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All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS2010

Interpreting Space-Mission LET Requirements for SEGR in Power MOSFETs

Single-event gate rupture (SEGR) is a potentially catastrophic failure mechanism of power MOSFETs biased in the off-state. In part due to the severity of-SEGR consequences and in part due to the difficulty of accurated SEGR rate estimation, SEGR mitigation me1hodologies emphasize risk avoidance, using heavy-ion accelerator testing to define safe operating conditions for a surface-incident linear energy transfer {LET). This "safe-operating area" (SOA) within which the device may be biased without experiencing SEGR is then often derated by a prescribed factor to ensure low risk of SEGR. Although research in 1996 indicated that such LET-based SEGR hardness requiremen1s could provide false assurance of safe operation unless one also considered· ion energy], most mission SEGR requirements are still specified in terms of surface-incident LET. Moreover, terrestrial SEGR tests at a given surface-incident LET are limited by the small number of ion species and energies available at heavy-ion accelerators. In comparison, the on-orbit radiation environment is composed of all of the naturally-occurring elements with peak fluxes at nearly GeV/nucleon energies. The primary objective of this study is to examine whether typical derating of high-energy heavy-ion accelerator test data bounds the risk for SEGR from higher-energy on-orbit ions with the mission LET requirement.

Lauenstein, Jean-Marie↗
NASA NTRS2018

Testing and Maturing a Mass Translating Mechanism for a Deep Space CubeSat

Near Earth Asteroid (NEA) Scout is a deep space satellite set to launch aboard NASA’s Exploration Mission 1. The spacecraft fits within a CubeSat standard 6U (about 300 x 200 x 100 mm) and is designed to travel 1 AU over a 2.5 year mission to observe NEA VG 1991. The spacecraft will use an 86 square meter solar sail to maneuver from lunar orbit to the NEA. One of the critical mechanisms aboard NEA Scout, the Active Mass Translator (AMT), has gone through rigorous design and test cycles since its conception in July of 2015. The AMT is a two-axis translation table required to balance the spacecraft’s center of mass (CM) and solar sail center of pressure (CP) while also trimming disturbance torque created by off-nominal sail conditions. The AMT has very limited mass and volume requirements, but is still required to deliver a large translation range—about 160 x 68 mm—at sub mm accuracy and precision. The system must accommodate and protect a shielded wire harness and coax cables during translation. Lastly, the system has been constrained to operate in complete exposure to space with limited power and data budgets for mechanical and thermal needs. The NEA Scout team has developed and carried out a rigorous test suite for the prototype and engineering development unit (EDU). These tests uncovered numerous design failures and led to many failure investigations and iteration cycles. This paper will site each discovery and discuss at length the most surprising and difficult failures to date as the NEA Scout AMT moved through functional, random vibration, thermal vacuum, harnessing, and design life verification testing. A paper was previously presented at the 43rd Aerospace Mechanisms Symposia entitled, “Development of a High Performance, Low Profile Translation Table with Wire Feedthrough for a Deep Space CubeSat”. This paper will make note of specific lessons learned from the test activities: testing ideologies for high-risk missions, thermal mitigation design for small mechanisms, non-flight qualified stepper motor accommodation, harnessing volume allocation/design, and ground testing of mechanisms developed for zero-g environments.

Few, Alex↗
NASA NTRS2018

Testing and Maturing a Mass Translating Mechanism for a Deep Space CubeSat

Near Earth Asteroid (NEA) Scout is a deep space satellite set to launch aboard NASA's Exploration Mission 1. The spacecraft fits within a CubeSat standard 6U (about 300 x 200 x 100 mm) and is designed to travel 1 AU over a 2.5 year mission to observe NEA VG 1991. The spacecraft will use an 86 sq.m solar sail to maneuver from lunar orbit to the NEA. One of the critical mechanisms aboard NEA Scout, the Active Mass Translator (AMT), has gone through rigorous design and test cycles since its conception in July of 2015. The AMT is a two-axis translation table required to balance the spacecraft's center of mass (CM) and solar sail center of pressure (CP) while also trimming disturbance torque created by off-nominal sail conditions. The AMT has very limited mass and volume requirements, but is still required to deliver a large translation range-about 160 x 68 mm-at sub mm accuracy and precision. The system is constrained to operate in complete exposure to space with limited power and data budgets for mechanical and thermal needs. The NEA Scout team developed and carried out a rigorous test suite for the prototype and engineering development unit (EDU). These tests uncovered numerous design failures and led to many failure investigations and iteration cycles. A paper was previously presented at the 43rd Aerospace Mechanisms Symposia entitled, "Development of a High Performance, Low Profile Translation Table with Wire Feedthrough for a Deep Space CubeSat". This paper will make note of specific lessons learned: manufacturing philosophy, testing ideologies for high-risk missions, thermal mitigation design for small, motor-driven mechanisms.

