Impulse Space’s Post

Managed by NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s Flight Opportunities program, TechFlights aims to advance technologies that align with U.S. space exploration priorities and support the expanding space economy. This year, selected technologies will fly on reusable suborbital rockets, rocket-powered landers, and aircraft following parabolic profiles that achieve micro-, lunar, or Martian gravity. The 2023 NASA TechFlights solicitation also included a call for technologies to support the agency’s Commercially Enabled Rapid Space Science (CERISS) initiative, part of the Science Mission Directorate’s Biological and Physical Sciences division. This year’s selected technologies set out to address critical technology gaps facing NASA and the nation, including: - In-space manufacturing capabilities - Systems for landing and living on planetary surfaces - Tools for in-space research - Efficient spacecraft designs for deep-space missions https://lnkd.in/e2j6bvgi

New Post: NASA Selects Commercial Service Studies to Enable Mars Robotic Science - https://lnkd.in/edWGjj_z companies have been selected to conduct early-stage studies of concepts for commercial services to support lower-cost, higher-frequency missions to the Red Planet. NASA has identified nine U.S. companies to perform a total of 12 concept studies of how commercial services can be applied to enable science missions to Mars. Each awardee will receive between $200,000 and […]

NASA's Mars Sample Return Concept Studies Selected https://lnkd.in/eEPx2Dz3 NASA recently announced the selections for the MSR (ROSES C.26) call to industry, showcasing a diverse range of concept titles proposed by various companies. The selected proposals include: - Lockheed Martin in Littleton, Colorado: “Lockheed Martin Rapid Mission Design Studies for Mars Sample Return” - SpaceX in Hawthorne, California: “Enabling Mars Sample Return With Starship” - Aerojet Rocketdyne in Huntsville, Alabama: “A High-Performance Liquid Mars Ascent Vehicle, Using Highly Reliable and Mature Propulsion Technologies, to Improve Program Affordability and Schedule” - Blue Origin in [edit] Kent, WA: “Leveraging Artemis for Mars Sample Return” - Quantum Space in Rockville, Maryland: “Quantum Anchor Leg Mars Sample Return Study” - Northrop Grumman in Elkton, Maryland: “High TRL MAV Propulsion Trades and Concept Design for MSR Rapid Mission Design” - Whittinghill Aerospace in Camarillo, California: “A Rapid Design Study for the MSR Single Stage Mars Ascent Vehicle” These selections may bring fresh perspectives and innovative ideas to the mission, and it will be interesting to learn more about the concepts proposed. However, it remains unclear how the new studies will be integrated into or replace the current MSR architecture, what the timeline is, or what the expected costs really are. The focus on reducing complexity and enhancing reliability needs to align with the broader goals of ensuring mission feasibility and maximizing return on investment. In the meantime, we find ourselves in a state of uncertainty. Given the pending elections and the current political and budgetary climate, it is doubtful that any significant decisions will be announced soon. This period of enforced stagnation is concerning, as it could have a detrimental effect on the already beleaguered and somewhat disillusioned workforce at JPL. The uncertainty and lack of clear direction may further erode morale and hinder the progress of ongoing and future projects. In previous discussions and letters, I have consistently advocated for robust support and clear direction for NASA's missions. The MSR mission, in particular, is a testament to our ambition to explore and understand the cosmos. It is essential that we continue to support this mission, ensuring that it receives the necessary resources and attention to succeed. While it is crucial to remain supportive of the studies and new ideas being brought to the table, it is equally important to seek clarity on how these new initiatives will be implemented. The inclusion of additional new players and fresh perspectives can potentially strengthen the mission's success, but only if managed effectively. This collaborative spirit is at the heart of our collective efforts to push the boundaries of human knowledge and exploration.

New Post: NASA Selects Commercial Service Studies to Enable Mars Robotic Science - https://lnkd.in/edWGjj_z companies have been selected to conduct early-stage studies of concepts for commercial services to support lower-cost, higher-frequency missions to the Red Planet. NASA has identified nine U.S. companies to perform a total of 12 concept studies of how commercial services can be applied to enable science missions to Mars. Each awardee will receive between $200,000 and […]

On March 14, NASA handed over its gamma-ray and neutron spectrometer instrument to JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) for integration onto JAXA’s MMX (Martian Moons eXploration) mission spacecraft and final system-level testing. 🚀🌕 https://jhuapl.link/swc NASA’s Mars-moon Exploration with Gamma Ray and Neutrons (MEGANE) instrument, developed by Johns Hopkins APL in collaboration with colleagues from Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) in California, will play a major role in the MMX mission, which aims to characterize and determine the origin of Mars’ moons Phobos and Deimos and deliver a sample from Phobos to Earth. Scientists suspect the asteroid-sized bodies either are remnants of an ancient collision between Mars and a large impactor or are themselves asteroids captured by Mars’ gravity. By measuring the energies of neutrons and gamma rays emitted from the surface of Phobos, MEGANE will let MMX “see” the elemental composition of the moon’s surface and help peg the likely origin of the moon. “MEGANE will be a key instrument on MMX, making a big contribution toward the goal of understanding the origin of the Martian moons,” said Thomas Statler, MEGANE program scientist at NASA Headquarters in Washington. “NASA is glad to see MEGANE ready for integration, another step in NASA’s continuing collaboration with JAXA on this groundbreaking mission.” JAXA: Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency | NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration | Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory | #JHUAPL | #Mars | #Space | #SpaceScience | #MartianMoons | #MMX | #SolarSystem | #JAXA | #NASA

NASA Directed Energy Propulsion for Interstellar Exploration (DEEP IN) Project Investigates Photonic Propulsion Lubin received funding from NASA last year to study the possibility of using photonic laser thrust, a technology that does exist, as a new system to propel spacecraft to relativistic speeds, allowing them to travel farther than ever before. The project is called DEEP IN, or Directed Propulsion for Interstellar Exploration, and the technology could send a 100-kg (220-pound) probe to Mars in just three days, if research models are correct. A much heavier, crewed spacecraft could reach the red planet in a month—about a fifth of the time predicted for the SLS. Photonic propulsion works by firing lasers at a reflective material like a solar sail. Though the photons in the laser do not have mass, they do have energy and momentum, and they transfer a small amount of kinetic energy to the reflective surface when they bounce off. In the frictionless vacuum of space, the continued acceleration could hypothetically push a spacecraft to around 30 percent of the speed of light, the types of speeds we have achieved in partial accelerators. After launching a spacecraft into orbit with a conventional rocket, the probe could unfurl a light sail to be hit by powerful lasers on Earth.

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New Post: NASA Selects Commercial Service Studies to Enable Mars Robotic Science - https://lnkd.in/ez9sSTrV companies have been selected to conduct early-stage studies of concepts for commercial services to support lower-cost, higher-frequency missions to the Red Planet. NASA has identified nine U.S. companies to perform a total of 12 concept studies of how commercial services can be applied to enable science missions to Mars. Each awardee will receive between $200,000 and […]