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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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At least 721 records · Page 40
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1998

Studies of Solar Flare and Interplanetary Particle Acceleration and Coordination of Ground-Based Solar Observations in Support of US and International Space Missions

A primary focus has been to conduct studies of particular types of hard X-ray evolution in solar flares and their associations with high energy interplanetary protons observed near Earth. Previously, two large investigations were conducted that revealed strong associations between episodes of progressive spectral hardening seen in solar events and interplanetary proton events (Kiplinger, 1995). An algorithm was developed for predicting interplanetary protons that is more accurate than those currently in use when hard X-ray spectra are available. The basic research on a third study of the remaining independent subset of Hard X-ray Burst Spectrometer (HXRBS) events randomly not selected by the original studies was completed. This third study involves independent analyses of the data by two analysts. The results echo the success of the earlier studies. Of 405 flares analyzed, 12 events were predicted to have associated interplanetary protons at the Space Environment Service Center (SESC) level. Of these, five events appear to be directly associated with SESC proton events, six other events had lower level associated proton events, and there was only one false alarm with no protons. Another study by Garcia and Kiplinger (1995) established that progressively hardening hard X-ray flares associated with interplanetary proton events are intrinsically cooler and not extremely intense in soft X-rays unless a "contaminating" large impulsive flare accompanies the hardening flare.

Kiplinger, Alan L.↗
NASA NTRS1995

Designing planetary protection into the Mars observer mission

Planetary protection has been an important consideration during the process of designing the Mars Observer mission. It affected trajectory design of both the interplanetary transfer and the orbits at Mars; these in turn affected the observation strategies developed for the mission. The Project relied mainly on the strategy of collision avoidance to prevent contamination of Mars. Conservative estimates of spacecraft reliability and Martian atmosphere density were used to evaluate decisions concerning the interplanetary trajectory, the orbit insertion phase at Mars, and operations in orbit at Mars and afterwards. Changes in the trajectory design, especially in the orbit insertion phase, required a refinement of those estimates.

Sweetser, T. H.↗
NASA NTRS2014

Preparing GMAT for Operational Maneuver Planning of the Advanced Composition Explorer (ACE)

The General Mission Analysis Tool (GMAT) is an open-source space mission design, analysis and trajectory optimization tool. GMAT is developed by a team of NASA, private industry, public and private contributors. GMAT is designed to model, optimize and estimate spacecraft trajectories in flight regimes ranging from low Earth orbit to lunar applications, interplanetary trajectories and other deep space missions. GMAT has also been flight qualified to support operational maneuver planning for the Advanced Composition Explorer (ACE) mission. ACE was launched in August, 1997 and is orbiting the Sun-Earth L1 libration point. The primary science objective of ACE is to study the composition of both the solar wind and the galactic cosmic rays. Operational orbit determination, maneuver operations and product generation for ACE are conducted by NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) Flight Dynamics Facility (FDF). This paper discusses the entire engineering lifecycle and major operational certification milestones that GMAT successfully completed to obtain operational certification for the ACE mission. Operational certification milestones such as gathering of the requirements for ACE operational maneuver planning, gap analysis, test plans and procedures development, system design, pre-shadow operations, training to FDF ACE maneuver planners, shadow operations, Test Readiness Review (TRR) and finally Operational Readiness Review (ORR) are discussed. These efforts have demonstrated that GMAT is flight quality software ready to support ACE mission operations in the FDF.

Trajectory analysis↗
NASA NTRS2019

Preparing General Mission Analysis Tool for Operational Maneuver Planning of the Advanced Composition Explorer Mission

The General Mission Analysis Tool (GMAT) is an open-source space mission design, analysis and trajectory optimization tool. GMAT is developed by a team of NASA, private industry, public and private contributors. GMAT is designed to model, optimize and estimate spacecraft trajectories in flight regimes ranging from low Earth orbit to lunar applications, interplanetary trajectories and other deep space missions. GMAT has also been flight qualified to support operational maneuver planning for the Advanced Composition Explorer (ACE) mission. ACE was launched in August, 1997 and is orbiting the Sun-Earth L1 libration point. The primary science objective of ACE is to study the composition of both the solar wind and the galactic cosmic rays. Operational orbit determination, maneuver operations and product generation for ACE are conducted by NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) Flight Dynamics Facility (FDF). This paper discusses the entire engineering lifecycle and major operational certification milestones that GMAT successfully completed to obtain operational certification for the ACE mission. Operational certification milestones such as gathering of the requirements for ACE operational maneuver planning, gap analysis, test plans and procedures development, system design, pre-shadow operations, training to FDF ACE maneuver planners, shadow operations, Test Readiness Review (TRR) and finally Operational Readiness Review (ORR) are discussed. These efforts have demonstrated that GMAT is flight quality software ready to support ACE mission operations in the FDF.

