| 1. |
- Cockell, Charles S., et al.
(författare)
-
Subsurface scientific exploration of extraterrestrial environments (MINAR 5) : analogue science, technology and education in the Boulby Mine, UK
- 2019
-
Ingår i: International Journal of Astrobiology. - : Cambridges Institutes Press. - 1473-5504 .- 1475-3006. ; 18:2, s. 157-182
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The deep subsurface of other planetary bodies is of special interest for robotic and human exploration. The subsurface provides access to planetary interior processes, thus yielding insights into planetary formation and evolution. On Mars, the subsurface might harbour the most habitable conditions. In the context of human exploration, the subsurface can provide refugia for habitation from extreme surface conditions. We describe the fifth Mine Analogue Research (MINAR 5) programme at 1 km depth in the Boulby Mine, UK in collaboration with Spaceward Bound NASA and the Kalam Centre, India, to test instruments and methods for the robotic and human exploration of deep environments on the Moon and Mars. The geological context in Permian evaporites provides an analogue to evaporitic materials on other planetary bodies such as Mars. A wide range of sample acquisition instruments (NASA drills, Small Planetary Impulse Tool (SPLIT) robotic hammer, universal sampling bags), analytical instruments (Raman spectroscopy, Close-Up Imager, Minion DNA sequencing technology, methane stable isotope analysis, biomolecule and metabolic life detection instruments) and environmental monitoring equipment (passive air particle sampler, particle detectors and environmental monitoring equipment) was deployed in an integrated campaign. Investigations included studying the geochemical signatures of chloride and sulphate evaporitic minerals, testing methods for life detection and planetary protection around human-tended operations, and investigations on the radiation environment of the deep subsurface. The MINAR analogue activity occurs in an active mine, showing how the development of space exploration technology can be used to contribute to addressing immediate Earth-based challenges. During the campaign, in collaboration with European Space Agency (ESA), MINAR was used for astronaut familiarization with future exploration tools and techniques. The campaign was used to develop primary and secondary school and primary to secondary transition curriculum materials on-site during the campaign which was focused on a classroom extra vehicular activity simulation.
|
|
| 2. |
|
|
| 3. |
- Martin-Torres, Javier, et al.
(författare)
-
The HABIT (HabitAbility: Brine Irradiation and Temperature) environmental instrument for the ExoMars 2022 Surface Platform
- 2020
-
Ingår i: Planetary and Space Science. - : Elsevier. - 0032-0633 .- 1873-5088. ; 190
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The HABIT (HabitAbility: Brine Irradiation and Temperature) instrument is a European payload of the ExoMars 2022 Surface Platform Kazachok that will characterize the present-day habitability at its landing place in Oxia Planum, Mars. HABIT consists of two modules: (i) EnvPack (Environmental Package) that monitors the thermal environment (air and ground), the incident ultraviolet radiation, the near surface winds and the atmospheric dust cycle; and (ii) BOTTLE (Brine Observation Transition To Liquid Experiment), an In-situ Resource Utilization instrument to produce liquid water for future Mars exploration. BOTTLE will be used also to investigate the electrical conductivity properties of the martian atmosphere, the present-day atmospheric-ground water cycle and to evaluate if liquid water can exist on Mars in the form of brines, and for how long. These variables measured by HABIT are critical to determine the present and future habitability of the martian surface. In this paper, we describe in detail the HABIT instrument and sensors, together with the calibration of its Flight Model (FM) and the Engineering Qualification Model (EQM) versions. The EnvPack module has heritage from previous missions operating on the surface of Mars, and the environmental observations of its sensors will be directly comparable to those delivered by those missions. HABIT can provide information of the local temperature with ±0.2 °C accuracy, local winds with ±0.3 m/s, surface brightness temperature with ±0.8 °C, incident UV irradiance with 10% error of its absolute value in the UV-A, UV-B, UV-C ranges, as well as in the total UV-ABC range, and two additional wavebands, dedicated to ozone absorption. The UV observations can be used to derive the total opacity column and thus monitor the dust and ozone cycles. BOTTLE can demonstrate the hydration state of a set of four deliquescent salts, which have been found on Mars (calcium chloride, ferric sulphate, magnesium perchlorate and sodium perchlorate) by monitoring their electric conductivity (EC). The EC of the air and the dry salts under Earth ambient, clean room conditions is of the order of 0.1 μScm−1. We have simulated HABIT operations, within an environmental chamber, under martian conditions similar to those expected at Oxia Planum. For dry, CO2 atmospheric conditions at martian pressures, the air EC can be as low as 10−8 μScm−1, however it increases with the relative humidity (RH) percentage. The laboratory experiments show that after an increase from 0 to 60% RH within a few hours, the EC of the air increased up to 10−1 μScm−1, magnesium perchlorate hydrated and reached values of 10 μScm-1, whereas calcium chloride deliquesced forming a liquid state with EC of 102 μScm−1. HABIT will operate with a regular cadence, through day and night. The Electronic Unit (EU) is protected with a heater that is activated when its temperature is below −33 °C and disabled if the temperature of the surface platform rises above −30 °C. Additionally, the heaters of the BOTTLE unit can be activated to dehydrate the salts and reset the experiment. HABIT weighs only 918 g. Its power consumption depends on the operation mode and internal temperature, and it varies between 0.7 W, for nominal operation, and 13.1 W (when heaters are turned on at full intensity). HABIT has a baseline data rate of 1.5 MB/sol. In addition to providing critical environmental observations, this light and robust instrument, will be the first demonstrator of a water capturing system on the surface of Mars, and the first European In-Situ Resource Utilization in the surface of another planet.
