NEA Asteroid Mission

1. NEA Asteroid Mission Contractor 6 Keith Jackson Nallely Davila Sarah Canterbury AinurKushaliyeva Jose A. Perez Michael Taylor Cody Bagnall

2. Mission Statement Our mission is to use innovated technologies to successfully conduct a manned mission to an asteroid to collect samples and scientific data. Secondary goals are to investigate the feasibility of mining operations and colonization.

3. Colonization feasibility • Is there water available? • What kind of stable structures can be erected? • What kind of materials and nutrients can be gathered from the asteroid? (Our biologist can study these questions) • Can oxygen be produced by plants to support human life? • How much extra nutrients are needed to sustain plant life • Can radiation exposure be minimized to allow for long term life?

4. Asteroid Trade Study • Purpose: • The purpose of this trade study is to select an asteroid to successfully conduct a manned mission and collect samples and scientific data. • Problems: • The problem is selecting an asteroid which meets all minimum requirements and exceeds as many of them as possible. • Selection Scheme: • The selection of an asteroid will follow a method of comparing the characteristics given in the table below. In addition, each asteroid analyzed will be assigned an Excedence Factor for each of its criteria. This factor will be a measure of how much the minimum criterion is exceeded and will be calculated as a fraction of its minimum or maximum value. • Design Characteristics • Analysis & Results • Many asteroids have been considered, but asteroid 66146 was chosen based on the overall score and by giving extra consideration to the weight products of the highest rated characteristics.

5. Asteroid Candidate

6. Dates

7. Mission Crew • Skills Set • Medical Background • Geology/Geophysics • Systems Engineering • Electrical Engineering • Aerospace/Mechanical Engineering • Psychology • Biologist • Test Pilot Background • Strength Training • Numbers • Four Astronauts • Cross-Train for mission • Find qualified candidates with multiple skills

8. Psychological Effects Mitigation • Disagreements within the group - Required daily discussions to handle problems within the group immediately • Loneliness / Isolation – Enable ability to communicate to Earth through video chat so that crew members can communicate with and interact with friends and family • Boredom – Teach courses through interactive videos that will be taken along. Develop research missions to take place while in transit • Human Performance Failure due to Neurobehavioral Problems – provide continued training and ample rest • Impaired Sensory-Motor Capability – ensure practice of regular physical tasks as well as mental training through computer programs • Interact with crew pet (hamster) to combat negative effects of long term isolation

9. Physiological Effects Mitigation • Accelerated Bone Loss - Reduce using Pharmaceuticals and Exercise • Immune Dysfunction – Daily vitamin intake • Reduced Muscle Mass, Strength, and Endurance- Require Exercise that can maintain muscle mass and strict dietary requirements • Diminished Cardiac and Vascular Function- Require Exercise and a healthy diet • Waste Management – create and maintain system to get rid of waste without polluting spacecraft • Provide and Recreate Potable Water – use and maintain recyclable water system to save space as well as keep astronauts hydrated and healthy • Radiation Risks – put lining in spacecraft to protect astronauts against radiation and test radiation levels inside spacecraft regularly

10. Psychological/Physiological Effects Mitigation Supplies • Multi-vitamins with extra calcium supplements to counteract bone loss • Ensure plenty of protein in diets to help counteract muscle loss • Small treadmill similar to COLBERT for aerobic exercise • Set of resistance bands for weight training • Medical kit for any possible sickness or injury • Environmental Control and Life Support System (ECLSS) – system to recycle and reuse water • Video chat technology to communicate with friends, family, teachers, and ground support • Hydroponic plant chamber

11. Daily Schedule • Staggered sleep shifts, four beds • 8 hours, rotate every 5 hours • This staggered rotation schedule prevents crew members from becoming segregated. • 3 hours for eating, one hour/meal • Two 1 hour workout per day, staggered • 6 hours of work, scheduled 30 min communication with earth • 5 hours of “free” time, 1 hour to talk to family every other day • 10 min for taking care of the mission pet (hamster)

12. Time management(6 hour work schedule) • Areas of interest • Psychological observations • Physiological observations/ mitigation tests • Plant/soil, pet, human • Geology • Mining, soil study, asteroid structure, structural integrity of processed mined material • Engineering • Selected microgravity experiments (SPADE) • Feasibility of mining and colonizing asteriod

13. Spacecraft • Apollo shaped capsule • Attached to the lander • Area of living quarters: 70 m^3 • Includes bedding, dining, workout space, etc. • Area of lab: 75 m^3 (approximate size of ISS labs is 100 m^3) • This includes experiments during travel time • Area for asteroid samples:1.5m^3 • Including core samples, surface samples, etc. • Drilling equipment and surface lander attached to exterior • Smelting station to process and study the useful properties of mined material

