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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 NTRS2015

DRAGONS - A Micrometeoroid and Orbital Debris Impact Sensor

The Debris Resistive/Acoustic Grid Orbital Navy-NASA Sensor (DRAGONS) is intended to be a large area impact sensor for in situ measurements of micrometeoroids and orbital debris (MMOD) in the millimeter or smaller size regime. These MMOD particles are too small to be detected by ground-based radars and optical telescopes, but are still large enough to be a serious safety concern for human space activities and robotic missions in the low Earth orbit (LEO) region. The nominal detection area of a DRAGONS unit is 1 m2, consisting of several independently operated panels. The approach of the DRAGONS design is to combine different particle impact detection principles to maximize information that can be extracted from detected events. After more than 10 years of concept and technology development, a 1 m2 DRAGONS system has been selected for deployment on the International Space Station (ISS) in August 2016. The project team achieved a major milestone when the Preliminary Design Review (PDR) was completed in May 2015. Once deployed on the ISS, this multi-year mission will provide a unique opportunity to demonstrate the MMOD detection capability of the DRAGONS technologies and to collect data to better define the small MMOD environment at the ISS altitude.

Liou, J. -C.↗
NASA NTRS2012

OpTIIX: An ISS-Based Testbed Paving the Roadmap Toward a Next Generation Large Aperture UV/Optical Space Telescope

The next generation large aperture UV/Optical space telescope will need a diameter substantially larger than even that of JWST in order to address some of the most compelling unanswered scientific quests. These quests include understanding the earliest phases of the Universe and detecting life on exo-planets by studying spectra of their atmospheres. Such 8-16 meter telescopes face severe challenges in terms of cost and complexity and are unlikely to be affordable unless a new paradigm is adopted for their design and construction. The conventional approach is to use monolithic or preassembled segmented mirrors requiring complicated and risky deployments and relying on future heavy-lift vehicles, large fairings and complex geometry. The new paradigm is to launch component modules on relatively small vehicles and then perform in-orbit robotic assembly of those modules. The Optical Testbed and Integration on ISS eXperiment (OpTIIX) is designed to demonstrate, at low cost by leveraging the infrastructure provided by ISS, telescope assembly technologies and end-to-end optical system technologies. The use of ISS as a testbed permits the concentration of resources on reducing the technical risks associated with robotically integrating the components. These include laser metrology and wavefront sensing and control (WFS&C) systems, an imaging instrument, lightweight, low-cost deformable primary mirror segments and the secondary mirror. These elements are then aligned to a diffraction-limited optical system in space. The capability to assemble the optical system and remove and replace components via the existing ISS robotic systems like the Special Purpose Dexterous Manipulator (SPDM), or by the ISS flight crew, allows for future experimentation, as well as repair.

Carpenter, Kenneth G.↗
NASA NTRS1992

The data acquisition system for the Anglo-Australian Observatory 2-degree field project

The Anglo-Australian Observatory (AAO) is building a system that will provide a two-degree field of view at prime focus. A robot positioner will be used to locate up to 400 optical fibers at pre-determined positions in this field. While observations are being made using one set of 400 fibers, the robot will be positioning a second set of fibers in a background field that can be moved in to replace the first when the telescope is moved to a new position. The fibers feed two spectrographs each with a 1024 square CCD detector. The software system being produced to control this involves Vaxes for overall control and data recording, UNIX workstations for fiber configuration calculations and on-line data reduction, and VME systems running VxWorks for real-time control of critical parts such as the positioner robot. The system has to be able to interact with the observatory's present data acquisition systems, which use the ADAM system. As yet, the real-time parts of ADAM have not been ported to Unix, and so we are having to produce a smaller-scale system that is similar but inherently distributed (which ADAM is not). We are using this system as a testbed for ideas that we hope may eventually influence an ADAM II system. The system we are producing is based on a message system that is designed to be able to handle inter-process and inter-processor messages of any length, efficiently, and without ever requiring a task to block (i.e., be unresponsive to 'cancel' messages, enquiry messages), other than when deliberately waiting for external input - all of which will be through such messages. The essential requirement is that a message 'send' operation should never be able to block. The messages will be hierarchical, self-defining, machine-independent data structures. This allows us to provide very simple monitoring of messages for diagnostic purposes, and allows general purpose interface programs to be written without needing to share precise byte by byte message format definitions. Programs in this system have interfaces defined simply in terms of named actions and their parameters. Real-time control programs are required to be able to handle a number of such actions concurrently; data reduction programs will normally only need to handle one action at a time ('process an image', 'display a spectrum', etc).

