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Laboratory Measurements of Charging of Apollo 17 Lunar Dust Grains by Low Energy Electrons

It is well recognized that the charging properties of individual micron/sub-micron size dust grains by various processes are expected to be substantially different from the currently available measurements made on bulk materials. Solar UV radiation and the solar wind plasma charge micron size dust grains on the lunar surface with virtually no atmosphere. The electrostatically charged dust grains are believed to be levitated and transported long distances over the lunar terminator from the day to the night side. The current models do not fully explain the lunar dust phenomena and laboratory measurements are needed to experimentally determine the charging properties of lunar dust grains. An experimental facility has been developed in the Dusty Plasma Laboratory at NASA Marshall Space Flight Center MSFC for investigating the charging properties of individual micron/sub-micron size positively or negatively charged dust grains by levitating them in an electrodynamic balance in simulated space environments. In this paper, we present laboratory measurements on charging of Apollo 17 individual lunar dust grains by low energy electron beams in the 5-100 eV energy range. The measurements are made by levitating Apollo 17 dust grains of 0.2 to 10 micrometer diameters, in an electrodynamic balance and exposing them to mono-energetic electron beams. The charging rates and the equilibrium potentials produced by direct electron impact and by secondary electron emission processes are discussed.

Abbas, Mian M.↗

A High-fidelity Performance and Sensitivity Analysis of X-ray Pulsar Navigation in Near-Earth and Cislunar Orbits

Millisecond X-ray pulsars are rapidly rotating neutron stars that emit broadband electromagnetic radiation, including X-rays. These emissions can appear as pulsations to distant observers with long-term stabilityrivaling laboratory atomic clocks. The concept of using X-ray pulsars for navigation, commonly referred to as XNAV, has a long history in the research literature. Notably, in 2017, NASA’s Station Explorer for X-ray Timing and Navigation (SEXTANT) mission,a technology enhancement to the Neutron Star Interior Composition Explorer, made a successful on-orbit demonstration of XNAV on the International Space Station (ISS) in Low-Earth-Orbit. This paper investigates the performance of XNAV in Earth and lunar regimes using a new high-fidelity XNAV analysis tool that builds on tools developed for SEXTANT and uses recent updates to the Goddard Enhanced Onboard Navigation System flight software. Specifically, we study the use of XNAV in an ISS-like orbit for comparison with SEXTANT results, in a highly-inclined geosynchronous orbit, and in an Earth-Moon L1 libration point Near Rectilinear Halo Orbit similar to that proposed for the planned lunar Gateway space station. This paper provides a high-level description of the XNAV analysis tool, baseline predicted performance results, selected sensitivity analyses, and conclusions.

Luke B Winternitz↗

Atmospheric Research 2021 Technical Highlights

Welcome to the 2021 Atmospheres Highlights report. Here, we summarize research and scientific communication/outreach accomplishments from the portion of atmospheric science activities at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) that comprises the Earth Science Division’s Atmospheres organization. As in previous years, this report is intended for a broad audience, including colleagues within NASA, scientists outside the Agency, science graduate students, and members of the public. Organizationally, the report covers research activities under the Office of Deputy Director for Atmospheres (610AT), which is within Earth Sciences Division (Code 610) in the Sciences and Exploration Directorate (600). Laboratories and office within 610AT include: Mesoscale Atmospheric Processes Laboratory (612), Climate and Radiation Laboratory (613), Atmospheric Chemistry and Dynamics Laboratory (614), and the Wallops Field Support Office (610.W). As of this writing, the 266 personnel in Code 610AT consist of 53 civil servants and 213 cooperative agreement associates, postdoctoral fellows and contractors.

