Signal (AFS), which enables orbiting and surface users in lunar space, such as Artemis, to estimate their position, velocity, and time. The specification of AFS defines two orthogonal signal components on a single carrier: the in-phase component (AFS-I), a lower-chip-rate data channel tailored for applications where low SWaP (Size, Weight, and Power) is critical (e.g., IoT devices or search and rescue), and the quadrature component (AFS-Q), a high-chip-rate data-less pilot signal for high-precision, robust lunar navigation and positioning applications. An initial description of AFS was provided in [1], with initial analysis results shown in [2] and [3] and the current signal in space description provided in [4]. As part of NASA's Lunar Communication Relay and Navigation Systems (LCRNS) project, this work expands upon the initial analysis results and proposes a new expanded set of AFS-Q spreading codes that exceed the cross-correlation and autocorrelation sidelobe performance of L1C and other GNSS signals, while providing additional expansion capabilities for future provider satellites. A set of 420 codes was selected from a Weil-based code derived from the prime number 10247, which is larger than the 10243 prime number used to derive Beidou’s B1C Weil sequences. Both the initial set of 210 codes and the expanded set of 420 codes are shown to provide the best cross-correlation of any 10230-chip satellite navigation codes. The performance is demonstrated for hierarchical sets of spreading codes optimized and organized in sets of 30 codes. The new codes were developed using an optimization approach and correlation methodology described in [5]. The work also compares LunaNet’s AFS to terrestrial GNSS signals in terms of acquisition, tracking, and data demodulation performance. Performance is evaluated for receivers that only track the 1.023 MCPS data channel spreading code for low SWaP IoT use cases, as well as for receivers that track both the 1.023 MCPS data channel and the 5.115 MCPS pilot channel spreading code for high-performance use cases. Performance is assessed in the presence of interference and thermal noise. The analysis is performed in terms of expected operating conditions on the lunar surface. Several unique flexibility aspects of the augmented forward signal are described, including the use of the Q channel’s secondary and tertiary codes to enable variable coherent integrations during acquisition. This is compared to GNSS signals such as L5/E5 and MBOC in terms of achievable processing gain for interference mitigation versus acquisition complexity. The work details acquisition and tracking techniques used to optimally acquire and track the primary, secondary, and tertiary codes on the Q channel, as well as acquisition of the I channel spreading code. Acquisition of the 8 ms Q channel spreading code is also compared to joint acquisition of the I and Q channel primary codes in noise and interference environments.

LCRNS

JWST Reveals Spectral Tracers of Recent Surface Modification on Europa

Europa has been modified by a variety of geologic processes, exposing internally-derived materials that are heavily irradiated by charged particles trapped in Jupiter’s magnetosphere. Prior spectral analysis of H2O ice on Europa relied on low signal-to-noise data at wavelengths >2.5 µm, limiting assessment of a 3.1 µm Fresnel peak that is diagnostic of exposed crystalline ice. We report new measurements of H2O ice spectral features using high signal-to-noise data collected by the NIRSpec spectrograph (1.48 – 5.35 µm) on the James Webb Space Telescope. These data reveal a narrow 3.1 µm crystalline H2O ice Fresnel peak, which is primarily located at southern latitudes in Tara and Powys Regiones. Our analysis indicates that crystalline ice exposed in these low-latitude regiones is likely sustained by ongoing thermal (re)crystallization outpacing charged particle amorphization of the top ∼10 µm of Europa’s regolith over short timescales (<15 days). We also measured H2O ice features centered near 1.5 µm, 1.65 µm, and 2.0 µm, and a broad 3.6 µm H2O continuum peak, which are all stronger at northern latitudes, in contrast to the 3.1 µm Fresnel peak identified at southern latitudes. These results support the hypothesis that H2O ice in Europa’s regolith is vertically stratified, with amorphous ice grains dominating its exposed surface, except in Tara and Powys Regiones. We also find that a previously detected 4.38 µm 13CO2 feature is present almost exclusively at southern latitudes in Tara and Powys Regiones, likely derived from an internal source of carbon-bearing material.