mission design↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Interplanetary Terminal Procedure Design Applied to Lunar Landing

The impending NASA Artemis mission to the Moon will enable deep space exploration. The planned cadence of crewed Moon missions under Artemis necessitates scalable, safe lunar landings. This paper describes the development of Interplanetary Terminal Procedure Design (iTERP) which leverages current terminal procedure design criteria augmented with lunar physics to support the exploration of the Moon, Mars and beyond. The iTERPS model combines lessons learned from decades of commercial airspace operations with novelties of human space exploration on other worlds. This paper will highlight some of the key functional areas in procedure design safety, training, and operations reimagined for human space flight.

terminal procedure design↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Interplanetary Terminal Procedure Design Applied to Lunar Landing

The impending NASA Artemis mission to the Moon will enable deep space exploration. The planned cadence of crewed Moon missions under Artemis necessitates scalable, safe lunar landings. This paper describes the development of Interplanetary Terminal Procedure Design (iTERP) which leverages current terminal procedure design criteria augmented with lunar physics to support the exploration of the Moon, Mars and beyond. The iTERPS model combines lessons learned from decades of commercial airspace operations with novelties of human space exploration on other worlds. This paper will highlight some of the key functional areas in procedure design safety, training, and operations reimagined for human space flight.

lunar approach procedures, Artemis Moon base, inte↗
NASA NTRS1972

The effects of trajectory characteristics on scientific objectives for major planetary orbiters.

Outline of specific solutions in the areas of attitude control, interplanetary trajectory parameters, and orbital configurations of major planetary spacecraft. It is shown that inertia wheel supplementation to a three-axis, stabilized attitude control system will substantially reduce propellant weight and attitude jet firings, especially when considering three-year orbital lifetimes as well as interplanetary trip times of several years. Eight interplanetary trajectory parameters including the earth injection energy and the declination of the launch asymptote are shown for a 1980 earth launch mission to Jupiter. The effects of the interplanetary trajectory parameters on the deboost velocities and resulting orbits about Jupiter are summarized. Orbital mode and science interfaces are defined, and a celestial mechanics experiment independent of earth tracking is briefly outlined.

Paul, C. K.↗
NASA NTRS2002

Towards an interplanetary internet: a proposed strategy for standardization

This paper reviews the current set of standard data communications capabilities that exist to support advanced missions, discusses the architectural concepts for the future Interplanetary Internet, and suggests how a standardized set of space communications protocols that can grow to support future scenarios where human intelligence is widely distributed across the Solar System.

interplanetary internet space communications proto↗
NASA NTRS2021

ARTEMIS Observations of Plasma Waves in Laminar and Perturbed Interplanetary Shocks

The ‘Acceleration, Reconnection, Turbulence and Electrodynamics of the Moon's Interaction with the Sun’ (ARTEMIS) mission provides a unique opportunity to study the structure of interplanetary shocks and the associated generation of plasma waves with frequencies between ~50-8000 Hz due to its long duration electric and magnetic field burst waveform captures. We compare wave properties and occurrence rates at 11 quasi-perpendicular interplanetary shocks with burst data within 10 minutes (~3200 proton gyroradii upstream, ~1900 downstream) of the shock ramp. A perturbed shock is defined as possessing a large amplitude whistler precursor in the quasi-static magnetic field with an amplitude greater than ⅓ the difference between the upstream and downstream average magnetic field magnitudes; laminar shocks lack these large precursors and have a smooth, step function-like transition. In addition to wave modes previously observed, including ion acoustic, whistler, and electrostatic solitary waves, waves in the ion acoustic frequency range that show rapid temporal frequency change are common. Three shocks had burst captures in the ramp; of these, the two laminar shocks with burst data in the ramp contained a wide range of large amplitude wave modes in the ramp whereas the one perturbed shock contained no such waves. Thus, energy dissipation through wave-particle interactions is more prominent in these two laminar shocks than in the perturbed shock. Based on observations from all 11 shocks, the The wave occurrence rates for laminar shocks are higher in the transition region, especially the ramp, than downstream. In contrast, perturbed shocks have approximately 2-3 times the wave occurrence rate downstream than laminar shocks.

