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By NASA
The Rocky Mountains in Colorado, as seen from the International Space Station. Snowmelt from the mountainous western United States is an essential natural resource, making up as much as 75% of some states’ annual freshwater supply. Summer heat has significant effects in the mountainous regions of the western United States. Melted snow washes from snowy peaks into the rivers, reservoirs, and streams that supply millions of Americans with freshwater—as much as 75% of the annual freshwater supply for some states.
But as climate change brings winter temperatures to new highs, these summer rushes of freshwater can sometimes slow to a trickle.
“The runoff supports cities most people wouldn’t expect,” explained Chris Derksen, a glaciologist and Research Scientist with Environment and Climate Change Canada. “Big cities like San Francisco and Los Angeles get water from snowmelt.”
To forecast snowmelt with greater accuracy, NASA’s Earth Science Technology Office (ESTO) and a team of researchers from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, are developing SNOWWI, a dual-frequency synthetic aperture radar that could one day be the cornerstone of future missions dedicated to measuring snow mass on a global scale – something the science community lacks.
SNOWWI aims to fill this technology gap. In January and March 2024, the SNOWWI research team passed a key milestone, flying their prototype for the first time aboard a small, twin-engine aircraft in Grand Mesa, Colorado, and gathering useful data on the area’s winter snowfields.
“I’d say the big development is that we’ve gone from pieces of hardware in a lab to something that makes meaningful data,” explained Paul Siqueira, professor of engineering at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, and principal investigator for SNOWWI.
SNOWWI stands for Snow Water-equivalent Wide Swath Interferometer and Scatterometer. The instrument probes snowpack with two Ku-band radar signals: a high-frequency signal that interacts with individual snow grains, and a low-frequency signal that passes through the snowpack to the ground.
The high-frequency signal gives researchers a clear look at the consistency of the snowpack, while the low-frequency signal helps researchers determine its total depth.
“Having two frequencies allows us to better separate the influence of the snow microstructure from the influence of the snow depth,” said Derksen, who participated in the Grand Mesa field campaign. “One frequency is good, two frequencies are better.”
The SNOWWI team in Grand Mesa, preparing to flight test their instrument. From an altitude of 4 kilometers (2.5 miles), SNOWWI can map 100 square kilometers (about 38 square miles) in just 30 minutes.
As both of those scattered signals interact with the snowpack and bounce back towards the instrument, they lose energy. SNOWWI measures that lost energy, and researchers later correlate those losses to features within the snowpack, especially its depth, density, and mass.
From an airborne platform with an altitude of 2.5 miles (4 kilometers), SNOWWI could map 40 square miles (100 square kilometers) of snowy terrain in just 30 minutes. From space, SNOWWI’s coverage would be even greater. Siqueira is working with Capella Space to develop a space-ready SNOWWI for satellite missions.
But there’s still much work to be done before SNOWWI visits space. Siqueira plans to lead another field campaign, this time in the mountains of Idaho. Grand Mesa is relatively flat, and Siqueira wants to see how well SNOWWI can measure snowpack tucked in the folds of complex, asymmetrical terrain.
For Derksen, who spends much of his time quantifying the freshwater content of snowpack in Canada, having a reliable database of global snowpack measurements would be game-changing.
“Snowmelt is money. It has intrinsic economic value,” he said. “If you want your salmon to run in mountain streams in the spring, you must have snowmelt. But unlike other natural resources, at this time, we really can’t monitor it very well.”
For information about opportunities to collaborate with NASA on novel, Earth-observing instruments, see ESTO’s catalog of open solicitations with its Instrument Incubator Program here.
Project Leads: Dr. Paul Siqueira, University of Massachusetts (Principal Investigator); Hans-Peter Marshall, University of Idaho (Co-Investigator)
Sponsoring Organizations: NASA’s Earth Science Technology Office (ESTO), Instrument Incubator Program (IIP)
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Last Updated Oct 29, 2024 Related Terms
Earth Science Earth Science Technology Office Science-enabling Technology Technology Highlights Explore More
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By NASA
4 min read
Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)
NASA’s Stennis Space Center near Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, achieved a key milestone this week for testing a new SLS (Space Launch System) rocket stage to fly on future Artemis missions to the Moon and beyond.
