Acceleration Profiles and Processing Methods for Parabolic Flight

Parabolic flights provide cost-effective, time-limited access to "weightless" or reduced gravity conditions experienced in space or on planetary surfaces, e.g. the Moon or Mars. These flights facilitate fundamental research - from materials science to space biology - and testing/validation activities that support and complement infrequent and costly access to space. While parabolic flights have been conducted for decades, reference acceleration profiles and processing methods are not widely available - yet are critical for assessing the results of these activities. Here we present a method for collecting, analyzing, and classifying the altered gravity environments experienced during a parabolic flight. We validated this method using a commercially available accelerometer during a Boeing 727-200F flight with $20$ parabolas. All data and analysis code are freely available. Our solution can be easily integrated with a variety of experimental designs, does not depend upon accelerometer orientation, and allows for unsupervised and repeatable classification of all phases of flight, providing a consistent and open-source approach to quantifying gravito-intertial accelerations (GIA), or $g$ levels. As academic, governmental, and commercial use of space increases, data availability and validated processing methods will enable better planning, execution, and analysis of parabolic flight experiments, and thus, facilitate future space activities.Comment: Correspondence to C.E. Carr ([email protected]). 15 pages, 4 figures, 3 supplemental figures. Code: https://github.com/CarrCE/zerog, Dataset: https://osf.io/nk2w4

Camilla: A Centaur reconnaissance and impact mission concept

Centaurs, minor planets with a semi-major axis between the orbits of Jupiter and Neptune (5–30 AU), are thought to be among the most diverse small bodies in the solar system. These important targets for future missions may have recently been Kuiper Belt Objects (KBOs), which are thought to be chemically and physically primitive remnants of the early solar system. While the Kuiper Belt spans distances of 30–50 AU, making direct observations difficult, Centaurs' proximity to the Earth and Sun make them more accessible targets for robotic missions. Thus, we outline a mission concept designed to reconnoiter 10199 Chariklo, the largest Centaur and smallest ringed body yet discovered. Named for a legendary Centaur tamer, the conceptual Camilla mission is designed to fit under the cost cap of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) New Frontiers program, leveraging a conservative payload to support a foundational scientific investigation to these primitive bodies. Specifically, the single flyby encounter utilizes a combined high-resolution camera/VIS-IR mapping spectrometer, a sub-mm point spectrometer, and a UV mapping spectrometer. In addition, the mission concept utilizes a kinetic impactor, which would provide the first opportunity to sample the composition of potentially primitive subsurface material beyond Saturn, thus providing key insights into solar system origins. Such a flyby of the Chariklo system would provide a linchpin in the understanding of small body composition, evolution, and transport of materials in the solar system

Design, testing, and validation of the search for Extra-Terrestrial Genomes instrument

Thesis: S.M., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics, 2018.Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.Includes bibliographical references (pages 75-78).The development of any spaceflight instrument involves a systematic, iterative process of design, testing, and validation. This ensures that the system developed will meet the needs of stakeholders while minimizing costs and risks. Here, the needs for a life-detection instrument targeting nucleic acids are identified, the objectives for that instrument are determined, and system engineering analysis is used to demonstrate that a Search for Extra-Terrestrial Genomes instrument would fulfill those objectives and is feasible for a rover mission. Additionally, we show our design and build process for a testbed to rapidly prototype SETG components and subsystems, which has successfully automated nucleic acid extraction, sequencer loading, and parts of library preparation. We also experiment with thermal simulations and conduct a sequencing test at Martian conditions, using a custom built thermal vacuum chamber system. Finally, this thesis explores potential avenues for future development and identifies short term and long term engineering goals that would assist the SETG team in developing an instrument prototype.by Srinivasa Aditya Bhattaru.S.M

Nanopore sequencing at Mars, Europa, and microgravity conditions

© 2020, The Author(s). Nanopore sequencing, as represented by Oxford Nanopore Technologies’ MinION, is a promising technology for in situ life detection and for microbial monitoring including in support of human space exploration, due to its small size, low mass (~100 g) and low power (~1 W). Now ubiquitous on Earth and previously demonstrated on the International Space Station (ISS), nanopore sequencing involves translocation of DNA through a biological nanopore on timescales of milliseconds per base. Nanopore sequencing is now being done in both controlled lab settings as well as in diverse environments that include ground, air, and space vehicles. Future space missions may also utilize nanopore sequencing in reduced gravity environments, such as in the search for life on Mars (Earth-relative gravito-inertial acceleration (GIA) g = 0.378), or at icy moons such as Europa (g = 0.134) or Enceladus (g = 0.012). We confirm the ability to sequence at Mars as well as near Europa or Lunar (g = 0.166) and lower g levels, demonstrate the functionality of updated chemistry and sequencing protocols under parabolic flight, and reveal consistent performance across g level, during dynamic accelerations, and despite vibrations with significant power at translocation-relevant frequencies. Our work strengthens the use case for nanopore sequencing in dynamic environments on Earth and in space, including as part of the search for nucleic-acid based life beyond Earth.NASA (Awards NNX15AF85G, 80NSSC17K0688