|
|
| 4. |
- Moore, Alexander, et al.
(författare)
-
Penetrometry in Microgravity- From Brie to Bennu
- 2022
-
Ingår i: EPSC Abstracts Vol. 16, 2022. - : Copernicus GmbH.
-
Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- In this abstract we discuss a proposal for a microgravity flight campaign within which we will investigate penetrometry in a microgravity environment. Understanding the mechanical properties of solar system minor bodies is essential for understanding their origin and evolution. Past missions such as Hayabusa-2 and OSIRIS-REX have landed on asteroids and taken samples to discover what these bodies are made of. However, there has been conflicting evidence and reports into the physical properties of the granular surface material of these bodies. With future missions such as JAXA’s MMX mission travelling to Phobos to take a sample of the body the results from this campaign will be very important to that and future missions. Penetrometry, i.e. the determination of the reaction force an object experiences as it penetrates into a surface, can help to understand the essential properties regarding regolith such as grain size, grain shape, cohesion and bulk density. The usage of penetrometry however has mostly been limited ground-based studies such as soil sciences or even cheese maturation. Very little is known about the underlying physics of penetrometry. Results of penetrometry experiments are largely analysed based on empirical models, which presents us with a challenge if we want to apply the same parameters to understand granular materials on asteroid surfaces. Obviously, gravity cannot be eliminated in the laboratory. Hence, it is essential to verify penetrometry as a method and validate penetrometry instrument designs in microgravity.For this purpose, we propose a parabolic flight campaign. Our experiment will test the use of penetrometry in asteroid-analogue environments by investigating samples with varying properties such as grain size and shape. The microgravity aspect of the experiment is one of the most important factors because it enables us to correlate laboratory experiments at 1g with identical setups in a gravity regime relevant to asteroids. The proposed experimental setup will include a variety of samples with varying grain sizes, grain shapes, porosities and grain size distributions. The penetrometer used will also have varying properties such as the diameter, shape, and velocity of penetration. A robotic arm will push a penetrometer into the samples to measure the reaction force which can then be used to determine the mechanical properties of the samples. By varying the samples and penetrometer properties it will be possible to better understand the relevant parameters affecting reaction force. The suitability of the setup will also be reviewed to understand its usage and applicability in microgravity environments such as the robotic arm that will be used. All of the experiments carried out during the parabolic campaign will also be done at 1g to compare the tests in varying gravity levels. With a better understanding of the science behind penetrometry and the effects of microgravity, future missions will be better prepared and be able to use penetrometry more effectively to understand small-body surfaces.
|
|
| 5. |
- Pandey, Siddharth, et al.