Over a two-week period beginning Oct. 10, crews completed a safe lift and installation of the interstage simulator component needed for future testing of NASA’s exploration upper stage (EUS) in the B-2 position of the Thad Cochran Test Stand. The component will function like the SLS interstage section that helps protect the upper stage during Artemis launches.
“NASA Stennis is at the front end of the critical path for future space exploration,” said Barry Robinson, project manager for exploration upper stage Green Run testing on the Thad Cochran Test Stand. “Installing the interstage simulator is a significant step in our preparation to ensure the new, more powerful upper stage is ready to safely fly on future Artemis missions.”
Teams at NASA’s Stennis Space Center complete a safe lift and install of an interstage simulator unit needed for future testing of NASA’s exploration upper stage (EUS) in the B-2 position of the Thad Cochran Test Stand. The lift and install, completed over a two-week period that began Oct. 10, marks a milestone for testing the new SLS (Space Launch System) rocket stage that will fly on future Artemis missions to the Moon and beyond. The EUS will undergo a series of Green Run tests of its integrated systems prior to its first flight. During testing, the interstage simulator component will function like the SLS interstage section that helps protect the upper stage during Artemis launches. NOTE: Right click on photo to open full image in new tab.NASA/Danny Nowlin Teams at NASA’s Stennis Space Center complete a safe lift and install of an interstage simulator unit needed for future testing of NASA’s exploration upper stage (EUS) in the B-2 position of the Thad Cochran Test Stand. The lift and install, completed over a two-week period that began Oct. 10, marks a milestone for testing the new SLS (Space Launch System) rocket stage that will fly on future Artemis missions to the Moon and beyond. The EUS will undergo a series of Green Run tests of its integrated systems prior to its first flight. During testing, the interstage simulator component will function like the SLS interstage section that helps protect the upper stage during Artemis launches. NOTE: Right click on photo to open full image in new tab.NASA/Danny Nowlin Teams at NASA’s Stennis Space Center complete a safe lift and install of an interstage simulator unit needed for future testing of NASA’s exploration upper stage (EUS) in the B-2 position of the Thad Cochran Test Stand. The lift and install, completed over a two-week period that began Oct. 10, marks a milestone for testing the new SLS (Space Launch System) rocket stage that will fly on future Artemis missions to the Moon and beyond. The EUS will undergo a series of Green Run tests of its integrated systems prior to its first flight. During testing, the interstage simulator component will function like the SLS interstage section that helps protect the upper stage during Artemis launches. NOTE: Right click on photo to open full image in new tab.NASA/Danny Nowlin Teams at NASA’s Stennis Space Center complete a safe lift and install of an interstage simulator unit needed for future testing of NASA’s exploration upper stage (EUS) in the B-2 position of the Thad Cochran Test Stand. The lift and install, completed over a two-week period that began Oct. 10, marks a milestone for testing the new SLS (Space Launch System) rocket stage that will fly on future Artemis missions to the Moon and beyond. The EUS will undergo a series of Green Run tests of its integrated systems prior to its first flight. During testing, the interstage simulator component will function like the SLS interstage section that helps protect the upper stage during Artemis launches. NOTE: Right click on photo to open full image in new tab.NASA/Danny Nowlin Teams at NASA’s Stennis Space Center complete a safe lift and install of an interstage simulator unit needed for future testing of NASA’s exploration upper stage (EUS) in the B-2 position of the Thad Cochran Test Stand. The lift and install, completed over a two-week period that began Oct. 10, marks a milestone for testing the new SLS (Space Launch System) rocket stage that will fly on future Artemis missions to the Moon and beyond. The EUS will undergo a series of Green Run tests of its integrated systems prior to its first flight. During testing, the interstage simulator component will function like the SLS interstage section that helps protect