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Propulsion and Energy

Launching missions to Mars and the asteroids beyond

By GIANG LAM|December 2020

The Aerospace Power Systems Technical Committee focuses on the analysis, design, test or application of electric power systems or elements of electric power systems for aerospace use.

NASA’s Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, Security, Regolith Explorer, or OSIRIS-REx, spacecraft collected samples from the surface of the asteroid Bennu in October. The spacecraft, which launched in 2016, maneuvered to approach the asteroid, touched down on Bennu with its Touch-and-Go Sample Acquisition Mechanism instrument to gather surface samples and sealed the samples collected into its Sample Return Capsule. The mission required a minimum of 60 grams (2.1 ounces) of surface samples. TAGSAM collected well over that amount. It was so much that the seal over the instruments could not close as designed, and some of the sample escaped. However, scientists got the capsule to close earlier than scheduled, securing the samples. OSIRIS-REx will begin its return to Earth next year and drop off of its samples in 2023.

For the first time, three missions started the seven-month journey to Mars within the same year. NASA’s nuclear-powered Mars 2020 Perseverance rover and its passenger, the solar-powered helicopter Ingenuity; the United Arab Emirate’s Hope orbiter; and China’s Tianwen-1 orbiter, rover and lander all were launched to Mars in July. Perseverance is a twin of the 2016’s Mars Curiosity rover in operation on the planet since 2012. The Hope mission will be the first from an Arab country to enter orbit around another planet. Tianwen-1 will be China’s first mission to Mars.

The Psyche mission, of which Colorado-based Maxar Technologies is the primary contractor, completed critical design review in July, in preparation of manufacturing flight hardware and instruments for Phase C. The mission aims for a closer examination of a unique metal asteroid, 16 Psyche, which appears to be the exposed nickel-iron core of an early planet comparable to Earth’s core. The Psyche spacecraft will be powered by solar electric propulsion as it heads to the metal asteroid located at approximately 2.4 astronomical units, between Mars and Jupiter.

In September, two identical small satellites that are part of the Janus mission passed their Key Decision Point C to begin project implementation. The twin spacecraft will be tasked with returning the first high-resolution images of the binary asteroids 1996 FG3 and 1991 VH. Each spacecraft will be solar powered at approximately 100 watts, propelled by electric thruster, and weigh about 36 kilograms (80 pounds) each. The Janus mission is part of NASA’s Small Innovative Missions for Planetary Exploration program to study binary asteroids beyond Mars orbit.

Lockheed Martin’s Lucy spacecraft passed its Key Decision Point in August, allowing the company to proceed with assembling and testing the spacecraft and its instruments in preparation for launch to the Trojan asteroids leading and trailing in orbit with Jupiter. Lucy will be powered by two 7-meter-diameter solar arrays providing approximately 22,000 W of power in Earth’s orbit and approximately 400 W at 5.7 AU.

2020 Year in Review

Aerospace Design and Structures

A blue and white Boeing airplane flying with mountains and clouds in the background.

Structures tested; modeling developed

A 3D computational fluid dynamics simulation shows airflow around an aerodynamic shape, with colorful gradient layers and grid lines illustrating pressure and velocity distribution.

Researchers extend the boundaries for integration and application of multidisciplinary design optimization

A spacecraft is docked at a space station module in the darkness of space. The craft has a white exterior with visible connection points and a NASA logo on it.

Working on future missions with systems built over decades

Aerospace Outreach

A vibrant image of the Carina Nebula, showcasing bright stars and colorful gas clouds in space, captured by the James Webb Space Telescope. The scene features shades of blue, orange, and pink.

A year of seeing the unseen

Two men in headset gear. One in a white uniform, and the other, identified as Armstrong on his suit, in a spacesuit holding a helmet. Equipment visible in the background.

50 years after Apollo 11, the world took note

An airbus a330 aircraft, featuring a blue and white livery, takes off from an airport with a control tower in the background.

Industry sees increased profits, major acquisitions

Aerospace Sciences

A futuristic cityscape with multiple helipads on rooftops, a large drone flying, and tall buildings in the background under a blue sky.

Conducting traffic flow and urban air mobility simulations for future air transportation goals

Close-up of a dual-propeller aircraft model in an anechoic chamber, designed to reduce sound reflections, with sound-absorbing foam panels on the walls.

Increasing power, speed and mobility without the negative impacts of noise

A depiction of gravitational waves in space with Earth at the center and waves illustrated around it.

Autonomous systems adapting to uncertain and contested operating conditions

Aircraft Technology, Integration and Operations

A high-altitude balloon being launched with attached electronics, while three workers in safety vests observe on a clear day.

Real-world applications, support for Starline test

A u.s. air force f-35 fighter jet in flight against a clear blue sky.

V-22s sold to Japan; electric aircraft being developed

A stealth bomber aircraft is captured in mid-flight from below, showcasing its triangular shape and underside landing gear against a clear blue sky.

First flights and diverse applications headline 2023 activity

Engineering and Technology Management

Atmospheric picture of space

A century ago, aviation became an industry

British F-35Bs

Vertical flight continues to grow

Virgin Galactic’s second SpaceShipTwo

Accelerating change on systems engineering tenets

Information Systems

A mock-up of a space habitat with modules labeled

Demonstrating and testing artificial intelligence applications in aerospace

A close-up view from below of a stack of Starlink satellites with red straps securing them, in a well-lit, white space.

Information and command and control systems play pivotal role in modern warfare

Technicians in white uniforms work inside a large, well-lit cleanroom, beneath an extended black panel of what appears to be a satellite or spacecraft.

Operators make progress on constellation deployment for secure, low-cost global connectivity

Integration

A small single-engine propeller airplane flying over a vast, arid landscape with clear blue skies above.

U.S. prepares for new entrants in the national airspace

A rocket booster is igniting on a test stand, producing a large plume of smoke and flames against a clear sky with scattered clouds. The landscape in the background includes mountains.

Full-scale SLS booster test, OSIRIS-REx nail-biter are among exploration successes

A rocket engine is ignited, expelling colorful exhaust flames and smoke. The engine is partially enclosed in a structure with platforms and scaffolding visible in the background.

Pieces are coming together for CFD Vision 2030

Program Committees

rotating detonating engine

New and existing systems show progress

Atmospheric picture of space

Hypersonics changing the world

NASA Electric Aircraft Testbed in Sandusky, Ohio

Electric efforts gaining power

Propulsion and Energy

A spacecraft in flight above Earth with a view of curved planet surface, reflection on metal surfaces, and detailed components of the craft's structure visible.

Advanced manufacturing extends operational boundaries of hybrids

A fire in the sky.

Hope for again sending humans to space from U.S. soil

An illustration of a space station module with multiple interconnected golden cylindrical units, blue solar panels, and radiators.

Nuclear propulsion: bringing human presence to Mars

Space and Missiles

An astronaut administers a shot to himself while inside the International Space Station, surrounded by various equipment and panels.

Kelly twins’ year-in-space study yields data

Overhead view of a large industrial facility with workers and cylindrical machinery, showcasing a long metallic structure in the center.

Commercial launch companies and NASA chart successes

A cylindrical scientific testing chamber with a small, rectangular satellite prototype inside, connected by wires. The chamber is part of a lab setup with various instruments and documents nearby.

Space tethers to demonstrate propellantless propulsion, deorbiting satellites

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Launching missions to Mars and the asteroids beyond