L. A. Davis↗
NASA NTRS2012

In-Space Propulsion Engine Architecture Based on Sublimation of Planetary Resources: From Exploration Robots to NEO Mitigation

This project, sponsored by the NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts examines how the systematic use of space resources such as frozen volatiles can create a new paradigm in surface power generation for deep space missions. The ubiquitous presence of ices of water, carbon dioxide and other compounds throughout the Solar System under conditions favorable for their sublimation will enable novel in-space propulsion and actuation concepts to become a reality and to address one of NASA's Grand Challenges of "All Access Mobility." Accessing such a resource in the far corners of our interplanetary neighborhood let us conceive exploration missions capable of refueling in the Jovian and Saturnian systems to achieve new goals or reach new destinations. The concept also has potential to apply in-situ propulsion to a comet or an asteroid to deflectits orbit slightly to avoid a future encounter with Earth.

Compounds↗
NASA NTRS1978

Galileo satellite tour maneuver strategies

In January of 1982 the United States will launch Galileo, the first space mission designed to perform an intensive tour of the Galilean satellites of Jupiter. This paper discusses the results of preliminary maneuver strategy studies for typical interplanetary and orbital phases of the Galileo mission. These studies include the effects of maneuver placement and various linear control algorithms on propellant consumption as determined by Monte Carlo analysis. Estimates of total propellant required for various probabilities of mission success are also given.

Miller, L. J.↗
NASA NTRS2012

Missions to Near-Earth Asteroids: Implications for Exploration, Science, Resource Utilization, and Planetary Defense

Introduction: In 2009 the Augustine Commission identified near-Earth asteroids (NEAs) as high profile destinations for human exploration missions beyond the Earth-Moon system as part of the Flexible Path. More recently the U.S. presidential administration directed NASA to include NEAs as destinations for future human exploration with the goal of sending astronauts to a NEA in the mid to late 2020s. This directive became part of the official National Space Policy of the United States of America as of June 28, 2010. NEA Space-Based Survey and Robotic Precursor Missions: The most suitable targets for human missions are NEAs in Earth-like orbits with long synodic periods. However, these mission candidates are often not observable from Earth until the timeframe of their most favorable human mission opportunities, which does not provide an appropriate amount of time for mission development. A space-based survey telescope could more efficiently find these targets in a timely, affordable manner. Such a system is not only able to discover new objects, but also track and characterize objects of interest for human space flight consideration. Those objects with characteristic signatures representative of volatile-rich or metallic materials will be considered as top candidates for further investigation due to their potential for resource utilization and scientific discovery. Once suitable candidates have been identified, precursor spacecraft are required to perform basic reconnaissance of a few NEAs under consideration for the human-led mission. Robotic spacecraft will assess targets for potential hazards that may pose a risk to the deep space transportation vehicle, its deployable assets, and the crew. Additionally, the information obtained about the NEA's basic physical characteristics will be crucial for planning operational activities, designing in-depth scientific/engineering investigations, and identifying sites on the NEA for sample collection. Human Exploration Considerations: These missions would be the first human expeditions to interplanetary bodies beyond the Earth-Moon system and would prove useful for testing technologies required for human missions to Mars, Phobos and Deimos, and other Solar System destinations. Current analyses of operational concepts suggest that stay times of 15 to 30 days may be possible at a NEA with total mission duration limits of 180 days or less. Hence, these missions would undoubtedly provide a great deal of technical and engineering data on spacecraft operations for future human space exploration while simultaneously conducting detailed investigations of these primitive objects with instruments and equipment that exceed the mass and power capabilities delivered by robotic spacecraft. All of these activities will be vital for refinement of resource characterization/identification and development of extraction/utilization technologies to be used on airless bodies under low- or micro-gravity conditions. In addition, gaining enhanced understanding of a NEA s geotechnical properties and its gross internal structure will assist the development of hazard mitigation techniques for planetary defense. Conclusions: The scientific, resource utilization, and hazard mitigation benefits, along with the programmatic and operational benefits of a human venture beyond the Earth-Moon system, make a piloted sample return mission to a NEA using NASA s proposed human exploration systems a compelling endeavor.

Abell, P. A.↗
NASA NTRS2013

Precursor Asteroid Missions and Synergies to Human Exploration of Phobos and Deimos

U.S. President Obama stated on April 15, 2010 that the next goal for human spaceflight will be to send human beings to a near-Earth asteroid by 2025 and then on to the Martian system in the 2030s. Given this direction from the White House, NASA has been involved in studying various strategies for near-Earth object (NEO) exploration in order to follow U.S. space exploration policy. These missions would be the first human expeditions to interplanetary bodies beyond the Earth-Moon system and would prove useful for testing technologies required for human missions to Mars and its moons, as well as other Solar System destinations. Robotic precursor missions to NEOs would undoubtedly provide a great deal of technical and engineering data on spacecraft operations for future human space exploration while conducting in-depth scientific investigations of these primitive objects. In addition, the resulting scientific investigations would refine designs for future extraterrestrial resource extraction and utilization, which may play a vital role in leveraging potential resources from the Martian moons that in turn could enable robotic and human exploration of Mars.

