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Abstract

Guide

2

WELCOME

Welcome to the 8
th
International Planetary Probe Workshop, and to historic Portsmouth, Virginia,
USA. This years event is resuming an annual schedule, after a remarkable workshop in
Barcelona last year. We have a full roster of participants, a varied program, and we are excited
about the possibilities for collaboration. This years theme is technology development, as
reflected in our Short Course and many of the oral and poster presentations. Our community has
been very busy over the past year; all of our work has generated an outstanding set of
presentations and posters that you will encounter in the next four and a half days.

We are pleased to welcome an international group of scientists, technologists, engineers,
mission designers, and policy makers to IPPW-8. Our committees have worked very hard in
organizing the logistics for the workshop, planning the program, soliciting and evaluating
nominees for the Al Seiff Award, and coordinating opportunities for student participation. We are
delighted to host the meeting in the maritime city of Portsmouth, near the NASA-Langley
Research Center. We recommend that all participants enjoy several vantage points throughout the
week, and we hope you will take advantage of the exciting cultural and culinary experiences that
await you here.

We encourage you to attend as many oral and poster sessions as possible, in order to benefit from
the world-wide planetary probe mission experts who are attending IPPW-8. We have scheduled a
relaxing poster session on Tuesday evening. To better associate the submitted posters with their
sessions, we will also have posters available in conjunction with each session. In keeping with
agendas at previous IPPWs, we have scheduled parallel oral sessions only on Thursday. Our
conveners will coordinate their timing so it will be possible to move back and forth between the
parallel sessions in the morning and afternoon. Of interest to our student and early career
attendees is a professional development session, also scheduled for Thursday.

Since IPPW-8 is indeed a workshop, we also urge you to take advantage of the numerous
opportunities during coffee breaks, lunches and social activities to build collaborative
partnerships with other workshop participants. If you are joining us on the Wednesday afternoon
tour of NASA-Langley, you will have the opportunity to see some unique, world-class facilities.
In addition, the IPPW-8 sponsors have funded a significant number of students who would be
interested in meeting the working planetary probe participants to gain a better understanding of
how to build a future career in this exciting field. We are very encouraged to have a sizeable
student population with us!

On Friday, 10 June, there will be a presentation on the plans for IPPW-9 in 2012, in Europe. We
encourage you to attend this talk to learn about your next opportunity to join our community. In
this time of transition for many of our Agencies, it is all the more valuable for us to reconnect
with our colleagues and celebrate our strong planetary probe foundations--please enjoy.

Lets make it a great week!

Bernie Bienstock
NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory
IPPW-8 International Organizing Committee
US Co-Chair

Michelle Munk
NASA-Langley Research Center
IPPW-8 Local Organizing Committee Chair

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

IPPW-8 Sponsors

Supporting Organizations

MicroelectronicsResearchand
CommunicationsInstitute
CollegeofEngineering
Dept.ofElectricalandComputer
Engineering
Dept.ofMechanicalEngineering
DepartmentofPhysics
NASAIdahoSpaceGrantConsortium
Univ.ofIdahoOfficeofResearchand
EconomicDevelopment
AblativesLaboratory

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IPPW-8 COMMITTEE MEMBERS

International Organizing Committee

Bernie Bienstock CHAIR
NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, USA
Ed Chester CO-CHAIR
Aevo GmbH, Germany

Mark Adler
NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, USA

Michael Amato
NASA Goddard Space Flight Center,
USA

Marla Arcadi
ERC/NASA Ames Research Center, USA

James Arnold
NASA Ames Research Center, USA

David Atkinson
University of Idaho, USA

Tibor Balint
NASA Headquarters, USA

Eric Blood
NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, USA

Jean-Marc Bouilly
Astrium Space Transportation, France


Robert Braun
NASA Headquarters, USA

Neil Cheatwood
NASA Langley Research Center, USA

Athena Coustenis
Observatorie de Paris, France

Jody Davis
NASA Langley Research Center, USA

Karl Edquist
NASA Langley Research Center, USA

Kristin Gates-Medlock
Global Aerospace Corporation, USA

Rodrigo Haya Ramos
Deimos Space, Spain

Jean-Pierre Lebreton
ESA/ESTEC

Michelle Munk
NASA Langley Research Center, USA
Periklis Papadopoulos
San Jose State University, USA

Stephen Ruffin
Georgia Space Grant Consortium/Georgia
Institute of Technology, USA

Steve Sandford
NASA Langley Research Center, USA

Anita Sengupta
NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, USA

Alexandre Sol
Open University, United Kingdom

Christine Szalai
NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, USA

Ethiraj Venkatapathy
NASA Ames Research Center, USA

Michael Wright
NASA Ames Research Center, USA


















Program Organizing Committee

Karl Edquist CHAIR
NASA Langley Research Center, USA

Rodrigo Haya Ramos CO-CHAIR
Deimos Space, Spain


David Atkinson
University of Idaho, USA

Bernie Bienstock
NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, USA

Ed Chester
Aevo GmbH, Germany


Athena Coustenis
Observatorie de Paris, France

Ioana Cozmuta
ERC/NASA Ames Research Center, USA

Kristin Gates-Medlock
Global Aerospace Corporation, USA

Michelle Munk
NASA Langley Research Center, USA

Anita Sengupta
NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, USA

Thomas Spilker
NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, USA

Christine Szalai
NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, USA





Al Seiff Award Committee

Ethiraj Venkatapathy CHAIR
NASA Ames Research Center, USA

James Arnold CO-CHAIR
NASA Ames Research Center, USA

David Atkinson
University of Idaho, USA

Bernie Bienstock
NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, USA


Jean-Marc Bouilly
Astrium Space Transportation, France

Athena Coustenis
Observatorie de Paris, France



Short Course Organizing Committee

Tibor Balint CHAIR
NASA Headquarters, USA

Mark Adler
NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, USA

Dave Atkinson
University of Idaho, USA

Bernard Bienstock
NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, USA



Michelle Munk
NASA Langley Research Center, USA

Mike Wright
NASA Ames Research Center, USA




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Local Organizing Committee

Michelle Munk CHAIR
NASA Langley Research Center, USA

Neil Cheatwood CO-CHAIR
NASA Langley Research Center, USA

Karl Edquist
NASA Langley Research Center, USA

Jody Davis
NASA Langley Research Center, USA

Stacy Dees
National Institute of Aerospace, USA

Bob Moses
NASA Langley Research Center, USA

Charlene Gleaton
NASA Langley Research Center, USA

Shannon Verstynen
National Institute of Aerospace, USA

Michael Wagner
National Institute of Aerospace, USA






Student Organizing Committee

Stephen Ruffin CHAIR (USA)
Georgia Space Grant Consortium/Georgia Institute of Technology, USA

Alexandre Sol CHAIR (EUROPE)
Open University, United Kingdom

David Atkinson
University of Idaho, USA

Chris Carter
Virginia Space Grant Consortium, USA

Denise Dublin
Virginia Space Grant Consortium, USA
Kristin Gates-Medlock
Global Aerospace Corporation, USA

Michelle Munk
NASA Langley Research Center, USA

Periklis Papadopoulos
San Jose State University, USA

Greg Swanson
Santa Clara University, USA

Christopher Tanner
Georgia Institute of Technology, USA




CONTENTS

ABSTRACTS ............................................................................................................................................................ 14
SESSION1-OUTLOOKFORPROBEMISSIONS ............................................................................................ 15
2011ALSEIFFAWARDLECTURE..................................................................................................................................16
THEHUYGENSSTORY.........................................................................................................................................................16
Jean-PierreLebreton........................................................................................................................................................... 16
PLANETARYPROBESANDTHEPLANETARYDECADALSURVEY...................................................................17
AmySimon-Miller................................................................................................................................................................. 17
25YEARSOFDEEPSPACEEXPLORATIONATESA.................................................................................................18
MarcelloCoradini ................................................................................................................................................................. 18
NASAINVESTMENTSINOURFUTURE:EXPLORINGSPACETHROUGHINNOVATIONAND
TECHNOLOGY.........................................................................................................................................................................19
Dr.MichaelGazarik............................................................................................................................................................. 19
ESAEXPLORATIONPROGRAMMESFROMISSTOTHELUNARLANDERMISSION..................................20
BrunoGardini......................................................................................................................................................................... 20
PROGRESSTOWARDACOMPLETERESPONSETOTHEPLANETARYDECADALSURVEY....................21
JimAdams ................................................................................................................................................................................ 21
SESSION2-PROBEMISSIONS .......................................................................................................................... 22
MARSSCIENCELABORATORYENTRY,DESCENTANDLANDINGSYSTEMDESIGN,DEVELOPMENT
ANDPRELAUNCHSTATUS................................................................................................................................................23
AdamSteltzner ...................................................................................................................................................................... 23
EXOMARSEDMMISSIONANDDESIGNOVERVIEW...............................................................................................24
OlivierBayle*,LeilaLorenzoni*,ThierryBlancquaert*,StephaneLanglois*,ThomasWalloschek*,
S.Portigliotti,M.Capuano........................................................................................................................................... 24
ENDTOENDMISSIONPERFORMANCESOFEXOMARS2016EDM.................................................................25
RodrigoHaya-Ramos
1
MarianoSanchezNogales
1
,JuanLuisCano
1
DavidRiley
2
,DavidNorthey
2
,
StefanoPortigliotti
3
,OlivierBayle
4
.............................................................................................................................. 25
FUTUREMISSIONSANDTECHNOLOGIESWITHINTHEMARSROBOTICEXPLORATION
PREPARATION(MREP)PROGRAMME ........................................................................................................................27
K.Geelen
1
,D.Agnolon
1
,P.Falkner
1
,J.Larranaga
1
, ............................................................................................... 27
S.Vijendran
1
,D.Rebuffat1,MC.Perkinson
2
,F.Mura
3
.......................................................................................... 27
THEMISSIONMIRIAM-2:PUTTINGAGOSSAMERBALLUTETHROUGHANATMOSPHERICENTRY
FLIGHTTEST...........................................................................................................................................................................29
H.S.Griebel
1*,
R.Foerstner
2
,C.Mundt
2
,J.Polkko
3
,H.Teodorescu
4
,G.Herdrich
5
,T.Marynowski
5
,
A.Stamminger
6
....................................................................................................................................................................... 29
VENUSDEEPATMOSPHEREDESCENTPROBE(VDAP) .......................................................................................30
JamesB.Garvin,LoriGlaze,PaulMahaffy,NatashaJohnson,MichaelAmato,TimVanSant............ 30
VENUSPATHFINDERACOMPACTLONG-LIVEDLANDERMISSION...........................................................32
RalphLorenz .......................................................................................................................................................................... 32
TITANAERIALEXPLORER(TAE):EXPLORINGTITANBYBALLOON.............................................................34
JefferyL.Hall
1
,JonathanLunine
2
,ChristopheSotin
3
,KimReh
4
,AndreVargas
5
andPatriceCouzin
6
...................................................................................................................................................................................................... 34
ANADVANCEDDESIGNFORATITANBALLOON....................................................................................................36
JulianNott
1
,DonCameron
2
,DonDay
3
,GregMungas
4
......................................................................................... 36

8
MISSIONCONCEPTFORENTRYPROBESTOTHEFOUROUTERPLANETSBASEDONE-SAIL
PROPULSION...........................................................................................................................................................................39
Jean-PierreLebreton
1
,PekkaJanhunen
2
,SiniMerikallio
2
,PetriToivanen
2
............................................... 39
SESSION3-SCIENCEFROMPROBESANDPENETRATORS...................................................................... 41
NEWTOOLSANDMETHODSTOFULLYCHARACTERIZETHEATMOSPHERICENVIRONMENTFOR
AMARTIANEDLAPPLICATIONTOTHE2016EXOMARSDESCENTMODULE ..........................................42
F.Forget
1
,A.Spiga
1
,L.Montabone
1
,E.Millour
1
,A.Colaitis
1
,V.Bourrier
1
F.Gonzalez-Galindo
2
S.R.
Lewis
3
,S.Portigliotti
4
. ........................................................................................................................................................ 42
ENTRYTRAJECTORYRECONSTRUCTIONUSINGPHOENIXRADIOLINK ............................................................................44
.Karatekin
1
andS.W.Asmar
2
...................................................................................................................................... 44
AIRBORNEOBSERVATIONOFTHEHAYABUSASAMPLERETURNCAPSULERE-ENTRY.....................45
JayH.Grinstead
1
,PeterM.Jenniskens
2
,AlanM.Cassell
3
,JimAlbers
2
,MichaelWinter
4
........................ 45
RADIATIONMODELINGFORTHEREENTRYOFTHEHAYABUSASAMPLERETURNCAPSULE.........48
MichaelW.Winter
1
,RyanD.McDaniel
2
,Yih-KanqChen
2
,YenLiu
2
,DavidSaunders
3
........................... 48
GIANTPLANETFORMATION,SATURNANDURANUSENTRYPROBES,ANDTHEDECADAL.............50
SushilAtreya........................................................................................................................................................................... 50
2012DECADALSURVEYGIANTPLANETENTRYPROBESCIENCE.................................................................52
ThomasR.Spilker
(1),
DavidH.Atkinson
(2)
.................................................................................................................. 52
OUTERPLANETDOPPLERWINDMEASUREMENTS.............................................................................................54
D.H.Atkinson
(1)
,S.W.Asmar
(2)
,T.R.Spilker
(2)
.......................................................................................................... 54
TITANAERIALEXPLORER................................................................................................................................................56
JonathanILunine
1
,ChristopheSotin
2
......................................................................................................................... 56
SESSION4-EDLTECHNOLOGYDEVELOPMENT......................................................................................... 58
GOINGBEYONDRIGIDAEROSHELLS: ......................................................................................................................................59
ENABLINGVENUSIN-SITUSCIENCEMISSIONSWITHDEPLOYABLES................................................................................59
EthirajVenkatapathy
1
,ToddWhite
2
,GaryAllen
3
,andDineshPrabhu
4
...................................................... 59
ACOMPARISONOFINFLATABLEANDSEMI-RIGIDDEPLOYABLEAERODYNAMICDECELERATORS
FORFUTUREAEROCAPTUREANDENTRYMISSIONS..........................................................................................62
ReubenR.Rohrschneider,JimMasciarelli,andKevinL.Miller ........................................................................ 62
EXOMARS2016GNCAPPROACHFORENTRYDESCENTANDLANDINGDEMONSTRATOR............64
S.Portigliotti
1
,P.Martella
1
,M.Capuano
1
,O.Bayle
2
,T.Blancquaert
2
............................................................... 64
THEMARSSCIENCELABORATORYENTRYDESCENTANDLANDINGMODECOMMANDER..............66
PaulBrugarolas,KimGostelow,A.MiguelSanMartin,FredSerricchio,andGurkipalSingh............ 66
SUPERSONICRETRO-PROPULSIONFLIGHTTESTCONCEPTS .........................................................................67
EthanPost(1),ArtemDyakonov(2),AshleyKorzun(3),IanDupzyk(4),JeremyShidner(5),Arturo
Casillas(6),KarlEdquist(7).............................................................................................................................................. 67
MAXIMUMATTAINABLEDRAGLIMITSFORATMOSPHERICENTRYVIASUPERSONIC
RETROPROPULSION............................................................................................................................................................69
NoelM.Bakhtian
1
,MichaelJ.Aftosmis
2
..................................................................................................................... 69
ROTARYWINGDECELERATORUSEONTITAN.......................................................................................................70
TedSteiner
1
,LarryYoung
2
............................................................................................................................................... 70
SMALLPROBEREENTRYINVESTIGATIONFORTPSENGINEERING(SPRITE)(IPPW-8).....................72
DanielM.Empey
1
,KristinaA.Skokova
2
,ParulAgrawal
2
,GregoryT.Swanson
2
,DineshK.Prabhu
2
,
KeithH.Peterson
2
andEthirajVenkatapathy
3
........................................................................................................ 72
THEDEVELOPMENTOFACO2TESTCAPABILITYINTHENASAJSCARCJETFORMARSREENTRY
SIMULATION...........................................................................................................................................................................74
StevenV.DelPapa
1
,LeonardSuess
2
,BrianShafer
3
.............................................................................................. 74
SESSION5-SCIENCEINSTRUMENTATION................................................................................................... 76
PAYLOADOPTIONSFORFUTUREENTRYPROBEMISSIONS ............................................................................77
ThomasR.Spilker................................................................................................................................................................. 77
TITANLAKEPROBE:SCIENCEREQUIREMENTSANDINSTRUMENTATION..............................................78
J.HunterWaite
1
,TimBrockwell
1
,JohnElliott
2
,PatriciaBeauchamp
2
......................................................... 78
INSTRUMENTSFORINSITUTITANMISSIONS........................................................................................................79
PatriciaMBeauchamp
1
,JonathanLunine
2
............................................................................................................... 79

9
AthenaCoustenisLESIA
3
,PeterWillis
1
,GeorgeCody
4
,KimR.Reh
1
............................................................... 79
SPACECRAFT-TO-SPACECRAFTRADIOLINKSINSTRUMENTATIONFORPLANETARYGRAVITY,
ATMOSPHERICANDSURFACESCIENCES..................................................................................................................81
SamiW.Asmar....................................................................................................................................................................... 81
THEMARSMICROPHONE2016EXPERIMENT........................................................................................................82
D.Mimoun
1
,Jean-PierreLebreton
2
,andtheMarsMicrophone2016team
3
.............................................. 82
LIDARINSTRUMENTFORGLOBALMEASUREMENTOFMARSATMOSPHERE.........................................85
FarzinAmzajerdian
1
,GeorgeBusch
2
,NormanBarnes
1
,RobertTolson
3
,andDiegoPierrottet
2
...... 85
MARTIANSONICANEMOMETER...................................................................................................................................87
DonBanfield ........................................................................................................................................................................... 87
THECHEMCAMINSTRUMENTFORTHE2011MARSSCIENCELABORATORYMISSION:SYSTEM
REQUIREMENTSANDPERFORMANCE.......................................................................................................................88
R.Perez
1
,B.L.Barraclough
2
,S.C.Bender
2
,A.Cousin
3
,A.Cros
3
,N.LeRoch
4
,S.Maurice
3
,A.Paillet
1
,L.
Pares
3
,Y.Parot
3
,M.Saccoccio
1
,R.C.Wiens
2
............................................................................................................. 88
MEADSCALIBRATIONANDMSLTRAJECTORYRECONSTRUCTION..............................................................90
MarkSchoenenberger
1
,ChrisKarlgaard
2
,MichelleMunk
1
............................................................................... 90
OPTICALEMISSIONSPECTROSCOPICEXPERIMENTSFORIN-FLIGHTENTRYRESEARCH.................91
SebastianLein
1
,GeorgHerdrich
1
,MonikaAuweter-Kurtz
2
andStefanosFasoulas
1
.............................. 91
SESSION6A-NEWTECHNOLOGIES................................................................................................................ 93
PEDALS:EVOLVEDDESIGNOFEDLARCHITECTURES ........................................................................................94
EdChester,JooGraciano................................................................................................................................................. 94
CHALLENGESOFTHEINSTRUMENTATIONFORHIGHSPEEDENTRYVEHICLES...................................95
AliGlhan,FrankSiebe,ThomasThiele ..................................................................................................................... 95
SYSTEMDEVELOPMENTFORMARSENTRYIN-SITURESOURCEUTILIZATION......................................97
SvetozarPopovic
1
,RobertW.Moses
2
,LeposavaVuskovic
3
................................................................................ 97
TERMINALDESCENTANDLANDINGSYSTEMARCHITECTURESFORAMARSPRECISIONLANDER
.......................................................................................................................................................................................................99
LisaPeacocke
1
,Marie-ClairePerkinson
1
,JaimeReed
1
,TobiasLutz
2
,MarcoWolf
2
,JoergBoltz
2
..... 99
OVERVIEWOFHYPERSONICINFLATABLEAERODYNAMICDECELERATORLARGEARTICLEGROUNDTESTCAMPAIGN
.................................................................................................................................................................................................... 101
AlanM.Cassell,GregoryT.Swanson,R.KeithJohnson,StephenJ.Hughes,F.McNeilCheatwood 101
LOW-DENSITYSUPERSONICDECELERATORSYSTEM..................................................................................... 103
MarkAdler,ChuckPlayer,JuanCruz,IanClark,AdamSteltzner,andTomRivellini.......................... 103
CO2PROPULSIONFORAMARSSURFACEHOPPER............................................................................................ 104
ChristopherPerry&RobertL.Ash............................................................................................................................. 104
COMPUTATIONALSTUDYOFROUGHNESS-INDUCEDTRANSITION.......................................................... 105
SeokkwanYoon,MichaelD.BarnhardtandEmreSozer ................................................................................. 105
THREEDIMENSIONALRADIATIONINMARTIANATMOSPHERE ................................................................ 109
DaniilAndrienko
1,2
,SergeySurzhikov
2
.................................................................................................................... 109
SESSION6B-AEROASSIST,EXPERIMENTALMISSIONSANDEDLMISSIONDESIGN.....................111
OVERVIEWOFTHENASAENTRY,DESCENTANDLANDINGSYSTEMSANALYSISEXPLORATION
FEED-FORWARDSTUDY................................................................................................................................................. 112
AliciaD.Cianciolo
1
,ThomasA.Zang
1
,RonaldR.Sostaric
2
,M.KathyMcguire
3
..................................... 112
AEROFAST:MARTIANAEROCAPTUREFORFUTURESPACETRANSPORTATIONMISSION
OVERVIEW............................................................................................................................................................................ 113
T.Salmon
*1
,F.Bonnefond
1
,J-M.Bouilly
1
,P.Augros
2
,T.Lutz
3
....................................................................... 113
MISSIONANALYSISANDFLIGHTMECHANICSOFEARTHEXPERIMENTALMISSIONS ..................... 115
RodrigoHaya-Ramos
1
,DavideBonetti
1
,CristinaParigini
1
,JorgeSerna
1
,GabrieledeZaiacomo
1
,
FedericoMassobrio
2
......................................................................................................................................................... 115
HAYABUSAREENTRY:TRAJECTORYANALYSISANDOBSERVATIONMISSIONDESIGN................... 118
AlanM.Cassell
1
,GaryA.Allen
1
,JayH.Grinstead
1
,MannyE.Antimisiaris
2
,JimAlbers
3
,PetrusM.
Jenniskens
3
............................................................................................................................................................................ 118
ASIMPLEANALYTICALEQUATIONTOACCURATELYCALCULATETHEATMOSPHERICDRAG
DURINGAEROBRAKINGCAMPAIGNSVALIDATIONINTHEMARTIANCASE......................................... 120
F.Forget,M.Capderou .................................................................................................................................................... 120

10
AEROBRAKINGPERIAPSISCONTROLSTRATEGIES........................................................................................... 122
M.Snchez*,F.Cichocki.................................................................................................................................................. 122
PLANNEDFLIGHTOFTHEINFLATABLEREENTRYVEHICLEEXPERIMENT3(IRVE-3) ................... 124
RobertADillman,FNeilCheatwood,StephenJHughes,JosephDelCorso,RichardJBodkin,and
AaronOlds ............................................................................................................................................................................ 124
DIMENSIONLESSPARAMETERSFORESTIMATINGMASSOFINFLATABLEAERODYNAMIC
DECELERATORS................................................................................................................................................................. 125
JamshidA.Samareh.......................................................................................................................................................... 125
SESSION7A-ADVANCESINTPSTECHNOLOGYFORPLANETARYPROBEDESIGN.......................126
CHALLENGESWITHTHERMALPROTECTIONMATERIALDEVELOPMENTAND
IMPLEMENTATION:LESSONSLEARNEDFROMRECENTNASAEXPERIENCE....................................... 127
D.Ellerby ............................................................................................................................................................................... 127
ONGOINGEUROPEANDEVELOPMENTSONENTRYHEATSHIELDSANDTPSMATERIALS ............. 128
H.Ritter
1
,O.Bayle
1
,Y.Mignon
2
,P.Portela
3
,J-M.Bouilly
2
,R.Sharda
4
....................................................... 128
MEDLIAEROTHERMALENVIRONMENTRECONSTRUCTIONEFFORTS .......................................................................... 129
ToddWhite........................................................................................................................................................................... 129
ORIONFLIGHTTEST-1THERMALPROTECTIONSYSTEMINSTRUMENTATION.................................. 130
T.JohnKowal
1
..................................................................................................................................................................... 130
FLEXIBLEABLATORS:APPLICATIONSANDARCJETTESTING...................................................................... 132
JamesO.Arnold
1
,EthirajVenkatapathy
1
,RobinBeck
1
,KathyM.McGuire
1
,DineshK.Prabhu
2
and
SergeyGorbunov
3
.............................................................................................................................................................. 132
OVERVIEWOFINITIALDEVELOPMENTOFFLEXIBLEABLATORSFORMARSEDL....................................................... 134
RobinA.S.Beck,SusanWhite,JamesArnold,WenhongFan,MaireadStackpoole,ParulAgrawal
................................................................................................................................................................................................... 134
AEROFAST:DEVELOPMENTOFCORKTPSMATERIALANDA3DCOMPARATIVE
THERMAL/ABLATIONANALYSISOFANAPOLLO&ABICONICSLEDSHAPEFORAN
AEROCAPTUREMISSION................................................................................................................................................ 136
G.Pinaud
1
&A.J.vanEekelen
2
...................................................................................................................................... 136
MODULARMANUFACTURINGOFHONEYCOMB-REINFORCEDCHARRINGABLATORSYSTEMSFOR
THEAEROSHELLSOFLARGEEDLVEHICLES........................................................................................................ 138
WilliamM.Congdon......................................................................................................................................................... 138
SESSION7B-AIRLESSBODYSURFACEMISSIONS....................................................................................139
ROBOTICANDHUMANSPACEEXPLORATIONOFNEAR-EARTHOBJECTS............................................ 140
D.D.Mazanek....................................................................................................................................................................... 140
EUROPEANGNCTECHNOLOGYDEVELOPMENTANDPERSPECTIVEFORAIRLESSBODIES
EXPLORATION.................................................................................................................................................................... 141
A.CARAMAGNO ....................................................................................................................................................................... 141
MAGIC(MOBILEAUTONOMOUSGENERALIZEDINSTRUMENTCARRIER)...................................................................... 142
T.vanZoest
1
,T.-M.Ho
1
,C.Lange
1
,L.Witte
1
,S.Wagenbach
1
,C.Krause
1
,S.Ulamec
1
, ........................ 142
J.Biele
1
,FlorianHerrmann
1
,JoachimBlock
1
,andPierreBousquet
2
.......................................................... 142
1DLRDeutschesZentrumf.Luft-undRaumfahrt,Germany..................................................................... 142
2CNESCentreNationald'tudesSpatiales,Toulouse,France.................................................................. 142
THEESALUNARLANDERMISSION........................................................................................................................... 143
CAMERA-AIDEDINERTIALNAVIGATIONFORPINPOINTPLANETARYLANDINGONRUGGED
TERRAINS.............................................................................................................................................................................. 144
JeffDelaune
1
,GuyLeBesnerais
1
,MartialSanfourche
3
,AurlienPlyer
4
,Jean-LoupFarges
5
,Clment
Bourdarias
6
,ThomasVoirin
7
andAlainPiquereau
8
.......................................................................................... 144
MARCOPOLO-R:ANASTEROIDSAMPLERETURNMISSION.......................................................................... 146
MarkAdler,AndyCheng,TomRandolph,andRobMaddock......................................................................... 146
WHATMOONRISELUNARSAMPLERETURNCANTEACHUSABOUTMARSSAMPLERETURN..... 147
GeorgeChen
1
,EricBlood
2
.............................................................................................................................................. 147
FARSIDEEXPLORER:UNIQUESCIENCEFROMAMISSIONTOTHEFARSIDEOFTHEMOON.......... 148
DavidMimoun
1
,MarkWieczorek
2
,andtheFarsideExplorerTeam
3
......................................................... 148
VLBITRACKINGOFPHOBOS-GRUNTPROBE........................................................................................................ 151
GuifrMoleraCalvs
1,2
,S.V.Pogrebenko
3
,G.Cim
3
,D.A.Duev
3,4
,L.I.Gurvits
3,5
..................................... 151

11
SESSION8-CLOSING.........................................................................................................................................153
AUSTERITYINTHEAGEOFINNOVATION.............................................................................................................. 154
BethanyJohns...................................................................................................................................................................... 154
NASA-LANGLEYRESEARCHCENTERSENGINEERINGDIRECTORATE..................................................... 155
StephenP.Sandford.......................................................................................................................................................... 155
POSTERS................................................................................................................................................................156
POSTERSESSION2PROBEMISSIONS.......................................................................................................157
STUDYOFPLANETARYENTRYPROBES(PEP)FORVENUSANDOUTERPLANETS:SATURN,
URANUSANDNEPTUNE................................................................................................................................................. 158
DenisRebuffat,PeterFalkner,JonanLarranaga,JensRomstedt,KellyGeelen...................................... 158
POSTERSESSION3SCIENCEFROMPROBESANDPENETRATORS..................................................160
ACCOMMODATIONSTUDYFORANANEMOMETERONAMARTIANLANDER....................................... 161
BenjaminLenoir
1
,DonBanfield
1
................................................................................................................................ 161
THEMARSCLIMATEDATABASE,CURRENTSTATUSANDFUTUREIMPROVEMENTS ...................... 163
E.Millour(1),F.Forget(1),A.Spiga(1),S.Lebonnois(1),S.R.Lewis(2),L.Montabone(3),P.L.
Read(3),M.A.Lpez-Valverde(4),F.Gonzlez-Galindo(4),F.Lefvre(5),F.Montmessin(5),M.-C.
Desjean(6),J.-P.Huot(7)andtheMCD/GCMdevelopmentteam................................................................. 163
ARMADILLOADEMONSTRATIONFORLOW-COSTIN-SITUINVESTIGATIONSOFTHEUPPER
ATMOSPHEREOFPLANETARYBODIES .................................................................................................................. 167
ReneLaufer(1,3),GlennLightsey(2),GeorgHerdrich(3,1),RalfSrama(3,4,1),GregoryEarle(5),
CarstenWiedemann(6),EdChester(7),HughHill(8),TroyHenderson(9),RainerSandau(10,11,1),
LorinMatthews(1),TruellHyde(1) ........................................................................................................................... 167
POSTERSESSION4EDLTECHNOLOGYDEVELOPMENT.....................................................................169
ONGOINGVALIDATIONOFCOMPUTATIONALFLUIDDYNAMICSFORSUPERSONICRETRO-
PROPULSION........................................................................................................................................................................ 170
DanielG.Schauerhamer,*KerryA.Trumble,WilliamKleb,Jan-ReneeCarlson,PieterG.
Buning,**KarlEdquist,andEmreSozer...................................................................................................... 170
ENTRYANDPOWEREDDESCENTGUIDANCEFORMARSROBOTICPRECURSORS ............................. 173
Sostaric,RonaldR.;Garcia-Llama,E.Powell,R.W............................................................................................. 173
MULTI-MISSIONEARTHENTRYVEHICLEDESIGNTRADESPACEANDCONCEPTDEVELOPMENT
STATUS(VERSION2.0).................................................................................................................................................... 175
RobertW.Maddock .......................................................................................................................................................... 175
THERMALSOAKANALYSISOFSPRITEPROBE..................................................................................................... 176
P.Agrawal
1
,Y.K.Chen
2
,D.K.Prabhu
1
D.Empey
3
,E.Venkatapathy
2
,J.Arnold
2
..................................... 176
DESIGNCHOICECONSIDERATIONSFORVEHICLESUTILIZINGSUPERSONICRETROPROPULSION
.................................................................................................................................................................................................... 178
AshleyM.Korzun(1),IanG.Clark(2),RobertD.Braun(3).............................................................................. 178
POSTERSESSION5SCIENCEINSTRUMENTATION ...............................................................................181
THESTUDENTRAINDROPDETECTOR(SRD):ANINSTRUMENTFORMEASURINGMETHANERAIN
ONTITAN............................................................................................................................................................................... 182
AllisonTucker
1
,GabrielWilson
1
,HieuTruong
1
,TimKunz
1
,KysenPalmer
1
,ColtonTherrian
1
,Jason
W.Barnes1,DavidH.Atkinson
1
................................................................................................................................... 182
RalphD.Lorenz
2
................................................................................................................................................................ 182
PLANETARYPOLARIZATIONNEPHELOMETER .................................................................................................. 183
DonBanfield(1),AdamSaltzman(1) ........................................................................................................................ 183
SCIENCEANDEDUCATIONWITHMARSEXPRESS'VISUALMONITORINGCAMERA .......................... 185
(VMC) ...................................................................................................................................................................................... 185
H.S.Griebel*
1
,T.Ormston
1
,M.Denis
2
,J.Landeau-Constantin
2
,D.Scouka
2,3
,L.Griebel
4
,C.Scorza
5
,
M.Frommelt
5
........................................................................................................................................................................ 185
DEVELOPMENTOFINSTRUMENTATIONFORHYPERSONICINFLATABLEAERODYNAMIC
DECELERATORCHARACTERIZATION...................................................................................................................... 187
GregoryT.Swanson
1,2
,AlanM.Cassell
2
.................................................................................................................. 187

12
MARSMICROPHONE2016:AUNIQUEOPPORTUNITYFORSTUDENTINVOLVEMENT..................... 189
*A.Minier
1
,*W.Rapin
1
,D.PerezEscobar
1
,D.Mimoun
1
andtheMarsMicrophoneTeam
2
............ 189
POSTERSESSION6ANEWTECHNOLOGIES ............................................................................................191
TDNR:AMODULARNANO-ROVERPLATFORMFORNETWORKEDPLANETARYMISSIONS ........... 192
AbrahamRademacher(1),AmardeepSingh(2),JasvirSingh(3),JoseCortez(4),Kavinda
Wittahachchi(5),MikhailParemski(6),YawoEzunkpe(7),Dr.PeriklisPapadopoulos(8),MarcusS.
Murbach(9),BobFeretich(10)..................................................................................................................................... 192
ANALYSISOFANOMALOUSVARIATIONSINHIGHALTITUDEBALLOONASCENTRATESNEARTHE
TROPOPAUSE ...................................................................................................................................................................... 194
WalterTaresh*,KevinRamus,KimBaird,CarlosGonzalez,GabeWilson,RoryRiggs,George
Korbel,DavidH.Atkinson,andtheIdahoNearSpaceEngineeringTeam............................................... 194
DEVELOPMENTOFANAUTONOMOUSHIGHALTITUDEBALLOONCUTDOWNSYSTEM................. 195
KevinRamus*,KimBaird,CarlosGonzalez,GabeWilson,WalterTaresh,RoryRiggs,George
Korbel,DavidH.Atkinson,andtheIdahoNearSpaceEngineeringTeam............................................... 195
THETITANSKYSIMULATOR
TM
NEWLOWCOSTCRYOGENICTESTFACILITYAVAILABLE. ............ 196
DEVELOPEDFORTITANBALLOONSBUTSUITABLEFORMANYAPPLICATIONS................................ 196
J.Nott ...................................................................................................................................................................................... 196
ONE-WAYUPLINKRANGINGFORENHANCINGPLANETARYWINDMEASUREMENTS..................... 198
K.Oudrhiri(1),D.H.Atkinson(2),S.W.Asmar(1),S.Bryant(1),T.R.Spilker(1)...................................... 198
POSTERSESSION6B-AEROASSIST,EXPERIMENTALMISSIONSANDEDLMISSIONDESIGN....199
SATURNSYSTEMMISSIONOPPORTUNITIESUSINGATITANAEROGRAVITYASSISTFORORBITAL
CAPTURE............................................................................................................................................................................... 200
RobertM.Booher(1)andJ.E.Lyne(2)....................................................................................................................... 200
AERODYNAMICSTABILITYOFBLUNTED-CONEENTRYVEHICLES ........................................................... 203
DanielR.Ladiges*,EleanorC.Button,CharlesR.Lilley,NicholasS.Mackenzie,EdwardRoss,And
JohnE.Sader........................................................................................................................................................................ 203
DETERMINATIONOFAERODYNAMICDAMPINGCOEFFICIENTSOFENTRYVEHICLESIN
TRANSONICREGIME........................................................................................................................................................ 205
S.Paris,O.Karatekinn,A.Karitonov+,J.Ouvrard* ............................................................................................. 205
STATISTICALENTRY,DESCENTANDLANDINGPERFORMANCERECONSTRUCTIONOFTHEMARS
PHOENIXLANDER............................................................................................................................................................. 207
SoumyoDutta(1),IanG.Clark(2),RyanP.Russell(3),RobertD.Braun(4)............................................. 207
VERTICALSTRUCTUREANDWINDSHEARINASIMULATEDTRITONATMOSPHERE ...................... 209
CharlesMiller(1),NancyJ.Chanover(1),JamesR.Murphy(1) ...................................................................... 209
POSTERSESSION7A-ADVANCESINTPSTECHNOLOGYFORPLANETARYPROBEDESIGN......211
DEVELOPMENTOFATHERMALPROTECTIONSYSTEMMASSESTIMATINGRELATIONSHIPBASED
ONFIATPREDICTIONS.................................................................................................................................................... 212
S.Sepka
1
,J.O.Arnold
2
,E.Venkatapathy
3
andK.Trumble
4
............................................................................. 212
RASTASSPEAR:RADIATION-SHAPES-THERMALPROTECTIONINVESTIGATIONSFORHIGH
SPEEDEARTHRE-ENTRY .............................................................................................................................................. 213
J-MBouilly
1
,A.Pisseloup
1
,O.Chazot
2
,G.Vekinis
3
,A.Bourgoing
4
,B.Chanetz
5
,O.Sladek
6
............... 213
RESINIMPREGNATEDCARBONABLATOR(RICA):ANEWTHERMALPROTECTIONSYSTEM
MATERIALFORHIGH-SPEEDPLANETARYENTRYVEHICLES ...................................................................... 215
JaimeEsper(1),Hans-PeterRoeser(2),GeorgHerdrich(2) ......................................................................... 215
PERFORMANCECHARACTERIZATION,SENSITIVITYANDCOMPARISONOFADUALLAYER
THERMALPROTECTIONSYSTEM............................................................................................................................... 217
ColeD.Kazemba(1),MaryKathleenMcGuire(2),AustinHoward(3),IanG.Clark(4),RobertD.
Braun(5)................................................................................................................................................................................ 217
EDLHEATSHIELDEXPERIMENTSWITHDUAL-LAYERABLATORS,ADVANCEDMATERIALSAND
VARIABLEHONEYCOMBS.............................................................................................................................................. 218
JenniferN.Congdon.......................................................................................................................................................... 218
LOWDENSITYFLEXIBLECARBONPHENOLICABLATORS ............................................................................. 219
MaireadStackpoole
1
,JeremyThornton
1
,WendyFan
1
andParulAgrawal
1
,EvanDoxtad
2,
Robin
Beck
3
........................................................................................................................................................................................ 219

13
ROTATINGARCJETTESTMODEL:TIME-ACCURATETRAJECTORYHEATFLUXREPLICATIONINA
GROUNDTESTENVIRONMENT................................................................................................................................... 220
BernardLaubandJayGrinstead
1
,ArtemDyakonov
2
,EthirajVenkatapathy
1
....................................... 220
ADVANCEDRIGIDABLATIVETPS .............................................................................................................................. 223
MattGasch............................................................................................................................................................................ 223
MODELINGOFTHEMATERIALRESPONSEOFTHERMALPROTECTIONSYSTEMSINHYPERSONIC
FLOWS .................................................................................................................................................................................... 224
JonathanWiebenga(1),IainD.Boyd(2),AlexandreMartin(2)..................................................................... 224


14







ABSTRACTS









15


Session 1 - Outlook for Probe Missions

16
2011 AL SEIFF AWARD LECTURE
THE HUYGENS STORY

Jean-Pierre Lebreton

ESA/ESTEC, SolarSystem Missions Division, Noordwijk, The Netherlands. jean-
pierre.lebreton@esa.int,

ABSTRACT

In this lecture, I will tell the story of (Cassini-)Huygens with emphasis on the role played
by the young scientists, engineers and students I directly worked with in the Planetary
Missions Division, and later the Solar System Missions Division at ESA/ESTEC. I will
illustrate how their work contributed to i) getting Huygens ready for its historical descent
in Titans atmosphere on January 14 2005, ii) the post-flight analysis and interpretation of
Huygens data and iii) Huygens legacy.

















17


PLANETARY PROBES AND THE PLANETARY DECADAL
SURVEY

Amy Simon-Miller


NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, amy.simon@nasa.gov

ABSTRACT

On March 7, 2011, the National Research Council released Vision and Voyages for
Planetary Science in the Decade 2013-2022. This report represents broad community
input via white paper submissions, presentations to panels and the Steering Group, and
participation in mission concept studies. Careful independent assessment of mission
concepts was used to validate cost, technical feasibility, and risk, prior to ranking each
mission by the discipline panels. The final priorities of large and medium class missions,
as well as technology development, research and analysis, and small missions were made
across disciplines based on programmatic balance, costs and science value. The
recommended missions include opportunities for atmospheric probes to Venus, Saturn
and Uranus, as well as the study of future probe technology. This presentation will give a
brief overview of the survey process and recommendations, with specific emphasis on
planetary probe opportunities.







18


25 YEARS OF DEEP SPACE EXPLORATION AT ESA

Marcello Coradini

ESA Programs Coordinator at JPL, Marcello.Coradini@Esa.Int

ABSTRACT

The European adventure in the deep space started in 1985 with the launch of the
GIOTTO mission to comet Halley. This first, rather simple, deep space probe was
followed in the course of the years, by a large number of satellites and probes directed
almost in any corner of the Solar System. From Mercury, with the BepiColombo
composite spacecraft, to Venus with Venus Express, the Moon with SMART-1, the red
planet with Mars Express, the Saturn System with Cassini/Huygens, Comet
67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko and the asteroids Steins and Lutetia with the Rosetta, ESA
and the European scientists are present and actively carrying out scientific observations.
In the near future the Robotic Exploration Programme, defined in a close collaboration
with NASA, will allow ESA to be again in Mars orbit with the TGO satellite and on the
surface of the red planet with the ExoMars rover, while a new interplanetary probe might
be travelling to Jupiter to explore its satellite system.
In about 25 years ESA, the European Scientists and the European Industry have reached a
high level of competitiveness, competence and experience. New worlds have been
explored, a wealth of new technologies and systems have been developed. Exploration of
the Solar System with robots, and one day with humans, will continue to offer challenges
and excitement for many years to come.

19


NASA INVESTMENTS IN OUR FUTURE: EXPLORING
SPACE THROUGH INNOVATION AND TECHNOLOGY

Dr. Michael Gazarik

Deputy Chief Technologist at NASA, Michael.J.Gazarik@nasa.gov

ABSTRACT

NASA Deputy Chief Technologist Dr. Michael Gazarik will provide an
overview of NASA's planned research, innovation and technology investments that
focus on enabling bold robotic and human exploration of the solar system while
providing broadly-applicable benefits on Earth. Dr. Gazarik will highlight NASA's push
for disruptive technologies that may enable exploration of deep space, including near-
Earth asteroids and eventually Mars. This technology-enabled exploration strategy will
allow NASA to explore beyond low Earth orbit more efficiently, safely, and
expeditiously. Central to this approach, NASA's new Space Technology Program seeks to
create the technological knowledge and capability needed to enable a new generation of
NASA aeronautics, science, and exploration missions. By taking informed risks and
focusing on high-payoff technologies, the Space Technology Program will provide the
answers to the Agency's future technological needs. Developing these new
transformational technologies and capabilities will require the best of academia, industry,
and our government labs. Dr. Gazarik will also highlight NASAs technology
development roadmaps, as provided to the National Research Council (NRC), that
describes the research and technology development investments required for tomorrows
great discoveries.






20


ESA EXPLORATION PROGRAMMES FROM ISS TO THE
LUNAR LANDER MISSION

Bruno Gardini

European Space Agency ESA-ESTEC, Noordwijk, The Netherlands,
Bruno.Gardini@esa.int

ABSTRACT

The extension of the ISS operation to 2020 is providing new opportunities for
Exploration preparatory activities in a representative environment in the field of human
spaceflight. To this end ESA has recently issued a call for ideas and is preparing new
activities to be implemented in the near future.
In the same time industrial activities to design and develop the first ESA Lunar Lander
continue to progress at a fast pace and with an increasing support of ESA Members
states, setting the ground for a full development proposal being presented for approval at
the next ESA Council at Ministerial level in 2012. While providing a good opportunity
for scientific experiments on the surface of the Moon, the Lunar Landers primary goal is
to develop precision landing technology. Mandated by the requirement to land on a rough
terrain at the Moon South Pole the mission will develop for Europe the new generation of
guidance, navigation and control sensors, algorithms and software including visual
navigation and hazard avoidance. As such the technology can be applied to Moon and
asteroid landing as well as to the terminal phase of a Mars landing mission.
With the prospective of human presence being the ultimate goal of Exploration, the
presentation will include an overview of the ESA present and planned activities in the
area of human spaceflight.

21


PROGRESS TOWARD A COMPLETE RESPONSE TO THE
PLANETARY DECADAL SURVEY

Jim Adams

NASA Headquarters, Planetary Science Division, Washington, DC USA,
jim.adams@nasa.gov


ABSTRACT


March 7, 2011, the National Research Council released Vision and Voyages for Planetary
Science in the Decade 2013-2022. This report represents broad community input via
white paper submissions, presentations to panels and the Steering Group, and
participation in mission concept studies. The NASA Headquarters Planetary Science
Division is in the process of preparing a response to the 200+ recommendations
contained the Decadal Survey. Just two weeks earlier the Presidents fiscal year 2012
budget request was released. This presentation will give a brief overview of the response
process, the realities and limitations of the 2012 budget and progress toward completing a
reconciled response.



Session 2 - Probe Missions


23


MARS SCIENCE LABORATORY ENTRY, DESCENT AND
LANDING SYSTEM DESIGN, DEVELOPMENT AND
PRELAUNCH STATUS

Adam Steltzner

NASA JPL, Adam.d.steltzner@jpl.nasa.gov

ABSTRACT

In late November of 2011 the Mars Science Laboratory mission will launch from
Kennedy Space Center in Florida headed for Mars. This mission will deliver the largest
ever extraterrestrial lander. Further this landed system is a mobile rover and the MSL
entry descent and landing system delivers it on its wheels ready for commissioning. This
MSL EDL system provides more performance, in mass delivery, altitude capability,
landed accuracy than any Mars EDL system before it. This paper will document the
MSL EDL design and development and its status for launch readiness.


