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NASA NTRS2013

An Electric Propulsion "Shepherd" for Active Debris Removal that Utilizes Ambient Gas as Propellant

There is a growing consensus among the space debris technical community that limiting the long ]term growth of debris in Low-Earth Orbit (LEO) requires that space users limit the accumulation of mass in orbit. This is partially accomplished by mitigation measures for current and future LEO systems, but there is now interest in removing mass that has already accumulated in LEO from more than 50 years of space activity (termed "Active Debris Removal", or ADR). Many ADR proposals face complex technical issues of how to grapple with uncooperative targets. Some researchers have suggested the use of conventional ion thrusters to gently "blow" on objects to gradually change their orbits, without ever having to come into physical contact with the target. The chief drawback with these methods is the cost per object removed. Typically, a space "tug" or an ion-drive "shepherd" can only remove a few objects per mission due to limited propellant. Unless a costeffective way that removes tens of objects per mission can be found, it is not clear that any of the ideas so far proposed will be economically viable. In this paper, a modified version of the ion-drive "shepherd" is proposed that uses ambient atmospheric gases in LEO as propellant for the ion drives. This method has the potential to greatly extend the operational lifetime of an ADR mission, as the only mission limit is the lifetime of the components of the satellite itself, not on its fuel supply. An ambient-gas ion-drive "shepherd" would the local atmospheric drag on an object by ionizing and accelerating the ambient gas the target would have encountered anyway, thereby hastening its decay. Also, the "shepherd" satellite itself has a great deal of flexibility to maneuver back to high altitude and rendezvous with its next target using the ion drive not limited by fuel supply. However, the amount of available ambient gas is closely tied to the altitude of the spacecraft. It may be possible to use a "hybrid" approach that supplements high-altitude ion-drive operations with stored gas, and transitions to ambient gas at lower altitudes. This paper will include realistic numbers on the estimated times needed to deorbit objects from different orbit regimes using drives that either partially or completely take advantage of ambient gas. It will conclude with recommendations on whether this is a viable candidate for future ADR efforts.

Matney, Mark J.↗

NASA NTRS2019

Qualification of a Hybrid Propulsion System for the Mars Ascent Vehicle

Technology for a hybrid based propulsion system is being developed to support a potential Mars Sample Return campaign. A Mars Ascent Vehicle (MAV) concept for launching samples off of Mars, and delivering them to orbit for further transport to Earth may utilize hybrid propulsion due to the predicted favorable low temperature characteristics and high performance of this option. However, the hybrid option is still undergoing technology development to demonstrate these capabilities. Once development of a capable hybrid propulsion system is proven, further work will be required. This will include environmental testing relative to the mission, and integration with the vehicle reaction control systems and payload. Qualification of such a system will be a significant effort. It will require specialized procurements for the propellants and environments involved, and further testing of the more specialized designs. This paper details an estimate of the tasks required to complete development efforts from Technical Readiness Level 5 (TRL5) through qualification. A success based program was formulated to reach the required performance metrics sufficient for a standard Preliminary Design Review (PDR). Using task level inputs from team members cost and schedule were conceived for continued progress to Critical Design Review (CDR), then through Qualification.

Prince, Andrew↗

NASA NTRS1996

Status of Electrical Actuator Applications

An ever increasing number of actuation functions historically performed by hydraulics or pneumatics are being accomplished by electric actuation. If 'end to end' systems are considered, electric actuators (EA's) are potentially lighter and more efficient. In general, system redundancies may be more easily implemented and operationally monitored. Typically, electrical components exhibit longer mean times to failure and projected lifetime costs of EA's are potentially much lower than those of other options. EA's have certain characteristics which must be considered in their application. The actual mechanical loadings must be established, for the more easily controlled EA may be operated much closer to its full capabilities. At higher rates of motion, EA's are operating as constant power devices. Therefore, it may be possible to start a movement that can not be stopped. The incorporation of high power electronics into remote locations introduces new concerns of EMI and thermal control. It is the management of these and other characteristics that forms the engineering design challenges. Work is currently in progress on EA's for aircraft and expendable launch vehicles. These applications span from ten to 40+ horsepower. The systematics and status of these actuators will be reported along with current technical trends in this area.

