NASA has selected a number of futuristic technological concepts that could be used to help humanity spread everywhere solar system and beyond.
A total of 17 researchers from nine states will participate in a $ 5.1 million grant from NASA, allowing them to conduct early-stage research on technologies that have not yet been developed.
Among the ideas given a share of the funding are space suits that can generate oxygen from the Martian atmosphere, and bird-like drones that can fly to Venus.
Known as NASA’s Innovative Advanced Concepts Program (NIAC), it was launched to nurture visionary ideas that could transform future space missions “by creating breakthroughs, radically better or completely new aerospace concepts.”
If implemented, technology could also allow NASA to explore the moons of the gas giant’s world or look into the atmosphere of an exoplanet.
There is no indication of how long it will take for any of these technologies to become a reality, as this is a “very early stage” of research, NASA explained.
Graphic image of the 3D printed spacesuit. The idea will see a 3D scan of an individual used to print advanced Mars costumes on demand, including the production of oxygen from CO2
Graphic image of BREEZE-Bioinspired Ray for extreme environments and zonal research. These are inflatable drones, similar to birds, that can soar in the atmosphere of Venus
NASA gave an example of one such technology, involving the creation of oxygen on Mars by sucking CO2, studied by Arizona State University in Tempe and integrating it into spacesuits that print on demand.
These custom, cost-effective spacesuits will use Digital Thread technology, which integrates digital analytics components into the final product.
“An astronaut steps into a body scanner and hours later walks to Mars in a specially designed spacesuit, breathing oxygen extracted from the carbon-rich atmosphere of Mars,” for example, given by NASA.
Another example, from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge, will see an “inflatable bird-like drone rushing across the sky, studying the planet’s atmosphere and meteorological models” on Venus.
ReachBot: A small robot for large mobile manipulation tasks in the Martian cave environment may one day be sent to crawl through the caves of Mars in search of suitable habitats
“Ideas like these are currently science fiction, but may one day become a reality thanks to a new round of grants from NASA,” a spokesman said.
The latest selection of concepts includes 12 new Phase I research projects, as well as five Phase II awards that will allow researchers to continue their previous work.
The projects are still in the early stages of development and are not considered official NASA missions, but simply an early investigation into what might happen.
Phase I studies will receive $ 175,000 for a nine-month study, and Phase II groups will receive $ 600,000 for two-year training.
SCOPE: ScienceCraft for the study of outer planets. Solar sails can be used to transport a spacecraft to the outer planets of the solar system, such as Neptune, in just three years, compared to decades for current technology.
“As we focus on increasingly challenging destinations to explore with humans and robots, innovative ideas and future thinking will be crucial to help us reach new heights,” said NASA Deputy Administrator Pam Melroy.
“Concepts like the ones being studied with this new round of NIAC funding are helping us expand our reach so we can make it a reality.”
Jim Reuters, associate administrator of NASA’s Space Technology Mission Directorate (STMD) at the agency’s headquarters in Washington, added that the space exploration mission required new technologies.
“Studying these creative ideas is the first step towards turning science fiction into science fiction,” he added.
CREW HaT concept. This new concept consists of lightweight, expandable, mechanically maintained magnetic coils activated by a new generation of high-temperature superconducting tapes producing an improved external magnetic field that deflects cosmic radiation particles.
SWIM-Sensing with independent micro-swimmers. The system consists of a number of small, 3D-printed swimming microrobots equipped with sensors powered by miniature actuators and wirelessly communicating with ultrasonic waves to be located in extraterrestrial oceans.
The new Phase I projects include a new design for a manned spacecraft that provides greater protection from radiation on long journeys.
Another concept is a completely silent electric plane and the idea of a spaceship that could use the heat of the Sun to push it out of the solar system at unprecedented speeds.
John Mater, a Nobel laureate and astrophysicist at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, is proposing a concept that could help humanity study Earth-like exoplanets.
