What's new

US Space Program - a thread


NASA's Curiosity Mars rover will soon race over the surface of the Red Planet more quickly thanks to a new upgrade.


The software update aboard the Curiosity rover, completed on April 7, brings around 180 improvements to the robot, the most significant of which are boosted driving capabilities that will also reduce the wear and tear on Curiosity's wheels.

Curiosity, which has been exploring Gale Crater on Mars since August 2012, went into hibernation between April 3 and April 7 to receive the upgrade. The software boost will assist Curiosity in its mission to search for traces of extinct microbial life in this ancient dry Martian lake bed, NASA officials wrote.

Curiosity-vs-Perseverance-thumbnail.jpg

Curiosity now 'thinks on its feet' like Perseverance​

Curiosity's fellow Mars rover, the car-sized Perseverance, landed on Mars in 2021 and can "think on the move." This capability allows Perseverance to navigate around rocks, sand traps, and other obstacles in its stomping ground, which is another dry Martian lake bed dubbed Jezero Crater.

Perseverance navigates by constantly snapping pictures of the terrain ahead, and then processing them with a dedicated computer that allows autonomous navigation during one continuous drive.

Curiosity can't do this because as an older rover, it lacks a dedicated onboard computer. Instead, Curiosity navigates by breaking its route down into segments and halting to process imagery of the terrain following the completion of each segment. This process requires starting and stopping many times over the course of a long drive.



While the new software update can't allow Curiosity to embark on a smooth, non-stop drive like Perseverance, it will help the older rover process terrain images more quickly.

"This won't let Curiosity drive as quickly as Perseverance, but instead of stopping for a full minute after a drive segment, we're stopping for just a moment or two,” Curiosity's engineering operations team chief, Jonathan Denison, said in the same statement.

"Spending less time idling between drive segments also means we use less energy each day. And even though we’re almost 11 years old, we’re still implementing new ideas to use more of our available energy for science activities."
 
Last edited:

NASA squeezed oxygen from mock moon dust. It could help astronauts breathe easy one day.​

A recent test from researchers at NASA's Johnson Space Center (JSC) has successfully produced oxygen using simulated lunar soil in a vacuum.


The test involved melting down moon dust in a special reactor that can reach very high temperatures. When the simulated moon soil was heated, the team detected carbon monoxide being released from it, from which oxygen can then be separated.

The capability to produce oxygen directly on the moon would be crucial to support the space agency's plans for a long-term lunar outpost as part of the Artemis program. As part of these moon plans, NASA aims to harvest and use on-location resources, called in-situ resource utilization (ISRU), to sustain missions indefinitely on the moon's surface.

JSC senior engineer Aaron Paz praised the success in a recent NASA statement(opens in new tab). "This technology has the potential to produce several times its own weight in oxygen per year on the lunar surface, which will enable a sustained human presence and lunar economy," Paz said.

The test was conducted by NASA's Carbothermal Reduction Demonstration (CaRD) team, using JSC's Dirty Thermal Vacuum Chamber to simulate lunar conditions — "dirty" because moon dust gets everywhere. Within the 15-foot-wide (4.6-meter) spherical vacuum chamber, a high-powered laser was used to simulate concentrated sunlight to melt the simulated regolith, or powdery moon dust, in a process known as carbothermal reduction.


This has been done before, but not in a vacuum. Thanks to a new carbothermal reactor developed for NASA by Sierra Space, researchers were able to maintain a constant pressure within the reactor to prevent gases from escaping, while simultaneously allowing spent regolith material to pass in and out of the reaction area during the vacuum chamber test. Using the Mass Spectrometer Observing Lunar Operations (MSolo) during the melting process, the CaRD team was able to detect carbon monoxide emitted from the laser-blasted regolith.

"Our team proved the CaRD reactor would survive the lunar surface and successfully extract oxygen," said Anastasia Ford, NASA engineer and CaRD test director at JSC. The successful test certifies the technology at a level six on NASA's technical readiness standards(opens in new tab) scale, which means the technology is ready for an actual in space and is on track for use during NASA's Artemis missions.