Few, Alex↗
NASA NTRS2017

The Role of CDKN1a/p21 in Cellular Senescence of Bone Marrow Stem Cells Under Spaceflight Stressors

Spaceflight environments and their associated conditions, such as microgravity and space radiation, cause many biological functions formerly considered to be standard to behave in nonstandard ways. Exposure to microgravity has shown to induce deleterious effects in stem cell-based tissue regeneration, leading to immune system and healing response impairments as well as muscle and bone density loss. Such risks must be mitigated in order for long-term human space exploration to proceed. Thus, our work seeks to explore mechanisms of stem cell-based tissue regeneration that experience changes in spaceflight environments. Cellular senescence is a process of inducing cell cycle arrest that can be initiated by various stimuli. This function is influenced by two major pathways, controlled by p53 and pRB tumor suppressor proteins. p53 activity targets the cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor gene p21Cdkn1a in osteogenic cell cycle arrest. Under conditions of mechanical unloading, stem cell-based tissue regeneration has shown to be decreased in both proliferation and differentiation, as many cells are arrested in progenitor states. p21 has shown upregulation in expression under conditions of microgravity, suggesting its role in regenerative bone formation arrest in space. p21 levels are found to be elevated independent of p53, suggesting a decrease in proliferation and regeneration without apoptosis, but rather through cell cycle arrest alone. Thus, we hypothesize that p21 is a mediator of cellular senescence in bone marrow stem cells. Culturing of bone marrow stem cells from wild type and p21 knockout mice under osteoblastogenic conditions will be completed to explore the role of p21Cdkn1a in stem cell proliferation and maturation. We believe that decreases in somatic stem cell differentiation may occur after spaceflight due to signal pathway alterations that result in downstream inhibition of genes involved in differentiation, preventing tissue from repairing and regenerating normally.

Stem Cells↗
NASA NTRS2020

Monitoring River Basin Development and Variation in Water Resources in Transboundary Imjin River in North and South Korea Using Remote Sensing

This paper presents methods of monitoring river basin development and water variability for the transboundary river in North and South Korea. River basin development, such as dams and water infrastructure in transboundary rivers, can be a potential factor of tensions between upstream and downstream countries since dams constructed upstream can adversely affect downstream riparians. However, because most of the information related to North Korea has been limited to the public, the information about dams constructed and their locations were inaccurate in many previous studies. In addition, water resources in transboundary rivers can be exploited as a political tool. Specifically, due to the unexpected water release from the Hwanggang Dam, upstream of the transboundary Imjin River in North and South Korea, six South Koreans died on 6 September 2009. The Imjin River can be used as a political tool by North Korea, and seven events were reported as water conflicts in the Imjin River from 2001 to 2016. In this paper, firstly, we have updated the information about the dams constructed over the Imjin River in North Korea using multi-temporal images with a high spatial resolution (15-30 cm) obtained from Google Earth. Secondly, we analyzed inter- and intra-water variability over the Hwanggang Reservoir using open-source images obtained from the Global Surface Water Explorer. We found a considerable change in water surface variability before and after 2008, which might result from the construction of the Hwanggang Dam. Thirdly, in order to further investigate intra-annual water variability, we present a method monitoring water storage changes of the Hwanggang Reservoir using the area-elevation curve (AEC), which was derived from multi-sensor Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) images (Sentinel-1A and -1B) and the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) Digital Elevation Model (DEM). Since many previous studies for estimating water storage change have depended on satellite altimetry dataset and optical images for deriving AEC, the method adopted in this study is the only application for such inaccessible areas since no altimetry ground track exists for the Hwanggang Reservoir and because clouds can block the study area for wet seasons. Moreover, this study has newly proven that unexpected water release can occur in dry seasons because the water storage in the Hwanggang Reservoir can be high enough to conduct a release that can be used as a geopolitical tool. Using our method, potential risks can be mitigated, not in response to a water release, but based on pre-event water storage changes in the Hwanggang Reservoir.

