SAFETY FOUNDATION IMPACT WORK AND PLANS
Flight safety foundation aviation crash injury studies - human tolerance, acceleration stress
ACCELERATION STRESS↗
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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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Architecture of the personnel protection systems for Spallation Neutron Source Second Target Station
The Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) is implementing a major upgrade to the Spallation Neutron Source (SNS) facility, encompassing the addition of the Second Target Station (STS). Preliminary design reviews have been conducted on several STS Personnel Protection Systems (PPS). The reviews focused primarily on the integration with the existing SNS PPS, the new proton transport tunnel, and the target areas. Development of the PPS is ongoing, to ensure a coherent safety system with the mission of protecting users and workers from prompt radiation hazards while providing high beam availability to operations. The STS PPS element in the Integrated Control System (ICS) is a facility-wide system composed of multiple safety subsystems, including the Ring to Second Target (RTST) beam transport tunnel, Target, Bunker and Instruments. Personnel working in all these geographic areas are protected by modular reliable PPS solutions. The safety system enforces access controls, radiation monitoring, beam destination control, and application of critical device inhibit upon detection of abnormal condition. It uses well-documented processes, Common Industrial Protocol (CIP) safety, pulsed test, and redundancy to achieve the desired Safety Integrity Level (SIL). This paper gives an architectural overview of the STS PPS and a detailed safety plan for the SNS facility, addressing safety solutions and human factors.
Michaelides, Tommy [ORNL] (ORCID:0000000190499869)↗
Safety on Earth From MARSS
ENSCO, Inc., developed the Meteorological and Atmospheric Real-time Safety Support (MARSS) system for real-time assessment of meteorological data displays and toxic material spills. MARSS also provides mock scenarios to guide preparations for emergencies involving meteorological hazards and toxic substances. Developed under a Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) contract with Kennedy Space Center, MARSS was designed to measure how safe NASA and Air Force range safety personnel are while performing weather sensitive operations around launch pads. The system augments a ground operations safety plan that limits certain work operations to very specific weather conditions. It also provides toxic hazard prediction models to assist safety managers in planning for and reacting to releases of hazardous materials. MARSS can be used in agricultural, industrial, and scientific applications that require weather forecasts and predictions of toxic smoke movement. MARSS is also designed to protect urban areas, seaports, rail facilities, and airports from airborne releases of hazardous chemical substances. The system can integrate with local facility protection units and provide instant threat detection and assessment data that is reportable for local and national distribution.
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Flight Test Hazard Planning Near the Speed of Light
A viewgraph presentation describing flight test safety near the speed of light is shown. The topics include: 1) Concept; 2) Portal Content; 3) Activity to Date; 4) FTS Database Updatd FAA Program; 5) FAA Flight Test Risk Management; 6) CFR 14 Part 21.35 Current and proposed changes; 7) An Online Resource for Flight Test Safety Planning; 8) Data Gathering; 9) NTPS Role; 10) Example Maturation; 11) Many Varied Inputs; 12) Matured Stall Hazards; 13) Loss of Control Mitigations; 14) FAA Access; 15) NASA PBMA Website Link; 16) FAR Reference Search; 17) Record Field Search; 18) Keyword Search; and 19) Results of FAR Reference Search.
Henwood, Bart↗
In-time Safety Management Capabilities for Wildland Fire Management Aircraft Operations - A Gap Assessment
This study assesses the in-time safety management services, functions, and capabilities (SFCs)being investigated by NASA’s System Wide Safety (SWS) project to determine applicability to the project’s planned safety demonstrator (SD-1) for wildland fire management. The purpose of this work is to evaluate how effectively existing SFCs address the different hazards presented by a safety demonstrator operating in a wildland fire management scenario. This will help inform decision makers which SFCs would provide the most cost-effective solutions to fill the hazard gaps for further research. Hazards for the safety demonstrator wildland fire management scenario were collated, and the SFCs were evaluated for each hazard based on how applicable and effective the unmodified SFCs are at addressing the hazard. The SFCs are also evaluated for the gap type that needs to be addressed to improve the SFC effectiveness for the given hazard. The key finding of this assessment is that all the existing SFCs require at least some research and development to adapt to the safety demonstrator. No single SFC fully addresses any of the safety demonstrator operation hazards. The result of this study will be used to determine the performance of current SFCs and suggest strategies to adapt existing SFCs or add new SFCs.
