The overall spectrum of astronomical research possibilities utilizing manned earth-orbital spacecraft.
Astronomical research possibilities, using manned Earth orbital spacecraft
SPACECRAFT INSTRUMENTATION↗
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Results for “EARTH ORBIT”
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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Earth-orbiting space-base crew skills assessment
Earth orbiting space base crew organizational assessment in skills, schedules, distribution, and compartmentation
Gundersen, R. T.↗
Analytical investigation of the dynamics of tethered constellations in earth orbit
This Quarterly Report on Tethering in Earth Orbit deals with three topics: (1) Investigation of the propagation of longitudinal and transverse waves along the upper tether. Specifically, the upper tether is modeled as three massive platforms connected by two perfectly elastic continua (tether segments). The tether attachment point to the station is assumed to vibrate both longitudinally and transversely at a given frequency. Longitudinal and transverse waves propagate along the tethers affecting the acceleration levels at the elevator and at the upper platform. The displacement and acceleration frequency-response functions at the elevator and at the upper platform are computed for both longitudinal and transverse waves. An analysis to optimize the damping time of the longitudinal dampers is also carried out in order to select optimal parameters. The analytical evaluation of the performance of tuned vs. detuned longitudinal dampers is also part of this analysis. (2) The use of the Shuttle primary Reaction Control System (RCS) thrusters for blowing away a recoiling broken tether is discussed. A microcomputer system was set up to support this operation. (3) Most of the effort in the tether plasma physics study was devoted to software development. A particle simulation code has been integrated into the Macintosh II computer system and will be utilized for studying the physics of hollow cathodes.
Lorenzini, Enrico C.↗
Motion requirements for antennas in geostationary earth orbit
Design dependencies of antennas in geostationary earth orbits are evaluated, and the tradeoffs between the optical geoscientific goals and achievable architecture capabilities are surveyed. The radial and tangential resolutions are investigated to ascertain whether mission objectives of the antennas may be satisfied. The effects of off-nadir scanning are examined to determine the limits of scan based on realizable resolution. Formulas for raster and spiral scanning time are reviewed and examined to find necessary accelerations. The resulting knowledge is used to evaluate two possible layouts. Torques necessary for slewing these configurations are calculated. A number of rotatory actuators are reviewed to evaluate future design goals for on-board momentum compensation.
Tentor, Lawrence B.↗
Modeling ESD Events in Low Earth Orbit Satellites
Over the last two years several satellites in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) and geosynchronous orbit (GEO) have experienced serious or catastrophic failures.
Low Earth Orbit↗
Identifying and Closing Medical Capability Gaps for Human Spaceflight Missions Beyond Low Earth Orbit
BACKGROUND: Features of human space missions beyond low Earth orbit such as increasing distance from Earth, lack of real-time communication, and limited or no evacuation or resupply capability are expected to drive an increase in medical risk and require crews to operate in an increasingly autonomous fashion. A diverse set of stakeholders at NASA are seeking to fund the development of concepts of operations, medical requirements, and medical capabilities for such missions. However, a systematic approach to identification of current medical capability gaps and a strategic framework to gap closure is needed. OVERVIEW: The Exploration Medical Integrated Product Team (XMIPT) has developed a list of nine high-level medical capability gaps and associated activities required for gap closure. The list was derived based on inputs from subject matter experts at NASA including flight surgeons, other clinical providers, as well as operational and research communities regarding medical capabilities required to support human missions to the Moon and the Mars surface. Responses were reviewed and distilled to identify common themes across capabilities. To ensure alignment with established human system risks, the gap list was further refined based on inputs from NASA’s Human System Risk Board. Relevant medical gap closure activities outside of those funded by the XMIPT were identified through solicitation of inputs from Elements of NASA’s Human Research Program (particularly Exploration Medical Capability), the broader medical operations community, and other stakeholders. This medical capability gap list is reviewed and updated regularly as new information becomes available or new stakeholders are identified. DISCUSSION: The medical capability gap list has matured to include a large group of NASA stakeholders and development activities. This has enabled articulation of priorities to funding entities and programmatic stakeholders, while serving as an accessible resource summarizing gap closure activities, relevant programmatic infusion points, and opportunities for collaboration between stakeholders. This presentation will provide an overview of the nine NASA medical capability gaps and their associated gap closure activities.