Annual Report↗

Selection, Production, and Properties of Regolith Polymer Composites for Lunar Construction

NASA’s Artemis Program seeks to establish a long-term presence on the Moon to enable scientific exploration and expand the cis-lunar economy by utilizing lunar resources through public-private and international partnerships. Over the next decades, a lunar spaceport will need to be established to provide the services and facilities that are necessary to achieve this goal. Robotic construction technologies using in-situ materials must be developed to build up enabling infrastructure such as launch/landing pads, blast protection, power/communications infrastructure, improved roads, improved operational surfaces, and radiation protection shelters. Kennedy Space Center’s Granular Mechanics and Regolith Operations laboratory at Swamp Works has partnered with SpaceFactory and LERA Consulting Structural Engineers to develop the architectural and structural design of an unpressurized lunar shelter. The shelter, called Lunar Infrastructure Asset (LINA), is designed to support 2.3 m of regolith overburden to protect astronauts and surface assets from radiation, meteoroid impact, thermal gradients/cycling, and to withstand moonquakes. LINA’s structural design criteria and the resulting structure design are detailed in separate papers. A Fused Filament Fabrication (FFF) construction process using regolith polymer composites has been developed and is detailed in a separate publication. This paper presents material formulations and selection rationale for each of the composite components that were examined. Formulations include 70:30, 80:20, and 85:15 wt.% mixture ratios of lunar mare simulant Black Point-1 (BP-1): Polylactic Acid (PLA), 80:20 Lunar Highlands Simulant-1 (LHS-1): PLA and an 80:20 BP-1: PLA formulation with a flow enhancer additive. Test samples were printed in simulated lunar dirty thermal vacuum conditions (-190 °C, 10-3 torr). A series of tests were performed on each formulation to characterize the achieved mixture ratio, mechanical strength properties, off-gassing products during vacuum printing, and porosity and density of printed products. The LHS-1: PLA formulation yielded an advantageous combination of properties and was used in a final test that additively constructed a sub-scaled LINA on regolith simulant in dirty vacuum conditions. The materials and construction process presented in this paper are considered to be at Technology Readiness Level (TRL) 5 with additional testing necessary to characterize long term lunar environmental exposure effects.

lunar infrastructure↗

Experimental Investigations of the Physical and Optical Properties of Individual Micron/Submicron-Size Dust Grains in Astrophysical Environments

Dust grains constitute a significant component of matter in the universe, and play an important and crucial role in the formation and evolution of the stellar/planetary systems in interstellar dust clouds. Knowledge of physical and optical properties of dust grains is required for understanding of a variety of processes in astrophysical and planetary environments. The currently available and generally employed data on the properties of dust grains is based on bulk materials, with analytical models employed to deduce the corresponding values for individual small micron/submicron-size dust grains. However, it has been well-recognized over a long period, that the properties of individual smallsize dust grains may be very different from those deduced from bulk materials. This has been validated by a series of experimental investigations carried out over the last few years, on a laboratory facility based on an Electrodynamic Balance at NASA, which permits levitation of single small-size dust grains of desired composition and size, in vacuum, in simulated space environments. In this paper, we present a brief review of the results of a series of selected investigations carried out on the analogs of interstellar and planetary dust grains, as well as dust grains obtained by Apollo-l1-17 lunar missions. The selected investigations, with analytical results and discussions, include: (a) Direct measurements of radiation on individual dust grains (b) Rotation and alignments of dust grains by radiative torque (c) Charging properties of dust grains by: (i) UV Photo-electric emissions (ii) Electron Impact. The results from these experiments are examined in the light of the current theories of the processes involved.

Abbas, M. M.↗

Ballooning for Biologists: Mission Essentials for Flying Experiments on Large NASA Balloons

Despite centuries of scientific balloon flights, only a handful of experiments have produced biologically-relevant results. Yet unlike orbital spaceflight, it is much faster and cheaper to conduct biology research with balloons, sending specimens to the near space environment of Earths stratosphere. Samples can be loaded the morning of a launch and sometimes returned to the laboratory within one day after flying. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) flies large, unmanned scientific balloons from all over the globe, with missions ranging from hours to weeks in duration. A payload in the middle portion of the stratosphere (approx. 35 km above sea level) will be exposed to an environment similar to the surface of Mars: temperatures generally around -36 C, atmospheric pressure at a thin 1 kPa, relative humidity levels <1%, and a harsh illumination of ultraviolet (UV) and cosmic radiation levels (about 100 W/sq m and 0.1 mGy/d, respectively) that can be obtained nowhere else on the surface of the Earth, including environmental chambers and particle accelerator facilities attempting to simulate space radiation effects. Considering the operational advantages of ballooning and the fidelity of space-like stressors in the stratosphere, researchers in aerobiology, astrobiology, and space biology can benefit from balloon flight experiments as an intermediary step on the extraterrestrial continuum (ground, low Earth orbit, and deep space studies). Our presentation targets biologists with no background or experience in scientific ballooning. We will provide an overview of large balloon operations, biology topics that can be uniquely addressed in the stratosphere, and a roadmap for developing payloads to fly with NASA.