Patricia Revolinsky↗
Mod-5A wind turbine generator program design report. Volume 3: Final design and system description, book 2
The design, development and analysis of the 7.3MW MOD-5A wind turbine generator is documented. The report is divided into four volumes: Volume 1 summarizes the entire MOD-5A program, Volume 2 discusses the conceptual and preliminary design phases, Volume 3 describes the final design of the MOD-5A, and Volume 4 contains the drawings and specifications developed for the final design. Volume 3, book 2 describes the performance and characteristics of the MOD-5A wind turbine generator in its final configuration. The subsystem for power generation, control, and instrumentation subsystems is described in detail. The manufacturing and construction plans, and the preparation of a potential site on Oahu, Hawaii, are documented. The quality assurance and safety plan, and analyses of failure modes and effects, and reliability, availability and maintainability are presented.
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Survey Plan For Characterization of the Subsurface Underlying the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama
Topic considered include: survey objectives; technologies for non-Invasive imaging of subsurface; cost; data requirements and sources; climatic condition; hydrology and geology; chemicals; magnetometry; electrical(resistivity, potential); optical-style imaging; reflection/refraction seismics; gravitometry; photo-acoustic activation;well drilling and borehole analysis; comparative assessment matrix; ground sensors; choice of the neutron sources; logistic of operations; system requirements; health and safety plans.
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Assessing High Burnup U-19Pu-10Zr Fuel Performance against Historical and Modeled Behavior
Advancing the deployment of sodium-cooled fast reactors (SFRs) requires thorough testing of metallic fuel pins under accident conditions to establish safe operational limits of high burnup fuel. To conduct transient testing, a comprehensive understanding of steady-state fuel behavior obtained through both experimental characterization and accurate predictive capabilities is needed. This study comparatively assesses the steady-state irradiation performance of two high burnup U-19Pu-10Zr fuel pins, DP-36 and DP-40, irradiated under prototypic fast reactor conditions in preparation for planned safety testing at the Transient Reactor Test Facility. Since DP-40 was designated for use in the test and DP-36 serves as its sibling pin, non-destructive, engineering-scale post-irradiation examinations (PIE) were conducted on both pins while destructive examinations were performed exclusively on DP-36. The results were then assessed against historical performance data from similar fuel pins irradiated in the Experimental Breeder Reactor-II. Additionally, the steady-state irradiation of each pin was modeled using the BISON fuel performance code to assess the accuracy of current modeling capabilities in predicting the baseline irradiation behavior. Non-destructive examinations included neutron radiography to measure fuel column elongation, gamma scanning to verify pin integrity and fission product migration, and profilometry to assess dimensional changes. Benchmarking against existing PIE data revealed consistent patterns in axial fuel column growth and cladding diametral strain, though both pins exhibited longer low-density “fluff” structures, which can have implications for core reactivity and source term calculations. Destructive examinations on DP-36 included fission gas release analysis and sectioning for optical microscopy, which showed more complex constituent redistribution patterns than the traditionally accepted 3-ring model. The axial evolution of fractional areas and porosities of each of the redistributed zones were quantified and presented. Modeling comparisons showed agreement in fractional fission gas release but consistently overestimated axial and radial swelling and disagreed with measured axial porosity patterns. These conservative overpredictions suggested that the pins would appear closer to failure or operational limits at the start of transient tests, potentially leading to higher strain accumulation during the transient. While conservative estimates provide safety margins, they can negatively impact fuel economics. A review of the swelling models identified areas for improvement in the gaseous swelling, solid swelling, and fuel hot-pressing models when applied to ternary fuel. The results of this study highlight the critical importance of conducting pre-test characterization on both test and sibling pins to accurately capture steady-state fuel behavior, providing a precise baseline for post-test evaluations and essential inputs for transient modeling of the planned experiments. The analysis also revealed significant data gaps that require further investigation to enhance the understanding and prediction of fuel swelling and pore dynamics. Collecting comprehensive data across different irradiation conditions, burnup levels, and fuel compositions are essential for refining existing models and developing mechanistic models for both binary and ternary metallic fuels, ultimately improving the integration of modeling and experimental approaches in accident testing.