Roth, Mary Ellen↗

NASA NTRS1982

Preliminary feasibility assessment for Earth-to-space electromagnetic (Railgun) launchers

An Earth to space electromagnetic (railgun) launcher (ESRL) for launching material into space was studied. Potential ESRL applications were identified and initially assessed to formulate preliminary system requirements. The potential applications included nuclear waste disposal in space, Earth orbital applications, deep space probe launchers, atmospheric research, and boost of chemical rockets. The ESRL system concept consisted of two separate railgun launcher tubes (one at 20 deg from the horizontal for Earth orbital missions, the other vertical for solar system escape disposal missions) powered by a common power plant. Each 2040 m launcher tube is surrounded by 10,200 homopolar generator/inductor units to transmit the power to the walls. Projectile masses are 6500 kg for Earth orbital missions and 2055 kg for nuclear waste disposal missions. For the Earth orbital missions, the projectile requires a propulsion system, leaving an estimated payload mass of 650 kg. For the nuclear waste disposal in space mission, the high level waste mass was estimated at 250 kg. This preliminary assessment included technical, environmental, and economic analyses.

Rice, E. E.↗

NASA NTRS2001

Report by the International Space Station (ISS) Management and Cost Evaluation (IMCE) Task Force

The International Space Station (ISS) Management and Cost Evaluation Task Force (IMCE) was chartered to conduct an independent external review and assessment of the ISS cost, budget, and management. In addition, the Task Force was asked to provide recommendations that could provide maximum benefit to the U.S. taxpayers and the International Partners within the President's budget request. The Task Force has made the following principal findings: (1) The ISS Program's technical achievements to date, as represented by on-orbit capability, are extraordinary; (2) The Existing ISS Program Plan for executing the FY 02-06 budget is not credible; (3) The existing deficiencies in management structure, institutional culture, cost estimating, and program control must be acknowledged and corrected for the Program to move forward in a credible fashion; (4) Additional budget flexibility, from within the Office of Space Flight (OSF) must be provided for a credible core complete program; (5) The research support program is proceeding assuming the budget that was in place before the FY02 budget runout reduction of $1B; (6) There are opportunities to maximize research on the core station program with modest cost impact; (7) The U.S. Core Complete configuration (three person crew) as an end-state will not achieve the unique research potential of the ISS; (8) The cost estimates for the U.S.-funded enhancement options (e.g., permanent seven person crew) are not sufficiently developed to assess credibility. After these findings, the Task Force has formulated several primary recommendations which are published here and include: (1) Major changes must be made in how the ISS program is managed; (2) Additional cost reductions are required within the baseline program; (3) Additional funds must be identified and applied from the Human Space Flight budget; (4) A clearly defined program with a credible end-state, agreed to by all stakeholders, must be developed and implemented.

