The Tools That May Make the Next 50 Years of Space Travel Even More Inspiring Than the Previous
Article by AL.com – June 2019 – Last month the Notre Dame de Paris Cathedral burned; people all over the world, all ages and backgrounds felt the emotional impact when the steeple collapsed. Why? Everyone who built it is dead and church membership is not nearly as compulsory or widespread as it was in medieval Europe. Still, achievements so unfathomable are symbols of possibility and progress with immeasurable value: it took roughly 200 years to build the cathedral, and those who began project never got to see it completed. The project transcended global conflict, political changes and modernization, and has been continually repaired, which made it seem timeless. It became the inheritance of civilization thereafter. Most monuments are bigger than any one person’s vision or perception. The Apollo space program presents a similar monument; a testament to human ingenuity, engineering, perseverance, and innovation. We seek to continue that space legacy today.
For those of us who grew up in the shadow of the ‘60s, the space program is a symbol of leadership and achievement, undertaken by many who are gone, but who persisted with faith that civilization would carry the torch. It was just fifty years ago this July that one-fifth of the entire world watched an American walk on the moon, delivered by a rocket designed in Huntsville. As we approach the anniversary of one of the greatest achievements in modern history, the U.S. space program is positioned to advance human exploration and outreach to the Moon, Mars and beyond. We are addressing some of the most perplexing issues of exploring deep space with public and private cooperation, innovation, and investment.
NASA was established as a civilian organization to address national aerospace goals. The intellectual resources NASA put together in the early 1960s were unprecedented: the Apollo program employed 400,000 people and was supported by over 20,000 industrial firms and universities at its high-water mark. Nearly 300 companies clustered in Huntsville’s Research Park are inheritors of that legacy, as that park was originally situated to serve Marshall Space Flight Center, where the Saturn V was developed.
This year, Huntsville will be celebrating challenges conquered and new goals set. NASA has reinvigorated interest in human deep space travel as it prepares to fulfill Space Policy Directive 1. Signed in late 2017 by President Trump, Space Policy Directive 1 provides for a U.S.-led, integrated program with private sector partners for a human return to the Moon, followed by missions to Mars. Space Policy Directive 1 tasks NASA with “bringing back to earth new knowledge and opportunities,” which can only be carried out by long-term field studies. For starters, NASA intends to send astronauts back to the moon on a test mission in 2022, laying the groundwork for assembling “The Gateway,” a spaceship that will orbit the moon to support missions.
Of course, being in deep space continuously is a new proposition with some distinct challenges, cost being the overarching one—that is, limiting both the economic cost and eliminating the potential loss of human life. Experts from the lead sponsor of the U.S. Space and Rocket Center’s 50th Anniversary of the Apollo Moon Landing, Intuitive Research and Technology Corporation (INTUITIVE), described how complex and intricate the related problems are of launching and delivering properly trained people and equipment to and within space. INTUITIVE is one of many companies whose founders recall being inspired as children by footage of Wernher Von Braun on his Disney special talking about the moon landing. That same aspiration and drive to tackle the impossible described by Von Braun is what drove INTUITIVE to become a leader in supporting our Nation’s War Fighter through innovative technologies. Their motto is, ‘We solve hard problems,’ and they just celebrated their 20th Anniversary this June.
Putting Things Together in Space, and Adapting On-Site
The high cost per pound to launch materials into orbit is a barrier for most space exploration plans—earth’s gravitational field is why rockets need so much fuel. “Developing the systems, technologies, and materials to cost-effectively and efficiently print re-usable or in situ materials in space or at exploration sites is critical for future space exploration missions,” said INTUITIVE’s Chief Technology Officer, Dr. William Marx. Additive manufacturing, rapidly creating objects from CAD models using 3D printers, and material re-use are the answers. 3D printing with hard plastics and metals is within reach, even in zero-gravity environments. Tools, repair parts, medical equipment, satellites, and other necessities could be “printed” rather than ferried to scientists.
Marx said, “Although there have been continuous advancements in materials, systems, and technologies associated with additive manufacturing, more detailed research is required to verify and qualify 3D printed parts. New design methods that optimize the structural properties of those parts will also be needed.”
The printed parts must withstand the radiation and precision needs of space, and the success of their development is literally a matter of life and death.
Jason Hughes, a Principal Mechanical Engineer at INTUITIVE, offered his thoughts on these particular challenges and opportunities: “Additively manufactured parts push the bounds of design verification. Classical methods used to verify designs are no longer appropriate. We are faced with the challenge of coming up with new methods to verify additively manufactured parts (i.e., making sure they don’t break down or wear out).” INTUITIVE has applied one of its core competencies in engineering analysis to help aviation and missile programs explore and move forward in getting 3D printed parts validated and accepted for flight systems. Finite element analysis and empirical test methods currently used to certify hardware for flight approval are being adapted to ensure additively manufactured parts meet structural and environmental demands in space exploration.