11 - NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗
Accuracy Assessment of Two Gps Fidelity Prediction Services in Urban Terrain
Low altitude flight in urban areas is susceptible to degraded GNSS-based navigation system performance due to terrain interference with radio signals from orbital positioning satellites. Predictive navigation performance fidelity tools are needed a) in preflight planning to assist in the creation of safe flight paths and b) in-flight to provide contingency management agents with the navigation risk of proximal flight corridors. Two navigation fidelity prediction services are validated by comparison with over 6000 readings from GNSS sensors collected along a five-mile path through urban areas of Corpus Christi, Texas, on three dates in 2022. Predictions are based on satellite line of sight through 3D terrain data collected in 2018. Each service predicts a set of navigation fidelity metrics over a user-specified time period. One metric estimated by both is the number of visible satellites. A direct comparison of the number of predicted visible satellites with the number sensed by the receiver is used to validate the prediction services. Results show an exact match in the number of predicted satellites for 60% of the measurements, and a match within +/- 4 satellites for 95% of the measurements. As expected, agreement improves away from vertical blocking terrain. Most cases of mismatch are due a lower predicted count than measured (false negatives), and can be accounted for by receiver pickup of stray signals caused by multipath propagation. About 10% of mismatches are false positives and are mostly accounted for by foliage effects. The two services predict visibility of the same set of satellites 80% of the time, differ by two or less satellites 95% of the time, and can compute predictions for one hour of observations in one minute or less. Validation is analyzed statistically and in detailed case studies of selected observation times. The prediction services validated in this study run fast enough for preflight safety planning. The more stringent challenge of inflight navigation fidelity prediction for contingency management requires both a speedup of the current level of modeling and equally fast stray signal modeling.
Andrew Moore↗
Accuracy Assessment of Two GPS Fidelity Prediction Services in Urban Terrain
Low altitude flight in urban areas is susceptible to degraded GNSS-based navigation system performance due to terrain interference with radio signals from orbital positioning satellites. Predictive navigation performance fidelity tools are needed a) in preflight planning to assist in the creation of safe flight paths and b) in-flight to provide contingency management agents with the navigation risk of proximal flight corridors. Two navigation fidelity prediction services are validated by comparison with over 6000 readings from GNSS sensors collected along a five-mile path through urban areas of Corpus Christi, Texas, on three dates in 2022. Predictions are based on satellite line of sight through 3D terrain data collected in 2018. Each service predicts a set of navigation fidelity metrics over a user-specified time period. One metric estimated by both is the number of visible satellites. A direct comparison of the number of predicted visible satellites with the number sensed by the receiver is used to validate the prediction services. Results show an exact match in the number of predicted satellites for 60% of the measurements, and a match within +/- 4 satellites for 95% of the measurements. As expected, agreement improves away from vertical blocking terrain. Most cases of mismatch are due a lower predicted count than measured (false negatives), and can be accounted for by receiver pickup of stray signals caused by multipath propagation. About 10% of mismatches are false positives and are mostly accounted for by foliage effects. The two services predict visibility of the same set of satellites 80% of the time, differ by two or less satellites 95% of the time, and can compute predictions for one hour of observations in one minute or less. Validation is analyzed statistically and in detailed case studies of selected observation times. The prediction services validated in this study run fast enough for preflight safety planning. The more stringent challenge of inflight navigation fidelity prediction for contingency management requires both a speedup of the current level of modeling and equally fast stray signal modeling.
