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By NASA
Team H.E.L.P.S. (High Efficiency Long-Range Power Solution) from The University of California, Santa Barbara won the $1 million grand prize in NASA’s Watts on the Moon Challenge. Their team developed a low-mass, high efficiency cable and featured energy storage batteries on both ends of their power transmission and energy storage system. Credit: NASA/GRC/Sara Lowthian-Hanna NASA has awarded a total of $1.5 million to two U.S. teams for their novel technology solutions addressing energy distribution, management, and storage as part of the agency’s Watts on the Moon Challenge. The innovations from this challenge aim to support NASA’s Artemis missions, which will establish long-term human presence on the Moon.
This two-phase competition has challenged U.S. innovators to develop breakthrough power transmission and energy storage technologies that could enable long-duration Moon missions to advance the nation’s lunar exploration goals. The final phase of the challenge concluded with a technology showcase and winners’ announcement ceremony Friday at Great Lakes Science Center, home of the visitor center for NASA’s Glenn Research Center in Cleveland.
“Congratulations to the finalist teams for developing impactful power solutions in support of NASA’s goal to sustain human presence on the Moon,” said Kim Krome-Sieja, acting program manager for NASA Centennial Challenges at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama. “These technologies seek to improve our ability to explore and make discoveries in space and could have implications for improving power systems on Earth.”
The winning teams are:
First prize ($1 million): H.E.L.P.S. (High Efficiency Long-Range Power Solution) of Santa Barbara, California Second prize ($500,000): Orbital Mining Corporation of Golden, Colorado Four teams were invited to refine their hardware and deliver full system prototypes in the final stage of the competition, and three finalist teams completed their technology solutions for demonstration and assessment at NASA Glenn. The technologies were the first power transmission and energy storage prototypes to be tested by NASA in a vacuum chamber mimicking the freezing temperature and absence of pressure found at the permanently shadowed regions of the Lunar South Pole. The simulation required the teams’ power systems to demonstrate operability over six hours of solar daylight and 18 hours of darkness with the user three kilometers (nearly two miles) away from the power source.
During this competition stage, judges scored the finalists’ solutions based on a Total Effective System Mass (TESM) calculation, which measures the effectiveness of the system relative to its size and weight – or mass – and the total energy provided by the power source. The highest-performing solution was identified based on having the lowest TESM value – imitating the challenges that space missions face when attempting to reduce mass while meeting the mission’s electrical power needs.
Team H.E.L.P.S. (High Efficiency Long-Range Power Solution) from University of California, Santa Barbara, won the grand prize for their hardware solution, which had the lowest mass and highest efficiency of all competitors. The technology also featured a special cable operating at 800 volts and an innovative use of energy storage batteries on both ends of the transmission system. They also employed a variable radiation shield to switch between conserving heat during cold periods and disposing of excess heat during high power modes. The final 48-hour test proved their system design effectively met the power transmission, energy storage, and thermal challenges in the final phase of competition.
Orbital Mining Corporation, a space technology startup, received the second prize for its hardware solution that also successfully completed the 48-hour testwith high performance. They employed a high-voltage converter system coupled with a low-mass cable and a lithium-ion battery.
“The energy solutions developed by the challenge teams are poised to address NASA’s space technology priorities,” said Amy Kaminski, program executive for Prizes, Challenges, and Crowdsourcing in NASA’s Space Technology Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington. “These solutions support NASA’s recently ranked civil space shortfalls, including in the top category of surviving and operating through the lunar night.”
During the technology showcase and winners’ announcement ceremony, NASA experts, media, and members of the public gathered to see the finalist teams’ technologies and hear perspectives from the teams’ participation in the challenge. After the winners were announced, event attendees were also welcome to meet NASA astronaut Stephen Bowen.
The Watts on the Moon Challenge is a NASA Centennial Challenge led by NASA Glenn. NASA Marshall Space Flight Center manages Centennial Challenges, which are part of the agency’s Prizes, Challenges, and Crowdsourcing program in the Space Technology Mission Directorate. NASA contracted HeroX to support the administration of this challenge.
For more information on NASA’s Watts on the Moon Challenge, visit:
https://www.nasa.gov/wattson
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Jasmine Hopkins
Headquarters, Washington
321-432-4624
jasmine.s.hopkins@nasa.gov
Lane Figueroa
Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, Ala.