Young, A. Thomas↗

NASA NTRS2005

Reconfigurable Antennas for High Data Rate Multi-beam Communication Systems

High-speed (2-100 Mb/sec) wireless data communication - whether land- or satellite-based - faces a major challenge: high error rates caused by interference and unpredictable environments. A planar antenna system that can be reconfigured to respond to changing conditions has the potential to dramatically improve data throughput and system reliability. Moreover, new planar antenna designs that reduce array size, weight, and cost can have a significant impact on terrestrial and satellite communication system performance. This research developed new individually-reconfigurable planar antenna array elements that can be adjusted to provide multiple beams while providing increased scan angles and higher aperture efficiency than traditional diffraction-limited arrays. These new elements are microstrip spiral antennas with specialized tuning mechanisms that provide adjustable radiation patterns. We anticipate that these new elements can be used in both large and small arrays for inter-satellite communication as well as tracking of multiple mobile surface-based units. Our work has developed both theoretical descriptions as well as experimental prototypes of the antennas in both single element and array embodiments. The technical summary of the results of this work is divided into six sections: A. Cavity model for analysis and design of pattern reconfigurable antennas; B. Performance of antenna in array configurations for broadside and endfire operation; C. Performance of antenna in array configurations for beam scanning operation; D. Simulation of antennas in infinite phased arrays; E. Demonstration of antenna with commercially-available RF MEMS switches; F. Design of antenna MEMS switch combinations for direct simultaneous fabrication.

Bernhard, Jennifer T.↗

NASA NTRS2013

An Electric Propulsion "Shepherd" for Active Debris Removal that Utilizes Ambient Gas as Propellant

There is a growing consensus among the space debris technical community that limiting the long-term growth of debris in Low-Earth Orbit (LEO) requires that space users limit the accumulation of mass in orbit. This is partially accomplished by mitigation measures for current and future LEO systems, but there is now interest in removing mass that has already accumulated in LEO from more than 50 years of space activity (termed "Active Debris Removal", or ADR). Many ADR proposals face complex technical issues of how to grapple with uncooperative targets. Some researchers have suggested the use of conventional ion thrusters to gently "blow" on objects to gradually change their orbits, without ever having to come into physical contact with the target. The chief drawback with these methods is the cost per object removed. Typically, a space "tug" or an ion-drive "shepherd" can only remove a few objects per mission due to limited propellant. Unless a cost-effective way that removes tens of objects per mission can be found, it is not clear that any of the ideas so far proposed will be economically viable. In this paper, a modified version of the ion-drive "shepherd" is proposed that uses ambient atmospheric gases in LEO as propellant for the ion drives. This method has the potential to greatly extend the operational lifetime of an ADR mission, as the only mission limit is the lifetime of the components of the satellite itself, not on its fuel supply. An ambient-gas ion-drive "shepherd" would enhance the local atmospheric drag on an object by ionizing and accelerating the ambient gas the target would have encountered anyway, thereby hastening its decay. Also, the "shepherd" satellite itself has a great deal of flexibility to maneuver back to high altitude and rendezvous with its next target using the ion drive not limited by fuel supply. However, the amount of available ambient gas is closely tied to the altitude of the spacecraft. It may be possible to use a "hybrid" approach that supplements high-altitude ion-drive operations with stored gas, and transitions to ambient gas at lower altitudes. This paper will include realistic numbers on the estimated times needed to deorbit objects from different orbit regimes using drives that either partially or completely take advantage of ambient gas. It will conclude with recommendations on whether this is a viable candidate for future ADR efforts.

Matney, Mark↗

NASA NTRS2015

Skylon Aerodynamics and SABRE Plumes

An independent partial assessment is provided of the technical viability of the Skylon aerospace plane concept, developed by Reaction Engines Limited (REL). The objectives are to verify REL's engineering estimates of airframe aerodynamics during powered flight and to assess the impact of Synergetic Air-Breathing Rocket Engine (SABRE) plumes on the aft fuselage. Pressure lift and drag coefficients derived from simulations conducted with Euler equations for unpowered flight compare very well with those REL computed with engineering methods. The REL coefficients for powered flight are increasingly less acceptable as the freestream Mach number is increased beyond 8.5, because the engineering estimates did not account for the increasing favorable (in terms of drag and lift coefficients) effect of underexpanded rocket engine plumes on the aft fuselage. At Mach numbers greater than 8.5, the thermal environment around the aft fuselage is a known unknown−a potential design and/or performance risk issue. The adverse effects of shock waves on the aft fuselage and plumeinduced flow separation are other potential risks. The development of an operational reusable launcher from the Skylon concept necessitates the judicious use of a combination of engineering methods, advanced methods based on required physics or analytical fidelity, test data, and independent assessments.