Andrew J. Moore↗
Comparative post-irradiation examination of high burnup U-19Pu-10Zr: Assessing steady-state irradiation behavior against historical and modeled fuel performance
Here, the development of next-generation sodium-cooled fast reactors necessitates comprehensive research on metallic fuels to maximize economic performance while ensuring safe operation. In this study, we investigated the steady-state irradiation behavior of two high burnup U-19Pu-10Zr fuel pins, DP-36 and DP-40, in preparation for planned safety testing. Post-irradiation examination (PIE) was performed to quantify fuel column elongation, regions of low-density at the top of the fuel column, pin deformation, fission product distribution, fractional fission gas release, microstructural evolution, and fuel constituent redistribution. Benchmarking against existing PIE data from U-19Pu-10Zr fuel pins irradiated in EBR-II revealed consistent patterns in fuel column elongation and cladding diametral strain. However, both pins exhibited longer low-density structures, and destructive examination of DP-36 revealed more complex constituent redistribution patterns compared to previously reported data for ternary fuel pins. The steady-state irradiation of both pins was also modeled using BISON. Comparisons of PIE results with modeled predictions showed overall agreement in fractional fission gas release but consistent overestimation of axial and radial swelling due to gaseous and solid swelling models. These findings underscore the critical importance of pre-test characterization on test and sibling pins to accurately capture steady-state fuel behavior ahead of transient testing, thus establishing a baseline for post-test comparison. Additionally, these analyses identified key data gaps that warrant further investigation to improve the understanding and prediction of fuel swelling, thereby enhancing the synergy between modeling and experimental efforts in supporting accident testing.
BISON↗
ORNL Portable Diagnostic Package for Evaluating Mirror Performance
Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) and Realta Fusion successfully executed a one-year collaborative effort to deploy the Portable Diagnostic Package (PDP) on the Wisconsin HTS Axisymmetric Mirror (WHAM) and to assess future diagnostic needs. The PDP consists of an optical emission spectroscopy (OES) subsystem and a Thomson scattering (TS) subsystem. Within the first two months, the PDP OES subsystem was installed, integrated with WHAM timing, and handed over to trained Realta personnel. It immediately delivered multi-channel impurity surveys and the first spatially resolved plasma-rotation profiles inferred from C III Doppler shifts. The TS subsystem was commissioned within the first six months; transportation of the class IV laser system, approval of the safety plan, and the integration with WHAM timing with 100 ns resolution. The TS subsystem provided the first localized electron temperature measurements in WHAM commissioning shots. Leveraging these results, the team has discussed a diagnostic concept map for Realta’s next-step facility, Anvil, identifying line-of-sight constraints, required temporal resolution, and hardware upgrades.
70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
Medical operations: Crew surgeon's report
To assure the safety and well being of the Skylab environment simulation crewmembers it was necessary to develop a medical safety plan with emergency procedures. All medical and nonmedical test and operations personnel, except those specifically exempted, were required to meet the medical standards and proficiency levels as established. Implemented programs included health care of the test crew and their families, occupational medical services for chamber operating personnel, clinical laboratory support and hypobaric and other emergency support.
Ross, C. E.↗
JBFA - buoyant flight
A method was developed whereby a balloon was used to carry lumber out of a forest in order to continue lumber production without destroying the natural environment and view of the forest. Emphasis was on the best shape for a logging balloon, development of a balloon logging system suitable for cutting lumber and safety plans, tests on balloon construction and development of netting, and weather of mountainous areas, especially solutions to problems caused by winds.
Ohari, T.↗
MOD-5A wind turbine generator program design report: Volume 1: Executive Summary
The design, development and analysis of the 7.3 MW MOD-5A wind turbine generator covering work performed between July 1980 and June 1984 is discussed. The report is divided into four volumes: Volume 1 summarizes the entire MOD-5A program, Volume 2 discusses the conceptual and preliminary design phases, Volume 3 describes the final design of the MOD-5A, and Volume 4 contains the drawings and specifications developed for the final design. Volume 1, the Executive Summary, summarizes all phases of the MOD-5A program. The performance and cost of energy generated by the MOD-5A are presented. Each subsystem - the rotor, drivetrain, nacelle, tower and foundation, power generation, and control and instrumentation subsystems - is described briefly. The early phases of the MOD-5A program, during which the design was analyzed and optimized, and new technologies and materials were developed, are discussed. Manufacturing, quality assurance, and safety plans are presented. The volume concludes with an index of volumes 2 and 3.