Kim, Donghwan↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Predicting Cognitive States Using Machine Learning Fusion Paradigms to Reduce Model Uncertainty

The development of a synergetic system between humans and technology is a challenge that the scientific community has been facing for many years. Our aeronautic research aims to enhance this synergy between humans and machines through predictive human performance modeling for systems to mitigate high-risk situations. By being able to predict and anticipate human states, the crew monitoring system should be able to adjust and support the pilot for aviation safety. Our work focusing on attention-related human performance-limiting states (AHPLS) that impact a pilot’s performance and introduce high-risk catastrophic situations [1]. For example, AHPLS has been cited as a causal factor in more than 50% of all loss control in flight and thus contributes significantly toward commercial aviation fatalities [1, 2]. Cognitive state and its physiological fingerprint can be valuable information for this detecting AHPLS, but human cognitive state detection is still a major limitation for these crew monitoring systems.

machine learning↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Individual Variability and Predictive Biomarkers of Human Sensitivity to Ionizing Radiation

High-linear energy transfer (LET) ionizing radiation is a major health hazard for astronauts who will be exposed to galactic cosmic rays during upcoming lunar and Mars missions. Predicting and mitigating personalized health risks from space radiation exposure requires understanding the factors underlying individual radiation sensitivity, which currently remain unknown. We started to address this challenge by identifying the genomic and demographic associations with sensitivity to low and high-LET ionizing radiation in the largest human sample cohort to date and by evaluating baseline DNA damage as a potential predictor of radiation responses. We have collected and irradiated peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from 768 healthy donors of matched ethnicity, 50/50 male/female, 18-70 years old. We have analyzed the responses of 576 donor PBMCs to irradiation with simulated galactic cosmic ray components: 350MeV/n 28Si, 350MeV/n 40Ar and 600MeV/n 56Fe, at 1.1 and 3 particles/100μm2 fluences, as well as 0.1Gy and 1Gy doses of gamma rays, at 4 and 24 hours post irradiation. We quantified post-irradiation DNA repair based on radiation-induced 53BP1+ foci formation, together with oxidative stress and cell death using a flow cytometry-based assay. We also assessed baseline levels of DNA repair in PBMCs at the time of sample collection prior to irradiation experiments. We observed a wide variability of subject- and LET-dependent radiation responses, with radiation-induced DNA repair foci increasing with LET, though oxidative stress being notably reduced by high-LET irradiation, potentially due to a switch between hydrogen peroxide and oxygen radical-based mechanisms. We also identified a relationship between few DNA repair foci at baseline and increased DNA repair after irradiation, accompanied by an alteration in immunoregulatory cytokine secretion, which might be adapted as biomarkers to predict ionizing radiation sensitivity. Among demographic variables, baseline foci levels were positively associated with age and latent cytomegalovirus infection. Finally, we have performed low-throughput whole genome sequencing of all samples and are currently in process of identifying the genes and pathways associated with low and high-LET ionizing radiation sensitivity in humans.

Space radiation, human spaceflight, DNA damage↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Monitoring Human Performance on Future Deep Space Missions Abstract