Shortridge, K.↗
NASA NTRS1988

Robotic influence in the conceptual design of mechanical systems in space and vice versa - A survey

A survey of methods using robotic devices to construct structural elements in space is presented. Two approaches to robotic construction are considered: one in which the structural elements are designed using conventional aerospace techniques which tend to constrain the function aspects of robotics and one in which the structural elements are designed from the conceptual stage with built-in robotic features. Examples are presented of structural building concepts using robotics, including the construction of the SP-100 nuclear reactor power system, a multimirror large aperture IR space telescope concept, retrieval and repair in space, and the Flight Telerobotic Servicer.

Sanger, George F.↗
NASA NTRS1990

Delivering HST to orbit

NASA's STS 31 mission will involve the lofting of the Hubble Space Telescope into orbit by the Space Shuttle Discovery. The Discovery Remote Manipulator System RMS will be used to robotically lift the HST out of the payload bay and position it for release on the 19th orbit. The Discovery Orbiter will then be slowly backed away from the HST; if there is any indication of an HST aperture door malfunction, Discovery will still possess enough time and propellant to return to the HST and open it with the RMS, but not without risk of the HST optics' contamination by thruster exhaust gases.

Hawley, Steven A.↗
NASA NTRS1997

A Tour of the Goldstone-Apple Valley Radio Telescope

Goldstone-Apple Valley Radio Telescope (GAVRT) is located in a remote area of the Mojave Desert, 40 miles north of Barstow, California. The antenna, identified as DSS-12, is a 34-meter diameter dish, 11 times the diameter of a ten foot microwave dish used for satellite television. DSS-12 has been used by NASA to communicate with robotic space probes for more than thirty years.

Goldstone-Apple Valley Radio Telescope↗
NASA NTRS2022

In-space Servicing, Assembly, and Manufacturing (ISAM) State of Play 2022 Edition

The future of spaceflight will yield increasingly more ambitious missions to support civil, national security, and commercial space sectors. Achieving these ambitious missions is not feasible using the traditional paradigm of launching an integrated, fully functioning system on a single launch vehicle. For example, science and human exploration missions will desire payloads that are larger than any foreseeable launch vehicle fairing, national security missions will require persistent assets that are mobile and resilient, and commercial space missions will require cost-effective ways to update to the latest technology on orbit. In-space Servicing, Assembly, and Manufacturing (ISAM) can vastly expand the performance, availability, and lifetime of space systems compared to the traditional paradigm of launching an asset with no intent to ever touch it again. ISAM capabilities foster an ecosystem that changes the space operations paradigm, creating the foundation for sustainable exploration and serving as a multiplier for other capabilities like space logistics, power generation, and reusability. Previous achievements in ISAM have enabled ambitious human and robotic space missions. NASA’s International Space Station (ISS) operations and maintenance, servicing missions of the Hubble Space Telescope (HST), and Northrop Grumman’s Mission Extension Vehicle (MEV) demonstrate the dramatic operational missions that can be achieved using ISAM capabilities. Many current and upcoming flight demonstrations are advancing areas that will enable the next generation of civil, national security, and commercial space missions. This document describes the current state of ISAM missions, capabilities, and developments. Compiling and organizing the available ISAM capabilities will help mission designers incorporate ISAM technologies into their concepts, create the starting point for technology development plans and roadmaps, and provide technologists a survey of the field they are developing. This document divides the ISAM capabilities into 11 capability areas that describe the functions or activities that would be performed in space using ISAM. This version of the ISAM State of Play is part of a continuing journey to encourage the use of ISAM capabilities in space. Compiling and organizing the current state of ISAM provides a simple resource for those working in the ISAM ecosystem to ensure that the advancements being made build upon the investments of the past. The state of play is ever changing as new capabilities are developed, and this document will be periodically updated to ensure that it is relevant to those who need it in the future.

