Performance Testing the Galileo Arm of the NASA Science Internet
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Resolving the complex three-dimensional turbulent structures that characterize the solar wind requires contemporaneous spatially and temporally distributed measurements. HelioSwarm is a mission concept that will deploy multiple, co-orbiting satellites to use the solar wind as a natural laboratory for understanding the fundamental, universal process of plasma turbulence. The HelioSwarm transfer trajectory and science orbit use a lunar gravity assist to deliver the ESPA-class nodes attached to a large data transfer hub to a P/2 lunar resonant orbit. Once deployed in the science orbit, the free-flying, propulsive nodes use simple Cartesian relative motion patterns to establish baseline separations both along and across the solar wind flow direction.
Resolving the complex three-dimensional turbulent structures that characterize the solar wind requires contemporaneous spatially and temporally distributed measurements. HelioSwarm is a mission concept that will deploy multiple, co-orbiting satellites to use the solar wind as a natural laboratory for understanding the fundamental, universal process of plasma turbulence. The HelioSwarm transfer trajectory and science orbit use a lunar gravity assist to deliver the ESPA-class nodes attached to a large data transfer hub to a P/2 lunar resonant orbit. Once deployed in the science orbit, the free-flying, propulsive nodes use simple Cartesian relative motion patterns to establish baseline separations both along and across the solar wind flow direction.
Multiplexing scheme combines technique of dynamic allocation with conventional time-division multiplexing. Scheme is designed to expedite short-duration interactive or priority traffic and to delay large data transfers; as result, each node has effective capacity of almost total channel capacity when other nodes have light traffic loads.
This paper describes an implementation of the proposed MPI-IO (Message Passing Interface - Input/Output) standard for parallel I/O. Our system uses third-party transfer to move data over an external network between the processors where it is used and the I/O devices where it resides. Data travels directly from source to destination, without the need for shuffling it among processors or funneling it through a central node. Our distributed server model lets multiple compute nodes share the burden of coordinating data transfers. The system is built on the High Performance Storage System (HPSS), and a prototype version runs on a Meiko CS-2 parallel computer.
This paper describes an implementation of the proposed MPI-IO standard for parallel I/O. Our system uses third-party transfer to move data over an external network between the processors where it is used and the I/O devices where it resides. Data travels directly from source to destination, without the need for shuffling it among processors or funneling it through a central node. Our distributed server model lets multiple compute nodes share the burden of coordinating data transfers. The system is built on the High Performance Storage System (HPSS), and a prototype version runs on a Meiko CS-2 parallel computer.
NASA's Glenn Research Center (GRC) defines and develops advanced technology for high priority national needs in communications technologies for application to aeronautics and space. GRC tasked Computer Networks and Software Inc. (CNS) to examine protocols and architectures for an In-Space Internet Node. CNS has developed a methodology for network reference models to support NASA's four mission areas: Earth Science, Space Science, Human Exploration and Development of Space (REDS), Aerospace Technology. This report applies the methodology to three space Internet-based communications scenarios for future missions. CNS has conceptualized, designed, and developed space Internet-based communications protocols and architectures for each of the independent scenarios. The scenarios are: Scenario 1: Unicast communications between a Low-Earth-Orbit (LEO) spacecraft inspace Internet node and a ground terminal Internet node via a Tracking and Data Rela Satellite (TDRS) transfer; Scenario 2: Unicast communications between a Low-Earth-Orbit (LEO) International Space Station and a ground terminal Internet node via a TDRS transfer; Scenario 3: Multicast Communications (or "Multicasting"), 1 Spacecraft to N Ground Receivers, N Ground Transmitters to 1 Ground Receiver via a Spacecraft.