NASA and the commercial spacecraft community are working diligently to put the first woman on the moon in the 2024 timeframe. At the same time, NASA researchers are thinking about how to solve the even larger challenges that future deep space missions will bring. Space travel itself is difficult, but astronauts on deep space missions will face obstacles and unknowns never before experienced. In addition to the altered gravity and hostile/closed environment of a spacecraft, deep space crews will face increased radiation, isolation, and distance from Earth. During Extravehicular Activity (EVA, or “spacewalk”) operations, crew will experience increased physical and cognitive workload due to extended types, frequencies and durations of tasks performed on exploration missions in partial gravity environments. All of these stressors will impact crew physical and mental health and performance in difficult-to-anticipate ways. Crew autonomy may be one of the biggest challenges faced. Communication delays and blackouts will occur, and in those situations, the crew may not have access to the Mission Control Center (MCC). They may be forced to be solely dependent on each other and the available information onboard to stay alive, healthy, and achieve the mission. The only conceivable way to meet the challenges of Earth independence is to enable the crew to monitor their own health and performance -- preferably unobtrusively as they perform their duties. Technologies and techniques must be developed to aid the crew in these assessments. A deep space mission is expected to have relatively short periods of high cognitive demand, stress, and fatigue, alongside potentially long periods of cognitive underload during the transit, where boredom, loneliness, and depression can set in. Both ends of this spectrum are dangerous. Crew must be made aware when their task performance drops significantly, when their cognitive workload is too high, when they have lost situation awareness, or when they are too stressed or too fatigued to perform well. They must be able to identify these risks, and then mitigate them with countermeasures available onboard. A number of self-monitoring technologies are presently being explored by NASA to advance crew state determination capabilities. These range from real-time, physiological workload and situation awareness assessments, to crew health measurements determining physical and mental fitness for duty, to task performance metrics such as suit resource expenditures. For EVA tasks during surface exploration missions, biomedical information such as metabolic rate may be provided to crewmembers for situational awareness related to task performance efficiency. In addition, translation distances, hydration, nutrition, inspired CO2 exposure and other consumables usage rates may be useful input metrics for modeling individualized performance during tasks to inform crew or provide estimates of work efficiency. Oculomotor metrics such as gaze dwell time, pupilometry, and eye tracking collected in advanced helmet mounted displays could potentially be used to characterize crew situation awareness. This paper highlights some of these projects, and provides broader discussion about the need for advanced monitoring and smart technologies, as NASA takes the leap into the next generation of space exploration.

Kritina Holden↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Implementing the 3-D woven Mid-Density Carbon Phenolic (3MDCP) Heat Shield for the Mars Sample Return (MSR) Earth Entry Vehicle (EEV)

he Mars Sample Return (MSR)Program will return Martian soil samples to Earth in the early 2030s. Since the biological content of these samples is unknown, and potentially upsetting to Earth’s biosphere, the Earth Entry Vehicle (EEV) is required to be the most reliable entry probe ever devised. Entering Earth’s atmosphere at ~12 km/s, after up to a 6-day in-space free flight phase, the EEV must tolerate the cis-lunar Micro-Meteoroid environment, the near-Earth Orbital debris environment, and then entry heating of over 3,000 W/cm2 and pressures of250 kPa before ballistically impacting Earth’s surface at nearly 45 m/s. To reliably accomplish such a mission, NASA Ames is implementing the 3-D woven Mid-Density Carbon Phenolic (3MDCP) Heat Shield, derived from the prior Heatshield for Extreme Entry Environments(HEEET) material system [1]. 3MDCP development accomplishments to date, along with the future efforts to deliver the flight hardware are presented, along with a discussion of the manufacturing risks and accompanying mitigations achieved.

J C Vander Kam↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Neo – Mars Adaptive Training Integrative Knowledge System (MATRIKS) to Improve Operational Performance and its Neural Basis for Spaceflight