Surface processes (2116)

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

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

C S Dyer

Trajectory Engineering with Modular Patched Conics for Entry Systems and TPS (TEMPEST)

Brief Presenter Biography (35 word limit): Bohdan Wesely is an Aerospace Engineer in the Entry Systems and Technology Division at Ames. He has worked on a variety of projects for NASA including integrated TPS (thermal protection system) flight hardware deliveries and testing services for commercial partners. Introduction: TEMPEST is a new trajectory analysis framework that is designed to fill the gap between dedicated flight mechanics tools and aerothermal and TPS sizing tools. The project started as an SJSU master’s thesis and has since evolved into a general conceptual design tool capable of studying a wide variety of entry problems. Development is ongoing in the Entry Systems and Technology Division at NASA ARC. Why TEMPEST: Space missions involving entry into a planetary atmosphere involve a series of unique requirements across multiple disciplines. Whether it is traditional entry descent and landing (EDL), or aerocapture, the vehicle must navigate to its target landing location or orbit state, and the TPS must protect the payload during entry. The design process typically involves iterative handoffs between various flight mechanics, flow solver, and material response level tools. During the early conceptual phase, a wide variety of feasible trajectories are simulated in a Monte Carlo scenario which broadly satisfy the mission or landing requirements. Next, computational fluid dynamics (CFD), direct simulation Monte Carlo (DSMC), and other flow solver analyses are performed at various key trajectory points to generate an aero-database, heating and TPS design requirements also emerge at this stage. At this point, with updated aerodynamics from the various flow solvers, trajectories can be re-run, this in turn can change the required freestream conditions for the CFD tools, and as a project progresses, these analyses converge, and uncertainty is reduced. However, there is always a “hand-off” occurring between two inherently coupled phenomena. Analysis Description: One of the goals with TEMPEST is to use a variety of first principles estimation methods coupled with an atmosphere model to predict vehicle aerothermodynamics across the entire flight regime while propagating a 3 or 6 degree of freedom (DoF) trajectory. Aerodynamics methods include modified Newtonian, Maxwell and Cercignani- Lampis-Lord (CLL) for continuum, transitional, and free molecular flow regimes. Aerothermodynamics include boundary layer and reference enthalpy methods, and Mutation++ for non-equilibrium chemistry modeling. TEMPEST is also capable of stitching multiple trajectory segments together to study mission scenarios like multi-pass aerocapture and aero-gravity assists. Most of the program is implemented in MATLAB using modern system objects, it relies on several C++ shared libraries for supporting tools like Gmsh, the Global Reference Atmospheric Model (GRAM), and Mutation++. The various first principles aerothermal estimation methods are discretized across either a structured axisymmetric panel mesh or an unstructured tri-mesh generated from an open-source tool such as Gmsh, this allows solutions on the same mesh to be compared across tools such as CB-Aero. CFD Coupling. A physics-aware, gaussian process CFD anchoring scheme is proposed to adjust the various first principles methods as a CFD database is populated. One goal for this anchoring module is to inform the project where CFD should be run. Full knowledge of the entire trajectory, atmosphere, and aerothermodynamics allows for easier identification of high sensitivity areas and uncertainty quantification. While the first principles effects are well known and proven accurate in existing tools such as CB- Aero and Cart3D, a physics aware CFD anchoring scheme increases tool credibility across a project lifecycle. Material Response Modeling. Correct TPS sizing is critical for optimizing mass for science payloads and ensuring mission success. The process typically involves a thermal analysis along the trajectory with surface heating environments as a boundary condition. Several design constraints are maximum bondline temperature and maximum recession with various margining techniques. The material response tool FIAT, developed out of NASA Ames, is currently being integrated into the TEMPEST environment. TPS recession, shape change, mass loss, and mass property alteration are all factors that can perturb an entry trajectory. For missions like Mars 2020, recession was minimal and was safely handled separately as a post process. For missions such as Jupiter Galileo with a high TPS mass fraction or asteroid entries, recession plays a major role. The proposed fully coupled scheme is to use an epoch-based approach where the trajectory integration is halted after a recession threshold, the energy balance and FIAT are solved at each panel, the mesh, aerodynamics, and mass properties are updated, and the trajectory continues. Several computational tradeoffs have been made during the development of TEMPEST to limit the cost of a single trajectory and preserve its utility as a conceptual, rapid iteration tool. Conclusion: Development of TEMPEST is ongoing and the project is still in its infancy. This talk aims to showcase its unique capabilities to support future NASA entry systems missions.