Artemis 3 will send the astronauts in over 50 years to the surface of the moon, and for missions beyond that, the space agency is planning to use long-term lunar habitation as a stepping stone to sending humans to Mars. The successful extraction of oxygen from lunar regolith has many applications, including the production of breathable oxygen and even rocket fuel.
 

Rollout Solar Array deployed during spacewalk outside space station​



Redwire Corporation is an American aerospace manufacturer and space infrastructure technology company headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida.
 

AeroVironment Awarded $10 Million Contract by NASA/JPL to Co-Design and Develop Two Helicopters for Mars Sample Return Mission​




The success of Ingenuity Mars helicopter, co-designed and co-developed by AeroVironment and NASA/JPL, lays the foundation for the development of the Sample Recovery Helicopters

ARLINGTON, Va., May 02, 2023--(BUSINESS WIRE)--AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ: AVAV) has been awarded a $10 million contract by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) to co-design and co-develop conceptual designs and engineering development units of Mars Sample Recovery Helicopter flight systems. Future efforts could include detailed design, build, and test of qualification and flight hardware. The helicopters build upon the Ingenuity Mars Helicopter design heritage and feature upgraded robotics to supplement aerial mobility.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230502005539/en/

2bdafcff4f3d29fa8686d9524f834795


AeroVironment engineers from the MacCready Works team previously worked with NASA JPL to co-design and develop the Ingenuity Mars Helicopter, which has completed 52 successful flights to date on Mars and survived 781 sols on the surface, far outperforming its design objectives.

"Accomplishing the impossible has been AeroVironment’s mission for more than 50 years and we are excited to be working with the NASA JPL team again to conquer the next challenge," said Scott Newbern, AeroVironment’s vice president and chief technology officer. "Ingenuity’s flights on Mars are a giant leap for robotic technology. Now we’re advancing this science further by helping to build helicopters that not only will continue flight on Mars, but also will include apparatus to collect samples to bring back to Earth for this historic mission."

The two planned Sample Recovery Helicopters would be a secondary method of sample retrieval for the NASA/ESA Mars Sample Return Campaign. NASA’s Perseverance rover, which has already been collecting a diverse set of scientifically selected samples for potential safe return to Earth, is currently planned as the primary method of delivering samples to the Sample Retrieval Lander.

The Sample Recovery Helicopters would expand on Ingenuity's design, adding wheels and gripping capabilities, to provide a secondary method to pick up cached sample tubes left on the surface by Perseverance and transport them to the Sample Retrieval Lander. Once the sample cache is launched off the red planet, another spacecraft would capture it in Mars orbit, and then bring it back to Earth safely and securely in the early to mid-2030s. After the samples are on Earth, scientists around the world would examine them using sophisticated instruments too large and complex to send to Mars. The samples would remain available for future generations to study with increasingly advanced technologies. Scientists believe the samples could shed light on whether life has ever existed on Mars.

More About Ingenuity

The Ingenuity Mars Helicopter was built by JPL, which also manages the project for NASA Headquarters. It is supported by NASA’s Science Mission Directorate. NASA’s Ames Research Center in California’s Silicon Valley and NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia, provided significant flight performance analysis and technical assistance during Ingenuity’s development. AeroVironment, Inc. co-developed, co-designed, and built the airframe and major subsystems.

ABOUT AEROVIRONMENT, INC.

AeroVironment (NASDAQ: AVAV) provides technology solutions at the intersection of robotics, sensors, software analytics and connectivity that deliver more actionable intelligence so you can proceed with certainty. Headquartered in Virginia, AeroVironment is a global leader in intelligent, multi-domain robotic systems and serves defense, government and commercial customers. For more information, visit www.avinc.com.
 