Moriah Thompson↗
Large manned systems/environment interactions in Low Earth Orbit (LEO)
With the advent of the NASA Space Transportation System, regular flights of a large manned spacecraft, the Space Shuttle Orbiter, became a reality. From the earliest mission containing space science instruments as a payload on the third flight of the Orbiter (STS-3), it became apparent that the disturbance caused by the interaction of this orbiting system with the low Earth orbit (LEO) environment resulted in adverse conditions for the performance of scientific observations of the Orbiter natural environment and for certain high sensitivity optical observations. The interaction of the Space Shuttle Orbiter system can be divided into two parts, the structure-environment interaction, and the outgas cloud-environment interaction. These interaction are briefly discussed.
Raitt, W. J.↗
Light Curve Observations of Upper Stages in the Low Earth Orbit Environment
Active debris removal (ADR) is a potential means to remediate the orbital debris environment in low Earth orbit (LEO). Massive intact objects, including spent upper stages and retired payloads, with high collision probabilities have been suggested as potential targets for ADR. The challenges to remove such objects on a routine basis are truly monumental. A key piece of information needed for any ADR operations is the tumble motion of the targets. Rapid tumble motion (in excess of one degree per second) of a multiple-ton intact object could be a major problem for proximity and docking operations. Therefore, there is a need to characterize the general tumble motion of the potential ADR targets for future ADR planning. The NASA Orbital Debris Program Office has initiated an effort to identify the global tumble behavior of potential ADR targets in LEO. The activities include optical light curve observations, imaging radar data collection, and laboratory light curve simulations and modeling. This paper provides a preliminary summary of light curve data of more than 100 upper stages collected by two telescope facilities in Colorado and New Mexico between 2011 and 2012. Analyses of the data and implications for the tumble motions of the objects are also discussed in the paper.
Liou, J.-C.↗
Investigation of Teflon FEP embrittlement on spacecraft in low earth orbit
Teflon(TM) fluorinated ethylene-propylene (FEP) is used on the exterior of spacecraft surfaces in the low earth orbit environment for thermal control. Silverized or aluminized Teflon(TM) FEP used in the Long Duration Exposure Facility (LDEF) and the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) provided evidence of the low earth orbit environments. Samples from the LDEF and HST were evaluated for solar induced embrittlement and for synergistic effects of solar degradation and atomic oxygen.
deGroh, Kim K.↗
Structures technology project summary: Earth orbiting platforms program area of the space platforms technology program
Viewgraphs are presented on the structures technology for the Earth orbiting platforms program. The objective of the work is to develop component and system level structural concepts and design methods to enable in-space construction and deployment of large platform structures in low earth orbit (LEO) and geosynchronous orbit (GEO) including primary platform structures, reflectors and antenna, and habitat and storage modules.
Bush, Harold↗
Earth Orbit Raise Design for the Artemis Mission
The Artemis mission is an extension of the Themis mission. The Themis mission1 consisted of five identical spacecraft in varying sized Earth orbits designed to make simultaneous measurements of the Earth's electric and magnetic environment. Themis was designed to observe geomagnetic storms resulting from solar wind's interaction with the Earth's magnetosphere. Themis was meant to answer the age old question of why the Earth's aurora can change rapidly on a global scale. The Themis spacecraft are spin stabilized with 20 meter long electric field booms as well as several shorter magnetometer booms. The goal of the Artemis2 mission extension is to deliver the field and particle measuring capabilities of two of the Themis spacecraft to the vicinity of the Moon. The Artemis mission required transferring two Earth orbiting Themis spacecraft on to two different low energy trans-lunar trajectories ultimately ending in lunar orbit. This paper describes the processes that resulted in successful orbit raise designs for both spacecraft.
spin stablized↗
Low-earth-orbit Satellite Internet Protocol Communications Concept and Design
This report presents a design concept for a low-Earth-orbit end-to-end Internet-Protocol- (IP-) based mission. The goal is to maintain an up-to-date communications infrastructure that makes communications seamless with the protocols used in terrestrial computing. It is based on the premise that the use of IPs will permit greater interoperability while also reducing costs and providing users the ability to retrieve data directly from the satellite. However, implementing an IP-based solution also has a number of challenges, since wireless communications have different characteristics than wired communications. This report outlines the design of a low-Earth-orbit end-to-end IP-based mission; the ideas and concepts of Space Internet architectures and networks are beyond the scope of this document. The findings of this report show that an IP-based mission is plausible and would provide benefits to the user community, but the outstanding issues must be resolved before a design can be implemented.