256-544-0034
lane.e.figueroa@nasa.gov
Brian Newbacher
Glenn Research Center, Cleveland
216-469-9726
Brian.t.newbacher@nasa.gov
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By NASA
4 Min Read NASA Data Helps Protect US Embassy Staff from Polluted Air
This visualization of aerosols shows dust (purple), smoke (red), and sea salt particles (blue) swirling across Earth’s atmosphere on Aug. 23, 2018, from NASA’s GEOS-FP (Goddard Earth Observing System forward processing) computer model. Credits:
NASA’s Earth Observatory United States embassies and consulates, along with American citizens traveling and living abroad, now have a powerful tool to protect against polluted air, thanks to a collaboration between NASA and the U.S. State Department.
Since 2020, ZephAir has provided real-time air quality data for about 75 U.S. diplomatic posts. Now, the public tool includes three-day air quality forecasts for PM2.5, a type of fine particulate matter, for all the approximately 270 U.S. embassies and consulates worldwide. These tiny particles, much smaller than a grain of sand, can penetrate deep into the lungs and enter the bloodstream, causing respiratory and cardiovascular problems.
“This collaboration with NASA showcases how space-based technology can directly impact lives on the ground,” said Stephanie Christel, climate adaptation and air quality monitoring program lead with the State Department’s Greening Diplomacy Initiative. “This is not something the State Department could have done on its own.” For instance, placing air quality monitors at all U.S. diplomatic posts is prohibitively expensive, she explained.
“NASA’s involvement brings not only advanced technology,” she added, “but also a trusted name that adds credibility and reliability to the forecasts, which is invaluable for our staff stationed abroad.”
The forecasts, created using NASA satellite data, computer models, and machine learning, are crucial for U.S. embassies and consulates, where approximately 60,000 U.S. citizens and local staff work. Many of these sites are in regions with few local air quality monitors or early warning systems for air pollution.
“ZephAir’s new forecasting capability is a prime example of NASA’s commitment to using our data for societal benefit,” said Laura Judd, an associate program manager for Health and Air Quality at NASA. “Partnering with the State Department allows us to extend the reach of our air quality data, providing embassies and local communities worldwide with vital information to protect public health.”
Enhancing Health, Safety with NASA Air Quality Data
To manage air pollution exposure, the tool can assist diplomatic staff with decisions on everything from building ventilation to outdoor activities at embassy schools.
For many embassies, especially in regions with severe air pollution, having reliable air quality forecasts is crucial for safeguarding staff and their families, influencing both daily decisions and long-term planning. “Air quality is a top priority for my family as we think about [our next assignment], so having more information is a huge help,” said Alex Lewis, a political officer at the U.S. embassy in Managua, Nicaragua.
A screenshot of the ZephAir web dashboard featuring air quality forecasts for Managua, Nicaragua. U.S. Department of State Previously, ZephAir only delivered data on current PM2.5 levels using air quality monitors on the ground from about 75 U.S. diplomatic locations and about 50 additional sources. Now, the enhanced tool provides PM2.5 forecasts for all sites, using the Goddard Earth Observing System forward processing (GEOS-FP), a weather and climate computer model. It incorporates data on tiny particles or droplets suspended in Earth’s atmosphere called aerosols from MODIS (Moderate-resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer) on NASA’s Terra and Aqua satellites.
Aerosols are tiny airborne particles that come from both natural sources, like dust, volcanic ash, and sea spray, and from human activities, such as burning fossil fuels. PM2.5 refers to particles or droplets that are 2.5 micrometers or smaller in diameter — about 30 times smaller than the width of a human hair.
“We use the GEOS-FP model to generate global aerosol forecasts,” said Pawan Gupta, of NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, and the lead scientist on the project. “Then we calibrate the forecasts for embassy locations, using historical data and machine learning techniques.”
As of August 2024, the forecasting feature is available on the ZephAir web and mobile platforms.
The new forecasts are about more than just protecting U.S. citizens and local embassy staff; they are also contributing to global action on air quality. The State Department engages with local governments and communities to raise awareness about air quality issues. “These forecasts are a critical part of our strategy to mitigate the impacts of air pollution not only for our personnel but also for the broader community in many regions around the world,” Christel said.