NASAs Glenn Research Center (GRC) defines and develops advanced technology for high priority national needs in communications technologies for application to aeronautics and space. GRC tasked Computer Networks and Software Inc. (CNS) to examine protocols and architectures for an In-Space Internet Node. CNS has developed a methodology for network reference models to support NASAs four mission areas: Earth Science, Space Science, Human Exploration and Development of Space (REDS), Aerospace Technology. CNS previously developed a report which applied the methodology, to three space Internet-based communications scenarios for future missions. CNS conceptualized, designed, and developed space Internet-based communications protocols and architectures for each of the independent scenarios. GRC selected for further analysis the scenario that involved unicast communications between a Low-Earth-Orbit (LEO) International Space Station (ISS) and a ground terminal Internet node via a Tracking and Data Relay Satellite (TDRS) transfer. This report contains a tradeoff analysis on the selected scenario. The analysis examines the performance characteristics of the various protocols and architectures. The tradeoff analysis incorporates the results of a CNS developed analytical model that examined performance parameters.
The pressurization of cryogenic propellant tanks will always be an important process so long as cryogenic liquids are being considered as fuel sources or used for other in-space applications. Pressure control of the tank ullage is necessary for managing propellant flowrates to an engine or a receiver tank, and modeling of the process is used to predict the pressurant requirements and the amount of propellant boiloff. Direct ullage pressurization is the more traditional approach to tank pressurization, as the physics are straight-forward, and ample test (flight) data have been collected and analyzed over the past several decades. Submerged injection pressurization is an alternate method for tank pressurization and has been shown to reduce pressurant requirements, subcool the propellant, and reduce the risk of ullage collapse. Additionally, the pressurant gas entering the ullage is usually much colder when using the submerged pressurization approach, resulting in reduced propellant boiloff. These benefits are at the expense of vaporizing a small percentage of the propellent. Both tank pressurization methods are viable options for current and future space missions, and it is important to have the capability of analyzing the tank ullage conditions for both approaches. Our previous work has demonstrated the development of a Generalized Fluid System Simulation Program (GFSSP) model, which contains a thermodynamic equilibrium heat and mass transfer subroutine capable of effectively analyzing both direct and submerged pressurization systems [1-2]. This subroutine has most recently been enhanced to include the non-equilibrium effect of pressurant dissolution into the propellant. To date the ullage has always been represented as a single node, and although the simulated single-node temperatures have good comparison with the volume-averaged ullage temperatures computed from test data, the physics of the thermal stratification in the ullage were never captured, and adjustment factors in the model were required. The purpose of this paper is to introduce the development of a multi-node ullage model using GFSSP and to discuss the improvements of the simulated ullage temperature distribution and its resulting effects on ullage heat transfer processes. Test data from the Cryogenic Propellant Storage and Transfer Engineering Developmental Unit (CPST EDU) was used for model validation. For additional comparison, a Thermal Desktop (TD) model was also developed to analyze the CPST EDU direct ullage pressurization tests using both a single node and multi-node approach. The model includes the direct pressurant line, vent line, fill/drain line, and a TD FloCAD Compartment. The TD FloCAD Compartment is employed to represent the liquid and ullage as single volumes inside the tank, to include a liquid/vapor interface, and to generate network level objects such as lumps (analogous to nodes in GFSSP), paths, and ties between the fluid and thermal elements. An established heat load on the model tank was leveraged from a pre-existing higher-fidelity model correlated to CPST EDU test data.
Safety-critical distributed flight control systems require robustness in the presence of faults. In general, these systems consist of a number of input/output (I/O) and computation nodes interacting through a fault-tolerant data communication system. The communication system transfers sensor data and control commands and can handle most faults under typical operating conditions. However, the performance of the closed-loop system can be adversely affected as a result of operating in harsh environments. In particular, High-Intensity Radiated Field (HIRF) environments have the potential to cause random fault manifestations in individual avionic components and to generate simultaneous system-wide communication faults that overwhelm existing fault management mechanisms. This paper presents the design of an experiment conducted at the NASA Langley Research Center's HIRF Laboratory to statistically characterize the faults that a HIRF environment can trigger on a single node of a distributed flight control system.