the upper stage during Artemis launches. NOTE: Right click on photo to open full image in new tab.NASA/Danny Nowlin Teams at NASA’s Stennis Space Center complete a safe lift and install of an interstage simulator unit needed for future testing of NASA’s exploration upper stage (EUS) in the B-2 position of the Thad Cochran Test Stand. The lift and install, completed over a two-week period that began Oct. 10, marks a milestone for testing the new SLS (Space Launch System) rocket stage that will fly on future Artemis missions to the Moon and beyond. The EUS will undergo a series of Green Run tests of its integrated systems prior to its first flight. During testing, the interstage simulator component will function like the SLS interstage section that helps protect the upper stage during Artemis launches. NOTE: Right click on photo to open full image in new tab.NASA/Danny Nowlin The EUS unit, built by Boeing at NASA’s Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans, which will be the upper stage for the evolved Block 1B version of SLS and will enable NASA to launch its most ambitious deep space missions. The new stage will replace the current interim cryogenic propulsion stage on the Block 1 version of SLS, which features a single engine and is capable of lifting 27 tons of crew and cargo to lunar orbit.
The new exploration upper stage will be powered by four RL10 engines, manufactured by SLS engines contractor L3Harris. It will increase payload capacity by 40%, enabling NASA to send 38 tons of cargo with a crew to the Moon or 42 tons of cargo without a crew.
In the first two weeks of October 2024, crews at NASA’s Stennis Space Center completed a successful lift and installation of an interstage simulator unit on the B-2 side of the Thad Cochran test Stand. The interstage simulator is a key component for future testing of NASA’s new exploration upper stage that will fly on Artemis missions to the Moon and beyond. Before the first flight of the exploration upper stage on the Artemis IV mission, the stage will undergo a series of Green Run tests of its integrated systems at NASA Stennis. The test series will culminate with a hot fire of the stage’s four RL10 engines, just as during an actual mission.
The simulator component installed on the Thad Cochran Test Stand (B-2) at NASA Stennis weighs 103 tons and measures 31 feet in diameter and 33 feet tall. It will function like the SLS interstage section to protect EUS electrical and propulsion systems during Green Run testing. The top portion of the simulator also will serve as a thrust takeout system to absorb the thrust of the EUS hot fire and transfer it back to the test stand. The four-engine EUS provides more than 97,000 pounds of thrust.
Teams at NASA’s Stennis Space Center complete a safe lift and install of an interstage simulator unit needed for future testing of NASA’s exploration upper stage (EUS) in the B-2 position of the Thad Cochran Test Stand. The lift and install, completed over a two-week period that began Oct. 10, marks a milestone for testing the new SLS (Space Launch System) rocket stage that will fly on future Artemis missions to the Moon and beyond. The EUS will undergo a series of Green Run tests of its integrated systems prior to its first flight. During testing, the interstage simulator component will function like the SLS interstage section that helps protect the upper stage during Artemis launches. NOTE: Right click on photo to open full image in new tab.NASA/Danny Nowlin Teams at NASA’s Stennis Space Center complete a safe lift and install of an interstage simulator unit needed for future testing of NASA’s exploration upper stage (EUS) in the B-2 position of the Thad Cochran Test Stand. The lift and install, completed over a two-week period that began Oct. 10, marks a milestone for testing the new SLS (Space Launch System) rocket stage that will fly on future Artemis missions to the Moon and beyond. The EUS will undergo a series of Green Run tests of its integrated systems prior to its first flight. During testing, the interstage simulator component will function like the SLS interstage section that helps protect the upper stage during Artemis launches. NOTE: Right click on photo to open full image in new tab.NASA/Danny Nowlin Teams at NASA’s Stennis Space Center complete a safe lift and install of an interstage simulator unit needed for future testing of NASA’s exploration upper stage (EUS) in the B-2 position of