24


EXOMARS EDM MISSION AND DESIGN OVERVIEW

Olivier Bayle*, Leila Lorenzoni*, Thierry Blancquaert*, Stephane
Langlois*, Thomas Walloschek*, S. Portigliotti, M. Capuano

* European Space Agency ESTEC, Noordwijk Leila.Lorenzoni@esa.int
Thierry.Blancquaert@esa.int, Stephane.Langlois@esa.int, Thomas.Walloschek@esa.int,
Olivier.Bayle@esa.int
Thales Alenia Space Italy Turin, Italy Stefano.Portigliotti@thalesaleniaspace.com,
Maurizio.Capuano@thalesaleniaspace.com

ABSTRACT

The ExoMars Programme is a joint ESA-NASA initiative to explore Mars and will make
use of the 2016 and 2018 launch opportunities. Among the ExoMars objectives, the 2016
mission shall provide a demonstration of key technologies required to safely land a
payload on the surface of Mars:
- HeatShield
- ParachuteSystem
- DopplerRadarSystemforgroundrelativealtitudeandrelativevelocity
measurement
- LiquidPropulsionSystemforattitudecontrolandfinalbraking
- Crushablematerialforimpactloadsattenuation

These technologies will be embarked into the ExoMars EDL Demonstrator Module
(EDM), a 600 kg 2.4 m diameter vehicle. In order to maximise the lessons learnt from
this demonstration mission, the EDM will carry a package of sensors that will allow a
detailed reconstruction of the flown trajectory as well as the assessment of the EDL
subsystems performance.
The paper provides an overview of the EDM mission and design and describes the early
test activities that have already been carried out in order to raise the technology readiness
level of the key EDL technologies (aerothermodynamics, TPS, Parachute system,
Doppler radar, propulsion, crushable structure).


25


END TO END MISSION PERFORMANCES OF EXOMARS
2016 EDM

Rodrigo Haya-Ramos
1
Mariano Sanchez Nogales
1
, Juan Luis Cano
1

David Riley
2
, David Northey
2
, Stefano Portigliotti
3
, Olivier Bayle
4


DEIMOS Space S.L.U
1
, rodrigo.haya@deimos-space.com
Tessella plc
2
, David.Riley@tessella.com
Thales Alenia Space
3
, Stefano.portigliotti@ thalesaleniaspace.com
European Space Agency
4
, olivier.bayle@esa.int

ABSTRACT

The EXOMARS programme foresees two missions: the first, to be launched in 2016,
consisting of an Orbiter plus an Entry, Descent and Landing Demonstrator (EDM) and
the second, with a launch date in 2018, consisting of two rovers. Both missions will be
carried out in cooperation with NASA. This scenario is the result of a 4 year evolution
during the Phase B of the Exomars programme.
The objective of this paper is to present the Mission Performances (dispersion analysis)
of the Exomars 2016 Mission from launch to splashdown for the Baseline presented at
the System PDR with focus on the EDM element. The present 2016 mission baseline is
based on launch with Atlas V (421) in 2016 of a spacecraft Composite bearing a Orbiter
Module and the EDM which is directed towards Mars through a direct type T2 transfer
orbit, which includes a Deep Space Manoeuvre (DSM). The EDM is released from the
arrival hyperbola 3 days before reaching Mars
atmosphere. The EDM performs a ballistic entry and deploys a single stage Disk-gap-
band parachute at Mach 1.95. After 40 s the frontshield is jettisoned and the rest of the
EDM continues descent while radar is activated. The backshell is separated and the
lander performs a powered landing with a g-turn manoeuvre to cancel the vertical
velocity at 2 m above ground, where the retrorockets are switched off and the surface
platform lands using its crushable structure on the Meridiani region.
One of the objectives of the Mission Design and Analysis activity has been the
consideration of a continuous end to end profile from launcher injection to touchdown in
order to couple the arrival with the EDL phases since the first steps of the mission design.
This coupling is relevant in several areas; among others: arrival epoch and local time with
Mars environment, arrival hyperbola with reachability of landing latitudes, entry
orientation (pro/retrograde) with aerothermodynamics and parachute deployment
conditions, mapping of Navigation uncertainties and manoeuvres
dispersions into landing accuracy and Entry Corridor size
This end-to-end philosophy has been applied in all of the mission design steps and in
particular in the Mission performances evaluation. A single continuous mission timeline
and trajectory from launcher separation to touchdown has been built as reference for the

26
assessment. This evaluation of the performances has been carried out through high
fidelity simulation of the mission phases and events. Different levels of simulations have
been planned and executed depending on the performances to be assessed. All of them
are based on large Monte Carlo campaigns where initial
states, atmosphere, mechanisms and vehicle characteristics are perturbed using high
fidelity models for the environment and suitable performance models for the different
elements and functions (separation mechanism, GNC).
First, the 3 DoF Monte Carlo campaign provides the overall mission performances with
end-2-end simulations from the DSM to the touchdown where the compliance of the
entry constraints (heat flux, load factor..), descent constraints (verticalisation, terminal
velocities, inflation loads) and landing constraints (impact velocity, consumed fuel)
are assessed in a multiphase process. This is the reference Mission Performance
simulation which is complemented and tuned with more detailed performance
assessments. Thus, 6 DoF simulations from the EDM separation down to the parachute
triggering are carried out to assess the vehicle attitude dynamics and coupling with
trajectory performances. Multibody simulations of the EDM under the parachute as a
continuation of the perturbed 6DoF entry trajectories are
executed for a detailed assessment of the dynamics under parachutes and the impact of
the frontshield jettison on the EDM dynamics.
The paper will present a summary of the mission design status, the selection of the
reference Exomars Mission timeline and the results and discussion of the different
campaigns (3DoF, 6DoF, Multibody) against the Mission and System
Requirements. These results constitute the reference Mission performances for the
Exomars Mission. A comparison of these performances with the Entry Corridor
predictions will be presented and discussed. The s/w environment used for this
assessment is the Endoatmospheric Simulator (EndoSim) of the Planetary Entry
Toolbox and the Parachute System Design and Analysis Tool (PASDA), which represent
the reference and validation sources for the official Exomars simulator.


27


FUTURE MISSIONS AND TECHNOLOGIES WITHIN THE
MARS ROBOTIC EXPLORATION PREPARATION
(MREP) PROGRAMME

K. Geelen
1
, D. Agnolon
1
, P. Falkner
1
, J. Larranaga
1
,
S. Vijendran
1
, D. Rebuffat1, MC. Perkinson
2
, F. Mura
3

European Space Agency
1
, ESTEC, Noordwijk The Netherlands,
mkelly.geelen@esa.int
2
Astrium Limited, Stevenage, United Kingdom Thales
Alenia Space Italia
3
, Torino, Italy

ABSTRACT

The European Mars Robotic Exploration Preparation (MREP) programme has the general
approach to consider a Mars Sample Return mission in collaboration with NASA as a
long-term objective and to progress step by step towards this mission through short and
medium term technology developments. In parallel, long term generic enabling
technologies are being developed with respect to propulsion and nuclear power systems.
Intermediate missions would validate these technologies wherever possible.

The 2018 joint NASA-ESA mission includes a sampling and caching rover, which will
prepare cached samples to be retrieved and returned by an MSR lander mission in the
early 2020s. As such, the 2018 mission can be considered as the first component of the
joint ESA/NASA MSR mission.
In addition to this first step, MSR will include at least three main elements:
A NASA-led MSR Lander (delivered to the Mars surface via the sky-crane
concept), including a sample fetching rover which will retrieve the cached sample
and transfer it into a sample container and a Mars Ascent Vehicle which will
insert the sample container into Mars orbit,
An ESA-led MSR Orbiter which will capture the sample container into Mars
orbit and insert it into the Earth re-entry capsule which is brought back to Earth,
A sample receiving facility as a key ground component.
A preliminary scheme and schedule of the ESA and NASA shares for these building
blocks and their components is presented here together with a preliminary design of the
ESA undertakings.

In order to maintain the robustness of the programme, ESA currently foresees four
mission candidates for the post-ExoMars launch slots (2020/2022). The candidate
missions currently being considered are:

A. Mars network science mission, possibly including a high precision landing

28
demonstration,
B. Sample return from a moon of Mars (Deimos or Phobos),
C. Mars Precision lander (< ~10 km) with sampling/fetching rover, as a self-
standing mission or a possible extra MSR segment if the NASA-led MSR lander cannot
accommodate the Mars Ascent Vehicle and a Sample Fetching Rover,
D. Mars Sample Return orbiter.

Missions A. to C. are scientifically rewarding alternatives to cope with possible MSR
delays, while mission D., and possibly mission C., may become MSR segments under
Europe lead. Parallel phase 0/A studies are ongoing for the latter two missions whereas
missions A. and B. have already been subject to system assessment studies in the past,
which will be consolidated in 2011.
These missions require a wide range of enabling technologies, for which development is
ongoing within the MREP programme, such as:

Mars Entry, Descent and Landing of small or medium-sized landers:
o Improved navigation prior to Mars atmospheric entry
o Guided entry to compensate known dispersions at entry and minimise
errors introduced by atmospheric uncertainty
o Smart parachute deployment triggers
o Hazard avoidance system: lidar and/or camera-based
o Different landing systems such as legs and airbags
Sampling, fetching and sample transfer techniques,
Precision landing on low-gravity bodies,
High-speed Earth re-entry, including thermal protection system and
aerothermodynamics, etc.
Autonomous rendezvous and capture in Mars orbit, including GNC, capture
mechanisms, etc.
Planetary protection, including bio-sealing, monitoring, etc.

The ongoing systems studies and technology development relating to the ESA MREP
candidates missions are presented here and will help prepare the required inputs for the
next Ministerial Council for enabling the down-selection of two of these missions for
further definition phase (Phase B1). A decision on the implementation of MSR, i.e. the
MSR orbiter, lander and sample receiving facility, should be taken at the Ministerial
Council in 2015, together with NASA.


29

THE MISSION MIRIAM-2: PUTTING A GOSSAMER
BALLUTE THROUGH AN ATMOSPHERIC ENTRY
FLIGHT TEST

H.S.Griebel
1*,
R.Foerstner
2
, C.Mundt
2
, J.Polkko
3
, H.Teodorescu
4
,
G.Herdrich
5
, T.Marynowski
5
, A.Stamminger
6


1
Mars Society Deutschland e.V. & VEGA Space GmbH,
2
Universitaet der Bundeswehr
Muenchen,
3
Finnish Meteorological Institute,
4
Technical University of Iasi,
5
IRS TU
Stuttgart,
6
DLR Mobile Rocket Base Oberpfaffenhofen e-mail:
hannes.griebel@marssociety.de, roger.foerstner@unibw.de christian.mundt@unibw.de,
jouni.polkko@fmi.fi, hteodor@etc.tuiasi.ro marynowski@irs.uni-stuttgart.de,
andreas.stamminger@dlr.de

ABSTRACT

MIRIAM, short for Main Inflated Re-entry Into the Atmosphere Mission test, is a
validation concept designed for the Mars ballute technology development programme
ARCHIMEDES. This development programme is a joint effort of the Mars Society
Germany and the University of the Federal Armed Forces of Germany in Munich, with
further support by research institutes throughout Europe, the DLR and several industrial
companies.
The scientific objective of ARCHIMEDES is to obtain measurements of the Martian
atmosphere, magnetic environment and surface throughout almost the entire altitude
range reaching from outer space to ground. This is facilitated by an instrument carrier
attached to a large and gossamer thin film ballute.
MIRIAM was designed to validate the theory behind such a vehicle, test the newly
developed technology in flight and to gain experience related to manufacturing, handling,
flight operations, and gathering new scientific data on Mars and its atmosphere. A first
MIRIAM test was flown in October 2008 from ESRANGE.
In this paper we focus on the second MIRIAM test, named MIRIAM-2, which is
currently slated for launch in October 2014 on a two-stage Taurus-Improved Orion
rocket, again from ESRANGE. The main objective of MIRIAM-2 is to obtain realistic
flight data for the re-entry of such a low ballistic coefficient design. Aerothermodynamic
studies based on different methods have been performed for the entry into both Mars and
Earth atmospheres, and flight data is needed to validate those methods.
Presented will be the underlying theory, the mission and spacecraft design, the scientific
experiments aboard, and expected improvements of the current body of knowledge. We
will conclude with an outlook on further development, particularly the transfer of
MIRIAM-2 results to a more accurate description of the atmospheric entry on Mars.


30


VENUS DEEP ATMOSPHERE DESCENT PROBE (VDAP)

James B. Garvin, Lori Glaze, Paul Mahaffy, Natasha Johnson, Michael
Amato, Tim Van Sant

NASA Goddard, Email: james.b.garvin@nasa.gov

ABSTRACT

The deep atmosphere of Venus remains largely unexplored in terms of the details of its
trace gas chemistry. The history of key volatile reservoirs and surface-atmosphere-
interior exchange processes is also poorly established on the basis of existing data. Noble
gases within the bulk Venus atmosphere, as well as isotopes of hydrogen, oxygen, and
sulfur, are essentially unmeasured to the degree required to address fundamental
questions about the evolution of the planet, as prioritized in the latest planetary Decadal
Survey by the US National Academy of Sciences. For these reasons, we have developed a
mission concept for a Venus deep atmosphere descent probe (VDAP) that leverages
existing and emergent technologies associated with entry-descent-touchdown,
instrumentation, and flight system avionics. The intent is to define a low risk, cost-
effective mission concept for achieving the recently outlined priorities for Venus
atmospheric chemistry and dynamics, many of which date back to the early 1980s in the
aftermath of the US Pioneer Venus mission (PV) and contemporaneous Soviet Venera
landers.
Science objectives for the VDAP concept require state-of-the-art neutral mass
spectrometer capabilities to achieve seminal measurements of noble gas isotopes
including xenon (Xe), while also allowing for high mass resolution and time rate
sampling of trace gases from beneath the Venus cloud deck to the surface. Instruments
recently developed at NASAs Goddard Space flight Center are well-suited to achieve
these pivotal observations. Key to measuring the in situ chemistry of the atmosphere is a
robust approach for sampling that avoids the clogging issues that befell the Pioneer
Venus Large Probe, and which permits access to atmospheric gas samples from within
the clouds as well as repeatedly within the lowermost scale height (i.e., from 16 km to the
surface). Coupled to the requirement for in situ mass spectroscopy is the desire for direct
observation of isotopes of hydrogen, oxygen, and sulfur. This is optimally accomplished
by means of tunable laser spectrometer instrumentation, similar in capability to that
which is part of NASAs Mars Science Laboratory (MSL). The physical context for the
required atmospheric chemistry measurements is an essential part of the scientific
measurement strategy and can take advantage of the current state-of-the-art in
atmospheric structure instrumentation for pressure, temperature, and accelerations. The
photometry of the atmosphere beneath the cloud deck, as well as imaging of surfaces in
regions not explored by the Soviet Venera landers (i.e., such as highlands) represents
another opportunity for new science, and is enabled by descent imaging systems such as

31
those flown on NASAs Phoenix Mars polar lander and on the upcoming MSL mission.
These scientific measurement approaches can be combined into an optimized descent
sphere within a probe flight system that includes an aero-entry capsule with a thermal
protection system and parachutes to provide approximately an hour worth of pioneering
observations about Venus to form the basis from which future missions can be designed.
The VDAP architecture enables observations that were not possible during the first era of
in situ Venus reconnaissance (i.e., PV, Venera), and which go beyond what orbital or
flyby remote sensing can achieve. Such observations would form essential boundary
conditions and constraints for models of atmospheric and climate evolution, as well as
some aspects of surface-atmosphere-interior interactions. Furthermore, the suggested
VDAP approach is a natural pathfinder for larger-scale landed missions or to Flagship-
scale missions involving orbiters, balloons, and landed probes. Finally, direct, in situ
observation of the chemistry of the atmosphere, as well as of the meter-scale morphology
of the surface in rugged regions is only possible with extant technology from a deep
atmosphere descent probe. Our concept for VDAP is based upon NASA Goddard Space
Flight Center investments in combination with those of mission concept partners within
the US. We believe the VDAP approach is the lowest risk and most cost-effective
approach to resolving key scientific issues for Venus within the context of competed
mission programs at NASA. Now is the time for a next-generation probe mission to
Venus if future Flagship-class missions to our sister planet are to be implemented in the
2020s by the world community.


32


VENUS PATHFINDER A COMPACT LONG-LIVED
LANDER MISSION

Ralph Lorenz

John Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, ralph.lorenz@jhuapl.edu

ABSTRACT

The interior of Earths sister planet, and its surface meteorology, is largely unknown. To
win an understanding of Venus seismicity and surface diurnal cycles even comparable to
that we gained at Mars from Viking 35 years ago, requires a new technological
capability, namely that of long-duration survival on the torrid Venus surface.
Consideration of the diurnal cycle, and communications windows with the Earth, suggest
a 50-day minimum requirement for surface duration, with a 200 day goal.

This requires that the vehicle operate in a thermal steady state, which requires active
cooling. We propose a compact equipment vault, protected by a robust dewar, with
minimal heat dissipation inside. The nominal scenario is that electrical power, most of
which would be devoted to cooling, would be provided by a Radioisotope Stirling
Generator (we acknowledge that the present ASRG design does not tolerate either the
ambient temperatures at Venus, or the likely >200g entry loads during delivery).
Alternative power sources, such as batteries and fuel cells are also considered, but these
fail to meet the minimum duration above.
Communications would be direct-to-Earth (DTE), enabling this mission to be self-
contained i.e. without an orbiter for communications support (although of course such
support could substantially augment the science return). DTE capability of 350 bps would
permit a total return of ~270 Mbit over 50 days. The lander design implications for a
mission that includes communication through an orbiter are also discussed.

The lander concept is a hybrid design including a thermally protected enclosure with
exposed sensors. The internal power dissipation is limited to about 4W. Heat leaks into
the thermal vault add another 20W, making the total cooling required by the protected
area about 30 kW-hr.

This Venus Pathfinder mission has a substantial technology development associated with
it, and should be seen largely as a technology validation mission with some unique
science capabilities, rather than as a Flagship-class science mission. The payload is
therefore somewhat austere, and focuses on the science that is uniquely enabled by a
long-lived lander.

Primary instrumentation would include a descent camera (which would not be cooled,

33
and whose function would end shortly after landing), a meteorology and atmospheric
optics package, and a seismometer. Possible augmentations might include a Gamma ray
spectrometer and a magnetometer.

Key payload issues are the deployment of the seismometer onto the ground (including
decoupling it from the lander and protecting it from wind induced noise), and tolerance of
the ambient conditions (temperature, pressure and composition) by the seismometer and
anemometer.


34


TITAN AERIAL EXPLORER (TAE): EXPLORING TITAN
BY BALLOON

Jeffery L. Hall
1
, Jonathan Lunine
2
, Christophe Sotin
3
, Kim Reh
4
, Andre
Vargas
5
and Patrice Couzin
6


1
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, jlhall@mail.jpl.nasa.gov
2
Dipartimento di Fisica, Universit
degli Studi di Roma Tor Vergata, jlunine@roma2.infn.it
3
Jet Propulsion Laboratory,
csotin@mail.jpl.nasa.gov
4
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, kreh@mail.jpl.nasa.gov
5
CNES
National dEtudes Spatiales Andre.Vargas@cnes.fr
6
Thales Alenia Space,
patrice.couzin@thalesaleniaspace.com

ABSTRACT

Titan Aerial Explorer (TAE) is a mission concept for the exploration of Titan through use
of a helium superpressure balloon. The 4.6 m diameter spherical balloon would cruise at
a nominal altitude of 8 km just south of the equator and travel around the planet carried
by the prevailing wind. The mission science floor is accomplished
with a 3 month navigation, with a goal of complete circumnavigation that, at an estimated
speed of 1 m/s, would require 6 months. The total floating mass is estimated to be 200 kg
(including design margin and helium gas) of which 20 kg is science instruments carried
in the gondola suspended below the balloon. The TAE mission would acquire in situ
measurements of Titans troposphere and conduct imaging and sounding of the surface
and subsurface at high resolution. The instrument suite would consist of three remote
sensorsa camera (VISTA-B), near-infrared spectrometer (BSS) and radar sounder
(TRS)and three in situ experimentsan aerosol collector and analyzer (TCAA),
meteorology package (ASI/MET), and a device for measuring electric and magnetic
fields and conductivity (TEEP-B). In addition, tracking of the balloons radio signals
would allow for determination of atmospheric circulation patterns at the cruising altitude.
Collectively, these measurements would address the two scientific goals of the mission:
(1) to explore how Titan functions as a system in the context of the complex interplay of
the geology, hydrology, meteorology and aeronomy present there; and (2) to understand
the nature of Titans organic chemistry in the atmosphere and on the surface. The linkage
between the scientific goals and the measurements to be performed flows through a
detailed science traceability matrix. Delivery of the balloon and gondola into the
atmosphere would be via a Huygens-like entry system with a 3 m diameter aeroshell, that
is itself released from a carrier spacecraft after a several year interplanetary trip. The
balloon would be aerially deployed and inflated while under parachute descent. The
helium inflation gas would be carried in a set of high pressure storage tanks mounted
inside the aeroshell. 240 W of electrical power would be provided by 2 Advanced Stirling
Radioisotope Generators (ASRG) mounted on the gondola. Waste heat from the ASRGs
would be used to keep the gondola interior temperature near 20 C. Direct-to-Earth

35
telecommunications would be provided by a 20 W X-band transmitter and a 0.75 m
diameter steerable high gain antenna mounted on the gondola. It is estimated that an
average of 170 Mbits of data would be transmitted to Earth during each Titan sol using
ESA and/or NASA 35/34 m ground antennas. The balloon would be fabricated from a
polyester film and fabric laminate. A vent valve and a few kilograms of ballast would be
carried to enable a limited number of altitude excursions during the mission. Otherwise,
the superpressure design will result in constant altitude flight with very small deviations
of tens of meters from the nominal 8 km float altitude.


36


AN ADVANCED DESIGN FOR A TITAN BALLOON

Julian Nott
1
, Don Cameron
2
, Don Day
3
, Greg Mungas
4


Nott Technology LLC
1
, President Cameron Balloons Ltd
2
, President Day Weather Inc.
3
,
CTO Firestar Engineering LLC
4

ABSTRACT

Ever since Cassini arrived at Saturn and the Huygens Probe descended onto Titan, Titan
has emerged as an ever more interesting place with corresponding continuously growing
interest in a follow-on mission. A balloon appears to be an ideal vehicle to explore Titan.
It would carry cameras and instruments like a Mars Rover. But while the two existing
Mars Rovers have, combined, traveled less than thirty miles in six years, a balloon could
cover thousands or tens of thousands of miles. In addition is has emerged that Titan has
weather and other conditions that are dramatically better for balloon flight than provided
by the Earth's weather and conditions. Balloons emerge as very attractive for Titan in-situ
exploration. Conditions are of course still partly uncertain, see below.

It is very beneficial for a Titan balloon to be able to change altitude at will. It is obviously
a major advantage for science observations if the balloon can view wide panoramas at
altitude and descend to take close-up pictures and to lower instruments to touch both
solid and liquid surfaces directly. Being able to change altitude also means the balloon
can use light winds to travel slowly at low altitude for observations or climb into stronger
upper winds to travel long distances. And of great importance it allows for substantial
steering. The extent to which contemporary terrestrial balloons are steered very
effectively, simply by changing altitude is not fully appreciated outside the field. It will
be impossible to know exactly what Titan conditions will be offer until the balloon
actually arrives. So the more flexibility the balloon can have the better, perhaps to fly
above certain weather or fly below icing conditions or avoid bad weather altogether by
steering.

Balloons have long been proposed for Titan, but serious interest in hot air balloons began
followed the seminal 2005 paper [Jones, Fairbrother et al] which suggested that a Titan
hot air balloon could be heated by the surplus heat from the radioisotope thermoelectric
generators used to power all craft at the outer planets where sunlight is too weak for solar
cells to be effective.

But since then there has been only limited change in the basic concepts for such a
balloon. This paper describes in detail a system that hopefully substantially improves
over the 2005 proposal.




37


The paper will include:

A detailed description of a highly insulated balloon envelope which used
multiple fabric layers giving sufficient insulation that it can be heated by the
surplus heat from the newly developed Advanced Stirling Radioisotope
Generator. This has several major advantages. It allows for a lighter balloon
system and requires only one eighth [depending on the design] of the amount of
radioisotope material, a very scarce and expensive resource. In addition a smaller
highly insulated balloon has a higher buoyancy per unit volume. This of itself
gives greater resistance to gusting. In the design described the full hydrostatic
pressure at the top of the balloon is carried to the mouth following the classic
Cameron "Coke Can" design. This concept has been tested in innumerable
balloons flown over three decades. This give pressure at the mouth and this too is
very valuable to resist any atmospheric gusting. As yet another feature to resist
gusting, the balloon will incorporate a "Base Parachute", a fabric check valve
mimicking the extremely reliable crown parachute in universal use in hot air
balloons for several decades. Finally a smaller, hotter balloon has a smaller
displacement and correspondingly lower inertia, yet another beneficial quality
when encountering a gust or other unexpected weather. Also this smaller inertia
and cross section area mean that it can more easily be moved sideways if it is
fitted with propellers as has sometimes been proposed. While such a balloon
might be thought to be complex, it is no more so than such balloons as the two
piloted balloons which successfully flew around the world and trivial in
complexity compared to a space craft. Moreover this kind of design can be
quickly and very inexpensively prototyped.

As well as all these advantages, substantially smaller balloons might allow a
mission with a smaller rocket or allow a balloon as a "Hitchhiker Payload" on a
large mission or allow two or three balloons to be sent on a mission where one
was originally planned.

A detailed thermal analysis of the balloon envelope design, based on the
extensive physical and theoretical thermal modeling already completed [Colonius,
Nott, et. al. 2009].
Insights into Titan weather extrapolated from terrestrial experience. Currently the
best assumption is that Titan is rather earthlike. So the practical experience gained
by forecasters specializing in balloons from the more than four million piloted
flights made over the last five decades by terrestrial hot air balloons is invaluable
to draw on.
A description of an emergency heating system. As mentioned there will be
uncertainties about Titan conditions even after a balloon is flying there. The
balloon described is very much better to survive unexpected weather than other
concepts. But the paper will also include a detailed description of an emergency
heat source using hydrazine or a non-toxic, low temperature tolerant, very high
energy density, NOFBX monopropellant (in flight experiment development for
launch to Space Station in 2012 and in prototype ascent engine development and

38
test for the Mars Sample Return Mars Ascent Vehicle) to allow the balloon even
better ability to survive encounters with turbulence, downdrafts and other
unexpected conditions. Despite almost 230 years practical experience, terrestrial
balloon operators still encounter weather
which has never been experienced previously. Assuming, as is currently
anticipated, weather like everything else on Titan is very earthlike, unexpected
events will be encountered. With or without the features to add robustness to the
balloon described above, an emergency heat source is seen by some terrestrial
operators as improving reliability perhaps by an order of magnitude or more,
although this is not fully quantifiable.
A detailed description of a method of air-launch inflation, meaning that the
balloon fills, heats and flies away while falling through the atmosphere. This
extrapolates from 50 years experience of contemporary hot air balloon operations
including thousands of hot air balloons that have been successfully air-launched.

In all it is hoped to present a design with substantial benefits over previous Titan hot air
balloon proposals, over any proposal where the balloon flies at a fixed altitude and any
design such as an AM, mixed gas and hot air balloon, where the balloon uses a lifting gas
which will inevitably suffer lifting gas loss over time.


39


MISSION CONCEPT FOR ENTRY PROBES TO THE FOUR
OUTER PLANETS BASED ON E-SAIL PROPULSION

Jean-Pierre Lebreton
1
, Pekka Janhunen
2
, Sini Merikallio
2
, Petri
Toivanen
2


ESA/ESTEC, Solar System Missions Division, Noordwijk, The Netherlands.
1
Jean-pierre.lebreton@esa.int, Finnish Meteorological Institute, FMI, Helsinki, Finland
2
,
Pekka.Janhunen@fmi.fi, Sini.Merikallio@fmi.fi, Petri.Toivanen@fmi.fi

ABSTRACT

The Electric Solar Wind Sail (E-sail) is a new propulsion method that uses long, thin,
positively charged tethers to convert solar wind momentum flux into thrust. The E-sail
concept was invented in 2006 (http://www.electric-sailing.fi/) and its development is
partly funded by the European Unions Seventh Framework Programme for Research and
Technological Development, EU FP7. According to current estimates, the E-sail can be
2-3 orders of magnitude more efficient than traditional propulsion methods (chemical
rockets and ion engines) in terms of produced lifetime-integrated impulse per propulsion
system mass. In an E-Sail, the screen that reflects the solar wind protons is made by a
network of the electrostatic sheaths forming around each of the highly positively charged
tethers. Despite the fact that the solar wind dynamic pressure is smaller than the radiation
pressure of solar photons, the E-Sail can be more efficient than the photonic Solar Sail as
the electrostatic screen that reflects the solar wind protons can be orders of magnitude
larger -when using long, highly-charged tethers-, than that of a solar sail. Although the
solar wind flux and the solar radiation flux both vary with the squared distance to the sun,
the thrust produced by an E-Sail is inversely proportional to the distance from the sun (F
1/r) as the sheath size around each tether increases when the solar wind density
decreases, while the thrust produced by a photonic solar sail is directly proportional to the
solar radiation flux (F 1/r2). This makes the E-Sail a propellantless method very
attractive for outer solar system missions.

The science case for entry probes in the four outer planets has been made by several
authors (e.g. Owen T. C., Atmospheric Probes: Needs and Prospects, in International
Workshop on Planetary Probes, ESA SP-544, 2004; Atreya et al., Multiprobe exploration
of the giant planets- shallow probes, Proceedings, International Planetary Probe
Workshop, IPPW-3, ESA SP-WPP263, 2006). In this paper, we describe the concept of a
multi-probe mission to each of the four outer planets that is based
on a common concept of a carrier-entry probe composite propelled by an E-Sail to each
destination for a direct entry into the atmosphere of the planets. The E-sail technology
would allow significantly reduced travel times and reduced launch costs compared to
traditional propulsion techniques. The concept of a standard 1-N E-Sail has been recently

40
studied in detail (Janhunen et al., Electric solar wind sail: Towards test missions (Invited
article), Rev. Sci. Instrum., 81, 111301, 2010, doi:10.1063/1.3514548). It requires
hundred 20 km long tethers charged to several 10s of kV. It would allow to propel a 500
kg spacecraft (carrier-probe composite, but excluding the E-Sail propulsion stage) to
Jupiter in a mere 1 year, to Saturn in 1.7 year, to Uranus in 3 years and to Neptune in 4.6
years. The four probes could either be launched independently by a small launcher or
together by more powerful launcher on a trajectory that would place them in the solar
wind. The constraints of a planetary launch window would not apply, thus providing
increased launch flexibility compared to a classical planetary mission launch window.
The arrival velocity of the probes would be relatively large, but it would not significantly
affect the entry speed as this key parameter would essentially be governed by
acceleration due to planet gravity (the same would not be true at Titan). This makes the
E-sail concept a very appealing propellant-less method to conduct a multi-probe mission
to the four outer planets at an affordable cost, especially if a similar entry probe design
would be used for all four planets. The scientific return that would be allowed by
identical probes to each of the four outer planets would need to be evaluated carefully to
confirm the attractiveness of the proposed approach. Alternatively, for a higher cost, each
probe could be tailored for optimizing the science return at each of the four planets.









Session 3 - Science from Probes and Penetrators


42
NEW TOOLS AND METHODS TO FULLY
CHARACTERIZE THE ATMOSPHERIC ENVIRONMENT
FOR A MARTIAN EDL APPLICATION TO THE 2016
EXOMARS DESCENT MODULE

F. Forget
1
, A. Spiga
1
, L. Montabone
1
, E. Millour
1
, A. Colaitis
1
, V.
Bourrier
1
F. Gonzalez-Galindo
2
S. R. Lewis
3
, S. Portigliotti
4
.

Laboratoire de Mtorologie Dyna- mique, IPSL, Paris, France (forget@lmd.jussieu.fr)

1
, Instituto de Astrofsica de Andaluca, Granada, Spain
2
, Department of Physics and
Astronomy, The Open University, Milton Keynes, UK
3
, Thales Alenis Space Italia,
Tonio, Italy
4

ABSTRACT

Because of the presence of a relatively thin and highly variable atmosphere, the Entry
Descent and Landing of Martian probes is a difficult task which requires the best possible
characterization of the Martian atmosphere, from the upper atmosphere to the boundary
layer. Ideally, one want to predict as accurately as possible density, temperature, pressure
and winds (including their variability and perturbations) as well as possible updraft and
downdraft in the boundary layer (for the parachute phase) and the aerosols mixing ratio
(in particular for the heatshield erosion), etc.
We will review the various tools that are now available to address these questions (with a
focus on the tools and data that have been made available in the last couple of years).
This includes:
Spacecraft observations, which have been the reference source of information to
prepare an IDL. A climatology of the Martian atmosphere has been collected
since 1999 (beginning of mapping mission of Mars Global Surveyor) by various
instruments. In particular, data from the Mars Climate Sounder on MRO which
monitor the atmosphere from the surface to above 70 km are now available.
Altogether, we have now de- tailed climatologies on the Martian weather for 7
years, which allows us for the first time to derive reliable statistics on the year-to-
year variability. At some seasons, it seems that the Martian atmosphere is very
repeatable from year to year. This can give a lot of confidence in the prediction.
Global Climate Model (GCM) and derived tools. GCMS have been extensively
used to pro- vide reliable climatologies of the Martian cli- mate. They are
constantly improving and are now able to predict the Martian weather anywhere
and at any season with a striking accuracy. GCM simulations can be used directly
or through tools that exploit the GCM outputs to provide engineering tools like
Mars Gram or the Mars Climate database suitable to combine outputs from the
GCM with variability models suitable for Monte-Carlo EDL simulations. The
MCD is for instance designed to simulate a variety of possible entry profile for
various dust loading and me- teorological conditions. It also include a tool de-
signed to predict surface pressure with the high- est possible accuracy by
combining 1) reference pressure measure of Viking lander 1 site at a giv-

43
en seasonal date, 2) large scale spatial variation due to meteorology (including
thermal tides at a given local time) from the GCM and 3) small scale variations
due to topography, using 1/32 degree MOLA data (~2km horizontal resolution).
Overall this tool is thought to predict pressure with an error of less than a couple
of percent.
Data assimilation are obtained by optimally combining observations (obtained at
various locations and time) with the a-priori knowledge from a GCM. State of the
art techniques that are used on the Earth to construct reference climatologies (re-
analysis) are now available on Mars from various group using the MGS TES and
MRO MCS data.
Meso-scale models with a resolution of a few kilometers are also necessary to
complement the GCMS, in particular to predict the local winds resulting from the
topography below 10 km and the landing conditions.
Large Eddy Simulation models (LES) are new kind of tools with a resolution of a
few tens of- meters which are able to simulate the convective boundary layer
environment (during daytime) at a landing site, and in particular the strong con-
vective updraft and downdraft which may be dangerous for a probe under a
parachute.


Figure: an example of Large Eddy simulations of the convective boundary layer used
to model the parachute descent of a probe.
In our presentation, we will review all the tools available, and illustrate the kind of results
that can be obtained with the case of the ESA Exomars Descent module schedule to land
on Mars in October 2016.

44
Entry Trajectory Reconstruction Using Phoenix Radio Link

. Karatekin
1
and S. W. Asmar
2

Royal Observatory of Belgium
1
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of
Technology
2


ABSTRACT

The Phoenix Mars Lander entered the Martian atmosphere on May 25, 2008. All ensuing
communications during Entry Descent and Landing (EDL) path were via an UHF uplink
to a Mars orbiting spacecraft. The Odyssey orbiter relayed the Phoenix data to the Deep
Space Network station (DSN) at Goldstone. In addition, objective of this activity was to
monitor the state of the lander during critical stages of the EDL. The data can now be
explored for utility to reconstruct the entry trajectory provided that the received UHF
signal is not too noisy. The recorded signal profile from Phoenix EDL is processed to
quantify the accuracy of the reconstructed trajectory and the atmospheric profiles
(density, pressure, and temperature) determined along this trajectory.



45
AIRBORNE OBSERVATION OF THE HAYABUSA
SAMPLE RETURN CAPSULE RE-ENTRY

Jay H. Grinstead
1
, Peter M. Jenniskens
2
, Alan M. Cassell
3
, Jim Albers
2
,
Michael Winter
4


NASA Ames Research Center
1
, The SETI Institute
2
, ERC Incorporated
3
, University
Affiliated Research Center/University of California
4

ABSTRACT

The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) recently completed their Hayabusa
asteroid exploration mission. Launched in 2003, Hayabusa made contact with, and
retrieved a sample from, the near-Earth asteroid Itokawa in 2005. The sample return
capsule (SRC) re-entered over the Woomera Test Range (WTR) in southern Australia on
June 13, 2010, at approximately 11:21 pm local time (09:51 UTC). The SRC re-entry
velocity was 12.2 km/s, making it the second-fastest Earth return velocity behind
NASA1s Stardust sample return capsule re-entry in 2006.
From a space technology development perspective, Hayabusas re-entry functioned as a
rare flight experiment of an entry vehicle and its thermal protection system. In
collaboration with the SETI Institute, NASA deployed its DC-8 airborne laboratory and a
team of international researchers to Australia to observe the re-entry of the SRC. The use
of an airborne platform enables observation above most clouds and weather and greatly
diminishes atmospheric absorption of the optical signals. The DC-8s flight path was
engineered and flown to provide a view of the spacecraft that bracketed the heat pulse to
the capsule. A suite of imaging instruments on board the DC-8 successfully recorded the
luminous portion of the re-entry event. For approximately 70 seconds, the spectroscopic
and radiometric instruments acquired images and spectra of the capsule, its wake, and
destructive re-entry of the spacecraft bus. Figure 1 shows a perspective view of the WTR,
the SRC re-entry trajectory, and the flight path of the DC-8.
The SRC was jettisoned from the spacecraft bus approximately 3 hours prior to entry
interface. Due to thruster failures on the spacecraft, it could not be diverted from the
entry path and followed the trajectory of the SRC, where it burned up in the atmosphere
between approximately 100 and 50 km altitude. Fortuitously, the separation distance
between the spacecraft and SRC was sufficient to clearly resolve the SRC from the debris
field of the burning spacecraft. Figure 2 shows a frame from a high-definition television
camera on board the aircraft and denotes the locations of the SRC and spacecraft bus
debris.
Most instruments had the capability to spectrally resolve the emission of the SRC and
spacecraft debris fragments. The spectral range covered by the instruments spanned from
the near ultraviolet (approximately 300 nm) to the short wave infrared (approximately
1700 nm). The instruments were calibrated before and after the observation flight.
Reference standard irradiance source lamps were used for calibration to absolute spectral
radiance. Atomic line source lamps were used for wavelength calibration. Atmospheric

46
absorption will be corrected for using extinction calculations based on an atmosphere
model and range-to-target distances. Figure 3
shows a preliminary spectrum recorded simultaneously by four separate instrument
platforms; signal diminution due to atmospheric absorption in the infrared by H2O and
O2 has not been corrected. Ground- based observation teams from the US, Australia, and
Japan also recorded the re-entry. The ground and airborne observation data have been
used to reconstruct the as-flown trajectory of the SRC.
The Hayabusa observation campaigns objectives and methods were similar to that of the
Stardust re-entry observation. However, unique technical and programmatic challenges
were encountered arising from coordination and cooperation with JAXA and the
Australian authorities. A brief summary of the Hayabusa mission, the airborne
observation campaign, data, and analysis will be presented.



Figure 1. Perspective view of the Woomera Test Range in South Australia showing the
re-entry trajectory of the Hayabusa SRC and the flight path of the DC-8 observation
aircraft. Peak heating, predicted to occur at 58 km altitude, is noted.















47



Figure 2. Single-frame image from a high-definition television camera aboard the DC-8
observation aircraft. The Hayabusa SRC is well separated from the burning debris of the
spacecraft bus.

Figure 3. Composite spectrum of the SRC emission at one point in time as seen with four
different instruments. Atomic and molecular emission features in the shock layer are
noted. Absorption due to atmospheric O2 and H2O has not been corrected for.
2 Apparent flux (W/m/nm)


48


RADIATION MODELING FOR THE REENTRY OF THE
HAYABUSA SAMPLE RETURN CAPSULE

Michael W. Winter
1
, Ryan D. McDaniel
2
, Yih-Kanq Chen
2
, Yen Liu
2
,
David Saunders
3


University Affiliated Research Center UARC, UC Santa Cruz NASA Ames Research
Center, Michael.Winter@nasa.gov
1
, NASA Ames Research Center
2
, ERC, Incorporated,
NASA Ames Research Center
3


ABSTRACT

On June 13, 2010 the Japanese Hayabusa capsule performed its reentry into the Earths
atmosphere over Australia after a seven year journey to the asteroid Itokawa. The reentry
was studied by numerous imaging and spectroscopic instruments onboard NASA's DC-8
Airborne Laboratory and from three sites on the ground, in order to measure surface and
plasma radiation generated by the Hayabusa Sample Return Capsule (SRC).

Before flight, computations of the flow field around the forebody were performed using
the in- house code DPLR [1, 2] assuming an 11-species (N2, O2, NO, NO+, N2+, O2+,
N, O, N+, O+, and e) air in thermochemical nonequilibrium at peak heating. The results
were used as input for the material response code FIAT [3] to calculate surface
temperatures of the heat shield. Finally, the thermal radiation of the glowing heat shield
was computed based on these temperatures and propagated to the predicted observation
position taking into account the influence of the observation angle and of atmospheric
extinction yielding estimates of thermal radiation to be measured by the observing
instruments during reentry. These estimates were used to provide calibration sources of
appropriate brightness.

Post flight, the flow solutions were recomputed to include the whole flow field around
the capsule at 11 points along the reentry trajectory using updated trajectory information.
Again, material response was taken into account to obtain most reliable surface
temperature information. These data will be used to compute thermal radiation of the
glowing heat shield and plasma radiation by the shock/post-shock layer system to support
analysis of the experimental observation data. For this purpose, lines of sight data are
being extracted from the flow field volume grids and plasma radiation will be computed
using NEQAIR [4] which is a line-by-line spectroscopic code with one-dimensional
transport of radiation intensity. The procedures being used were already successfully
applied to the analysis of the observation of the Stardust reentry [5].


49
Details of the numerical procedures and the calibration approach will be provided in the
full-length paper.

Acknowledgments
The observation campaign was funded and managed by the Orion Thermal Protection
System Advanced Development Project and the NASA Engineering and Safety Center.
The present work was supported by NASA Contract NAS2-03/44 to UARC, UC Santa
Cruz, and by NASA ContractNNA10DE12C to ERC Incorporated. The authors would
like to thank Dr. George Raiche (Chief, Thermophysics Facilities Branch, NASA ARC)
and Dr. Aga Goodsell (Chief, Reacting Flow Environments Branch, NASA ARC) for
support of modelling and simulation aspects of the present work. Furthermore, the
authors wish to acknowledge the support of Jay Grinstead, NASA Ames, Peter
Jenniskens, SETI Institute, Alan Cassell, ERC, and Jim Albers, for mission planning and
for providing trajectory information, and Nicholas Clinton and Jeffrey Myers, UARC, for
compiling Modtran computations for atmospheric extinction.

References
[1] Wright, M. J., Candler, G. V., and Bose, D., Data-Parallel Line Relaxation
Method of the Navier-Stokes Equations, AIAA Journal, Vol. 36, No. 9, 1998, pp. 1603
1609.
[2] Wright, M.W., White, T., and Mangini, N., Data Parallel Line Relaxation (DPLR)
Code User Manual Acadia Version 4.01.1, NASA/TM-2009-215388, October 2009.
[3] Chen, Y.-K., and Milos, F.S., Ablation and Thermal Analysis Program for
Spacecraft Heatshield Analysis, Journal of Spacecraft and Rockets, Vol. 36, No. 3, 1999,
pp. 475-483.
[4] Whiting, E. E., Park, C., Liu, Y., Arnold, J. O., and Paterson, J. A., NEQAIR96,
Nonequilibrium and Equilibrium Radiative Transport and Spectra Program: Users
Manual, NASA RP-1389, NASA, December 1996.
[5] Yen Liu, Dinesh Prabhu, Kerry A. Trumble, David Saunders, and Peter
Jenniskens, Radiation Modeling for the Reentry of the Stardust Sample Return Capsule,
Journal of Spacecrafts and Rockets, Vol. 47, No. 5, September October 2010.



50


GIANT PLANET FORMATION, SATURN AND URANUS
ENTRY PROBES, AND THE DECADAL

Sushil Atreya

University of Michigan, www.umich.edu/~atreya

ABSTRACT

This talk will focus on the past, present and the future of the origin and evolution of the
giant planets and their atmospheres problem. The core accretion model has been the
conventional model of the formation of the giant planets for four decades [1]. According
to this model, a core formed first from grains of ice, rock, metals and refractory material
of the protoplanetary nebula. Gases were trapped in these solids. Upon reaching a critical
mass of 10-15 Earth Mass, the core gravitationally captured the most volatile of the
gases, neon, hydrogen and helium from the surrounding nebula. This led to the
gravitational collapse of the protoplanetary nebula. These last volatiles and the gases
released from the core during accretional heating were the origin of the atmosphere. Thus
the elemental abundance in the atmosphere would reflect that in the protoplanetary
nebula, i.e. solar composition with the same abundance ratio to hydrogen as in the sun.

Surprisingly, the Galileo probe found the abundance of heavy elements (relative to H) in
Jupiters atmosphere enriched compared to the sun [2-4]. Moreover, the enrichment
factor is uneven, varying from 2 to 6, i.e. the inter-elemental abundances are non-solar
[5,6]! One missing piece of Jupiters formation puzzle is the oxygen elemental abundance
(O/H), however. Oxygen is sequestered in water in Jupiter, and the Galileo probe entered
a 5-micron hotspot, the Sahara Desert of Jupiter, which was dry. The determination of
water is critical to the models of the origin and evolution of Jupiter as water was
presumably the original carrier of the heavy elements that formed the core. If enriched by
a similar factor as the other heavy elements, water could comprise one-half of the mass of
Jupiters primordial core, or greater. Juno will measure and map water in Jupiters
troposphere by passive microwave remote sensing in 2016.

A comparison of the elemental abundances in Saturn with those in Jupiter is essential for
constraining the formation models of the gas giant planets. However, remote sensing
observations of Saturn from the Cassini orbiter have determined only one element,
carbon, since remote sensing is not suited to measure the other heavy elements. A probe
is required [6-8].

Finally, the models of the formation of the giant planets would be incomplete without
similar heavy element data of the icy giant planets, Uranus and Neptune [9]. Only carbon
is constrained in these planets, and the data have high uncertainty. The ice/gas ratio in

51
these planets is 90-95% compared to 3-10% for the gas giants. Whether or not the icy
giant planets followed a similar path of accretion as the gas giant planets can be
understood only after the determination of a full suite of their elemental composition
[5,9].

The NRC Planetary Decadal Survey (2013-2023) opens a path forward for entry probes
into Saturn and Uranus. I will discuss also how within the available resources, both
missions will be able to determine the elemental composition that is key to the models of
formation of the giant planets in particular, the solar system in general, and, by
implication, the extrasolar planetary systems.