Due to the power constraints imposed on wireless sensor and communication networks deployed on a planetary surface during exploration, energy efficient transfer of data becomes a critical issue. In situations where groups of nodes within a network are located in relatively close proximity, cooperative communication techniques can be utilized to improve the range, data rate, power efficiency, and lifetime of the network. In particular, if the point-to-point communication channels on the network are well modeled as frequency non-selective, distributed or cooperative beamforming can employed. For frequency-selective channels, beamforming itself is not generally appropriate, but a natural generalization of it, time-reversal communication (TRC), can still be effective. Time-reversal processing has been proposed and studied previously for other applications, including acoustical imaging, electromagnetic imaging, underwater acoustic communication, and wireless communication channels. In this paper, we study both the theoretical advantages and the experimental performance of cooperative TRC for wireless communication on planetary surfaces. We give a brief introduction to TRC and present several scenarios where TRC could be profitably employed during planetary exploration. We also present simulation results illustrating the performance of cooperative TRC employed in a complex multipath environment and discuss the optimality of cooperative TRC for data aggregation in wireless sensor networks
Recently, heat transfer correlations based on liquid nitrogen (LN2) and liquid hydrogen (LH2) pipe quenching data were developed to improve the predictive accuracy of lumped node codes like SINDA/FLUINT and the Generalized Fluid System Simulation Program (GFSSP). After implementing these correlations into both programs, updated model runs showed strong improvement in LN2 pipe chilldown modeling but only modest improvement in LH2 modeling. Due to large differences in thermal and fluid properties between the two fluids, results indicated a need to develop a separate set of LH2-only correlations to improve the accuracy of the simulations. This paper presents a new set of two-phase convection heat transfer correlations based on LH2 pipe quenching data. A correlation to predict the bulk vapor temperature was developed after analysis showed that high amounts of thermal nonequilibrium of the liquid and vapor phases occurred during film boiling of LH2. Implemented in a numerical model, the new correlations achieve a mean absolute error of 19.5 K in the predicted wall temperature when compared to recent LH2 pipe chilldown data, an improvement of 40% over recent GFSSP predictions. This correlation set can be implemented in simulations of the transient LH2 chilldown process. Such simulations are useful for predicting the chilldown time and boil-off mass of LH2 for applications such as the transfer of LH2 from a ground storage tank to the rocket vehicle propellant tank, or through a rocket engine feedline during engine startup.
A network architecture called Highball and a preliminary design for a prototype, wide-area data network designed to operate at speeds of 1 Gbps and beyond are described. It is intended for applications requiring high speed burst transmissions where some latency between requesting a transmission and granting the request can be anticipated and tolerated. Examples include real-time video and disk-disk transfers, national filestore access, remote sensing, and similar applications. The network nodes include an intelligent crossbar switch, but have no buffering capabilities; thus, data must be queued at the end nodes. There are no restrictions on the network topology, link speeds, or end-end protocols. The end system, nodes, and links can operate at any speed up to the limits imposed by the physical facilities. An overview of an initial design approach is presented and is intended as a benchmark upon which a detailed design can be developed. It describes the network architecture and proposed access protocols, as well as functional descriptions of the hardware and software components that could be used in a prototype implementation. It concludes with a discussion of additional issues to be resolved in continuing stages of this project.
On orbit transfer of cryogenic liquids is necessary for many future space missions. The techniques required to transfer cryogens in micro gravity are quite different from ground system applications. In normal gravity, cryogenic tanks are usually filled from the bottom at nearly atmospheric pressure. The vapor generated due to heat transfer from warm tank walls, is allowed to vent from the top of the tank while the tank is being filled. If the normal gravity technique is used on orbit, the uncertainty of liquid and vapor distributions in unsettled condition may result in dumping of large amounts of liquid propellant overboard. The Vented Chill and No Vent Fill (VCNVF) process is a methodology [1] used to reduce propellant loss by holding the vent valve open during initial wall chilldown, preventing over-pressurization of the tank and stalling of the incoming flow, but closing the tank vent valve after chilling the tank wall sufficiently. An accurate simulation of no vent tank chill and fill is necessary to estimate the amount of propellant necessary to chill the tank, determine the maximum sustainable flowrate to fill the tank without stalling, and establish a timeline for the filling process. Numerical modeling of filling a cryogenic tank is complex because the flow is two-phase and the process involves both boiling and condensation with heat transfer between solid and fluid. In recent years, progress has been made to develop a numerical modeling technique [2,3,4] that has been verified by comparing with the test data from a small flight tank using liquid nitrogen [5]. The purpose of the present paper is to apply this technique in a larger tank with liquid hydrogen and compare with the test data of Chato [1]. The K-site Test Facility [1], shown in Figure 1, consists of a Test Tank, spray system, instrumentation, and the vacuum chamber. The test tank selected was ellipsoidal with an 87 inch major diameter and a 1.2 to 1 major to minor axis ratio. The two ends are joined by a short 1.5 inch cylindrical section. The tank is made of 2219 aluminum chemically milled to a nominal thickness of 0.087 inches. The tank weighs 329.25 pounds, and the tank volume is 175 ft 3 . The GFSSP model of the Test Tank is shown in Figure 2. Node 13 is a boundary node that represents the supply tank which is supplying liquid hydrogen at a given pressure and temperature. The total measured flowrate is evenly distributed through Branches 131 through 139. Nodes 1 through 9 represent the test tank and they are connected with metal solid nodes 14 through 22 through fluid-to-solid conductors that allow convective heat transfer between the solid and fluid nodes. The predicted tank pressure, filling rate, wall temperature and fluid temperature will be compared with test data.