ISAM↗
NASA NTRS2010

NASA Tech Briefs, October 2010

Topics covered include: Hybrid Architecture Active Wavefront Sensing and Control; Carbon-Nanotube-Based Chemical Gas Sensor; Aerogel-Positronium Technology for the Detection of Small Quantities of Organic and/or Toxic Materials; Graphene-Based Reversible Nano-Switch/Sensor Schottky Diode; Inductive Non-Contact Position Sensor; High-Temperature Surface-Acoustic-Wave Transducer; Grid-Sphere Electrodes for Contact with Ionospheric Plasma; Enabling IP Header Compression in COTS Routers via Frame Relay on a Simplex Link; Ka-Band SiGe Receiver Front-End MMIC for Transponder Applications; Robust Optimization Design Algorithm for High-Frequency TWTs; Optimal and Local Connectivity Between Neuron and Synapse Array in the Quantum Dot/Silicon Brain; Method and Circuit for In-Situ Health Monitoring of Solar Cells in Space; BGen: A UML Behavior Network Generator Tool; Platform for Post-Processing Waveform-Based NDE; Electrochemical Hydrogen Peroxide Generator; Fabrication of Single, Vertically Aligned Carbon Nanotubes in 3D Nanoscale Architectures; Process to Create High-Fidelity Lunar Dust Simulants; Lithium-Ion Electrolytes Containing Phosphorous-Based, Flame-Retardant Additives; InGaP Heterojunction Barrier Solar Cells; Straight-Pore Microfilter with Efficient Regeneration; Determining Shear Stress Distribution in a Laminate; Self-Adjusting Liquid Injectors for Combustors; Handling Qualities Prediction of an F-16XL-Based Reduced Sonic Boom Aircraft; Tele-Robotic ATHLETE Controller for Kinematics - TRACK; Three-Wheel Brush-Wheel Sampler; Heterodyne Interferometer Angle Metrology; Aligning Astronomical Telescopes via Identification of Stars; Generation of Optical Combs in a WGM Resonator from a Bichromatic Pump; Large-Format AlGaN PIN Photodiode Arrays for UV Images; Fiber-Coupled Planar Light-Wave Circuit for Seed Laser Control in High Spectral Resolution Lidar Systems; On Calculating the Zero-Gravity Surface Figure of a Mirror; Optical Modification of Casimir Forces for Improved Function of Micro- and Nano-Scale Devices; Analysis, Simulation, and Verification of Knowledge-Based, Rule-Based, and Expert Systems; Core and Off-Core Processes in Systems Engineering; Digital Reconstruction Supporting Investigation of Mishaps; and Template Matching Approach to Signal Prediction.

Source record↗
NASA NTRS2010

Modern Exploration of Galileo's New Worlds

Four hundred years ago Galileo turned his telescope to the heavens and changed the way we view the cosmos forever. Among his discoveries in January of 1610 were four new 'stars', following Jupiter in the sky but changing their positions with respect to the giant planet every night. Galileo showed that these 'Medicean stars', as he named them, were moons orbiting Jupiter in the same manner that the Earth and planets revolve about the Sun in the Copernican theory of the solar system. Over the next three centuries these moons, now collectively named the Galilean satellites after their discoverer, remained tiny dots of light in astronomers' telescopes. In the latter portion of the twentieth century Galileo's new worlds became important targets of exploration by robotic spacecraft. This paper reviews the history of this exploration through the discoveries made by the Galileo mission from 1995 to 2003, setting the stage for on-going exploration in the new century.