Bibliography
Authors own publications can be downloaded from www.umich.edu/~atreya.

1. Formation of the Giant Planets, H. Mizuno, Prog. Theor. Phys. 64, 544, 1980.
2. The Composition of the Jovian Atmosphere as Determined by the Galileo Probe Mass
Spectrometer, H.B. Niemann, S.K. Atreya, et al., J. Geophys. Res. 103, 22831, 1998.
3. Comparison of the Atmospheres of Jupiter and Saturn: Deep Atmospheric
Composition, Cloud Structure, Vertical Mixing, and Origin, S.K. Atreya, M.H. Wong,
T.C. Owen, P.R. Mahaffy, H.B. Niemann, I. de Pater, Th. Encrenaz, and P. Drossart,
Planet Space Sci. 47, 1243, 1999.
4. Composition of the Atmosphere of Jupiter - An Update, and Implications for the
Extrasolar Giant Planets, S.K. Atreya, P.R. Mahaffy, H.B. Niemann, M.H. Wong, T.C.
Owen, Planet Space Sci., 51(2), 105, 2003.
5. Coupled Chemistry and Clouds of the Giant Planets A Case for Multiprobes, S.K.
Atreya, A.S. Wong, Space Sci. Rev. 116, Nos. 1-2, pp 121-136, 2005.
6. Saturn Probes: Why, Where, How? S. K. Atreya, Proceedings of the International
Planetary Probe Workshop IPPW-4, 2007, http://www.mrc.uidaho.edu/~atkinson/IPPW-
4/Session_4/Papers/4_6ATREYA.pdf.
7. Multiprobe Exploration of the Giant Planets Shallow Probes, S. K. Atreya, S. Bolton,
T. Guillot, T. C. Owen, International Planetary Probe Workshop IPPW-3 Proceedings,
ESA Special Publication WPP263, 2006. 8. Saturn Exploration Beyond Cassini-Huygens,
T. Guillot, S.K. Atreya, S. Charnoz, M. Dougherty, P. Read, in Saturn From Cassini-
Huygens (M. K. Dougherty et al., eds.), Chapter 23, pp 745-761, 2009, DOI 10.1007/978-
1-4020-9217-6_23, Springer Dordrecht, New York. 9. Clouds of Neptune and Uranus, S.
K. Atreya and A. S. Wong, NASA Proceedings of Planetary Probes Workshop
NASA/CP-2004-213456 (E. Venkatapathy, et al., eds.), pp 107-110, 2004.



52


2012 DECADAL SURVEY GIANT PLANET ENTRY PROBE
SCIENCE

Thomas R. Spilker
(1),
David H. Atkinson
(2)


(1)Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Inst. of Tech., MS 301-170S, 4800 Oak Grove
Drive, Pasadena, CA 91109, USA, Thomas.R.Spilker@jpl.nasa.gov (2)Univ. of Idaho,
Dept. of Electrical & Computer Eng., Moscow, ID 83844, USA, atkinson@uidaho.edu

ABSTRACT

On March 7, 2011 the US National Research Council released the draft report of the
results of its 2012 Planetary Science Decadal Survey (PSDS). Atmospheric entry probes
to the giant planets were well-represented in the PSDS, with addition of a Saturn Probe
mission to the list of recommended NASA New Frontiers Program missions, inclusion of
an entry probe along with an orbiter in a new Uranus mission concept, and
recommendations for technology development leading to a mission with a Neptune
orbiter and entry probe for the following decade (2023-2032). This follows closely the
recommendations of the 55-author PSDS white paper, Entry Probe Mission to the Giant
Planets. Studies conducted for the PSDS suggest that under the usual New Frontiers
Program approach for budget reserves, it might be possible to add Tier 2 science
investigations and instrumentation to a Saturn entry probe, enhancing the science return
beyond the Tier 1 objectives. The Uranus mission would most likely be a small flagship-
class mission. Studies indicate that for the most probable entry geometries for a Uranus
probe mission conducted in the PSDS time frame, an entry system designed for a Saturn
probe mission could also be used for a Uranus probe, without excessive margin in the
design. Significant overlap of the Tier 1 science objectives at Saturn and Uranus also
provides an opportunity for use of common instruments. A descent module (including
instrumentation) for Uranus would be well suited for a Neptune mission, though the
Neptune system presents some unique issues for the entry system. A prograde entry at
Neptune would have an atmosphere-relative entry speed significantly slower than that of
a Uranus probe, so the Uranus entry system might be overdesigned for Neptune, while a
retrograde entry would have an atmosphere-relative entry speed significantly faster than
that of a prograde Saturn probe, requiring a higher-performance entry system.

As discussed in the giant planet entry probe white paper, this series of entry probe
missions would complete the initial in situ exploration of all four of our solar systems
giant planets, thereby allowing comparison of gas giants (Jupiter and Saturn) to ice giants
(Uranus and Neptune) and comparisons within those classifications These comparisons
are expected to yield significant progress in understanding formation processes and time
scales for the giant planets, and for the solar system as a whole. Such understanding
would help to understand the formation of other planetary systems, and the tremendous

53
variation in the architectures of exoplanetary systems now being discovered.

This presentation will summarize the science described in the PSDS for these future
mission concepts, and some of the instrumentation options for implementing them. It will
also discuss the programmatic environment for each mission concept, describing
decisions and events that might lead to their implementation as flight projects.



54


OUTER PLANET DOPPLER WIND MEASUREMENTS

D.H. Atkinson
(1)
, S.W. Asmar
(2)
, T.R. Spilker
(2)



(1)
University of Idaho (atkinson@uidaho.edu)
(2)
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California
Institute of Technology

ABSTRACT

The atmospheres of the giant planets represent time capsules dating to the epoch of solar
system formation. For a complete and self consistent understanding of the giant planets,
an integrated knowledge of the structure of the atmosphere is needed, including
composition, clouds, energy structure, and dynamics. In particular, atmospheric dynamics
- winds, waves, convection, and turbulence - are responsible for horizontal and vertical
mixing of atmospheric constituents including noble gases and volatiles and their
respective isotopes, and upwelling of disequilibrium species providing diagnostics of
deep atmosphere compositions and chemistries. Winds and waves are essential to
understanding the meteorology including the structure, location, and life cycle of clouds,
and momentum transfer and overall energy structure of the atmosphere. The altitude
profile of the winds places valuable constraints on the location of solar energy deposition,
which affects cloud structure and the static stability of the atmosphere, and can provide
an indication of the relative importance to the atmospheric energy structure of solar
energy relative to internal energy sources.
Some measurements of the composition, cloud structure, and dynamics of the upper
atmosphere can be obtained from remote sensing. However, to measure beneath the
clouds requires in situ sampling from an atmospheric entry probe, from which the
dynamics of the atmosphere can be inferred by utilizing Doppler techniques to track the
probe motions throughout descent. Although Doppler wind methodologies depend
strongly on the target whether a large, rapidly rotating giant planet or a smaller, more
slowly rotating terrestrial planet (including Titan), the overarching principles are the
same in either case. Accurate reconstructions of the probe entry and descent profile,
including location, altitude, and descent speed, and the assumption of predominantly
zonal (east-west) winds are used to extract the relatively small signature of probe motions
resulting from atmospheric dynamics, reflected as Doppler residuals in the probe radio
link frequency profile. From the residuals, the vertical profile of zonal winds is retrieved
utilizing an iterative inversion algorithm that accounts for the integrated effect of the
winds on the probe descent longitude. Analysis of the probe radio link frequency
residuals can also provide evidence of atmospheric waves and turbulence, as well as
probe microdynamics including spin and pendulum motion.
Doppler wind measurements require ultrastable oscillators (USO) in both the probe
transmitter and the receiver. Two USO types have Doppler wind flight heritage crystal
oscillators flown on the Galileo probe mission to Jupiter, and atomic USOs using

55
rubidium gas cells on the Huygens (Titan) probe. Key USO characteristics include the
warm-up time and power profile, the time profile of stability during warm-up, long-term
stability, and phase noise. Other requirements for Doppler wind measurements on
mission design are relatively minor. This paper will provide an overview of Doppler wind
methodologies used on the two outer solar system probe missions to date, and will
present a preliminary discussion of considerations and requirements for future giant
planet Doppler wind measurements.



56


TITAN AERIAL EXPLORER

Jonathan I Lunine
1
, Christophe Sotin
2

University of Rome
1
, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology
2

ABSTRACT

We propose the Titan Aerial Explorer (TAE) mission that would deploy and operate a
super- pressure helium balloon in the lower atmosphere of Saturns giant moon, Titan.
The Cassini- Huygens mission revealed Titan to be a body with an active hydrological
cycle involving methane, ethane and a variety of other organic molecules. It found
methane oozing from the surface at the Huygens landing site, and liquid organics residing
in vast near-polar deposits whose extent rivals or exceeds the great lakes and seas on
Earth. Cassini observed methane clouds forming as convective storms in the summertime
south, as ghostly echoes superimposed on methane seas sheathed in late winter darkness,
and as unexpectedly vast outbursts in the mid- latitudes as the Sun crossed the equator of
Titan at equinox. The geologic history of the surface remains a mystery after six years of
Cassini data and will continue to be a mystery through the end of the Cassini mission.
The variety of surface features and atmospheric phenomena seen only at moderate and
low resolution by the orbiter tease us, because we know from nature of the one site
visited in situ by the Huygens probe that hidden among the dunes and channels, the
mountains and lake shores, is a complex history of climate change and chemical
evolution tied to methane and its prodigious variety of organic products. We seek to
understand this history by deploying at Titan the one type of vehicle that combines the
mobility and coverage of the orbiter with the capability for high resolution and in situ
observations demonstrated by the Huygens lander, and does so in an aerodynamically
stable and low-risk fashionan aerostat (balloon plus gondola).

TAE would utilize a helium-filled super-pressure (or pressurized) balloon, rather than a
hot air (montgolfire) design, as in many previous studies. The great advantage of the
pressurized balloon is the maturity of its inflation and deployment scheme. Its
disadvantage is relative sensitivity to the presence of small holes that can reduce
dramatically the mission lifetime. The threshold science mission is achieved after a 3-
month long navigation halfway around Titan, while the goal is a complete
circumnavigation (6 months).

TAE science is organized around two themes, which emphasize the special nature of
Titan and at the same time its important connections to studies of other planets and the
Earth. These are (1) The presence of an atmosphere and liquid volatile hydrologic
cycle, which implies climate evolution through time and (2) organic chemistry, which is
pervasive through its atmosphere, surface, and probably interior. Therefore the first
science goal is to explore how Titan functions as a system in the context of the complex

57
interplay of the geology, hydrology, meteorology, and aeronomy present there. Goal 2 is
to understand the nature of Titans organic chemistry in the atmosphere and on its
surface. These in turn lead to a set of primary science objectives for a balloon-borne
system, which can then, through the science investigations that devolve from them, be
addressed through a set of measurement objectives.






SESSION 4 - EDL Technology Development


59


Going Beyond Rigid Aeroshells:
Enabling Venus In-Situ Science Missions with Deployables
Ethiraj Venkatapathy
1
, Todd White
2
, Gary Allen
3
, and Dinesh Prabhu
4


NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA USA

ABSTRACT

Missions to Venus and Jupiter are amongst the most challenging of all in situ
science missions employing entry probes because of the severity of environments
encountered. Although NASAs decadal survey for Planetary Science, is eagerly
awaited by the planetary science and EDL (Entry, Descent and Landing) communities, it
is yet to be released as of this abstract submission and Venus could be a high priority
destination. If in situ science missions to Venus are recommended in the decadal survey,
then it imperative to understand the challenges and limitations of the conventional
aeroshell architectures and offer solutions for the near and longer term exploration of
Venus.

Past missions (both US and USSR) to Venus have relied on traditional rigid
aeroshell architectures. The entry conditions are ~5 kW/cm2 peak heat-flux, peak
pressures of 5 to 10 atmospheres, and deceleration loads of 250 to 450 gs
necessitating the use of high-density and high-performance carbon-phenolic (CP)
ablative thermal protection system (TPS) for the aeroshell. However, the capability for
manufacturing base for heritage carbon-phenolic has significantly eroded over the last
decade, and four white papers advocating revival of this manufacturing capability were
submitted to the Planetary Science Decadal Survey. In the short term, reviving or
developing a process for the manufacture of alternate (i.e., non-heritage) carbon-phenolic
is essential because the availability of this material enables science missions to the Outer
Planets, high-speed sample return missions to earth, as well as missions to Venus.
However, in the long term, maintaining a material manufacturing line when NASA is
effectively the only consumer of such material is probably not very cost effective.
Furthermore, availability of proven high-density ablators still does not address the high
decelerations at extreme entry conditions.

Testing capabilities, especially arc jet capabilities, to qualify and flight certify
materials is yet another challenge. Recent works by Venkatapathy, Laub, Hartman,
Arnold, Wright, and Allen [1,2], outline the technical approach needed for development,
testing, and qualification of ablating TPS materials, especially carbon-phenolic (including
alternates to heritage CP).

In addition to the high heating environment that dictates the need for very high

60
density (1.4 g/cc) ablating TPS material, the deceleration loads encountered in ballistic
entries into Venusian atmosphere are so high (250-450 gs) that it is necessary to design
not only the TPS and the underlying structure, also the entire entry system including the
instruments to be robust enough to withstand the entry g-load. Testing and qualifying the
probe and instruments at such deceleration loads is a considerable challenge.
Furthermore, the delicate instruments used for scientific measurements may require
extensive efforts to make them robust and making the mission expensive. As a result,
missions that need to fit in accost class such as New Frontier and Discovery may forego
doing the science. Although there is the possibility of a potential compromise between
robustness and performance of the instruments, such a compromise will always
invariably be at the cost of additional mass to the overall system, and perhaps a
significant reduction in the value of the mission. As a case in point, Venus in situ science
missions proposed in the past, such as balloon and lander missions, have been forced to
severely reduce the duration of the missions because the high deceleration loads were
beyond those that could be withstood by advanced (but delicate) radioisotope power
systems (such as ASRG) or the RTG powered Sterling cycle refrigeration system [3,4],

The recent reorganization at NASA and the creation of the Office of Chief
Technologist (OCT) at NASA has opened up avenues to think outside the box and
develop new technologies to meet the challenges of entry, descent and landing in any
planetary atmosphere.

The proposed paper will showcase results of recent conceptual studies focused on
low ballistic coefficient deployable entry technologies/architectures for Venus, and make
the case for going beyond rigid aeroshell architectures for future in situ science
missions. These architectures do result in benign entry environments, perhaps similar
to environments associated with typical Mars entries. The low ballistic coefficient
architectures and the associated low deceleration loads open up the mission design
space for EDL systems, may allow these missions to include sensitive and powerful
science instruments, and allow for ASRG or other RTG based power systems that
would allow for longer duration science. .

The use of deployable entry system architectures requires critical new technologies
including flexible TPS. Research efforts led by NASA Langley Research Center on
inflatable concepts, and efforts led by NASA Ames Research Center on deployable
concepts hold great promise for in situ science missions to Venus. Both these
innovative concepts inflatable and deployable were originally proposed for landing
large mass at Mars (primarily focused on human missions), and thus have crosscutting
nature to be attractive for development for other planetary destinations as well.


1 Chief Technologist, Entry Systems and Technology Division, NASA ARC
2 Research Scientist, ERC, Inc, Aerothermodynamics Branch, NASA ARC
3 Senior Research Scientist, ERC, Inc, Aerothermodynamics Branch, NASA ARC
4 Senior Research Scientist, ERC, Inc, Aerothermodynamics Branch, NASA ARC





61
References
1. Venkatapathy, E.; Laub, B.; Hartman, G.J.; Arnold, J.O.; Wright, M.J., Allen, G.,
Thermal protection system development, testing, and qualification for atmospheric
probes and sample return missions, Advances in Space Research. Vol. 44, no. 1,
pp. 138-150. 1 July 2009.
2. Venkatapathy, E.; Laub, B.; Hartman, G.J.; Arnold, J.O.; Wright, M.J., Allen, G.,
Selection and Certification of TPS: Constraints and Considerations for Venus
Missions IPPW-6 Atlanta Ga. 23-27 June 2008.
3. G. Landis and K. Mellott, "Venus Surface Power and Cooling System Design," Acta
Astronautica, Vol 61, No. 11-12, 995-1001 (Dec. 2007). Presented as paper IAC-04-
R.2.06, 55th International Astronautical Federation Congress, Vancouver BC, Oct. 4-
8 2004.
4. Bullock, M. A., Senske, D. A., Balint, T. S., Campbell, B. A., Chassefiere, E.,
Colaprete, A., Cutts, J. A., Gorevan, S., Grinspoon, D. H., Hall, J., Hartford, W.,
Hashimoto, G. L., Head, J. W., Hunter, G., Johnson, N., Kiefer, W. S., Kolawa, E. A.,
Kremic, T., Kwok, J., Limaye, S. S., Mackwell, S. J., Marov, M. Y., Ocampo, A.,
Schubert, G., Stofan, E. R., Svedhem, H., Titov, D. V., Treiman, A. H.,
2008. NASA's Venus science and technology definition team: A flagship missionto
Venus.B.A.A.S. 40, 32.08 ( http://www.lpi.usra.edu/vexag/venusSTDT/)

62

A COMPARISON OF INFLATABLE AND SEMI-RIGID
DEPLOYABLE AERODYNAMIC DECELERATORS FOR
FUTURE AEROCAPTURE AND ENTRY MISSIONS

Reuben R. Rohrschneider, Jim Masciarelli, and Kevin L. Miller

Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp., [rrohrsch,jmasciar,klmiller]@ball.com

ABSTRACT

With the successful flight of Inflatable Reentry Vehicle Experiment-II, the concept of
using fabric-based aerodynamic decelerators has been demonstrated. This flight was a
ballistic entry from a sub-orbital velocity. Now, with the imminent launch of the Mars
Science Laboratory and its guided lifting aeroshell, the bar has been raised for all future
aerodynamic decelerator systems. Once this technology has been successfully
demonstrated, future science missions will demand precision landing from any entry
system, including future deployable aerodynamic decelerators. This paper will compare
and contrast the system performance and capabilities of the two main classes of
deployable aerodynamic decelerator, the inflatable and the semi-rigid deployable, with
the goal of showing equal or greater performance to the existing state-of-the-art rigid
aerodynamic decelerator.

The current state-of-the-art for Mars entry system uses a rigid aeroshell for hypersonic
deceleration, a disk-gap-band parachute deployed near Mach 2.0, and either airbags or
chemical propulsion for terminal descent. This entry architecture is representative of all
the successful United States Mars missions flown to date, with a maximum entry mass
less than 1000 kg (590 kg payload) and landed altitude of -1.4 km referenced to the Mars
Orbital Laser Altimeter (MOLA). With the successful flight of the Mars Science
Laboratory (MSL) the envelope will be extended to nearly 3000 kg entry mass (800 kg
payload) and +2.0 km MOLA landing altitude. Braun and Manningi show that this is
very near the limit of the current landing architecture, and that new technology will be
needed for larger missions. One option for this new technology is the deployable
aerodynamic decelerator, which prior studies have shown offers substantial mass
advantages to rigid systems at Mars and other destinations with an atmosphere for both
entry and aerocaptureii,iii. Furthermore, deployable systems promise a much broader
range of landing altitudes and entry masses that support human exploration.

There are multiple deployable aerodynamic decelerator concepts that can be divided into
two primary classes: inflatables, and semi-rigid deployables. The two main classes of
deployable aerodynamic decelerator have been compared for both aerocapture and entry
at Mars using ballistic trajectories, and their entry system mass fractions were shown to
be within 2%iv. With such similar mass performance, other metrics such as precision

63
landing capability, resistance to micrometeoroids, and operational flexibility should be
considered when planning future technology investments in aerodynamic decelerators.

This paper will draw from the results of the High Mass Mars Entry Systems study, the
Aerocapture GN&C study, and other previously unpublished work performed at Ball over
the past 3 years. The result shows that the inflatable and semi-rigid deployable
configurations are quite closely matched. Given the comparable overall desirability of
these systems, future studies should include both concepts to minimize risk while
developing the next generation of aerodynamic decelerator systems.


i
Braun, R.D., and Manning, R.M., Mars Exploration Entry, Descent, and Landing
Challenges, Journal of Spacecraft and Rockets, Vol. 44, No. 2, pp. 310-323, 2007.
ii
Miller, K.L., et al, Trailing Ballute Aerocapture Concept and Feasibility
Assessment, AIAA Paper 2003-4655, 39th AIAA/ASME/SAE/ASEE Joint Propulsion
Conference and Exhibit, Huntsville, AL, July 2003.
iii
Zang, T.A., et al, Overview of the NASA Entry, Descent and Landing Systems
Analysis Study, AIAA Paper 2010-8649, AIAA Space 2010 Conference and Exposition,
Anaheim, CA, Aug. 30-Sep. 2, 2010.
iv
Rohrschneider, R.R., High Mass Mars Entry System Final Report, Unpublished final
report of contract NNL08AA34C, 2010.



64


EXOMARS 2016 GNC APPROACH FOR ENTRY
DESCENT AND LANDING DEMONSTRATOR

S. Portigliotti
1
, P.Martella
1
, M.Capuano
1
, O.Bayle
2
, T.Blancquaert
2

Thales Alenia Space
1
, Stefano.Portigliotti@thalesaleniaspace.com
Paolo.Martella@thalesaleniaspace.com Maurizio.Capuano@thalesaleniaspace.com
European Space Agency
2
, Olivier.Bayle@esa.int, Thierry.Blancquaert@esa.int

ABSTRACT

This paper gives an overview of the most significant results, related to the Guidance
Navigation and Control system design of the ExoMars Entry Descent and Landing
Demonstrator Module (EDM) for the Exomars 2016 mission. Although the technologies
to descend on a planet with a capsule are well known and experienced, landing remains a
critical point for whichever exploration mission. Several solutions for landing
technologies have been used in past missions, from the active braking with throttleable or
pulsed rocket engines and impact attenuations legs (Viking, Phoenix), pulsed raking and
un-vented airbags (Pathfinder, MER) of pure impact attenuation with un-vented airbags
(Beagle-2). The new JPL-NASA missions use active control with throttleable engines and
direct delivery to surface of rovers with the sky-crane concept.
ExoMars Descent Module relies on the new technology of crushable structures for
terminal impact attenuation that requires a precise control in the final instants, to be able
to drop the lander at the specified altitude and with (nominally) null velocity and
displacement versus the local vertical. Terminal braking is performed on Pulse Width
Modulation of three clusters of three 400N engines, located directly on the Surface
platform.
For the ExoMars mission success it will be necessary that every GNC task will be
perfectly achieved: the Entry Point recognition, the parachutes deployment trigger, the
engagement of relative terrain navigation with hybridization of the inertial navigation
with direct measurements via Radar Doppler Altimeter (RDA), the engagement and
control of the terminal descent phase, the terminal drop of the Surface Platform to the
surface of Mars.
Looking in particular at the landing phase the ExoMars GNC has been designed trying to
highlight some specific drivers: 1) Modular organization of the algorithm blocks based on
functional roles (reference definition, state estimation and control action dispatching) and
on affected axes (descent-vertical dynamics and attitude-horizontal ones), 2) Clear
identification of the interconnections among the modules, 3) Definition of rules, simple
as much as possible, to maintain continuously under control the evolution of each module
dynamics and to force by construction adequate separation of the dynamics in the
interconnected loops. For each of the three "G", "N" and "C" it is possible to identify a

65
critical aspect.
The guidance must be able to compensate the engaging inaccuracy due mainly to radar
Doppler scale factor errors and has to be designed in such manner to avoid jittering
profile in the attitude reference generation, despite it is fed by noisy measurements. The
navigation has the complex role to guarantee sufficiently filtered state estimation but, in
the same time, high promptness peculiarly in the initial instants of the controlled phase
that require fast attitude control.
The control has to guarantee that the command is dispatched in the most effective way
among the thrusters. The priority must be given to the attitude control in such a manner to
achieve as soon as possible the alignment of the capsule to a direction opposite to the
relative velocity (g-turn) also when starting from large attitude errors. Once the capsule
has been aligned, accrued errors versus the descent profile can be recovered, ensuring, in
the end, the fulfillment of both translational and rotational requirements. Last but not the
least, a Backshell Avoidance Manoeuvre (BAM) has to be implemented in the cases
where weak horizontal winds may induce the risk that the separated back- cover under
parachutes may fall back onto the Surface Platform.
The key aspect for a project like the ExoMars EDM GNC is the verification of the robust
performances. The control must work in presence of strongly variable initial conditions,
radar Doppler and actuators generates high level of inaccuracies to be carefully managed
Furthermore even in presence of a modular design there are several points in which the
loops are interconnected. Thus a big effort has to be spent for this task to have an
analytical assessment of the design reliability, to be later confirmed by the execution of a
large number of Montecarlo analyses.



66


THE MARS SCIENCE LABORATORY ENTRY DESCENT
AND LANDING MODE COMMANDER

Paul Brugarolas, Kim Gostelow, A. Miguel San Martin, Fred
Serricchio, and Gurkipal Singh

Jet Propulsion Laboratory California Institute of Technology Email:
paul.brugarolas@jpl.nasa.gov

ABSTRACT

The Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) is the next NASA rover mission to Mars. It will be
launched in November of 2011 and arrive in Mars in August of 2012. Its Entry Descent
and Landing (EDL) phase is one of the most critical phases of the mission. It uses a
highly complex system to land the vehicle safely within the desired landing region.
The EDL system has three main components:
i. a timeline engine to prepare and coordinate all the events,
ii. a Navigation Mode Commander to manage the estimation of the vehicle position
and orientation from the Descent Inertial Measurements Units and the Terrain
Descent Sensor (radar), and
iii. an EDL Mode Commander to reconfigure the vehicle and guide-and-control the
vehicle to a safe landing.

This paper will describe this last component. The EDL Mode Commander is the
executive that orchestrates the hardware reconfigurations (balance mass ejections,
heatshield and backshell jettisons, parachute opening) and the Guidance Navigation &
Control functions (position and attitude estimation, entry guidance, RCS attitude control
until powered descent starts, powered descent guidance, powered descent position and
attitude control). We will describe the EDL modes of operation, the vehicle
reconfigurations, the GN&C functions performed at each mode, and the navigational and
temporal triggers used to transition between modes.


Acknowledgement: The research described in this paper was carried out at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory,
California Institute of Technology, under a contract with the National Aeronautics and Space
Administration.



67


SUPERSONIC RETRO-PROPULSION FLIGHT TEST
CONCEPTS

Ethan Post(1), Artem Dyakonov(2), Ashley Korzun(3), Ian Dupzyk(4),
Jeremy Shidner(5), Arturo Casillas(6), Karl Edquist(7)


Jet Propulsion Laboratory
(1),
Email: ethan.a.post@jpl.nasa.gov NASA Langley Research
Center
(2)
, Email: artem.a.dyakonov@nasa.gov Georgia Institute of Technology
(3)
, Email:
akorzun@gatech.edu NASA Ames Research Center
(4)
, Email: ian.c.dupzyk@nasa.gov
NASA Langley Research Center
(5)
, Email: jeremy.d.shidner@nasa.gov Jet Propulsion
Laboratory
(6)
, Email: arturo.r.casillas@jpl.nasa.gov NASA Langley Research Center
(7
)
,

Email: karl.t.edquist@nasa.gov

ABSTRACT


Supersonic retro-propulsion (SRP) is an advanced entry, descent, and landing (EDL)
supersonic decelerator technology that, if developed, could significantly increase landed
mass capabilities at Mars. In the development of future mission concepts, NASA has
recognized the need for advanced EDL systems, and the Agency has begun targeted
funding for SRP technology development. SRP has been assessed to currently be at
Technology Readiness Level (TRL) 2, Technology concept and/or application
formulated. A roadmap has been developed for the maturation of SRP to TRL 6, at
which point SRP is likely considered to be sufficiently mature for incorporation into a
flight project. Wind tunnel testing, systems analysis, and computational fluid
dynamics simulation efforts are under way. The work contained herein represents a
focused effort to define Earth-based SRP flight testing concepts. These concepts
compliment ground testing and analytical efforts and will play a critical role in the
maturation of SRP to a viable flight system.
Two sub-scale flight test concepts, both designed for launch on sounding rockets, are
considered in detail for potential proof-of-concept testing of the SRP technology. The
flight test is intended to demonstrate successful operation, from initiation through
nominal operation, of a hot SRP system at conditions that replicate the relevant physics
of the aerodynamic-propulsive interactions expected in flight. Major subsystem
components sufficient to close a preliminary design are defined for each flight test
concept, including: mechanical, propulsion, instrumentation, telecommunications,
avionics, and power. Commercial, off-the-shelf components are utilized as much as
possible in both concepts. Trajectory designs and analyses are performed to understand
and optimize test conditions and vehicle parameters including thrust profile and initiation
altitude.
The analysis and design approach used to develop these flight test concepts are discussed
in detail in this paper. Following definition of a set of flight test objectives and a set of
mission-level requirements, preliminary trajectory analyses were completed. These

68
analyses assumed a sounding rocket platform due to a relative low cost and complexity as
compared to alternative flight testing platforms. The results of these analyses indicated
that a flight test vehicle capable of meeting mission-level requirements could be designed
for launch on a sounding rocket, leading to the development of two point designs. These
point designs provide more accurate mass distribution and thrust profile estimates than
those used in the preliminary trajectory analyses. The mass estimates were found to be
within payload mass limits of a Terrier-Improved Orion sounding rocket. Further
analyses are planned that will advance the most favorable concepts to a higher maturity
level in preparation for a proposal as a part of a flight test program.
Both sounding rocket-based flight test concepts were found to represent viable options
for SRP flight tests in that they: (1) demonstrate an SRP proof-of-concept in a flight
environment, (2) replicate relevant SRP physics using a minimally integrated system, (3)
collect data during flight within acceptable uncertainties to satisfy relevant TRL 5
achievement criteria, (4) demonstrate the ability to design, package, integrate, and test
SRP subsystems, and (5) become a stepping stone to the more complex flight tests that
will follow and reduce the associated risks.



69


MAXIMUM ATTAINABLE DRAG LIMITS FOR
ATMOSPHERIC ENTRY VIA SUPERSONIC
RETROPROPULSION

No el M. Bakhtian
1
, Michael J. Aftosmis
2

NASA Ames Research Center
1
, Stanford University
2

ABSTRACT

WithmannedmissionsonthehorizonforMarsexploration,theabilitytodecelerate
high-masssystemsuponarrivalataplanetssurfacehasbecomearesearchpriority.
Supersonicretropropulsion(SRP),theapplicationofjetsfacingintothefreestream,
iscurrentlybeingstudiedasacandidateenablingtechnology.Amodeldescribinga
significantdragaugmentationmechanismbasedonshockmanipulationwas
recentlyintroduced;thisproposedmethodofaugmentingdecelerativeforces
withoutdirectlyrelyingonescalatingthrustoffersadecelerationtechnique
independentoffueluse.Thisworkproposespreliminaryquantificationofthe
benefitsofferedbythismethodofSRP-basedflowcontrol.Wepresentananalytical
methodyieldingestimatesofmaximumdragcoefficientsattainablethroughshock
manipulationviaSRPjets,establishingthefeasibilityofflowcontrolviaSRPasa
MarsEDLtechnology.
Theanalyticalstudyexaminesthebenefitofmaintainingstagnationpressure
throughcascadingobliqueshocksascomparedtoasinglestrongnormalshock.
Comparisonswithbothcomputationalandexperimentaldataofbluntbodyflows
validatestheanalyticmethodandshockphysicsassumptions.AfamilyofCDMach
curvesandcorrespondingtablesaregeneratedforvariousshockstructures.We
thenconsiderrealgaseffects,analyzingtheconsequenceofvaryingspecificheat
ratio,={1.21.4},andapplyaneffectivevaluetoproduceaMars-specificsetof
CDMachcurves.AtheoreticalmaximumdragcoefficientforrealizableSRPshock
structuresisproposedattheconclusionofthisstudy.
ByengineeringSRPsystemsoptimizedfordragaugmentationratherthanraw
thrust,fuelsavingsallowincreasedpayloadthusmaximizinglandablemass.This
paperexaminesthefeasibilityofSRP-basedflowcontrolforhigh-massplanetary
EDLbyquantifyingthedragaffordedviathistechnique.



70


ROTARY WING DECELERATOR USE ON TITAN

Ted Steiner
1
, Larry Young
2

Massachusetts Institute of Technology
1
, Email: tsteiner@mit.edu NASA Ames Research
Center
2
, Email: larry.a.young@nasa.gov

ABSTRACT

The ongoing Cassini mission to Saturn is considered one of the most successful
international collaborations in the history of space exploration. The mission included the
Huygens probe, which landed on the surface of Saturns largest moon Titan in 2005,
generating a huge amount of scientific interest in further exploration of Titan. Huygens
brought its power source with it in the form of batteries, which limited its operational
lifetime to about six hours, nearly half of which was spent in atmospheric descent.

Huygens success, combined with other recent findings, provide justification for a return
mission to study Titans atmosphere and surface. A vehicle for such a return mission
would greatly benefit from a descent system that can provide landing site selection, low-
velocity touchdown, and power generation capabilities, while providing a platform for
atmospheric research. A comparison of various atmospheric deceleration technologies
based on their potentials for providing heading control, a soft landing, and power
generation during descent, shows rotary wing decelerators (RWDs) to be of significant
merit for applications on Titan.

RWD systems use autorotating wings to slow down a vehicle in atmospheric descent.
During the majority of the descent, the rotary wing spins freely at high rpm to store up
energy. When the vehicle approaches the surface, the RWD system performs a cyclic
flare maneuver, using the stored energy to generate the lift necessary for a soft landing.
Similar systems are implemented on terrestrial helicopters as a safety mechanism.
Vehicle heading control is achieved by adding fully articulated blades to the system, such
as are used on most modern helicopters, rather than only the collective pitch control
required for landing.

Titans dense and highly extended atmosphere make it an ideal location for RWD
applications. Because the entry vehicle will spend several hours transiting hundreds of
kilometers during descent, a generator attached to the autorotating wing could generate
significant power while also keeping the rotation speed within a safe operating range.
Preliminary calculations show that for average descent velocities of 4 to 8 m/s and probe
masses of 300 to 800 kg, power generation levels of 1 to 4 kW may be feasible.
Achieving similar power levels using radioisotope thermoelectric generators (RTGs),
which are most commonly proposed for missions to Titan, would involve power system

71
masses on the order of 500 kg or more.

We propose a preliminary design for a rotary wing decelerator system for landing on
Titan. Initial blade sizes, material selections, and power systems are presented.
Additionally, we provide analysis of aerodynamic performance, landing speeds,
allowable probe masses, and predicted power output. We also discuss the feasibility of
extending such a system for applications on Earth, Venus, and Mars.




72


SMALL PROBE REENTRY INVESTIGATION FOR TPS
ENGINEERING (SPRITE) (IPPW-8)

Daniel M. Empey
1
, Kristina A. Skokova
2
, Parul Agrawal
2
, Gregory T.
Swanson
2
, Dinesh K. Prabhu
2
, Keith H. Peterson
2
and Ethiraj
Venkatapathy
3


Sierra Lobo, Inc. Daniel.M.Empey@NASA.gov
1
, ERC, Inc.
Kristina.A.Skokova@NASA.gov
2
, NASA Ames Research Center
3
, Ethiraj.Venkatapathy-
1@NASA.gov


ABSTRACT

At the 7th International Planetary Probe Workshop a paper [1] was presented proposing a
unique strategy for Thermal Protection Systems (TPS) testing designed to strengthen the
ground to flight traceability of TPS qualification programs. The concept presented was to
develop an inexpensive small scale test platform, i.e., small probes that are fully
instrumented, that can be tested both on the ground (in arc-jet facilities) and in flight.
This proposed paper presents the results of a small focused project that addresses this
concept, showing how such small probes were designed and then tested at full scale in an
arc jet. This is a paradigm shift from the traditional stagnation point testing to one of test
what you fly, not only enabling traceability from ground to flight, but also enabling the
assessment of practices/margins policies used in the design of the TPS of large scale
entry vehicles such as Orion or MSL.
This effort, called SPRITE (Small Probe Reentry Investigation for TPS Engineering) has
demonstrated the feasibility of ground testing flight-sized (35 cm diameter) reentry
bodies with two very successful tests of full-sized instrumented proof-of-concept articles
in the NASA Ames Research Center Aerodynamic Heating Facility (AHF). The
objectives of this effort were to design, manufacture and test the article, develop a flight-
like data acquisition system, demonstrate data gathering capability, application of design
tools and assessment of their fidelity.

The SPRITE probe (a 90 included-angle sphere-cone, with a conical after-body) was
designed to represent a vehicle that could be both an arc-jet test model as well as an
actual reentry body. The probe was instrumented with TPS instrumentation plugs of the
same design used on the MSL heat shield as well a number of back-face and internal
thermocouples. Strain gages were also mounted on the TPS-protected aluminum structure
in an attempt to determine thermo-structural response. Data from the sensors was
collected by an internal data acquisition system as well as by the arc-jet facility. While it
was not the intent of these tests to represent a specific mission, the models were tested at
a heat flux (approximately 170 watts/cm2) representative of a reentry through the Martian

73
atmosphere.

This paper will present an overview of the SPRITE project including: overall design of
the probe, thermal analysis of the probe, design of an internal Data Acquisition System
(DAS), Computational Fluid Dynamic (CFD) simulation of the test conditions, thermal-
structural analysis, and results of the arc-jet tests.

Acknowledgments: The present work was supported by the Entry Systems and
Technology Division, NASA Ames Research Center and Contract No. NNA09DB39C to
Jacobs Technology, Inc.

References:
[1] Howard, Austin R., Prabhu, Dinesh, K., Venkatapathy, Ethiraj, and Arnold, James,
O.: Small Probes as Flight Test Beds for Thermal Protection Materials Proceedings of
the 7th International Planetary Probe Workshop, Barcelona, Spain, 2010.



74


THE DEVELOPMENT OF A CO2 TEST CAPABILITY IN
THE NASA JSC ARCJET FOR MARS REENTRY
SIMULATION

Steven V. Del Papa
1
, Leonard Suess
2
, Brian Shafer
3



NASA JSC
1
, steven.delpapa-1@nasa.gov ESCG
2
, leonard.e.suess@nasa.gov, ESCG
3
,
brian.c.shafer@nasa.gov

ABSTRACT

The Atmospheric Reentry Materials and Structures Evaluation Facility (ARMSEF)
located at NASA Johnson Space Center is used for simulating the extreme environment
experienced upon reentry for the development and certification of thermal protection
systems (TPS). The facility supports a large variety of programs and was heavily
leveraged for the certification and operational support of the TPS for the Orbiter and,
more recently, the development of the heat shield for CEV. This paper will provide more
detail into the heritage of the facility.

Unique attributes of the facility include a modular aerodynamically stabilized arc heater
and independently controlled O2 and N2 for the test gases. When combining the O2 and
N2 in a 23:77 mass ratio respectively the Earths atmosphere is accurately simulated and
via modification of this ratio the investigation of the effects of atomic oxygen on a
materials response is possible. In the summer of 2010 a development effort was started
to add CO2 as a third independently controlled test gas such that, when combined with
N2, opens up the possibility of accurately simulating a Martian reentry environment. This
paper will discuss the test facility, especially the arc heater, in more detail.

Initial testing involved relatively low concentrations of CO2 combined with N2 for the
primary purpose of gathering data to answer two pressing safety concerns. The first being
the rate of production of carbon monoxide (CO) within the ejector vacuum system. The
main concern was that CO can be flammable and possibly explosive at high enough
concentrations and pressures. The hazard control during the development phase involved
the use of injecting N2 inside the test chamber diffuser to dilute and reduce the
concentration of any and all CO present. A residual gas analyzer (RGA) was used to
determine the relative amount of CO in the exhaust gas and provide a conversion rate of
CO2 to CO. This paper will discuss in more detail the results of the RGA data and the
calculated conversion rate.

The second safety concern addressed is the possible formation of hydrogen cyanide
(HCN) and cyanide (CN). HCN would primarily be present in the cooling water while the

75
CN would most probably condense onto the interior surfaces of the test chamber. Water
samples and wipes of the test chamber surfaces were analyzed by an industrial hygienist
for the presence of HCN and CN. His paper will discuss these results in more detail.

Throughout this development effort measurements of the CO2:N2 flowfield were made
with heat flux and pressure probes and with laser induced fluorescence (LIF) of the
atomic oxygen. This paper will discuss these results.





SESSION 5 - Science Instrumentation


77


PAYLOAD OPTIONS FOR FUTURE ENTRY PROBE
MISSIONS

Thomas R. Spilker


Jet Propulsion Laborator
y
, California Inst. of Tech, Email:
Thomas.R.Spilker@jpl.nasa.gov

ABSTRACT

Atmospheric entry probes can potentially address a wide range of science objectives that
involve measurements by a wide range of instruments. Rarely is a mission budget
unconstrained so science teams and mission designers can simply include every
instrument that might be useful. Instead, careful investigation and instrumentation
choices must be made to ensure a sufficient science return to justify a mission, while
staying within finite project resource limits. Such decisions involve balancing many
different resources on the spacecraft and within the project, and also the priorities of the
science objectives that could be addressed. The priorities of science objectives, and thus
the investigations and instrumentation needed to address them, vary greatly from
destination to destination. For example, probes into the atmospheres of the giant planets
place a premium on the origin of the solar system and the giant planets, with the
dynamics and chemistry of such deep atmospheres at a somewhat lower priority; at Titan,
there is more emphasis on current organic chemistry and the evolution of complex
organic molecules, from their initial production high in the upper atmosphere to their
eventual deposition on Titans surface.
This presentation will summarize investigation options, and the instrumentation options
for implementing them, at various potential atmospheric entry probe destinations in the
solar system, with the exception of Titan lander and balloon instruments that another
paper in this session will cover. Special attention will be devoted to destinations given
high priority by the 2012 Planetary Science Decadal Survey (PSDS 2012), whose
preliminary results are scheduled for release in early March 2011.




78


TITAN LAKE PROBE: SCIENCE REQUIREMENTS AND
INSTRUMENTATION

J. Hunter Waite
1
, Tim Brockwell
1
, John Elliott
2
, Patricia Beauchamp
2

Southwest Research Institute
1
, NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory
2

ABSTRACT

The scientific objectives of a Titan Lake Probe mission are: 1) to understand the
formation and evolution of Titan and its atmosphere through measurement of the
composition of the target lake (e.g., Kraken Mare), with particular emphasis on the
isotopic composition of dissolved minor species and on dissolved noble gases, 2) to study
the lake-atmosphere interaction in order to determine the role of Titans lakes in the
methane cycle, 3) to investigate the target lake as a laboratory for both pre-biotic organic
chemistry in both water (or ammonia-enriched water) solutions and non-water solvents,
and 4) to determine if Titan has an interior ocean by measuring tidal changes in the level
of the lake over the course of Titans sixteen- day orbit.

The starting point for this study is the joint NASA ESA TSSM mission. Using this as a
starting point we have revisited the scientific requirements and expanded them to include
the possibility of a lake floater and a submersible. The driving requirements for the
mission are: 1) the need to land on and explore the lake at depth while adequately
communicating the data back to Earth via either direct to Earth or relay communications,
2) thermal design that allows sustained (>32 days) sampling of the 94K lake
environment, and 3) a mass spectrometer inlet system that allows sampling of gas, liquid,
and solids from the 94K environment.

The primary payload is an analytical chemistry laboratory that includes an inlet system
for sampling gas, liquid, and solids in and above the lake feeding two capable mass
spectrometers that determine the organic and isotopic composition of the sampled
materials. The instrumentation also includes a meteorological package that can measure
the rate of gas exchange between the lake and the atmosphere, and a lake physical
characteristics package that includes pressure and temperature measurements as well as
sonar.



79


INSTRUMENTS FOR IN SITU TITAN MISSIONS

Patricia M Beauchamp
1
, Jonathan Lunine
2

Athena Coustenis LESIA
3
, Peter Willis
1
, George Cody
4
, Kim R. Reh
1

JetPropulsionLaboratory-CaliforniaInstituteofTechnology
1
pbeaucha@jpl.nasa.gov,
Kim.R.Reh@jpl.nasa.gov,Peter.A.Willis@jpl.nasa.gov,DipartimentodiFisica,Universitdegli
StudidiRoma
2
,jlunine@roma2.infn.it,ObservatoiredeParis-Meudon
3
,
Athena.Coustenis@obspm.fr,GeophysicalLaboratoryCarnegieInstitute
4
,gcody@ciw.edu

ABSTRACT

Other than Earth, Titan is the only world in our solar system known to have standing
liquids and an active hydrologic cycle with clouds, rains, lakes and streams. Cassini-
Huygens has provided spectacular data and has provided us with a glimpse of the
mysterious surface of Titan (Lebreton et al. 2009). However the mission will leave us
with many questions that require future missions to answer. These include determining
the composition of the surface and the geographic distribution of various organic
constituents.
The dense atmosphere and hydrocarbon lakes on Titans surface can be explored with
airborne platforms and landed probes, but the key aspect ensuring the success of future
investigations is the conceptualization and design of instruments that are small enough to
fit on such platforms, and yet be sophisticated enough to conduct the kinds of detailed
chemical (including isotopic), physical, and structural analyses needed to understand the
history and cycling of the organic materials. In addition, they must be capable of
operating at cryogenic temperatures while maintaining the integrity of the sample
throughout the analytic process. Illuminating accurate chemistries also requires that the
instruments and tools are not simultaneously biasing the measurements due to localized
temperature increases. While the requirements for these techniques are well understood,
their implementation in an extremely low temperature environment with limited mass,
power and volume is acutely challenging.
Over the last few years there have been a number of mission studies that involve either
landing in a lake on Titan or circumnavigating Titan in a balloon (Coustenis et al. 2009;
Titan Saturn System Mission Final and Joint Reports). Science teams have identified
investigations on these platforms that require instruments to have high resolution and
high sensitivity but be lightweight and low-power to minimize mass which can also
reduce mission cost (Coustenis et al. 2011). The need for high resolution and sensitivity
follows from an examination of the Cassini-Huygens data and understanding what is
required to interpret the complex chemistry occurring in the atmosphere and on the
surface. Novel instruments are required to determine environmental conditions at the
surface, such as humidity and winds as well as probe the physical properties of the lakes.
Advances in the technologies required for sampling the high latitude lakes - cryogenic

80
sample acquisition and sample handling - are also essential, as are techniques for
sampling cryogenic aerosols and dune materials.
Because of the plentiful supply of organic material and the environmental differences, in
situ instruments developed for Mars are not suitable for Titan in situ missions. New
instrument paradigms must be adopted for long term operation at 94K. Developing
components operable in the extreme conditions found on Titans surface can simplify the
design of the landed element or balloon platforms and reduce operational complexities.
This presentation will discuss some of the instrument and sampling systems needed for
these scientifically challenging investigations and point out some of the technologies
which can enable new concepts for flight instruments to study the physical properties and
surface chemistry of Titan.