NASA Selects Geology Team for the First Crewed Artemis Lunar Landing​

geologist.png

Artist’s Illustration: Two suited crew members work on the lunar surface. One in the foreground lifts a rock to examine it while the other photographs the collection site in the background.
Credits: NASA


NASA has selected the geology team that will develop the surface science plan for the first crewed lunar landing mission in more than 50 years. NASA’s Artemis III mission will land astronauts, including the first woman to land on the Moon, near the lunar South Pole to advance scientific discovery and pave the way for long-term lunar exploration.

“Science is one of the pillars of Artemis,” said Dr. Nicky Fox, NASA Science Associate Administrator. “This team will be responsible for leading the geology planning for humanity’s first return to the lunar surface in more than 50 years, ensuring that we maximize the science return of Artemis and grow in our understanding of our nearest celestial neighbor.”

The Artemis III Geology Team, led by principal investigator Dr. Brett Denevi of the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel, Maryland, will work with the agency to determine the mission’s geological science objectives and design the geology surface campaign that the Artemis astronauts will carry out on the Moon during this historic mission. These objectives will be defined in accordance with the established Artemis science priorities.

“Selecting this team marks an important step in our efforts to optimize the science return of Artemis III. This team of well-respected lunar scientists has demonstrated experience with science operations, sample analysis, and operational flexibility, all of which is critical for the successful incorporation of science during Artemis III,” said Dr. Joel Kearns, deputy associate administrator for exploration in NASA’s Science Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington. “With the establishment of the Artemis III Geology Team, we are ensuring that NASA will build a strong lunar science program.”

The other co-investigators on the Artemis III Geology Team are:

  • Dr. Lauren Edgar (deputy principal investigator), U.S. Geological Survey in Reston, Virginia
  • Dr. Bradley Jolliff, Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri
  • Dr. Caleb Fassett, Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel, Maryland
  • Dr. Dana Hurley, Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel, Maryland
  • Dr. Gordon Osinski, University of Western Ontario in London
  • Dr. Jennifer Heldmann, NASA’s Ames Research Center in Silicon Valley, California
  • Dr. Jose Hurtado, University of Texas at El Paso
  • Dr. Juliane Gross, Rutgers University in New Brunswick, New Jersey
  • Dr. Katherine Joy, University of Manchester in the United Kingdom
  • Dr. Mark Robinson, Arizona State University in Tempe
  • Dr. Yang Liu, NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California

The Geology Team’s focus will be to plan the Artemis III astronauts’ science activities during their moonwalks, which will include field geology traverses, observations, and the collection of lunar samples, imagery, and scientific measurements. The team will also support the real-time documentation and initial assessment of scientific data during astronaut lunar operations. Members will then evaluate the data returned by the mission, including preliminary examination and cataloguing of the first lunar samples collected by NASA since 1972.

"The Artemis III Geology Team will have the unique opportunity to analyze the first-ever samples from the lunar south pole region, helping us not only to unlock new information about the formation of our Solar System, but also with planning for future Artemis missions and establishing a long-term lunar presence,” said Jim Free, Associate Administrator for NASA’s Exploration Systems Mission Directorate.

The collection of samples and data from this region, which contains some of the oldest parts of the Moon, estimated to be at least 3.85 billion years old, will help scientists better understand fundamental planetary processes that operate across the solar system and beyond. The resulting analysis from the geology team’s activities could also help yield important information about the depth, distribution, and composition of ice at the Moon’s South Pole. This information is valuable from both a scientific and a resource perspective because oxygen and hydrogen can be extracted from lunar ice to be used for life support systems and fuel.

The team, which was chosen through a dual-anonymous peer review process, will have a budget of $5.1 million to lead the geology for Artemis III.

The members of this geology team are part of the broader Artemis Science Team and will work in coordination with Artemis III Project Scientist, Dr. Noah Petro, and the NASA Artemis Internal Science Team, as well as participating scientists, and deployed payload teams that will be selected from future or ongoing competitive solicitations.

Through Artemis, NASA will land the first woman and first person of color on the Moon, establishing a long-term, sustainable lunar presence to explore more of the lunar surface than ever before and prepare for future astronaut missions to Mars.
 