Slywezak, Richard A.↗
Development of large earth orbital space station
This paper outlines the major aspects of the development of large earth orbital space stations. At the outset, the uses of the space station are surveyed and the major systems and configurational drivers enumerated. A representative 12-man space station, studied by the Space Division of North American Rockwell Corporation under NASA contract is described. The subsequent discussion centers around earth-to-orbit logistics and possible future missions with emphasis on the establishment of a branch station geosynchronous orbit. In dealing with the associated transportation between low and high orbits, the concept of a geospace shuttle station oscillating between near-earth and synchronous orbit is compared with conventional shuttle vehicles with chemical and nuclear propulsion. In the final part, the evolution of the 12-man space station to a larger space base is described.
Ehricke, K. A.↗
Visible and Ultraviolet Detectors for High Earth Orbit and Lunar Observatories
The current status of detectors for the visible and UV for future large observatories in earth orbit and the moon is briefly reviewed. For the visible, CCDs have the highest quantum efficiency, but are subject to contamination of the data by cosmic ray hits. For the moon, the level of hits can be brought down to that at the earth's surface by shielding below about 20 meters of rock. For high earth orbits above the geomagnetic shield, CCDs might be able to be used by combining many short exposures and vetoing the cosmic ray hits, otherwise photoemissive detectors will be necessary. For the UV, photoemissive detectors will be necessary to reject the visible; to use CCDs would require the development of UV-efficient filters which reject the visible by many orders of magnitude. Development of higher count rate capability would be desirable for photoemissive detectors.
Woodgate, Bruce E.↗
SIRTF in high earth orbit
The goals, requirements and operation of the Space Infrared Telescope Facility (SIRTF) are discussed. Emphasis is upon an analysis of the options of high and low earth orbits for the mission. The consensus was that the high earth orbit offers significant scientific and engineering advantages for SIRTF.
Werner, Michael W.↗
Low earth orbital atomic oxygen simulation for materials durability evaluation
The erosion yields of numerous materials have been evaluated in low earth orbital space tests. There appears to be three classes of materials: materials of high erosion yield which include most of the hydrocarbon organic materials; materials which either do not react with atomic oxygen or form self-protecting oxides which allow the underlying material to appear durable to atomic oxygen, and materials with low but nonnegligeable erosion yields, such as fluoropolymers. A NASA atomic oxygen effects test program has been established to utilize collective data from a multitude of simulation facilities to promote an understanding of mechanism and erosion yield dependencies. Atomic oxygen protective coatings for Kapton polymide solar array blankets, fiberglass-epoxy composite mast structures, and solar dynamic power system concentrator surfaces have been identified and evaluated under atomic oxygen exposure in RF plasma asher laboratory tests. The control of defect density in protective coatings appears to be the key to the assurance of long-term protection of oxidizable materials in low earth orbit.
Banks, Bruce A.↗
Analog computer study of temperature gradients of a solar collector in ecliptic earth orbit
Temperature gradients for analyzing surface distortions of magnesium solar collector in ecliptic earth orbit determined by analog computer simulation
EARTH ORBIT↗
Acquisition/expulsion system for earth orbital propulsion system study. Volume 5: Earth storable design
A comprehensive analysis and parametric design effort was conducted under the earth-storable phase of the program. Passive Acquisition/expulsion system concepts were evaluated for a reusable Orbital Maneuvering System (OMS) application. The passive surface tension technique for providing gas free liquid on demand was superior to other propellant acquisition methods. Systems using fine mesh screens can provide the requisite stability and satisfy OMS mission requirements. Both fine mesh screen liner and trap systems were given detailed consideration in the parametric design, and trap systems were selected for this particular application. These systems are compatible with the 100- to 500-manned mission reuse requirements.
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