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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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This paper discusses a proof-of-concept prototype for ground-based automatic generation of validated rover command sequences from high-level goals using AI-based planning software.
This paper discusses the design philosophies and system requirements that resulted in a successful Mars rover thermal design.
An advanced design and implementation of a Control Architecture for Long Range Autonomous Planetary Rovers is presented using a hierarchical top-down task decomposition, and the common structure of each design is presented based on feedback control theory.
This paper describes the evolution of NASA's planning for planetary rovers and some of the technology that has been developed to achieve the desired capabilities.
On the NASA 2020 rover mission to Jezero crater, the remote determination of the texture, mineralogy and chemistry of rocks is essential to quickly and thoroughly characterize an area and to optimize the selection of samples for return to Earth. As part of the Perseverance payload, SuperCam is a suite of five techniques that provide critical and complementary observations via Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS), Time-Resolved Raman and Luminescence (TRR/L), visible and near-infrared spectroscopy (VISIR), high-resolution color imaging (RMI), and acoustic recording (MIC). SuperCam operates at remote distances, primarily 2–7 m, while providing data at sub-mm to mm scales. We report on SuperCam’s science objectives in the context of the Mars 2020 mission goals and ways the different techniques can address these questions. The instrument is made up of three separate subsystems: the Mast Unit is designed and built in France; the Body Unit is provided by the United States; the calibration target holder is contributed by Spain, and the targets themselves by the entire science team. This publication focuses on the design, development, and tests of the Mast Unit; companion papers describe the other units. The goal of this work is to provide an understanding of the technical choices made, the constraints that were imposed, and ultimately the validated performance of the flight model as it leaves Earth, and it will serve as the foundation for Mars operations and future processing of the data.
Rover testing facilities of Nuclear Rocket Development Station in Nevada
This paper describes the ongoing development of the ROAMS physics-based simulator for planetary surface exploration rover vehicles.
In this paper, we describe the OASIS system, which provides autonomous capabilities for dynamically pursuing these science-collection opportunities during long-range rover traverses.
Minimum nighttime temperature at the Mars Exploration Rover (MER) landing sites may limit power available for science activities and thus mission lifetime. Here, 1 m air temperature at the end of the nominal 90 sol primary mission are derived for the four primary and three previously considered MER landing sites based on Mars Global Surveyor Thermal Emmision Spectrometer thermal inertia and albedo, estimated opacity, and predictions of air temperature from a one-dimensional atmospheric model.
The Web Interface for Telescience (WITS) provides downlink data visualization and uplink activity planning for multiple Mars lander and rover missions.
The radar observations carried out on fourteen dates from May 2001 to July 2001 were designed to measure the surface properties of candidate landing sites for the Mars Exploration Rovers.
A paraffin-actuated heat switch has been developed for thermal control of the batteries used on the 2003 Mars Exploration Rovers.
In the summer of 2003, NASA will launch the next wave of robotic explorers towards the planet Mars. Specifically designed to 'follow the water', two identical rovers wil be delivered to the surface of Mars to remotely conduct geologic and atmospheric investigations.
Planetary protection for Mars missions is described, and the approach being taken by the Mars Exploration Rover Project is discussed. Specific topics include alcohol wiping, dry heat microbial reduction, microbiological assays, and the Kennedy Space center's PHSF clean room.
The Mars Exploration Rover (MER) project, will conduct fundamentally new observations of Mars geology, including the first micro-scale study of rock samples, as well as a detailed study of surface environments for the purpose of calibrating and validating orbital remote sensing data.
This paper describes the thermal design requirements, the thermal performance characteristics and the flight qualification program of a mini-LHP suitable for the Mars Rovers.
This paper presents the methodology used in the launch and space vehicle portion of the nuclear risk assessment for the two Mars Exploration Rover (MER) missions, which includes the assessment of accident scenarios and associated probabilities.
This paper describes an integrated system for coordinating multiple rover behavior with the overall goal of collecting planetary surface data.