Officials with the Greening Diplomacy Initiative partnered with NASA through the Health and Air Quality Applied Sciences Team to develop the new forecasts and will continue the collaboration through support from the Satellite Needs Working Group.
Looking ahead, the team aims to expand ZephAir’s capabilities to include ground-level ozone data, another major pollutant that can affect the health of embassy staff and local communities.
By Emily DeMarco
NASA’s Earth Science Division, Headquarters
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By European Space Agency
On 18–19 September, Europe’s space industry from start-up companies to large system integrators gathered at ESA–ESTEC in the Netherlands for Industry Space Days 2024.
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By NASA
5 min read
Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)
SpaceX Crew-9 members (from left) Mission Specialist Aleksandr Gorbunov from Roscosmos and Commander Nick Hague from NASA pose for an official crew portrait at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas.NASA/Josh Valcarel NASA astronaut Nick Hague and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov are preparing to launch on the agency’s SpaceX Crew-9 mission to the International Space Station.
The flight is the ninth crew rotation mission with SpaceX to the station under NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. The duo will lift off aboard the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft, which previously flew NASA’s SpaceX Crew-4, Axiom Mission 2 and Axiom Mission 3, from Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.
Once aboard the space station, Hague and Gorbunov will become members of the Expedition 72 crew and perform research, technology demonstrations, and maintenance activities. The pair will join NASA astronauts Don Petitt, Butch Wilmore, Suni Williams, as well as Roscosmos cosmonauts Alexey Ovchinin and Ivan Vagner.
Wilmore and Williams, who launched aboard the Starliner spacecraft in June, will fly home with Hague and Gorbunov in February 2025.
Launch preparations are underway, and teams are working to integrate the spacecraft and the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, including checkouts of a second flight rocket booster for the mission. The integrated spacecraft and rocket will then be rolled to the pad and raised to the vertical position for a dry dress rehearsal with the crew and an integrated static fire test prior to launch.
The Crew
Nick Hague will serve as crew commander for Crew-9, making this his third launch and second mission to the space station. During his first launch in October 2018, Hague and his crewmate, Roscosmos’ Alexey Ovchinin, experienced a rocket booster failure, resulting in an in-flight, post-launch abort, ballistic re-entry, and safe landing in their Soyuz MS-10 spacecraft. Five months later, Hague launched aboard Soyuz MS-12 and served as a flight engineer aboard the space station during Expeditions 59 and 60. Hague has spent 203 days in space and conducted three spacewalks to upgrade space station power systems and install a docking adapter for commercial spacecraft.
Born in Belleville, Kansas, Hague earned a bachelor’s degree in Astronautical Engineering from the United States Air Force Academy and a master’s degree in Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Hague was selected as an astronaut by NASA in 2013. An active-duty colonel in the U.S. Space Force, Hague completed a developmental rotation at the Defense Department and served as the Space Force’s director of test and evaluation from 2020 to 2022. In August 2022, Hague resumed duties at NASA, working on the Boeing Starliner Program until this flight assignment.
Follow @astrohague on X and Instagram.
Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov will embark on his first trip to the space station as a mission specialist for Crew-9. Born in Zheleznogorsk, Kursk region, Russia, he studied engineering with qualifications in spacecraft and upper stages from the Moscow Aviation Institute. Gorbunov graduated from the military department with a specialty in operating and repairing aircraft, helicopters, and aircraft engines. Before his selection as a cosmonaut in 2018, he worked as an engineer for Rocket Space Corp. Energia and supported cargo spacecraft launches from the Baikonur Cosmodrome. Gorbunov will serve as a flight engineer during Expedition 71/72 aboard the space station.
Mission Overview
After liftoff, Dragon will accelerate to approximately 17,500 mph to dock with the space station.
Once in orbit, flight control teams from NASA’s Mission Control Center at the agency’s Johnson Space Center in Houston and the SpaceX mission control in Hawthorne, California, will monitor a series of automatic maneuvers that will guide Dragon to the forward-facing port of the station’s Harmony module. The spacecraft is designed to dock autonomously, but the crew can take control and pilot manually if necessary.