Reference:
1. Lebreton, J-P., Coustenis, A., Lunine, J., Raulin, F., Owen, T., Strobel, D., 2009.
Results from the Huygens probe on Titan. Astron. & Astrophys. Rev. 17, 149-179.
2. Coustenis, A., and 157 co-authors, 2009. TandEM: Titan and Enceladus mission.
Experimental Astronomy 23, 893-946.
3. TSSM Final Report, 3 November 2008, NASA Task Order NMO710851 4. TSSM
NASA/ESA Joint Summary Report, 15 November 2008, NASA Task Order
NMO710851 5. Coustenis, A., Atkinson, D., Balint, T., Beauchamp, P., Atreya, S.,
Lebreton, J-P., Lunine,
J., Matson, D., Erd, Ch., Reh, K., Spilker, T., Elliott, J., Hall, J., Strange, N., 2011.
Atmospheric planetary probes and balloons in the solar system. J. Aerospace Engineering
225, 154-180.



81


SPACECRAFT-TO-SPACECRAFT RADIO LINKS
INSTRUMENTATION FOR PLANETARY GRAVITY,
ATMOSPHERIC AND SURFACE SCIENCES

Sami W. Asmar

Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology

ABSTRACT

Tradition Radio Science techniques utilizing microwave links between spacecraft and
ground stations have successfully lead to numerous discoveries. However, limitations on
the received Signal-Noise-Ratio or geometrical coverage necessitate alternate observation
configurations and new instrumentation. Spacecraft-to-spacecraft observations have
significant SNR advantage over the traditional technique and can yield considerably
improved geometrical coverage. These observations have been rarely carried out before
because a special receiver is required onboard the spacecraft. One type of such open-loop
receiver has been utilized on GRACE and will be utilized on GRAIL for precision
measurements of the gravitational fields of the Earth and the Moon, respectively. A
Different receiver type is onboard the New Horizons mission for an uplink occulation of
Plutos atmosphere. Yet another prototype instrument onboard the Mars Reconnaissance
Orbiter and has been used to demonstrate spacecraft-to-spacecraft radio science
experiments with the Odyssey spacecraft. A new digital open-loop receiver specifically
designed to meet the requirements of an occultation experiment has been prototyped for
flight on the Europa Jupiter System Missions to the Jovian system, i.e., a Europa orbiter
and a Ganymede orbiter. This instrument can be used to achieve multiple scientific
including occultations of the atmosphere and ionosphere of Jupiter, occultations of the
tenuous atmospheres and ionospheres of the Jovian satellites, occultations of the tenuous
Jovian rings, and bistatic scattering from surfaces of the satellites. This paper will discuss
the functional instrumentation under development as well as the potential achievable
scientific investigations.


82


THE MARS MICROPHONE 2016 EXPERIMENT

D. Mimoun
1
, Jean-Pierre Lebreton
2
, and the Mars Microphone 2016
team
3


Universit de Toulouse, ISAE/SUPAERO 10, mimoun@isae.fr, ESA/ESTEC +
EUROPLANET
3
See http://bit.ly/MM2016 for the complete team list)

ABSTRACT

The Mars Microphone is a very simple and exciting experiment proposed in the frame of
the ExoMars 2016 EDM Payload. Its primary objective is to achieve a world premiere
during the short life of the ExoMars EDL payload: retrieve sounds from Mars. While
built in Europe, with students involvement, the Mars Microphone will also strongly rely
on the heritage of the previous Mars Microphone experiments, led by Berkeley SSL and
the Planetary Society for the Phoenix, Mars Polar lander and NetLander missions. This
experiment will therefore feature a unique combination of outreach, educational initiative
and scientific objectives, particularly suited for the EDM payload context.
Experiment configurations and scientific objectives
The stringent resource constraints lead us to propose 3 possible configurations for the
Microphone which will eventually depend on the possible onboard resources allocation.



Sound environment on the Martian surface
A thorough synthesis of the expected sound environment for the Mars microphone was
given by (William, 2001) for the Mars Polar Lander Microphone. Sound behaviour at the
Martian surface is expected to be very similar to the Earth stratosphere, with an average
atmospheric pressure between 6 and 8 mbar and a mean temperature about 240 K. In
absence of in-situ measurement, main expected attenuation sources are classical and
molecular absorption, but also the effect of the carbon dioxide viscosity. As a
consequence of this, a strong attenuation is foreseen: most sounds in the human ear
sensitivity window will not propagate over more than some dozen of meters. However,

83
the situation improves in the lower frequencies, and infrasounds, either related to dust
devils or to other sources are expected to propagate over kilometre ranges.
Expected signals
Therefore, expected signals are due to the interaction between the lander structure and the
Martian wind. Aeolian tones will be related to the main size of the lander and to the size
of the lander elements exposed to wind (Curle, 1955). Noise level will be mainly related
to atmospheric turbulence next to the lander (William, 2001). As we expect a sandy
environment in the vicinity of the lander, the noise of the particles against the lander
structure or directly against the microphone (depending on the wind direction) could also
be monitored. A random activation of the microphone will therefore most likely bring
back wind and saltation related noises. In addition, several less probable phenomena
could also be witnessed, especially if the EDM operational scenario allows operating an
automatic switch on triggered by a event of some intensity: dust devils, thunderstorms,
asteroid impacts. Dust devils are known to generate both infrasounds (detectable over
long ranges) and high frequency sounds (short ranges) Arnold et al (1976) reported dust
devil activity in the audible range [2000 Hz] for Earth dust devils. The microphone has
therefore a good chance of capturing such sounds, and, in its stereo version, to provide
data on its trajectory. Melnik and Parrot (1998), as well as Mills (1977) also stated that
dust storms could lead to lightning through cloud dust charging: an acoustic counterpart
(thunder) may be detectable.

Experiment Description and Heritage
The design is on-purpose very simple, and following the previous design, relies primarily
on a COTS component. It offers the required functionality together with the required low
power consumption (150 mW), and a sufficient reliability for short life duration. In its
baseline configuration, the Mars Microphone weights 50 g, and is composed of an
electronics board enclosed in a 50x50x20 mm aluminum box. The microphone
component is accommodated outside. A simple serial bus interfaces with the internal
payload unit. The proposed design has its heritage in previous Mars Microphone
implementations, first on-board Mars polar Lander, and then on-board Phoenix: same
microphone elements, same class of COTS components.

Preliminary Team description, Student Involvement- Outreach
The Mars Microphone 2016 team includes a wide panel of scientists and engineers,
interested in both science and outreach. Outreach will be coordinated with the Planetary
Society and Europlanet.
Following the successful example of Cassini-Huygens, we will put a large emphasis on
outreach activities. The strong design heritage of previous versions will also allow us to
have a student involvement in the development and in the tests of the Mars Microphone
2016.

[1] Ryan, J. and R. Lucich Possible dust devils, vortices on Mars. J. Geophys. Res. 88,
1983
[2] http://marsrovers.jpl.nasa.gov/gallery/press/spirit/20050819a.html, retrieved 01/2011
[3] Williams, JP Acoustic Environment of the Martian Surface, JGR, vol 106, 2001 [4]
Curle, N The influence of solid boundaries upon aerodynamic sound, Proc.R.
Soc.London.Ser A 231 505- 514, 1955

84
[5] Melnik, Parrot Electrostatic discharge in Martian dust storms, JGR 103, 1998 [6]
Arnold, R. T., H. E. Bass, and L. N. Bolen, Acoustic spectral analysis of three tornadoes,
J. Acoust. Soc. Am., 60, 584-593, 1976.
[7] Mills, A. A., Dust cloud and frictional generation of glow discharges on Mars, Nature,
268, 614, 1977
[8] Vrant, J. L., Exomars Capsule Aerodynamics Analysis, 10th AIAA/ASME Joint
Thermophysics and Heat Transfer Conference, Chicago (IL), July 2010
[9] Gnoffo, P. A., Prediction and Validation of Mars Pathfinder Hypersonic Aerodynamic
Data Base, AIAA paper 98-2445, 7th AIAA/ASME Joint Thermophysics and Heat
Transfer Conference, Albuquerque (NM), June 15-18, 1998



85


LIDAR INSTRUMENT FOR GLOBAL MEASUREMENT
OF MARS ATMOSPHERE

Farzin Amzajerdian
1
, George Busch
2
, Norman Barnes
1
, Robert Tolson
3
,
and Diego Pierrottet
2




NASA Langley Research Center
1
, Email: f.amzajerdian@nasa.gov, Coherent
Applications, Inc.
2
, Email:George.e.busch@nasa.gov
National Institute of Aerospace
3
, Email: Robert.h.tolson@nasa.gov

ABSTRACT

Future NASA missions to Mars must focus on either obtaining high value scientific data
or serve as precursor in preparation for human exploration. Laser-based instruments
(lidars) can play a key role in achieving both of these objectives. Lasers offer clear
advantages over passive and active radio-wave measurements. These advantages include
excellent spatial resolution, nonreliance on natural light sources, and the ability to aim
and scan. This paper proposes a multi-functional lidar instrument providing all critical
atmospheric data while meeting the stringent mass and power constraints of a Mars
mission. We refer to this lidar as "coherent Doppler/DIAL lidar" since it combines the
attributes of a coherent Doppler lidar with those of a Differential Absorption Lidar.
As an orbiting instrument, this lidar will provide global measurements of atmospheric
winds, density, and aerosol with a high degree of precision and spatial resolution. The
wind velocity is measured using the Doppler frequency shift of laser light scattered from
suspended aerosols transported by the winds. The atmospheric density is determined from
measurements of the concentration of CO2, which constitutes about 97% of Mars
atmosphere. The concentration is determined by measuring the ratio of transmitted
intensities of two different wavelengths emitted by the lidar, corresponding to high and
low CO2 transmission. The CO2 concentration is profiled along the entire path of the
laser beam. The aerosol concentration is simply derived from the intensity of the returned
signals.

Presently, individual lidar systems measuring Earth atmospheric winds and CO2 exists in
the form of ground and airborne-based scientific instruments. Lidar aerosol measurement
is more mature as several instruments have been successfully deployed to Earth orbit
since 1994. The multifunctional lidar being proposed combines the functions of each
individual sensor into a single device resulting in a more robust instrument with fewer
components, and thus greater reliability, as well as reduced mass, volume, and power
compared with multiple systems to handle each function. This lidar takes advantage of
the fact that the aerosol concentration in Mars atmosphere is almost 2 orders of
magnitude greater than that of the Earth thus permitting smaller lasers and smaller
transmitter/receiver telescope apertures. The lower laser pulse energy required for Mars

86
allows for use of a novel highly-efficient near-infrared laser currently under development
at NASA LaRC. This laser has much improved performance characteristics compared
with current laser technologies available. That simplifies the instrument thermal
management design and significantly reduces the overall payload mass and power
consumption.

This paper will describe the lidar instrument concept and its potential for providing
global measurements of Mars atmospheric parameters. The instruments trades and
limitations will also be discussed. Finally, the current state of the technology will be
presented, along with a plan for advancing its readiness towards deployment in Mars
orbit.



87

MARTIAN SONIC ANEMOMETER

Don Banfield

Cornell Astronomy, Email: banfield@astro.cornell.edu

ABSTRACT

We have developed a 3-D sonic anemometer for use on Mars that exceeds the
performance of previous martian wind gauges by at least an order of magnitude in
sensitivity as well as sampling rate. This improvement in performance is important
because it opens up new avenues of research at Mars, in the interaction of the surface and
atmosphere. Fast response and sensitive wind measurements allow the direct
measurement of the turbulent eddies in the martian atmospheric boundary layer. By
correlating these turbulent motions with their associated vertical wind, temperature,
humidity or other trace gas perturbations, we can directly measure the exchange of
momentum, heat, water or other tracers with the surface. Additionally, if discrete sources
of biogenic effluents are found at Mars, similar approaches may be useful to guide a
rover to the precise source of the effluent plumes using a technique known as plume
tracing, akin to how lobsters (among other animal predators) hunt their prey.

Sonic anemometers are the gold standard for similar boundary layer studies on Earth, but
terrestrial instruments are non-functional in the extremely low density atmosphere at
Mars. Our instrument uses novel micro- machined capacitive transducers that more
efficiently couple with the low acoustic impedance martian atmosphere, thus retaining as
much acoustic signal strength on transmission under martian conditions as possible.
These transducers have been specifically optimized for use on Mars including
durability to the extreme temperatures, optimization for lower spacecraft power
availability and miniaturization. The remainder of the instrument is a mix of analog and
digital electronics to produce the acoustic signals and then process them to yield wind
speeds and temperatures. The signal processing involves sophisticated algorithms
borrowed from the field of RADAR to extract as much information content as possible
from the signals.

We are currently finishing development on this instrument using PIDD funding, and are
testing it in a thermal vacuum chamber at Ball Aerospace. We are also in the process of
preparing for a stratospheric balloon flight (which mimics martian surface conditions to a
high degree) to raise our instruments TRL to between 5-6. Our performance goals are 3-
D wind measurements with sensitivity down to better than 10 cm/s, an accuracy of ~10
cm/s, and with a sampling rate of 20 Hz or more. In a full flight configuration, the
instrument is expected to draw ~2W while operating and 0W when quiescent, with an
instantaneous startup. It should total about 1kg in mass and stow into a volume of about
1500 cm3. We are eager to include this instrument on any and ALL future landed or
aerial missions to Mars. We are quite confident that it will open up exciting new avenues
of research at Mars. It may also prove to be a valuable instrument at Titan.

88

THE CHEMCAM INSTRUMENT FOR THE 2011 MARS
SCIENCE LABORATORY MISSION: SYSTEM
REQUIREMENTS AND PERFORMANCE


R. Perez
1
, B.L. Barraclough
2
, S.C. Bender
2
, A. Cousin
3
, A. Cros
3
, N. Le
Roch
4
, S. Maurice
3
, A. Paillet
1
, L. Pares
3
, Y. Parot
3
, M. Saccoccio
1
, R.C.
Wiens
2



Centre National dEtudes Spatiales
1
, Email: rene.perez@cnes.fr (2)Los Alamos National
Laboratory
2
, IRAP, CNRS
3
, ALTEN Sud Ouest
4
,


ABSTRACT

The ChemCam experiment is one of ten onboard the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL)
rover Curiosity, currently scheduled for launch in late 2011. The instrument is a
combination of a Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectrometer (LIBS) and a Remote Micro-
Imager (RMI) camera. The LIBS subsystem will provide remote sensing (up to ~7m
range) data on the composition and elemental abundances of rocks and soils via active
interrogation by a high-power laser. It is also possible to obtain passive spectra of targets
using the LIBS subsystem and natural illumination. The RMI subsystem provides high-
resolution images of the target regions interrogated by the LIBS laser, and will be used to
provide geologic context for the LIBS data. This is the first use of a LIBS system in
space.

ChemCam is physically divided into two separate units: the Mast Unit (MU) and the
Body Unit (BU). The MU is located at the top of the rover mast, ~2 meters above ground
level, and consists of an optical telescope, a Nd/KGW laser, the RMI camera and
supporting electronics. The MU is provided by the French part of the ChemCam team,
IRAP laboratory, supported by CNES, the French Space Agency. The Body Unit consists
of an optical demultiplexer, three independent spectrometers with CCD detectors, the
experiment controller, and supporting electronics, and is located inside the body of the
rover. The BU is provided by Los Alamos National Laboratory. The MU and BU are
interconnected via fiber optic and electrical cables, both contributed by Jet Propulsion
Laboratory.

In order to excite small areas of geologic targets to temperatures high enough to radiate
photons that can be analyzed by the LIBS subsystem, laser power densities of > 1
GW/cm2 at the sample are needed and, for ChemCam, these densities need to be
achieved over distances ranging from 1-7 m from the rover mast. Other laser
requirements for successful LIBS analyses include laser spot diameters of 200 600 m
over the given range, pulse energy at the sample > 13 mJ, pulse durations of ~5 ns and

89
beam quality of M2 < 3.

The ChemCam 110 mm diameter telescope must perform three distinct functions: it must
direct and focus the intense laser output (=1067 nm) on targets over the required range,
it must efficiently collect the photons ( range = 240870 nm) emitted by the plasma
cloud generated at the sample by the laser and transmit (efficiency 15-40%) this light to
the remotely-located spectrometers, and it must act as specialized telephoto lens for the
RMI subsystem. The RMI camera itself must provide < 100 rad resolution to enable
adequate imaging of the interrogated samples. The entire optical subsystem must be
capable of auto-focusing very precisely over the required operational range.

The optical demultiplexer subsystem of the BU must efficiently divide the LIBS photons
collected by the telescope into three optical bands (UV = 240-340 nm, VIS = 385-465 nm
and VNIR = 475-870 nm) and feed these photons to the three spectrometers that are
optimized for their respective wavebands. The spectrometers are required to achieve
optical resolutions of 0.2, 0.2, and 0.65nm (FWHM) for UV, VIS and VNIR respectively
and the wavelength drift with temperature should be < 0.1 pixel/C.

Extensive testing at the subsystem, integrated-instrument and integrated-system level
show that all performance requirements are met over distance, temperature, etc. and that
ChemCam is fully capable of achieving its science goals when it lands on the surface of
Mars in August, 2012. This talk will detail the performance requirements that need to be
met for successful ChemCam operation, the testing that has been performed to date to
insure these requirements are being met and the overall instrument performance that can
be expected on the surface of the Red Planet.



90


MEADS CALIBRATION AND MSL TRAJECTORY
RECONSTRUCTION

Mark Schoenenberger
1
, Chris Karlgaard
2
, Michelle Munk
1


NASA-Langley Research Center
1
, Email: Mark.Schoenenberger@nasa.gov,
Michelle.M.Munk@nasa.gov, Analytical Mechanics Associates
2
, Email: chris.karlgaard-
1@nasa.gov


ABSTRACT

The Mars Science Laboratory (MSL), launching in late 2011, will be outfitted with a
pressure measurement system (MEADS, the Mars Entry Atmospheric Data System),
which consists of 7 ports in a cross configuration, much like air data systems used at
Earth. This will be the first time such a system has been flown at Mars, and the amount
and quality of data return is expected to be orders of magnitude better than that from any
previous Mars mission. The MEADS objectives are to measure forebody pressure
distribution, to determine angles of attack and sideslip, and to separate atmospheric
density and winds from the vehicle aerodynamics. Four years in the making, the MEADS
hardware is now complete and delivered to MSL. The pre-delivery calibration of the end-
to-end system has resulted in hardware that meets its performance requirements.
However, the ability to meet the final objectives will be influenced by a wide range of
vehicle and environmental uncertainties. The Reconstruction team, planned to function
beyond MSL entry and into 2013, will use a combination of ground testing and
computational methods to understand and cross- correlate all of the relevant data from the
day of entry. This presentation will focus on the pressure system calibration methods and
results, as well as the current and planned work to ready the engineers to receive the
flight data.



91


OPTICAL EMISSION SPECTROSCOPIC EXPERIMENTS
FOR IN-FLIGHT ENTRY RESEARCH

Sebastian Lein
1
, Georg Herdrich
1
, Monika Auweter-Kurtz
2
and
Stefanos Fasoulas
1

Institut fr Raumfahrtsysteme (IRS), Universitt Stuttgart
1
, Email: lein@irs.uni-
stuttgart.de, herdrich@irs.uni-stuttgart.de, fasoulas@irs.uni-stuttgart.de, German
Aerospace Academy ASA
2
, Email: m.auweter-kurtz@german-asa.de


ABSTRACT

In the proposed paper, based on the emission spectroscopic payload RESPECT [1],
developed for the European re-entry vehicle EXPERT [2], the applicability and benefits
of emission spectroscopic payloads as part of the scientific instrumentation of re-entry
vehicles will be discussed. Moreover, possible further development stages, enhancing the
operational range and/or improving the scientific output of the instrument will be
presented.
The instrumentation of re-entry vehicles with emission spectroscopic payloads is
motivated by the significant interaction of the plasma state of post shock regime and
boundary layer with the thermal and mechanical loads on the heat shield surface.
Especially for re-entry missions in CO2 dominated atmospheres, as well as re-entry
missions to the giant planets, the radiative heat flux contributes significantly to the total
heat flux on the TPS surface. Information on the plasma state can be obtained by
emission spectroscopic measurements. Although various numerical codes have been
developed to simulate these conditions, the experimental data which can be used to verify
the numerical simulations are still poor. Thus, in-flight measurements are most valuable
to increase the reliability of the current data base and therewith the design base for future
missions.
In the past years the payload RESPECT was developed at the Institut fr
Raumfahrtsysteme (IRS) to serve this purpose. Development, assembly and qualification
of the payload for application on the European re-entry mission EXPERT were
successfully completed and currently the flight model of the re-entry capsule is
assembled. Thus, the focus of the payload related activities changes towards the
preparation of the flight data analysis and the expected scientific output.
In order to judge the scientific output expected from the application of RESPECT on
EXPERT, numerically simulated spectra were generated. These spectra have been
calculated based on flow field simulations of several trajectory points, using the
URANUS code [3], and superimposed radiation simulations using the plasma radiation
data base PARADE [4]. In order to generate simulated spectrometer data sets the
numerical radiation data was convoluted with the optical properties of the payload gained

92
from laboratory experiments to characterize the instrument [5]. The expected results
comprise among others the identification of the radiating plasma species including
possible erosion products originating from the heat shield material. In addition, the
occurrence of active oxidation of the ceramic heat shield can be traced on basis of the
detected erosion products. Beyond that, from the numerical rebuilding of the measured
spectra, the locally resolved plasma composition including particle densities and
excitation temperatures shall be determined. The data is expected to allow for an
accuracy analysis of the current simulation tools and the improvement of the employed
chemistry and radiation models.
In this paper, based on the experience gathered in the development of the RESPECT
sensor system an outlook on possible further development stages will be given. This
includes the enhancement of the operational range as well as design improvements to
maximize the scientific output. The payload was developed for the re-entry of EXPERT
into Earths atmosphere but is also suitable for other planets. The limits of the sensor
system with respect to the operation in other atmospheres and possibly required design
modifications will be discussed. In addition, design improvements for future emission
spectroscopic payloads, such as the application of other spectrometer types, and their
impact on the measurement data and scientific output will be presented.

References
1.Lein, S., Seinbeck, A., Preci, A., Fertig, M., Herdrich, G., Rser, H.-P., Auweter-Kurtz,
M., Final Design and Performance Parameters of the Payloads PYREX, PHLUX and
RESPECT on EXPERT, Transactions of the Japan Society for Aeronautical and Space
Sciences, Aerospace Technology Japan, Vol. 8, (2010) pp.Tm_41-Tm_47 .
2.Muylaert, J., Walpot, L., Ottens, H. and Cipollini, F., Aerothermo- dynamic Reentry
Flight Experiments Expert, In Flight Experiments for Hypersonic Vehicle Development,
Educational Notes RTO-EN-AVT-130., Neuilly-sur-Seine, France, 2007, pp. 13-1 13-
34.
3.Fertig, M. and Herdrich, G., The Advanced URANUS Navier-Stokes Code for the
Simulation of Nonequilibrium Re- entry Flows, Proceedings of the 26th. International
Symposium on Space Technology and Science, Hamamatsu, Japan, 2008.
4.Winter, M., Pfeiffer, B., Fertig, M. and Auweter-Kurtz, M., Extension of PARADE to
CO2 Plasmas and Comparison with Experimental Data in High Spectral Resolution for
Air and CO2 Species, Proceedings of the 1st. International Workshop on Radiation of
High Temperature Gases in Atmospheric Entry, Lissabon, Portugal, 2003, (ESA SP-533,
December 2003).
5.Lein, S., Preci, A., Fertig, M., Herdrich, G. and Auweter-Kurtz, M.: Optical Design and
Layout of the In-Flight Spectrometer System RESPECT on EXPERT, AIAA-2009-7263,
16th AIAA/DLR/DGLR International Space Planes and Hypersonic Systems and
Technologies Conference, Bremen, Germany, October 19-22, 2009.







SESSION 6A - New Technologies








































94

PEDALS: EVOLVED DESIGN OF EDL ARCHITECTURES

Ed Chester, Joo Graciano


Aevo GmbH, Friedrichshafenerstr. Email: ed.chester@aevo-technologies.de


ABSTRACT

Following a number of studies in the use of meta-heuristic methods for space
applications, we present a simple development of a hybrid genetic algorithm that can
design EDL architectures and implicitly perform trade-off studies. To focus the
application of such a tool, a secondary objective was to implement a prototype system
that could possibly identify concepts for high-altitude landing on Mars, each of which
would then need further study using more conventional analysis. Any EDL architecture
representable within our study is captured as a list of parameters that includes objective
inputs (e.g. landed system mass, location), physical measurements (e.g. parachute
diameter), times (e.g. of deployment, release, etc.), ordered sequences, and derived
parameters (e.g. instantaneous descent rate).
Given the limited availability of the POST tools, this short research activity is a case
study in the effectiveness of simple low-cost tools, and establishing whether evolutionary
algorithms have any place in the mission designers toolkit. The resulting PEDALS tool
concept is a direct coupling of a trajectory simulator with a customised genetic algorithm,
implemented in Perl and F90. The trajectory simulator is known to be a coarse
approximation, and does not consider variable bank angle or 6DOF effects. The modular
design of the tool has however allowed the incorporation of MOLA data for altitude
targeting, and Mars-GRAM for more realistic atmospheric flight simulation. The results
are compared with prior EDL architectures and with the NASA Entry, Descent and
Landing Systems Analysis (EDL-SA) 2008 study as presented at IPPW-7, which are
adopted as a family of reference designs. The presentation concludes with
recommendations for future steps in this type of work.



95


CHALLENGES OF THE INSTRUMENTATION FOR HIGH
SPEED ENTRY VEHICLES

Ali Glhan, Frank Siebe, Thomas Thiele

German Aerospace Center (DLR), Supersonic and Hypersonic Technology Department,
Linder Hhe, Email: Ali.Guelhan@dlr.de, Frank.Siebe@dlr.de, Thomas.Thiele@dlr.de

ABSTRACT

In order to achieve a low cost access to space while keeping the reliability at a high level,
the design cycle duration has to be reduced and the service and refurbishment of the
space vehicle have to be simplified. Design tools like CFD or structural codes are to be
improved with respect to physical modelling using accurate data from ground testing or
flight experiments. Although ground testing facilities still provide the main validation
data and allow a better understanding of the physics, a complete duplication of the flight
conditions is mostly not possible. Flight experiments are the only way to obtain
validation data for design or prediction tools under real conditions. On the other hand
during flight experiments only coupled information can be gained and therefore a
parametric study is not possible. Therefore a further use of ground testing facilities and
CFD simulations for post flight analysis is essential to interpret the flight data correctly.
For vehicles using an ablation material for the TPS the instrumentation is more difficult.
One of the key problems is the strong contour change of such materials resulting from
thermal expansion and recession. In addition the phase change inside the material leads to
a significant modification of the material properties and makes the determination of the
thermal properties of the structure more difficult. Ablation products in gas, liquid and
solid form enhance this problem. These phenomena dominate the behaviour of the
capsule front surface, which is exposed to very high aerothermal loads. On the rear
surface the convective heating is low but difficult to estimate. This is a result of the
shortcomings of numerical tools. In addition for some atmospheres, like the Martian
atmosphere, the radiative heating on the base could reach the same level as the
convective heating. To measure these phenomena in flight experiments a dedicated
sensor has to be designed. The COMARS sensor of DLR has been developed to have a
combined measurement of pressure, temperature, heat flux rate and radiation at the base
of the capsule during a Martian entry (Figure 1).


96




97

SYSTEM DEVELOPMENT FOR MARS ENTRY IN-SITU
RESOURCE UTILIZATION

Svetozar Popovic
1
, Robert W. Moses
2
, Leposava Vuskovic
3


(1)Old Dominion University, 4600 Elkhorn Avenue, OCNPS, 306, Norfolk, VA 23529,
USA, Email: spopovic@odu.edu
(2)NASA Langley, 1 N Dryden St. (MS489), Hampton, VA 23681, USA, Email:
Robert.w.moses@nasa.gov
(3)Old Dominion University, 4600 Elkhorn Avenue, OCNPS, 306, Norfolk, VA 23529,
USA, Email: lvuskovi@odu.edu


ABSTRACT


NASA's Game Changing Development Program will require new power systems and in
situ resource utilization (ISRU) technologies. Fortunately, there is an abundance of basic
research that could serve as a basis for such a development. This work is motivated by
the major contradiction in the concepts for power systems for Mars exploration. While
the surface exploration relies on very limited solar power resources that have reduced the
range of applicable solutions, the space vehicle itself has huge amount of power stored in
the form of its orbiting kinetic energy. This energy is currently not utilized, but rather left
dissipated through heat transfer and radiation. This unused potential is not to be
neglected, since it may offer the opportunities for the use the entry plasma as a powerful
resource that still remains to be utilized.
In this paper we report the on the state of effort to characterize Mars entry plasma as a
potential work fluid for onboard power generating systems, and a chemical reactor
medium for oxygen generation. The use of Martian entry plasma can be augmented using
the concept of regenerative aerobraking
1
may offer a revolutionary approach for in situ
power generation and oxygen harvesting during the exploration missions. The on-board
power conversion system concept is based on a network of lightweight
magnetohydrodynamic power generators developed in NASA LaRC and at ODU
2
. The
system technology would capture energy and oxygen from the plasma field that occurs
naturally during hypersonic entry using well understood principles of
magnetohydrodynamics and oxygen filtration.
This innovative approach generates resources upon arrival at the operational site, and
thus greatly differs from the traditional approach of taking everything you need with you
from Earth. Fundamental analysis, computational fluid dynamics, and some testing of
experimental hardware have established the basic feasibility of generating power during a
Mars entry. This system is an example how regenerative aerobraking may be applied to
support human and robotic missions at Mars.
The system consist of several subsystems that would address the Oxygen production and
storage, utilize MHD cooling of thermal shield, provide power by MHD conversion for
fluid cooling subsystem and heat redistribution to a resistive load to the rear of the

98
spacecraft. Detailed description of these systems is the subject of present talk. Oxygen
production, separation and storage is based on two alternative solutions for separation, (a)
YSZ Solid Oxide Electrolysis Cell, or (b) Silver membrane extraction. Both solutions
have been tested and validated. An inflatable container is being developed for oxygen
storage and the analysis of its performance will be given. Power conversion systems will
be based on the planar MHD power conversion unit, presently operating using light-
weight rare earth permanent magnets, but a concept using light weight electromagnets
has also been developed. MHD cooling effect was confirmed in CFD simulations and an
optimum distribution of magnets is evaluated. Additional fluid cooling system is based
on two alternative approaches using (a) gas or (b) liquid metal as a cooling fluid.
Electric circuit for MHD power redistribution and effective heat transfer to the cold
region of the vehicle is described and analyzed as a separate subsystem.

1
Moses, R.W., Regenerative Aerobraking, Space Technology and Applications International Forum
(STAIF) 2005, Paper No. 57, 13-17 February 2005, Albuquerque, New Mexico.
2
Vuskovic, L., and Popovic, S., Magnetohydrodynamic Power Generator,Summary of Research Report
for ODURF Project #133931, March 2004.



99


TERMINAL DESCENT AND LANDING SYSTEM
ARCHITECTURES FOR A MARS PRECISION LANDER

Lisa Peacocke
1
, Marie-Claire Perkinson
1
, Jaime Reed
1
, Tobias Lutz
2
,
Marco Wolf
2
, Joerg Boltz
2

Astrium Ltd
1
, Email: lisa.peacocke@astrium.eads.net
Astrium GmbH, Airbus-Allee
2
Email: marco.wolf@astrium.eads.net

ABSTRACT

A Mars Precision Lander mission is currently being studied under ESA contract. A
landing accuracy of better than 10 km is required, with a goal of 7.5km, which is
significantly better than past Mars missions. A potential mission scenario considered for
the precision lander is the landing of a Sample Fetch Rover. This rover would retrieve the
sample cache obtained by NASAs Mars Astrobiology Explorer-Cacher (MAX-C) rover
and place it in the Mars ascent vehicle within the overall Mars Sample Return mission
architecture. A precise landing is non-trivial, and requires a highly accurate guided entry
and likely a powered descent phase with potential hazard avoidance.
The critical terminal descent and landing phases will safely deliver the fetch rover to the
Martian surface, and have been studied in detail in the first phase of the MPL contract. To
protect the fetch rover, a maximum surface impact velocity of 1.5 m/s is specified, and
the system must be able to land in an area with 99% areal density of 60 cm rocks and
22.5 surface slopes. A maximum horizontal wind velocity of 20 m/s and maximum
vertical wind velocity of 5 m/s must be dealt with. A minimum of two egress paths must
be available to the rover, and egress must be autonomous and highly reliable and robust.
A variety of architectures for the terminal descent and landing are possible and have been
investigated, including:
Legged landers
Airbags vented or unvented
Crushable structures
Dropship (Skycrane-type)
Shell lander (Beagle-2 type)
Parafoil/aerobot with control platform
The surface rocks and slopes strongly drive the architecture design. A hazard avoidance
system is one option, otherwise the system must be able to land safely in the worst case
scenario a combination of a 60 cm rock and 22.5 slope. Self- righting mechanisms,
such as jointed or extendible legs, are an option for legged landers in this case. Vented
airbags are preferable to unvented airbags due to the precision landing requirement
unvented airbags can bounce for a large distance before stopping, potentially violating
the precision landing requirement. The safe egress of the rover is highly interlinked with
the terminal descent and landing architecture, and would require complex ramps, roll-out
platforms or cranes with a legged lander or airbag system. A Dropship would enable a

100
simple egress via a winch and cables, and would avoid the thruster plume and back
pressure issues associated with Viking-type landers.
This paper will summarise the terminal descent and landing architecture concepts and
trade-offs investigated in the first half of the Mars Precision Lander contract. The
advantages and disadvantages of each will be outlined, particularly in regard to a
precision landing, and the preferred concepts will be identified.



101


Overview of Hypersonic Inflatable Aerodynamic Decelerator
Large Article Ground Test Campaign

Alan M. Cassell, Gregory T. Swanson, R. Keith Johnson, Stephen J.
Hughes, F. McNeil Cheatwood

ERC Inc. NASA Ames Research Center, NASA Langley Research Center

ABSTRACT

Hypersonic inflatable aerodynamic decelerators (HIADs) offer considerable advantages
over rigid aeroshell technology for human and robotic missions requiring atmospheric
entry. Most noteworthy are the considerable system mass and volume fraction savings
over conventional rigid aeroshells. In addition, inflatable aeroshells Currently, HIADs are
being considered for returning payloads from low earth orbit and landing heavy payloads
on the surface of Mars. The Inflatable Re-entry Vehicle Experiment (IRVE) has
successfully demonstrated various aspects of HIAD technologies including exo-
atmospheric inflation, inflatable structure performance, thermal protection system
performance, aerodynamic stability and structural integrity under aerodynamic pressure.
IRVE-II, flown in 2009, a 3.0 meter diameter, 60 degree half-angle sphere cone enabled
the validation of a number of design tools and approaches for inflatable decelerator
technology. Scaling HIADs to the diameters relevant to the aforementioned entry
missions (>10 meter diameter) presents unique challenges for validating the performance
and design of such systems. There are many unquantified risks to the utilization of such
large structures, such as control authority, fluid structure interactions, dynamic stability
and system complexity. Understanding, developing and validating larger diameter HIAD
designs will require an extensive ground testing campaign. The National Full-Scale
Aerodynamics Complex (NFAC) at NASA Ames Research Center is a unique facility
primarily used for determining aerodynamic characteristics of large-scale and full-scale
rotorcraft and powered-lift V/STOL aircraft, as well as testing of wind turbines,
parachutes, trucks, and other non-traditional types of testing. The facility is composed of
two large test sections and a common, six-fan drive system. The 40-by-80 foot wind
tunnel circuit is capable of providing test velocities up to 300 knots. This paper discusses
the objectives, planning and challenges in testing large diameter (up to 8.5 m) HIADs in
the NFAC 40 x 80 foot test section. An overview of the design reference mission, key
driving requirements, structural analysis, instrumentation development and flexible
aeroshell structural model validation approach will be presented. In addition, failure
mode testing approaches will be presented to build further confidence in developing
HIAD technology for infusion into near term flight demonstration missions.




102




Figure 1 6 meter diameter HIAD test article concept placed in the 40 x 80 foot test
section of the NFAC.


103


LOW-DENSITY SUPERSONIC DECELERATOR SYSTEM

Mark Adler, Chuck Player, Juan Cruz, Ian Clark, Adam Steltzner, and
Tom Rivellini

ABSTRACT

The heady days of sticking a rocket under your gizmo just to see if it works are coming
back. In the summer of 1972, the Viking Project conducted four high-altitude tests in
Earth's atmosphere of the supersonic parachute design to be used for landing on Mars.
We've been stuck with that design ever since. In the spring and summer of 2013, a series
of four balloon-launched, rocket-propelled tests of the next generation of supersonic
decelerators will culminate the development program of new descent technologies to be
used on future Mars landers. A Mach 4 inflatable decelerator and a Mach 2 ringsail
parachute will team to create a low-density supersonic decelerator system for high
ballistic coefficient entry systems at Mars.




104


CO2 PROPULSION FOR A MARS SURFACE HOPPER

Christopher Perry & Robert L. Ash

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Dept., Old Dominion University Norfolk, VA



ABSTRACT

Spirit and Opportunity (MER) rovers operating currently on the surface of Mars have
returned valuable data about the liquid water history of the planet, but are very slow and
cannot traverse difficult terrain. The lack of mobility over difficult terrain limits surface
exploration to features that lie on relatively flat surfaces. By exploiting Mars reduced
gravity, a system that can fly over difficult terrain can provide the ability to achieve
science objectives over a much wider range of potential targets. A hopper vehicle that can
utilize ballistic flight trajectories over rugged terrain and reach otherwise inaccessible
destinations can greatly expand mission capabilities. By heating frozen CO2, condensed
from the Martian atmosphere, a supercritical fluid can be created at modest temperatures
within a pressure vessel and subsequently used as rocket propellant. A supersonic carbon
dioxide rocket motor, operating in blow-down mode, has been designed, built, and tested
for the purpose of evaluating this type of hopper propulsion system. The operation of the
propulsion system on such a CO2 hopper is as follows: Carbon dioxide is extracted from
the atmosphere and stored under pressure in a tank; when enough CO2 has been
collected, the system is pressurized by heating the tank, and when a valve is opened the
pressurized CO2 rocket is activated. Such a system can augment the operation of a
surface rover to allow access to areas that are currently inaccessible, and do so in a
package that is small and simple in operation. The ability to refuel anywhere on the
surface combined with the simple operation of the rocket will allow the system to operate
for an indefinite time and investigate many interesting locations. Efforts at Old Dominion
University are currently underway to characterize the performance of a small-scale rocket
that utilizes supercritical CO2 as a propellant for application on the surface of Mars. The
apparatus used for testing consists of a pressure vessel to store the compressed CO2, a
valve to initiate the flow of CO2, and a supersonic nozzle to accelerate the gas to Mach 2.
The pressure vessel is filled with dry ice and sealed. The dry ice is then heated until the
CO2 reaches supercritical conditions. At which point the valve is opened, discharging the
CO2 to atmosphere, producing thrust. Stagnation pressure, temperature, thrust, and mass
flow rate histories have been obtained so that specific impulse performance can be
determined. Based on initial measurements it is possible to increase the time interval over
which supersonic nozzle thrust levels can be sustained by heating the gas before it
reaches the supersonic nozzle. Estimates of specific impulse are in the range of 100 to
130 seconds, while producing about 30 N of thrust through a nozzle with a 2 mm throat
diameter. Since systems operating on Mars can take advantage of the low ambient
pressure to produce supersonic flows with lower CO2 pressures, enhanced performance
for Mars surface probes can be anticipated.

105

COMPUTATIONAL STUDY OF ROUGHNESS-INDUCED
TRANSITION

Seokkwan Yoon, Michael D. Barnhardt and Emre Sozer

NASA Ames Research Center

ABSTRACT

Laminar-to-turbulent transition in hypersonic flows may increase heat transfer
rates significantly. Detached Eddy and Direct Numerical Simulations have been
performed to study the complex physics of transition triggered by an isolated
roughness in hypersonic flows. Both frozen and reacting flow solutions have been
obtained for a hemisphere with a disk-like surface roughness element and compared
to experiments done in a ballistic range at Mach 12 in air. The effects of high-
enthalpy chemical reactions on roughness-induced transition will be investigated.
Also, simulations will be performed for CO2 gas to study the effect of a Mars-like
atmosphere on heating augmentation.

I. Introduction
The design of hypersonic vehicles is challenging in several critical technology areas. The
severe heating environment encountered during hypersonic flight dictates the shape of the
vehicle. Boundary-layer transition at hypersonic speeds poses an especially significant
challenge. Prediction and control of boundary layer transition in hypersonic flows are of
crucial importance for the design of planetary entry vehicles as well as two-stage-to-orbit
airbreathing access-to-space systems. Since turbulent heat transfer rates can be
significantly higher than laminar heating rates, reductions in the weight of thermal
protection systems can be realized with an improved understanding of the physics of
transition from laminar to turbulent flow. The hypersonic heating environment, coupled
with the emphasis on reusability, creates additional severe technology challenges for
materials, material coatings, and structures that not only carry aerodynamic loads but also
repeatedly sustain high thermal loads requiring long-life and durability while minimizing
weight. The gap-filler incident of the Space Shuttle mission STS-114 in 2005 was a
potent reminder of the importance of accurate prediction of roughness-induced boundary
layer transition and subsequent increase in surface heating1.

Direct Numerical Simulation (DNS) solves the Navier-Stokes equations by resolving a
wide range of spatial and temporal scales of turbulence. Since DNS requires a number of
grid points to resolve the Kolmogorov dissipative scales, it is not feasible for high
Reynolds number flow simulations even with todays most powerful supercomputers.
Large Eddy Simulation (LES) requires less computational resources than DNS by
modeling small eddies using sub-grid scale models while still resolving large eddies.
However, even with this improvement, the grid requirements for high Reynolds number
LES calculations are still impractical. Implicit Large Eddy Simulation (ILES) is a
turbulent flow simulation method without a sub-grid scale model but not a fully resolved

106
DNS. Since the high cost of computation for LES comes from the near-wall region,
hybrid models like Detached Eddy Simulation (DES) have been developed which
alleviate the difficulty by using a Reynolds-Averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) model in
the boundary layer, while behaving like Smagorinskys LES model away from the wall.
Among several applications, DES has been used to study high-speed reentry base flows
with favorable results.2

A study has been performed to determine the feasibility of using computational fluid
dynamics as a tool for predicting hypersonic boundary layer transition to turbulence and
the resulting increase in heat transfer. Of particular interest is whether DES can be used
to overcome the scaling problems associated with DNS and LES of boundary layers.
Numerical simulations for a boundary layer trip oriented at 45 degrees to the flow inside
a Mach 10 wind tunnel have indicated that DES can predict perfect-gas flow transition.3
Also, it has been shown that DES and ILES results are comparable when the grid is
fine enough to resolve some of the small length scales.3

Recently high-enthalpy flow transition experiments have been conducted in the NASA
Ames Ballistic Range for blunt bodies with isolated roughness elements.
4
The objective of
the present paper is to simulate selected cases of the Ballistic Range experiments to
validate the CFD code against the test data for a hemisphere with an isolated roughness
element.

II. Preliminary Results
The high-enthalpy experiments4 were performed in the Hypervelocity Free Flight
Aerodynamic Facility, part of the Ballistic Range complex at NASAs Ames Research
Center. The Ballistic Range employs a two-stage light- gas gun to launch individual
models on trajectories through a controlled-atmosphere test section. The largest gun has
an inner diameter of 38.1 mm (1.5 in), and the test section is approximately 1 m across
and 23 m long, measured from the first optical measurement station to the last. The
models are in flight for an additional 10 m from the exit of the gun barrel to the first
optical measurement station, during which time the launch sabot separates from the
model and is trapped in the receiver tank. There are 16 optical measurement stations,
spaced 1.524 m (5 ft) apart, along the length of the test section. Each station is equipped
with orthogonal-viewing parallel-light shadowgraph cameras and high-speed timers for
recording the flight trajectories.

The hemispheres were made from commercially available titanium alloy ball bearings
with a diameter of 2.86 cm, which were cut in half using an electrical discharge
machining wire. The arithmetical average surface roughness was 0.2 m, giving an
aerodynamically smooth surface finish. Isolated, disk-like surface roughness elements
were created by drilling holes perpendicular to the model surface at parametrically varied
locations of 10o, 20o and 30o of arc length from the stagnation point, then press fitting
cylindrical silicon carbide pins of diameter 762 m into each hole, leaving exposed
heights that were systematically varied to cover a wide range of Rekk values. Four such
pins were located on each model, all at the same arc length from the stagnation point, and
separated by 90o circumferentially. Roughness element heights were measured using
greatly magnified silhouette images generated with an optical comparator. Figure 1
shows a shadowgraph picture of a model in hypersonic free flight.4

107

Our first test case is the flow in air over a high trip element (58 m) located at 20o. The
freestream pressure level is 0.175 atm, and the freestream temperature of the quiescent
test gas is at 294.16K. Model/sabot packages are launched from a two-stage light gas gun
at a nominal muzzle velocity of 4.22 km/s, yielding a freestream velocity of 4.08 km/s at
a mid-range location. The corresponding nominal freestream Mach number is
approximately 12. Figure 2 shows a thermal image of the shot. The wake appears to be
shorter than the actual because of the camera angle.

Results have been obtained on an unstructured grid that consists of approximately 40
million cells covering a quarter hemisphere. First, the effects of chemical reactions on
hypersonic flows were investigated using the modified Steger-Warming flux vector
splitting scheme. At hypersonic speeds, the perfect-gas assumption is no longer valid
because molecular species dissociate due to the high temperatures resulting from
aerodynamic heating. Vibrational and electronic excitation, dissociation, and ionization
processes absorb energy, and hence result in lower temperatures than in a perfect gas.
The decrease in temperature accompanies a rise in density, which in turn causes a thinner
shock layer. A reacting flow solution in Fig. 3a, compared to a frozen flow in Fig. 3b,
clearly shows that the bow shock is closer to the body and hence temperatures are lower
in the shock layer. Since the bow shock is closer to the edge of the boundary layer, the
transition is further affected by the production of an entropy layer.

III. References
1
Yoon, S., Gnoffo, P.A., White, J.A., and Thomas, J.L.,Computational Challenges in
Hypersonic Flow Simulations, AIAA Paper 2007-4265, June 2007.
2
Barnhardt, M.D. and Candler, G.V., Detached Eddy Simulation of the Reentry-F Flight
Experiment, AIAA Paper 2008-625, Jan. 2008.
3
Yoon, S., Barnhardt, M.D. and Candler, G.V., Simulations of High-Speed Flow over an
Isolated Roughness, AIAA Paper 2010-1573, Jan. 2010.
4
Reda, D. C., Wilder, M. C., and Prabhu, D.K., Transition Experiments on Blunt Bodies
with Isolated Rough ness Elements in Hypersonic Free Flight, AIAA Paper 2010-0367,
48th Aerospace Sciences Meeting, Jan. 2010.