Mehta, Unmeel↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Inverse Text Normalization of Air Traffic Control System Command Center Planning Telecon Transcriptions

We present a hybrid neural network and rule-based Inverse Text Normalization (ITN) method for domains containing unique technical phraseology, specifically Air Traffic Control System Command Center (ATCSCC) planning telecon audio transcriptions. The ATCSCC hosts bi-hourly planning telephone conferences (or planning telecons) to ensure smooth operations within the National Airspace (NAS). Access to both live and post meeting transcripts of this speech audio would enable quick review of meetings. Provided speech transcripts, ITN is the process of converting unformatted raw Automated Speaker Recognition (ASR) model transcripts into a human (expert) readable written form. Our hybrid ITN framework utilizes a fine-tuned Bidirectional Encoder Representations from Transformers neural network to format conversational English, and rule-based methods to format domain-specific aviation text. With an overall Punctuation Error Rate (PER) of 25.56 and Word Error Rate with Punctuation and Capitalization (WER PC) of 5.47, we show that this method has vast potential in being applied to ATCSCC planning telecon audio and other audio/text based data available in ATM.

ATM↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Inverse Text Normalization of Air Traffic Control System Command Center Planning Telecon Transcriptions

ATM↗

NASA NTRS2013

Practical Application of PRA as an Integrated Design Tool for Space Systems

This paper presents the application of the first comprehensive Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA) during the design phase of a joint NASA/NOAA weather satellite program, Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite Series R (GOES-R). GOES-R is the next generation weather satellite primarily to help understand the weather and help save human lives. PRA has been used at NASA for Human Space Flight for many years. PRA was initially adopted and implemented in the operational phase of manned space flight programs and more recently for the next generation human space systems. Since its first use at NASA, PRA has become recognized throughout the Agency as a method of assessing complex mission risks as part of an overall approach to assuring safety and mission success throughout project lifecycles. PRA is now included as a requirement during the design phase of both NASA next generation manned space vehicles as well as for high priority robotic missions. The influence of PRA on GOES-R design and operation concepts are discussed in detail. The GOES-R PRA is unique at NASA for its early implementation. It also represents a pioneering effort to integrate risks from both Spacecraft (SC) and Ground Segment (GS) to fully assess the probability of achieving mission objectives. PRA analysts were actively involved in system engineering and design engineering to ensure that a comprehensive set of technical risks were correctly identified and properly understood from a design and operations perspective. The analysis included an assessment of SC hardware and software, SC fault management system, GS hardware and software, common cause failures, human error, natural hazards, solar weather and infrastructure (such as network and telecommunications failures, fire). PRA findings directly resulted in design changes to reduce SC risk from micro-meteoroids. PRA results also led to design changes in several SC subsystems, e.g. propulsion, guidance, navigation and control (GNC), communications, mechanisms, and command and data handling (C&DH). The fault tree approach assisted in the development of the fault management system design. Human error analysis, which examined human response to failure, indicated areas where automation could reduce the overall probability of gaps in operation by half. In addition, the PRA brought to light many potential root causes of system disruptions, including earthquakes, inclement weather, solar storms, blackouts and other extreme conditions not considered in the typical reliability and availability analyses. Ultimately the PRA served to identify potential failures that, when mitigated, resulted in a more robust design, as well as to influence the program's concept of operations. The early and active integration of PRA with system and design engineering provided a well-managed approach for risk assessment that increased reliability and availability, optimized lifecyc1e costs, and unified the SC and GS developments.