After docking, Expedition 71 will welcome Hague and Gorbunov inside the station and conduct several days of handover activities with the departing astronauts of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-8 mission. After a handover period, NASA astronauts Matthew Dominick, Michael Barratt, Jeanette Epps, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Alexander Grebenkin of Crew-8 will undock from the space station and splash down off the coast of Florida.
Crew-9 will conduct new scientific research to prepare for human exploration beyond low Earth orbit and benefit humanity on Earth. Experiments include the impact of flame behavior on Earth, studying cells and platelets during long-duration spaceflight, and a B vitamin that could reduce Spaceflight-Associated Neuro-ocular Syndrome. They’ll also work on experiments that benefit life on Earth, like studying the physics of supernova explosions and monitoring the effects of different moister treatments on plants grown aboard the station. These are just a few of over 200 scientific experiments and technology demonstrations taking place during their mission.
While aboard the orbiting laboratory, Crew-9 will welcome two Dragon spacecraft, including NASA’s SpaceX’s 31st commercial resupply services mission and NASA’s SpaceX Crew-10, and two Roscosmos-led cargo deliveries on Progress 90 and 91.
In February, Hague, Gorbunov, Wilmore, and Williams will climb aboard Dragon and autonomously undock, depart the space station, and re-enter Earth’s atmosphere. After splashdown off Florida’s coast, a SpaceX recovery vessel will pick up the spacecraft and crew, who then will be helicoptered back to shore.
Commercial crew missions enable NASA to maximize use of the space station, where astronauts have lived and worked continuously for more than 23 years testing technologies, performing research, and developing the skills needed to operate future commercial destinations in low Earth orbit, and explore farther from Earth. Research conducted on the space station provides benefits for people on Earth and paves the way for future long-duration trips to the Moon and beyond through NASA’s Artemis missions.
Get breaking news, images, and features from the space station on Instagram, Facebook, and X.
Learn more about the space station, its research, and crew, at https://www.nasa.gov/station.
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By NASA
18 Min Read The Marshall Star for September 18, 2024
Marshall Welcomes NASA Chief Scientist for Climate, Science Town Hall
NASA Chief Scientist and Senior Climate Advisor Kate Calvin, center left, joins team members at the agency’s Marshall Space Flight Center for a Climate and Science Town Hall on Sept. 17 in Activities Building 4316. Calvin took part in a question-and-answer session during her visit that was live streamed agencywide. Joining her in the session were, from left, Rahul Ramachandran, research scientist and senior data science strategist for the Science Research and Project Division at Marshall; Marshall Earth Science Branch Chief Andrew Molthan; Marshall Chief Scientist Renee Weber; Marshall Center Director Joseph Pelfrey; and Marshall Science and Technology Office Manager Julie Bassler, who moderated the panel. (NASA/Krisdon Manecke)
Molthan answers a question during the Climate Town Hall. Topics discussed during the town hall included the response by NASA and Marshall to climate change, the effects of climate change on NASA and Marshall objectives, and how NASA and Marshall are helping organizations around the world respond to climate change. (NASA/Krisdon Manecke)
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Space Station Payload Operations Director at Marshall Carries on Family Legacy
By Celine Smith
Jacob Onken remembers his father, Jay Onken, waking him up one morning at 3 a.m. when he was 9 years old to watch the International Space Station fly overhead. At the time, his dad was a POD – a payload operations director – at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center leading flight controllers who support science experiments aboard the orbiting laboratory 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
Jacob Onken is a second-generation payload operations director at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center. His father, Jay Onken, also served in the role in 1999. The father and son are the first family members at Marshall to both hold that position. NASA/Danielle Burleson Now, the younger Onken has started a new chapter in his career as a POD at Marshall, following in his father’s footsteps. The father and son are the first family members to serve in this role at Marshall. Onken said that happened by chance, despite growing up NASA-adjacent.
Jacob Onken began his aerospace career with an internship at Teledyne Brown Engineering while earning a bachelor’s degree in computer science at Auburn University in Alabama. The internship took him to Marshall’s Payload Operations Integration Center – a place his father had worked and often taken him when he was younger. Colleagues warmly remembered the veteran POD and welcomed to the role.
