RoboCrane: a system for providing a power and a communication link between lunar surface and lunar caves for exploring robots

Lava caves are the result of a geological process related to the cooling of basaltic lava flows. On the Moon, this process may lead to caves several kilometers long and diameters of hundreds of meters. Access to lava tubes can be granted through skylights, a vertical pit between the lava tube and the lunar surface. This represents an outstanding opportunity for long-term missions, for future permanent human settlements, and for accessing pristine samples of lava, secondary minerals and volatiles. Given this, the ESA launched a campaign through the Open Space Innovation Platform calling for ideas that would tackle the many challenges of exploring lava pits. Five projects, including Robocrane, were selected. Solar light and direct line of sight (for communications) with the lunar surface are not available inside lava tubes. This is a problem for any robot (or swarm of robots) exploring the lava tubes. Robocrane tackles both problems by deploying an element (called the Charging head, or CH) at the bottom of the skylight by means of a crane. This CH behaves as a battery charger and a communication relay for the exploring robots. The required energy is extracted from the crane’s solar panel (on the surface) and driven to the bottom of the skylight through an electrical wire running in parallel to the crane hoisting wire. Using a crane allows the system to deal with unstable terrain around the skylight rim and protect the wires from abrasion from the rocky surface and the pit rim. The charger in the CH is wireless so that the charging process can begin as soon as any of the robots get close enough to the CH. This avoids complex and time-consuming docking operations, aggravated by the skylight floor orography. The crane infrastructure can also be used to deploy the exploring robots inside the pit, reducing their design constraints and mass budget, as the robots do not need to implement their own self-deployment system. Finally, RoboCrane includes all the sensors and actuators for remote operation from a ground station. RoboCrane has been designed in a parametric tool so it can be dynamically and rapidly adjusted to input-variable changes, such as the number of exploring robots, their electrical characteristics, and crane reach, etc.Agencia Estatal de Investigación | Ref. RTI2018-099682-A-I0

Cluster Ages to Reconstruct the Milky Way Assembly (CARMA): I. The final word on the origin of NGC 6388 and NGC 6441

We present CARMA, the Cluster Ages to Reconstruct the Milky Way Assembly project, the aim of which is to determine precise and accurate age measurements for the entire system of known Galactic globular clusters (GCs) and to use them to trace the most significant merger events experienced by the Milky Way. The strength of CARMA relies on the use of homogeneous photometry, theoretical isochrones, and statistical methods, which will enable us to define a systematic uncertainty-free chronological scale for the complete sample of Milky Way GCs. In this paper, we describe the CARMA framework in detail, and present a first application on a sample of six metal-rich GCs, with the aim being to unequivocally elucidate the debated origin of NGC 6388 and NGC 6441. Our results demonstrate that this pair of clusters is coeval with another four systems that have a clear in situ origin. Moreover, their location in the age- metallicity plane matches that occupied by in situ field stars. The accurate age comparison enabled by the CARMA methodology rules out the possibility that NGC 6388 and NGC 6441 were accreted as part of a past merger event

Nanosatellites: Space and Ground Technologies, Operations and Economics

Nanosatellites: Space and Ground Technologies, Operations and Economics comprehensively presents the latest research on the fast-developing area of nanosatellites. Divided into three distinct sections, the book begins with a brief history of nanosatellites and introduces nanosatellites technologies and payloads, also explaining how these are deployed into space. The second section provides an overview of the ground segment and operations, and the third section focuses on the regulations, policies, economics, and future trends. Key features: Payloads for nanosatellites Nanosatellites components design Examines the cost of development of nanosatellites. Covers the latest policies and regulations. Considers future trends for nanosatellites. Nanosatellites: Space and Ground Technologies, Operations and Economics is a comprehensive reference for researchers and practitioners working with nanosatellites in the aerospace industry