Kalia, Prince↗

NASA NTRS2018

Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Traffic Management (UTM) National Campaign II

The Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) Traffic Management (UTM) effort at NASA aims to enable access to low-altitude airspace for small UAS. This goal is being pursued partly through partnerships that NASA has developed with the UAS stakeholder community, the FAA, other government agencies, and the designated FAA UAS Test Sites. By partnering with the FAA UAS Test Sites, NASA's UTM project has performed a geographically diverse, simultaneous set of UAS operations at locations in six states. The demonstrations used an architecture that was developed by NASA in partnership with the FAA to safely coordinate such operations. These demonstrationsâ€”the second or "Technical Capability Level (TCL 2)" National Campaign of UTM testingâ€”was performed from May 15 through June 9, 2017. Multiple UAS operations occurred during the testing at sites located in Alaska, Nevada, Texas, North Dakota, Virginia, and New York with multiple organizations serving as UAS Service Suppliers and/or UAS Operators per the specifications provided by NASA. By engaging various members of the UAS community in development and operational roles, this campaign provided initial validation of different aspects of the UTM concept including: UAS Service Supplier technologies and procedures; geofencing technologies/conformance monitoring; ground-based surveillance/sense and avoid; airborne sense and avoid; communication, navigation, surveillance; and human factors related to UTM data creation and display. Additionally, measures of performance were defined and calculated from the flight data to establish quantitative bases for comparing flight test activities and to provide potential metrics that might be routinely monitored in future operational UTM systems.

Aweiss, Arwa↗

NASA NTRS1995

Cloud Ozone Dust Imager (CODI): Investigation and Technical Plan - Volume 1

The Cloud Ozone Dust Imager (CODI) is proposed to investigate the current climatic balance of the Mars atmosphere, with particular emphasis on the important but poorly understood roles which dust and water ice aerosols play in this balance. The large atmospheric heating (20-50 K) resulting from global dust storms around Mars perihelion is well recognized. However, groundbased observations of Mars atmospheric temperatures, water vapor, and clouds since the Viking missions have identified a much colder, cloudier atmosphere around Mars aphelion that may prove as important as global dust storms in determining the interannual and long-term behavior of the Mars climate. The key climate issues CODI is designed to investigate are: 1) the degree to which non-linear interactions between atmospheric dust heating, water vapor saturation, and cloud nucleation influence the seasonal and interannual variability of the Mars atmosphere, and 2) whether the strong orbital forcing of atmospheric dust loading, temperatures and water vapor saturation determines the long-term balance of Mars water, as reflected in the north-south hemispheric asymmetries of atmospheric water vapor and polar water ice abundances. The CODI experiment will measure the daily, seasonal and (potentially) interannual variability of atmospheric dust and cloud opacities, and the key physical properties of these aerosols which determine their role in the climate cycles of Mars. CODI is a small (1.2 kg), fixed pointing camera, in which four wide-angle (+/- 70 deg) lenses illuminate fixed filters and CCD arrays. Simultaneous sky/surface imaging of Mars is obtained at an angular resolution of 0.28 deg/pixel for wavelengths of 255, 336, 502, and 673 nm (similar to Hubble Space Telescope filters). These wavelengths serve to measure atmospheric ozone (255 and 336 nm), discriminate ice and dust aerosols (336 and 673 nm), and construct color images (336, 502, and 673 nm). The CODI images are detected on four 512 x 512 pixel arrays, as partitioned on two 1024 x 1024 CCD's operated in frame transfer mode. The center of the CODI field-of-view is canted 40 deg from the zenith direction to obtain sky brightness measurements and a 20 deg surface field-of-view. Daily image observations will be conducted when the Sun is greater than or equal to 5 deg outside the edge of the CODI field-of-view, and twilight and nighttime imaging will obtained on a weekly basis. The 673 nm channel includes a polarizer wheel to obtain sky/surface polarimetry. A dust cover protects the entire lens assemblies of all four CODI channels. This opaque dust cover, which is normally opened for CODI imaging, includes a small fixed mirror and transparent window positioned above the 673 nm lens, to redirect the 673 nm field-of-view to the surface for descent imaging. Fixed pointing, internal data buffering, low operating power (2-4 W for less than or equal to 30 seconds), selective data transmission, and simple operational characteristics of the CODI experiment place minimum resource and operational demands on the Mars Surveyor 1998 lander. The CODI science goals are optimized for, but not restricted to, a low-latitude landing site (20 deg S-30 deg N). The primary CODI measurement objectives are the opacities, wave forms, particle properties (size, shape, and alignment), and heights of clouds; the opacities, particle properties, and vertical distribution of dust; and the opacity and vertical distribution of ozone. The variability of cloud, ozone, and dust opacities will be determined on diurnal, daily, and seasonal timescales. Wind velocities will be determined from cloud motions and wave characteristics; and the temporal variability of atmospheric water vapor, with limited altitude information, will be inferred from the CODI ozone observations. Secondary measurement objectives include limited descent imaging capability, surface uv-visible photometry and polarimetry, photochemistry, and meteorite infall rates.