The on-orbit performance of the GOES satellite's scan mirror has been predicted by means of thermal, structural, and optical models. A simpler-than-conventional thermal model was used to reduce the time required to obtain orbital predictions, and the structural model was used to predict on-earth gravity sag and on-orbit distortions. The transfer of data from the thermal model to the structural model was automated for a given set of thermal nodes and structural grids.
Pressurized expulsion tests of liquid methane were modeled by a nodal code using a multinode ullage approach. Generalized Fluid System Simulation Program (GFSSP), a finite volume based nodal code was used to model the expulsion of liquid methane from a 1.52-meter (5 ft) diameter spherical tank by pressurizing with helium and gaseous methane. The purpose of the model was to estimate the amount of pressurant required and amount of condensation and evaporation of methane during the operation. The ullage was discretized into multiple nodes and each fluid node was connected to solid nodes. Both the fluid and solid nodes grow as the tank drains. The heat and mass transfer between fluid and solid node in the tank ullage was computed. The heat and mass transfer between the bottom ullage node and the liquid methane was also computed. The model predictions were compared with data from twelve test cases. The predicted pressurant consumption for helium pressurization compares with test data with a Mean Absolute Percent Error (MAPE) of 3 %. For autogenous pressurization, where gaseous methane was used to pressurize liquid methane, the predicted pressurant consumption compares with a MAPE of 6%.
Pressurized expulsion tests of liquid methane were modeled by a nodal code using a multinode ullage approach. Generalized Fluid System Simulation Program (GFSSP), a finite volume based nodal code was used to model the expulsion of liquid methane from a 1.52-meter (5 ft) diameter spherical tank by pressurizing with helium and gaseous methane. The purpose of the model was to estimate the amount of pressurant required and amount of condensation and evaporation of methane during the operation. The ullage was discretized into multiple nodes and each fluid node was connected to solid nodes. Both the fluid and solid nodes grow as the tank drains. The heat and mass transfer between fluid and solid node in the tank ullage was computed. The heat and mass transfer between the bottom ullage node and the liquid methane was also computed. The model predictions were compared with data from twelve test cases. The predicted pressurant consumption for helium pressurization compares with test data with a Mean Absolute Percent Error (MAPE) of 3%. For autogenous pressurization, where gaseous methane was used to pressurize liquid methane, the predicted pressurant consumption compares with a MAPE of 6%.
In the Concurrent Computing Laboratory in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at Louisiana State University we have constructed a heterogeneous computing environment that permits us to routinely simulate complicated three-dimensional fluid flows and to readily visualize the results of each simulation via three-dimensional animation sequences. An 8192-node MasPar MP-1 computer with 0.5 GBytes of RAM provides 250 MFlops of execution speed for our fluid flow simulations. Utilizing the parallel virtual machine (PVM) language, at periodic intervals data is automatically transferred from the MP-1 to a cluster of workstations where individual three-dimensional images are rendered for inclusion in a single animation sequence. Work is underway to replace executions on the MP-1 with simulations performed on the 512-node CM-5 at NCSA and to simultaneously gain access to more potent volume rendering workstations.