Research Scientist, NASA Advanced Supercomputing Division
Research Scientist, ERC, Inc.
Research Scientist, ERC, Inc.


108




109


THREE DIMENSIONAL RADIATION IN MARTIAN
ATMOSPHERE

Daniil Andrienko
1,2
, Sergey Surzhikov
2


Moscow institute of Physics and Technology
1
, daniilandrienko@gmail.com
Institute for Problems in Mechanics
2
, surg@ipmnet.ru

ABSTRACT

It has been long time understood that there is a strong necessity in accurate and time
efficient method of radiative heat transfer prediction during planetary entry. These
requirements are defined by strong radiative-gasdynamic interaction which takes place
between hypersonic inlet flow and thermal protection capsule of descent space vehicle.

An experience of past space probe missions and present-day calculations show that
during capsule entering in Martian atmosphere it experiences heating by strong CO2 and
CO bands. On the other hand, the radiative part of complex radiative-gasdynamic solvers
can take significant (up to 90%) of total time. The order of temperature entering velocity
is such to influence on gasdynamic parameters of inlet flow. The trajectory of probe is
considered to be under non zero angle of attack, so the flow field is essentially three
dimensional.

This paper presents a high time efficient computational platform for three dimensional
spectral radiation transfer calculation.

The governing system of equations is solved by program code NERAT-3D.

The radiative heat transfer is described by the P1-approximation of spherical harmonics
method. The P1- approximation is an accurate and powerful method for radiation
calculation in strong absorbing media. Considering the extremely strong absorption in
infrared and UV part of spectrum in Martian atmosphere, the P1-approximation seems to
be good enough to describe radiative heat transfer. The media is considered to be
absorbing and emitting.

The multigroup spectral model (100 spectral groups) is chosen to describe optical
properties of Martian atmosphere. 10 species model (C, N, O, C2, N2, O2, CN, CO, NO,
CO2) and 37 reactions are used to describe chemical properties of inlet flow.

The computational platform performs with multiblock structured and unstructured grids.
This fact allows calculating radiative heating of complex shape bodies. Two types of
three dimensional capsules are used: spherical body with radius 66 cm and the body,
similar to Pathfinder shape with radius 120 cm. Such blunt cone at front shield and

110
truncated cone at back shield shape is typical for capsule of new ESA mission
EXOMARS.

Radiative heating parameters are obtained for point of MSRO trajectory where thermal
protection system experiences maximum of radiative heating. The parameters of inlet
flow are =2.462x100 erg/cm3, = 1.01x10-8 g/cm3, = 129 K, =7.49x105 cm/s. These
parameters correspond to the 42nd second of MSRO flight. The altitude is 50 km
approximately.

The spectral and integral heating calculation along the whole body surface is presented.
The verification against tangent slab approximation and ray-tracing method is
demonstrated. The volumetric radiative heat release in the whole computational domain
is also obtained. The adequate accuracy of P1-approximation is demonstrated.

The efficient strategy of P1-approximation method in case of small optical thickness is
proposed. This step of optimization allows dramatically decrease the time consuming
factor of P1-approximation comparing with ray-tracing method. The summarizing table
of P1-approximation, tangent slab approximation and ray- tracing method time efficiency
presented.

In the conclusion, some general recommendations for efficient coupling radiative and
gasdynamic solvers are suggested.





Session 6B - Aeroassist, Experimental Missions and EDL
Mission Design

112

OVERVIEW OF THE NASA ENTRY, DESCENT AND
LANDING SYSTEMS ANALYSIS EXPLORATION FEED-
FORWARD STUDY

Alicia D. Cianciolo
1
, Thomas A. Zang
1
, Ronald R. Sostaric
2
, M. Kathy
Mcguire
3

NASA Langley Research Center
1
e-mail: Alicia.M.DwyerCianciolo@nasa.gov,
Thomas.A.Zang@nasa.gov, NASA Johnson Space Center
2
e-mail:
Ronald.R.Sostaric@nasa.gov, NASA Ames Research Center
3
e-mail:
Kathy.Mcguire@nasa.gov

ABSTRACT

NASA senior management commissioned the Entry, Descent and Landing Systems
Analysis (EDL-SA) Study in 2008 to identify and roadmap the Entry, Descent and
Landing (EDL) technology investments that the agency needed to successfully land large
payloads at Mars for both robotic and human-scale missions. Year 1 of the study focused
on technologies required for Exploration-class missions to land payloads of 20 to 50 t.
Inflatable decelerators, rigid aeroshell and supersonic retro-propulsion emerged as the top
candidate technologies. In Year 2 of the study, low TRL technologies identified in Year
1, inflatable aeroshells and supersonic retropropulsion, were combined to create a
demonstration precursor robotic mission. This part of the EDL-SA Year 2 effort, called
Exploration Feed Forward (EFF), took much of the systems analysis simulation and
component model development from Year 1 to the next level of detail.

A main objective of the study was to determine the maximum payload mass (to Mars
touchdown) capability of a Delta IV-H launch vehicle, given the spacecraft launch mass
constraint of 7.2 t and assuming the 2024 Mars opportunity. The simulation results, using
the latest component mass models, indicated that a direct entry system could deliver
approximately 3.5 t to 0 km above the Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter (MOLA) areoid. A
second objective was to characterize the performance required of the supersonic retro-
propulsion system. The study, which assumed four engines with a specific impulse of
338s and a system thrust-to-weight of 3.7 Mars gs, yielded descent engine initiation
between Mach 1.4 and 1.8 at an altitude between 3 and 8 km. A third major objective was
to use the high fidelity entry simulation to characterize an Autonomous Landing and
Hazard Avoidance Technology (ALHAT) like sensor suite for Mars. Initial performance
range results were obtained for terrain relative navigation, hazard detection and
avoidance, velocimeter and altimeter sensor systems.

This paper summarizes the analysis performed to meet the EFF objectives, the study
results and recommendations for future investment.



113

AEROFAST: MARTIAN AEROCAPTURE FOR FUTURE
SPACE TRANSPORTATION MISSION OVERVIEW

T. Salmon
*1
, F. Bonnefond
1
, J-M. Bouilly
1
, P. Augros
2
, T. Lutz
3



EADS Astrium Space Transportation
1
, EADS Astrium Space Transportation
2
,
EADS Astrium Space Transportation GmbH- Airbus-Allee
3

ABSTRACT

AEROFAST is a Mars aero-capture feasibility demonstration performed by twelve
European companies leaded by AST-ST as prime, and funded under seventh framework
programme of the European Commission. This study planned over 2.5 years will end in
June 2011.

An aero-capture is a flight manoeuvre that takes place at very high speeds within a
planets atmosphere that provides a change in velocity using aerodynamic forces (in
contrast to propulsive thrust) for orbit insertion. This aero-breaking technology becomes
really attractive with respect to propulsion technology when the delta-V necessary for
orbit insertion becomes greater than 1 km/s, which is the case for most of the future solar
system exploration missions.

Aero-capture is a very challenging system level technology where compromises have to
be found between individual disciplines such as system analysis and integrated vehicle
design, aerodynamics, aero-thermal environments, thermal protection systems (TPS),
guidance, navigation and control (GNC), instrumentation... all these disciplines needing
to be integrated and optimized as a whole to meet the mission specific requirements.

Currently, Technology Readiness Level (TRL) of aero-capture technology in Europe is
assessed at TRL2 to 3 whereas a TRL6 is mandatory to envisage the aero-capture
technology for operational missions while mitigating development risks. The
AEROFAST study fits with this goal, being dedicated to increase the TRL level of aero-
capture technology up to TRL4 through a complete mission study of a Martian aero-
capture.

The objectives of AEROFAST project are:
- OBJ1: Define a project of aero-capture demonstration.
- OBJ2: Make a significant progress in space transportation by increasing the TRL of the
planetary relative navigation and the aerocapture algorithm up to 5.
- OBJ3: Build a breadboard to test in real time the pre-aerocapture and aerocapture GNC
algorithms,
- OBJ4: Demonstrate/prototype the thermal protection system for such a mission ----
- OBJ5: Define on-board instrumentation for aero-capture phase recovery.


114

The proposed paper will be dedicated to present an overview of the mission and to point
out the improvements and results gained at the end of the study wrt challenging topics:
- A description of the overall mission architecture will be proposed including the pre
aero-capture phase (Earth to Mars transfer), aero-capture phase and post aero-capture
phase (transfer to orbit).
- The spacecraft design based on a composite architecture made of several modules
will be depicted, with aero shape, aero thermal behaviour and budgets justified.
- A specific emphasis will be put on the GNC concerns, algorithms validation
implemented within a simulator for NRT and RT test being a key factor for success.
- Meantime, in order to improve robustness wrt mass & centring concerns during
critical aero-capture phase, results of innovative TPS improvements and testing will be
presented.




115


MISSION ANALYSIS AND FLIGHT MECHANICS OF
EARTH EXPERIMENTAL MISSIONS

Rodrigo Haya-Ramos
1
, Davide Bonetti
1
, Cristina Parigini
1
, Jorge
Serna
1
, Gabriele de Zaiacomo
1
, Federico Massobrio
2


DEIMOS Space S.L.U.
1
, Email: rodrigo.haya@deimos-space.com, Thales Alenia Space
2
,
Email: Federico.Massobrio@thalesaleniaspace.com

ABSTRACT

In the European context, several experimental missions have been planned to improve the
knowledge of hypersonic systems. The general aim is to increase the safety of the future
re-entry or planetary probe missions and optimize designs by reducing margins.

There are several needs for hypersonic experimentation. On one side, from the point of
view of subsystems it is of interest to increase the TRL of critical EDL technologies, like
TPS or GNC by demonstration with scaled vehicles in representative environments. On
the other, there is also need to validate the tools used for design in several disciplines, in
particular aerodynamics and aerothermodynamics, where scarce experimental data are
available. Finally, the design of the experimental vehicle is also a demonstration of
system design and operations.

From the 3 levels of experimentation, in flight research, experimental demonstrators or
full scale vehicle, the ones of interest in view of planetary probe missions are the first
two. In flight research vehicles are test bed for basic research. The Expert and RadFlight
capsules fall within this type, while IXV and BLAST belong to the area of experimental
demonstration with subscale vehicles.

The objective of the "RadFlight" Re-Entry Flight Experiment is to reduce the large
margins considered today in the design of TPS for high speed science exploration sample
return missions by improving our knowledge on radiation process, radiation / ablation
coupling and occurrence of transition from laminar to turbulent boundary layer. It is a re-
edition of the Fire II experiments. The RadFlight capsule is ballistic and falls within the
50 kg class.

The Intermediate eXperimental Vehicle (IXV) is a re-entry demonstrator whose objective
is to tackle the basic European needs for re-entry from LEO. The vehicle is a 2 Tons class
lifting body with ceramic and ablative TPS materials performing a controlled re-entry.

The Beyond LEO Advanced Subscale Test (BLAST) is a System Design Experience
aimed to enhance the European system design capability and provide in-flight data.

116
BLAST is a high-speed demonstrator whose main objectives are the in-flight
experimentation of TPS systems, the design and successful operation of a GNC system
for a lifting re-entry configuration in skip entry and the collection of detailed information
related to the flowfield during the superorbital entry phase.
This paper focuses on the RadFlight, IXV and BLAST Mission Analysis and Flight
Mechanics. The mission analysis and Flight Mechanics of an experimental mission plays
a key role to assess the feasibility of the mission and to advance the expected benefits
before entering in detailed definition phases. Experimental mission are usually very
constrained by low cost and hence optimization, scaling and other simplifications cannot
prevent the user from getting the intended knowledge. It is them important to understand
the bounds and limitations and to analyze the compatibility between the required
experimentation and the available resources. Advanced methods and tools are applied
with the general aim of incorporating as much requirements as possible with increasing
level of fidelity in order to reduce the design iteration loops.

The Mission Analysis of such experimental vehicles has a double challenge: first, to
identify a feasible design space where all of subsystems of the demonstrator can be
designed. Ex: the vehicle must flight within an entry corridor with adequate stability and
control characteristics. On the other, to ensure the representativeness of the flight
envelope with respect to the research or demonstration. Ex: a stable flight within the
entry corridor out of the region of interest for the intended experimentation is safe but
useless.

This paper presents the mission design for each of the 3 experimental vehicles with
special emphasis on the coupling between the mission, system and the experimentation
objectives. All the 3 missions are suborbital: the vehicle is injected in a suborbital arc and
in the case of RadFlight and Blast there is a booster element that provides the additional
energy needed to reach beyond LEO velocities. At the end of the suborbital arc the
vehicle re-enters into the atmosphere. IXV and BLAST perform a controlled entry, while
in the case of Radflight the entry is ballistic. As a result, in the 3 cases an end to end
Mission design approach is required in order to properly couple the entry phase
restrictions with the ascent capabilities.

The main characteristic of the RadFlight Mission is the strong coupling between all of the
phases: ascent, acceleration with the booster and re-entry. The feasibility requires an end
to end approach from lift-off to parachute deployment in order to identify the entry
corridor in which the capsule on one side respects all of the mission and System
constraints, including compatibility with the Volna launcher and on the other fulfils the
experimentation objectives in terms of aerothermodynamics environment to be measured
(minimum level of radiation heat flux and coupling between convective and radiative
flow).

The IXV vehicle is the concept in more advance state (facing CDR actually). The large
design margins required by the aerothermodynamics induce a narrow corridor which is
challenging for both Mission and GNC. The Mission Design process considers visibility,
Flying Qualities, safety and trajectory constraints during the mission design leading to a
robust trajectory design. The end-to-end trajectory optimization process from lift-off to
splashdown and performance evaluation (Monte Carl) is presented as one of the key

117
mission design elements, as well as the integration of high fidelity models for the vehicle
aerothermodynamics and GNC.
Finally, the BLAST Mission Analysis combines the complexity of the IXV vehicle in
terms of representativeness of an operational mission with restrictive safety requirements
with the peculiarities of the high speed re-entry, which tightly couples ascent and re-entry
phases.

Within the paper, the different Mission Design approaches will be presented and the
main results and status discussed which includes trajectory optimization, Flying
Qualities, GNC, end-to-end Monte Carlo assessments, visibility, safety aspects and
technological aspects.

All these activities have been carried out in the frame of industrial activities under ESA
led projects. The author wants to acknowledge Lionel Marrafa, Salvatore Mancuso and
Marco Caporicci (ESA) for their support and comments.

118


HAYABUSA REENTRY: TRAJECTORY ANALYSIS AND
OBSERVATION MISSION DESIGN


Alan M. Cassell
1
, Gary A. Allen
1
, Jay H. Grinstead
1
, Manny E.
Antimisiaris
2
, Jim Albers
3
, Petrus M. Jenniskens
3

NASA Ames Research Center1, NASA Dryden Flight Research Center
2
,

SETI Institute
3

ABSTRACT

On June 13th, 2010, the Hayabusa Sample Return Capsule (SRC) successfully re-entered
Earths atmosphere over the Woomera Prohibited Area (WPA) in southern Australia in
its quest to return fragments from the asteroid 1998 SF36 Itokawa. The SRC entered
the atmosphere at a super-orbital velocity of 12.04 km/sec (inertial), making it the second
fastest human-made object to traverse the atmosphere. The NASA DC-8 airborne
observatory was utilized as an instrument platform to record the luminous portion of the
SRC re- entry (~60 sec) with a variety of on-board instruments to capture the ultraviolet
to near-IR wavelength regime. The predicted SRC entry state information at ~200 km
altitude was propagated through the atmosphere to generate aerothermodynamic and
trajectory data used in the initial observation flight path design and planning. The DC-8
flight path was designed by considering safety, optimal SRC viewing geometry and
aircraft capabilities in concert with the predicted SRC trajectory. Subsequent entry state
vector updates provided by the Deep Space Network (DSN) team at the Jet Propulsion
Laboratory (JPL) were analyzed after the planned trajectory correction maneuvers
(TCMs) to further refine the DC-8 observation flight path. Primary and alternate
observation flight paths were generated during the mission planning phase which
required coordination with Australian authorities for pre-mission approval. The final
planned observation flight path was chosen based upon trade-offs between optimal
viewing requirements, ground based observer locations (to facilitate post-flight trajectory
reconstruction), predicted weather in the WPA and constraints imposed by flight path
filing deadlines with the Australian authorities. To facilitate SRC tracking by the
instrument operators, a series of two racetrack flight path patterns were performed prior
to the observation leg so the instruments could be pointed towards the region in the star
background where the SRC was expected to become visible. Initial post-flight trajectory
reconstruction indicates the predicted trajectory was very close to the as-flown trajectory.
An overview of the design methodologies and trade-offs used in the Hayabusa reentry
observation campaign along with lessons learned will be presented.

Nomenclature


119
ARC = AmesResearchCenter
DFRC = DrydenFlightResearchCenter
JAXA = JapaneseAerospaceExplorationAgency
JPL = JetPropulsionLaboratory
DSN = DeepSpaceNetwork
EFPA = EntryFlightPathAngle
SRC = SampleReturnCapsule
TCM = TrajectoryCorrectionManeuver
TPS = ThermalProtectionSystem
WPA = WoomeraProhibitedArea
EDL = Entry,DescentandLanding



1
Systems Engineer, ERC Inc., Entry Systems and Vehicle Development Branch, M/S
229-1, Associate Member.
2
Aerospace Engineer, ERC Inc., Aerothermodynamics Branch, M/S 230-4,
3
Project Manager, Aerothermodynamics Branch, M/S 230-4, Associate Fellow.
4
Navigator, Entry Systems and Technology Division, IPA University of California Santa
Cruz, Fellow.
5
Systems Engineer, Aerothermodynamics Branch, M/S 230-3, Associate Member.
6
Principal Investigator, Associate Fellow.



120



A SIMPLE ANALYTICAL EQUATION TO ACCURATELY
CALCULATE THE ATMOSPHERIC DRAG DURING
AEROBRAKING CAMPAIGNS VALIDATION IN THE
MARTIAN CASE

F. Forget, M. Capderou

Laboratoire de Meteorologie Dynamique (LMD), Universite (forget@lmd.jussieu.fr).


ABSTRACT

Planetary orbital missions are often designed to fly through atmospheric layers dense
enough to significantly alter the spacecraft velocity during a single orbit pass. On the one
hand, such a maneuver can be used to circularize the orbit and lower the periapsis using
much less fuel than what would have been necessary directly using a rocket engine
(aerobraking). On the other hand, lowering the orbit periapsis of a scientific probe can be
useful to per- form in-situ observations in the lower thermosphere and mesosphere,
increase the precision of the gravity field measurements, or improve the mapping of
surface properties like the crustal magnetic field (e.g. the MAVEN mission to Mars, to be
launched in 2013).

To accurately compute the orbital perturbation due to the atmosphere, engineers must
usually couple numerical simulators of the spacecraft navigation with atmospheric model
of the density and the winds in order to integrate the action of the atmospheric friction
timestep after timestep. We have developed such a tool by combining the state of the art
satellite orbitography model Ixion with the LMD Mars General Circulation Model
through the Mars Climate Database (see Millour et al., this issue)

However, on the basis of theoretical considerations and thorough validation, we have
discovered that the orbital perturbation due to the atmosphere can be calculated with very
high accuracy using a simple analytical equation combining the orbit parameters and the
atmospheric density and scale height at a single point: periapsis. The equation is derived
from the complete equations of atmospheric motion around a planet and through the
atmosphere, and take advantage of the fact that if the orbit is non circular (an eccentricity
larger than 0.03 is sufficient), the time spent in the dragging atmosphere is short and the
spacecraft velocity relatively constant while in the atmosphere.

The main uncertainty lies in the assumed atmospheric winds. If the actual value of the
velocity v0 relative to the atmosphere at perihelion (i.e. v0 computed with respect to
planetary rotation and atmosphere) is known, the expression of the atmospheric drag over
one period is simply:

121
2 !21 v=k0v0rp e H (1)
with 0 and v0 the atmospheric density and velocity at periapsis, rp the distance between
periapsis and the center of the planet, = GM is the central attractive constant (for Mars
= 4.282 837 1013 m3 s2), e the eccentricity, and H the scale height of the atmosphere
at periapsis. k = B/2 with B = CdS/m the so-called bal- listic coefficient derived from the
probe aerodynamical data and surface.

In practice, the atmospheric circulation is not easy to estimate. It typically requires a
general circulation model. An approximation is to the neglect the atmospheric winds and
assumes that the satellite velocity relative to the atmosphere is the velocity in the galilean
frame.
This is especially valid for polar orbits.In that case, the atmospheric drag over one period
simply becomes:
" 1+e v=k0 2e H (2)

Such an equation can be useful to design future missions. For instance, future
aerobraking or scientific "deep dip" campaign can be optimized by choosing the best
combination of season, local time, latitude or longitude for the periapsis as well as orbit
inclination, excentricity, etc. To our knowledge, such equations have not been described
elsewhere. Analytical development can be found in King-Hele [1964]. In this
fundamental book the author studied contraction of orbits under the influence of drag, in
a spherically symmetrical atmosphere then in an oblate atmosphere. He gets very
complex equations, always presented in analytical form, taking into account the variation
of the orbital parameters orbit after orbit. Here we just compute v for each individual
orbit.

We will present detailed validation studies performed by comparing v calculations from
a state of the art complete model with our simple equations in a wide variety of cases, and
show that the results are always extremely accurate.



122


AEROBRAKING PERIAPSIS CONTROL STRATEGIES

M. Snchez*, F. Cichocki

DEIMOS Space S.L.U mariano.sanchez@deimos-space.com

ABSTRACT

Space missions are becoming noticeably more complex and they are demanding to put
increasingly bigger payloads in orbit. In this context, aerobraking emerges as an
enabling technology to enhance the mass ratio about celestial bodies presenting
atmosphere. Being already demonstrated operationally by NASA in various Mars
missions, it has been identified as an essential phase for this type of missions to allow
fulfilling tight requirements on available mass about Mars. But not only Mars missions
can take benefit from this technology. Other scenarios such as Venus or Titan can
consider the utilisation of this technique.

Essentially, the purpose of the aerobraking technique is to reduce the energy of a highly
elliptical orbit, transforming it into a low-eccentricity, low-altitude orbit by a sequence of
atmospheric passes. In each pass, a small part of the S/C energy is dissipated into heat by
aerodynamic friction mainly on the S/C solar panels, thus enabling progressive orbit
apoapsis lowering and orbit period reduction.

This technique allows achieving large V savings with respect to the traditional chemical
orbit insertion approach, which translates into an increase of the mass margin by
reducing the propellant budget allocated to the insertion phase. On the other hand,
insertion strategies based on aerobraking are longer and operationally more complex
and demanding.

Atmospheric passes are very demanding for the S/C structure in terms of thermal stress
mainly, thus feasible aerobraking corridors must be defined so as to ensure the structural
safety at a given confidence level. In particular, upper boundary of the corridor prevents
from producing damages on the structures while lower boundary prevents from having
too long durations.

The most straightforward and efficient way to define the aerobraking corridor would be
to use the actual control variable; i.e. the solar arrays temperature. The main problem
with this approach is the difficulty to derive a representative thermal model to allow the
derivation of realistic corridor boundaries. Moreover, the number and location of
temperature sensor is a complex task.

To tackle the issue described above, surrogate variables are used instead. Traditionally,
constant aerobraking corridor based on dynamic pressure has been used. Although it

123
gives reasonable results in terms of safety margins and aerobraking duration, other
options can be studies to improve the efficiency of the aerobraking.

This paper describes alternative pericentre control strategies based on single and dual
surrogate variables approach (dynamic pressure, heat flux or heat load). Control
corridors based on single surrogate variables are defined by the evolution of a variable
under consideration with time (from constant to more complex functions). Control
corridors based on multiple surrogate variables define a domain where each pericentre
pass represented as a combination of those variables must be confined, either naturally or
through a dedicated manoeuvre at apocentre to counteract the natural evolution and bring
it back to the boundaries of the control corridor.

In order to discuss the different approaches described above, comparative performance
assessments will be shown for those strategies when applied to different mission
scenarios (Mars, Venus and Titan).

DEIMOS Space S.L.U.

124


PLANNED FLIGHT OF THE INFLATABLE REENTRY
VEHICLE EXPERIMENT 3 (IRVE-3)

Robert A Dillman, F Neil Cheatwood, Stephen J Hughes, Joseph Del
Corso, Richard J Bodkin, and Aaron Olds


ABSTRACT

The Inflatable Reentry Vehicle Experiment 3 (IRVE-3) is planned for launch from NASA
Wallops Flight Facility in the spring of 2012. IRVE-3 is a follow-on mission to the
IRVE-II flight of 2009, which successfully demonstrated exo-atmospheric inflation,
reentry survivability, and flight performance of a Hypersonic Inflatable Aerodynamic
Decelerator (HIAD). IRVE-3 is intended to demonstrate the performance of a HIAD with
a flight-relevant TPS exposed to a peak reentry heat rate above 15 W/cm2, and to
demonstrate the effect of an offset center of gravity on HIAD flight performance.
This paper discusses the IRVE-3 mission scenario, reentry vehicle design, expected flight
environment, predicted vehicle response, and the various sensors that will allow
quantification of the flight environment and vehicle performance. The design and
expected performance of the inflatable aeroshell, inflation system, and CG offset
mechanism will be discussed in detail, along with plans for future development flights
and eventual mission use.


125


DIMENSIONLESS PARAMETERS FOR ESTIMATING
MASS OF INFLATABLE AERODYNAMIC
DECELERATORS

Jamshid A. Samareh

NASA Langley Research Center, Jamshid.A.Samareh@nasa.gov

ABSTRACT

This paper provides an overview of a mass estimating technique for inflatable
aerodynamic decelerators. The technique uses dimensional analysis to identify a set of
dimensionless parameters for inflation pressure, inflation gas mass, and flexible material
mass. The dimensionless parameters are similar to drag coefficient, and these parameters
allow scaling of an inflatable concept with geometry sizing parameters (e.g., diameter),
environmental conditions (e.g., dynamic pressure), inflation gas properties (e.g.,
temperature), and mass growth allowance. This technique is suitable for estimating the
mass of attached (tension cone, hypercone and stacked toroid) and trailing inflatable
aerodynamic decelerators.
The technique relies on simple engineering approaches developed by NASA in the 1960s,
1970s, and some recent developments. The technique was recently used for NASAs
Mars Entry and Descent Landing System Analysis (EDL-SA) project. The EDL-SA
results were validated with two separate sets of finite element analyses. A typical
inflatable concept consists of following components: toroid(s), radial straps, gores, rigid
heatshield, and thermal protection system. The last two components will not be included
in the final paper.
The structural concept for toroids can be either film, coated fabric, or a combination of
thin bladder covered with reinforced fabric material. The latter concept will also include
axial straps to counter in- plane and out-plane buckling. The dimensionless parameter for
minimum inflation pressure is a critical parameter for toroid mass, and this parameter is
shown to be only dependent on the geometry of inflatable concept. The mass of the
inflation system is based on a user-defined mass fraction. The gores are used as gas
barrier layers that also carry loads produced by the dynamic pressure. The radial straps
are used to connect the toroid(s) to the rigid heatshield and are made of high performance
fabric.
The results indicate that the dimensionless parameter for gas mass depends on only
geometry parameters and gas properties. Similarly, the dimensionless parameter for mass
of flexible material depends on only geometry and material properties.







Session 7A - Advances in TPS Technology for Planetary Probe
Design


127


CHALLENGES WITH THERMAL PROTECTION
MATERIAL DEVELOPMENT AND IMPLEMENTATION:
LESSONS LEARNED FROM RECENT NASA
EXPERIENCE

D. Ellerby

NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA



Unlike the structural materials used in spacecraft, (composites, Ti, Al, etc), which have
terrestrial applications, thermal protection materials are solely designed for and utilized in
the reentry environment and typically do not have any other terrestrial uses. This results
in TPS materials that have manufacturing processes, material constituents and material
architectures with no or limited commercial applications, therefore, the burden for
maintaining these supply chains rests completely upon a single end user, typically a
government entity such as NASA. For large programs such as the space shuttle, with
relatively frequent flight rates (flights per year), it is expensive but feasible to maintain
these supply chains to support a single vehicle. But for one-off probe missions, with very
low flight rates (years between flights), and depending upon the destinations wildly
different reentry environments and thus TPS material requirements, Mars versus Jupiter
entries for example, sustainability of material is a significant risk. Add to that the high
costs associated with flight certifying new TPS materials, and the result is only a few
materials ever being matured sufficiently for flight. These flight proven materials are
applied to and/or proposed for a range of missions, even though they may not be
optimized in terms of mass. Given the complexities of some of these TPS materials, the
uncertainties associated with changing constituents on final material performance and the
high cost associated with recertification, TPS material users fall into the trap of
maintaining heritage traceability, which is often the proper approach, but has its own
challenges/risks. Lastly when new materials are developed the material developers may
focus on material performance in the reentry environment at the coupon level and lose
sight of bigger issues with implementation of the material on the final flight vehicle.
Keeping material integration in mind is important when spending scarce TPS material
research and development funds. In this presentation we will review some of the
challenges faced with developing, implementing and sustaining TPS materials at NASA.






128

ONGOING EUROPEAN DEVELOPMENTS ON ENTRY
HEATSHIELDS AND TPS MATERIALS

H. Ritter
1
, O. Bayle
1
, Y. Mignon
2
, P. Portela
3
, J-M. Bouilly
2
, R. Sharda
4



ESA/ESTEC
1
, EADS Astrium
2
, HPS Lda.
3
, Lockheed Martin Insys
4


ABSTRACT

The paper will provide an overview on some elements of current European developments
for heatshields of atmospheric entry probes and TPS materials. In particular, it will talk
about the ongoing heatshield development for the European ExoMars EDL demonstrator
and the ongoing development of a European low-density ablative material for extreme
heat flux applications.

The joint ESA-NASA ExoMars program now includes two launches. While in 2018 a
NASA spacecraft is planned to deliver a rover module to the surface of Mars, in 2016 a
European composite spacecraft is planned to be launched consisting of an orbiter module
and an EDL demonstrator (EDM). The EDM will have an entry mass of 600kg with a
heatshield diameter of 2.4m. The heatshield will be based on a cork- based ablator. It will
be designed in order to withstand not only the aerothermodynamic entry loads with peak
heat fluxes up to 2 MW/m2, but also to survive the possibility of a severe dust storm
during entry allowing an arrival during a global dust storm season. Further, a set of entry
system sensors will be integrated in the heatshield allowing to reconstruct part of the
entry environment and the TPS response.

Various sample return missions have been studied in recent years. Most recently the ESA
Cosmic Vision program has selected a revised version of MarcoPolo as one of four
candidates for a medium-class mission that is planned to launch in the period 2020-22.
MarcoPolo-R is a mission to return a sample of material from a primitive near-Earth
asteroid (NEA) for detailed analysis in ground-based laboratories.
The Earth return from extraterrestrial bodies involves a hyperbolic trajectory resulting in
atmospheric entry velocities of typically around or above 12 km/s and resulting peak heat
fluxes in the order of 10-20 MW/m2 with dynamic pressure loads up to around 1000
mbar. In addition, since the Earth return capsule is subject to a double delta-V (to the
object and back to Earth), the return capsule and its heatshield have to conform to a very
stringent mass budget.

This requires the availability of a highly efficient light-weight ablator material. ESA has
therefore initiated a dedicated activity aiming at the development of a European
lightweight ablative material for extreme heat flux applications. Initial development has
been completed following two different material concepts and first plasma tests showed
promising results. Refined development is currently ongoing. However, further test
results will not yet be available at the workshop.

129


MEDLI Aerothermal Environment Reconstruction Efforts

Todd White

ERC, Incorporated

ABSTRACT

The Mars Science Laboratory (MSL), scheduled to launch in December 2011, is
equipped with an heat shield instrumentation suite. The suite, named MEDLI for MSL
Entry Descent and Landing Instrumentation, includes a series of pressure ports,
thermocouples, and isotherm sensors embedded in the thermal protection material.
Pressure ports and transducers are part of MEADS (Mars Entry Atmospheric Data
System), while thermocouple and isotherm sensors make up the MISP (Mars Integrated
Sensor Plug). This paper focuses primarily on the response of the MISP plugs (T1-T7) to
Martian atmospheric entry (Figure 1).



Figure 1. MEDLI sensor locations (left); Sample heating pulse and MSL trajectory (right)

The science goals of the MISP ports are to verify turbulence transition, stagnation region
heating, catalytic augmentation, subsurface material response, and surface recession of
the ablative heat shield. However, MISP can only directly measure discrete in-depth
temperatures, thus the remaining science objectives must be addressed through data-
analysis and aerothermal environment reconstruction using computational fluid dynamics
(CFD) and material response codes.

This paper will describe the MISP science objectives and the current state of
reconstruction efforts. These efforts focus on coupled CFD and material response models
to simulate anticipated effects of transition and catalycity on MISP sensors, and include
sensitivity studies on MSL design trajectories. Additionally, this paper will discuss arc-jet
and material properties tests planned in support of the MISP reconstruction.

130


ORION FLIGHT TEST-1 THERMAL PROTECTION
SYSTEM INSTRUMENTATION

T. John Kowal
1


NASA Johnson Space Center
1
Email: john.kowal@nasa.gov

ABSTRACT

The Orion Crew Exploration Vehicle (CEV) was originally under development to
provide crew transport to the International Space Station after the retirement of the Space
Shuttle, and to provide a means for the eventual return of astronauts to the Moon. With
the current changes in the future direction of the United States human exploration
programs, the focus of the Orion project has shifted to the projects first orbital flight test,
designated Orion Flight Test 1 (OFT-1). The OFT-1 is currently planned for launch in
July 2013 and will demonstrate the Orion vehicles capability for performing missions in
low Earth orbit (LEO), as well as extensibility beyond LEO for select, critical areas.

Among the key flight test objectives are those related to validation of the re-entry
aerodynamic and aerothermal environments, and the performance of the thermal
protection system (TPS) when exposed to these environments. A specific flight test
trajectory has been selected to provide a high energy entry beyond that which would be
experienced during a typical low Earth orbit return, given the constraints imposed by the
possible launch vehicles. This trajectory resulted from a trade study that considered the
relative benefit of conflicting objectives from multiple subsystems, and sought to provide
the maximum integrated benefit to the re-entry state-of-the-art. In particular, the
trajectory was designed to provide: a significant, measureable radiative heat flux to the
windward surface; data on boundary transition from laminar to turbulent flow; and data
on catalytic heating overshoot on non-ablating TPS.

In order to obtain the necessary flight test data during OFT-1, the vehicle will need to
have an adequate quantity of instrumentation. A collection of instrumentation is being
developed for integration in the OFT-1 TPS. In part, this instrumentation builds upon the
work performed for the Mars Science Laboratory Entry, Descent and Landing Instrument
(MEDLI) suite to instrument the OFT-1 ablative heat shield. The MEDLI integrated
sensor plugs and pressure sensors will be adapted for compatibility with the Orion TPS
design. The sensor plugs will provide in-depth temperature data to support aerothermal
and TPS model correlation, and the pressure sensors will provide a flush air data system
for validation of the entry and descent aerodynamic environments. In addition, a
radiometer design will be matured to measure the radiative component of the reentry
heating at two locations on the heat shield. For the back shell, surface thermocouple and
pressure port designs will be developed and applied which build upon the heritage of the
Space Shuttle Program for instrumentation of reusable surface insulation (RSI) tiles.

131

The quantity and location of the sensors has been determined to balance the needs of the
reentry disciplines with the demands of the hardware development, manufacturing and
integration. Measurements which provided low relative value and presented significant
engineering development effort were, unfortunately, eliminated. The final TPS
instrumentation has been optimized to target priority test objectives. The data obtained
will serve to provide a better understanding of reentry environments for the Orion capsule
design, reduce margins, and potentially reduce TPS mass or provide TPS extensibility for
alternative missions.



132


FLEXIBLE ABLATORS: APPLICATIONS AND ARCJET
TESTING

James O. Arnold
1
, Ethiraj Venkatapathy
1
, Robin Beck
1
, Kathy M.
McGuire
1
, Dinesh K. Prabhu
2
and Sergey Gorbunov
3



ABSTRACT

The concept of flexible ablators was developed as a technology pull to meet the need
for a thermal protection system (TPS) that could enable large (23 meter diameter)
hypersonic inflatable aerodynamic decelerators (HIADs). The initial application was
incorporated in system analysis studies [1] which showed that large HIADs can be
employed to mass-efficiently place payloads of order 40 metric tons (mT) on the surface
of Mars with arrival masses of ~ 80 mT. Follow-on systems analysis studies [2] of
potential robotic precursor missions to Mars showed that flexible ablators could also be
used on smaller HIADs to efficiently place payloads on Mars in excess of 2.5 mT with an
arrival mass of 7.2 mT. This use of flexible ablators enables one approach to enable
robotic Mars missions with payloads exceeding that of the Mars Science Laboratory at ~
one mT, the capped mass using Viking-era technology. Recent system studies [3] of
deployable heat shields using mechanical erection methods in the transformable entry
system technology (TEST) show that flexible ablators are enabling for human Mars
missions and for mission to Venus, both involving aerocapture and subsequent out-of
orbit entry. Flexible un-deployed supersonic inflatable aerodynamic decelerators (SIADs)
from hypersonic heating of Mars landers [4]. Flexible ablators can simplify the design
and manufacture and reduce cost of TPS for conventional, rigid-body vehicles [5]. This
follows since flexible ablators are conformal, eliminating thermal structure design issues.
They are manufacture-able from 1.8 meter wide felts so the number of gap/seams in a
TPS are greatly reduced as compared to conventional tiled systems such as in the rigid
phenolic impregnated carbon ablator (PICA) design for Orion. This presentation will
include a brief summary of how flexible ablators are made and have been tested that is
covered in more detail elsewhere [6]. This presentations will focus on the range of entry
vehicle heating environments where flexible ablators may be applicable, and will also
discuss new arcjet testing approaches under consideration for flexible ablators for both
conformal and deployable applications.

1
NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA 94035
2
ERC Inc.
3
Jacobs Technology, Inc.

References

[1]Dwyer-Ciancolo,Alicia,et.al,Entry,Descentand

133
LandingSystemAnalysisStudy:PhaseIReport,NASA/TM-2010-216720,July
2010.
[2]Dwyer-Ciancolo,Alicia,et.Al,Entry,DescentandLandingSystemAnalysisStudy:
PhaseIIReport,ExplorationFeed-Forward,NASA/TM-2011-217055,February
2011.
[3]Venkataphathy,E.,et.al,TransformableEntrySystemsTechnology,,21
st

AIAAAerodynamicDeceleratorSystemsTechnologyConferenceandSeminar23-26
May2011,TrinityCollege,Dublin,Ireland.
[4]JamesO.Arnold,et.al,ThermalProtectionSystemforSupersonicInflatable
AerodynamicDeceleratorCoverProtectiveShield,21
st
AIAAAerodynamic
DeceleratorSystemsTechnologyConferenceandSeminar23-26May2011,Trinity
College,Dublin,Ireland.
[5]James.O.ArnoldAffordableThermalProtectionSystemsforFutureEntry
Vehicles:LessonsLearnedfromShuttle,OrionandOngoingResearchand
Development,CommercialandGovernmentResponsiveAccesstoSpace
TechnologyExchange.October25-28,2010.MoffetField,CA.
[6]RobinA.Beck,et.al,OverviewofInitialDevelopmentofFlexibleAblatorsfor
HypersonicInflatableAerodynamicDecelerators21
st
AIAAAerodynamic
DeceleratorSystemsTechnologyConferenceandSeminar23-26May2011,Trinity
College,Dublin,Ireland.


134


Overview of Initial Development of Flexible Ablators for Mars
EDL

Robin A.S. Beck, Susan White, James Arnold, Wenhong Fan, Mairead
Stackpoole, Parul Agrawal

NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA, USA

ABSTRACT

The Vision for the EDL Technology Development Project (EDL TDP) is to develop
world class Entry, Descent, and Landing (EDL) technologies for Exploration Class
Missions. The objective of the EDL Exploration Class Missions Project is the
development of applicable technologies to a readiness level of TRL (Technology
Readiness Level) six for specific Exploration Class Missions. The NASA Exploration
roadmap calls for human exploration of Mars beginning in the decade of the 2030s, with
precursor missions to the Low Earth Orbit and the Moon in preceding decades. While the
technologies for LEO and Lunar return to Earth are reasonably mature and are under
further development within NASA, the necessary technologies for landing astronauts and
exploration class payloads (> 40 metric ton) on the surface of Mars do not exist today.
The only proven EDL architecture for Mars entry is based on Viking heritage, with
extensions for Mars Science Laboratory (MSL). However, this architecture is
fundamentally limited to landed masses of about 2 metric tons, and cannot meet landed
elevation and landing precision requirements for larger class exploration missions.
The Design Reference Mission as defined by the Entry Descent Landing Systems
Analysis for Mars Missions Requiring Large Surface Payloads document (EDLSA-001)
is to deliver multiple 40 metric ton payloads to the surface of Mars in order to support
human exploration, in-situ resource utilization, and large scale exploration. Previous
technology roadmaps have demonstrated that the current TRL of the necessary EDL
components is so low that immediate technology development is required to support this
timeline. Even if the need date of the technologies were to slip, low to mid TRL
technology development is still a high priority, because of the long lead times of the
required elements. In both the hypersonic and supersonic stages of EDL there are only
two proposed technology candidates, and at the current level of fidelity it is not known
whether either will be scalable to exploration class missions.
During its first year, the EDL TDP was divided into three elements: Thermal Protection
Systems (TPS); Aeroshell Modeling and Tool Development (MAT); and Supersonic
Retro- Propulsion (SRP). Now, in its second year, the EDL TDP has further divided the
TPS element into two separate elements: Rigid TPS (R-TPS); and Flexible TPS (F-TPS)
This paper will describe the steps being taken in pursuit of advanced ablative flexible
TPS materials and systems with performance which support Exploration Class Systems.
The Flexible TPS element will focus on developing material concepts for a 23-m

135
deployable entry system to survive dual pulse heating (peak ~120W/cm2). Because the
peak heat flux exceeds 50 W/cm2, ablative materials will be required for the TPS. The
Flexible TPS Element will define, develop, and model the ablative thermal material
protection system concepts required to allow for the human exploration of Mars via
aerocapture followed by planetary entry.
For the initial project year, the focus of the deployable materials tasks was on evaluating
the wide breath of possible TPS concepts selecting an initial set of concepts for thermal
and structural screening and evaluation. NASA scientists developed flexible versions of
known rigid ablative materials by replacing the rigid reinforcements with flexible
equivalent materials and exploring with various resin compounds for impregnation into
the reinforcements. In addition, organic flexible materials were also impregnated with
resins and included. Evaluation criteria were developed for relevant materials
comparisons and ranking. Existing materials properties were used to develop low fidelity
models used to determine the design the proper screening test facilities and conditions
therein and specimen geometries. Folding tests, radiation transparency tests and thermal
evaluation tests in a radiant environment and an aerothermal environment were
performed on each of the screening materials. Results of the screening tests were ranked
Aerocapture-to-orbit and Entry according to the evaluation criteria and the first round of
down-selections for further development were made.
This paper will present the results and overview of the initial development and evaluation
of a new class of materials: ablative flexible materials.


136


AEROFAST: DEVELOPMENT OF CORK TPS MATERIAL
AND A 3D COMPARATIVE THERMAL/ABLATION
ANALYSIS OF AN APOLLO & A BICONIC SLED SHAPE
FOR AN AEROCAPTURE MISSION

G. Pinaud
1
& A.J. van Eekelen
2


ASTRIUM-SAS
1
, Email: gregory.pinaud@astrium.eads.net, SAMTECH
2
, E-mail:
Tom.vanEekelen@samtech.com


ABSTRACT

An Aerocapture vehicle travelling from Earth to Mars approaches that planet on a
hyperbolic interplanetary trajectory. Upon arrival, the vehicle will perform a single
atmospheric pass to significantly reduce its speed, and enters into an orbit around the
planet. This manoeuvre uses aerodynamic drag instead of propulsion for orbit insertion,
and potentially leads to large mass (fuel) savings as well as reduced flight times (higher
arrival speed). However, Aerocapture results in significant aerodynamic heating,
necessitating a Thermal Protection System (TPS), as well as the use of a guidance system
to assure that the spacecraft leaves the planetary atmosphere on the correct trajectory. In
the frame of the seventh European Community Framework Program (FP7), the
AEROFAST (AEROcapture for Future space tranSporTation) research and development
project aims at preparing a demonstration of a Martian Aerocapture mission and
increasing the Technology Readiness Level (TRL).

One of the aims of this paper, is to present the development of an innovative cork based
material and the selection process of the different formulations. The material must be able
to withstand the severe front shield aerothermal environment. Numerous formulations
have been investigated using a parametric combination of cork granule size, resin
type/ratio, reinforcement fraction, fillers and the mixing and agglomeration processes. A
basic (thermo-mechanical) characterization and qualitative analysis allowed for a first
selection of the 4 most promising candidates. These candidates are being tested in the
inductive plasma wind-tunnel facilities (COMETE) of ASTRIUM. These tests are
performed in a stagnation point configuration, for an aerothermal environment similar to
the AEROFAST aerocapture mission.

In parallel, a 3D ablation and charring material model has been implemented in the finite
element program SAMCEF, and successfully validated during the AEROFAST project.
The numerical model consists of three sets of equations, namely the transient heat
balance equation, the steady state mass balance equation and the charring equations. For

137
the charring of the material we use a multi-species Arrhenius model with the species
densities as degrees of freedom. The ablation is modelled by a surface imposed and
temperature dependent ablation speed, followed by an in volume mesh deformation.

Two main probe aerodynamic shapes and concepts have been evaluated, namely an
Apollo like shape and a biconic sled with a characteristic diameter of 4 m. A thermo-
mechanical comparative analysis of the front-shield has been carried out. The space
probes are made of Norcoat-Lige (a low density phenolic resin impregnated cork
material) which will serve as a baseline solution. The 3D heat load history (convective
and radiative), over the front-shield, is based on the maximum energy trajectory extracted
from a statistical Monte Carlo GNC study for a CO2 Martian atmosphere. Due to a non
uniform heat load distribution on the heat shield (non axisymmetric shape plus a 30
flight trim angle), an optimization of the TPS thickness has been performed in order to
save mass.

Finally, the biconic sled vehicle has been selected for its several advantages (internal
volume, ease of TPS manufacturing) and its innovative features (possible adaptation to
other missions).

On the basis of these preliminary experiments, additional efforts will be devoted to the
modelling of the thermal, swelling and ablative behaviour of the selected cork based
material (developed within this project).