14. Radiation Shielding • Outer walls of spacecraft will be made from aluminum which is currently used on the ISS to reduce radiation exposure to 5% • Inner walls of spacecraft will be lined with reinforced polyethylene, a method currently being developed by NASA scientists that will protect astronauts even more than aluminum • Extra reinforced polyethylene will be placed around sleeping quarters since astronauts will spend a large amount of time there

15. Power • Hydrogen fuel cells* • 2 for the lander and 2 for the spacecraft, each operates independent of the others • approximately 91 kg each • 7kW operating conditions • The lander can be slaved to power the spacecraft as a redundancy • Solar Array and lithium-ion Battery on the spacecraft *http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/shuttle/reference/shutref/orbiter/eps/pwrplants.html

16. Telecommunication-Ground Station THE GOLDSTONE DEEP SPACE COMMUNICATIONS COMPLEX (California, USA) • DSS 14-Mars- Previous Mars Mission Station • 64 meter diameter transmitting antenna • Track the spacecraft across a distance of 328 million kilometers (~ 2 AU)

17. Telecommunication Requirements • S-band - 2GHz • Data rate : 100 Mbps • Transmitting antenna – diameter 64 m • 2 Receiving antenna – diameter 10 m Closest distance to asteroid is 0.07 AU Maximum communication distance ~ 0.2 AU

18. Telecommunication power required while on asteroid Min power: 234.98 W Max power: 1918.3 W

19. Telecommunication power required during the flight Going to asteroid Coming back from asteroid Min power: 5.43 * 10-7 W Max power: 234.98 W Min power: 5.43 * 10-7 W Max power: 1918.3 W

20. Link Budget

21. Launch • Ares IV or equivalent for launch from earth • Re-entry vehicle will be launched with spacecraft, but parked at the ISS. • On completion of the mission, and returning to the ISS, the spacecraft and lander will be left at the ISS and the re-entry vehicle will bring the Astronauts and samples back to earth

22. Propulsion-Ion Thruster RIT 22 Propellant: Xenon Specific Impulse (s): 3,000-6,000 Required Power (kW): 5 Thrust (mN): 50-200 *From actual test data High specific impulse Very effective Long life time

23. Propulsion Required Parameters that optimized trajectory fuel consumption: Using Low Thrust Propulsion 5 months time duration of transit from Earth escape to arrival at asteroid. 2 days early arrival relative to the time of closest approach, of arrival at the asteroid. 7 days time duration of transit with asteroid. 5 months time duration of transit from asteroid to Earth. • Isp=5000 s • mf [dry mass]=19 MT

24. Trajectory Plot

25. Schedule on Asteroid • Day 1 – Orbit asteroid, examine best possible landing and mining sites, prepare equipment • Day 2 – Land and anchor into asteroid, Explore asteroid • Day 3 – Collect surface samples • Day 4 – Analyze samples in lander • Day 5 – Drill and analyze subsurface samples • Day 6 – Finish taking samples, pack tools, withdraw drill • Day 7 – Depart from asteroid and begin return trip to Earth

26. Maneuvering on the Asteroid • An MMU will be used to get around on the Asteroid. • The MMU is a self-contained backpack propulsion device. • The device is powered by 24 nitrogen gas thrusters, its main structure is aluminum. Additionally, it has two 16.8-volt silver zinc batteries. • The 5.9 kilograms of nitrogen is enough propellant for approximately 6 hours of maneuvering. • Typical delta-v capability is about 24.4 meters/sec

27. Asteroid Exploration Equipment • Navigation cameras • Laser range finders • A device which uses a laser beam to determine the distance to an object. Most commonly measures the time taken for the beam to leave the device, reflect off the target, and return. • IR cameras • A device that forms an image using infrared radiation, a common camera uses visible light. Operates in wavelengths as long as 14,000 nm. • Bolometers • A device for measuring the energy of electromagnetic radiation.

28. Drill (M.O.L.E.) Mobile Onsite Landing Excavator • Tripod mount w/anchors • This will allow drilling with ~zero gravity • Anchors can be explosively driven into surface • Quick release for changing drill bits • For ‘powdery’ surface and solid core • Space shovel • To gather surface samples • Cooling system • To cool and lubricate drill bit • Small shape charge distribution mechanism • in case mounts are disabled • Ideas for dust dispersion? • for better vision, and better drill performance

29. MOLE and Surface Lander • Acts as a docking station for the surface lander • Surface lander will be able to dock on MOLE • Surface lander and MOLE will be able to run independently, or attached. • This will allow MOLE to be left on the surface without the attached lander. • The lander will carry fuel/supplies to the MOLE from the spacecraft, and mined material back to the spacecraft.

30. Lander Video

31. Lander