With prolonged mission durations, spaceflight crews will become increasingly dependent on onboard technologies for knowledge acquisition and maintenance. It is expected that not all skills and knowledge required for these missions can be retained and retrieved based on pre-mission training alone. Limited and delayed communication will significantly constrain support from Mission Control and crews will increasingly rely on autonomous onboard technologies to successfully perform post-landing operations. With the present project we will target NASA’s particular interest in developing and assessing an adaptive, just-in-time countermeasure that will consolidate and improve skills that are most relevant to space flight operations. To achieve this aim, NASA established a Virtual NASA Specialized Center of Research (VNSCOR)referred to as “Mars Adaptive Training Integrative Knowledge System (MATRIKS)”, comprising the following three projects: (1) “Trinity–Multi-Environment Virtual Training for Long Duration Exploration Missions”, PI: A. Anderson (UC Boulder); (2) “Morpheus–A Haptic Sensory Supplement to Optimize In-Flight Adaptive Training for Human Control of Spacecraft Robotic Arms”, PI: S. Robinson, UC Davis); and the present project “Neo–Adaptive Training integrative knowledge System to Improve Operational Performance and its Neural Basis for Spaceflight” (UPenn, PI: A.C. Stahn). Neo leverages a validated workstation called 6DF that simulates a rendezvous and docking maneuver using real spacecraft flight dynamics. It is designed to (1) train and improve sensorimotor skills relevant for inflight and post-landing operational tasks; (2) feature an autonomous and adaptive training approach that does not rely on feedback from flight operations on the ground; (3) maximize the transfer of mission-relevant motor skills; (4) allow the assessment of the neural circuitry underlying the task; and (5) deliver the training in a motivating and meaningful way to astronauts. Neocomprises two overarching aims: First, we will identify the neural circuitry underlying spaceflight relevant tasks by performing a subset of the 6DFtaskduring functional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)in a total of up to N=30 subjects with varying levels of 6DF training experience. Second, as part of the above-mentioned VNSCOR MATRIKS the proposed 6DF autonomous intelligent tutor system will be integrated in an additive manner with a haptic feedback intervention (Morpheus), and a multi-environment virtual trainer(Trinity).It is expected that Neo, Morpheus and Trinity mutually complement each other to facilitate an effective countermeasure tool to acquire and retain operational skills that are critical for exploration class missions. To assess the efficacy of this combined effort, the VNSCOR MATRIKS will collect data inN=16 crew members in one HERA campaign of 45 days duration with N=16 crew members(four missions with N=4 crew member seach).The primary goal is to identify changes in operational performance as assessed by NASA’s simulator of Canadarm2 operations, i.e., Robotic On-board Trainer (ROBoT-r) in response to MATRIKS. As part of Neo we will also identify if, and to what extent MATRIKS will promote transfer to general cognitive performance (Cognition battery), distinctive visuo-spatial tasks critical for telerobotic tasks (Spatial Cognition battery), and affect brain structural changes and the neural circuitry of key brain networks expected to be relevant for spaceflight-related performance. At the conclusion of the research, we will have defined and demonstrated the use of a neuroscience-based, adaptive training integrative knowledge system to potentially mitigate visuo-spatial and sensorimotor brain changes associated with prolonged isolation and confinement to reduce the likelihood or impact of potential decrements in human performance capabilities during long-duration space missions. The expected significance of this 4-year project relates to its relevance for facilitating effective countermeasure tools to acquire and retain operational skills that are critical for exploration class missions. This will support the development of necessary countermeasures and technologies in support of human space exploration, focusing on mitigating operational performance risks.

A C Stahn↗
NASA NTRS2022

FY22 X-Hab: Colorado School of Mines: Planetary Resource & In-Situ Material Habitat Outfitting for Space Exploration (PRISM-HOUSE)

The Colorado School of Mines (CSM) was awarded a project under the Moon to Mars eXploration Systems and Habitation (M2M X-Hab) Academic Innovation Challenge on June 10, 2021 for the proposed Planetary Resource & In-Situ Material Habitat Outfitting for Space Exploration (PRISM-HOUSE) lunar habitat system. The project deliverables have been executed concurrently with coursework in the CSM Space Resources program, specifically for the Space Resources Project I & II classes. A team was established in the fall semester of 2021 and a Systems Engineering process was followed to brainstorm initial concepts, determine objectives, flow down top-level requirements, and identify areas for which the project could best further the understanding of the overall system through targeted detailed design and design evaluation testing. This report summarizes the overall project, as well as specific work completed in the spring semester of 2022. PRISM-HOUSE is a lunar habitat system that is deployed on the lunar surface robotically and supports safe, long-term human occupancy while maximizing the use of in-situ resources and minimizing the mass of supplies and equipment that must be delivered from Earth. In this report, the team provides an overview and description of the objectives, the system, and how the current design was selected from various alternatives, as well as the resulting products of systems engineering tasks such as product and specification trees and flow-down requirements. A review of current risks and planned mitigation are reviewed. Four key PRISM-HOUSE systems are explored: the inflatable Habitat, External Structures & Environmental Protection (ESEP), Human Interior Goods (HIG), and ECLSS & Remote Outfitting (E&RO); for each, the team provides a detailed system description and an overview of analyses performed supporting final design, followed by a review of each Design Evaluation Test (DET) performed and resulting conclusions. The report closes with a suggestion of next steps.