Smith, David J.↗

The centrifuge facility - A life sciences research laboratory for Space Station Freedom

The paper describes the centrifugal facility that is presently being developed by NASA for studies aboard the Space Station Freedom on the role of gravity, or its absence, at varying intensities for varying periods of time and with multiple model systems. Special attention is given to the design of the centrifuge system, the habitats designed to hold plants and animals, the glovebox system designed for experimental manipulations of the specimens, and the service unit. Studies planned for the facility will include experiments in the following disciplines: cell and developmental biology, plant biology, regulatory physiology, musculoskeletal physiology, behavior and performance, neurosciences, cardiopulmonary physiology, and environmental health and radiation.

Fuller, Charles A.↗

On the New Optical Constants Database (OCdb) and its Importance for the Interpretation of Observational Data

The Optical Constants database(ocdb.smce.nasa.gov) came online in February 2023 and provides complex refractive indices of laboratory-generated organic refractory materials and ices relevant to (exo) planetary and astrophysical environments.The goal of the OCdb is to centralize published optical constants data to facilitate both their access by the scientific community and their use to analyze observational data returned by space missions and ground-based observatories. Computational tools are also under development to facilitate scientific use of the available OCdb optical constants data sets. Investigators generating laboratory optical constants are therefore encouraged to contribute their data to OCdb in order to increase the availability of their data and to enhance the scientific effectiveness of the database. Optical constants are critical input parameters in models (e.g.,radiative transfer, atmospheric, and reflectance spectral models)that are used to simulate the absorption, reflection, and scattering of light due to solid materials present in planetary and astrophysical environments (planets, their satellites, exoplanets, asteroids, comets, protoplanetary disks, etc.), and are key to the compositional interpretation of observations. We will first present the infrastructure of the OCdb and show how to use and contribute to it. We will introduce the two large NASA projects, namely, the Laboratory Astrophysics Directed Work Package and the NASA Center for Optical Constants, that have been instrumental in (i) developing the OCdb, (ii) generating planetary-and astrophysics-relevant ices and organic refractory materials from gas and ice irradiation in the laboratory, and (iii) determining their optical constants for inclusion in OCdb. We will also present two studies that are making use of these optical constants to interpret observations of Titan’s atmosphere and Pluto’s surface. These studies show the importance of measuring optical constants of laboratory-generated materials, and their impact on the models used to analyze and interpret astronomical observations. These studies also demonstrate the essential importance of such a database and the need for optical constants of a broad range of materials and wavelengths to enable the scientific community and to maximize the scientific return from space missions (e.g., Cassini, New Horizons, SOFIA, JWST).

The Optical Constants database↗

Large Format Si:As IBC Array Performance for NGST and Future IR Space Telescope Applications

A mid-IR (5-30micrometer) instrument aboard a cryogenic space telescope can have an enormous impact in resolving key questions in astronomy and cosmology. A space platform's greatly reduced thermal backgrounds (compared to airborne or ground-based platforms), allow for more sensitive observations of dusty young galaxies at high redshifts, star formation of solar-type stars in the local universe, and formation and evolution of planetary disks and systems. The previous generation's largest, in sensitive IR detectors at these wavelengths are 256x256 pixel Si:As Impurity Band Conduction (IBC) devices built by Raytheon Infrared Operations (RIO) for the Space Infrared Telescope Facility/Infrared Array Camera (SIRTF)/(IRAC) instrument. RIO has successfully enhanced these devices, increasing the pixel count by a factor of 16 while matching or exceeding SIRTF/IRAC device performance. NASA-ARC in collaboration with RIO has tested the first high performance large format (1024x 1024) Si:As IBC arrays for low background applications, such as for the middle instrument on Next Generation Space Telescope (NGST) and future IR Explorer missions. These hybrid devices consist of radiation hard SIRTF/IRAC-type Si:As IBC material mated to a readout multiplexer that has been specially processed for operation at low cryogenic temperatures (below 10K), yielding high device sensitivity over a wavelength range of 5-28 micrometers. We present laboratory testing results from these benchmark, devices. Continued development in this technology is essential for conducting large-area surveys of the local and early universe through observation and for complementing future missions such as NGST, Terrestrial Planet Finder (TPF), and Focal Plane Instruments and Requirement Science Team (FIRST).