After graduating with a bachelor’s degree in computer science in 2018, Onken worked as a contractor with Teledyne for NASA. As a data management coordinator (DMC) he sat console and learned to operate data and video systems aboard the space station.
“I really found myself out here, and I loved it,” he said. “Working in space flight operations is insanely cool and beneficial to humanity.”
A young Jacob Onken smiles for a family photo while visiting Marshall with his father, Jay Onken, and sister, Elizabeth Onken, in 1998. Photo courtesy of Jacob Onken After training for over a year, he earned his DMC certification and later was assigned as the lead DMC for space station Expeditions 62 and 63. He later served as the DMC training lead, preparing new flight controllers for certification. In this role, he trained 13 DMCs for certification, using a people-based leadership approach he learned from his father.
Well before the space station flew, Jay Onken was an aerospace engineer whose early career assignments included orbit analysis for the space shuttle and attitude selection for several Spacelab missions. He later was one of the first flight directors for NASA’s Chandra X-Ray Observatory, and following its launch, joined the first group of space station PODs.
He went on to become the director of Marshall’s Mission Operations Laboratory in 2005, deputy chief engineer for the Space Launch System in 2014, and director of Marshall’s Space Systems Department in 2016. He retired in 2018 and died in 2021 after battling cancer.
Jacob Onken continues Jay Onken’s legacy. Colleagues say he embodies similar traits. He often reflects on his father’s advice.
From left, Jacob Onken during his payload operations director (POD) certification ceremony with former PODs Carrie Olsen, Sam Digesu, Pat Patterson, and Tina Melton in the Payload Operations Center at Marshall. NASA/Craig Cruzen “I was lucky to have my dad, who understood the environment that I was working in,” he said. “I knew his work meant a lot to him. We were always close, but we got even closer. Bonding over the same things was special.”
In 2022, Onken became the DMC flight operations lead, supporting real-time console and planning operations for that team. In 2023, he joined the Operations Directors Office. After another rigorous training curriculum, he completed his POD certification in January 2024.
“It’s rewarding and heartwarming to know that the future of space flight operations is in good hands with the new generation,” said Craig Cruzen, the POD training lead who oversaw Onken’s instruction and certification.
Onken leads a team that communicates with astronauts about the scientific experiments they’re performing on the space station and ensures their safety from the ground.
As a payload operations director at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center, Jacob Onken leads flight controllers in the International Space Station Payload Operations and Integration Team, following in his father’s footsteps. Onken and his father, Jay Onken, are the first family members to both serve in the role at Marshall. (NASA) “My role requires teamwork, trust, and communication,” he said. “I ask myself, ‘How can we work together effectively to get the job done?’”
While he holds the same position his father held, the space station has evolved, becoming a convergence of science, technology, and innovation. “Jay Onken was a POD when the International Space Station was just beginning,” said former POD Carrie Olsen, now manager of NASA’s Next Gen STEM K-12 education project and a family friend to the Onkens. “The challenge the space station faced back then was its newness,” Olsen explained. “We were still figuring out how to best work with Johnson Space Center, scientists around the world, international partners, and the space station program.”
Though Marshall had a rich operations history working programs like Apollo, Space Shuttle, Skylab, and Chandra, the space station was truly unlike anything that had come before.
“Jay’s leadership qualities and integrity helped to build trust across the organization and the agency. This allowed Marshall’s operations team to excel and be recognized as the premier space station science operations center across the globe,” said his former colleague Sam Digesu, currently technical manager of the Payload and Mission Operations Division. “Jacob is on the that same path.”
Jacob Onken says one of his career goals is to support payload operations on the lunar surface for the Artemis missions. “My dad was around when it started, and hopefully, I’m around to see it through.”
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NASA Hosts Observe the Moon Night at U.S. Space & Rocket Center
The Science Wizard, David Hagerman, right center, entertains the crowd with one of his shows Sept. 14 during Observe the Moon Night at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center in Huntsville. The free public event was part of International Observe the Moon Night, a worldwide celebration encouraging observation, appreciation, and understanding of the Moon and its connection to NASA exploration and discovery. NASA’s Planetary Missions Program Office hosted the event at the rocket center. The Planetary Missions Program Office is located at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center. (NASA/Lane Figueroa)
Audience members react during one of Hagerman’s demonstrations at Observe the Moon Night. (NASA/Lane Figueroa)
Attendees visit a NASA display during the Observe the Moon Night event. (NASA/Daniel Horton)
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‘Legacy of the Invisible’ Event to Celebrate Marshall’s Contributions to Astrophysics
The public is invited to join NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center for a special celebration of art and astronomy in downtown Huntsville on Sept. 20 from 6 to 8 p.m. The event will include a dedication of Huntsville’s newest art installation, “No Straight Lines,” by local artist Float.
