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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 19 records
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2025

Pre- and post-launch operation of the Resolve soft X-ray spectrometer onboard the XRISM satellite

Resolve is a high-resolution X-ray spectrometer onboard the X-Ray Imaging and Spectroscopy Mission (XRISM), launched on September 6 (UT), 2023. The Resolve has performed better than its required spectral resolution (7 eV at full width at half maximum at 6 keV), both on the ground and in orbit, and has been confirmed to have comparable performance to the soft X-ray spectrometer onboard the ASTRO-H (Hitomi) satellite. The focal plane is composed of an array of microcalorimeter detectors operated at 50 mK to achieve the required energy resolution, and the cooling system is designed to satisfy the lifetime requirement of over 3 years. The focal plane and cooling system are contained in a vacuum-insulated dewar. The cooling system is equipped with a two-stage adiabatic demagnetization refrigerator (ADR) that uses superfluid liquid helium (LHe) as its heat sink. The system includes a third ADR stage that can be used to provide the heat sink when the helium is exhausted. A Joule–Thomson cooler and several two-stage Stirling coolers are used to reduce the heat load on the LHe. During pre-launch operations, we carried out a superfluid LHe top-off operation. The resultant amount of LHe onboard Resolve was over 35 L before launch, which is sufficient to meet the lifetime requirement. During post-launch operation, the LHe vent valve was opened 5 min after launch during rocket acceleration, and the cryocoolers were turned on after several orbits, as planned, which established stable cooling within the dewar. Pre- and post-launch operations for the Resolve instrument were planned around multiple constraints from launch vehicle operations; all were successfully completed, and the launch requirements were fully met.

X-Ray Imaging and Spectroscopy Mission↗
DOE OSTI2024

Satellite-Based Assessment of Rocket Launch and Coastal Change Impacts on Cape Canaveral Barrier Island, Florida, USA

The Cape Canaveral Barrier Island, home to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)’s Kennedy Space Center and the United States (U.S.) Space Force’s Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, is situated in a unique ecological transition zone that supports diverse wildlife. This study evaluates the recent changes in vegetation cover (2016–2023) and dune elevation (2007–2017) within the Cape Canaveral Barrier Island using high-resolution optical satellite and light detection and ranging (LiDAR) data. The study period was chosen to depict the time period of a recent increase in rocket launches. The study objectives include assessing changes in vegetation communities, identifying detectable impacts of liquid propellant launches on nearby vegetation, and evaluating dune elevation and tide level shifts near launchpads. The results indicate vegetation cover changes, including mangrove expansion in wetland areas and the conversion of coastal strands to denser scrubs and hardwood forests, which were likely influenced by mild winters and fire management. While detectable impacts of rocket launches on nearby vegetation were observed, they were less severe than those caused by solid rocket motors. Compounding challenges, such as rising tide levels, beach erosion, and wetland loss, potentially threaten the resilience of launch operations and the surrounding habitats. The volume and scale of launches continue to increase, and a balance between space exploration and ecological conservation is required in this biodiverse region. This study focuses on the assessment of barrier islands’ shorelines.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2022

Launch accelerometer for model rocket

Systems and methods of detecting launch of a model rocket are described herein. A mechanically implemented launch accelerometer may be disposed on a model rocket. The launch accelerometer may detect acceleration of the rocket by a mass of the launch accelerometer moving relative to the rocket and against a spring force based on the rocket acceleration. The mass may comprise a first electrical contact that may contact a second electrical contact when the mass is accelerated beyond a threshold, which is indicative of launch of the rocket. The contact between the first electrical contact and the second electrical contact may complete an electrical circuit. Furthermore, at least one pin may lock the mass in a position allowing the electrical circuit to remain complete.

Boyson, Jonathan M.↗
DOE OSTI2025

Rocket Launch Detection with Smartphone Audio and Transfer Learning

Rocket launches generate infrasound signatures that have been detected at great distances. Due to the sparsity of the networks that have made these detections, however, most signals are detected tens of minutes to hours after the rocket launch. In this work, a method of near-real-time detection of rocket launches using data from a network of smartphones located 10–70 km from launch sites is presented. A machine learning model is trained and tested on the open-access Aggregated Smartphone Timeseries of Rocket-generated Acoustics (ASTRA), Smartphone High-explosive Audio Recordings Dataset (SHAReD), and ESC-50 datasets, resulting in a final accuracy of 97% and a false positive rate of <1%. The performance and behavior of the model are summarized, and its suitability for persistent monitoring applications is discussed.