Clancy, R. Todd↗

NASA NTRS1988

Independent Orbiter Assessment (IOA): FMEA/CIL assessment

The McDonnell Douglas Astronautics Company (MDAC) was selected to perform an Independent Orbiter Assessment (IOA) of the Failure Modes and Effects Analysis (FMEA) and Critical Items List (CIL). Direction was given by the Orbiter and GFE Projects Office to perform the hardware analysis and assessment using the instructions and ground rules defined in NSTS 22206. The IOA analysis featured a top-down approach to determine hardware failure modes, criticality, and potential critical items. To preserve independence, the analysis was accomplished without reliance upon the results contained within the NASA and Prime Contractor FMEA/CIL documentation. The assessment process compared the independently derived failure modes and criticality assignments to the proposed NASA post 51-L FMEA/CIL documentation. When possible, assessment issues were discussed and resolved with the NASA subsystem managers. Unresolved issues were elevated to the Orbiter and GFE Projects Office manager, Configuration Control Board (CCB), or Program Requirements Control Board (PRCB) for further resolution. The most important Orbiter assessment finding was the previously unknown stuck autopilot push-button criticality 1/1 failure mode. The worst case effect could cause loss of crew/vehicle when the microwave landing system is not active. It is concluded that NASA and Prime Contractor Post 51-L FMEA/CIL documentation assessed by IOA is believed to be technically accurate and complete. All CIL issues were resolved. No FMEA issues remain that have safety implications. Consideration should be given, however, to upgrading NSTS 22206 with definitive ground rules which more clearly spell out the limits of redundancy.

Hinsdale, L. W.↗

NASA NTRS2001

Integrating Public Perspectives in Sample Return Planning

Planning for extraterrestrial sample returns, whether from Mars or other solar system bodies, must be done in a way that integrates planetary protection concerns with the usual mission technical and scientific considerations. Understanding and addressing legitimate societal concerns about the possible risks of sample return will be a critical part of the public decision making process ahead. This paper presents the results of two studies, one with lay audiences, the other with expert microbiologists, designed to gather information, on attitudes and concerns about sample return risks and planetary protection. Focus group interviews with lay subjects, using generic information about Mars sample return and a preliminary environmental impact assessment, were designed to obtain an indication of how the factual content is perceived and understood by the public. A research survey of microbiologists gathered information on experts' views and attitudes about sample return, risk management approaches and space exploration risks. These findings, combined with earlier research results on risk perception, will be useful in identifying levels of concern and potential conflicts in understanding between experts and the public about sample return risks. The information will be helpful in guiding development of the environmental impact statement and also has applicability to proposals for sample return from other solar system bodies where scientific uncertainty about extraterrestrial life may persist at the time of mission planning.