The celebratory event, “Legacy of the Invisible,” will take place at the corner of Clinton Avenue and Washington Street, coinciding with the 25th anniversary of NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory. Attendees will have a chance to meet and hear from NASA experts, as well as meet Float, the artist behind “No Straight Lines,” which aims to honor Huntsville’s rich scientific legacy in astrophysics and highlight the groundbreaking discoveries made possible by Huntsville scientists and engineers.
Enjoy live music, art vendors, food, and more.
Learn more about Chandra’s 25th Anniversary.
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SLS Program Manager John Honeycutt Delivers Keynote at National Space Club Breakfast
John Honeycutt, front center, manager of NASA’s SLS (Space Launch System) Program at the agency’s Marshall Space Flight Center, delivers the keynote address at the National Space Club Breakfast on Sept. 17 in Huntsville. Honeycutt provided a detailed presentation to the audience with insight into the operations, accomplishments, and future goals for the SLS Program. The SLS rocket is a powerful, advanced launch vehicle for a new era of human exploration beyond Earth’s orbit. “All elements of the SLS Block I for the first crewed lunar mission of the 21st century are either complete and ready for stacking or are nearing completion,” Honeycutt said. “For more than 60 years, this town – this community – has led the effort to explore space. We aren’t done. SLS and Artemis are the next chapter in that legacy. Led and enabled by folks in this room, at Marshall, and here in North Alabama, we will launch missions to the Moon that will re-write history books, lead to scientific discoveries, and pave the way to Mars.” (NASA/Serena Whitfield)
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NASA’s Lunar Challenge Participants to Showcase Innovations During Awards
NASA‘s Watts on the Moon Challenge, designed to advance the nation’s lunar exploration goals under the Artemis campaign by challenging United States innovators to develop breakthrough power transmission and energy storage technologies that could enable long-duration Moon missions, concludes Sept. 20 at the Great Lakes Science Center in Cleveland, Ohio.
The Sun rises above the Flight Research Building at NASA’s Glenn Research Center in Cleveland.Credit: NASA “For astronauts to maintain a sustained presence on the Moon during Artemis missions, they will need continuous, reliable power,” said Kim Krome-Sieja, acting program manager, Centennial Challenges at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center. “NASA has done extensive work on power generation technologies. Now, we’re looking to advance these technologies for long-distance power transmission and energy storage solutions that can withstand the extreme cold of the lunar environment.”
The technologies developed through the Watts on the Moon Challenge were the first power transmission and energy storage prototypes to be tested by NASA in an environment that simulates the extreme cold and weak atmospheric pressure of the lunar surface, representing a first step to readying the technologies for future deployment on the Moon. Successful technologies from this challenge aim to inspire, for example, new approaches for helping batteries withstand cold temperatures and improving grid resiliency in remote locations on Earth that face harsh weather conditions.
During the final round of competition, finalist teams refined their hardware and delivered a full system prototype for testing in simulated lunar conditions at NASA’s Glenn Research Center. The test simulated a challenging power system scenario where there are six hours of solar daylight, 18 hours of darkness, and the user is three kilometers from the power source.
“Watts on the Moon was a fantastic competition to judge because of its unique mission scenario,” said Amy Kaminski, program executive, Prizes, Challenges, and Crowdsourcing, Space Technology Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters. “Each team’s hardware was put to the test against difficult criteria and had to perform well within a lunar environment in our state-of-the-art thermal vacuum chambers at NASA Glenn.”
Each finalist team was scored based on Total Effective System Mass (TESM), which determines how the system works in relation to its mass. At the awards ceremony, NASA will award $1 million to the top team who achieves the lowest TESM score, meaning that during testing, that team’s system produced the most efficient output-to-mass ratio. The team with the second lowest mass will receive $500,000. The awards ceremony stream live on NASA Glenn’s YouTube channel and NASA Prize’s Facebook page.