Bohdan O Wesely

Summary of Research Report

Ten papers, published in various publications, on buckling, and the effects of imperfections on various structures are presented. These papers are: (1) Buckling mode localization in elastic plates due to misplacement in the stiffner location; (2) On vibrational imperfection sensitivity on Augusti's model structure in the vicinity of a non-linear static state; (3) Imperfection sensitivity due to elastic moduli in the Roorda Koiter frame; (4) Buckling mode localization in a multi-span periodic structure with a disorder in a single span; (5) Prediction of natural frequency and buckling load variability due to uncertainty in material properties by convex modeling; (6) Derivation of multi-dimensional ellipsoidal convex model for experimental data; (7) Passive control of buckling deformation via Anderson localization phenomenon; (8)Effect of the thickness and initial im perfection on buckling on composite cylindrical shells: asymptotic analysis and numerical results by BOSOR4 and PANDA2; (9) Worst case estimation of homology design by convex analysis; (10) Buckling of structures with uncertain imperfections - Personal perspective.

Isaac Elishakoff

Computation of Optimal Interplanetary Low-Thrust Trajectories With Bounded Thrust Magnitude By Means of the Generalized Newton-Raphson Method

The generalized Newton-Raphson method, an iterative procedure for solving nonlinear operator equations, has been extended in application to variational problems with bounded control variables. A minimum fuel interplanetary low thrust orbital transfer problem is worked out in detail to demonstrate the practical aspects of the algorithm as well as its computational effectiveness. The control variables are the thrust magnitude, limited from zero to some prescribed maximum value, and the thrust steering angle.

Computation

A method for battery activation

A technique to activate nickel cadmium batteries is described. The method shortened the time required for activation, eliminated the temperature rise in the batteries, and produced a voltage on the discharge that was better than when the C/20 was run for 48 hours during tests. Various methods of activation are described and evaluated. Results of alternate conditioning charge schemes are presented along with voltage/temperature characteristics for multiple level nickel cadmium battery chargers.

Halpert, G.

A Survey of Methods for Measuring Thermally Induced Distortions of Test Articles Undergoing Solar Thermal Vacuum Test

Various methods of measuring the small thermally induced distortions experienced either by various points on the space vehicles or by deviations of surfaces from a known shape during solar thermal vacuum tests are examined. State-of-the-art application of both photographic and real time observation are discussed. The relative merits of each of the methods are compared and evaluated in their applications to different types of test articles and situations. Magnitudes of thermally induced distortions which may be expected to be routinely measurable by the various methods are presented and compared.

R D Rempt

X-Ray Absorption Spectroscopy in High Temperature Oxidation of Metals and Alloys

An experimental technique is described that allows for the joint study of the kinetics and of the oxide structure during the high temperature oxidation of metal surfaces. Oxygen is supplied at the metal through an electrochemical oxygen pump and the oxygen pressure, at the metal surface, is measured during oxidation by a YSZ (yttria stabilized zirconia) oxygen sensor. XAS (x-ray absorption spectroscopy) is performed in fluorescence mode at the cation K edge and after each oxidation step. An appropriate analysis of the XAS spectra could provide information on both the oxidation kinetics and oxide structure. Experimental data on the high temperature oxidation of nickel, cobalt, and Fe(64%)Ni(36%) alloy, at low oxygen pressure, are reported and analyzed according to the proposed data reduction. These results indicate the presented technique to be particularly suitable for studying the hot corrosion of oxide film too thick for common surface spectroscopy (AUGER, ESCA) and too thin for conventional thermogravimetric technique.