Race, Margaret S.↗

NASA NTRS2003

Systems Modeling of a Hypothetical SSME Channel-Wall Nozzle

A future upgrade to the Space Shuttle Main Engine (SSME) may be the replacement of the current regenerative cooled tube-wall nozzle with a nozzle using a regeneratively-cooled channel-wall design. The current tube-wall design represents the only major piece of SSME hardware that has not been dramatically updated throughout thc long history of the engine. There are a number of advantages to a channel-wall design including the promise of faster and lower cost fabrication and greater reliability in the field. The technical obstacles in the path of making this happen are many, particularly in the realms of metallurgy and manufacturing techniques. However, one technical area that can and should be addressed in the near term as part of the development of detailed component requirements is a systems type model of the fluid flow and heat transfer processes to which the new design will be exposed. This paper presents the results of an effort to develop a mathematical model of the internal flow for a generic channel-wall nozzle functioning as a direct replacement for the current tube-wall nozzle with a minimum of systems-level changes. Comparisons will be made to mathematical modeling results for the current tube-wall design and the results of various geometrical trade studies will be presented. It is the intent of this work to examine the feasibility of the concept of a direct replacement component with minimum systems-!eve impacts and to highlight potential areas of concern requiring further work in the future.

Greene, William D.↗

NASA NTRS2011

A Hypothesis on Biological Protection from Space Radiation Through the Use of New Therapeutic Gases

Radiation exposure to astronauts could be a significant obstacle for long duration manned space exploration because of current uncertainties regarding the extent of biological effects. Furthermore, concepts for protective shielding also pose a technically challenging issue due to the nature of cosmic radiation and current mass and power constraints with modern exploration technology. The concern regarding exposure to cosmic radiation is the biological damage it induces. As damage is associated with increased oxidative stress, it is important and would be enabling to mitigate and/or prevent oxidative stress prior to the development of clinical symptoms and disease. This paper hypothesizes a "systems biology" approach in which a combination of chemical and biological mitigation techniques are used conjunctively. It proposes using new, therapeutic, medical gases as both chemical radioprotectors for radical scavenging and biological signaling molecules for management of the body s response to exposure. From reviewing radiochemistry of water, biological effects of CO, H2, NO, and H2S gas, and mechanisms of radiation biology, it is concluded that this approach may have great therapeutic potential for radiation exposure. Furthermore, it also appears to have similar potential for curtailing the pathogenesis of other diseases in which oxidative stress has been implicated including, cardiovascular disease, cancer, chronic inflammatory disease, hypertension, ischemia/reperfusion injury, acute respiratory distress syndrome, parkinson s and alzheimer s disease, cataracts, and aging

Schoenfeld, Michael P.↗

NASA NTRS2012

A Hypothesis on Biological Protection from Space Radiation Through the Use of New Therapeutic Gases as Medical Counter Measures

Radiation exposure to astronauts could be a significant obstacle for long duration manned space exploration because of current uncertainties regarding the extent of biological effects. Furthermore, concepts for protective shielding also pose a technically challenging issue due to the nature of cosmic radiation and current mass and power constraints with modern exploration technology. The concern regarding exposure to cosmic radiation is the biological damage it induces. As damage is associated with increased oxidative stress, it is important and would be enabling to mitigate and/or prevent oxidative stress prior to the development of clinical symptoms and disease. This paper hypothesizes a "systems biology" approach in which a combination of chemical and biological mitigation techniques are used conjunctively. It proposes using new, therapeutic, medical gases as both chemical radioprotectors for radical scavenging and biological signaling molecules for management of the body s response to exposure. From reviewing radiochemistry of water, biological effects of CO, H2, NO, and H2S gas, and mechanisms of radiation biology, it is concluded that this approach may have great therapeutic potential for radiation exposure. Furthermore, it also appears to have similar potential for curtailing the pathogenesis of other diseases in which oxidative stress has been implicated including cardiovascular disease, cancer, chronic inflammatory disease, hypertension, ischemia/reperfusion injury, acute respiratory distress syndrome, Parkinson s and Alzheimer s disease, cataracts, and aging.

Schoenfeld, Michael P.↗