Hughes also noted that methods and tools for producing hardware in complex flight systems are allowing parts to be designed with maximum strength and weight savings. “One method of design optimization focuses on key points of contact. Additive manufacturing allows our engineering team to develop nonstandard and innovative design solutions that traditional manufacturing methods are incapable of producing,” he said.
Leaning on the Strength of Artificial Intelligence to Direct Spacecrafts
In the proceeding era of exploration, we will be more interdependent with new technology than ever before, allowing machines to do what machines do best and people to interpret, set goals, make decisions (and keep the machines working). Preparing for unknown stressors from the environment on the craft itself and the crew’s ability to navigate means there are opportunities to fuse adaptive electronics and Artificial Intelligence (AI). We are talking about hardware, sensors, and machinery that know what to do without being directed.
Jacob Voss, Electrical Engineering Manager at INTUITIVE and expert in electrical and avionics systems design, analysis, and integration, shared insight as to how we may be able to couple and apply adaptive electronics and AI in areas to benefit space exploration:
“INTUITIVE is no stranger to flight-qualified hardware design, both in the missile and avionics world. Currently, industry standard practice is to design flight hardware for defined use cases based on specified requirements—in space, of course, cases may not be so defined. However, using front-end diagnostic circuits, sensors and embedded AI, our industry is able design for unknown environments and scenarios not yet seen or experienced. Just like software can be reactionary, so can hardware.
Thus far in avionics, part availability has limited engineers’ ability to think and design outside of the box solutions: we design with parts that we know will survive potential conditions that may be encountered, such as ionizing radiation. But, what if diagnostic circuitry could sense or predict environmental conditions and events and then actively protect susceptible devices down line? This is an avenue to more efficient, safer space travel. We are looking forward to the day that hardware reaction based on learning reliably yields higher performance than could be accomplished from software and algorithm-based design methods. By combining these two existing technologies we can see almost limitless possibilities for human exploration and aviation. What an exciting time that we live in!”
Virtual Reality Training: How Many Scientists Does It Take to . . .
Even a clever scientist is likely to run into a scenario he or she did not expect in the course of months or years of study. Virtual reality can make the field-study team more adaptive and effective, eliminating the need to ferry in different teams of specialists for every emergent need. VR provides a realistic, cost-effective method to train users for highly specialized environments and scenarios. Coupled with advances in AI, the curricula could be adaptive, and provide valuable non-linear training to astronauts and/or explorers. VR can increase mission success by allowing rehearsals to be performed during long periods of travel, while in orbit, or while on planetary surfaces.
INTUITIVE has focused on turning complex data into realistic, useful VR experiences. Their enhanced visualization products address research, global collaboration, simulation and training, rapid prototyping, and other uses. Michael Yohe, INTUITIVE’s VR project lead and Manager of the Software and Visualization Systems (SVS) team, discussed how dramatically visualization products may benefit the next generation space missions:
Extended reality (XR) describes a fundamental shift in human-machine interfaces by combining both real and virtual environments using innovative displays and input devices. Whereas traditional computing environments—a piece of glass, the display, along with a keyboard and pointing device – require a user to interact with software presented on the display, XR places the user inside the software or pieces of the software inside the real environment around them. Instead of clicking a mouse button or tapping keys on the keyboard, the user can manipulate the software with their body using objects varying greatly in scale all around them. XR is an enabler, allowing software developers to immerse the user visually, audibly, and environmentally to create advanced modeling and simulation scenarios highly useful for outreach, data analysis, and operational and non-linear training.
Imagine what XR could have done on April 13, 1970: The astronauts of Apollo 13 were in danger of carbon dioxide poisoning due to the lunar module’s system being designed for two astronauts, not three. This was an unexpected situation where no training had been conducted—
an example of where modern non-linear training determined and conducted by software would have been very relevant. What followed was human ingenuity with a little touch of MacGyver. NASA engineers were able devise a solution using parts found on the spacecraft and relayed the solution over radio verbally. The astronauts had to carefully listen to the instructions, jot notes, and assemble the parts to modify the command modules filter, from mic key to mic key. What if XR had been available for both the NASA engineers and the astronauts? The engineers could have devised the solution, created a training program and uploaded the result to the damaged spacecraft. Astronauts could have used an XR headset that showed them step-by-step how to perform the modification procedure.
Fast-forward into our near future with planned trips to the moon and to Mars. We will be able to send updated procedures to our remote astronauts, allowing them to constantly improve their mission and extend the usefulness of their hardware.They will send us experiences that our children will be able to experience virtually. These experiences will not be limited with a single point of view through a piece of glass, through a photo, or a video feed. Instead, these experiences will be immersive, allowing us to “be there” with the power of XR.
The amount of new tools available for this generation of moon-and-beyond-exploration is promising. While the future economic and social benefits of space travel are immeasurable, we’ll know when we discover it. Civilization’s obsession with going further is relentless. As inheritors of a legacy of ingenuity, the future is limitless. Celebrate and join in on the 50th Anniversary of the Apollo lunar landing in Huntsville this summer.