the Thad Cochran Test Stand. The lift and install, completed over a two-week period that began Oct. 10, marks a milestone for testing the new SLS (Space Launch System) rocket stage that will fly on future Artemis missions to the Moon and beyond. The EUS will undergo a series of Green Run tests of its integrated systems prior to its first flight. During testing, the interstage simulator component will function like the SLS interstage section that helps protect the upper stage during Artemis launches. NOTE: Right click on photo to open full image in new tab.NASA/Danny Nowlin Teams at NASA’s Stennis Space Center complete a safe lift and install of an interstage simulator unit needed for future testing of NASA’s exploration upper stage (EUS) in the B-2 position of the Thad Cochran Test Stand. The lift and install, completed over a two-week period that began Oct. 10, marks a milestone for testing the new SLS (Space Launch System) rocket stage that will fly on future Artemis missions to the Moon and beyond. The EUS will undergo a series of Green Run tests of its integrated systems prior to its first flight. During testing, the interstage simulator component will function like the SLS interstage section that helps protect the upper stage during Artemis launches. NOTE: Right click on photo to open full image in new tab.NASA/Danny Nowlin Teams at NASA’s Stennis Space Center complete a safe lift and install of an interstage simulator unit needed for future testing of NASA’s exploration upper stage (EUS) in the B-2 position of the Thad Cochran Test Stand. The lift and install, completed over a two-week period that began Oct. 10, marks a milestone for testing the new SLS (Space Launch System) rocket stage that will fly on future Artemis missions to the Moon and beyond. The EUS will undergo a series of Green Run tests of its integrated systems prior to its first flight. During testing, the interstage simulator component will function like the SLS interstage section that helps protect the upper stage during Artemis launches. NOTE: Right click on photo to open full image in new tab.NASA/Danny Nowlin Teams at NASA’s Stennis Space Center complete a safe lift and install of an interstage simulator unit needed for future testing of NASA’s exploration upper stage (EUS) in the B-2 position of the Thad Cochran Test Stand. The lift and install, completed over a two-week period that began Oct. 10, marks a milestone for testing the new SLS (Space Launch System) rocket stage that will fly on future Artemis missions to the Moon and beyond. The EUS will undergo a series of Green Run tests of its integrated systems prior to its first flight. During testing, the interstage simulator component will function like the SLS interstage section that helps protect the upper stage during Artemis launches. NOTE: Right click on photo to open full image in new tab.NASA/Danny Nowlin Teams at NASA’s Stennis Space Center complete a safe lift and install of an interstage simulator unit needed for future testing of NASA’s exploration upper stage (EUS) in the B-2 position of the Thad Cochran Test Stand. The lift and install, completed over a two-week period that began Oct. 10, marks a milestone for testing the new SLS (Space Launch System) rocket stage that will fly on future Artemis missions to the Moon and beyond. The EUS will undergo a series of Green Run tests of its integrated systems prior to its first flight. During testing, the interstage simulator component will function like the SLS interstage section that helps protect the upper stage during Artemis launches. NOTE: Right click on photo to open full image in new tab.NASA/Danny Nowlin NASA Stennis crews previously lifted the interstage simulator to measure and align it relative to the test stand. It is now outfitted with all piping, tubing, and electrical systems necessary to support future Green Run testing.
Installation onto the test stand enables NASA Stennis crews to begin fabricating the mechanical and electrical systems connecting the facility to the simulator. As fabrication of the systems are completed, crews will conduct activation flows to ensure the test stand can operate to meet test requirements.
Through Artemis, NASA will establish the foundation for long-term scientific exploration at the Moon; land the first woman, first person of color and first international partner astronaut on the lunar surface; and prepare for human expeditions to Mars for the benefit of all.
