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At least 1,009 records · Page 56

Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) Mission Applications: Activities, Challenges, and Vision

Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) is an international satellite mission to provide nextgeneration observations of rain and snow worldwide every three hours. NASA and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) will launch a "Core" satellite carrying advanced instruments that will set a new standard for precipitation measurements from space. The data they provide will be used to unify precipitation measurements made by an international network of partner satellites to quantify when, where, and how much it rains or snows around the world. The GPM mission will help advance our understanding of Earth's water and energy cycles, improve the forecasting of extreme events that cause natural disasters, and extend current capabilities of using satellite precipitation information to directly benefit society. Building upon the successful legacy of the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM), GPM's next-generation global precipitation data will lead to scientific advances and societal benefits within a range of hydrologic fields including natural hazards, ecology, public health and water resources. This talk will highlight some examples from TRMM's IS-year history within these applications areas as well as discuss some existing challenges and present a look forward for GPM's contribution to applications in hydrology.

Kirschbaum, Dalia↗

Vision Systems Illuminate Industrial Processes

When NASA designs a spacecraft to undertake a new mission, innovation does not stop after the design phase. In many cases, these spacecraft are firsts of their kind, requiring not only remarkable imagination and expertise in their conception but new technologies and methods for their manufacture. In the realm of manufacturing, NASA has from necessity worked on the cutting-edge, seeking new techniques and materials for creating unprecedented structures, as well as capabilities for reducing the cost and increasing the efficiency of existing manufacturing technologies. From friction stir welding enhancements (Spinoff 2009) to thermoset composites (Spinoff 2011), NASA s innovations in manufacturing have often transferred to the public in ways that enable the expansion of the Nation s industrial productivity. NASA has long pursued ways of improving upon and ensuring quality results from manufacturing processes ranging from arc welding to thermal coating applications. But many of these processes generate blinding light (hence the need for special eyewear during welding) that obscures the process while it is happening, making it difficult to monitor and evaluate. In the 1980s, NASA partnered with a company to develop technology to address this issue. Today, that collaboration has spawned multiple commercial products that not only support effective manufacturing for private industry but also may support NASA in the use of an exciting, rapidly growing field of manufacturing ideal for long-duration space missions.

Source record↗

Revitalizing the Space Shuttle's Thermal Protection System with Reverse Engineering and 3D Vision Technology

The Space Shuttle is protected by a Thermal Protection System (TPS) made of tens of thousands of individually shaped heat protection tile. With every flight, tiles are damaged on take-off and return to earth. After each mission, the heat tiles must be fixed or replaced depending on the level of damage. As part of the return to flight mission, the TPS requirements are more stringent, leading to a significant increase in heat tile replacements. The replacement operation requires scanning tile cavities, and in some cases the actual tiles. The 3D scan data is used to reverse engineer each tile into a precise CAD model, which in turn, is exported to a CAM system for the manufacture of the heat protection tile. Scanning is performed while other activities are going on in the shuttle processing facility. Many technicians work simultaneously on the space shuttle structure, which results in structural movements and vibrations. This paper will cover a portable, ultra-fast data acquisition approach used to scan surfaces in this unstable environment.

Wilson, Brad↗

Revitalizing the Space Shuttle's Thermal Protection System with Reverse Engineering and 3D Vision Technology

The Space Shuttle is protected by a Thermal Protection System (TPS) made of tens of thousands of individually shaped heat protection tile. With every flight, tiles are damaged on take-off and return to earth. After each mission, the heat tiles must be fixed or replaced depending on the level of damage. As part of the return to flight mission, the TPS requirements are more stringent, leading to a significant increase in heat tile replacements. The replacement operation requires scanning tile cavities, and in some cases the actual tiles. The 3D scan data is used to reverse engineer each tile into a precise CAD model, which in turn, is exported to a CAM system for the manufacture of the heat protection tile. Scanning is performed while other activities are going on in the shuttle processing facility. Many technicians work simultaneously on the space shuttle structure, which results in structural movements and vibrations. This paper will cover a portable, ultra-fast data acquisition approach used to scan surfaces in this unstable environment.

Wilson, Brad↗

CanSat Competition: Contributing to the Development of NASA's Vision for Robotic Space Exploration

CanSat is an international student design-build-launch competition organized by the American Astronautical Society (AAS) and American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA). The competition is also sponsored by the Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). The CanSat competition is designed for college, university and high school students wanting to participate in an applicable space-related competition. The objective of the CanSat competition is to complete space exploration missions by designing a specific system for a small sounding rocket payload which will follow and perform to a specific set of rules and guidelines for each year's competition. The competition encompasses a complete life-cycle of one year which includes all phases of design, integration, testing, judging and competition. The mission guidelines are based from space exploration missions and include bonus requirement options which teams may choose to participate in. The fundamental goal of the competition is to educate future engineers and scientists. This is accomplished by students applying systems engineering practices to a development project that incorporates an end-to-end life cycle, from requirements analysis, through preliminary design, integration and testing, an actual flight of the CanSat, and concluding with a post-mission debrief. This is done specifically with space related missions to bring a unique aspect of engineering and design to the competition. The competition has been progressing since its creation in 2005. The competition was originally meant to purely convey the engineering and design process to its participants, but through many experiences the competition has also undergone a learning experience with respect to systems engineering process and design. According

Berman, Joshua↗