The Watts on the Moon Challenge is a NASA Centennial Challenge led by NASA Glenn. NASA Marshall manages Centennial Challenges, which are part of the agency’s Prizes, Challenges, and Crowdsourcing program in the Space Technology Mission Directorate. NASA has contracted HeroX to support the administration of this challenge.
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Technicians Work to Prepare Europa Clipper for Propellant Loading
NASA’s Europa Clipper mission moves closer to launch as technicians worked Sept. 11 inside the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility to prepare the spacecraft for upcoming propellant loading at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center.
Technicians work to complete operations before propellant load occurs ahead of launch for NASA’s Europa Clipper spacecraft inside the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center on Sept. 11.NASA/Kim Shiflett The spacecraft will explore Jupiter’s icy moon Europa, which is considered one of the most promising habitable environments in the solar system. The mission will research whether Europa’s subsurface ocean could hold the conditions necessary for life. Europa could have all the “ingredients” for life as we know it: water, organics, and chemical energy.
Europa Clipper’s launch period opens Oct. 10. It will lift off on a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket from Kennedy’s Launch Complex 39A. The spacecraft then will embark on a journey of nearly six years and 1.8 billion miles before reaching Jupiter’s orbit in 2030.
The spacecraft is designed to study Europa’s icy shell, underlying ocean, and potential plumes of water vapor using a gravity science experiment alongside a suite of nine instruments including cameras, spectrometers, a magnetometer, and ice-penetrating radar. The data Europa Clipper collects could improve our understanding of the potential for life elsewhere in the solar system.
Managed by Caltech in Pasadena, California, NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory leads the development of the Europa Clipper mission in partnership with APL for NASA’s Science Mission Directorate. APL designed the main spacecraft body in collaboration with JPL and NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center. The Planetary Missions Program Office at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center executes program management of the Europa Clipper mission.
Learn more about the mission here.
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Marshall to Present 2024 Small Business Awards Sept. 19
NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center will host its annual Small Business Industry and Advocate Awards ceremony Sept. 19. The awards recognize small businesses and small business champions from government and industry for their outstanding achievements in fiscal year 2024.
The ceremony will take place during the 38th meeting of Marshall’s Small Business Alliance, from 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. CDT at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center’s Davidson Center for Space Exploration in Huntsville. The event will also highlight new opportunities for small businesses to take part in NASA’s procurement processes. Afterward, attendees will have the open opportunity to network with NASA officials, prime contractors, and other members of Marshall’s small business community. Exhibitors will provide valuable information to support their business.
NASA speakers include:
Dwight Deneal, assistant administrator, Office of Small Business Programs, NASA Headquarters Joseph Pelfrey, center director, NASA Marshall John Cannaday, director, Office of Procurement, NASA Marshall Davey Jones, strategy lead, NASA Marshall David Brock, small business specialist, Office of Small Business Programs, NASA Marshall For 17 years, the Marshall Small Business Alliance has aided small businesses in pursuit of NASA procurement and subcontracting opportunities. Its primary focus is to inform, educate, and advocate on behalf of the small business community. At each half day meeting, businesses will gain valuable insight to guide them in their marketing endeavors.
Learn more about Marshall’s small business initiatives.
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Printed Engines Propel Next Industrial Revolution
In the fall of 2023, NASA hot fire tested an aluminum 3D printed rocket engine nozzle. Aluminum is not typically used for 3D printing because the process causes it to crack, and its low melting point makes it a challenging material for rocket engines. Yet the test was a success.
Printing aluminum engine parts could save significant time, money, and weight for future spacecraft. Elementum 3D Inc., a partner on the project, is now making those benefits available to the commercial space industry and beyond.
A rocket engine nozzle 3D printed from Elementum 3D’s A6061 RAM2 aluminum alloy undergoes hot fire testing at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center.Credit: NASA The hot fire test was the culmination of a relationship between NASA and Elementum that began shortly after the company was founded in 2014 to make more materials available for 3D printing. Based in Erie, Colorado, the company infuses metal alloys with particles of other materials to alter their properties and make them amenable to additive manufacturing. This became the basis of Elementum’s Reactive Additive Manufacturing (RAM) process.
