The Lunar Polar Hydrogen Mapper (LunaH-Map) Mission

The Lunar Polar Hydrogen Mapper (LunaH-Map) mission will map hydrogen enrichments within permanently shadowed regions at the lunar south pole using a miniature neutron spectrometer. While hydrogen enrichments have been identified regionally from previous orbital missions, the spatial extent of these regions are often below the resolution of the neutron instruments that have flown on lunar missions. LunaH-Map will enter into an elliptical, low altitude perseline orbit which will enable the mission to spatially isolate and constrain the hydrogen enrichments within permanently shadowed regions. LunaH-Map will use a solid iodine ion propulsion system, X-Band radio communications through the NASA Deep Space Network, star tracker, C&DH and EPS systems from Blue Canyon Technologies, solar arrays from MMA Designs, LLC, mission design and navigation by KinetX. Spacecraft systems design, integration, qualification, test and mission operations are performed by Arizona State University

LunaH-Map: Revealing Lunar Water with a New Radiation Sensor Array

A new type of neutron and gamma-ray spectrometer called the Miniature Neutron Spectrometer (Mini-NS) has been developed, assembled, qualified and delivered as part of the Lunar Polar Hydrogen Mapper (LunaH-Map) cubesat mission. The LunaH-Map spacecraft is currently manifested as a secondary payload on the Space Launch System (SLS) Artemis-1 rocket. LunaH-Map will deploy from Artemis-1 and enter a low altitude perilune elliptical orbit around the Moon. The Mini-NS will measure the lunar epithermal neutron albedo, and measurements around perilune will be used to produce maps of hydrogen enrichments and depletions across the lunar South Pole region including both within and outside of permanently shadowed regions (PSRs). The Min-NS was designed to achieve twice the epithermal neutron count rate of the Lunar Prospector Neutron Spectrometer (LP-NS). The instrument response was characterized through the collection of pre-flight neutron counting data with a Cf-252 neutron source at Arizona State University across hundreds of power cycles, as well as across the expected temperature range. The instrument spatial response was characterized at the Los Alamos National Laboratories (LANL) Neutron Free In-Air Facility. The LunaH-Map Mini-NS was designed to fit within the cubesat form-factor and uses two detectors with eight sensor heads that can be operated independently. For future missions with different science goals that can be achieved with epithermal neutron detection, the number of Mini-NS sensor heads can easily be modified without requiring a complete re-design and re-qualification

Jazz Convocation

Program listing performers and works performed

Identifying the Mineral Source of Phosphorus-Containing Molecules in Space

Only a few phosphorus-containing molecules have been identified in extraterrestrial environments, but the mineral source of these gas-phase molecules has yet to be identified. The objective of this project is to identify the conditions that cause small phosphorus-containing molecules to desorb from the surface of schreibersite, an iron-nickel phosphide mineral. To determine these conditions, we place a sample of schreibersite in an ultrahigh vacuum (UHV, with a pressure of less than 1 x 10-9 torr) chamber and measure its ability to react with small molecules (e.g., H2O, CH4, andCO2) using reflection-absorption infrared spectroscopy (RAIRS). While preparing to run these experiments, we encountered and troubleshot many issues that arose. One problem we ran into was the pressure not being low enough in the UHV chamber. We leak tested using a quadrupole mass spectrometer (QMS), found no leaks that were larger than 2 x 10-9 torr, but observed many peaks corresponding to hydrocarbons. To correct this, we disassembled the chamber, cleaning the interior with acetone, isopropanol, and then methanol. We also checked for metal shavings, loose pieces of fiberglass from the covering of our wires, and any other debris. Once everything was put back together, the pressure remained low enough to continue. Another issue we came across was the cooling of the sample. These experiments require temperatures of at least -173℃. This is crucial for small molecules to be able to stick to the surface of the schreibersite sample and to effectively model extraterrestrial environments like cometary coma and dense molecular clouds in the interstellar medium. To lower the temperature, we attached a cryogenic cooling system to the sample holder. The lowest temperature we’ve reached so far is -190.15℃ (83 K). Updates on sample imaging, RAIRS alignment, and preliminary data will also be presented