Daniele Gozzi

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

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

Viktoria F Sofieva

Incremental Learning for Passive Microwave Precipitation Retrievals using Advanced Technology Microwave Sounder

Spaceborne passive microwave (PMW) radiometry is central to global precipitation monitoring, yet retrieval uncertainties remain substantial, particularly for cross-track sounders whose variable footprints and channel configurations are optimized for atmospheric temperature and moisture profiling rather than precipitation. Consequently, existing operational products often exhibit angular-dependent biases, limited effective swath utilization, unrealistic rainfall probability distributions, and systematic misclassification of precipitation phase. These limitations are further compounded by the scarcity of globally accurate and representative precipitation observations, as training data from the Dual-frequency Precipitation Radar (DPR) and the Cloud Profiling Radar (CPR) are spatially sparse, lack uniform global coverage, and exhibit heterogeneous error characteristics across precipitation regimes. To address these challenges, this study presents a supervised retrieval algorithm that incrementally trains an ensemble of extreme gradient-boosted decision trees by augmenting base learners with pre-training on reanalysis data and post-training on coincident DPR and CPR observations matched with the Advanced Technology Microwave Sounder (ATMS). By transferring prior information from reanalysis to posterior constraints from radar observations and adopting a sequential detection–estimation strategy for precipitation phase and rate retrieval, the proposed approach yields retrievals across the full ATMS swath that are largely free from persistent deficiencies in current Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) passive microwave operational products. In particular, the method resolves bimodal artifacts in rainfall retrievals and mitigates systematic high-latitude snowfall biases, including overestimation across the Arctic and underestimation across the Antarctic. Validation against independent Multi-Radar Multi-Sensor (MRMS) data over the Contiguous United States (CONUS) further demonstrates improved performance in precipitation phase detection and rate estimation relative to both reanalysis and current GPM PMW products.

Mahyar Garshasbi

Spacecraft thermal balance testing using infrared sources

A thermal balance test (controlled flux intensity) on a simple black dummy spacecraft using IR lamps was performed and evaluated, the latter being aimed specifically at thermal mathematical model (TMM) verification. For reference purposes the model was also subjected to a solar simulation test (SST). The results show that the temperature distributions measured during IR testing for two different model attitudes under steady state conditions are reproducible with a TMM. The TMM test data correlation is not as accurate for IRT as for SST. Using the standard deviation of the temperature difference distribution (analysis minus test) the SST data correlation is better by a factor of 1.8 to 2.5. The lower figure applies to the measured and the higher to the computer-generated IR flux intensity distribution. Techniques of lamp power control are presented. A continuing work program is described which is aimed at quantifying the differences between solar simulation and infrared techniques for a model representing the thermal radiating surfaces of a large communications spacecraft.

G. B. T. Tan

A Laboratory Breadboard System for Dual-Arm Teleoperation

The computing architecture of a novel dual-arm teleoperation system is described. The novelty of this system is that: (1) the master arm is not a replica of the slave arm; it is unspecific to any manipulator and can be used for the control of various robot arms with software modifications; and (2) the force feedback to the general purpose master arm is derived from force-torque sensor data originating from the slave hand. The computing architecture of this breadboard system is a fully synchronized pipeline with unique methods for data handling, communication and mathematical transformations. The computing system is modular, thus inherently extendable. The local control loops at both sites operate at 100 Hz rate, and the end-to-end bilateral (force-reflecting) control loop operates at 200 Hz rate, each loop without interpolation. This provides high-fidelity control. This end-to-end system elevates teleoperation to a new level of capabilities via the use of sensors, microprocessors, novel electronics, and real-time graphics displays. A description is given of a graphic simulation system connected to the dual-arm teleoperation breadboard system. High-fidelity graphic simulation of a telerobot (called Phantom Robot) is used for preview and predictive displays for planning and for real-time control under several seconds communication time delay conditions. High fidelity graphic simulation is obtained by using appropriate calibration techniques.

A K Bejczy

Battery Cell Balancing System and Method

A battery cell balancing system is operable to utilize a relatively small number of transformers interconnected with a battery having a plurality of battery cells to selectively charge the battery cells. Windings of the transformers are simultaneously driven with a plurality of waveforms whereupon selected battery cells or groups of cells are selected and charged. A transformer drive circuit is operable to selectively vary the waveforms to thereby vary a weighted voltage associated with each of the battery cells.

Davies, Francis J.