space vehicles↗
NASA NTRS1990

University of Maryland walking robot: A design project for undergraduate students

The design and construction required that the walking robot machine be capable of completing a number of tasks including walking in a straight line, turning to change direction, and maneuvering over an obstable such as a set of stairs. The machine consists of two sets of four telescoping legs that alternately support the entire structure. A gear-box and crank-arm assembly is connected to the leg sets to provide the power required for the translational motion of the machine. By retracting all eight legs, the robot comes to rest on a central Bigfoot support. Turning is accomplished by rotating the machine about this support. The machine can be controlled by using either a user operated remote tether or the on-board computer for the execution of control commands. Absolute encoders are attached to all motors (leg, main drive, and Bigfoot) to provide the control computer with information regarding the status of the motors (up-down motion, forward or reverse rotation). Long and short range infrared sensors provide the computer with feedback information regarding the machine's relative position to a series of stripes and reflectors. These infrared sensors simulate how the robot might sense and gain information about the environment of Mars.

Olsen, Bob↗
NASA NTRS1988

Advanced technology for a lunar astronomical observatory

Significant new technologies are required for three proposed telescopes to be operated on the moon. These technologies are in the areas of contamination/interference control, test and evaluation, manufacturing, construction autonomous operations and maintenance, power and heating/cooling, stable precision structures, optics, parabolic antennas, and communications/control. Telescopes for the lunar surface need to be engineered to operate for long periods with minimal intervention by humans or robots.

Johnson, Stewart W.↗
NASA NTRS1992

Required technologies for lunar astronomical observatories

Each of the major new observatories proposed to take advantage of the characteristics of the lunar environment requires appropriate advances in technology. These technologies are in the areas of contamination/interference control, test and evaluation, manufacturing, construction, autonomous operations and maintenance, power and heating/cooling, stable precision structures, optics, parabolic antennas, and communications/control. Telescopes for the lunar surface need to be engineered to operate for long periods with minimal intervention by humans or robots. What is essential for lunar observatory operation is enforcement of a systems engineering approach that makes compatible all lunar operations associated with habitation, resource development, and science.

Johnson, Stewart W.↗
NASA NTRS1989

Required Technologies for A 10-16 m UV-Visible-IR Telescope on the Moon

A successor to the Hubble Space Telescope, incorporating a 10 to 16 meter mirror, and operating in the UV-Visible-IR is being considered for emplacement on the Moon in the 21st Century. To take advantage of the characteristics of the lunar environment, such a telescope requires appropriate advances in technology. These technologies are in the areas of contamination/interference control, test and evaluation, manufacturing, construction, autonomous operations and maintenance, power and heating/cooling, stable precision structures, optics, parabolic antennas, and communications/control. This telescope for the lunar surface needs to be engineered to operate for long periods with minimal intervention by humans or robots. What is essential for lunar observatory operation is enforcement of a systems engineering approach that makes compatible all lunar operations associated with habitation, resource development, and science.

Johnson, Stewart W.↗
NASA NTRS2005

Capabilities Roadmap Briefings to the National Research Council

High energy power and propulsion capability roadmap - general background and introduction. Advanced telescopes and observatories and scientific instruments and sensors capability roadmaps - general background and introduction. Space communications capability roadmap interim review. Robotic access to planetary surface capability roadmap. Human health and support systems capability roadmap progress review.

Source record↗
NASA NTRS2010

Status of NASA's Assessment of Satellite Servicing

Following recommendations by the National Research Council, NASA's Authorization Act of 2008 (P.I. 110-422) and the Fiscal Year 2009 Omnibus Appropriations Act directed NASA to assess the feasibility of using the planned human spaceflight architecture to service existing and future observatory-class scientific spacecraft. This interest in space servicing, either with astronauts and/or with robots, reflects the decades-long success that NASA has achieved with the Space Shuttle program and the Hubble Space Telescope on behalf of the international astronomical community. This study is led by NASA Goddard Space Flight Center and will last about a year, leading to an assessment report to NASA and the science communities. We will report on the status of this study, progress toward goals, workshops, and priorities for the next few months.