Peter Corwin↗
NASA NTRS2022

Interim Measure Report Revision 0: Un-Numbered Operational Areas PRL 229

This report documents the Interim Measure (IM) completed at Un-Numbered Operational Areas (UNOA) potential release location (PRL) 229, at Kennedy Space Center (KSC), Florida. This document has been prepared for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), in accordance with HydroGeoLogic, Inc.’s (HGL) Contract 80KSC019D0012, Task Order 80KSC019F0224. The purpose of this IM report is to document the field results of the 2022 IM conducted between December 13, 2021, and February 11, 2022, and to present the recommendations based on the IM findings. IM activities were completed at the UNOA PRL 229 to remove railroad ties and benzo(a)pyrene equivalent (BAPE)/total recoverable petroleum hydrocarbons (TRPH)-affected soil in accordance with the IM Work Plan (IMWP) (Jacobs/CORE, 2019a). The objectives of the IM were to mitigate human health risks by reducing site contaminants to the residential soil cleanup target level (SCTL) based on the 95 percent upper confidence limit on the mean. A second objective was to reduce low molecular weight and high molecular weight polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) concentrations below ecological screening values for terrestrial receptors. Prior to excavation operations, railroad ties from all areas were consolidated. In total, 50.67 tons of railroad ties were transported from the site to JED Landfill in St. Cloud, Florida. The cumulative excavation footprint spanned an area of 9,710 square ft. In total, 908.54 tons of soil was transported from the site to JED Landfill. To backfill the excavation area, 880 cubic yards of clean fill was trucked to the site from S&LMaterials, Inc. borrow pit in Christmas, Florida. Following completion of backfill, the site restoration activities included grading the disturbed areas to match the existing elevations and vegetation planting by the site restoration subcontractor. The IM implementation activities were presented to the KSC Remediation Team during its meeting on May 3, 2022. The Remediation Team reached consensus on the completion of the IM reducing the area affected by BAPE/TRPH above the State of Florida residential soil cleanup target levels.

PAHs↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

The Meteoroid Environment Encountered By the James Webb Space Telescope

All spacecraft run the risk of being damaged by meteoroids at a rate proportional to the spacecraft's surface area. The exceptionally large James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) has endured 20 impacts on its primary mirror in its first year of operation. While most of the impacts experienced were commensurate with pre-launch predictions, one particularly large impact in May 2022 prompted the program to take a fresh look at the meteoroid environment in order to determine whether potentially unaccounted-for meteoroid risks can be mitigated. In this talk, we present a directional model of the meteoroid environment encountered by the spacecraft and compare it with the observed impact rate. Because of JWST’s ability to measure nanometer-size changes to the primary mirror surface, our results indicate that meteoroids carrying as little as 1 Joule of kinetic energy can produce measurable effects. We also find that the impact rate is highest when JWST faces in the direction of orbital motion about the Sun. By implementing a "meteoroid avoidance zone" that discourages observations within 75° of the ram direction, we estimate that JWST has reduced the impact rate by more than half.

Althea Moorhead↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Harnessing Artificial Intelligence for Medical Diagnosis and Treatment During Space Exploration Missions

BACKGROUND The medical capabilities necessary for long-duration exploration missions (LDEMs) will differ tremendously from those currently available to crew medical officers (CMOs) on the International Space Station (ISS). Ground support will be more challenging due to distance-related communication delays and data transmission, and resource utilization must be optimized given limited ability for resupply. Clinical decision support systems (CDSSs) can help mitigate these limitations. The recent launch of generative artificial intelligence (AI) tools based upon large language models (LLM) support the creation of a smart assistant for onboard triage, diagnosis, and guided treatment of medical conditions during these missions. The Informing Mission Planning via Analysis of Complex Tradespaces (IMPACT) tool can help predict which clinical problems and outcomes are likely to occur for a design reference mission (DRM) and assist Medical Operations and systems engineering teams in creating a medical system that may optimally mitigate the predicted risks. The purpose of this study was to identify AI tools currently available or in development for the assistive diagnosis and care of medical conditions predicted for an extended duration Lunar mission. METHODS The 119 medical conditions currently built into the IMPACT suite were categorized into systems, and these diagnoses were used as keywords for our literature search. Using PubMed and Google Scholar, we performed a literature survey of AI tools applicable to these conditions. Article inclusion criteria included publication between the years 2017-2023, as the sentinel paper discussing the “selective attention” driving ChatGPT and other generative transformer models was published in June 2017. Where applicable, we reviewed only the top 1000 research articles (based on relevance) for each of the keywords/phrases. AI tools whose training sets were exclusive to a pediatric patient population were excluded. We also excluded any medical diagnostic tools (such as CT, MRI, mass spectrometry) or procedures (such as endoscopy, surgery) that are unlikely to be available during LDEMs due to mass and volume constraints, CMO knowledge, skills, and abilities, and/or inherent procedural risks. RESULTS Our survey highlighted several AI-driven tools for the triage, diagnosis, and management of those medical conditions highlighted by IMPACT. Selected publications for each medical condition were then screened for inclusion within ten systems-based categories including: general diagnostic tools (25), tools to diagnose and manage respiratory (40), dermatologic (34), neurologic (28), auditory and vestibular (30), ophthalmic (34), musculoskeletal (104), infection-associated (92), and gynecologic (19) conditions, as well as tools that could be deployed in the setting of trauma and emergency (34). CONCLUSIONS Numerous AI-driven tools were highlighted within this literature survey, ranging from chatbot assistants that triage knee pain to vision transformer models for diagnosis of ophthalmic conditions using ocular surface images captured with a mobile phone. Remaining challenges include optimizing connectivity and integration of existing and developing systems into the vehicles or habitats. Notably, findings from this survey could help guide the initial design of an all-encompassing, onboard medical AI assistant for use during future LDEMs.