REFERENCES
[1] H. Requiston, F. Bonnefond, Ph. Augros, J.-M. Bouilly, S. Reynaud and U.
Westerholt. AEROFAST: AEROcapture for future spAce tranSporTation. In 1st EU-ESA
International Conference on Human Space Exploration, number IAC-09-A3.I.3, 2009.
[2] H. Requiston, P. Augros, F. Bonnefond, J.-M. Bouilly, T. Lutz, H. Scheer,
AEROFAST: AEROCAPTURE FOR FUTURE SPACE TRANSPORTATION, 7th
International Planetary Probe Workshop,14-18 June 2010.
[3] A.J.van Eekelen, G. Pinaud, J.-M. Bouilly, AEROFAST: Thermal/Ablation analysis
of the front heatshield for a Martian aerocapture mission 7th International Planetary
Probe Workshop, June 14-18, 2010.



138


MODULAR MANUFACTURING OF HONEYCOMB-
REINFORCED CHARRING ABLATOR SYSTEMS FOR
THE AEROSHELLS OF LARGE EDL VEHICLES

William M. Congdon

ARA Ablatives Laboratory (ABL), Centennial, CO USA

ABSTRACT

Polymer-based charring ablator heatshields are made more robust by the use of
honeycomb (HC) reinforcement. For large EDL vehicles of 3.5-m and greater (and
especially for the massive HMMES vehicles planned for manned exploration of Mars),
production by direct HC packing on vehicle aeroshells poses numerous and significant
challenges. These challenges are greatly reduced by the use of modular manufacturing
where pre-packed and precision-milled ablator units are secondarily bonding to vehicle
structures. Producibility is enhanced, costs are lowered, and common manufacturing risks
are eliminated. This paper discusses modular manufacturing techniques for EDL
heatshields developed at the Ablatives Laboratory over the past four years of technical
effort. Multiple modular units were produced and evaluated and the real benefits of this
manufacturing approach will be discussed.




Session 7B - Airless Body Surface Missions


140

ROBOTIC AND HUMAN SPACE EXPLORATION OF
NEAR-EARTH OBJECTS
D.D. Mazanek

NASA-Langley Research Center, Space Mission Analysis Branch, Hampton, VA USA
Email: Daniel.D.Mazanek@nasa.gov


This presentation will provide an overview of human mission planning considerations for
the exploration of Near-Earth Objects (NEOs). Topics will include a brief discussion of
the characteristics of these small, airless planetary bodies, the robotic precursor
information required to permit future human missions, the main requirements that will
drive human mission operations, and the reasons for sending humans.













141


EUROPEAN GNC TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT AND
PERSPECTIVE FOR AIRLESS BODIES EXPLORATION

A. Caramagno

DEIMOS Space S.L.U, Ronda de Poniente 19, Tres Cantos (28760 - Madrid) - Spain,
email: augusto.caramagno@deimos-space.com


Exploration of solar system planets and minor bodies is an outstanding goal and challenge within ESA
Science and Exploration Programmes. This lecture provides a European industrial perspective of the
Guidance, Navigation and Control (GNC) developments focusing on this mission category. The available
capabilities and maturity status are presented, as well as a gap analysis aimed to identify the future needs
and strategies to reduce cost and time for Mission implementation.

GNC technologies for mission to airless bodies can be clustered under a set of similar requirements and
drivers. The absence of a relevant atmospheric density represents the major difference with respect to
mission to planets whose mass and origin has allowed the preservation of an atmosphere for which an
Entry, Descent and Landing system is adopted.

Although there is a natural link and synergy among the two classes of missions, the presence or absence of
atmosphere dictate different approaches to the design of a GNC able to autonomously and safely reduce the
arrival or orbital velocity down to values compatible with landing system dynamics.

Furthermore, within the airless body missions, a further distinction between mission to major and minor
bodies drives the strategy for mission design. As a consequence, the chain of nominal and off-nominal
GNC modes depends on the expected operations: e.g. approach for rendezvous and orbiting (with or
without the addition of a landing phase), or intentional impact (e.g. NEO deflection missions), and an
eventually body departure for sample return missions. From the GNC perspective, a crucial problem is
achieving a design implementing heterogeneous mission phases through a robust combination of on-board
functions and an optimized equipment set, whilst containing the uncertainties associated to development
and verification effort.

With focus on airless body missions, the lecture will presents European achievements, mature and under
development GNC technology solutions, as well as the expected future application in line with current ESA
Programmes. Starting from GNC requirements, a solution represents a balanced level of complexity, on-
board resources demand, development risk and cost. As a result, the GNC subsystems is specified and
designed including the selection and specification of the sensor suite and some dedicated actuators.

The perspective covers a time-span of the past decade and a look ahead to missions under study or
development. The analysis puts in evidence a remarkable level of innovation as well as the mature
capabilities of the European industry, worth being considered by European decision makers and
international partners.

142

Magic (Mobile Autonomous Generalized Instrument Carrier)
T. van Zoest
1
, T.-M. Ho
1
, C. Lange
1
, L. Witte
1
, S. Wagenbach
1
, C.
Krause
1
, S. Ulamec
1
,
J. Biele
1
, Florian Herrmann
1
, Joachim Block
1
, and Pierre Bousquet
2

1 DLR Deutsches Zentrum f. Luft- und Raumfahrt, Germany
2 CNES Centre National d'tudes Spatiales, Toulouse, France

ABSTRACT

In this talk, a medium size mobile robotic surface platform (MAGIC) with a weight of 10
kg for in-situ exploration on small bodies like Asteroids and Comets will be presented.
The concept of MAGIC is based on extensive feasibility studies as well as breadboarding
activities of a dedicated lander, called MASCOT, studied for the flight opportunity
onboard Hayabusa- 2, a NEO sample return mission of JAXA/JSPECS (Japan Aerospace
Exploration Agency/JAXA Space Exploration Center) to the Asteroid 1999JU3. As a
next step, MAGIC will be a standardized lander platform for different mission scenarios
and varying payload components. The lander platform design will have functionality such
as mobility and autonomy particularly needed to explore the uncertain surface of a small
body, such as an Asteroid. The rationale for the mobility function is to access the
diversity of several surface sites. Although the lander is commandable from mission
control, it requires the high degree of autonomy to execute its mission in an efficient way
while acting flexible and responsive in face of the uncertain environment of the asteroids
surface. The platform is designed to be deployed from a supporting main space craft,
orbiting or hovering above the target body. Once deployed on the surface it can upright
and relocate by hopping and carry its scientific payload to different sampling sites. All
surface operations, including hopping, science measurements and data transmission, are
conducted fully autonomously.

MAGIC will provide a well balanced combination of system and functional capability,
lifetime and Mission flexibility, based on nanosat technology to be integrated and
qualified for demanding deep space exploration. In summary, MAGIC shall be able to
deliver a wide range possible scientific instrumentation (potentially up to a limit of 3kg
total mass), to study the bodys physical properties (mass, density, temperature), internal
structure, surface and subsurface structure (microscopic to macroscopic scale) and its
chemical composition, thus being a complement to any rendezvous or sample return
missions to small bodies.



143

THE ESA LUNAR LANDER MISSION

A.Pradier*, B.Gardini, C. Philippe, B. Houdou, R. Fisackerly, J.D.
Carpenter, D. De Rosa

ESA-ESTEC, The Netherlands, *E-mail: alain.pradier@esa.int


ESAs Lunar Lander mission shall be launched in 2018 and shall address the primary
objective of demonstrating a key capability for exploration, soft precision landing
with hazard avoidance. Embarking a suite of navigation sensors, and advanced
navigation and hazard avoidance algorithms integrated together within the overall
GNC, the Lunar Lander mission will represent a major step in technology demonstration
even before beginning operations on the surface. However once on the Moon the Lander
shall focus on its second objective, the deployment and operation of a surface payload
dedicated to the investigation of the lunar surface specifically in preparation for future
robotic and human exploration.
This mission represents a major element of ESAs preparation to participate in the
future of exploration as part of a broader international cooperation. While the precise
framework of this broader cooperative effort is under consolidation, the Lunar Lander
represents a clearly defined and, to a certain extent self-contained, mission opportunity.
Having passed through Phase A iterations which have established a strong foundation
of understanding of the key issues, the project is currently progressing through Phase
B1. This key project phase shall focus on important choices to be made at mission and
technology level, in order to put the following design steps on a secure basis to realise
a successful landing and surface mission at the end of this decade. An important aspect of
this is the identification of driving characteristics of the lunar surface environment within
the candidate landing zones, in terms of surface topography, local slopes, hazardous
boulders etc. This work is being carried out using the most up-to-date and accurate data
ever collected on the lunar South Pole, in the form of altimetry and imagery datasets from
NASAs Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter.
In support of the mission and system definition activities of Phase B1, a dedicated
stream of technology breadboarding work shall provide key inputs in terms of
verification of critical performances and of important assumptions. Thus adding
confidence to the overall mission design maturity.
The Lunar Lander project shall arrive at the end of Phase B1 activities, in mid 2012,
with a clear understanding of the implications of the lunar environment, mission
constraints and technological challenges, and with a mission baseline with which to
continue design work up to preliminary design review (PDR).
The ESA Lunar Lander project represents an opportunity in which the fields of
autonomy and robotics must be considered in an overall mission context, with
technological and programmatic constraints and the particular challenges of the lunar
south pole, an important environment for future exploration.


144


CAMERA-AIDED INERTIAL NAVIGATION FOR
PINPOINT PLANETARY LANDING ON RUGGED
TERRAINS

Jeff Delaune
1
, Guy Le Besnerais
1
, Martial Sanfourche
3
, Aurlien Plyer
4
,
Jean-Loup Farges
5
, Clment Bourdarias
6
, Thomas Voirin
7
and Alain
Piquereau
8

(1), (5), (8) ONERA, 2 avenue douard Belin, 31000 Toulouse (France), Email:
jeff.delaune@onera.fr, jean-loup.farges@onera.fr
(2), (3), (4) ONERA, Chemin de la Hunire et des Joncherettes, 91120 Palaiseau
(France), Email: guy.le_besnerais@onera.fr, martial.sanfourche@onera.fr,
aurelien.plyer@onera.fr (6)Astrium ST, 66 Route de Verneuil, 78130 Les Mureaux
(France), Email: clement.bourdarias@astrium.eads.net (7) ESA-ESTEC, Postbus 299,
2200 AG Noordwijk (The Netherlands), Email: thomas.voirin@esa.int

ABSTRACT

This paper tackles the pinpoint navigation challenge for autonomous planetary landers
using a single camera and an Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) to reach a 100-meter
position error requirement at touchdown. Inertial navigation schemes embedded in
previous missions suffer from position and attitude (pose) error growth due to integration
of IMU acceleration and angular rate measurement errors. When looking down at a
terrain in sunlight conditions, image data provided by the camera allow for identifying
surface features from reference maps. These absolute landmarks prevent the error growth.
At the same time, image features are tracked at a higher rate through the image sequence
to make the absolute landmark matching step more robust. Feature tracking will
eventually limit error drift at low altitude when the map resolution is too poor to be
useful. IMU data allow high-bandwidth, low-delay state estimation in any environment
condition and is capable of solving the scale problem associated to camera
measurements. Inertial and optical data fusion is implemented through extended Kalman
filtering which tightly integrates image feature points measurements to IMU-based state
propagation. Tight integration of visual and inertial measurements within the navigation
filter allows for working in degraded conditions with a few features only and thus is more
robust than vision-only solutions.
Image measurements provided by a camera are bidimensional by definition. Many times
in literature, a planar terrain is assumed to avoid computationally-costful methods dealing
with highly-3D areas. Though, such terrains will be encountered in future planetary
exploration missions, for instance to the mountainous lunar south pole. Two aspects that
are the most challenging over rugged terrains are matching absolute landmarks with the
on-board map and estimating depth of relative features to predict their images coordinates
in the correcting part of the filter.

145
The first contribution of this work is the definition of an absolute landmark matching
process that uses landmark constellations, designed as an extension of Landstel [1], to
work over any type of terrain, from flat to hilly. Another contribution is its integration
within a full-state navigation filter able to cope with computer requirements associated
with space exploration missions.
We compute a landmark constellation at each point of interest selected in an orbital
image from an image intensity criterion. 3D coordinates of the point and its neighbors are
extracted from a digital elevation model in order to account for terrain relief. The
constellation itself is based on the angular and distance distributions of its neighbors,
stored in a signature vector. Not only are the constellation signatures robust to terrain
topography and illumination changes, but they can adapt to all surface features while
maintaining low-memory requirements. Once a landmark is matched with the map, its
true 3D coordinates are used to build an absolute image measurement in the filter.
Relative image measurements coming from other features are relying on the estimation of
the 3D position of image features to predict their image coordinates and subsequently
update the filter. We compare the performance for two state-of-the-art tight fusion
schemes: Simultaneous Localization And Mapping filters (SLAM), and Sliding-
Windows filters (SW). The SLAM approach estimates the spacecraft pose parameters
along with 3D positions of the image feature points in the state vector of the filter. Visual
measurements can be processed without delay but SLAM has a high computational cost
associated to a large state vector. For many descent trajectories, points are only crossing
the camera field of view for a limited period of time. We thus process SLAM feature
points in a limited temporal window from the last image backwards and discard them
when they leave the field of view to decrease the computational cost. The other approach
is a SW filter [2]. Unlike SLAM, it only estimates spacecraft pose parameters, but keeps
previous camera poses in the state vector for a limited and sliding temporal window in
order to process measurements. These measurements are built by triangulating 3D
positions of a point from the first and last image of the sequence where it appears.
Measurements are thus delayed and 3D reconstruction of points is less accurate than
SLAM, but the computational cost is lower.
SLAM-based and SW-based version of our navigation system were implemented in an
orbit-to-touchdown lunar descent and landing simulator coupled with an image generator.
Results are presented, discussed and compared with a special focus on the performance
over mountainous areas and filtering issues. Future indoor and experimental validation
test benches are presented.


[1] Pham, B. V.; Lacroix, S.; Devy, M.; Drieux, M. & Philippe, C., Visual Landmark
Constellation matching for spacecraft pinpoint landing, AIAA Guidance, Navigation and
Control, 2009
[2]Mourikis, A. I.; Trawny, N.; Roumeliotis, S. I.; Johnson, A. E.; Ansar, A. & Matthies,
L., Vision-Aided Inertial Navigation for Spacecraft Entry, Descent, and Landing, IEEE
Transactions on Robotics, 2009, 25, 264-280



146

MARCO POLO-R: AN ASTEROID SAMPLE RETURN
MISSION
Mark Adler, Andy Cheng, Tom Randolph, and Rob Maddock

ABSTRACT
MarcoPolo-R is an asteroid sample return mission, which has been selected by ESA for
Assessment Phase study as a medium-class mission following the 2010 Cosmic Vision
announcement. MarcoPolo-R is proposed as an ESA collaboration with NASA. It will
rendezvous with a primitive Near-Earth Asteroid (NEA), scientifically characterize it at
multiple scales, and return a unique sample to Earth unaltered by the atmospheric entry
process or terrestrial weathering. The proposed baseline mission scenario of MarcoPolo-
R to the primary target NEA 1996 FG3 is as follows: a single primary spacecraft
provided by ESA, carrying the Earth Re-entry Capsule, sample acquisition and transfer
system provided by NASA, will be launched by a Soyuz-Fregat rocket from Kourou into
GTO using two space segment stages. Launch windows are identified in the 2020-2024
time frame. The re-entry system will be an application of the NASA developed, chuteless
design for Mars Sample Return.

147


WHAT MOONRISE LUNAR SAMPLE RETURN CAN
TEACH US ABOUT MARS SAMPLE RETURN

George Chen
1
, Eric Blood
2

(1) Jet Propulsion Laboratory, 4800 Oak Grove Drive, Pasadena, CA, 91109, USA
Email: george.t.chen@jpl.nasa.gov (2) Jet Propulsion Laboratory, 4800 Oak Grove
Drive, Pasadena, CA, 91109, USA
Email: eric.blood@jpl.nasa.gov


ABSTRACT

Under consideration by NASA are two challenging robotic sample return missions: the
MoonRise Lunar Sample Return, a New Frontiers proposal which could launch in 2016;
and the Mars Sample Return (MSR) campaign, which could begin with the proposed
Mars 2018 Sample Caching mission. Together they could represent the first wave of
sample return missions envisioned from various solar system bodies.
While the MoonRise and Mars 2018 mission concepts are vastly different in their details,
it is a worthy exercise to take several steps back to recognize their common attributes and
technology needs, especially in the disciplines of entry, descent, and landing (EDL),
sample acquisition, and surface operations. Even though both proposed projects are still
early in their development cycles, a number of common technologies and systems
engineering disciplines are emerging as enhancing, and, in some cases, enabling for both
missions.
Additionally, lessons learned from the MoonRise Lunar Sample Return could also
provide valuable insight for future legs of the Mars Sample Return campaign beyond the
proposed Mars 2018 mission. Specifically, MoonRise experiences with Ascent, Earth
Entry, Descent, and Landing (EDL), and sample recovery operations would provide
useful guidance for the analogous phases of MSR. MoonRise, if selected, would return
samples to Earth in 2017, the timing of which would allow the feed forward of flight
system development knowledge and mission operations experience to the development of
the proposed Mars Sample Return campaign.
As flight systems engineers for both the proposed MoonRise and the Mars 2018 sample
caching missions, the authors have a unique vantage point to the challenges of both
sample return missions and will discuss how MoonRise would build the experience base
for a Mars sample return. Furthermore, lessons learned from the recently completed
MoonRise Mission Concept Study and the on-going Mars 2018 concept development
study suggest focus areas for technology investments, which could benefit future sample
return missions under study at this time.



148


FARSIDE EXPLORER: UNIQUE SCIENCE FROM A
MISSION TO THE FARSIDE OF THE MOON

David Mimoun
1
, Mark Wieczorek
2
, and the Farside Explorer Team
3

Universite de Toulouse, ISAE/SUPAERO
1
, mimoun@isae.fr, Instiut de Physique du
Globe de Paris
2
, Team members: full list available at http://fars
ide.spacecampus-paris.eu/

ABSTRACT

Farside Explorer is a proposed Cosmic Vision medium-sized mission to the farside of the
Moon consisting of two landers and instrumented relay satellite. The farside of the Moon
is a unique scientific platform in that it is shielded from terrestrial radio-frequency
interference, it recorded the primary differentiation and evolution of the Moon, and it
lacks Earthshine and can be continuously monitored from the Earth-Moon L2 Langrange
point. The primary scientific objectives of the Farside Explorer mission are to make the
first radio-astronomy measurements from the most radio-quiet region of near-Earth
space, to determine the internal structure and thermal evolution of the Moon, from crust
to core, and to quantify impact hazards in near-Earth space by the measurement of impact
flashes.

The Farside Explorer flight system includes two identical solar-powered landers and a
science/telecom relay satellite to be placed in a halo orbit about the Earth-Moon L2
Lagrange point. One lander would explore the largest and oldest recognized impact basin
in the solar sysem- the South Pole-Aitken basin and the other would investigate the
primordial highlands crust. Radio astronomy and geophysical instruments would be
deployed on the surface, and the relay satellite would continuously monitor the surface
for impact events.

149


As a direct consequence of the scientific requirements, the proposed space segment
includes two spacecraft to land on the farside of the Moon, and instrumented relay
satellite, and the launcher (either a Soyuz or Ariane 5 shared commercial launch).

The proposed mission concept is innovative by using a halo orbit about he Earth-Moon
L2 Lagrange point (LL2) to provide a relay to the farside landers while simultaneously
enabling the impact flash monitoring program.

The proposed ballistic trajectory starts from GTO to go to the Earth L1 and uses the
instability of the manifold next to EL1 to return to the vicinity of the moon. At lunar
arrival, the intersection of the manifolds of the Earth-Sun and Earth-Moon system allows
for the insertion, at a very low V, of the mission elements into an Earth-Moon LL2
halo orbit.




150
The flight system uses the heritage of the Moonnext study. It is composed of two
identical solar-powered landers and a science/telecom relay satellite in an LL2 halo orbit.
It uses an ATV like thruster used for transfer and landing braking; bi-propellant
hydrazine system provides attitude control, final descent, and landing. Continuous
science operations are allowed by either RHUs or specific thermal design, based on
parabolic reflectors. It has a dry mass of about 380 kg a wet mass: 1185 kg. The payload
mass is 26 kg when the payload power is 200 W (day), 4 W (night).

The LL2 relay satellite is based on a small-satellite bus with a wet mass of about 150 kg,
including a 50 kg payload (mainly the telecom relay).

Mission was foreseen to last four years, with an early launch around 2019-2020, to
overlap other geophysical missions, and therefore provide a geophysical network.

The Farside Explorer is supported by the radio astronomy and lunar science communities.
This consortium represents 7 international Lunar Science Institutes and about 500
individuals.



151


VLBI TRACKING OF PHOBOS-GRUNT PROBE

Guifr Molera Calvs
1,2
, S.V. Pogrebenko
3
, G. Cim
3
, D.A. Duev
3,4
, L.I.
Gurvits
3,5

(1) Aalto University Metshovi Radio Observatory, Metshovintie 114 Kylml, FIN-
02540, Finland, E-mail: gofrito@kurp.hut.fi (2) University of California, Berkeley,
Centre for Astronomy Signal Processing and Electronics Research (3) Joint Institute for
VLBI in Europe, Dwingeloo, The Netherlands, E-mail: pogrebenko@jive.nl,
cimo@jive.nl, duev@jive.nl, lgurvits@jive.nl (4) Moscow State University, Faculty of
Physics, Moscow, Russia (5) Delft University of Technology, DEOS - Faculty of
Aerospace Engineering, Delft, The Netherlands

ABSTRACT

The Phobos Sample Return mission, also known as Phobos-Grunt, will be launched by
the Russian Federal Space Agency in November 2011 and is expected to arrive to the
Martian system in May 2012. The primary focus of the robotic lander is to collect a
sample of the soil from the Phobos surface and return it to Earth for laboratory analysis.
After the departure of the return vehicle from Phobos, the landing module will remain
operational on the Phobos surface for at least a year. Being equipped with an X-band
transmitter locked to the ultra-stable oscillator, it will be used as a beacon for the
Planetary Radio Interferometry and Doppler Experiment (PRIDE), which will address
several key scientific objectives of the mission. In particular, PRIDE-Phobos will enable
characterisation of the gravitational field and geodetic parameters of the Martian moon.
The European VLBI Network (EVN) radio telescopes can offer ground support for this
experiment, in collaboration with the Centre for Deep Space Communication located in
Ukraine.

During the last two years, as a preparatory stage for PRIDE-Phobos, several operational
planetary spacecraft have been observed with the radio telescopes in Metshovi (FI),
Yebes (ES), Wettzell (DE), Onsala (SE), Matera, Medicina, Noto (IT), and Pushchino
(RU). Our team has successfully conducted the Doppler and VLBI spacecraft tracking
experiments with a number of deep space missions, such as the ESAs Huygens Titan
Probe [1], the Smart-1 Lunar probe [2], ESA Venus Express (VEX) and Mars Express
(MEX) during the Phobos-flyby [3]. During the recent years, the PRIDE group has been
developing a series of scientific software tools for measurements of the Doppler-shift of
the spacecraft carrier signal and accurate estimates of the spacecraft state vectors using
the VLBI phase referencing technique. Observing PRIDE sessions with the VEX
spacecraft were used as a test bench to optimize the technique and reduce the lag of data
processing from weeks down to several hours. Rapid results are crucial for the upcoming
deep space missions in view of their potential applicability for mission operations. The
accuracy of the state vectors estimates depends on several parameters, of which the most

152
important ones are the stability of the on-board oscillator and the power of the carrier
signal. The SNR level of the Doppler and VLBI fringe depend on these parameters.
Based on the recent experiments with the VEX and MEX spacecraft, we expect to
achieve the accuracy of better than a few cm/s for the radial velocity and better than 50 m
for the lateral position in the case of the Phobos-Grunt.

In this paper, we report the latest results of PRIDE observations of the VEX and MEX
orbiters with the EVN radio telescopes. In these experiments we achieve a milli-Hz level
of radio signal spectral resolution accuracy and extract the phase of the spacecraft carrier
signal with the accuracy better than 1 radian. As a scientifically attractive by-product of
these observations we present characterisation of the interplanetary plasma along the
signal propagation line on various spatial and temporal scales at different solar elongation
angles. These carrier signal phase fluctuations are well represented by a near-
Kolmogorov spectrum. Results obtained from PRIDE observations of the VEX spacecraft
so far will be used as a benchmark for the future PRIDE-Phobos observations.


REFERENCES
[1] Bird, M.K., Gurvits, L.I., Pogrebenko, S.V. et al., The vertical profile of winds on
Titan, Nature, Vol. 438,8 December 2005
[2] Pogrebenko, S.V. et al., First results of the First EVN VLBI Practice Run on the
Smart1, Presentation at Cassini, PSG meeting, 2123 June 2006, Nantes, France.
[3] Molera Calvs G. et al., Venus Express spacecraft observations with EVN radio
telescopes, 7th International Planetary Probe Workshop, 12-18 June 2010, Barcelona.






Session 8 - Closing



























154





AUSTERITY IN THE AGE OF INNOVATION

Bethany Johns

ABSTRACT

Federal budget cuts, deficit spending, raising the debt ceiling, mandatory spending, fiscal
responsibility, balancing the budget these phrases are guiding much of the debate on
Capitol Hill. How does this rhetoric affect the funding for the sciences?

The Administration believes that funding the sciences and education is the way to, Out
innovation, out educate, and out build, the rest of the world and has proposed a federal
budget that supports this initiative. However, the debate in Congress is about how the
federal deficit impacts our global economic competitiveness and how cuts in spending are
necessary for a stable government. This debate has led to a late enactment of the fiscal
year 2011 federal budget. Its many continuing resolutions cause confusion on how the
federal budget process usually works. In fact, there is a time line with which the process
should follow. There are points along the time line when you can make an impact on the
policy making process. The Decadal Surveys produced by the astrophysics, planetary
science and heliophysics communities in the United States, impact policy by the
community coming to a consensus and prioritizing the science it wants to
accomplish within the decade.

I will speak on the current events on the fiscal year 2011 budget, the 2012 federal budget,
the current climate for science funding, and the impact you can make on the policy
making process for science and planetary exploration. I will also talk about current
progress on the funding for restart of production of plutonium-238, the fuel for planetary
spacecraft.



NASA-LANGLEY RESEARCH CENTERS ENGINEERING
DIRECTORATE

Stephen P. Sandford

NASA-Langley Research Center, 5 N. Dryden St., Hampton, VA 23681
Email: Stephen.P.Sandford@nasa.gov

The personnel in the Engineering Directorate at NASA-Langley Research Center are
involved in a significant number of spaceflight projects, fulfilling roles spanning from
concept development to flight hardware manufacturing and mission operations. This
presentation will provide an in-depth look at Langleys contributions to planetary probes,
atmospheric science instruments, human spaceflight vehicles, and entry vehicle
technology development. With Langleys rich heritage as an atmospheric flight center,
many of the Directorates roles on these modern-day missions relate to aerodynamics,
aerothermodynamics, trajectory simulation, instrumentation, and flight dynamics and
control. These strengths, along with expertise in structures and several unique, world-
class facilities, has postured NASA Langley to be a key team member on todays most
exciting space missions.

156





POSTERS











Poster Session 2 Probe Missions



















Poster Session 2 158




STUDY OF PLANETARY ENTRY PROBES (PEP) FOR
VENUS AND OUTER PLANETS: SATURN, URANUS AND
NEPTUNE

Denis Rebuffat, Peter Falkner, Jonan Larranaga, Jens Romstedt, Kelly
Geelen

European Space Agency- ESTEC, Advanced Studies and Technology Preparation
Division, Directorate of Science and Robotic Exploration, European Space Agency
ESTEC, Keplerlaan 1, 2201AZ Noordwijk, The Netherlands denis.rebuffat@esa.int

ABSTRACT

The aim of the Planetary Entry Probe (PEP) study in ESAs Concurrent Design Facility
(CDF) was to examine entry and descent conditions for Venus, Saturn, Uranus and
Neptune. Further, commonalities and dissimilarities and their relation to technological
challenges between the different entry scenarios were assessed.
While the Venusian atmosphere is CO2 rich with traces of N, the other three planets
maintain a H and He dominated atmosphere like Jupiter. In a previous ESA CDF study, a
Jupiter entry probe was designed. The respective entry conditions with respect to velocity
and correlated heat load on the probe is considered as a worst case condition. Thus these
design specifications were used as the starting point for the current activity and updated
according the environmental specifics of the new target bodies.

As a nominal scenario, the probe is released in a hyperbolic trajectory by a carrier which
is subsequently used for data relay. The probe performs an entry followed by a descent
phase performing scientific measurements down to the 100 bar pressure line. The
parachute design and release strategy was adapted to the scientific relevance of the
various atmospheric layers. Sometimes this led to free-fall phases where no parachute is
used in order to balance the time spent into different layers according to their science
interest, while meeting the time constraint imposed by the data relay.
In the case of Venus, a piggyback launch of the probe on a mission performing a gravity
assist manoeuvre at Venus was addressed as well .

All entry probes showed a good degree of similarity, with a mass ranging from 254 to
326 Kg depending on the target planet. A mass of 10 kg was reserved for a generic suite
of scientific payload for atmospheric research. The main differences concerning the Entry
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and Descent System (EDS) are the Thermal Protection System (TPS) thickness (due
to different heat loads) and the parachute release strategy.
For each planet, a description of the probe is provided as well as the mission profile, both
being justified by design, mission and environment analyses performed by the study team
experts.




Poster Session 3 Science from Probes and Penetrators



Poster Session 3
161


ACCOMMODATION STUDY FOR AN ANEMOMETER ON
A MARTIAN LANDER

Benjamin Lenoir
1
, Don Banfield
1
(1)Cornell Astronomy, 420 Space Sciences, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA,
Email: banfield@astro.cornell.edu

ABSTRACT

Measuring the winds near the surface of Mars as well as their turbulent fluctuations is
important to more fully understand the behavior of the boundary layer of Mars.This in
turn is important to minimize the risk in landing for future exploration at Mars, but also
to understand the interaction between the surface and atmosphere in terms of the transfer
of heat, momentum and trace constituents including dust, water and other trace gases.
Instrumentation is now becoming available for Mars that can measure not only the mean
winds, but also their turbulent fluctuations and also resolving the full 3-D nature of the
wind rather than just the horizontal winds (e.g., see Banfields abstract regarding a
Martian Sonic Anemometer). With the instruments becoming available, the question is
raised of how best to place such an instrument on a Martian lander or rover to yield the
most undisturbed flow measurements in the presence of the lander/rover, and in the case
where flow distortions can not be avoided, how to correct for these perturbations.

To address this question, we used computation fluid dynamics to model the boundary
layer flow at Mars, as well as the mean and turbulent flow distortions that would be
realized at various positions around simplified lander/ rover structures. We first tuned our
model to match the rough conditions experienced by Mars Pathfinder in terms of the
range of roughness lengths and friction velocities seen, although under the assumption of
neutral stability. Armed with this, we inserted into the flow a hemispheric lander with
radius 1m and a half cube that just fit inside the hemisphere.We investigated the nature
and correctability of the flow distortions that resulted from the flow around these
simplified lander/rovers at various positions around them. We found that the exact shape
of the lander/rover was not very important for ranges greater than 1.2m from the center of
the sphere or cube.

Presumably these results may then be extrapolated to more complex lander/rovers of
similar sizes. We found that the mean flow and the turbulent characteristics of the flow
(as expressed in terms of the 6 Reynolds Stresses) were least perturbed when the
anemometer was placed at least 1.8m from the center of the spherical lander/rover.
Additionally, if the instrument were canted 55 degrees above horizontal the flow
distortions were again minimized when considering all possible azimuths for wind
direction. Finally, our modeling suggests that the mean and turbulent characteristics of
the perturbed flow are correctable to a high degree to yield the equivalent unperturbed
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flow that would have resulted without the lander/rover present at all when the
anemometer placement meets or exceeds this range from the lander/rover center and is
placed at 55 degrees elevation. While this study used idealized lander/rovers and neutral
stability conditions, we believe it is instructive in a general sense for the placement of
anemometers on rovers. It is encouraging that good results were found to be possible with
an instrument located only 0.8m from the edge of the lander/rover, simplifying
anemometer accommodation on a realistic martian lander.

Poster Session 3
163


THE MARS CLIMATE DATABASE, CURRENT STATUS
AND FUTURE IMPROVEMENTS

E. Millour(1), F. Forget(1), A. Spiga(1), S. Lebonnois(1), S.R. Lewis(2),
L. Montabone(3), P.L. Read(3),M.A. Lpez-Valverde(4), F. Gonzlez-
Galindo(4), F. Lefvre(5), F. Montmessin(5), M.-C. Desjean(6), J.-P.
Huot(7) and the MCD/GCM development team

(1)Laboratoire de Mtorologie Dynamique, IPSL, Universit Pierre et Marie Curie,
BP99, 4 Place Jussieu, 75005, Paris, France, Email: ehouarn.millour@lmd.jussieu.fr
(2)Department of Physics and Astronomy, The Open University, Milton Keynes, UK
(3)Atmospheric, Oceanic & Planetary Physics, University of Oxford, UK (4)Instituto de
Astrofsica de Andaluca, Granada, Spain (5)Laboratoire Atmosphres, Milieux,
Observations Spatiales, IPSL, Paris, France (6)Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales,
Toulouse, France (7)European Space Research and Technology Centre, European Space
Agency, Noordwijk, Netherlands

ABSTRACT

What is the Mars Climate Database?
The Mars Climate Database (MCD) is a database of meteorological fields derived from
General Circulation Model (GCM) numerical simulations of the Martian atmosphere and
validated using available observational data. The MCD includes complementary post-
processing schemes such as high spatial resolution interpolation of environmental data
and means of reconstructing the variability thereof.
The GCM is developed at Laboratoire de Mtorologie Dynamique du CNRS (Paris,
France) [1,2] in collaboration with the Open University (UK), the Oxford University
(UK) and the Instituto de Astrofisica de Andalucia (Spain) with support from the
European Space Agency (ESA) and the Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales (CNES).
The MCD is freely distributed and intended to be useful and used in the framework of
engineering applications as well as in the context of scientific studies which require
accurate knowledge of the state of the Martian atmosphere. Since its release in May 2008,
Mars Climate Database v4.3 has been distributed to over 130 teams around the world.
Current applications include entry descent and landing (EDL) studies for future missions
(ExoMars, MSL), investigations of some specific Martian issues (via coupling of the
MCD with homemade codes), analysis of observations (Earth-based as well as with
various instruments onboard Mars Express and Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter),...

The MCD may be accessed either online (in a somewhat simplified form) via an
interactive server available at http://www-mars.lmd.jussieu.fr (useful for moderate
needs), or from the full DVD-ROM version which includes advanced access and post-
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164
processing software (contact millour@lmd.jussieu.fr and/or forget@lmd.jussieu.fr to
obtain a free copy).

Overview of MCD contents
The MCD provides mean values and statistics of the main meteorological variables
(atmospheric temperature, density, pressure and winds) as well as atmospheric
composition (including dust and water vapor and ice content), as the GCM from which
the datasets are obtained includes both chemistry [3] and full water cycle [4] models.

The database extends up to ~350km, i.e. up to and including the thermosphere[5,6]. Since
the influence of Extreme Ultra Violet (EUV) input from the sun is significant in the latter,
3 EUV scenarios (solar minimum, average and maximum inputs) account for the impact
of the various states of the solar cycle.
In order to account for and adequately represent the variability of the Martian atmosphere
due to atmospheric dust distribution, the MCD includes 4 different dust scenarios which
describe extreme cases (from very clear skies to global planet-wide dust storms) and a
baseline scenario MY24 for which the dust loading of the atmosphere is that obtained
from assimilation of TES observations [7] in 1999-2001 (i.e. during Mars Year 24,
following the calendar proposed by R.T. Clancy [8], which starts on April 11, 1955, at
Martian solar longitude Ls=0).
The following values are provided in the MCD:
Atmospheric density, pressure, temperature and winds (horizontal and vertical),
Surface pressure and temperature,
CO2 ice cover,
Atmospheric turbulent kinetic energy,
Thermal and solar radiative fluxes,
Dust column opacity and mass mixing ratio,
[H2O] vapor and [H2O] ice columns and mixing ratios
[CO], [O], [O2], [N2], [CO2], [H2] and [O3] volume mixing ratios,
Air specific heat capacity, viscosity and molecular gas constant R.

Validation of the MCD Climatology
The MCD has been validated using available data, from TES, onboard MGS, for surface
and atmospheric temperature, but also from atmospheric temperature retrieved from radio
occultation using the ultra-stable oscillator onboard MGS. The assessment of the
correctness of the surface pressure predictions was obtained using Viking Lander 2
measurements. The MCD includes a validation document which reports all the
comparisons between MCD outputs and available datasets of measurements.

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Left: Distributions of binned temperature differences (using bins of 1K) between MCD
predictions (using different dust scenarios) and TES measurements for latitudes ranging
from 50S to 50N. Displayed MEAN and RMS values are computed from the obtained
histograms and the curves correspond to normal distributions of same MEAN and RMS.
Right: Surface pressure cycle over a Martian year, as predicted by the baseline MY24
scenario at Viking Lander 2 site, with an envelope of twice its standard deviation,
compared to recorded values.
Towards the next version of the MCD
We are currently working on a building a new and improved Mars Climate Database
(version 5). One essential step towards this achievement is running an improved version
of the GCM which will include all recent improvements and developments [9]:
o AnimprovedCO2cycleresultingfromtheinclusionofrealisticsubsurface
watericetablesinthePolarRegions[10].
o Improvedradiativetransferwithupdatedradiativepropertiesofdust,along
withtheimplementationoftheradiativeeffectofwatericeclouds[11].
o Animprovedwatercycle[9,11].
o Anupdatedchemistrypackage[12].
o AnimprovedrepresentationofthenonLTE(LocalThermodynamical
Equilibrium)phenomenainthethermosphere[13].
o WeplantoupdatethethermalinertiaandalbedomapsusedbytheGCM.
o Wewilltakeintoaccounttherecentlyderivedmapofsurfaceroughness
values[14](insteadofusingafixedvalueof1cmeverywhere,aswehaveso
far).
o Wearealsocurrentlyworkingonimplementingthethermalplumemodel
[15],asignificantimprovementtothecurrentconvectiveadjustmentscheme
intheGCM.

In addition to these technical improvements of the LMD GCM itself, we will include in
Mars Climate Database version 5 more dust scenarios, which will include all Mars Years
from MY24 to MY29 (as derived by [16]). Again some extreme (cold, warm, global
dust storm) scenarios will also be provided to bracket reality as best as possible.

We also plan to improve the MCD software with the addition of a subgridscale variability
near the surface, where the nature and amplitude of this added variability would be
derived from simulations using the LMD Mars Mesoscale Model [17].

References
[1] Forget F. et al. (1999) JGR, 104, E10. [2] Lewis S. R. et al. (1999) JGR, 104, E10. [3]
Lefvre F. et al. (2004) JGR, 109, CiteID E07004. [4] Montmessin F. et al. (2004) JGR,
109, E10, CiteID E10004. [5] Angelats I Coll et al. (2005) Geophys. Res. Lett., 32, 4,
CiteID L04201. [6] Gonzalez-Galindo F. et al. (2005) JGR., 110, E9, CiteID E09008. [7]
Montabone L. et al. (2006) 2nd Int. Workshop on Mars Atmosphere Modeling and
Observations. [8] Clancy R.T. et al. (2000) JGR, 105, E4. [9] Forget et al (2011) 4th Int.
Workshop on Mars Atmosphere Modeling and Observations. [10] Millour E. et al. (2009)
3rd Int. Workshop on Mars Polar Energy Balance. [11] Madeleine J.-B. et al. (2011) 4th
Int. Workshop on Mars Atmosphere Modeling and Observations. [12] Lefvre F. et al.
(2011) 4th Int. Workshop on Mars Atmosphere Modeling and Observations. [13] Lopez-
Poster Session 3
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Valverde M. A. et al. (2011) 4th Int. Workshop on Mars Atmosphere Modeling and
Observations. [14] Vistowski C. et al (2011) 4th Int. Workshop on Mars Atmosphere
Modeling and Observations. [15] Rio C. and Hourdin F. (2008) J. Atmos. Sci., 65, 407-
425. [16] Montabone et al. (2011) 4th Int. Workshop on Mars Atmosphere Modeling and
Observations. [17] Spiga A. and Forget F. (2009) JGR, 114, CiteID E02009

Poster Session 3
167


ARMADILLO A DEMONSTRATION FOR LOW-COST
IN-SITU INVESTIGATIONS OF THE UPPER
ATMOSPHERE OF PLANETARY BODIES

Rene Laufer(1,3), Glenn Lightsey(2), Georg Herdrich(3,1), Ralf
Srama(3,4,1), Gregory Earle(5), Carsten Wiedemann(6), Ed Chester(7),
Hugh Hill(8), Troy Henderson(9), Rainer Sandau(10,11,1), Lorin
Matthews(1), Truell Hyde(1)

(1)Center for Astrophysics, Space Physics and Engineering Research (CASPER), Baylor
University, Waco, Texas, USA, E-Mail: Rene_Laufer@baylor.edu, (2)Department of
Aerospace Engineering and Engineering Mechanics, University of Texas at Austin,
Texas, USA, (3)Institute of Space Systems, Universitaet Stuttgart, Germany, (4)Max-
Planck-Institute for Nuclear Physics, Heidelberg, Germany, (5)Department of Physics,
University of Texas at Dallas, Texas, USA, (6)Institute of Aerospace Systems, Technische
Universitaet Braunschweig, Germany, (7)AEVO GmbH, Gilching, Germany,
(8)International Space University (ISU), Strasbourg, France, (9)Aerospace and Ocean
Engineering Department, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia
Tech), Blacksburg, Virginia, USA (10)German Aerospace Center (DLR), Berlin,
Germany, (11)International Academy of Astronautics (IAA), Paris, France

ABSTRACT

ARMADILLO (Attitude Related Maneuvers And Debris Instrument in Low Orbit) is a
low Earth orbit small satellite mission under development by the Satellite Design Lab
(SDL) of the University of Texas at Austin in collaboration with the Center for
Astrophysics, Space Physics and Engineering Research (CASPER) of Baylor University
and the Institute of Space Systems of the University of Stuttgart. The project was recently
selected to participate in the University Nanosatellite Program UNP-7 to be designed and
built in the 2011-2013 timeframe with the goal to target a 2014 launch opportunity.

The 3-unit cubesat will demonstrate the combination of precise attitude control for
nanosatellites, a cold-gas micro- propulsion system and a miniaturized dust/debris
detector. The attitude control system consists of GNC computer, IMU, GPS receiver, sun
sensors, magnetometer, reactions wheel, magnetorquers and low-cost optical navigation
star tracker with the goal of achieving 0.1 degree 3-axis attitude control. The cold gas
propulsion system is based on an Aerospace Corporation design and will provide
approximately 50 m/s impulsive capacity and a delta-v resolution of around 0.1 m/s
during the ARMADILLO mission used for the end-of-mission de-orbit from low Earth
orbit. The Piezo Dust Detector (PDD) is a miniaturized in-situ measurement instrument
of around 0.5 kg to detect dust and debris particles of up to 1 mm size. The detector is a
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joint development of CASPER (Baylor University) and the Institute of Space Systems
(University of Stuttgart) in partnership with the Cosmic Dust Group at the Max-Planck-
Institute for Nuclear Physics, Heidelberg based on the experience from preparation and
tests of the Mercury Dust Monitor for the European BepiColombo mission.

ARMADILLO will demonstrate the capabilities necessary for a mission to perform in-
situ investigations of the upper atmosphere, e.g. of the Earth. At least two preferred is a
constellation of more than two ARMADILLO-like spacecraft would travel piggyback
with a carrier probe, separating at some point in orbit. Using its own chemical or
electrical micro-propulsion system for de-orbit, the nanosatellites would lower their
altitude performing in-situ plasma and dust measurements before being destroyed. The
paper will present the ARMADILLO satellite and possible instrument design (e.g. the
PDD and plasma instrumentation from partners such as UT Dallas and Institute of Space
Systems, Stuttgart), Also the required adjustments for planetary upper atmosphere
investigation missions (e.g. in the AOCS subsystem) will be addressed as well as the
scientific results expected from that missions.






Poster Session 4 EDL Technology Development

Poster Session 4
170


ONGOING VALIDATION OF COMPUTATIONAL FLUID
DYNAMICS FOR SUPERSONIC RETRO-PROPULSION

Daniel G. Schauerhamer,* Kerry A. Trumble, William Kleb, Jan-
Renee Carlson, Pieter G. Buning,** Karl Edquist, and Emre
Sozer

Daniel G. Schauerhamer*, Jacobs Technology, Houston, Texas, 77058
Kerry A. Trumble, NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, California, 94035
William Kleb, Jan-Renee Carlson, Pieter G. Buning** and Karl Edquist
NASA Langley Research Center, Hampton, Virginia, 23681
Emre Sozer
ERC, Moffett Field, California, 94085

ABSTRACT

Supersonic Retro-Propulsion (SRP) is a viable means for deceleration of high mass
vehicles entering into the Martian atmosphere1-6. Previous methods of deceleration are
not scalable for exploration type vehicles which can potentially weigh tens of metric tons.
Since ground and flight testing of SRP at entry conditions can be difficult and cost-
prohibitive, the development of this enabling technology can be enhanced with the ability
to predict the flow field numerically using Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD).

SRP results in a complex flow structure involving shocks, shear layers, recirculation and
stagnation regions, which makes validation of the CFD methods a high priority. The
validation process includes using multiple CFD codes to compare to historic and recent
wind tunnel tests7. Through code-to-code and code-to-test comparisons, best practices in
gridding, numerical method selection, and solution advancement are established, and
validity is added to the CFD methods. With validation, CFD can be confidently applied to
the actual entry problem in all its complexity8.
Four CFD codes are being applied to SRP: DPLR9, FUN3D10, 11, OVERFLOW12, and
US3D13. The codes all solve the Reynolds Averaged Navier-Stokes equations, but differ
in implementation, grid type, and numerical methods. The focus of this paper will be on
the comparison of the CFD codes to a recent wind tunnel test which was designed
primarily for CFD validation. The experiment was conducted by the NASA Exploration
Technology Development Program in the Langley supersonic 4x4 Unitary Plan Wind
Tunnel in June, 201014, 15. The cases that will be presented all have a free stream Mach
and Reynolds (per foot) number of 4.6 and 1.5E+06, respectively, but vary by the number
due to the inherent unsteadiness of the flow fields.

Qualitative comparisons of the flow structure will be made by comparing CFD to high-
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171
speed test Schlieren, and quantitative comparisons will be made by comparing averaged
surface pressure with pressure tap data from the tunnel. Unsteady shedding frequencies of
the CFD solutions are also compared to high-frequency pressure gauges from the test.