NASA adopted the technology, qualifying the RAM version of a common aluminum alloy for 3D printing. The agency then awarded funding to Elementum 3D and another company to print the experimental Broadsword rocket engine, demonstrating the concept’s viability.
Meanwhile, a team at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center was working to adapt an emerging technology to print larger engines. In 2021, Marshall awarded an Announcement of Collaborative Opportunity to Elementum 3D to modify an aluminum alloy for printing in what became the Reactive Additive Manufacturing for the Fourth Industrial Revolution project.
The project also made a commonly used aluminum alloy available for large-scale 3D printing. It is already used in large satellite components and could be implemented into microchip manufacturing equipment, Formula 1 race car parts, and more. The alloy modified for the Broadsword engine is already turning up in brake rotors and lighting fixtures. These various applications exemplify the possibilities that come from NASA’s collaboration and investment in industry.
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Hubble Finds More Black Holes than Expected in Early Universe
With the help of NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope, an international team of researchers led by scientists in the Department of Astronomy at Stockholm University has found more black holes in the early universe than has previously been reported. The new result can help scientists understand how supermassive black holes were created.
This is a new image of the Hubble Ultra Deep Field. The first deep imaging of the field was done with Hubble in 2004. The same survey field was observed again by Hubble several years later, and was then reimaged in 2023. By comparing Hubble Wide Field Camera 3 near-infrared exposures taken in 2009, 2012, and 2023, astronomers found evidence for flickering supermassive black holes in the hearts of early galaxies. The survey found more black holes than predicted. NASA, ESA, Matthew Hayes (Stockholm University); Acknowledgment: Steven V.W. Beckwith (UC Berkeley), Garth Illingworth (UC Santa Cruz), Richard Ellis (UCL); Image Processing: Joseph DePasquale (STScI) Currently, scientists do not have a complete picture of how the first black holes formed not long after the big bang. It is known that supermassive black holes, that can weigh more than a billion suns, exist at the center of several galaxies less than a billion years after the big bang.
“Many of these objects seem to be more massive than we originally thought they could be at such early times – either they formed very massive or they grew extremely quickly,” said Alice Young, a PhD student from Stockholm University and co-author of the study published in The Astrophysical Journal Letters.
Black holes play an important role in the lifecycle of all galaxies, but there are major uncertainties in our understanding of how galaxies evolve. In order to gain a complete picture of the link between galaxy and black hole evolution, the researchers used Hubble to survey how many black holes exist among a population of faint galaxies when the universe was just a few percent of its current age.
Initial observations of the survey region were re-photographed by Hubble after several years. This allowed the team to measure variations in the brightness of galaxies. These variations are a telltale sign of black holes. The team identified more black holes than previously found by other methods.
The new observational results suggest that some black holes likely formed by the collapse of massive, pristine stars during the first billion years of cosmic time. These types of stars can only exist at very early times in the universe, because later-generation stars are polluted by the remnants of stars that have already lived and died. Other alternatives for black hole formation include collapsing gas clouds, mergers of stars in massive clusters, and “primordial” black holes that formed (by physically speculative mechanisms) in the first few seconds after the big bang. With this new information about black hole formation, more accurate models of galaxy formation can be constructed.
“The formation mechanism of early black holes is an important part of the puzzle of galaxy evolution,” said Matthew Hayes from the Department of Astronomy at Stockholm University and lead author of the study. “Together with models for how black holes grow, galaxy evolution calculations can now be placed on a more physically motivated footing, with an accurate scheme for how black holes came into existence from collapsing massive stars.”
Astronomers are also making observations with NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope to search for galactic black holes that formed soon after the big bang, to understand how massive they were and where they were located.
The Hubble Space Telescope has been operating for over three decades and continues to make ground-breaking discoveries that shape our fundamental understanding of the universe. Hubble is a project of international cooperation between NASA and ESA (European Space Agency). NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center manages the telescope and mission operations. Lockheed Martin Space, based in Denver, Colorado, also supports mission operations at Goddard. The Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore, Maryland, which is operated by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, conducts Hubble science operations for NASA.
NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center was the lead field center for the design, development, and construction of the space telescope.
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