US Astronaut Breaks NASA Record For Longest Single Spaceflight​


The astronaut Frank Rubio broke the record for the longest in orbit mission by an American, spending more than 355 days aboard the International Space Station.

"In some ways, it's been an incredible challenge. But in other ways, it's been an incredible blessing," Rubio said Wednesday from the ISS during a chat with NASA that was broadcast live.

Having broken the old record Monday, Rubio said he was now looking forward to reaching 365 days. "I think that'll be a really good milestone for our nation to achieve," said Rubio, who is a doctor by training and a helicopter pilot.

The previous US record was set in 2022 by Mark Vande, who spent 355 days in space. The world record is held by Russian cosmonaut Valeri Polyakov at 437 days.

Rubio is scheduled to return to Earth on September 27; at that point he will have spent 371 days in space.

When Rubio traveled to the ISS last year on a Russian Soyuz rocket with two cosmonauts, the plan was for him to stay six months, which is the usual mission length.

As per normal procedure that rocket stayed hooked up to the ISS as an emergency escape vessel if necessary, and was supposed to bring those three travelers home in December. But it suffered a leak, probably due to impact from a tiny meteorite.

So the Russian space agency Roscosmos brought that rocket home and sent up another with no crew aboard.

Rubio and his two colleagues carried out the mission of the crew that was initially due to travel to the ISS on the second rocket and replace them.

Rubio, who is Latino, has seen crews come and go while up in space – a total of 28 people of various nationalities.


"If I do the math right, that's almost five percent of the humans that have ever been to space, which is pretty incredible," Rubio said Wednesday.


He described living and doing experiments in low Earth orbit.


"Once you're up here for a little bit, you really get focused on the work and sometimes you forget to appreciate the fact that you are floating around and that you have this amazing view down below you," Rubio said.

He said the quarters are somewhat cramped, likening them to a five-bedroom house.

"And so, psychologically for a year, that was a little bit of a challenge," Rubio said.

The US record for most days in space over a lifetime is held by former astronaut Peggy Whitson, with 675 days during several missions.
 

NASA hopes humanoid robots can help us explore the moon and Mars​


a white and black humanoid robot lifts a small cardboard box.

Apptronik's Apollo robot demonstrating modular manual dexterity using a logistics exercise. (Image credit: Apptronik, Inc.)
NASA has teamed up with a small robotics firm in Texas to continue the space agency's decades of work developing humanoid robots. Soon, such robots may be sent to orbit, or even other planets, to help astronauts with their work.


Texas-based Apptronik, Inc. has long collaborated with NASA under the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) contracts program to hone the capabilities of Apollo, a humanoid robot that the company is developing to handle terrestrial tasks like logistics, manufacturing, and home healthcare assistance. NASA, meanwhile, has taken a keen interest in adapting Apollo (and robots like it) to become assistants for astronauts living and working in orbit, as well as on the moon and even Mars.

They might even one day function as remote-controlled "avatars" on other worlds for Earth-based human operators to pilot.

Apptronik has put special emphasis on the modularity of Apollo's design, specifically its adaptability for logistics tasks. Standing at 5'8" tall and weighing 160 pounds (73 kilograms), Apptronik says on its website that Apollo will have a run time of about four hours per battery pack and a payload capacity of 55 pounds (25 kg). As such, even though its main market right now is more Earth-bound customers, namely retail operations, warehousing and manufacturing, NASA's interest shouldn't be a surprise.


Apollo's promised flexibility would mean that it should have some degree of reprogrammability and physical customization. It already features varying dexterity levels, autonomous functions and different tools it can be equipped with, but more functionality will likely evolve as development progresses.

To that end, NASA has been lending its own decades of expertise in robotics to help the development of Apollo in areas like robotic mobility and software design principles for safe human-robot interactions.