For information about NASA’s Stennis Space Center, visit:
https://www.nasa.gov/stennis
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Last Updated Oct 25, 2024 EditorNASA Stennis CommunicationsContactC. Lacy Thompsoncalvin.l.thompson@nasa.gov / (228) 688-3333LocationStennis Space Center Related Terms
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By NASA
A test image of Earth taken by NASA’s Pathfinder Technology Demonstrator-4’s onboard camera. The camera will capture images of the Lightweight Integrated Solar Array and anTenna upon deployment.NASA NASA recently evaluated initial flight data and imagery from Pathfinder Technology Demonstrator-4 (PTD-4), confirming proper checkout of the spacecraft’s systems including its on-board electronics as well as the payload’s support systems such as the small onboard camera. Shown above is a test image of Earth taken by the payload camera, shortly after PTD-4 reached orbit. This camera will continue photographing the technology demonstration during the mission.
Payload operations are now underway for the primary objective of the PTD-4 mission – the demonstration of a new power and communications technology for future spacecraft. The payload, a deployable solar array with an integrated antenna called the Lightweight Integrated Solar Array and anTenna, or LISA-T, has initiated deployment of its central boom structure. The boom supports four solar power and communication arrays, also called petals. Releasing the central boom pushes the still-stowed petals nearly three feet (one meter) away from the spacecraft bus. The mission team currently is working through an initial challenge to get LISA-T’s central boom to fully extend before unfolding the petals and beginning its power generation and communication operations.
Small spacecraft on deep space missions require more electrical power than what is currently offered by existing technology. The four-petal solar array of LISA-T is a thin-film solar array that offers lower mass, lower stowed volume, and three times more power per mass and volume allocation than current solar arrays. The in-orbit technology demonstration includes deployment, operation, and environmental survivability of the thin-film solar array.
“The LISA-T experiment is an opportunity for NASA and the small spacecraft community to advance the packaging, deployment, and operation of thin-film, fully flexible solar and antenna arrays in space. The thin-film arrays will vastly improve power generation and communication capabilities throughout many different mission applications,” said Dr. John Carr, deputy center chief technologist at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama. “These capabilities are critical for achieving higher value science alongside the exploration of deep space with small spacecraft.”
The Pathfinder Technology Demonstration series of missions leverages a commercial platform which serves to test innovative technologies to increase the capability of small spacecraft. Deploying LISA-T’s thin solar array in the harsh environment of space presents inherent challenges such as deploying large highly flexible non-metallic structures with high area to mass ratios. Performing experiments such as LISA-T on a smaller, lower-cost spacecraft allows NASA the opportunity to take manageable risk with high probability of great return. The LISA-T experiment aims to enable future deep space missions with the ability to acquire and communicate data through improved power generation and communication capabilities on the same integrated array.
The PTD-4 small spacecraft is hosting the in-orbit technology demonstration called LISA-T. The PTD-4 spacecraft deployed into low Earth orbit from SpaceX’s Transporter-11 rocket which launched from Space Launch Complex 4E at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California on Aug. 16. NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama designed and built the LISA-T technology as well as LISA-T’s supporting avionics system. NASA’s Small Spacecraft Technology program, based at NASA’s Ames Research Center in California’s Silicon Valley and led by the agency’s Space Technology Mission Directorate, funds and manages the PTD-4 mission as well as the overall Pathfinder Technology Demonstration mission series. Terran Orbital Corporation of Irvine, California, developed and built the PTD-4 spacecraft bus, named Triumph.
Learn more about NASA’s LISA-T technology:
NASA teams are testing a key technology demonstration known as LISA-T, short for the Lightweight Integrated Solar Array and anTenna. It’s a super compact, stowable, thin-film solar array that when fully deployed in space, offers both a power generation and communication capability for small spacecraft. LISA-T’s orbital flight test is part of the Pathfinder Technology Demonstrator series of missions. To travel farther into deep space, small spacecraft require more electrical power than what is currently available through existing technology. LISA-T aims to answer that demand and would offer small spacecraft access to power without compromising mass or volume. Watch this video to learn more about the spacecraft, its deployment, and the possibilities from John Carr, deputy center chief technologist at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama. View the full article
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By European Space Agency
With all instruments integrated, the first MetOp Second Generation-A, MetOp-SG-A1, weather satellite is now fully assembled and on schedule for liftoff next year. Meanwhile, its sibling, MetOp-SG-B1, is undergoing rigorous testing to ensure that it will withstand the vacuum and extreme temperature swings of space.