This paper will first introduce SRP, the CFD codes, and the wind tunnel test. Then it will
present code-to-code and code-to-test comparisons, discuss the results including
modeling strengths and weaknesses, and offer conclusions of the study.

* Aerospace Engineer, Applied Aerosciences and CFD Branch, MS EG-3,
Daniel.G.Schauerhamer@nasa.gov. Research Scientist, Aerothermodynamics Branch, MS 230-2,
Kerry.A.Trumble@nasa.gov. Aerospace Engineer, Aerothermodynamics Branch, MS 408A,
Bil.Kleb@nasa.gov. Aerospace Engineer, Computational Aerosciences Branch, MS 128, Jan-
Renee.Carlson@nasa.gov. **Aerospace Engineer, Computational Aerosciences Branch, MS 128,
Pieter.G.Buning@nasa.gov.
Aerospace Engineer, Atmospheric Flight and Entry Systems Branch, MS 489,
Karl.T.Edquist@nasa.gov. Research Scientist, Aerothermodynamics Branch, MS 230-3,
Emre.Sozer@nasa.gov.
of nozzles (0, 1, 3, or 4 nozzles), thrust coefficient (CT = T/qA = 2, 3), angle of attack (0, 12, and 20
degrees), and roll angle (0 and 180 degrees). Time-accurate CFD simulations were conducted


References
[1] Braun, R. D. and Manning, R. M., Mars Exploration Entry, Descent, and Landing
Challenges," Journal of Spacecraft and Rockets, Vol. 44, No. 2, Mar-Apr 2007. [2]
Steinfeldt, B. A., Theisinger, J. E., Korzun, A. M., Clark, I. G., Grant, M. J., and Braun,
R. T., High Mass Mars Entry, Descent, and Landing Architecture Assessment," AIAA
Paper 2009-6684, Sep 2009.
[3] Zang, T. A., Dwyer-Dianciolo, A. M., Kinney, D. J., Howard, A. R., Chen, G. T.,
Ivanov, M. C., Sostaric, R. R., and Westhelle, C. H., Overview of the NASA Entry,
Descent and Landing Systems Analysis Study," AIAA Paper 2010-8649, Aug 2010. [4]
Edquist, K. T., Dyakonov, A. A., Korzun, A. M., Shidner, J. D., Studak, J. W., Tigges,
M. A., Kipp, D. M., Prakash, R., Trumble, K. A., and Dupzyk, I. C., Development of
Supersonic Retro-Propulsion for Future Mars Entry, Descent, and Landing Systems,"
AIAA Paper 2010-5046, Jun 2010.
[5] Korzun, A. M. and Braun, R. D., Performance Characterization of Supersonic
Retropropulsion Technology for High-Mass Mars Entry Systems," Journal of Spacecraft
and Rockets, Vol. 47, No. 5, Sep-Oct 2010. [6] Korzun, A. M., Braun, R. D., and Cruz, J.
R., Survey of Supersonic Retropropulsion Technology for Mars Entry, Descent, and
Landing," Journal of Spacecraft and Rockets, Vol. 46, No. 5, Sep-Oct 2009. [7] Trumble,
K. A., Schauerhamer, D. G., Kleb, W. L., Carlson, JR., Buning, P. G., Edquist, K. T., and
Barnhardt, M. D., An Initial Assessment of Navier-Stokes Codes Applied to Supersonic
Retro-Propulsion, AIAA Paper 2010-5047, June 2010. [8] Kleb, W. L., Carlson, JR.,
Buning, P. G., Berry, S. A., Rhode, M. N., Edquist, K. T., Schauerhamer, D. G., Trumble,
K. A., Sozer, E., Toward Supersonic Retropropulsion CFD Validation, Accepted to
20th AIAA Thermophysics Conference, June, 2011. [9] Wright, M.W., White, T., and
Mangini, N., Data Parallel Line Relaxation (DPLR) Code User Manual Acadia
Version 4.01.1, NASA/TM2009215388, October 2009. [10] Anderson, W.K. and
Bonhaus, D.L., An Implicit Upwind Algorithm for Computing Turbulent Flows on
Unstructured Grids, Journal of Computational Physics, Vol. 128, No. 2, 1996, pp.
391408.
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172
[11] Anderson, W. K., Rausch, R. D., and Bonhaus, D. L., Implicit/Multigrid Algorithm
for Incompressible Turbulent Flows on Unstructured Grids, Journal of Computational
Physics, Vol. 128, No. 2, 1996, pp. 391408.
[12] Buning, P. G., Jespersen, D. C., Pulliam, T. H., Klopfer, G. H., Chan, W. M.,
Slotnick, J. P., Krist, S. E., and Renze, K. J., Overflow Users Manual, NASA Langley
Research Center, Hampton, VA, 2002. [13] Nompelis, I. N., Drayna, T., and Candler, G.
V., \A Parallel Unstructured Implicit Solver for Hypersonic Reacting Flow Simulations,"
AIAA Paper 2005-4867, June 2005. [14] Berry, S. A., Rhode, M. N., Supersonic Retro-
Propulsion Test 1853 in NASA LaRC Unitary Plan Wind Tunnel Test Section 2, NASA
EDL-01-TR-9178, Nov. 2010. [15] Berry, S. A., Laws, C. T., Kleb, W. L., Rhode, M. N.,
Spells, C., Mccrea, A. C., Trumble, K. A., Schauerhamer, D. G., Oberkampf, W. L.,
Supersonic Retro-Propulsion Experimental Design for Computational Fluid Dynamics
Model Validation, Accepted to 20th AIAA Thermophysics Conference, June, 2011.


Poster Session 4
173


ENTRY AND POWERED DESCENT GUIDANCE FOR
MARS ROBOTIC PRECURSORS

Sostaric, Ronald R.; Garcia-Llama, E. Powell, R. W.


ABSTRACT

Future crewed missions to Mars require improvements in landed mass capability beyond
that which is possible using state-of-the-art Mars Entry, Descent, and Landing (EDL)
systems. Current systems are capable of an estimated maximum of 1-1.5 metric tons
(MT), while human Mars studies require 20-40 MT. A set of technologies were
investigated by the EDL Systems Analysis (SA) project to assess the performance of
candidate EDL architectures. A single architecture was selected for the design of a
robotic precursor mission whose objective is to demonstrate these technologies. In
particular, inflatable aerodynamic decelerators (IADs) and supersonic retro-propulsion
(SRP) have been shown to have the greatest mass benefit and extensibility to future
exploration missions. In order to evaluate these technologies and develop the mission,
candidate guidance algorithms have been coded into the simulation for the purposes of
studying system performance. These guidance algorithms include entry and powered
descent (in addition to aerocapture, which is the subject of another paper). The
performance of the algorithms for each of these phases in the presence of dispersions has
been assessed using a Monte Carlo technique.

The aerocapture maneuver is used to slow the vehicle from a hyperbolic orbital energy to
an elliptical energy by utilizing the atmospheric drag. The mission design assumes that a
period of time is spent in orbit for checkout prior to entry. A de-orbit burn is then
performed to initiate the entry sequence and drive the vehicle toward the atmosphere.
Once the atmospheric drag forces increase above a threshold, bank modulation is
accomplished according to calculations provided by the entry guidance. Two entry
guidance methods have been incorporated: a numerical predictor corrector, and the
Apollo Entry Guidance. The numerical predictor corrector integrates a simplified set of
the equations of motion, and iterates on a specified control parameter (e.g. bank angle
command) to determine the optimum. The Apollo Entry Guidance is an analytical
terminal point control method which calculates control parameter gains based on driving
the final state to a pre-determined value. A description of each guidance and performance
results will be presented.

Following the entry phase and jettison of the heat shield, a supersonic retro-propulsion
(SRP) phase is initiated. During the SRP phase, the remaining vehicle velocity is reduced
using a propulsive method with thrust magnitude and thrust direction calculations
provided by the guidance. The guidance can dynamically retarget the landing site real-
Poster Session 4
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time to avoid hazards. The SRP phase culminates with safe touchdown on the Martian
surface. A description of the guidance, powered descent performance, divert
performance, and some further considerations for safe landing will be included.






































Poster Session 4
175

MULTI-MISSION EARTH ENTRY VEHICLE DESIGN
TRADE SPACE AND CONCEPT DEVELOPMENT STATUS
(VERSION 2.0)

Robert W. Maddock

NASA Langley Research Center Engineering Directorate Atmospheric Flight and Entry
Systems Branch

ABSTRACT

The Multi-Mission Earth Entry Vehicle (MMEEV), directed as part of the In-Space
Propulsion Technology (ISPT) Program, is based on the Mars Sample Return (MSR)
EEV design and was first introduced at IPPW6. The MMEEV is a flexible design concept
which can be optimized and/or tailored by any sample return mission, including lunar,
asteroid, comet, and planetary (including Mars), to meet that missions specific
requirements. By leveraging common design elements, this approach could significantly
reduce the risk and associated cost in development of EEV technologies across all sample
return missions by providing significant cross-feed and feed-forward in the areas of
design and development, trade space analyses, testing, and even flight experience.

This presentation describes the current status of the MMEEV concept development, with
focus placed on the changes and updates made, specifically in the parametric vehicle
model, since version 1.0 was completed in early 2010 (and presented at IPPW8). An
overview of a MATLAB vehicle model, which includes increased fidelity in the areas of
iterative sizing for payload accommodation, impact attenuation sizing based on impact
velocity estimates, structural sizing based on estimates of entry loads, and increased
definition of the payload itself, is presented. In addition, application of this vehicle model
in both a standard and MSR-like mode is described. Validation of this model, in both
geometry and mass properties, using the Pro/Engineer (ProE) software is also discussed.
Engineering estimates of MMEEV vehicle and trajectory performance, generated using
the NASA Langley Research Centers Program to Optimize Simulated Trajectories
(POST2) 6-DOF simulation software, across the entirety of the vehicle and mission trade
space are also presented, with emphasis on comparisons with the version 1.0 results.

Future plans for continued MMEEV development are also discussed. These include the
next steps in development of current models, as well as the addition of new models, such
as an aftbody TPS MER and thermal soak. Plans for integration of the MMEEV multi-
discipline analysis models into the System Analysis of Planetary Entry, Descent and
Landing (SAPE) tool, originally developed under ISPT for utilization on aerocapture
mission studies, are also presented.

Poster Session 4
176

THERMAL SOAK ANALYSIS OF SPRITE PROBE

P. Agrawal
1
, Y.K. Chen
2
, D.K. Prabhu
1
D. Empey
3
, E. Venkatapathy
2
, J.
Arnold
2


ERC
1
, NASA Ames
2
, Sierra Lobo, Inc.
3

ABSTRACT

A concept called SPRITE (Small Probe Reentry Investigation for TPS Engineering) has
been developed at NASA Ames Research Center to facilitate arc-jet testing of a fully
instrumented prototype probe at flight scale [1]. Besides demonstrating the feasibility of
testing a flight-scale model and the capability of an on-board data acquisition system,
another objective for this project was to investigate the capability of simulations tools to
predict thermal environments around the probe/test article and its interior. The present
paper summarizes results of thermal analyses that were performed during the early design
phase for the SPRITE project to provide input to the design team, as well as post-test
analyses to obtain the temperature histories of the probe, substructure and payload and
compare them against measured data. The results reported here have been obtained using
a commercial finite element (FE) solver MSC.Marc [2], which supports fully transient,
non-linear, coupled thermal/mechanical FE analyses. In the test design phase, several
conduction and re-radiation based thermal analyses were performed for variations in
design parameters. The requisite surface heat-flux distributions (used as boundary
conditions for the 2D axi-symmetric FE model) were obtained using DPLR [3] for arc-
heated flow fields. These results helped guide the test and design teams in (1) selecting
the material for the substructure and container box for the data acquisition system, (2)
determining the exposure time for arc-jet test article, and (3) determining thermal
pathways for suitably placing thermocouples in the test article. For post-test predictions
of temperature histories for the probe and internal payload during the cool down process,
the fidelity of the modeling was improved through the integration of a materials response
code, TITAN [4], in the analyses. The temperature maps obtained from TITAN were
imposed on the finite element model at the end of the heat pulse. Doing so ensured that
ablation and pyrolysis during the exposure were included in the analysis. The cooling
process and heat transfer from the forebody and aft TPS to the substructure and payload
were then analyzed using the MARC solver. Furthermore, the heat generated by the
battery (installed to power the internal data acquisition system) was also included in the
model. The temperature histories predicted by the FE model were in good agreement with
data obtained from thermocouples placed on the battery and metal container. The finite
element analyses were able to predict the time and magnitude of the peak heat in the
aluminum box and the battery within 5 C. This approach will be further advanced to
develop thermal soak models for Multi mission earth entry vehicles.

Acknowledgments: The present work was supported by the Entry Systems and
Technology Division, NASA Ames Research Center and Contract No. NNA10DE12C to
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ERC, Incorporated. The authors acknowledge SPRITE team members K. Peterson, K.
Skokova, G. Swanson and arc- jet test team for providing valuable test data.

References
[1] Howard, Austin R., Prabhu, Dinesh, K., Venkatapathy, Ethiraj, and Arnold, James,
O.: Small Probes as Flight Test Beds for Thermal Protection Materials Proceedings of
the 7th International Planetary Probe Workshop, Barcelona, Spain, 2009.
[2] Multidimensional Testing of Thermal Protection Materials in the Arcjet Test
Facility, Parul Agrawal, Donald T. Ellerby, Mathew R. Switzer,Thomas H. Squire,
proceedings, 10th AIAA/ASME Joint Thermophysics and Heat Transfer Conference
Chicago, Illinois, June 28- July1 2010.
[3] Prabhu, D. K., Saunders, D. A., Oishi, T., Skokova, K. A., Santos, J., Fu, J., Terrazas-
Salinas, I., Carballo, J. E., Jr., and Driver, D. M., CFD Analysis Framework for Arc-
Heated Flowfields, I: Stagnation Testing in Arc-jets at NASA ARC, AIAA Paper 2009-
2081, AIAA Thermophysics Conference, San Antonio, TX, June 2009.
[4] Chen, Y.-K., and Milos, F.S., Two-Dimensional Implicit Thermal Response and
Ablation Program for Charring, Journal of Spacecraft and Rockets, Vol. 38, No. 4, July-
August 2001, pp. 473-481.

Poster Session 4
178


DESIGN CHOICE CONSIDERATIONS FOR VEHICLES
UTILIZING SUPERSONIC RETROPROPULSION

Ashley M. Korzun(1), Ian G. Clark(2), Robert D. Braun(3)

(1)Georgia Institute of Technology, Email: akorzun@gatech.edu, (2) Email:
ian.clark@gatech.edu, (3) Email: robert.braun@ae.gatech.edu

ABSTRACT

The entry, descent, and landing (EDL) systems for the United States' six successful
landings on Mars and the 2011 Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) rely heavily on
extensions of technology developed for the Viking missions of the mid 1970s.i To
achieve NASA's long-term exploration goals at Mars, including human exploration,
technologies are needed that enable substantial improvements in landed mass and landing
accuracy as compared to the expected performance of MSL. Supersonic deceleration has
been identified as a critical deficiency in extending Viking-heritage technologies to the
high mass, high ballistic coefficient systems required to achieve these goals.
i,ii
As the
development and qualification of significantly larger supersonic parachutes is not a viable
path forward to increase landed mass capability to 10+ metric tons, alternative
approaches must be developed.
i

Supersonic retropropulsion (SRP), or the use of retropropulsive thrust while an entry
vehicle is traveling at supersonic conditions, is one such alternative approach.
i,ii,iii
Work
has been completed to define mission scales and relevant operating conditions for which
SRP may be beneficial.iv As part of one study, the propulsion system was sized to
simultaneously minimize the mass and volume of a generic multiple nozzle propulsion
system in order to achieve a designated subsonic condition (altitude and velocity).
iv
In contrast, without accounting for the mass and volume of the propulsion system,
NASAs EDL Systems Analysis study
ii
minimized the propellant mass required for
propulsive deceleration with solutions resulting in a maximum vehicle thrust-to-weight
three times greater than that derived from consideration of both propulsion system mass
and volume. SRP aerodynamic effects were not considered in the definition of either
configuration. Continued work is establishing a minimum fidelity requirement on SRP
aerodynamics models for systems analysis in support of developing a capability to
evaluate and compare a number of SRP concepts against one another and also against
alternative decelerator concepts. How these SRP concepts are to be derived and how
much consideration should be given to SRP aerodynamics in defining the configurations
remain open questions.

Significant effort in the wind tunnel testing of small supersonic retropropulsion models
took place in the 1960s and early 1970s, though the combined data is not of sufficient
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179
breadth to draw detailed conclusions on the effects of utilizing SRP within a full-scale
EDL architecture. The aerodynamic-propulsive interaction arising from SRP significantly
alters the static aerodynamic characteristics of the vehicle.
iii

However, no work has yet attempted to develop an SRP configuration targeting an
advantageous relationship between the SRP aerodynamic-propulsive interaction and the
system performance of the powered descent vehicle.

The planned outcome of the work to be presented is a point design of a flight-relevant
SRP configuration that considers the sensitivities of parameters governing SRP
aerodynamics to variation in physical quantities related to vehicle configuration and
system performance. Momentum transfer within the flowfield governs the change in the
surface pressure distribution of the vehicle, and accordingly, governs the integrated
change in the vehicles static aerodynamic characteristics. Parameters governing SRP
aerodynamics can be identified using both experimental trends in the literature and
analytical statements of momentum transfer within the SRP flowfield. These analytical
statments are specific to highly under-expanded jet flows, contact surfaces, and blunted
bodies in supersonic flows.

Experimental efforts have determined that the flowfield structure and the flowfield
stability for SRP are highly dependent on the retropropulsion configuration and the
strength of the retropropulsion exhaust flow, relative to the strength of the freestream
flow. For a fixed set of freestream conditions, thrust coefficient is a force coefficient
based directly on the ideal retropropulsive nozzle thrust. As a limited example of
parameter identification, the expression of thrust coefficient based on ideal nozzle thrust
can be translated into an expression that is dependent on the ratio the total pressure of the
exhaust flow to the total pressure of the freestream flow, the freestream Mach number,
the nozzle expansion ratio, composition of the freestream and exhaust flows, and the ratio
of the nozzle exit area to the reference area of the vehicle. These parameters are directly
related to the operating conditions, propulsion system composition, nozzle geometry,
vehicle configuration, and required propulsion system performance, all of which can be
considered to be design choices.

Investigation into the sensitivities of such parameters to variation in physical quantities
related to vehicle configuration and system performance will allow for conclusions to be
drawn about the impact of design choices related to system performance on the change in
the vehicles static aerodynamic characteristics. An initial understanding of the
significance of powered descent vehicle configuration on the change in the vehicles
static aerodynamic characteristics arising from SRP and the relationship to other vehicle
performance-based metrics that traditionally determine vehicle configuration is necessary
for identification of the types of configurations to be prioritized for SRP concept
development.

i Braun, R. D., and Manning, R. M., Mars Exploration Entry, Decent and Landing
Challenges, Journal of Spacecraft and Rockets, Vol. 44, No. 2, 2007, pp. 310-323. ii
Zang, T. A., and Tahmasebi, F., Entry, Descent and Landing Systems Analysis Study:
Phase 1 Report, NASA TM 2010-216720, July 2010.
iii Korzun, A. M., Braun, R. D., and Cruz, J. R., Survey of Supersonic Retropropulsion
Technology for Mars Entry, Descent, and Landing, Journal of Spacecraft and Rockets,
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180
Vol. 46, No. 5, 2009, pp. 929-937. iv Korzun, A. M., and Braun, R. D., Performance
Characterization of Supersonic Retropropulsion for High-Mass Mars Entry Systems,
Journal of Spacecraft and Rockets, Vol. 47, No. 5, 2010, pp. 836-848.



Poster Session 5 Science Instrumentation


Poster Session 5
182


THE STUDENT RAINDROP DETECTOR (SRD): AN
INSTRUMENT FOR MEASURING METHANE RAIN ON
TITAN

Allison Tucker
1
, Gabriel Wilson
1
, Hieu Truong
1
, Tim Kunz
1
, Kysen
Palmer
1
, Colton Therrian
1
, Jason W. Barnes1, David H. Atkinson
1

Ralph D. Lorenz
2

University of Idaho
1
, JHU/APL
2

ABSTRACT

Besides Earth, Saturns moon Titan is the only other place in the solar system where rain
falls onto a solid surface. Although we have evidence that the rain does interact with the
surface from erosion patterns, the actual rain itself has not yet been directly measured.
Future in situ Titan probes could make this measurement.

We have developed a demonstration instrument capable of detecting Titans rain. The
device is based on a piezoelectric microphone, an instrument concept that has been space
qualified on the European Giotto mission to comet Halley, where it listened for dust
impacts. The piezoelectric detector is attached to a 10cm-square strike plate that will be
exposed to the Titan sky. We will show how monitoring the piezo voltage over time
allows us to identify raindrop hits and ascertain their momentum, from which we can
calculate the drops radius given knowledge of the local atmospheric density. In our
poster, we will present the instrumental design and the results of tests in both ambient and
Titan-relevant environments.

This work has been done by undergraduates at the University of Idaho as an Engineering
Senior Design Project with the goal of developing the instrument to TRL 6 for use on the
AVIATR Titan Airplane mission. We call it the Student Raindrop Detector (SRD)
because it would be included in a mission proposal as a student-built element. It could
also be used on Titan atmospheric probes, landers, or airships. Its application to a balloon
is not immediately clear, however, given that a gondola will necessarily be in the rain
shadow of the balloon itself.

Poster Session 5
183


PLANETARY POLARIZATION NEPHELOMETER

Don Banfield(1), Adam Saltzman(1)

(1)Cornell Astronomy, 420 Space Sciences, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA,
Email: banfield@astro.cornell.edu

ABSTRACT

We have completed a breadboard validation for a planetary polarization nephelometer,
raising this instrument from just a concept through to TRL 4 using PIDD funding. We are
currently seeking further PIDD funding to continue this instrument development up
through to TRL 6, culminating in its demonstration on a stratospheric balloon as a proxy
for a planetary flight mission through an exotic and relatively inhospitable atmosphere.
Our instrument is aimed at determining the characteristics of the aerosols that are present
in essentially all planetary atmospheres. These aerosols are important to understand, not
only to catalog the particles that are the visible faces of most planets, but also because
they have significant impact on the climates and atmospheric dynamics of these planets,
and the details of their makeup can help us to understand other questions about the
planets, such as processes active on or below the surfaces.
For Venus, the aerosols contain a significant fraction of the Sulfur compounds in the
atmosphere. Our instrument is crucial for a full inventory of these compounds in Venus
atmosphere and further for understanding the processes that get them there from the
surface. Our instrument would also help identify the unknown blue absorber in Venus
clouds that accounts for 25% of its powerful greenhouse. For Jupiter and the other giant
planets, our instrument would definitively identify the aerosol layers that we see and the
altitude levels at which winds are tracked. For Titan, we would be able to more fully
understand the absorption and emission of radiation within this extended atmosphere;
both processes have a large influence on the climate and dynamics of Titans atmosphere.

The polarization nephelometer uses a novel approach to the illuminating beam to allow
us to extract more information from the light scattered back from adjacent aerosols than
is typical in predecessor nephelometers. In addition to measuring the intensity phase
function of the light scattered off adjacent aerosols, our instrument also measures the
polarization ratio phase function of the aerosols as well. The polarization ratio phase
function adds significantly more information about the particle properties, removing
ambiguities that intensity phase functions alone leave. We are able to extract this
information from the scattered light through fast modulation of the polarization of the
illuminating beam, combined with temporal analysis of the scattered light. To ruggedize
the instrument for use on planetary descent probes in harsh planetary atmospheres, we
use only solid state and temperature insensitive techniques to modulate the polarization of
the illuminating beam. We also only expose optical fibers to the harsh environment
outside of the spacecraft hull, holding all the electronics, lasers and detectors within the
Poster Session 5
184
hull of the spacecraft where thermal protection is presumably much greater. We
anticipate a flight version of our instrument would require about 6W of power, 1kg of
mass and 0.7L of volume. It would be a good addition to any probe sent to a planet or
satellite with an atmosphere, or even to the moon to analyze lofted moon dust.

Poster Session 5
185


SCIENCE AND EDUCATION WITH MARS EXPRESS'
VISUAL MONITORING CAMERA
(VMC)

H.S.Griebel*
1
, T.Ormston
1
, M.Denis
2
, J.Landeau-Constantin
2
,
D.Scouka
2,3
, L.Griebel
4
, C.Scorza
5
, M.Frommelt
5


1
VEGA Space,
2
European Space Operations Centre, ESA

3
EJR-Quartz,
4
Mars Society Germany,
5
Haus der Astronomie, Max Planck Institute for Astronomy e-mail:
hannes.griebel@esa.int, thomas.ormston@esa.int, michel.denis@esa.int, jlc@esa.int,
lg@marssociety.de, scorza@mpia.de, frommelt@mpia.de

ABSTRACT

Mars Express, the European Space Agencys mission to the Red Planet launched in 2003,
carries a small camera designed to provide visual telemetry of the separation of the
Beagle-2 lander. This activity was completed in 2003. The camera, known as VMC, was
reactivated by the flight control team in 2007 as part of a small student thesis project and
has since evolved into a unique public outreach tool.
With its small aperture, a 640x480 pixel colour CMOS sensor and a 30ox40o field of
view, the cameras optical properties are similar to those of a typical PC webcam or
mobile phone camera. Its turn-around time from observation to reception of imagery on
Earth is therefore extremely short, and the processing power required to generate
meaningful results is low.
On the basis of non-interference with science operations, the camera now frequently
provides internet users with stunning, up-to-date and unaltered vistas without relying on
any intermediate process. Interested users are therefore provided a unique hands-on-
Mars opportunity: they can download the latest images first-hand or browse the
extensive archive to conduct their own research and even publish their results in our ESA
VMC user forum.
This project proved so successful that in 2010, the VMC was used for two dedicated
educational projects. Two groups of school children were given the opportunity to
conduct their own observations of Mars. One group was tutored by the Mars Society
Germany, the other by the Astronomy teacher of a German secondary school. In addition
to this, a first-of-its-kind stop-motion animation was created, showing one full orbit of
Mars Express, providing a first-hand demonstration of Keplers laws of celestial motion
and the rotation and axial tilt of Mars. Some of Marss most prominent surface features as
well as the moon Phobos were also shown.
The outstanding results of these activities inspired us to further develop this effort in
cooperation with the Haus der Astronomie / Center for Astronomy Education and
Poster Session 5
186
Outreach at the Max-Planck-Institute Campus, providing a regular opportunity for
educators and schools to use actual Mars observations as part of their educational
outreach material.
In this paper we demonstrate how the Mars Express VMC is operated without hindrance
to primary science mission; how schools, scientists and the interested public have
benefited from the data thus provided and how we intend to support the younger
generations in their pursuit of first-hand, citizen-science in the future.




Poster Session 5
187


DEVELOPMENT OF INSTRUMENTATION FOR
HYPERSONIC INFLATABLE AERODYNAMIC
DECELERATOR CHARACTERIZATION

Gregory T. Swanson
1,2
, Alan M. Cassell
2


1
Santa Clara University, Department of Electrical Engineering, 500 El
Camino Real, Santa Clara, CA 95053 USA Email:gswanson@scu.edu
2
[ERC Incorporated], Entry Systems and Vehicle Development Branch,
NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA 94035 USA
Email:alan.m.cassell@nasa.gov

ABSTRACT

To realize the National Aeronautics and Space Administrations (NASA) goal of sending
humans to Mars, development of technologies to facilitate the landing of heavy payloads
are being explored. Current entry, descent, and landing technologies are not practical for
heavy payloads due to mass and volume constraints dictated by limitations imposed by
launch vehicle fairings. Therefore, technologies are now being explored to provide a
mass- and volume-efficient solution for heavy payload capabilities, including Inflatable
Aerodynamic Decelerators (IADs) [1]. Consideration of IADs for space applications has
prompted the development of instrumentation systems for integration with flexible
structures to characterize system response to flight-like environment testing. This
development opportunity faces many challenges specific to inflatable structures in
extreme environments, including but not limited to physical flexibility, packaging,
temperature, structural integration and data acquisition [2].

In the fall of 2011, three large scale Hypersonic Inflatable Aerodynamic Decelerators
(HIAD) will be tested in the National Full-Scale Aerodynamics Complexs (NFAC) 40
by 80 wind tunnel at NASA Ames Research Center. The test series will characterize the
performance of a 3.0 m, 6.0 m, and 8.3 m HIAD at various angles of attack and levels of
inflation during flight like loading. To analyze the performance of these test articles as
they undergo aerodynamic loading, an instrumentation system has been developed. This
system will utilize new experimental sensing concepts, developed by the large scale
HIAD instrumentation team, in addition to traditional wind tunnel sensing techniques in
an effort to improve test article characterization. The instrumentation system will target
HIAD pressure distribution, flexible aeroshell static and dynamic deformation, rigid
hardware stress, torus inflation pressure, and flexible aeroshell structural strap loading.
Pressure measurements on the rigid HIAD hardware and in the inflatable tori will be
conducted using traditional systems, while MEMS pressure sensors will be integrated
Poster Session 5
188
into the flexible aeroshell in a new experimental concept. In addition, an approach to
monitor static and dynamic deformation in the HIADs flexible aeroshell will be
characterized using string potentiometers to provide a reference distance from the
supporting test structure. Stress seen by the rigid hardware will be characterized by
traditional strain gages.

During this test series, we will also explore many developmental embedded sensing
concepts for space flight test applications. Bend sensors will be incorporated into the
HIAD Thermal Protection System (TPS) between structural tori presenting an indication
of the deformation seen during aerodynamic loading. Flight-like configurations of the
MEMS pressure sensors will also be tested accounting for on orbit and re-entry
environmental constraints. Finally, MEMS accelerometers will be co-located with the
string potentiometers as a proof of concept to measure deflection during flight. All
developmental embedded sensing concepts will utilize flexible printed circuit board
technology in order to meet the stringent launch packaging requirements of the HIAD
aeroshell minimizing the risk of initiating punctures in the flexible materials.
Additionally, a subset of the embedded sensing concepts will employ wireless data
transfer reducing the wiring bundle mass and complexity.
[1] Clark, I.G., Hutchings, A.L., Tanner, C.L., Braun, R.D., Supersonic Inflatable
Aerodynamic Decelerators for Use on Future Robotic Missions to Mars, Journal of
Spacecraft and Rockets, Vol. 46, No. 2, March 2009.
[2] Brandon, E.J. et al., Structural Health Management Technologies for Inflatable /
Deployable Structures: Integrated Sensing and Self- Healing, Acta Astronautica (2010),
doi:10.1016/j.actaastro.2010.08.016


Poster Session 5
189


MARS MICROPHONE 2016: A UNIQUE OPPORTUNITY
FOR STUDENT INVOLVEMENT

*A. Minier
1
, *W. Rapin
1
, D. Perez Escobar
1
, D. Mimoun
1
and the Mars
Microphone Team
2


1
Institut Suprieur de lAronautique et de lEspace,*Undergraduate Students
2
see
bit.ly/MM2016 for the team description

ABSTRACT

General outline
The Mars Microphone is an E/PO experiment proposed in the frame of the ExoMars
Entry and Descent Module of the ExoMars Trace Gas orbiter. It aims at retrieving the
first sounds ever recorded from Mars. Besides of the technical and science team, its
development involves undergraduate and graduate students. The experiment will be built
on the heritage of previous Mars microphone experiments led by Berkeley SSL and the
Planetary Society. The main scientific objectives include basic atmospheric investigation,
analysis of dust devils and wind vortexes and the capture of sounds related to atmosphere
electrical activity and meteoritic impacts.




Design of the Mars Microphone
The microphone relies on a simple and robust design, a small mass (about 50g) and size
(50x50x20mm) and a low power budget (around 150mW). It is based on a very limited
set of well-known and previously space-qualified components in order to minimize
development risks. From a functional point of view, the microphone is a very simple and
robust state machine, fully under the control of the CEU. Its life duration in the surface
operational phase will be very short, about 4 days, thus reducing risks of failure and
development constraints. Three different configurations including up to three
microphones for extended science experiments are considered, depending on the possible
on-board resources allocation.

Poster Session 5
190
Student Contributions
The simple design and development approach of the Mars Microphone combined with
the exciting perspective of its mission make it an ideal support for education at the
University level. Students will (and already are!) deeply involved at all stages of the
development, operations and post-flight analysis of the instruments mission, as show on
the following diagram:





While waiting for the payload selection, we are currently setting up an experiment for
ground calibration tests carried out in a pressurized Martian Simulation Chamber. This
set-up will allow performing realistic measurements of the propagation of acoustic waves
in the Martian atmosphere and will give us a keener understanding of the scientific
phenomena to be detected on Mars by the microphone. It will also give us a preliminary
validation of the signal to noise ratio.

Other on-going activities include the electronics design, the design of the mechanical
box, contribution to various environment test setups and reports, and participation in
outreach activities.

References
[1]The Mars Microphone team, 2011, Mars Microphone 2016, proposal for the Exo/mars
EDM
[2] Nornberg P et. al. the new Danish/ESA Mars simulation wind Tunnel at Aarhus
University.
[3] Williams, J.-p. (2001), Acoustic environment of the Martian surface. Journal of
Geophysical Research 106, 5033-5042
[4] Sparrow, V.W. (1999): Acoustics on the planet Mars: A preview. The Journal of the
Acoustical Society of America, 106, 2264.





Poster Session 6A New Technologies

Poster Session 6A
192


TDNR: A MODULAR NANO-ROVER PLATFORM FOR
NETWORKED PLANETARY MISSIONS

Abraham Rademacher (1), Amardeep Singh(2), Jasvir Singh(3), Jose
Cortez (4), Kavinda Wittahachchi(5), Mikhail Paremski(6), Yawo
Ezunkpe(7), Dr. Periklis Papadopoulos(8), Marcus S. Murbach(9), Bob
Feretich(10)

(1) Graduate, AE, One Washington Square, San Jose, CA 95192, United States, Email:
arademacher@gmail.com (2)Undergraduate,ME,One
WashingtonSquare,SanJose,CA95192,UnitedStates,Email:charman3333@yahoo.com (3)
Undergraduate, ME, One Washington Square, San Jose, CA 95192, United States,
Email: singhamardeep@yahoo.com (4) Undergraduate, AE, One Washington Square,
San Jose, CA 95192, United States, Email: jose_cz24@yahoo.com (5) Undergraduate,
ME, One Washington Square, San Jose, CA 95192, United States, Email:
kavindasw@gmail.com (6) Undergraduate, AE, One Washington Square, San Jose, CA
95192, United States, Email: mishaparem@gmail.com (7) Undergraduate, AE, One
Washington Square, San Jose, CA 95192, United States, Email:
bestchoice.yawo@gmail.com (8) Advisor, Professor, MEA Department, One Washington
Square, San Jose, CA 95192, United States, Email: ppapado1@email.sjsu.edu (8)
Advisor, Principal Investigator SOAREX Flight Project, NASA Ames Research Center
Moffett Field, CA 94035- 1000, United States, Email: marcus.s.murbach@nasa.gov (10)
Advisor, REF Research, LLC. P.O. Box 20098, San Jose, CA 95160, United States,
Email: bob.feretich@refresearch.com

ABSTRACT

A 1kg nano-rover platform is designed to extend the benefits recognized in nano-
satellites into the domain of planetary rovers. This nano-rover concept, hereto referred to
as the Tube Deployable Nano Rover (TDNR), provides a unique solution to planetary
exploration; augmenting traditional high-cost, high-risk, rover/sensorsystems by
expanding the traditional networked planetary probe configuration. With the TDNR, a
conventionalnetworked mission can be enhanced with a sub-network of modular, low-
cost, nano-rovers. Each nano-rover has modular payload capacity, and each rover can be
equipped with independent instruments to cover a range of scientific missions. The
TDNR employs a unique expanding wheel design based on Hoberman geometry and a
tubular shape allowing the two -wheeled rover to efficiently package within a SCRAMP
(Slotted Compression RAMP) entry decent and landing probe. Integrating the TDNR
within the SCRAMP leverages several years of research at NASA Ames in next-
generation self-stabilizing planetary entry vehicles, which are specifically designed for
companion missions. A prototype TDNR is designed and constructed using off-the-shelf
Poster Session 6A
193
hardware at San Jose State University equipped with a Beagle Board main processing
board, camera and a 3 axis accelerometer for sensing and navigation, wireless N adapter
and foldable antenna for command and communication, and as described in the concept,
a payload bay to accommodate mission specific sensors. A prototype TDNR is
constructed to identify components required, demonstrates feasibility of the concept, and
serves as a development platform to further refine the concept.

Poster Session 6A
194


ANALYSIS OF ANOMALOUS VARIATIONS IN HIGH
ALTITUDE BALLOON ASCENT RATES NEAR THE
TROPOPAUSE

Walter Taresh*, Kevin Ramus, Kim Baird, Carlos Gonzalez, Gabe
Wilson, Rory Riggs, George Korbel, David H. Atkinson, and the Idaho
Near Space Engineering Team

University of Idaho e-mail: tare9527@vandals.uidaho.edu

ABSTRACT

High altitude balloons provide a simple, inexpensive, and reliable means of studying
planetary atmospheres. In recent balloon flights conducted by the University of Idahos
RISE (Research Involving Student Engineers) Near Space Engineering program, the
ascent rate and trajectory of the balloon path has been a major concern. Anomalous
variations in ascent rate have been observed near the tropopause on recent flights. Simple
models indicate that ascent speed should be essentially constant with altitude. However,
near the tropopause a virtually instantaneous reduction in ascent rate of approximately
50% has been observed. Several possible phenomena to explain this effect are being
studied, including changes in drag coefficient near Reynolds number of 3x105 and a
temperature induced loss of buoyancy due to cooling of the lifting gas during adiabatic
expansion of the balloon in the near-isothermal layer above the tropopause (temperature
drag effect).

Poster Session 6A
195


DEVELOPMENT OF AN AUTONOMOUS HIGH
ALTITUDE BALLOON CUTDOWN SYSTEM

Kevin Ramus*, Kim Baird, Carlos Gonzalez, Gabe Wilson, Walter
Taresh, Rory Riggs, George Korbel, David H. Atkinson, and the Idaho
Near Space Engineering Team

University of Idaho e-mail: kevinramus@vandals.uidaho.edu

ABSTRACT

Balloons are a simple and economical way to carry scientific instrumentation into the
upper atmosphere and can provide a platform for atmospheric flight testing of prototype
planetary mission instrumentation, reaching elevations up to and beyond 100,000 feet
(30,000 m) on Earth. The University of Idaho Near Space Engineering program known as
RISE (Research Involving Student Engineers) has now been launching balloons for seven
years. Idaho RISE has a data acquisition system that measures atmospheric pressure and
temperature as a function of altitude, and a redundant GPS tracking system that provides
real time tracking of the balloon system through ascent, decent, and landing, allowing for
a quick recovery of the descent package. A cutdown system has been developed by which
payloads can be autonomously released based on timer, altitude, or if the balloon drifts
outside of a preprogrammed latitude/longitude box. Working with NASA Ames Research
Center, Idaho RISE is currently preparing for a flight of Snowflake, a miniature high-
precision aerial delivery system developed by the Naval Postgraduate School and
University of Alabama at Huntsville to evaluate advanced control, communication and
command concepts for autonomously guided parafoil-payload systems. To date,
Snowflake has been successfully deployed over 120 times from altitudes of up to 10,000
feet. The goal of the Idaho RISE Snowflake experiments is to provide a platform to
deploy Snowflake at and above 30,000 feet and investigating its performance in these
conditions. The launches with Idaho entail the 3rd stage of a proposed ISS sample return
capability currently under development (SPQR- Small Payload Quick Return) at Ames
Research Center.

Poster Session 6A
196


THE TITAN SKY SIMULATOR
TM
NEW LOW COST
CRYOGENIC TEST FACILITY AVAILABLE.
DEVELOPED FOR TITAN
BALLOONS BUT SUITABLE
FOR MANY
APPLICATIONS

J. Nott

Affiliated to UC Santa Barbara, Nott Technology LLC
Email: nott@nott.com




The Decadal Survey "Vision and Voyages for Planetary Science" recommends
developing Titan balloons. The Titan Sky Simulator
TM
is a low cost facility for testing
balloons and other Titan hardware. An instrumented working Titan balloons has been
flown at 95K.

CONFLICTING REQUIREMENTS exist for testing a Titan balloon: the gas must
circulate fast for uniform temperature yet balloons must fly in completely calm. This is
Poster Session 6A
197
achieved with a highly insulated outer chamber. Liquid nitrogen is sprayed in and gas
circulated rapidly with a fan. A calm zone is achieved with an inner aluminum cylinder.
This arrangement also allows rapid cool-down. It takes many hours for the insulation to
reach temperature equilibrium, but this does not matter. Only the circulating gas and
inner cylinder need to reach a stable temperature and this is rapidly achieved.

AVAILABLE TO THE COMMUNITY An improved Simulator is under development in
Santa Barbara, naturally benefiting from of everything learned. This will have
significantly better insulation, be much lighter and much and easier to operate. This
resource can be available to the Community in two ways, The facility in Santa Barbara is
available. Or with low cost [student] labor, building versions of the Simulator will be
inexpensive, perhaps ten thousand dollars for materials. Constructing a Simulator might
be an excellent undergraduate team project, yet create a useful, long term research
facility. Like many good ideas, the basic concept is simple . But execution involves
numerous details, a few examples being insulation attachment, nitrogen injection and
adapting low cost cameras for cryogenic use. Nott Technology is able to supply this
knowhow.

CYLINDER: Ladder right give scale.

Poster Session 6A
198


ONE-WAY UPLINK RANGING FOR ENHANCING
PLANETARY WIND MEASUREMENTS

K. Oudrhiri(1), D.H. Atkinson(2), S.W. Asmar(1), S. Bryant(1), T.R.
Spilker(1)

(1)Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91109-
8099, USA (kamal.oudrhiri@jpl.nasa.gov)
(2)University of Idaho, Moscow, ID 83844-1023 USA

ABSTRACT

Uplink One-Way Ranging techniques can be used to improve the accuracy of planetary
atmospheric wind profiles measured during entry probe descent using Doppler wind
techniques. Advances in Radio Science flight instrument technologies and post-
processing capabilities allow for the possibility of utilizing a One- Way sequential
ranging signal transmitted from Deep Space Network antennas and recorded onboard a
probe-mounted Radio Science open-loop receiver with onboard post-processing
algorithms to produce precision measurements of probe range and position, thereby
significantly improving Doppler retrievals of atmospheric winds. The probe velocity
relative to Earth is computed as the derivative of the ranging positional information and is
therefore unaffected by any constant biases in the ranging data. In addition, velocities
derived from ranging data will not have an error term that grows with the descent time.
By providing an accurate Earth-to-probe baseline range and velocity, knowledge of the
planet-centered probe descent location can be significantly improved. Additionally, probe
measurement of the DSN uplink signal can provide a second projection of the horizontal
winds that, when coupled with the probe-orbiter wind projection, will provide the
complete horizontal wind vector. To make the measurements fully complementary, the
angle between the Earth-to-probe and probe-to-orbiter baselines should be large, and to
increase the sensitivity to winds in the probe local horizontal plane, the probe-orbiter and
probe-Earth angles should be at a non-zero angle to the probe nadir vector.

In this paper we will review opportunities for and benefits of uplink One-Way ranging for
enhancing future planetary entry probe wind measurements.


Poster Session 6B - Aeroassist, Experimental Missions and
EDL Mission Design


Poster Session 6B
200


SATURN SYSTEM MISSION OPPORTUNITIES USING A
TITAN AEROGRAVITY ASSIST FOR ORBITAL
CAPTURE

Robert M. Booher(1) and J.E. Lyne(2)

(1)Undergraduate Student, Department of Mechanical, Aerospace, and Biomedical
Engineering, 414 Dougherty Engineering Building University of Tennessee Knoxville, TN
37996-2210 USA Email: rbooher@utk.edu
(2)Associate Professor, Department of Mechanical, Aerospace, and Biomedical
Engineering, 414 Dougherty Engineering Building University of Tennessee Knoxville, TN
37996-2210 USA Email: jelyne@utk.edu

ABSTRACT

In previous papers authored by our group, the use of an aerogravity assist (AGA)
maneuver at Titan for orbital capture about Saturn was evaluated for a Cassini-class
vehicle.1 These studies confirmed that the proposed maneuver is a viable alternative to
the use of a traditional propulsive orbital insertion maneuver. A vector diagram of the
maneuver is shown in Figure 1. In the current paper we build on this concept and discuss
mission opportunities for future return voyages to the Saturn system. Specifically, four
candidate mission plans were developed based on overall performance including total
V, flight duration, launch year, and launch energy. (Initial trajectories were taken from
the European Space Agency Advanced Concepts Team website2 and then optimized
through SAIC Trajectory Optimizer3.) The candidate trajectories, displayed in Table 1,
range from an October 2018 departure date to a departure in December of 2024. Though
likely too near in the future for an actual Saturn return, the launch window in 2018
provided the best results of any tested trajectory and is included for comparison. In the
table, the Trajectory type column indicates the planetary encounter sequence, including
gravity assisted flybys.
Fig.1VectordiagramofAGAmaneuver

Once promising mission opportunities had been identified, the four candidate trajectories
Saturn System Mission Opportunities Using a Titan Aerogravity Assist for Orbital
Capture
Robert M. Booher
(1)
and J. E. Lyne
(2)

(1)
Undergraduate Student, Department of Mechanical, Aerospace, and Biomedical Engineering,
414 Dougherty Engineering Building
University of Tennessee
Knoxville, TN 37996-2210
USA
Email : rbooher@utk.edu

(2)
Associate Professor, Department of Mechanical, Aerospace, and Biomedical Engineering,
414 Dougherty Engineering Building
University of Tennessee
Knoxville, TN 37996-2210
USA
Email : jelyne@utk.edu
!
! In previous papers authored by our group, the use of an aerogravity assist (AGA) maneuver at
Titan for orbital capture about Saturn was evaluated for a Cassini-class vehicle.
1
These studies confirmed
that the proposed maneuver is a viable alternative to the use of a traditional propulsive orbital insertion
maneuver. A vector diagram of the maneuver is shown in Figure 1. In the current paper we build on this
concept and discuss mission opportunities for future return voyages to the Saturn system. Specifically,
four candidate mission plans were developed based on overall performance including total V, flight
duration, launch year, and launch energy. (Initial trajectories were taken from the European Space
Agency Advanced Concepts Team website
2
and then optimized through SAIC Trajectory Optimizer
3
.)
The candidate trajectories, displayed in Table 1, range from an October 2018 departure date to a departure
in December of 2024. Though likely too near in the future for an actual Saturn return, the launch window
in 2018 provided the best results of any tested trajectory and is included for comparison. In the table, the
'Traiectory type column indicates the planetary encounter sequence. including gravity assisted Ilybys.
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
Once promising mission opportunities had been identified, the four candidate trajectories were then
evaluated for their arrival conditions at Titan. The Saturn arrival declination and V were used to find
the probe`s velocity relative to Titan (V
E,Titan
) at an altitude of 1000 km, corresponding to the Titan
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Poster Session 6B
201
were then evaluated for their arrival conditions at Titan. The Saturn arrival declination
and V were used to find the probes velocity relative to Titan (VE,Titan) at an altitude
of 1000 km, corresponding to the Titan atmospheric interface. Our coordinate system was
defined such that the probe arrives from the negative y direction as Titan orbits posigrade
about Saturn at the origin; the Titan-spacecraft intercept position in the Saturn-centered
reference frame is designated by the angle Q. The coordinate system for the Saturn
system arrival geometry is illustrated in Figure 2, and a graph of intercept position versus
atmospheric entry speed for each candidate mission opportunity is shown in Figure 3.
The various mission opportunities were then examined to determine the desirable range
of intercept positions that would provide Titan atmospheric entry velocities of 6 to 10
km/s. This velocity range was chosen to avoid the excessive aerothermal environment
that would be associated with higher entry speeds. The approach trajectories for each
candidate mission opportunity was then compared to Titan ephemeris data, and the
Saturn system arrival dates were adjusted to accurately target the optimal Titan intercept
positions. Using these final trajectories, the AGA maneuvers were computed using the
Program to Optimize Simulated Trajectories (POST).5
The final paper will present a description of the candidate mission opportunities,
including details of the interplanetary trajectories and data on the Titan AGA maneuvers.
LEOdeparturedate(yyyy.mm.dd)


lla. 2 SchemaLlc represenLaLlon of probe lnLercepL wlLh 1lLan.
atmospheric interface. Our coordinate system was defined such that the probe arrives from the negative y
direction as Titan orbits posigrade about Saturn at the origin; the Titan-spacecraft intercept position in the
Saturn-centered reference frame is designated by the angle Q. The coordinate system for the Saturn
system arrival geometry is illustrated in Figure 2, and a graph of intercept position versus
atmospheric entry speed for each candidate mission opportunity is shown in Figure 3.