Ennico, Kimberly↗

Space environment considerations for perovskite solar cell operations: A review

Designing new technology for extraterrestrial applications certainly presents unique challenges. The environmental stressors perovskite-based photovoltaics must overcome will vary with the environment in which they are deployed. One must consider mission requirements when designing photovoltaic devices and packaging. Different space "theaters" can have dramatically different stressors needing consideration for designing panels for solar power generation. Here, in this article, we review the relevant space environmental conditions that must be considered when designing perovskite-based photovoltaic devices for implementation in space. We specifically consider thermal, radiation, gaseous, weather, and other phenomena most relevant to photovoltaic operation for specific theaters such as Low Earth Orbit, Geosynchronous Orbit, Lunar surface, Mars (orbit and surface), and interplanetary exploration pathways.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗

Laboratory Studies of Optical Characteristics and Condensation Processes of Cosmic Dust Particles

Information about the optical characteristics and physical processes involving cosmic dust particles is vital for interpretation of astronomical observations and an understanding of the formation and processing of dust in the evolutionary cycle of matter in the interstellar medium. Cosmic dust particles are formed in a variety of astrophysical environments such as in cool stellar outflows and circumstellar envelopes. Definitive knowledge of the nature, composition, and physical processes of cosmic dust grains, however, can only be inferred from astronomical observations through laboratory experiments on the analogs of hypothesized dust particles and with modeling calculations. Laboratory investigations of the nature, composition, and optical characteristics of cosmic dust particles are being, carried out at many institutions with a variety of experimental techniques. Despite a wealth of available data, however, many basic issues remain unresolved. An experimental facility based on suspension of dust particles in electrodynamic balance in a pressure/temperature controlled environment in a cavity has been operational at the NASA Marshall Space Flight Center, and is currently being employed for studies of dust particle charging mechanisms using electron beams and with UV radiation. In this paper, we discuss two general classes of experiments under planning stages that may be simultaneously carried out on this facility for cosmic dust investigations (i) Infrared optical characteristics (extinction coefficients and scattering phase functions) of the analogs of hypothesized of cosmic dust particles, such as natural and synthetic amorphous silicates with varying compositions, amorphous carbon grains, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), and icy core-mantle particles etc. The initial spectral range under consideration is 1-25 micrometers, to be extended to the far infrared region in the future (ii) Condensation of volatile gases on nucleus dust particles to be investigated for planetary and astrophysical environments.

Spann, J. F., Jr.↗

New Frontiers AO: Advanced Materials Bi-propellant Rocket (AMBR) Engine Information Summary

The Advanced Material Bi-propellant Rocket (AMBR) engine is a high performance (I(sub sp)), higher thrust, radiation cooled, storable bi-propellant space engine of the same physical envelope as the High Performance Apogee Thruster (HiPAT(TradeMark)). To provide further information about the AMBR engine, this document provides details on performance, development, mission implementation, key spacecraft integration considerations, project participants and approach, contact information, system specifications, and a list of references. The In-Space Propulsion Technology (ISPT) project team at NASA Glenn Research Center (GRC) leads the technology development of the AMBR engine. Their NASA partners were Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) and Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). Aerojet leads the industrial partners selected competitively for the technology development via the NASA Research Announcement (NRA) process.