acoustics↗
DOE OSTI2021

High Field Side Launch of RF Waves: A New Approach to Reactor Actuators

Launching radio frequency (RF) waves from the high field side (HFS) of a tokamak offers significant advantages over low field side (LFS) launch with respect to both wave physics and plasma material interactions (PMI). For lower hybrid (LH) waves, the higher magnetic field opens the window between wave accessibility and the condition for strong electron Landau damping, allowing LH waves from the HFS to penetrate into the core of a burning plasma, while waves launched from the LFS are restricted to the periphery of the plasma. The lower of waves absorbed at higher yields a higher current drive efficiency as well. In the ion cyclotron range of frequencies (ICRF), HFS launch allows for direct access to the mode conversion layer where mode converted waves absorb strongly on thermal electrons and ions, thus avoiding the generation of energetic minority ion tails. The absence of turbulent heat and particle fluxes on the HFS, particularly in double null configuration, makes it the ideal location to minimize PMI damage to the antenna structure. The quiescent SOL also eliminates the need to couple LH waves across a long distance to the separatrix, as the antenna can be located close to plasma without risking damage to the structure. Improved impurity screening on the HFS will help eliminate the long-standing issues of high Z impurity accumulation with ICRF.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2021

High Field Side Launch of Lower Hybrid Waves: A Scoping Study for ADX

Launching lower hybrid (LH) waves from the high field side (HFS) of a tokamak offers significant advantages over low field side (LFS) launch with respect to both wave physics and plasma material interactions (PMI). The higher magnetic field opens the window between wave accessibility and the condition for strong electron Landau damping, allowing LH waves from the HFS to penetrate into the core of a burning plasma, while waves launched from the LFS are restricted to the periphery of the plasma. The lower parallel refractive index (n) of waves launched from the HFS yields a higher current drive efficiency as well. The absence of turbulent heat and particle fluxes on the HFS, particularly in double null configuration, makes it the ideal location to minimize PMI damage to the antenna structure. The quiescent SOL also eliminates the need to couple LH waves across a long distance to the separatrix, as the antenna can be located close to plasma without risking damage to the structure.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2026

Launch Alaska Transportation and Energy Accelerator (LATEA)

The Launch Alaska Transportation and Energy Accelerator (LATEA), funded through the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Technology Commercialization’s Energy Program for Innovation Clusters (EPIC),advanced deployment of innovative and efficient transportation and energy technology in Alaska from October 2021 through June 2025. The project was designed to leverage Launch Alaska’s accelerator model to identify, recruit, and support transportation technology companies with novel solutions to market needs while building the stakeholder networks, demonstration opportunities, and institutional capacity necessary to accelerate commercialization in one of the most challenging operating environments in the United States.

08 HYDROGEN↗
DOE OSTI2024

Ecosystem Science with NISAR: Final Preparations in The Pre-Launch Period

The NISAR mission which in its most recent round of launch preparations was set to launch in the spring of 2024, and now delayed until later in the fall or early spring of 2025, will serve as an unprecedented resource for the Remote Sensing of Ecosystems Science community. The two frequency, L- and S-band will full-polarimetric capability over a 250 km wide swath using the SweepSAR technique [1] will collect reliable set of observations (60 per year; 30 each for ascending and descending passes) on a continuing basis that will allow for the modeling and observation of time-varying processes that are prevalent in the living environment broadly described as Ecosystems. Among the prime science goals of the NISAR Ecosystems disciplines are in the characterization of agriculture, disturbance, biomass, forest structure and water dynamics seen in the world’s rivers, coasts, and permafrost regions. In this paper we provide an overview of the Ecosystem science that will be enabled by the NISAR mission and give a status of the basic algorithms that are being used to provide a basic set of tools to the community to make use of the data that NISAR will provide.

Siqueira, Paul↗
DOE OSTI2022

Launch Accident Sequence Evaluation Program

SAND2024-09978O The Launch Accident Sequence Evaluation Program is used to calculate the source term for the consequence analysis involving a launch vehicle accident with a space nuclear system. Sandia National Laboratories is a multimission laboratory managed and operated by National Technology & Engineering Solutions of Sandia, LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Honeywell International Inc., for the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration under contract DE-NA0003525.

Kalinich, Donald↗
DOE OSTI2020

PLATFORM for Product Launch

Pecan Street Inc. (PSI) and its partners set out in 2017 to validate the PLATFORM for Product Launch, a new model for improving the effectiveness of investments in clean energy technologies and accelerating market entry of disruptive technologies. In partnership with a newly formed Innovation Advisory Council, PSI recruited fourteen companies with new hardware-based technologies that enable or create clean energy opportunities. Pecan Street carried out product evaluations and conducted market research with stakeholders and target customers to develop recommendations on product optimization opportunities for all companies, and created third party performance evaluation reports that include environmental metrics, such as water and energy savings potential, to assist in creating investment confidence and to unlock additional sources of funding, such as impact investments. Pecan Street set-up the product testing environment, performed small-batch field testing, and provided a verified third-party performance report on the product of twelve companies. PSI Street and its partners leveraged the performance evaluations and insights from the newly formed PRI toolkit to raise over $1.5M across five companies, and garner interest for private sector adoption of the PLATFORM for Product Launch.

