Albedo的动态

So hyped to work here, hard to put into words

NASA has identified nine U.S. companies to perform a total of 12 concept studies of how commercial services can be applied to enable science missions to Mars. Each awardee will receive between $200,000 and $300,000 to produce a detailed report on potential services — including payload delivery, communications relay, surface imaging, and payload hosting — that could support future missions to the Red Planet. The companies were selected from among those that responded to a Jan. 29 request for proposals from U.S. industry. NASA’s Mars Exploration Program initiated the request for proposals to help establish a new paradigm for missions to Mars with the potential to advance high-priority science objectives. Many of the selected proposals center on adapting existing projects currently focused on the Moon and Earth to Mars-based applications. They include “space tugs” to carry other spacecraft to Mars, spacecraft to host science instruments and cameras, and telecommunications relays. The concepts being sought are intended to support a broad strategy of partnerships between government, industry, and international partners to enable frequent, lower-cost missions to Mars over the next 20 years. “We’re in an exciting new era of space exploration, with rapid growth of commercial interest and capabilities,” said Eric Ianson, director of NASA’s Mars Exploration Program. “Now is the right time for NASA to begin looking at how public-private partnerships could support science at Mars in the coming decades.” #NASA #Mars #Commercial #Industry

Nine companies have been selected to conduct early-stage #studies of concepts for #commercial #services to support lower-cost, higher-frequency missions to #Mars. NASA has identified nine U.S. companies to perform a total of 12 concept #studies of?how #commercial #services?can be applied to enable science missions to Mars. Each awardee will receive between $200,000 and $300,000 to #produce a detailed #report on potential #services — including payload delivery, communications relay, surface imaging, and payload hosting — that could support future missions to the Red Planet. The companies were selected from among those that responded to a Jan. 29 request for proposals from U.S. industry. The concepts being sought are intended to support a broad strategy of partnerships between government, industry, and international partners to enable frequent, lower-cost missions to Mars over the next 20 years. The selected Mars Exploration Commercial Services #studies are divided into four #categories: 1) Small payload delivery and hosting services Lockheed Martin Corporation, Littleton, Colorado — adapt a lunar-exploration spacecraft Impulse Space, Inc., Redondo Beach, California — adapt an Earth-vicinity orbital transfer vehicle (space tug) Firefly Aerospace, Cedar Park, Texas — adapt a lunar-exploration spacecraft 2) Large payload delivery and hosting services United Launch Alliance (ULA) LLC, Centennial, Colorado — modify an Earth-vicinity cryogenic upper stage Blue Origin, LLC, Kent, Washington — adapt an Earth- and lunar-vicinity spacecraft Astrobotic Technology, Inc., Pittsburgh — modify a lunar-exploration spacecraft 3) Mars surface-imaging services Albedo Space Corporation, Broomfield, Colorado — adapt a low Earth orbit imaging satellite Redwire Space, Inc., Littleton, Colorado — modify a low Earth orbit commercial imaging spacecraft Astrobotic Technology, Inc. — modify a lunar exploration spacecraft to include imaging 4) Next-generation relay services SpaceX, Space Exploration Technologies Corporation, Hawthorne, California — adapt Earth-orbit communication satellites for Mars Lockheed Martin Corporation — provide communication relay services via a modified Mars orbiter Blue Origin, LLC — provide communication relay services via an adapted Earth- and lunar-vicinity spacecraft The 12-week studies are planned to conclude in August 2024, and a study summary will be released later in the year. These studies could potentially lead to future requests for proposals but do not constitute a NASA commitment.

According to SpaceNews, NASA has awarded a contract to Rocket Lab to study alternative concepts for Mars Sample Return (MSR), joining several other efforts to improve the cost and schedule of the program. Rocket Lab said two days ago that it received a contract to study what it called “a simplified, end-to-end mission concept” for MSR that would deliver samples being collected by the Perseverance rover to Earth for a “fraction” of currently projected costs, estimated to be as high as $11 billion, and several years earlier than 2040. “Rocket Lab will challenge the program to hit a 2028 launch window to reduce costs while reducing risk associated with Perseverance lifetime, resulting in return of samples no later than Sept. 2033, with the potential for earlier return in Sept. 2031" according to Rocket Lab statement. Other companies (Blue Origin, Space X, Aerojet Rocketdyne) are also working on studies of their own. Those are due to be completed this fall, with NASA using them, along with internal studies and those by JPL and the Applied Physics Lab, to determine how to alter the current MSR architecture to reduce its cost and speed up the return of samples. https://lnkd.in/eGAwGmfk

As someone with experience in lasers primarily within weapons systems, the notion of lasers propelling spacecraft for interstellar missions wasn't something I had considered. However, a recent development from McGill University presents Laser-Thermal Propulsion (LTP) as a potential game-changer in space exploration. 1) Could a laser-thermal propulsion system revolutionize the speed and efficiency of space travel, especially for missions to Mars and beyond? 2) What challenges need to be addressed for the Laser-Thermal Propulsion system to become a reality, and how would it change the landscape of space exploration?