Liou, Larry C.↗

The impact of hydrogen contamination on the Total Dose Response of Linear Bipolar Microcircuits

Recent enhanced low dose rate sensitivity (ELDRS) investigations carried out by RLP Research, Crane, Arizona State University (ASU), and Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) have shown significant differences in the degradation of bipolar microcircuits with total dose in the presence of molecular hydrogen (H2) in packages. This has a significant impact on radiation hardness assurance and opens up opportunity to improve device performance. The objectives of this program are 1) to investigate and confirm the causal relationship between packaging recipes, hydrogen contamination, and total dose response of linear bipolar microcircuits; and 2) to develop a guideline that will take into account these effects at the radiation level for future NASA space missions. This program is geared to benefit all future NASA space missions using bipolar or BiCMOS linear devices.

McClure, Steve S.↗

Thermal Contributions to the Degradation of Ground-Laboratory- and Space-Irradiated Teflon Investigated

The Hubble Space Telescope (HST) is covered with two primary types of thermal control materials, radiators and multilayer insulation blankets, which passively control temperatures during orbit. Both of these thermal control materials utilize back-surface metalized Teflon FEP (DuPont, fluorinated ethylene propylene) as the exterior (spacefacing) layer because of its excellent optical properties (low solar absorptance and high thermal emittance). The aluminized-FEP (Al-FEP) outermost layer of the multilayer insulation blankets on the HST has become embrittled while in space, resulting in severe on-orbit cracking (see the photographs). During the second servicing mission, an extremely embrittled piece of Al-FEP was retrieved that had curled, exposing the backsurface aluminum to space (see the photograph on the right). Because the aluminum surface has a lower thermal emittance than the FEP, this curled piece reached 200 C during orbit, 150 C higher than the nominal temperature extreme. To better understand the effect of temperature on the rate of degradation, and on the mechanism of degradation, of this insulation material in the low-Earth-orbit environment, researchers at the NASA Glenn Research Center conducted experiments to determine the effect of heating on the degradation of FEP that has been irradiated in a ground laboratory facility or in space on the HST. For this study, Teflon FEP retrieved from the HST during the third servicing mission after 9.7 years of space exposure was provided to Glenn by the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center.

deGroh, Kim K.↗

The Combined Release and Radiation Effects Satellite (CRRES) program: A unique series of scientific experiments

The Defense Department and NASA have joined in a program to study the space environment which surrounds the earth and the effects of space radiation on modern satellite electronic systems. The Combined Release and Radiation Effects Satellite (CRRES) will carry an array of active experiments including chemical releases and a complement of sophisticated scientific instruments to accomplish these objectives. Other chemical release active experiments will be performed with sub-orbital rocket probes. The chemical releases will 'paint' the magnetic and electric fields of earthspace with clouds of glowing ions. Earthspace will be a laboratory, and the releases will be studied with an extensive network of ground-, aircraft-, and satellite-based diagnostic instruments. Some of the topics discussed include the following: the effects of earthspace; the need for active experiments; types of chemical releases; the CRRES program schedule; international support and coordinated studies; photographing chemical releases; information on locating chemical releases for observation by the amateur; and CRRES as a program.

Reasoner, David L.↗

Analysis of Moessbauer Data from Mars: A Database and Artificial Neural Network for Identification of Iron-bearing Phases

The exploration of the planet Mars is one of the major goals within the Solar system exploration programs of the US-American space agency NASA and the European Space Agency ESA. In particular the search for water and life and understanding of the history of the surface and atmosphere will be the major tasks of the upcoming space missions to Mars. The miniaturized Moessbauer spectrometer MIMOS II has been selected for the NASA Mars-Exploration-Rover twin-mission to Mars in 2003 and the ESA 2003 Mars-Express Beagle 2 mission. Reduced in size and weight, in comparison to ordinary laboratory setup, the sensor head just weights approximately 400 g, with a volume of (50x50x90) cu mm, and holds two gamma-ray sources: the stronger for experiments and the weaker for calibrations. The collimator (in sample direction) also shields the primary radiation off the detectors. Around the drive four detectors are mounted. The detectors are made of Si-PIN-photodiodes in chip form (100 sq mm, thickness of 0.5 mm). The control unit is located in a separate electronics board. This board is responsible for the power supply, generation of the drive's velocity reference signal, read of the detector pulses to record the spectrum, data storage and communication with the host computer. After more than four decades from the discovery of the Moessbauer effect, more than 400 minerals were studied at different temperatures. Their Moessbauer parameters were reported in the literature, and have been recently collected in a data bank. Previous Mars-missions, namely Viking and Mars Pathfinder, revealed Si, Al, Fe, Mg, Ca, K, Ti, S and Cl to be the major constituents in soil and rock elemental composition of the red planet. More than 200 minerals already studied by Moessbauer spectroscopy contain significant amounts of these elements. A considerable number of Moessbauer studies were also carried out on meteorites and on Moon samples. Looking backward in the studies of the whole Moessbauer community, we have built a specific library containing Moessbauer parameters of those possible Mars minerals. The selected minerals, their Moessbauer parameter values (min. max. s.d and number of available data), main site substitution, behavior as a function of temperature and a ranking as expected to be found on Mars were organized. Mars-analogue Fe-bearing minerals not studied by Moessbauer spectroscopy are being collected and investigated. In addition, it an identification system based on Artificial Neural Networks (ANN) was implemented which enables fast and precise mineral identification from the experimental Moessbauer parameters at a given temperature.