24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗
DOE OSTI2023

Space Launch Authorities

This report identifies current best understanding of federal agencies that are responsible for the safe transportation and handling of nuclear materials during various phases of space launch activities and how they interact. It explores the following questions: (1) Which federal agencies have roles, responsibilities, and statutory authorities related to the launch, orbit, and reentry of nuclear materials and components? (2) What relevant current/recent activities are those federal agencies involved in?

98 NUCLEAR DISARMAMENT, SAFEGUARDS, AND PHYSICAL P↗
DOE OSTI2021

Event Horizon Telescope observations of the jet launching and collimation in Centaurus A

AbstractVery-long-baseline interferometry (VLBI) observations of active galactic nuclei at millimetre wavelengths have the power to reveal the launching and initial collimation region of extragalactic radio jets, down to 10–100 gravitational radii (rg ≡ GM/c2) scales in nearby sources1. Centaurus A is the closest radio-loud source to Earth2. It bridges the gap in mass and accretion rate between the supermassive black holes (SMBHs) in Messier 87 and our Galactic Centre. A large southern declination of −43° has, however, prevented VLBI imaging of Centaurus A below a wavelength of 1 cm thus far. Here we show the millimetre VLBI image of the source, which we obtained with the Event Horizon Telescope at 228 GHz. Compared with previous observations3, we image the jet of Centaurus A at a tenfold higher frequency and sixteen times sharper resolution and thereby probe sub-lightday structures. We reveal a highly collimated, asymmetrically edge-brightened jet as well as the fainter counterjet. We find that the source structure of Centaurus A resembles the jet in Messier 87 on ~500 rg scales remarkably well. Furthermore, we identify the location of Centaurus A’s SMBH with respect to its resolved jet core at a wavelength of 1.3 mm and conclude that the source’s event horizon shadow4 should be visible at terahertz frequencies. This location further supports the universal scale invariance of black holes over a wide range of masses5,6.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2021

Launching a saliva-based SARS-CoV-2 surveillance testing program on a university campus

Regular surveillance testing of asymptomatic individuals for SARS-CoV-2 has been center to SARS-CoV-2 outbreak prevention on college and university campuses. Here we describe the voluntary saliva testing program instituted at the University of California, Berkeley during an early period of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic in 2020. The program was administered as a research study ahead of clinical implementation, enabling us to launch surveillance testing while continuing to optimize the assay. Results of both the testing protocol itself and the study participants’ experience show how the program succeeded in providing routine, robust testing capable of contributing to outbreak prevention within a campus community and offer strategies for encouraging participation and a sense of civic responsibility.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2022

Integrated Urban Services: Regional Launch Event, 10-11 and 12-13 August 2021 [Slides]

The Integrated Urban Services (IUS) Program virtual launch event was conducted on August 10th and 12th, 2021 and provided education to the 26 cities in the ASEAN Smart Cities Network focused on integrated urban planning and the energy-food-water nexus. Experts representing academia, government, NGOs, and the private sector were invited to share knowledge and key lessons from their experience working on urban development projects in the ASEAN region and around the world. The IUS program, which is funded by the U.S. State Department and implemented by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, aims to promote systems integration and circular economy principles for resource recovery and reuse at the city scale. This new initiative will help ASEAN cities build resilience in their energy, water, and food provision systems. The objectives of this three-year project are to: Educate stakeholders on the benefits of circular economy approaches such as resource recovery and reuse, and on opportunities to build cost-efficient and resilient models of basic urban service and food provision; Provide technical assistance to two select cities within ASEAN to aid them in implementing regenerative EWF system pilot projects; and Engage the private sector to promote market-based planning and investment to support pilot project implementation.

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗
DOE OSTI2021

MULTI-MISSION THERMOELECTRIC GENERATOR ASSEMBLY TESTING AND LAUNCH OPERATIONS FOR MARS 2020

The Space Nuclear Power and Isotope Technologies (SNPIT) division at Idaho National Laboratory (INL) fuels, performs acceptance testing, and provides spacecraft integration support of Radioisotope Power Systems (RPS) in support of National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) missions. Recently the SNPIT team completed assembly, testing and launch support of the Multi-Mission Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generator (MMRTG) for the Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover mission.

07 ISOTOPE AND RADIATION SOURCES↗
DOE OSTI2021

MULTI-MISSION THERMOELECTRIC GENERATOR ASSEMBLY TESTING AND LAUNCH OPERATIONS FOR MARS 2020

The Space Nuclear Power and Isotope Technologies (SNPIT) division at Idaho National Laboratory (INL) fuels, performs acceptance testing, and provides spacecraft integration support of Radioisotope Power Systems (RPS) in support of National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) missions. Recently the SNPIT team completed assembly, testing and launch support of the Multi-Mission Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generator (MMRTG) for the Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover mission.

07 ISOTOPE AND RADIATION SOURCES↗