R A Lacinski↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Earth-Independent Medical Operations (EIMO) Concept of Operations

Compared to the current paradigm for crew health in low-Earth orbit and Lunar missions that rely on constant communication with Mission Control, there is an anticipated shift in medical operations for deep-space exploration missions. This shift stems from mission constraints imposed by the considerable distance from Earth, which include resource limitations due to a lack of resupply, mass, power, volume, and data limitations, challenges imposed by communication latency and the inability to evacuate in case of emergencies. To transition towards a more self-reliant medical approach, a comprehensive strategy is essential to progressively enable crew autonomy and mitigate mission success risks in the challenging environment of space. This transformative shift is collectively referred to as "Earth-Independent Medical Operations" (EIMO), signifying the gradual transfer of medical care and decision-making from terrestrial resources to space-based assets. This transition is aimed at bolstering astronaut health and performance while simultaneously reducing the overall risks associated with space missions. The constraints related to EIMO necessitate an integrated development of medical systems, featuring interoperability with mission planning, vehicle design, spacesuit design, and data architecture. This integration is vital in establishing a robust medical infrastructure that not only supports the well-being of astronauts but also ensures the success of the mission as a whole. The Human Research Program (HRP) Exploration Medical Capability (ExMC) Element has developed a model-based Concept of Operations (ConOps) outlining an initial vision for EIMO. Within this ConOps, a comprehensive view is presented, encompassing stakeholder needs, system objectives, and system goals associated with EIMO. Additionally, it provides illustrative examples of the various activities (scenarios) for which the system will be employed during missions. The selection of these activities has been meticulous, aiming to encompass a wide spectrum of medical conditions, including those falling under different risk categories, such as low-likelihood-low-consequence, low-likelihood-high-consequence, and high-likelihood-low-consequence. The selection of these activities (scenarios) effectively encompasses the wide range of medical events situated within an assumed probability-consequence bell curve. In each scenario, at least one of the five main EIMO components identified is captured. Those EIMO components are: Pre-mission Planning, Acute and Emergent Management Decision Making, Prolonged Medical Management Decision Making, Supplies and Resource Management, and Task Load Management. The ConOps was developed by a multidisciplinary team consisting of systems engineers, scientists, and clinicians across NASA and aims to serve as an initial recommendation to gradually and safely enabling crew autonomy for Mars missions and beyond.

Earth Independent Medical Operations↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Introduction of an Agile Systems Engineering Process to the NASA Armstrong Flight Research Center

This paper will provide background on the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate (ARMD) ARMD Test Data Portal (ATDP) effort along with the rationale that motivated the ATDP team to consider implementing an agile systems engineering (SE) process. The primary motivation for using this new SE process was based on the desire to mitigate a major risk to project success. Since the agile SE process had never been used before at the NASA Armstrong Flight Research Center (AFRC), utilizing this new SE process required a trailblazing effort to introduce it to NASA AFRC leadership. As a result, the ATDP team chose to adhere to the agile SE process in addition to the trusted classical waterfall SE process on ATDP. Through successful execution of this hybrid SE process during Phase I, along with demonstrating the value and rigor of the agile SE process, NASA AFRC leadership ultimately permitted the ATDP project to solely use the agile SE process for developments beyond Phase I. While it is the opinion of the authors that the classical SE process is more effective for most projects at NASA AFRC, some projects may deem that the agile SE process is more advantageous. Although this paper is focused on introducing the agile SE process to NASA AFRC, lessons learned will be valuable to other organizations as well. Details of how the ATDP team implemented the agile SE process during Phase I will be summarized, along with how the team met all required classical SE milestones. Lessons learned throughout Phase I of this effort will also be highlighted.