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By NASA
3 min read
Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)
NASA astronaut Kate Rubins takes Apollo 17 Lunar Module Pilot Harrison “Jack” Schmitt on a ride on NASA’s rover prototype at Johnson Space Center in Houston.NASA/James Blair When astronauts return to the Moon as part of NASA’s Artemis campaign, they will benefit from having a human-rated unpressurized LTV (Lunar Terrain Vehicle) that will allow them to explore more of the lunar surface, enabling diverse scientific discoveries.
As crewed Artemis missions near, engineers at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston are designing an unpressurized rover prototype, known as the Ground Test Unit. The test unit will employ a flexible architecture to simulate and evaluate different rover concepts for use beginning with Artemis V.
In April 2024, as part of the Lunar Terrain Vehicle Services contract, NASA selected three vendors — Intuitive Machines, Lunar Outpost, and Venturi Astrolab — to supply rover capabilities for use by astronauts on the lunar surface. While the test unit will never go to the Moon, it will support the development of additional rover prototypes that will enable NASA and the three companies to continue making progress until one of the providers comes online. Additionally, data provided from GTU testing helps inform both NASA and the commercial companies as they continue evolving their rover designs as it serves as an engineering testbed for the LTV providers to test their technologies on crew compartment design, rover maintenance, and payload science integration, to name a few.
“The Ground Test Unit will help NASA teams on the ground, test and understand all aspects of rover operations on the lunar surface ahead of Artemis missions,” said Jeff Somers, engineering lead for the Ground Test Unit. “The GTU allows NASA to be a smart buyer, so we are able to test and evaluate rover operations while we work with the LTVS contractors and their hardware.”
Suited NASA engineers sit on the rover prototype during testing at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston.NASA/Bill Stafford A suited NASA engineer sits on the agency’s rover prototype during testing at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston.NASA/Bill Stafford Suited NASA engineers sit on the rover prototype during testing at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston.NASA/Bill Stafford The LTVS contractors have requirements that align with the existing GTU capabilities. As with the test unit, the vendor-developed, LTV should support up to two crewmembers, have the ability to be operated remotely, and can implement multiple control concepts such as drive modes, self-leveling, and supervised autonomy. Having a NASA prototype of the vehicle we will drive on the Moon, here on Earth, allows many teams to test capabilities while also getting hands-on engineering experience developing rover hardware.
NASA has built some next generation rover concept vehicles following the successes of the agency’s Apollo Lunar Roving Vehicle in the 1970s, including this iteration of the GTU. Crewed test vehicles here on Earth like the GTU help NASA learn new ways that astronauts can live and work safely and productively on the Moon, and one day on the surface of Mars. As vendor designs evolve, the contracted LTV as well as the GTU allow for testing before missions head to the Moon. The vehicles on the ground also allow NASA to reduce some risks when it comes to adapting new technologies or specific rover design features.
Human surface mobility helps increase the exploration footprint on the lunar surface allowing each mission to conduct more research and increase the value to the scientific community. Through Artemis, NASA will send astronauts – including the first woman, first person of color, and its first international partner astronaut – to explore the Moon for scientific discovery, technology evolution, economic benefits, and to build the foundation for future crewed missions to Mars.
Learn about the rovers, suits, and tools that will help Artemis astronauts to explore more of the Moon:
https://go.nasa.gov/3MnEfrB
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Last Updated Oct 02, 2024 Related Terms
Humans in Space Artemis Artemis 5 Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate Johnson Space Center xEVA & Human Surface Mobility Explore More
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