P A de Souza Jr.↗

Risk analysis: divergent models and convergent interpretations

Material presented at a NASA-sponsored workshop on risk models for exposure conditions relevant to prolonged space flight are described in this paper. Analyses used mortality data from experiments conducted at Argonne National Laboratory on the long-term effects of external whole-body irradiation on B6CF1 mice by 60Co gamma rays and fission neutrons delivered as a single exposure or protracted over either 24 or 60 once-weekly exposures. The maximum dose considered was restricted to 1 Gy for neutrons and 10 Gy for gamma rays. Proportional hazard models were used to investigate the shape of the dose response at these lower doses for deaths caused by solid-tissue tumors and tumors of either connective or epithelial tissue origin. For protracted exposures, a significant mortality effect was detected at a neutron dose of 14 cGy and a gamma-ray dose of 3 Gy. For single exposures, radiation-induced mortality for neutrons also occurred within the range of 10-20 cGy, but dropped to 86 cGy for gamma rays. Plots of risk relative to control estimated for each observed dose gave a visual impression of nonlinearity for both neutrons and gamma rays. At least for solid-tissue tumors, male and female mortality was nearly identical for gamma-ray exposures, but mortality risks for females were higher than for males for neutron exposures. As expected, protracting the gamma-ray dose reduced mortality risks. Although curvature consistent with that observed visually could be detected by a model parameterized to detect curvature, a relative risk term containing only a simple term for total dose was usually sufficient to describe the dose response. Although detectable mortality for the three pathology end points considered typically occurred at the same level of dose, the highest risks were almost always associated with deaths caused by tumors of epithelial tissue origin.

Non-NASA Center↗

CubeSat Active Thermal Control in Support of Advanced Payloads: The Active Thermal Architecture Project

The Active Thermal Architecture (ATA) is an advanced sub-1U Active Thermal Control technology (ATC) for high power payload support in 6U CubeSat form factors and above. The design utilizes a two-stage, single-phase mechanically pumped fluid loop coupled through a two-axis flexible rotary fluid hinge, to reject thermal power to a deployable tracking radiator. A COTS Ricor K508N cryocooler forms the second stage and provides cryogenic cooling to a custom Kevlar detector mount through a TMT pyrolytic graphene thermal strap. Passive vibration isolation and damping technologies prevent the transfer of jitter to the satellite systems. The ATA design utilizes state-of-the-art 3D fabrication techniques such as Ultrasonic Additive Manufacturing (UAM) to directly embed the working fluid channels into the HX, radiator, and CubeSat chassis allowing for the miniaturization and simplification of the ATA system into an integrated thermal control solution. This paper will focus on the design and ground-based characterization and qualification of the ATA system and provide performance metrics for its use as a thermal support subsystem for advanced infrared electro-optical CubeSat payloads. The ATA project is funded through a NASA Small Satellite Technology Program (SSTP) and is a partnership between the Center for Space Engineering at Utah State University and the Jet Propulsions Laboratory. The ATA active thermal control system has been raised to a TRL of 6 and hopes to provide payload support to advanced missions such as the SABER-Lite and JPL CIRAS projects.

Mok, Mason↗