A stellar awning the size of a football field in space will be aligned with ground-based telescopes, blocking light from distant stars and allowing astronomers to look for signs of life in planetary atmospheres in other star systems, light years from Earth.
Kilometers of space structures from one launch. To create artificial gravity close to Earth’s level, a kilometer-long structure is needed. The core of this solution are tubular structures with an unprecedented coefficient of expansion of 150x, which makes it easier to deploy from Earth
A concept proposed by Sarah Sieger of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology would help scientists study a planet much closer to home: Venus.
The probe will parachute into the planet’s atmosphere to capture a sample of gas and clouds.
The sample will be brought to Earth, where scientists could look for signs of life in the atmosphere of Venus – one of the few potential places where it can survive on an otherwise hot planet with high pressure.
Starburst: Revolutionary, under-constrained adaptive expandable architecture, innovative new architecture for deployable structures such as solar panels and sensors
Return of a sample from the atmosphere of Venus and cloud particles for astrobiology. He will see a spaceship sent to Venus to collect particles from the atmosphere and return them to Earth
“As in previous years, our new group of NIAC Fellows demonstrates the creativity and vision of the space community as a whole,” said Michael Lapointe, acting executive director of the NIAC program at NASA headquarters.
Selected Phase II projects include designs for small climbing robots that can explore underground caves on Mars.
There was also a new way to use nuclear power for spacecraft and a concept for a swarm of 3D-printed swimming microrobots that could explore ocean worlds like Enceladus, Europe and Titan.
Phane II Fellow Zach Manchester of Carnegie Mellon University will continue his work on the concept of artificial gravity in space, using a rotating structure the size of a mile.
After launching with one rocket, the proposed structure will expand up to 150 times its original size, becoming a huge rotating habitat that will provide artificial gravity equal to the earth’s gravity in some parts of the structure.
SEVENTEEN STUDIES, WITH NASA FINANCING
Phase I grants:
- Darmindra Aromugam, NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California: Rydberg Cryospheric Radar
- Stephen Barrett, Massachusetts Institute of Technology at Cambridge: Silent, solid propulsion for advanced air mobility vehicles
- Jason Benkoski, Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore: Combined Heat Shield and Solar Heat Propulsion System
- Elena D’Ongia, University of Wisconsin-Madison: CREW HaT: Extended protection against cosmic radiation with Halbach Torus
- Bonnie Dunbar, University of Texas A&M at College Station: The Digital Theme of the Spacesuit: 4.0 Production of Custom High-Performance Space Exploration Spaces
- Ivan Ermanoski, Arizona State University of Tempe: Breathing Martian Air: Stationary and Portable O2 Generation
- Philip Lubin, University of California, Santa Barbara: Pi – Ultimate Defense for Humanity
- John Mater, NASA Goddard: Hybrid Observatory for Earth-like Exoplanets (HOEE)
- Marcin Pilinski, University of Colorado, Boulder: In-situ Neutral Optical Thermosphere Speed Analyzer (INOVATE)
- Jonathan Sauder, NASA’s Southern California Jet Propulsion Laboratory: Starburst: A Revolutionary, Insufficiently Limited Adaptive Extensible Structure Architecture
- Sarah Sieger, Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge: Venus Atmosphere and Return of Cloud Particulate Samples for Astrobiology
- Mahmoud Sultana, NASA Goddard: SCOPE: ScienceCraft for the study of outer planets
Phase II grants:
- Javid Bayandor, Buffalo State University of New York: BREEZE: Bioinspired beam for extreme environments and zonal research
- Zack Manchester, Carnegie Mellon University of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania: One kilometer of space structures in one launch
- E. Joseph Nemanick, The Aerospace Corporation in El Segundo, California: Atomic Planar Power for Lightweight Exploration (APPLE)
- Marco Pavone, Stanford University of California: ReachBot: A small robot for large mobile manipulation tasks in the Martian cave
- Ethan Schaller, NASA JPL: SWIM: Discovery with Independent Micro Swimmers