"By applying NASA's expertise in human-safe mobile robots to commercial projects, together we are able to spur innovation in this important field," Shaun Azimi, head of the dexterous robotics team at NASA's Johnson Space Center, said in a NASA statement. "We are proud to see our efforts result in robotics technology that will benefit the American economy and assist humans in working safely and productively here on Earth and potentially in space exploration as well."

v2gmVQtxxiKC3xvKYQ9ot3.jpg

NASA's R5 humanoid robot, also known as Valkyrie, was an entry into DARPA's Robotics Challenge Trials in 2013 but has grown in scope since. (Image credit: NASA)
It's not hard to see how unloading a lunar lander with a robot rather than a human would be a much safer and efficient operation for any crewed landings on the moon or Mars. And, given the unforgiving environment on both worlds, robots will almost certainly have to be an integral part of either mission if it is going to succeed long term.

Robots in the form of special-purpose landers, rovers and even an aerial drone are already operating on other worlds, but general-purpose robots are a whole other matter entirely. Such robots would be able to tackle tedious or perilous tasks on the lunar or Martian surface far more easily and safely than a human could, and in principle should be able to be reprogrammed as needed to carry out a new task whenever it was required — even those its designers hadn't conceived of when they built it.

Having such robots at human explorers' disposal would allow astronauts and Earth-based operations to emphasize scientific pursuits and other more important assignments than things like constructing a shelter or digging up rock samples.

Additionally, these robots could assist in operating and maintaining mining and manufacturing facilities on other worlds that could process native resources in situ, an arrangement that would dramatically reduce the cost of maintaining these missions for NASA. After all, it'd be far cheaper and practical to build a human habitat out of concrete made from lunar regolith than it would be to ship one all the way from Earth.

So, incorporating robots into future missions of NASA's Artemis program might prove critical to creating a sustainable human presence on the moon and, one day, Mars. Naturally, then, it's no surprise that NASA has so many robotic irons in the fire.

Similar to Apptronik's Apollo robot, NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory is running the CoSTAR project, an initiative that focuses on tailoring commercially available robots to autonomously navigate the moon and Mars's subsurface terrains.

We also can't forget NASA's Dragonfly mission, which is due to launch in 2027 and will land an autonomous rotorcraft on Saturn's largest moon, Titan, in 2034. This robot will fly over the Titanian landscape farther and faster than any land-bound rover could ever do, and the rotorcraft's development is a major undertaking for the agency with some very high stakes.

And while NASA's current humanoid robot, Valkyrie, could be capable of the kind of astronaut assistance envisioned for Apptronik's Apollo, adapting in-development or already existing commercial robots for space operations is too promising a direction for the agency to ignore.

NASA's Commercial Crew Program does something similar when it contracts out private vehicles (like SpaceX's Crew Dragon) for spaceflights rather than building its own bespoke rockets and capsules, and the program has been instrumental in revitalizing America's space industry over the last several years while saving NASA tens of billions of dollars. It would make sense to apply the same strategy for space robots, especially given the level of maturity in the private robotics industry, advocates say.

It's not all to the benefit of just NASA, however. Just as the Apollo program in the 1960s and 1970s was one of the principal drivers of semiconductor development in the United States, NASA's collaboration and funding of advanced robotics development will almost certainly benefit the economy at large in unpredictable ways. But it's almost a guarantee that the technology created for NASA's upcoming missions will eventually be turned to serving the needs of consumers and other segments of society, like university researchers and non-governmental organizations' operations.

Just as Silicon Valley's integrated circuits moved from the Apollo Guidance Computer into personal computers in people's homes in just a decade, development of advanced robotics for space will have far-reaching impacts on autonomous vehicles, manufacturing and much more, and their impact will be more acutely felt by society as a whole.

Even if truly functional humanoid space robots are many years away at the earliest (if they ever do come about), the investments that NASA is making now should speed up the deployment of more practical robotics here on Earth, which is almost as good, really, and a lot more practical.
 

Pakistan Affairs Latest Posts

Back
Top Bottom