Abell, Paul↗
NASA NTRS2013

Human Exploration of Near-Earth Asteroids and Sample Collection Considerations

In 2009 the Augustine Commission identified near-Earth asteroids (NEAs) as high profile destinations for human exploration missions beyond the Earth-Moon system as part of the Flexible Path. Subsequently, the U.S. presidential administration directed NASA on April 15, 2010 to include NEAs as destinations for future human exploration with the goal of sending astronauts to a NEA in the mid to late 2020s. This directive became part of the official National Space Policy of the United States of America as of June 28, 2010. Human Exploration Considerations: These missions would be the first human expeditions to interplanetary bodies beyond the Earth-Moon system and would prove useful for testing technologies required for human missions to Mars, Phobos and Deimos, and other Solar System destinations. Missions to NEAs would undoubtedly provide a great deal of technical and engineering data on spacecraft operations for future human space exploration while conducting in-depth scientific examinations of these primitive objects. However, prior to sending human explorers to NEAs, robotic investigations of these bodies would be required in order to maximize operational efficiency and reduce mission risk. These precursor missions to NEAs would fill crucial strategic knowledge gaps concerning their physical characteristics that are relevant for human exploration of these relatively unknown destinations. Sample Science Benefits: Information obtained from a human investigation of a NEA, together with ground-based observations and prior spacecraft investigations of asteroids and comets, will also provide a real measure of ground truth to data obtained from terrestrial meteorite collections. Major advances in the areas of geochemistry, impact history, thermal history, isotope analyses, mineralogy, space weathering, formation ages, thermal inertias, volatile content, source regions, solar system formation, etc. can be expected from human NEA missions. Samples directly returned from a primitive body would lead to the same kind of breakthroughs for understanding NEAs that the Apollo samples provided for understanding the Earth-Moon system and its formation history. International Participation: In addition, robotic precursor and human exploration missions to NEAs would allow the NASA and its international partners to gain operational experience in performing complex tasks (e.g., sample collection, deployment of payloads, retrieval of payloads, etc.) with crew, robots, and spacecraft under microgravity conditions at or near the surface of a small body. This would provide an important synergy between the worldwide Science and Exploration communities, which will be crucial for development of future international deep space exploration architectures and has potential benefits for future exploration of other destinations beyond low-Earth orbit.

Abell, Paul↗
NASA NTRS2017

NASA Double Asteroid Redirection Test (Dart) Trajectory Validation and Robustness

The Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) mission will be the first to test the concept of a kinetic impactor. Several studies have been made on asteroid redirection and impact mitigation, however, to this date no mission tested the proposed concepts. An impact study on a representative body allows the measurement of the effects on the target's orbit and physical structure. With this goal, DART's objective is to verify the effectiveness of the kinetic impact concept for planetary defense. The spacecraft uses solar electric propulsion to escape Earth, flyby (138971) 2001 CB21 for impart rehearsal, and impact the secondary body of the (65803) Didymos system. This work focuses on the interplanetary trajectory design part of the mission with the validation of the baseline trajectory, performance comparison to other mission objectives, and assessment of the baseline robustness to missed thrust events. Results show a good performance of the selected trajectory for different mission objectives: latest possible escape date, maximum kinetic energy on impact, shortest possible time of flight, and use of an Earth swing-by. The baseline trajectory was shown to be robust to a missed thrust with 1% of fuel margin being enough to recover the mission for failures of more than 14 days.

design↗
NASA NTRS1984

Reduction and analysis of data from experiment CAI on the IMP-8 mission

The Caltech Electron/Isotope Spectrometer (EIS) on the Interplanetary Monitoring Platform 8 (IMP-8) has provided precise measurements of the energy spectra and time variations of low energy electrons (0.16 to 6 MeV), the isotopes of hydrogen and helium (approximately 2 to 40 MeV/nucleon), and the elements from lithium through oxygen (approximately 5 to 50 MeV/nucleon) in energetic particle fluxes of solar, galactic, interplanetary, and magnetospheric origin since 1973. The accomplishments that have resulted from EIS measurements during the period March 24, 1980 to December 31, 1984 are summarized.

Stone, E. C.↗