NASA In-Space Propulsion Technologies and Their Infusion Potential Eric Pencil and David Anderson Outer Planets Assessment Group Meeting; Atlanta, GA January 10, 2013 Science Mission Directorate/Planetary Science Division NASA’s In-Space Propulsion Technology (ISPT) Program NASA’s ISPT Program develops critical propulsion, entry vehicle, and other spacecraft and platform subsystem technologies to enable or significantly enhance future planetary science missions. The current ISPT focus is TRL 3-6+ product development. •Develop technologies that enable access to more challenging and interesting science destinations or benefit the agency’s future robotic science missions by significantly reducing travel times to distant bodies, increasing scientific payload capability, or reducing mission cost and risk. Propulsion System Technologies Entry Vehicle Technologies AMBR High-Temp 7 kW NEXT Ion 4 kW HIVHAC Thruster & Aerocapture Multi-Mission Earth Rocket Engine Propulsion System Hall Propulsion System Entry Vehicle Tools Spacecraft Bus & Sample Return Technologies Systems & Mission Studies Mars Ascent PV Array Systems for Spacecraft Bus Components Mission Analysis Mission and System Vehicle planetary missions Tools Studies Extreme Environments Science Mission Directorate/Planetary Science Division 2 ISPT Systems Analysis Systems Analysis Objective #1: 1) Conduct systems and mission studies to prioritize and guide investments and quantify mission benefit of ISPT products. - NEXT throttle table, HIVHAC power and life requirements, etc. Mission / system design studies define technology requirements •Critical to quantify mission benefits before hardware investment •Mission design for NEXT requirements •Refocus Study led to NEXT throttle table extension •Refocus Study led to HIVHAC power range, life requirement •Decadal study support quantified science benefit for SEP, REP, and AMBR engine technology Recent Studies: • Barbara SR, Ceres SR, Mars Moons’ SR, NEARER, Discovery Cost Viability • Supported 1/2 of all decadal studies: Uranus, Neptune, Chiron, Trojans, Vesta and Hebe, and Mercury - ISPT products used as baseline for every mission! Science Mission Directorate/Planetary Science Division ISPT Mission Design Tools Systems Analysis Objective #2: 2) Develop tools for the user community to assist in ISPT product infusion. - Low Thrust Trajectory Tool (LTTT) suite - Aerocapture Quicklook Tool (a.k.a. SAPE) - Advanced Chemical Propulsion System (ACPS) tool In order to infuse new technologies, users must be able to assess the payoff. •Sponsored development of Mystic, MALTO, Copernicus, and OTIS •Initiated because results could not be independently validated •Held tools training courses: MALTO in 2008, Copernicus in 2009, OTIS training as needed (most recent 2011) •Aerocapture Quicklook Tool Released in 2010 Tool Success: •Agency point-of-contact for trajectory analyses (e.g. HILTOP Validation) •Provided tool training for MALTO, OTIS, and Copernicus •- 100s from all NASA centers, academia and industry •- Copernicus baseline tool for exploration (Constellation) •- OTIS (GRC Led) NASA Software of the year •Mystic used for Dawn mission operations, and tools used in Discovery proposals Science Mission Directorate/Planetary Science Division NEXT: Expanding SEP Applications For SMD Missions Objective: Improve the performance and life of gridded ion engines to reduce user costs and enhance/enable a broad range of NASA SMD missions NEXT Thruster String DCIU PPU Thruster HPA LPA Gimbal NEXT PM ion thruster * Rated Capability Goal 300Kg  Design/Qualification Goal (1.5x Rated) 450Kg operation at NASA GRC Projected Life Limit >800Kg  Potential Rated Capability >530Kg NEXT Thruster has exceeded all goals! • Single-String System Integration Test: Complete • Multi-String System Integration Test: Complete • Thruster Life Test: 450Kg throughput goal Complete •As of January 3, 2013, the LDT has achieved: >800 kg xenon throughput, >45,100 hours of operation and >30.7 Mn-sec of total impulse •Life Test will conclude in FY13 and transition to post-test inspections of thruster •Unprecedented diagnostics used for NEXT thruster performance characterization and spacecraft interaction effects testing ongoing at TAC Science Mission Directorate/Planetary Science Division 5 NEXT Mission Benefits & Applicability NSTAR Improve- CHARACTERISTIC NEXT NEXT BENEFIT (SOA) ment Max. Thruster Power 2.3 6.9 3x Enables high power missions (kW) with fewer thruster strings Max. Thrust (mN) 91 236 2.6x Throttling Range Allows use over broader range 4.9 13.8 3x (Max./Min. Thrust) of distances from Sun Reduces propellant mass, Max. Specific 3120 4190 32% enabling more payload and/or Impulse (sec) lighter spacecraft Total Impulse 4.6 >30 >6x Enables low power, high V (106 N-sec) Discovery-class missions with a Propellant single thruster 150 >530 >3x Throughput (kg) Science Mission Directorate/Planetary Science Division 6 NEXT Mission Benefits & Applicability Science Mission Directorate/Planetary Science Division 7 High Voltage Hall Accelerator (HIVHAC) for low cost Discovery-class and Sample Return Missions Objective: Develop key components of a HIVHAC Hall propulsion system (thruster, PPU/DCIU, feed system) to TRL 6 to enable/enhance new SMD Discovery missions; expand operational capability to close near-earth mission applications PPU T h r u Gimbal s t e r Xeno AXFS n CPE Brassboard PPU Tank HIVHAC EDU2 Single String VACCO Gimbal XFCM EDU2 BB Feed • Critical tests have PPU/DCIU System been completed, or • The HIVHAC EDU thruster offers are imminent, on high improved performance and mission benefits fidelity hardware over SOA Functional , Performance, • The HIVHAC project has leveraged OCT Complete Complete Complete & Vacuum Testing SBIR funding to advance the HIVHAC thruster system readiness Planned Qual-Level Vibration Test Complete Complete FY13 • A flight-qualified VACCO XFCM was delivered to NASA GRC in March 2012 and Planned Planned Qual-Level Thermal Complete FY13/Q2 FY13 will be integrated with the HIVHAC thruster Science Mission Directorate/Planetary Science Division 8 Hall System Mission Analysis •Compared HIVHAC, BPT-4000, SPT-140, and NEXT performance •Comparison of Mission Performance Cost Efficiency 1)Dawn – Discovery DRM 2)Kopff Comet Rendezvous – Discovery DRM 3)Nereus Sample Return – Discovery DRM 4)NEARER – Double NEA Sample Return 5)Wirtanen – CSSR – NF DRM 6)C-G - Decadal CSSR - NF DRM 7)Uranus – Decadal Dawn Performance Flagship DRM Comparison Science Mission Directorate/Planetary Science Division 9 Hall System Mission Analysis (cont) Thruster Summary of Mission Performance Comparison HIVHAC • Performance is sufficient for all Discovery Class missions evaluated - High Thrust throttle table generally shows higher performance than high Isp • Is the highest “cost efficient” EP system (Requires the lowest system power and spacecraft mass) BPT-4000 • Has sufficient performance for a subset of Discovery Class missions • Modifications to the BPT-4000 for higher voltage operation can increase BPT-4000 mission capture - Modifications to BPT-4000 do not match HIVHAC performance for low/modest power spacecraft (i.e. cost efficient) NEXT • Performance is sufficient for all Discovery Class missions evaluated • Is the highest overall performance, and is required for Flagship EP missions. 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