| Volume 4, | Number 1 | March/April 1996 |
In January 1995, NASA announced a program to bring to-gether scientists, technologists and mission planners to develop a vision for the Earth science and space science missions of the 21st century. This endeavor, called the New Millennium Program (NMP), will enable exciting and affordable science missions by developing and demonstrating technologies to reduce greatly the size and cost of spacecraft while increasing the overall science return.
NMP missions are driven by specific scientific goals identified by the Earth science and space science communities. Necessary capabilities, such as virtual presence, spacecraft networks and constellations, detailed exploration and small modular sciencecraft, will be made possible by NMP.
Technologists from NASA, industry and universities, in partnership with NMP architecture planning teams (or mission planners), have been tasked to identify specific technologies associated with each of these capabilities. Technologies that offer the greatest impact will be selected for development and flight demonstration on an NMP deep space or Earth-orbiting technology validation mission.
The first of three planned deep space missions will feature a 1998 launch of a small spacecraft destined for a flyby of an asteroid and a comet. Key technologies likely to be demonstrated on this first flight include a miniaturized deep space antenna and related telecommunications equipment, advanced solar arrays and lithium ion spacecraft batteries, and low-mass spacecraft structures. The spacecraft also will be the first to rely on solar electric propulsion for its main source of thrust, rather than conventional solid or liquid propellant-based systems.
Other concepts now under study for deep space missions include a microlander that would be destined for Mars or other planets. Earth-orbiting mission concepts include Earth-observing networks and constellations of small spacecraft to study phenomena occurring in the Earth's atmosphere, oceans and land masses.
NMP also represents a new way of doing business at NASA. Twenty-three industry and university partners have been selected thus far to participate in the program as part of Integrated Product Development Teams. These teams play a multifaceted role and serve as the backbone of the program-from technology identification and selection to actual delivery of technology demonstration hardware for the validation flights.
The Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages NMP for NASA's Offices of Space Science, Space Access and Technology, and Mission to Planet Earth-all based at NASA Headquarters in Washington, D.C.
| Nikola Tesla-Pioneer of AC Power Distribution |
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| Nikola Tesla arrived in America with four cents in his pocket. He had been trained at the Technical University of Graz and the University of Prague. His first invention was a telephone repeater. He visualized the principle of the induction motor, which became the insight that led him to successfully utilizing the alternating current. Upon arrival in America, his first employer was Thomas Edison at Edison's laboratory in New Jersey. The two inventors quickly had a falling out and went their separate ways. Tesla eventually sold the patent rights to his polyphase system of alternating current dynamos, transformers and motors to George Westinghouse. An intense competition ensued between Edison's direct current power system and Tesla's alternating current system. As we know, Tesla won. Tesla received more than 700 patents, including alternating current power transmission, the tesla coil transformer, wireless communications, radio and fluorescent lights. |
For more information, contact New Millennium Program Manager, Kane Casani, at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Phone: 818/354-7023. Please mention that you read about it in Innovation.
| Real-Time Sensor Data Validation System |
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| ExperTech of Orangevale, California, and Intelligent Software Associates, Inc., are producing and distributing the SureSense real-time sensor validation system, which improves the safety, dependability and economics for any mission-critical aerospace and industrial control application where data integrity is essential.
To achieve maximum efficiencies, many process systems are operated with relatively small margins from conditions that can cause rapid damage with resultant safety implications and very high economic penalties. Monitoring these small operative margins involves extensive instru-mentation interacting with sophisticated control systems. SureSense automates the production of embeddable real-time sensor validation modules, which ensure that these systems operate with the highest possible data integrity. The SureSense validation system will:
The SureSense real-time sensor validation system was developed for NASA to improve the safety and reliability of Space Shuttle Main Engine operations by preventing the engine controller or facility safety system from making critical decisions on the basis of data from anomalous or failed sensors. |
To discuss applications of real-time sensor data validation, contact Randy Bickford at ExperTech. Phone: 916/989-2018, Fax: 916/989-4277, E-Mail: rando@ix.netcom.com Please mention that you read about it in Innovation.