This spring, NASA published a document overviewing almost 200 technology areas requiring further development to meet future exploration, science, and other mission needs – and asked the aerospace community to rate their importance. The goal was to better integrate the community’s most pervasive technical challenges, or shortfalls, to help guide NASA’s space technology development and […] | Click below to read the full article on Sunalei

30 years ago today, the Deep Space Program Science Experiment, dubbed “Clementine'' ignited its Star-37FM solid rocket motor to leave low Earth orbit and embark on a 2.5 phasing loop trajectory to lunar orbit. Our CTO, John Carrico, Owner, CTO at SEE, was in the frozen flight dynamics facility at NASA’s Goddard Spaceflight Center, keeping a watchful eye on the spacecraft’s trajectory. Clementine returned the United States to lunar orbit after a two-decade absence and ignited a new era of lunar exploration. Clementine was developed as a unique Department of Defense program to demonstrate dual-use technology in deep space. The mission went from inception to launch in ~22 months for a total cost of $75M. The Naval Research Laboratory designed, built, and operated the spacecraft, turning to the Flight Dynamics Division at NASA Goddard for support during the critical lunar transfer and orbit insertion phases of the mission. At NASA Goddard, John Carrico, Owner, CTO at SEE was on the team developing Swingby, a trajectory design application tailored for multi-gravitational trajectories. While previously employed for pre-launch analyses on other deep space missions, Clementine was Swingby’s opportunity to support operational trajectory planning and re-design. When a battery anomaly threatened to strand Clementine in LEO, Swingby proved its worth as the flight dynamics team delivered over 50 maneuver plans over a span of 8.5 days, often with as little as 12 hours lead time. Swingby would eventually evolve into the highly capable Astrogator trajectory planning tool included in Ansys STK. The phasing loop lunar transfer pioneered by Clementine would enable subsequent small lunar missions like NASA’s Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer, SpaceIL’s Beresheet, and Astrobotic’s Peregrine lunar lander. Science data returned by Clementine indicated the presence of water ice at the Moon’s South Pole. You can read more about flight dynamics operations for Clementine here [link: https://lnkd.in/eM32a72w]. The NRL has published an excellent overview of the entire mission here: [link: https://lnkd.in/euq3-j-T]. Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory’s original payload overview publication can be found here: [link: https://lnkd.in/ekVSaG4N]. A whitepaper about the history of Astrogator and Swingby can be found here: [link: https://lnkd.in/ee2VXGFx]. Join all of us here at SEE as we celebrate the 30 year anniversary of Clemetine’s journey to the Moon and look forward to the next 30 years of bold, inspiring lunar exploration. ??

"NASA’s Lunar Trailblazer Spacecraft Completes Environmental Testing. NASA’s Lunar Trailblazer spacecraft recently completed the shaking, chilling, baking, and other testing needed to ensure it can survive launch & the harsh conditions of space. Now that environmental testing is done, the spacecraft team at Lockheed Martin Space in Littleton, Colorado, is putting the orbiter & its science instruments through flight system software tests that simulate key aspects of launch, maneuvers, & the science mission while in orbit around the Moon. At the same time, the operations team led by IPAC at Caltech in Pasadena, California, is conducting tests to simulate commanding, communication with?NASA’s Deep Space Network, & navigation. Just 440 pounds (200 kilograms) & 11.5 feet (3.5 meters) wide with its solar panels fully deployed, the small satellite will help scientists determine the abundance, location, & form of water on the Moon, as well as its variation over the course of a lunar day. This data will be key to our understanding of this crucial resource on the Moon for future exploration. The mission’s two science instruments were?integrated with the spacecraft?last year. The High-resolution Volatiles & Minerals Moon Mapper was developed by NASA’s JPL in Southern California, & the Lunar Thermal Mapper is from the University of Oxford & funded by the UKSA. Lunar Trailblazer will launch as a “rideshare,” a secondary payload on the second lunar lander mission by Intuitive Machines, called IM-2, which is part of NASA’s CLPS (Commercial Lunar Payload Services) initiative. Launch preparations are expected to begin in the fourth quarter of 2024 with an extended mission window reaching into January 2025. About a month prior to launch, the Lunar Trailblazer spacecraft will ship from Lockheed Martin to NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. After final checkouts, it will be integrated into the launch vehicle. The project is led by Principal Investigator Bethany Ehlmann of Caltech & managed by JPL, which is also providing systems engineering, navigation, & mission assurance. Caltech manages JPL for the agency. Lunar Trailblazer is part of NASA’s Small Innovative Missions for Planetary Exploration (SIMPLEx) program, which provides opportunities for low-cost, high-risk science missions that are responsive to requirements for flexibility. These lower-cost missions serve as an ideal platform for technical & architecture innovation, contributing to NASA’s science research & technology development objectives. SIMPLEx mission investigations are managed by the Planetary Missions Program Office at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, as part of the Discovery Program at NASA Headquarters in Washington. IPAC leads mission operations, including planning, scheduling, & sequencing all science and spacecraft activities." NASA https://lnkd.in/e-zXjgXt

Great insight on space technology needs from different stakeholders inside and outside of NASA.

Multiphase fluids in space are one of the reasons TRL levels ( https://lnkd.in/dcZRzySJ ) are so important for rockets and propulsion systems. The fluid behavior, extreme temperature swings, and chemical reactions including combustion are all sources of failures in space. These things can not be easily qualified with ground testing or in low gravity simulators ( https://lnkd.in/dW3QRRf4 ). Even simulation often requires correlation data with real operation before the results can be trusted. This difficulty in proving out before use in space makes flight heritage critical and an important differentiator between systems. The other factor is the low design margins or factors of safety ( https://lnkd.in/dtq-KNaz ) in structures due to high launch costs. For rockets, the required combinations of stresses and loads that occur often can not be tested on the ground or accurately simulated. Fortunately, the bar for electronics is a lot lower. Solid state electronics behaves the same regardless of gravity or mechanical loading. The radiation and plasma environment in space can be reasonably well tested on the ground if needed. ( https://lnkd.in/dXGwgHu4 ) As a development program space development program focuses on one area or another, the budgets and risks scale with the dominant engineering system. Rockets will continue to be much, much harder than electronics. #space #deeptech #spacetech