Ergonomic Control System for a Powered Human Exoskleton

Mechanical exoskeletons allow human users to lift greater weights and experience less fatigue during physical activities. Human exoskeletons need to be, not only, lightweight, durable, and strong, but they also require a sophisticated control interface. When operating a human exoskeleton, the user should be able to control the mechanical limbs as if they were an extension of their own body. If the control system is not intuitive enough or improperly designed, the advantages of the exoskeleton can be severely diminished. A team of senior Bioengineers at the University of the Pacific have taken on the task of improving the control system of a powered human exoskeleton arm. Using a custom designed control handle, the user can control the mechanical arm with ease. The handle utilizes force sensing resistors to detect pressures and movements of the operator\u27s hand, which are then translated into mechanical movement. The control handle allows for flexion and extension in the elbow and shoulder joint, allowing the exoskeleton to mimic biological motion. The force sensors not only interpret motions of the arm, but also control a pneumatic system, allowing the exoskeleton to move at variable speeds

Ergonomic Control System for a Powered Human Exoskleton

Mechanical exoskeletons allow human users to lift greater weights and experience less fatigue during physical activities. Human exoskeletons need to be, not only, lightweight, durable, and strong, but they also require a sophisticated control interface. When operating a human exoskeleton, the user should be able to control the mechanical limbs as if they were an extension of their own body. If the control system is not intuitive enough or improperly designed, the advantages of the exoskeleton can be severely diminished. A team of senior Bioengineers at the University of the Pacific have taken on the task of improving the control system of a powered human exoskeleton arm. Using a custom designed control handle, the user can control the mechanical arm with ease. The handle utilizes force sensing resistors to detect pressures and movements of the operator\u27s hand, which are then translated into mechanical movement. The control handle allows for flexion and extension in the elbow and shoulder joint, allowing the exoskeleton to mimic biological motion. The force sensors not only interpret motions of the arm, but also control a pneumatic system, allowing the exoskeleton to move at variable speeds

The devil you know and the devil you don’t: current status and challenges of bovine tuberculosis eradication in the United States

Having entered into its second century, the eradication program for bovine tuberculosis (bTB, caused by Mycobacterium bovis) in the United States of America occupies a position both enviable and daunting. Excepting four counties in Michigan comprising only 6109 km2 (0.06% of US land area) classified as Modified Accredited, as of April 2022 the entire country was considered Accredited Free of bTB by the US Department of Agriculture for cattle and bison. On the surface, the now well-described circumstances of endemic bTB in Michigan, where white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) serve as a free-ranging wildlife maintenance host, may appear to be the principal remaining barrier to national eradication. However, the situation there is unique in the U.S., and far-removed from the broader issues of bTB control in the remainder of the country. In Michigan, extensive surveillance for bTB in deer over the last quarter century, and regulatory measures to maximize the harvest of publicly-owned wildlife, have been implemented and sustained. Prevalence of bTB in deer has remained at a low level, although not sufficiently low to eliminate cattle herd infections. Public attitudes towards bTB, cattle and deer, and their relative importance, have been more influential in the management of the disease than any limitations of biological science. However, profound changes in the demographics and social attitudes of Michigan’s human population are underway, changes which are likely to force a critical reevaluation of the bTB control strategies thus far considered integral. In the rest of the U.S. where bTB is not self-sustaining in wildlife, changes in the scale of cattle production, coupled with both technical and non-technical issues have created their own substantial challenges. It is against this diverse backdrop that the evolution of whole genome sequencing of M. bovis has revolutionized understanding of the history and ecology of bTB in Michigan, resolved previously undiscernible epidemiological puzzles, provided insights into zoonotic transmission, and unified eradication efforts across species and agencies. We describe the current status of bTB eradication in the U.S., how circumstances and management have changed, what has been learned, and what remains more elusive than ever