(författare)
-
Ladakh: diverse, high-altitude extreme environments for off-earth analogue and astrobiology research
- 2020
-
Ingår i: International Journal of Astrobiology. - : Cambridge University Press. - 1473-5504 .- 1475-3006. ; 19:1, s. 78-98
-
Forskningsöversikt (refereegranskat)abstract
- This paper highlights unique sites in Ladakh, India, investigated during our 2016 multidisciplinary pathfinding expedition to the region. We summarize our scientific findings and the site's potential to support science exploration, testing of new technologies and science protocols within the framework of astrobiology research. Ladakh has several accessible, diverse, pristine and extreme environments at very high altitudes (3000–5700 m above sea level). These sites include glacial passes, sand dunes, hot springs and saline lake shorelines with periglacial features. We report geological observations and environmental characteristics (of astrobiological significance) along with the development of regolith-landform maps for cold high passes. The effects of the diurnal water cycle on salt deliquescence were studied using the ExoMars Mission instrument mockup: HabitAbility: Brines, Irradiance and Temperature (HABIT). It recorded the existence of an interaction between the diurnal water cycle in the atmosphere and salts in the soil (which can serve as habitable liquid water reservoirs). Life detection assays were also tested to establish the best protocols for biomass measurements in brines, periglacial ice-mud and permafrost melt water environments in the Tso-Kar region. This campaign helped confirm the relevance of clays and brines as interest targets of research on Mars for biomarker preservation and life detection.
|
|
| 6. |
- Soria-Salinas, Álvaro, et al.
(författare)
-
A Xenon Mass Gauging through Heat Transfer Modeling for Electric Propulsion Thrusters
- 2017
-
Ingår i: World Academy of Science, Engineering and Technology: An International Journal of Science, Engineering and Technology. - : World Academy of Science, Engineering and Technology. - 2010-376X .- 2070-3740. ; 11:1, s. 94-105
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The current state-of-the-art methods of mass gauging of Electric Propulsion (EP) propellants in microgravity conditions rely on external measurements that are taken at the surface of the tank. The tanks are operated under a constant thermal duty cycle to store the propellant within a pre-defined temperature and pressure range. We demonstrate using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations that the heat-transfer within the pressurized propellant generates temperature and density anisotropies. This challenges the standard mass gauging methods that rely on the use of time changing skin-temperatures and pressures. We observe that the domes of the tanks are prone to be overheated, and that a long time after the heaters of the thermal cycle are switched off, the system reaches a quasi-equilibrium state with a more uniform density. We propose a new gauging method, which we call the Improved PVT method, based on universal physics and thermodynamics principles, existing TRL-9 technology and telemetry data. This method only uses as inputs the temperature and pressure readings of sensors externally attached to the tank. These sensors can operate during the nominal thermal duty cycle. The improved PVT method shows little sensitivity to the pressure sensor drifts which are critical towards the end-of-life of the missions, as well as little sensitivity to systematic temperature errors. The retrieval method has been validated experimentally with CO2 in gas and fluid state in a chamber that operates up to 82 bar within a nominal thermal cycle of 38 °C to 42 °C. The mass gauging error is shown to be lower than 1% the mass at the beginning of life, assuming an initial tank load at 100 bar. In particular, for a pressure of about 70 bar, just below the critical pressure of CO2, the error of the mass gauging in gas phase goes down to 0.1% and for 77 bar, just above the critical point, the error of the mass gauging of the liquid phase is 0.6% of initial tank load. This gauging method improves by a factor of 8 the accuracy of the standard PVT retrievals using look-up tables with tabulated data from the National Institute of Standards and Technology.
|
|
| 7. |
|
|
| 8. |
|
|
| 9. |
- Soria-Salinas, Álvaro, et al.
(författare)
-
Development of a wind retrieval method for low-speed low-pressure flows for ExoMars
- 2020
-
Ingår i: Applied Thermal Engineering. - : Elsevier. - 1359-4311 .- 1873-5606. ; 180
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Forced convective heat transfer from three horizontally inclined rectangular-based cylinders (rods) has been studied experimentally under representative Martian near-surface air flows in the Aarhus Wind Tunnel Simulator (AWTS), Denmark. The testing campaign was developed for the HABIT (Habitability: Brines, Irradiation and Temperature) instrument, European payload on board the ExoMars 2022 Kazachok surface platform. The average heat transfer coefficient was determined from steady CO2 flows at a pressure of 9.9 mbar, an ambient temperature of ∼25 °C, and for horizontal free-stream velocities between 0.8 and 12 m/s. A retrieval algorithm to derive the wind speed from the average heat transfer coefficient estimated at each of the three HABIT Air Temperature Sensors (ATS) rods was calibrated within the AWTS. The ATS rods are placed one at the front of the instrument structure (ATS2) and two on the sides (ATS1 and ATS3); and under Martian atmospheric conditions these rods serve as cooling fins. Several relationships between the Nusselt number and the Reynolds and Prandtl numbers reported in the literature were evaluated to model convective heat transfer from the ATS rods. Where needed, corrections to account for radiative heat transfer within the AWTS were implemented. The final retrieval method demonstrated that wind speed can be retrieved for frontal winds in the range of 0–10 m/s, with an error of ±0.3 m/s, using the cooling profile of the ATS rod 3, and for lateral winds in the range of 0–6 m/s, with an error of ±0.3 m/s, using the ATS rod 2 cooling profile.
