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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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The Lunar Sample Return mission consists of two spacecraft, a communications module, and a lander/sample return module carried to the Moon by another ship. Knowledge of the InterPlanetary Superhighway tunnels and their dynamics provided a quick back-of-the-envelope estimation of the timing and costing of such libration missions which compared well with fully integrated solutions.
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NASA's new vision to return humans to the Moon is the next practical step in expanding human habitation beyond Earth. As the Habitation 2006 Conference website states: 'new knowledge and new technologies are required.' Along with the development of new habitation systems, an important consideration is how to transport these heavy structures cheaply to the Moon? We propose the use of ultra-low-energy orbits in the Interplanetary Superhighway as an economical and effective means to deliver cargo to the Moon. This approach not only reduces the propulsion cost, but also provides enormous flexibility and robustness to the mission architecture.
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The origin of the universe and of life itself have been central to human inquiries since the dawn of consciousness. To develop and use the technologies to answer these timeless and profound questions is the mission of NASA's Origins Program.
This paper describes one approach to a Lunar Sample Return mission.
Interplanetary CubeSats could enable small, low-cost missions beyond low Earth orbit. This class is defined by mass < ~ 10 kg, cost < $30 M, and durations up to 5 years. Over the coming decade, a stretch of each of six distinct technology areas, creating one overarching architecture, could enable comparatively low-cost Solar System exploration missions with capabilities far beyond those demonstrated in small satellites to date. The six technology areas are: (1) CubeSat electronics and subsystems extended to operate in the interplanetary environment, especially radiation and duration of operation; (2) Optical telecommunications to enable very small, low-power uplink/downlink over interplanetary distances; (3) Solar sail propulsion to enable high !V maneuvering using no propellant; (4) Navigation of the Interplanetary Superhighway to enable multiple destinations over reasonable mission durations using achievable !V; (5) Small, highly capable instrumentation enabling acquisition of high-quality scientific and exploration information; and (6) Onboard storage and processing of raw instrument data and navigation information to enable maximum utility of uplink and downlink telecom capacity, and minimal operations staffing. The NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts (NIAC) program in 2011 selected Interplanetary CubeSats for further investigation, some results of which are reported here for Phase 1.
Our Solar System is connected by a vast Interplanetary Superhighway System (ISSys) providing low energy transport throughout. The Outer Planets with their satellites and rings are smaller replicas of the Solar System with their own ISSys, also providing low energy transport within their own satellite systems. This low energy transport system is generated by all of the Lagrange points of the planets and satellites within the Solar System. Figures show the tubular passage-ways near L1 of Jupiter and the ISSys of Jupiter schematically. These delicate and resilient dynamics may be used to great effect to produce free temporary captures of a spacecraft by a planet or satellite, low energy interplanetary and inter-satellite transfers, as well as precision impact orbits onto the surface of the satellites. Additional information is contained in the original extended abstract.
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