Thronson, H. A.↗
NASA NTRS2010

Lunar Meteoroid Impact Observations and the Flux of Kilogram-Size Meteoroids

Meteor showers dominate the environment in this size range and explain the evening/morning flux asymmetry of 1.5:1. With sufficient numbers of impacts, this technique can help determine the population index for some showers. Measured flux of meteoroids in the 100g to kilograms range is consistent with other observations. We have a fruitful observing program underway which has significantly increased the number of lunar impacts observed. Over 200 impacts have been recorded in about 4 years. This analysis reports on the 115 impacts taken under photometric conditions during the first 3 full years of operation. We plan to continue for the foreseeable future as follows: 1) Run detailed model to try explain the concentration near the trailing limb; 2) Build up statistics to better understand the meteor shower environment; 3) Provide support for robotic seismometers and dust missions; and 4) Deploy near-infrared and visible cameras with dichroic beamsplitter to 0.5m telescope in New Mexico.

Suggs, Rob↗
NASA NTRS2010

Flight Dynamics and GN&C for Spacecraft Servicing Missions

Future human exploration missions and commercial opportunities will be enabled through In-space assembly and satellite servicing. Several recent efforts have developed technologies and capabilities to support these exciting future missions, including advances in flight dynamics and Guidance, Navigation and Control. The Space Shuttle has demonstrated significant capabilities for crewed servicing of the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) and assembly of the International Space Station (ISS). Following the Columbia disaster NASA made significant progress in developing a robotic mission to service the HST. The DARPA Orbital Express mission demonstrated automated rendezvous and capture, In-space propellant transfer, and commodity replacement. This paper will provide a summary of the recent technology developments and lessons learned, and provide a focus for potential future missions.

Naasz, Bo↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Supervised Autonomous Assembly to Create and Evolve Persistent Assets

Supervised autonomous assembly (SAA) will create a paradigm shift in the planning and design of future persistent assets (PAs), both in near zero-g environments and on planetary surfaces. SAA refers to an autonomy approach that has the benefits of autonomous assembly as well as the benefits provided by a supervisor (operator) who is available to resolve unexpected situations. SAA provides both increased design freedom as well as reduced programmatic risk. SAA enables evolution of future PAs over decades as in-space operations transition from single purpose missions to creation of PAs, such as laboratories and experimental stations which more closely resembling terrestrial laboratories that can easily adapt and evolve to new missions leveraging repeated visits to the PA. The ability to evolve enables PAs to rapidly respond to changing objectives resulting from new questions as our understanding improves. A recently initiated National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) project in the Space Technology Mission Directorate (STMD) Game Changing Development (GCD) Program called the Precision Assembled Space Structure (PASS), leverages the advantages of SAA to develop technologies that enable efficient creation and evolution of hexagonal topologies; both planar (example: fuel depots) and curved (examples: telescopes and shelters). PASS will be used to provide context for the philosophy and concepts discussed as well as the decision and selections made. PASS objectives are: a) Develop confidence in SAA and on-orbit servicing, assembly and manufacturing (OSAM) technologies by executing a test campaign that uses a path-to-flight autonomous precision assembly process directly applicable to future space telescopes. b) Test autonomous technologies including automated path planning and error recovery, to emphasize a robust approach that relies on generic robots and special purpose tools. c) Validate critical component models using a digital twin that includes the assembled primary mirror support structure and assembly process. A digital twin is a high-fidelity simulation of the asset capable of predicting the on-orbit performance. The paper concludes after identifying the critical need for a modest assembly flight experiment to validate and develop confidence in the SAA paradigm, thus accelerating adoption of the benefits described. SAA is a game changing paradigm that enhances the ability of an organization to infuse new technology through rapid evolution of PAs while leveraging OSAM technologies.

Structural Modeling↗