|
|
| 10. |
- Soria-Salinas, Álvaro
(författare)
-
Development of the Wind and Air Temperature Sensor of the ExoMars 2022 HABIT Instrument
- 2020
-
Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- This work presents the development, validation and calibration of the air temperature sensors (ATS) and the air and wind retrieval method of the HABIT (HabitAbility: Brines, Irradiation and Temperature) instrument. HABIT is one of the two European payloads of the ESA/Roscosmos ExoMars 2022 mission that will land at Oxia Planum (18.20° N, 335.45° E), on Mars.One of the main novelties of this Ph.D. thesis is to use the thin fins that work as ATS on HABIT as a wind sensor for the planetary boundary layer of Mars. The thesis is based on the study and modelling of heat transfer along three rods when exposed to forced convection in a gaseous fluid, and that is tested: (1) through computational fluid dynamic simulations, which provided inputs to the early design of the HABIT structure; (2) under laboratory conditions, with the use of a specifically designed prototype and a cooling fan; and (3) within a subsonic wind tunnel facility under terrestrial conditions.A preliminary validation of the wind speed retrieval approach is first performed using temperature measurements from Mars provided by the Rover Environmental Monitoring Station (REMS) instrument, on board the NASA Curiosity rover of the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) mission. The method is based on modelling forced convection of the ATS of REMS when assumed as thin rods immersed in the extreme low-pressure and high-radiating atmospheric conditions of the Martian thermal boundary layer, at a height of ∼ 1.5 m from the surface. Assuming the previously reported REMS wind sensor (WS) retrieval errors of 20% for the wind speed, ±30° for the horizontal “front” wind directions, and ±45° for the horizontal “rear” wind directions, agreement with the WS values of up to 77% of the acquisition time, on average, for wind speeds and coincidence between 60% and 80% of the time for wind directions is reported for some sols. These promising results are limited to only evening extended acquisitions from 18:00 to 21:00 local mean solar time (LMST) and orientations within the validity region of the retrieval. That is, the method was only considered valid over a narrow angle range of 13° to 107° in azimuth angle. In addition to this, the results of this first study suggested a new optimal orientation when using the ATS for wind speed and direction retrievals of +60° clockwise with respect to the forward direction of the Curiosity rover.The wind retrieval model is also validated and calibrated with the HABIT engineering and qualification model (EQM) in the Aarhus Wind Tunnel Simulator (AWTS) of the Aarhus University, Denmark. The AWTS is designed to reproduce typical winds on the surface of Mars. The data acquired during the wind tunnel campaign were used to validate the forced convective and radiative heat transfer model for each of the three ATS. The campaign investigated winds in steady CO2 flows at a pressure of 9.9 mbar, an ambient temperature of 25°C, and for horizontal free-stream velocities between 0.8 and 12 m/s. Several relationships between the Nusselt number and the Reynolds and Prandtl numbers reported in the literature were evaluated in the tunnel to model forced convection through the ATS rods. Where needed, corrections to account for radiative heat transfer within the AWTS were implemented to correct for experimental artefacts. The tests demonstrated that this retrieval method can be used to derive wind speed for frontal winds on Mars in the range of 0 to 10 m/s, with an error of ±0.3 m/s, using the cooling profile of the ATS rod 3, and for lateral winds in the range of 0 to 6 m/s, with an error of ±0.3 m/s, using the ATS rod 2 cooling profile.The thesis also includes the calibration of the HABIT ATS flight model (FM) in the clean room of Omnisys Instruments AB, and the retrieval model that will be used in operations during the ExoMars 2022 mission and for archiving in the Planetary Science Archive (PSA) of the European Space Agency (ESA).Finally, the wind retrieval method developed in this thesis can be applied not only to the future analysis of HABIT data at Oxia Planum, but also to re-analyse the ATS data of REMS at Gale crater, and for future comparative analysis with the HABIT/ExoMars 2022, the Temperature and Wind Sensors for InSight (TWINS)/InSight, and the Mars Environmental Dynamics Analyzer (MEDA)/Mars 2020 rover instruments.
|
|