Daniel S. Jones↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Effects of Mild Hypobaric Hypoxia on Response From Mild Exercise in NASA Exploration Atmosphere Tests

INTRODUCTION: The NASA Exploration Atmosphere study aims to validate a new prebreathe protocol incorporating an alternate habitat atmosphere of 56.5 kPa (8.2psia), 34% O 2 , and 66% N 2 to control and mitigate decompression sickness risk associated with spaceflight extravehicular activities. This alternate atmosphere results in a mild hypoxic environment (PIO 2 of 128 mmHg) that may influence inhabitant physiological responses to exercise. Therefore, the responses to light exercise in relation to the mild hypobaric hypoxic environment were investigated. METHODS: Eight participants (4M/4F; age=38.3±9.0 yr; weight=76.0±13.1 kg; peak aerobic capacity [VO 2 pk]= 3.1±0.7 L/min) were exposed to a mild hypobaric hypoxic environment for 11 days in NASA’s 20-foot hypobaric chamber at Johnson Space Center. Participants alternated test days between a habitat atmosphere of 56.5 kPA/34% O 2 and simulated 6-hour EVA environment, 29.6 kPa/85% O 2 . Participants completed pre-mission graded VO 2 pk tests on a LODE cycle ergometer with ParvoMedics metabolic analyzer. Submaximal aerobic tests were performed pre and during the mission (10-minutes of exercise at a workload of 40% VO 2 pk).Pre-mission, performed submaximal exercise exposed to a breathing air mixture of, 18% O 2 and balance N 2 , to simulate the mildly hypoxic environment within the 20-foot chamber. Linear mixed models (fixed effect: test day; random effects: subject, age) were performed to determine whether physiological responses (oxygen uptake [VO 2 ], carbon dioxide production [VCO 2 ], ventilation [VE], oxygen saturation [SPO 2 ], heart rate [HR], respiratory exchange ratio [RER]) to submaximal exercise performed within the 20-foot hypobaric chamber every 2 days differed from the pre-mission (18% O 2 ) testing. Results are presented as estimated marginal means with lower and upper confidence limits, with significance set to 0.05. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: Seven of eight participants completed the chamber study. Mixed models for VO 2 , VCO 2 , SpO 2 , HR, and RER indicated negligible impact of the mild hypoxic chamber environment compared to pre-mission testing (all p>0.05).Results for VE indicated a minor impact of chamber environment compared to pre-mission testing (37.0 L/min [30.8, 43.2]), with increased VE at test day 10 (40.4 L/min [34.2, 46.6]; p= 0.029).The aerobic performance data collected suggests limited physiologic responses to mild exercise when performed at normobaric hypoxia and hypobaric hypoxia.

B Siders↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Impact of Canadian Wildfires on Mid Atlantic’s Region Air Quality: An Analysis Using ASDC Data

Wildfires pose a growing concern in North America due to their harmful impacts on air quality and public health, with increased wildfire activity in recent years leading to widespread smoke plumes that can transcend borders. The exposure of New York City (NYC), the most populous city in North America, to Canadian wildfire smoke highlights the substantial implications for public health and urban environments. To better understand the impact of Canadian wildfires on air quality in NYC, satellite data from the NASA Atmospheric Science Data Center (ASDC) at Langley Research Center, along with ground-based measurements and atmospheric modeling results, are analyzed. We examine concentrations of atmospheric aerosols—particularly PM2.5 particulate matter originating from Canadian wildfires—their dispersion patterns, and the duration and intensity of smoke events impacting NYC. Data from multiple satellites, such as those from the Earth Polychromatic Imaging Camera (EPIC), are synergistically used to identify regions affected by wildfires and estimate aerosol loading. Ground-based measurements, including data from air quality monitoring stations, provide localized information for validation and calibration purposes. The findings of this study contribute to our understanding of the impact of Canadian wildfires on NYC's air quality and emphasize the importance of monitoring and prediction of transboundary smoke events using data synthesized from multiple sources, such as those provided by the ASDC. This information is crucial for policymakers, public health officials, and residents in affected areas to develop effective strategies for mitigating the health risks associated with wildfire smoke and improving air quality during wildfire seasons. The utilization of ASDC data in this research highlights the critical role of atmospheric remote sensing in addressing the challenges posed by wildfires and their consequences on regional scales.

Ingrid Garcia-Solera↗