The various missions opportunities were then examined to determine the desirable range of
intercept positions that would provide Titan atmospheric entry velocities of 6 to 10 km/s. This
velocity range was chosen to avoid the excessive aerothermal environment that would be
associated with higher entry speeds. The approach trajectories for each candidate mission
opportunity was then compared to Titan ephemeris data, and the Saturn system arrival dates were
adjusted to accurately target the optimal Titan intercept positions. Using these final trajectories,
the AGA maneuvers were computed using the Program to Optimize Simulated Trajectories
(POST).
5

The final paper will present a description of the candidate mission opportunities, including
details of the interplanetary trajectories and data on the Titan AGA maneuvers.

LLC deparLure
daLe(vvvv.mm.dd)
1ra[ecLorv
Lvpe
1oLal 'v
(km/s)
uuraLlon
(vears)
C3
(km2/s2)
SaLurn arrlval v


(km/s)
SaLurn Arrlval uec
(dea)
2018.10.13 (u8) LvLLS 4.130 8.22 16.092 8.482 -6.910
2020.03.14 (u8) LvvLLS 3.179 10.99 11.330 7.823 12.260
2021.11.03 (u8) LvLLS 4.797 8.78 10.937 6.838 6.116
2024.12.04 (u8) LvvLS 4.803 10.44 19.398 6.027 13.379
1able 1. CandldaLe 1ra[ecLorles for SaLurn svsLem mlsslon
lla. 3 lnLercepL oslLlon () vs. 1lLan ALmospherlc LnLrv
veloclLv
lla. 2 SchemaLlc represenLaLlon of probe lnLercepL wlLh 1lLan.
atmospheric interface. Our coordinate system was defined such that the probe arrives from the negative y
direction as Titan orbits posigrade about Saturn at the origin; the Titan-spacecraft intercept position in the
Saturn-centered reference frame is designated by the angle Q. The coordinate system for the Saturn
system arrival geometry is illustrated in Figure 2, and a graph of intercept position versus
atmospheric entry speed for each candidate mission opportunity is shown in Figure 3.


The various missions opportunities were then examined to determine the desirable range of
intercept positions that would provide Titan atmospheric entry velocities of 6 to 10 km/s. This
velocity range was chosen to avoid the excessive aerothermal environment that would be
associated with higher entry speeds. The approach trajectories for each candidate mission
opportunity was then compared to Titan ephemeris data, and the Saturn system arrival dates were
adjusted to accurately target the optimal Titan intercept positions. Using these final trajectories,
the AGA maneuvers were computed using the Program to Optimize Simulated Trajectories
(POST).
5

The final paper will present a description of the candidate mission opportunities, including
details of the interplanetary trajectories and data on the Titan AGA maneuvers.

LLC deparLure
daLe(vvvv.mm.dd)
1ra[ecLorv
Lvpe
1oLal 'v
(km/s)
uuraLlon
(vears)
C3
(km2/s2)
SaLurn arrlval v


(km/s)
SaLurn Arrlval uec
(dea)
2018.10.13 (u8) LvLLS 4.130 8.22 16.092 8.482 -6.910
2020.03.14 (u8) LvvLLS 3.179 10.99 11.330 7.823 12.260
2021.11.03 (u8) LvLLS 4.797 8.78 10.937 6.838 6.116
2024.12.04 (u8) LvvLS 4.803 10.44 19.398 6.027 13.379
1able 1. CandldaLe 1ra[ecLorles for SaLurn svsLem mlsslon
lla. 3 lnLercepL oslLlon () vs. 1lLan ALmospherlc LnLrv
veloclLv
Poster Session 6B
202

References
[1] Philip Ramsey and James Evans Lyne, An Investigation of Titan Aerogravity Assist
for Capture into Orbit About Saturn, Journal of Spacecraft and Rockets. Vol. 43, No. 1,
pp. 231-233, Feb. 2011.
[2] Mission Analysis Advanced Concepts Team, European Space Agency. Nov. 2010.
<http://www.esa.int/gsp/ACT/mad/op/AdvancesInGO/SaturnDatabase/SemanticSaturn.ht
m>.
[3] SAIC Trajectory Optimizer, Science Application International Corporation. [4] Philip
Ramsey and James Evans Lyne, Enceladus Mission Architecture Using Titan
Aerogravity Assist for
Orbital Capture About Saturn, Journal of Spacecraft and Rockets. Vol. 45, No. 3, pp.
635-638, Feb. 2011.
[5] Brauer, G. L., Cornick, D. E., Olson, D. W., Peterson, F. M., and Stevenson, R.,
Program to Optimize Simulated Trajectories (POST), NASA CR NAS1-18147, Sept.
1989.

Poster Session 6B
203


AERODYNAMIC STABILITY OF BLUNTED-CONE
ENTRY VEHICLES

Daniel R. Ladiges*, Eleanor C. Button, Charles R. Lilley, Nicholas S.
Mackenzie, Edward Ross, And John E. Sader

Department of Mathematics and Statistics, The University of Melbourne, Victoria 3010,
Australia e-mail: jsader@unimelb.edu.au

ABSTRACT

The heat shield of a spacecraft provides protection against the extreme temperatures that
result from aerodynamic heating on atmospheric entry. Additionally, the heat shield
serves as an important aerodynamic component of the craft, providing the necessary drag
and stability at hypersonic speeds. The shape of the heat shield used varies considerably
between spacecraft, and spherical and blunted-cone geometries are often employed.
The `blunted-cone' heat shield has been developed through experimental design and
computational simulation. Previous work (presented at IPPW7) [1] showed that a generic
heat shield shape can also be mathematically derived and gave the maximum stabilizing
aerodynamic torque of all possible shapes. The derived shape displays minimum
variation in torque due to minor shape changes (such as those caused by ablation), and
depends only on the center-of-mass of the craft. The shape corresponds closely to the
blunted-cone design already commonly used in entry vehicles. This previous derivation
was performed for both free molecular (FM) and continuum flows. Importantly, both
regimes yield an identical shape.
In the present work we extend the FM model to allow for finite entry speeds, i.e., the
thermal motion of the gas molecules is considered. This is found to modify the shape, but
at high Mach numbers these effects cause very little change to the derived shape.
Analytical and numerical results of these effects will be presented.
Importantly, the previous work [1] only considered the limiting cases of free molecular
and continuum flows. It is thus important to investigate flows in the transition regime,
which lie between these limits. To this end, Direct Simulation Monte Carlo (DSMC) [2]
simulations have now been used to (i) verify the behaviour of the derived shape in the
FM regime, (ii) investigate the transition region between the FM and continuum regimes,
and (iii) examine the influence of thermochemical effects. Simulations have been
performed for both two-dimensional (for reference) and three-dimensional geometries,
both with and without the inclusion of thermo- chemical effects. Excellent agreement
with the previous analytical predictions is obtained in the FM regime. The same shape is
found for much of the transition regime. However, deviations are observed as the
continuum regime is approached possible causes of these effects will be discussed.
The design of practical heat shields involves numerous competing factors, which include
the expected heat load and the craft volumetric efficiency, in addition to aerodynamic
Poster Session 6B
204
stability. We thus emphasize that the presented results focus on only one component of
this multi-objective problem. The presented results and simulations provide further
information on the validity of the derived shape in Ref. [1]. By accounting for effects that
are not analytically tractable (using computational simulations), the shape that gives
maximum static stability is derived. This is obtained as a function of entry velocity, gas
rarefaction and thermochemical effects.

[1] E. C. Button, C. R. Lilley, N. S. Mackenzie and J. E. Sader, Blunted-cone heat
shields of atmospheric entry vehicles, AIAA Journal, 47, 1784-1787 (2009).
[2] Graeme Bird, Molecular Gas Dynamics and the Direct Simulation of Gas Flows,
Oxford Engineering Science Series, 1994.


Poster Session 6B
205


DETERMINATION OF AERODYNAMIC DAMPING
COEFFICIENTS OF ENTRY VEHICLES IN TRANSONIC
REGIME

S. Paris, O. Karatekinn, A. Karitonov+, J. Ouvrard*

* Von Karman Institute for Fluid Dynamics Ch. De Waterloo, 72, B-1640 Rhode-St-
Gense, Belgique nRoyal Observatory of Belgium 3 Avenue Circulaire, 1180 Bruxelles,
Belgium + Khristianovich Institute of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics, Siberian
Branch Russian Academy of sciences, Institutskaya 4/1, Novosibirsk 630090, Russia

ABSTRACT

Oscillatory motion is a dynamic phenomenon experienced by space capsules upon re-
entry to the Earths atmosphere. This behavior needs to be well understood for specific
geometries to avoid unstable flight. Proper characterization of aerodynamic damping for
stability evaluation can allow drogue chute deployment at lower Mach number.

The purpose of this work is to characterise the steady and unsteady aerodynamic
characteristics of entry vehicles in the range of Mach numbers from low speed to
supersonic. We use the EXPERT vehicle for the test case. The aerodynamic derivatives
have been determined in several wind tunnels over a wide range of velocity. Experiments
have been first carried out using the forced oscillation technique in sting configuration.

Transversal rod axis has been used as support for the model in the transonic/ supersonic
S1 wind tunnel at The von Karman Institute for Mach numbers going from 0.5 to 2. The
static efforts have been measured and the dynamic behaviour has been investigated
thanks to the two types of oscillations techniques, namely the free oscillations and the
forced oscillations.

Finally, different post-processing methods used to extract the damping in pitch parameter
have been compared. A significant difference between the different sets of results shows
that the support is a very important parameter which can produce significant discrepancy.
The sources of uncertainty and the effect of wake flow on dynamic stability are discussed
in detail in this paper for free and forced oscillation technique and for the different
supports. That shows that a deep analysis of the support interference is needed to improve
the quality of the results.
Poster Session 6B
206


Figure 1 Expert model with transversal support (VKI) and sting support (SibNIA)
The von Karman Institute for Fluid Dynamics

8th International Planetary Probe Workshop, 6-10 June, 2011 in Portsmouth, VA
The von Karman Institute for Fluid Dynamics Page 1 of 1
Determination of aerodynamic damping coefficients of entry vehicles in
transonic regime



S. Paris
!
, O. Karatekin
n
, A. Karitonov
+
, J. Ouvrard
*


*
Von Karman Institute for Fluid Dynamics
Ch. De Waterloo, 72, B-1640 Rhode-St-Gense, Belgique
n
Royal Observatory of Belgium
3 Avenue Circulaire, 1180 Bruxelles, Belgium
+
Khristianovich Institute of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics, Siberian Branch
Russian Academy of sciences, Institutskaya 4/1, Novosibirsk 630090, Russia





Oscillatory motion is a dynamic phenomenon experienced by space capsules upon re-entry to the Earths
atmosphere. This behavior needs to be well understood for specific geometries to avoid unstable flight. Proper
characterization of aerodynamic damping for stability evaluation can allow drogue chute deployment at lower
Mach number.
The purpose of this work is to characterise the steady and unsteady aerodynamic characteristics of entry vehicles
in the range of Mach numbers from low speed to supersonic. We use the EXPERT vehicle for the test case. The
aerodynamic derivatives have been determined in several wind tunnels over a wide range of velocity. Experiments
have been first carried out using the forced oscillation technique in sting configuration.
Transversal rod axis has been used as support for the model in the transonic/ supersonic S1 wind tunnel at The
von Karman Institute for Mach numbers going from 0.5 to 2. The static efforts have been measured and the
dynamic behaviour has been investigated thanks to the two types of oscillations techniques, namely the free
oscillations and the forced oscillations.
Finally, different post-processing methods used to extract the damping in pitch parameter have been compared. A
significant difference between the different sets of results shows that the support is a very important parameter
which can produce significant discrepancy. The sources of uncertainty and the effect of wake flow on dynamic
stability are discussed in detail in this paper for free and forced oscillation technique and for the different
supports. That shows that a deep analysis of the support interference is needed to improve the quality of the
results.


Figure 1 Expert model with transversal support (VKI) and sting support (SibNIA)




Poster Session 6B
207


STATISTICAL ENTRY, DESCENT AND LANDING
PERFORMANCE RECONSTRUCTION OF THE MARS
PHOENIX LANDER

Soumyo Dutta(1), Ian G. Clark(2), Ryan P. Russell(3), Robert D.
Braun(4)


(1)Daniel Guggenheim School of Aerospace Engineering, Georgia Institute of
Technology, 270 Ferst Drive NW, Atlanta, GA 30332, USA, Email:
soumyo.dutta@gatech.edu (2) Daniel Guggenheim School of Aerospace Engineering,
Georgia Institute of Technology, 270 Ferst Drive NW, Atlanta, GA 30332, USA, Email:
ian.clark@gatech.edu (3) Daniel Guggenheim School of Aerospace Engineering,
Georgia Institute of Technology, 270 Ferst Drive NW, Atlanta, GA 30332, USA, Email:
ryan.russell@gatech.edu (4) Daniel Guggenheim School of Aerospace Engineering,
Georgia Institute of Technology, 270 Ferst Drive NW, Atlanta, GA 30332, USA, Email:
robert.braun@ae.gatech.edu

ABSTRACT

The Phoenix Lander successfully landed on the surface of Mars on May 25, 2008. During
the entry, descent and landing (EDL), the vehicle had instruments on-board that took
sensed acceleration, angular rates and altimeter measurements. Additionally, satellites
orbiting Mars during Phoenixs entry took range measurements of the descending
vehicle. This paper will demonstrate the methodology used to reconstruct the trajectory
information from observations from these various sensors. The paper will also present the
reconstructed flight trajectory and the atmospheric profile sensed by the vehicle during its
landing sequence.
Although Phoenixs trajectory has been reconstructed in the past by NASA, this current
reconstruction differs from these past efforts due to the stochastic estimation techniques
used to blend the different EDL data types. The estimation algorithm used in this case
will be an Extended Kalman filter (EKF), which is adept at reconstructing states and their
uncertainties for a non-linear problem. The stochastic nature of the reconstruction uses
the inherent uncertainty in the measurement sensor data and propagates these values to
quantify the uncertainties associated with the estimated trajectory and atmospheric
parameters. The results of this reconstruction can thus allow a statistical comparison of
the actual trajectory and atmosphere experienced by the vehicle and what was expected.
Moreover, the paper will analyze the aerodynamic performance of the vehicle through
reconstruction of the aerodynamic coefficients of the vehicle throughout its trajectory.
The primary dataset used in the aerodynamic reconstruction is the sensed acceleration
measurements; thus, the aerodynamic and atmospheric uncertainties cannot be separated.
Nevertheless, analysis of the estimated aerodynamic performance of the vehicle can be
compared with predicted aerodynamic behavior, which in turn can lead to insight about
Poster Session 6B
208
crucial EDL events. One possible application of this performance analysis could be the
during the parachute deployment phase, when one can compare the reconstructed
aerodynamic coefficients with the predicted values. Additionally, Phoenix made
atmospheric measurements shortly after it landed. Although these measurements do not
exactly correspond with the timeline of the EDL events and measurements, these
independent density, temperature and pressure measurements will be used to reconstruct
the aerodynamic coefficients to see if the predicted behavior matched the estimated
values. Since the atmospheric quantities are directly observable with this dataset, the
uncertainties between the aerodynamics and atmospheric parameters can be separated.
The methodology and tools used to generate the results in this paper were created during
the development of an EKF- based reconstruction tool by the Space Systems Design
Laboratory at the Georgia Institute of Technology. This EKF tool has been used in the
past to reconstruct the trajectory of Mars vehicles, such as Pathfinder and the Mars
Exploration Rovers, and has been augmented to reconstruct the trajectory and
atmospheric profile of the 2012 Mars Science Laboratory. This tool development effort
has been supported by a NASA Research Announcement (NRA) award.


Poster Session 6B
209


VERTICAL STRUCTURE AND WIND SHEAR IN A
SIMULATED TRITON ATMOSPHERE

Charles Miller(1), Nancy J. Chanover(1), James R. Murphy(1)

(1)New Mexico State University, Department of Astronomy, P. O. Box 30001, MSC 4500,
Las Cruces, New Mexico 88003-8001 Email: chasm@nmsu.edu, nchanove@nmsu.edu,
murphy@nmsu.edu

ABSTRACT


Together, Neptune and its satellite Triton provide a unique opportunity for an automated
orbiter to study both an ice giant planet and a possible captured Kuiper Belt Object,
neither of which has been observed for long duration by an orbiting spacecraft. A
Neptune orbiter would likely use Neptunes upper atmosphere for initial aerocapture and
subsequent aerobraking [1]. However, Triton also possesses an N2 atmosphere dense
enough for aerobraking deceleration maneuvers on the order of those performed by the
Mars Global Surveyor and Mars Odyssey. The aerobraking corridor density target of 100
kg/km3 for these missions is met by Tritons atmosphere at an estimated height of
approximately 100 km [2]. In addition to saving fuel, aerobraking provides a scientific
benefit in that it directly provides information about density variations in the aerobraking
corridor through analysis of changing deceleration rates as the spacecraft encounters the
upper atmosphere.
Planning an aerobraking trajectory in Tritons atmosphere requires a prediction of density
variation as a function of time, height, and latitude. Three-dimensional dynamic General
Circulation Model (GCM) simulations provide a prediction of geographically and
temporally varying atmospheric temperatures, which in turn determine changes in
atmospheric scale height. Atmospheric density variations as a function of height can be
derived from these globally varying scale heights. GCM simulations also provide
predictions of wind speed and direction that must be considered in design of potential
landing probes. These simulations are commonly used to provide the predictions needed
for planning and implementing atmospheric insertion trajectories of Mars orbiters and
landers.
To model Tritons atmosphere, we used a modified version of the NASA Ames Mars
General Circulation Model, version 2.0. The Ames GCM incorporates several physical
processes critical to modeling the atmosphere of Triton, including condensation and
sublimation of the main atmospheric constituent gas as well as subsurface storage and
release of heat. We altered the Ames GCM to simulate conditions found on Triton. These
alterations included changing the size, rotation rate, orbital inclination, surface gravity,
and distance to the Sun of the parent body to model the appropriate insolation over time.
We also changed the gas properties from those of a CO2 atmosphere in the original Ames
GCM to those of an N2 atmosphere, including appropriate values for latent heat, specific
Poster Session 6B
210
heat, and the proper vapor pressure-temperature relationship for N2 frosts. We chose
initial albedo and emissivity values for the surface substrate and N2 frost from published
values based on global thermal simulations of Triton [3]. Our simulations did not include
atmospheric radiative heat transfer, but did include conduction, convection, and surface-
boundary layer heating. The sub-solar latitude for our simulations was 48 S, similar to
that at the Voyager 2 fly-by, which resulted in a continuously illuminated southern
hemisphere and a dark northern pole.
Triton is known to possess a thin N2 atmosphere with a surface pressure in the range of
10 - 20 microbars that is in vapor pressure equilibrium with N2 surface frosts [4]. We
started with a global covering of 10 cm of N2 frost and an initial surface pressure of 10
microbars, and ran simulations covering 340 Triton days, or 2000 Earth days, to allow for
the establishment of an equilibrium condensation flow. These simulations covered a 5
Earth year period just prior to Tritons southern summer solstice. We experimented with
changing N2 frost albedo and emissivity values and established a stable average
atmospheric pressure of 18 microbars over a period of 330 Triton days. Our simulations
produced a prograde polar jet that formed 3 km above the surface around both the
subliming south pole and the condensing north pole. We attribute these flows to thermal
winds caused by warmer air temperatures above the equator than above either pole. These
thermal winds produced a wind shear most prominent at latitudes 65 S and 65 N. The
prograde jet wind speed varied from 20 35 m/s at an altitude of 10 km from 100 to 300
Triton days. Lower altitude winds in the southern hemisphere flowed northward from the
subliming pole and were deflected in a retrograde direction due to Coriolis effects, with a
wind speed on the order of 5 m/s. The direction of these winds is consistent with the
direction of ground plume streaks and active plumes imaged by Voyager 2 in August
1989 [5]. We are in the process of modifying the model to study global circulation
patterns caused by variable surface ice patterns and a latitudinally changing frost albedo.
We will also investigate the differences in wind patterns at several additional
regions in Tritons orbit including at equinox and at a sub-solar point of 25-30 S, which
corresponds to a period in Tritons orbit between 2025 and 2030, when a Neptune orbiter
might conceivably arrive at Neptune. This study was funded by a NASA Earth and Space
Science Fellowship through grant number NNX09AQ96H.
References
[1] Lockwood, Mary 2004. Neptune Aerocapture Systems Analysis. AIAA Atmospheric
Flight Mechanics Conference and Exhibit.
[2] Tolson, R. H. et al., 2005. Application of Accelerometer Data to Mars Odyssey
Aerobraking and Atmospheric Modeling. J. Spacecraft Rockets. 42, 435-443.
[3] Stanberry, J. A. et. al., 1990. Zonally averaged thermal balance and stability models
for nitrogen polar caps on Triton. J. Geophys. Res. 17, 1773-1776.
[4] Smith, B. A. et. al., 1989. Voyager 2 at Neptune - Imaging science results. Science.
246, 1422-1449. [5] Hansen, C. J. et. al., 1990. Surface and airborne evidence for plumes
and winds on Triton. Science. 250, 421-424.



Poster Session 7A - Advances in TPS Technology for
Planetary Probe Design

Poster Session 7B
212


DEVELOPMENT OF A THERMAL PROTECTION
SYSTEM MASS ESTIMATING RELATIONSHIP BASED
ON FIAT PREDICTIONS

S. Sepka
1
, J. O. Arnold
2
, E. Venkatapathy
3
and K. Trumble
4

ABSTRACT

Of major interest in the design of a thermal protective system (TPS) for entry into Earths
atmosphere is the space ships required amount of heat shield material for safe passage.
Presented here is the development of mass-estimating-relationships (MERs) used to
predict the amount of TPS material to keep its back face temperature of the ablator below
250C, which is considered to but the typical maximum temperature an epoxy can
withstand when holding the TPS to its aeroshell. The MERs were developed based upon
FIATi predictions at the stagnation point for a range of possible flight paths that resulted
in the creation of 840 trajectories using DPLRii. Variables considered in this MER
correlations included entry flight path angle, entry velocity, ballistic coefficient, heat
load, peak heat flux, and maximum surface pressure. It will be shown that entry flight
path angle and heat load had the greatest sensitivity to required thickness. Multiple MERs
were developed using the PICAiii and one MER was developed for Carbon Phenolic [3].
Accuracy of the PICA MERs to FIAT prediction were within 13% at one standard
deviation (SD), while the Carbon Phenolic MER had an accuracy of 7% at one SD. How
the MERs were created, their modeling assumptions and limitations, and the applicability
of these MERs will be discussed.
1 Senior. Research Scientist, ERC Corporation, Thermal Protection Materials and
Systems Branch, NASA Ames Research Center, MS-234-1, Moffett Field, CA, 94035
(Tel. 650-604-3833). 2 NASA Ames IPA, Entry Systems and Technologies Division
(Code TS), MS 229-3 3 Chief Technologist, Entry Systems and Technologies Division
(Code TS), MS 229-3 4 Research Scientist, NASA Ames Research Center, Reacting
Flow Environments Branch (Code TSA), MS 230-2,



References


i Chen, Y.-K., and Milos, F. S., Fully Implicit Ablation and Thermal Analysis Program (FIAT),
Journal of Spacecraft and Rockets,Vol. 36, No. 3, pp 475-483, MayJune 1999 ii Wright, M.W.,
White, T., and Mangini, N., Data Parallel Line Relaxation (DPLR) Code User Manual Acadia Version
4.01.1, NASA/TM-2009-215388, October 2009.
iii Tran, H., Johnson, C, Rasky, D., Hui, F., Chen, Y.-K., and Hsu, M., Phenolic Impregnated Carbon
Ablators (PICA) for Discovery Class Missions, AIAA Paper 96-1911, June 1996.
Poster Session 7B
213


RASTAS SPEAR : RADIATION-SHAPES-THERMAL
PROTECTION INVESTIGATIONS FOR HIGH SPEED
EARTH RE-ENTRY

J-M Bouilly
1
, A. Pisseloup
1
, O. Chazot
2
, G. Vekinis
3
, A. Bourgoing
4
, B.
Chanetz
5
, O. Sladek
6


1EADS Astrium Space Transportation - BP 20011, 33 165 Saint-Mdard_en-Jalles
Cedex, France e-mail : jean-marc.bouilly@astrium.eads.net 2Von Karman Institute,
Aeronautics & Aerospace Dept, Ch De Waterloo 72, 1640 Rh-St-Genese, Belgium
3Institute of Materials Science, NCSR "Demokritos", 15310, Aghia Paraskevi Attikis,
Greece 4EADS Astrium Space Transportation, Route de Verneuil, 78133 Les Mureaux
CEDEX, France 5ONERA, 8 rue des Vertugadins, 92 190 Meudon, France 6Kybertec,
s.r.o., Tovarni 1112, 537 01 Chrudim, Czec Rep.

ABSTRACT

An important step for Space Exploration activities and for a more accurate knowledge of
the Earth, universe and environment is to develop the capability to send vehicles into
space, which collect and return to Earth samples from solar system bodies. To return
these samples, any mission will end by high-speed re-entry in Earths atmosphere. This
requires strong technological bases and a good understanding of the environment
encountered during the Earth re-entry.
Investment in high speed re-entry technology development is thus appropriate today to
enable future Exploration missions such as Mars Sample Return. Rastas Spear project
started in September 2010, with the main objective to increase Europes knowledge in
high speed re-entry vehicle technology to allow for planetary exploration missions in the
coming decades.
The research leading to these results has received funding from the European Union
Seventh Framework Programme (FP7/2007-2013) under grant agreement n 241992.
The projects main objective can be derived in sub-objectives as follows:
" OBJ1: To better understand phenomena during high speed re-entry enabling more
precise capsule sizing and reduced margins.
" OBJ2: To identify the ground facility needs for simulation
" OBJ3: To master heat shield manufacturing techniques and demonstrate heat shield
capabilities.
" OBJ4: To master damping at ground impact and flight mechanics and thus ensure a
safe return of the samples.
This study is carried out by a consortium of European companies and institutes : VKI (B),
Kybertec (Cz), Demokritos (Gr), IoA (Pl), CIRA (I), CFS (CH), MSU (Ru), CNRS and
ONERA (F), and coordinated by Astrium (F). The aim of this paper is to present the
Poster Session 7B
214
organisation, objectives and main actions proposed on RASTAS SPEAR project, to
enlarge the basic capabilities on some specific topics such as:
" Aeroshape stability
" High speed aerothermal environment
" Sub-system / equipment : Thermal protection, Crushable material


Poster Session 7B
215


RESIN IMPREGNATED CARBON ABLATOR (RICA): A
NEW THERMAL PROTECTION SYSTEM MATERIAL
FOR HIGH-SPEED PLANETARY ENTRY VEHICLES

Jaime Esper (1), Hans-Peter Roeser (2), Georg Herdrich (2)

(1) NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt MD 20771, USA; Email:
Jaime.esper@nasa.gov (2) Institute of Space Systems, University of Stuttgart,
Pfaffenwaldring 31, 70569 Stuttgart, Germany; Email: roeser@irs.uni-stuttgart.de

ABSTRACT

A new high-temperature carbon/Phenolic ablative Thermal Protection System (TPS)
material was manufactured and tested at the Institute of Space Systems of the University
of Stuttgart in Germany in the summer and fall of 2010. Designed for high velocity,
hyperbolic entry speeds, the Resin Impregnated Carbon Ablator (RICA) material was
developed as part of the principal authors doctoral research focused on a planetary entry
probe into Saturns moon Titan, and is the result of a collaborative endeavor under the
auspices of NASA GSFC's Student Fellowship Program and the Institute of Space
Systems (Institut fr Raumfahrtsysteme - IRS). Heritage hyperbolic-entry speed
carbon/Phenolic ablators rely on materials that are no longer in production (i.e., Galileo,
Pioneer Venus); hence the development of alternatives such as RICA is necessary for
future NASA planetary entry and Earth re-entry missions. RICA's performance was
tested both in Methane to simulate Titans atmospheric composition, and in air. Several
variants of the material were exposed to heat fluxes ranging from 1.4 to 14MW/m2, and
durations from 7.5 minutes to 22 seconds at the Institutes plasma wind tunnel (PWK1).
The TPS' integrity was well preserved in most cases, and results show great promise for
the intended applications.
The flight environment for the Titan Aerobot Balloon System (TABS) entry heat shield is
defined in Figure 1, which gives the convective and radiative heating rates as well as the
vehicle speed from entry interface at 1000 km altitude to drogue deployment about 136
seconds later. The radiative heating rate correlation value (1903 W/cm2), or maximum
computed rate, together with the convective heating rate (996 W/cm2) were used as the
boundary condition for testing the manufactured TPS material. Figure 1 also provides a
summary of key thermal requirements levied on the entry vehicle and TPS material.
Poster Session 7B
216


There are several major elements involved in the creation of a successful ablative TPS
material: the choice of fabric and resin formulation is only the beginning. The actual
processing involved in manufacturing involves a careful choice of temperature, pressure,
and time. This manufacturing process must result in a material that survives heat loads
with no de-lamination or spallation. Several techniques have been developed to achieve
this robustness. Variants of RICAs material showed no delamination or spallation at
intended heat flux levels, and their potential thermal protection capability was
demonstrated. Three resin formulations were tested in two separate samples each
manufactured under slightly different conditions. A total of six samples were eventually
chosen for test at the IRS PWK1. Boundary conditions, test set-up, and results will be
discussed in this paper.
Esper et. al.
RESIN IMPREGNATED CARBON ABLATOR (RICA): A NEW THERMAL PROTECTION
SYSTEM MATERIAL FOR HIGH-SPEED PLANETARY ENTRY VEHICLES
Jaime Esper
(1)
, Hans-Peter Roeser
(2)
, Georg Herdrich
(2)


(1)
NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt MD 20771, USA; Email: Jaime.esper@nasa.gov
(2)
Institute of Space Systems, University of Stuttgart, Pfaffenwaldring 31, 70569 Stuttgart, Germany; Email:
roeser@irs.uni-stuttgart.de

A new high-temperature carbon/Phenolic ablative Thermal Protection System (TPS) material was manufactured and
tested at the Institute of Space Systems of the University of Stuttgart in Germany in the summer and fall of 2010.
Designed for high velocity, hyperbolic entry speeds, the Resin Impregnated Carbon Ablator (RICA) material was
developed as part of the principal authors doctoral research focused on a planetary entry probe into Saturns moon
Titan, and is the result of a collaborative endeavor under the auspices of NASA GSFC's Student Fellowship Program
and the Institute of Space Systems (Institut fr Raumfahrtsysteme - IRS). Heritage hyperbolic-entry speed
carbon/Phenolic ablators rely on materials that are no longer in production (i.e., Galileo, Pioneer Venus); hence the
development of alternatives such as RICA is necessary for future NASA planetary entry and Earth re-entry missions.
RICA's performance was tested both in Methane to simulate Titans atmospheric composition, and in air. Several
variants of the material were exposed to heat fluxes ranging from 1.4 to 14MW/m
2
, and durations from 7.5 minutes
to 22 seconds at the Institutes plasma wind tunnel (PWK1). The TPS' integrity was well preserved in most cases,
and results show great promise for the intended applications.
The flight environment for the Titan Aerobot Balloon System (TABS) entry heat shield is defined in Figure 1, which
gives the convective and radiative heating rates as well as the vehicle speed from entry interface at 1000 km altitude
to drogue deployment about 136 seconds later. The radiative heating rate correlation value (1903 W/cm2), or
maximum computed rate, together with the convective heating rate (996 W/cm2) were used as the boundary
condition for testing the manufactured TPS material. Figure 1 also provides a summary of key thermal requirements
levied on the entry vehicle and TPS material.

Peak specific heat input (enthalpy) 1.10 x 10
7
J/kg
Stagnation point Integrated Convective Heat Flux 1.91 x 10
4
J/cm
2

Stagnation point Integrated Radiative Heat Flux 4.42 x 10
4
J/cm
2

Total Stagnation Point Integrated Heat Flux 6.33 x 10
4
J/cm
2

Maximum Heat Shield Thickness (stagnation point) 1.648 cm

Figure 1: Flight Conditions and TPS Requirements for TABS
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Poster Session 7B
217


PERFORMANCE CHARACTERIZATION, SENSITIVITY
AND COMPARISON OF A DUAL LAYER THERMAL
PROTECTION SYSTEM

Cole D. Kazemba(1), Mary Kathleen McGuire(2), Austin Howard(3),
Ian G. Clark(4), Robert D. Braun(5)

(1) Daniel Guggenheim School of Aerospace Engineering, Georgia Institute of
Technology, 270 Ferst Drive NW, Atlanta, GA 30332, USA, Email:
ckazemba3@gatech.edu
(2) Systems Analysis Branch, NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA 94035-
0001 (3) Neerim Corporation, 2551 Casey Ave. Ste. B, Mountain View, CA 94086
42) Daniel Guggenheim School of Aerospace Engineering, Georgia Institute of
Technology, 270 Ferst Drive NW, Atlanta, GA 30332, USA, Email: ian.clark@gatech.edu
(5) Daniel Guggenheim School of Aerospace Engineering, Georgia Institute of
Technology, 270 Ferst Drive NW, Atlanta, GA 30332, USA, Email:
robert.braun@ae.gatech.edu

ABSTRACT

With the goal of landing high-mass cargo or crewed missions on Mars, NASA has been
developing new thermal protection technologies with enhanced capability and reduced
mass compared to traditional approaches. Two examples of new thermal protection
system (TPS) concepts are dual layer and flexible TPS. Each of these systems introduces
unique challenges along with potential performance enhancements. Traditional
monolithic ablative TPS, which have been flown on every Mars robotic mission to date,
use a single layer of ablative material. The new dual layer TPS concepts utilize an
insulating layer of material beneath an ablative layer to save mass. A study was
conducted on the dual layer system to identify sensitivities in performance to
uncertainties in material properties and aerothermal environments. A performance metric
which is independent of the system construction was developed in order to directly
compare the abilities and benefits of the traditional, dual layer and eventually, flexible
systems. Using a custom MATLAB code enveloping the Fully Implicit Ablation and
Thermal Response Program (FIAT), the required TPS areal mass was calculated for
several different parametric scenarios. Overall TPS areal mass was found to be most
sensitive to the allowable temperature at the ablator/insulator interface and aerothermal
heat transfer augmentation (attributed here to material surface roughness). From these
preliminary results it was found that the dual layer TPS construction investigated could
produce improvements over a traditional TPS in the specified performance metric
between 14-36% (depending on the flight environments and total integrated heat load
expected) with nominal material properties.

Poster Session 7B
218
EDL HEATSHIELD EXPERIMENTS WITH DUAL-LAYER
ABLATORS, ADVANCED MATERIALS AND VARIABLE
HONEYCOMBS

Jennifer N. Congdon

ARA Ablatives Laboratory (ABL) Centennial, Colorado 80112

ABSTRACT

Todays challenge is to make ablative heatshield systems lighter and more efficient for
thermal protection of the large EDL vehicles baselined for manned exploration of Mars.
This paper discusses interim results from a three-year ABL program to improve upon
heatshield systems already available. The project is focused on three elements: 1)
fabricate and test dual-layer ablator systems with a higher-density, more robust top layer
over a lower-density, more insulative sublayer of the same chemistry; 2) develop and
investigate new ablator constituents such as silicon-carbide microballoons and fibers to
replace less-durable fillers currently in use; and 3) produce, test and evaluate
honeycombs with a wide range of cell size to better understand the dependence of ablator
performance on reinforcement configurations. Primary ablator performance testing has
consisted of: 1) arc-jet iso-q stagnation testing using the NASA/ARC IHF tunnel; 2) arc-
jet aeroshear testing with a swept-cylinder design using the IHF tunnel, and 3)
concentrated solar radiation testing using the Sandia Labs Solar Tower facility. The main
focus of this presentation will be summarizing test results collected to date and
interpretations of sample performance from the wide array of experimental ablator
samples.


Poster Session 7B
219


LOW DENSITY FLEXIBLE CARBON PHENOLIC
ABLATORS

Mairead Stackpoole
1
, Jeremy Thornton
1
, Wendy Fan
1
and Parul
Agrawal
1
, Evan Doxtad
2,
Robin Beck
3


ERC Inc., NASA Ames Research Center, NASA Ames Research Center
3
, NASA Education
Associates Program
2
, NASA Ames Research Center

ABSTRACT

Phenolic Impregnated Carbon Ablator (PICA) was the enabling TPS material for the
Stardust mission where it was used as a single piece heatshield. PICA has the advantages
of low density (~0.27g/cm3) coupled with efficient ablative capability at high heat fluxes.
Under the Orion program, PICA was also shown to be capable of both ISS and lunar
return missions; however some unresolved issues remain for its application in a tiled
configuration for the Orion-specific design. In particular, the problem of developing an
appropriate gap filler resulted in the Orion program selecting AVCOAT as the primary
heatshield material over PICA. We are currently looking at alternative architectures to
yield flexible and more conformal carbon phenolic materials with comparable densities to
PICA that will address some of the design issues faced in the application of a tiled PICA
heat shield. These new materials are viable TPS candidates for upcoming NASA
missions and as material candidates for private sector Commercial Orbital Transportation
Services (COTS). This presentation will discuss flexible alternatives to PICA and include
preliminary mechanical and thermal properties as well as arc jet and LHMEL screening
test results.

Poster Session 7B
220


ROTATING ARC JET TEST MODEL: TIME-ACCURATE
TRAJECTORY HEAT FLUX REPLICATION IN A
GROUND TEST ENVIRONMENT

Bernard Laub and Jay Grinstead
1
, Artem Dyakonov
2
, Ethiraj
Venkatapathy
1

NASA Ames Research Center
1
, NASA Langley Research Center
2

ABSTRACT

Though arc jet testing has been the proven method employed for development testing and
certification of TPS and TPS instrumentation, the operational aspects of arc jets limit
testing to selected, but constant, conditions. Flight, on the other hand, produces time-
varying entry conditions in which the heat flux increases, peaks, and recedes as a vehicle
descends through an atmosphere. As a result, we are unable to test as we fly. Attempts
to replicate the time-dependent aerothermal environment of atmospheric entry by varying
the arc jet facility operating conditions during a test have proven to be difficult,
expensive, and only partially successful. A promising alternative is to rotate the test
model exposed to a constant-condition arc jet flow to yield a time-varying test condition
at a point on a test article (Fig. 1). The model shape and rotation rate can be engineered
so that the heat flux at a point on the model replicates the predicted profile for a particular
point on a flight vehicle. This simple concept will enable, for example, calibration of the
TPS sensors on the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) aeroshell for anticipated flight
environments.

Poster Session 7B
221




During the test, the model is rotated such that the test models sensor will sweep through
points of varying heat flux: near zero when directed away from the flow, and the
maximum when the sensor is rotated to the stagnation point. Since the flight profile spans
from zero to a maximum and back to zero, the angular direction and instantaneous rate at
which the model is rotated will be programmed to realize a time-accurate heat flux profile
that maps to the predicted profile for a chosen location on the flight vehicle. The result is
a test-as-you- fly heat flux condition at the sensor location on the test model, yet
requires no change to the facility operating condition. Although the surface pressure at
the sensor location cannot follow the flight profile in tandem with the heat flux, the
material response will not be significantly affected by small differences in pressure.

The rotation of the cylinder will be accomplished with a programmable hydraulic
Rotating arc jet test model: Time-accurate trajectory heat flux replication in
a ground test environment

Bernard Laub and Jay Grinstead
NASA Ames Research Center
Moffett Field, CA 94035

Artem Dyakonov
NASA Langley Research Center
Hampton, VA 23681

Ethiraj Venkatapathy
NASA Ames Research Center
Moffett Field, CA 94035


Though arc jet testing has been the proven method employed for development testing and
certification of TPS and TPS instrumentation, the operational aspects of arc jets limit
testing to selected, but constant, conditions. Flight, on the other hand, produces time-
varying entry conditions in which the heat flux increases, peaks, and recedes as a vehicle
descends through an atmosphere. As a result, we are unable to test as we fly. Attempts
to replicate the time-dependent aerothermal environment of atmospheric entry by varying
the arc jet facility operating conditions during a test have proven to be difficult,
expensive, and only partially successful. A promising alternative is to rotate the test
model exposed to a constant-condition arc jet flow to yield a time-varying test condition
at a point on a test article (Fig. 1). The model shape and rotation rate can be engineered
so that the heat flux at a point on the model replicates the predicted profile for a particular
point on a flight vehicle. This simple concept will enable, for example, calibration of the
TPS sensors on the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) aeroshell for anticipated flight
environments.

Figure 1: a) Schematic of rotating arc jet model concept. Embedded sensor encounters varying heat
fluxes as model is rotated. b) Trajectory heat flux profile and correlation with rotating arc jet model
positions.


During the test, the model is rotated
such that the test models sensor
will sweep through points of
varying heat flux: near zero when
directed away from the flow, and
the maximum when the sensor is
rotated to the stagnation point. Since
the flight profile spans from zero to
a maximum and back to zero, the
angular direction and instantaneous
rate at which the model is rotated
will be programmed to realize a
time-accurate heat flux profile that
maps to the predicted profile for a
chosen location on the flight
vehicle. The result is a test-as-you-
fly heat flux condition at the sensor
location on the test model, yet requires no change to the facility operating condition.
Although the surface pressure at the sensor location cannot follow the flight profile in
tandem with the heat flux, the material response will not be significantly affected by
small differences in pressure.

The rotation of the cylinder will be accomplished with a programmable hydraulic
actuator and position encoder. The transmission mechanism and encoder will be designed
to interface with the model support arm and accommodate the sensors instrumentation
wiring. Figure 2 shows a design concept for a cylindrical model shape.

This approach will be applied first to validation of sensor performance for the MSL Entry
Descent and Landing Instrumentation (MEDLI). We will present high fidelity rotating arc
jet model simulations and analyses of test protocols to realize time-accurate correlation to
MEDLI sensor points.



Figure 2: Rotating arc jet test model concept.
Hydraulic rotary actuator is encoded to enable
precise positional control for time-accurate heat flux
profile replication.

Poster Session 7B
222
actuator and position encoder. The transmission mechanism and encoder will be designed
to interface with the model support arm and accommodate the sensors instrumentation
wiring. Figure 2 shows a design concept for a cylindrical model shape.

This approach will be applied first to validation of sensor performance for the MSL Entry
Descent and Landing Instrumentation (MEDLI). We will present high fidelity rotating arc
jet model simulations and analyses of test protocols to realize time-accurate correlation to
MEDLI sensor points.

Poster Session 7B
223


ADVANCED RIGID ABLATIVE TPS

Matt Gasch

NASA Ames Research Center

ABSTRACT

Heritage ablative TPS materials using Viking or Pathfinder era materials are at or near
their performance limits and will be inadequate for future missions. Significant advances
in TPS materials technology are needed in order to enable any subsequent human
exploration missions. This poster summarizes some recent progress at NASA in
developing families of advanced rigid/conformable and flexible ablators that could
potentially be used for thermal protection in planetary entry missions. In particular the
effort focuses technologies required to land heavy (~40 metric ton) masses on Mars to
facilitate future exploration plans.

Poster Session 7B
224


MODELING OF THE MATERIAL RESPONSE OF
THERMAL PROTECTION SYSTEMS IN HYPERSONIC
FLOWS

Jonathan Wiebenga(1), Iain D. Boyd(2), Alexandre Martin(2)

(1)Department of Aerospace Engineering, University of Michigan, 1320 Beal Ave. Ann
Arbor, MI 48109, United States, Email: jwiebs@umich.edu (2)Department of Aerospace
Engineering, University of Michigan, 1320 Beal Ave. Ann Arbor, MI 48109, United
States, Email: iainboyd@umich.edu
(3)Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Kentucky, 261 Ralph G.
Anderson Building Lexington, KY 40506, United States, Email:
alexandre.martin@uky.edu

ABSTRACT

A one dimensional material response model called MOPAR has been developed to study
ablation processes on hypersonic vehicles. MOPAR uses the Control Volume Finite-
Element Method (CVFEM) to model the inner decomposition of an ablator, pyrolysis gas
behavior, and surface ablation with wall recession. The solid and gas phase mass
conservation equations are solved along with the total energy (solid and gas) conservation
equation and the momentum conservation equation, which is pore- averaged to
Forchheimer's Law. MOPAR has also been strongly coupled to LeMANS, a hypersonic
CFD code, in order to simulate coupled flow field and material response problems. To
demonstrate the coupling methodology, two test-cases are considered: the IRV-2 vehicle
and the Passive Nosetip Technology (PANT) program. The IRV-2 results are compared
with other published numerical results and show good agreement, and the PANT results
are compared with experimental data and published numerical results.

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