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Nuclear safety
Topics dealing with nuclear safety are addressed which include the following: general safety requirements; safety design requirements; terrestrial safety; SP-100 Flight System key safety requirements; potential mission accidents and hazards; key safety features; ground operations; launch operations; flight operations; disposal; safety concerns; licensing; the nuclear engine for rocket vehicle application (NERVA) design philosophy; the NERVA flight safety program; and the NERVA safety plan.
Buden, D.↗
NGSLR Safety Handbook
NASA's Next Generation Satellite Laser Ranging (NGSLR) station is the prototype for NASA's Satellite Laser Ranging (SLR) systems which will be deployed around the world in the coming decade. The NGSLR system will be an autonomous, photon-counting SLR station with an expected absolute range accuracy of better than one centimeter and a normal point (time-averaged) range precision better than one millimeter. The system provides continuous (weather permitting), 24 hour tracking coverage to an existing constellation of approximately two dozen artificial satellites equipped with passive retroreflector arrays, using pulsed, 532 nm, class IV laser systems. Current details on the approved laser systems can be found in the Appendix 1 of this document. This safety plan addresses the potential hazards to emitted laser radiation, which can occur both inside and outside the shelter. Hazards within the shelter are mitigated through posted warning signs, activated warning lights, procedural controls, personal protective equipment (PPE), laser curtains, beam blocking systems, interlock controls, pre-configured laser control settings, and other controls discussed in this document. Since the NGSLR is a satellite tracking system, laser hazards exist outside the shelter to personnel on the shelter roof and to passing aircraft. Potential exposure to personnel outside the system is mitigated through the use of posted warning signs, access control, procedural controls, a stairwell interlock, beam attenuation/blocking devices, and a radar based aircraft detection system.
satellite laser ranging↗
Gateway at the Crossroads of Sustainable Lunar Exploration
The Gateway Program has made substantial design and development progress toward delivering a small, human-tended lunar space station purposefully designed to enable sustainable human exploration. The Program integrates partners and providers organizationally and physically as part of the spacecraft. The Power and Propulsion Element (PPE) and the Habitation and Logistics Outpost (HALO) with the European System Providing Refueling, Infrastructure and Telecommunications (ESPRIT) HALO Lunar Communications System (HLCS) have begun manufacturing the long lead components and will be launched first as a Co-Manifested Vehicle (CMV). The International Habitat (I-Hab) and ESPRIT Refueling Module (ERM) are passing life cycle milestones and include capabilities key for human crewmembers, such as windows, private sleeping quarters, and galley functions. The Logistics Module (LM) may provide a variety of services to Gateway depending on each mission. Requirements for the airlock have been developed, including requests that it support the integrated spacecraft with functions like augmenting heat rejection capabilities, and interfaces with new spacesuits will soon be developed in more detail. As a critical element of the architecture for solar system exploration, Gateway implements key tenets and features of international interoperability standards necessary to operate with multiple visiting vehicles and lunar assets, especially avionics, communications, and docking. Specific choices such as software architecture and standards, power standards, and robotics standards make it possible to utilize heritage or proprietary technology, yet still operate as one spacecraft. Engineering teams are evaluating many possible future missions to be executed at or utilizing the Gateway. The system architecture protects for an evolvable, extensible, and flexible capability. Designing systems robust enough to serve as a cornerstone of exploration activities for decades while remaining adaptable is not without its challenges. The detailed integration activities have revealed challenges and the need to mature key technologies. Refueling is a key component of achieving long life for Gateway, with unique operations to plan, safety concerns to mitigate, and risk reduction activities to conduct to better understand the system. The constraints and impacts of the design of visiting vehicles is also an important concern, with orientation constraints, control of attitude and orbit of the Gateway with docked visiting vehicles. Tradeoffs between robust maintainable systems and lightweight, compact systems must be balanced. Opportunities still exist for adding additional advanced capabilities to increase and extend Gateway’s benefits, such as intravehicular robotics, autonomous Guidance Navigation and Control (GN&C), and augmented control propulsion, heat rejection, or other services.
Molly S Anderson↗