VARIABILITY-DRIVEN DESIGN CONFIGURATOR OF SPACE SYSTEMS TO SUPPORT DECISION-MAKERS

Scientific Conference (2022, October)

Strategic Forecasting Toward Achieving Defensible Space Architecture by Year 2030

in Journal of Spacecraft and Rockets (2022), 59(5),

Along with the increased demand for space access transportation, a rise in adversarial offensive capabilities, and increasing reliance upon space-based assets, U.S. space assets are now more vulnerable to ... [more ▼]

Along with the increased demand for space access transportation, a rise in adversarial offensive capabilities, and increasing reliance upon space-based assets, U.S. space assets are now more vulnerable to ground- and space-based threats than ever. The U.S. Air Force in its Fiscal Year Posture Statement 2018 recognized that meeting the space threat remains a U.S. Air Force priority for national security. This, along with the creation of a new Space Force, provides more interest in space defense and detailed space architecture development. This needs to be approached pragmatically and strategically. For this, there is a need for a cohesive plan that will support the continued integration and normalization of space in the joint war-fighting environment and places a high priority on space to ensure that U.S. space systems continue to operate in a contested environment. The goal of this study is to identify the national security transportation capabilities and supporting assets needed to establish a superior force in space by the year of 2030 and beyond. Additionally, the science and technology areas that are needed to develop these capabilities are identified, and a strategic space transportation roadmap is generated. [less ▲]

5G Space Communications Lab: Reaching New Heights

in Proceedings of the 18th International Conference on Distributed Computing in Sensor Systems (DCOSS) (2022)

Vision of a Next-Gen Concurrent Design Facility (CDF-LU)

in International Astronautical Congress, Dubai, 25-29 October 2021 (2021, October)

5G-SpaceLab

Poster (2021, April 19)

The new phase of space exploration involves a growing number of human and robotic missions with varying communication and service requirements. Continuous, maximum coverage of areas where activities are ... [more ▼]

The new phase of space exploration involves a growing number of human and robotic missions with varying communication and service requirements. Continuous, maximum coverage of areas where activities are concentrated and orbiting missions (single spacecraft or constellations) around the Earth, Moon or Mars will be particularly challenging. The standardization of the 5G Non-Terrestrial Networks (NTN) has already begun [1], and nothing prevents 5G from becoming a common communications standard supporting space resource missions [2]. The 5G Space Communications Lab (5G-SpaceLab) is an interdisciplinary experimental platform, funded by the Luxembourg Space Agency and is part of the Space Research Program of SnT. The lab allows users to design and emulate realistic space communications and control scenarios for the next-generation of space applications. The capabilities of the 5G-SpaceLab testbed combine the experience of different disciplines including space communications, space and satellite mission design, and space robotics. The most relevant include the demonstration of SDR 5G NTN terminals including NB-IoT, emulation of space communications channel scenarios (e.g. link budget, delay, Doppler…), small satellite platform and payload design and testing, satellite swarm flight formation, lunar rover and robotic arm control and AI-powered telerobotics. Earth-Moon communications is one of the scenarios demonstrated in the 5G-SpaceLab. Bidirectional communication for the teleoperation of lunar rovers for near real-time operations including data collection and sensors feedback will be tested. AI-based approaches for perception and control will be developed to overcome communication delays and to provide safer, trustworthy, and efficient remote control of the rovers. [1] 3GPP Release 17 Timeline. [Online]. Available: https://www.3gpp.org/release-17 [2] Nokia, Nokia selected by NASA to build first ever cellular network on the Moon. [Online]. Available: https://www.nokia.com/about-us/news/releases/2020/10/19/nokia-selected-by-nasa-to-build-first-ever-cellular-network-on-the-moon/ [less ▲]

Low-Light Image Enhancement of Permanently Shadowed Lunar Regions with Physics-Based Machine Learning

Poster (2021)

We show that it is possible to significantly enhance the quality of extremely low-light images of permanently-shaded regions (PSRs) on the moon by using two physics-based deep neural networks, which we ... [more ▼]

We show that it is possible to significantly enhance the quality of extremely low-light images of permanently-shaded regions (PSRs) on the moon by using two physics-based deep neural networks, which we called HORUS, to remove CCD sensor-related noise and photon noise. To inform our distribution of training data, we perform ray tracing over a digital elevation model of the moon and derive the distributions of secondary illumination angles in PSRs. Our network provides high-resolution, low-noise images that will help enable future ground missions to plan and execute safe and effective traverses into, around, and out of lunar PSRs — a critical step in our endeavor to explore the moon and beyond. [less ▲]

Demonstration of a prototype design synthesis capability for space access vehicle design

in Aeronautical Journal (2020), 124(1281), 1761-1788

The early conceptual design (CD) phase of space access vehicles (SAVs) is the most abstract, innovative and technologically challenging phase of the entire aerospace design life cycle. Although the design ... [more ▼]

The early conceptual design (CD) phase of space access vehicles (SAVs) is the most abstract, innovative and technologically challenging phase of the entire aerospace design life cycle. Although the design decision-making during this phase influences around 80 percent of the overall life cycle cost, it is the most abstract and thus least understood phase of the entire design life cycle. The history of SAV design provides numerous examples of project failures that could have been avoided if the decision-maker had had the capability to forecast the potential risks and threats correctly ahead of time during the conceptual design phase. The present study addresses this crucial phase and demonstrates a best-practice synthesis methodology prototype to advance the current state of the art of CD as applied to SAV design. Developed by the Aerospace Vehicle Design (AVD) Laboratory at the University of Texas at Arlington (UTA), the Aerospace Vehicle Design Synthesis process and software (AVDS) is a prototype solution for a flight vehicle configuration–flexible (generic) design synthesis capability that can be applied to the primary categories of SAVs. This study focusses on introducing AVDS, followed by the demonstration and verification of the system’s capability through a sizing case study based on the data-rich Boeing X-20 Dyna-Soar spaceplane. [less ▲]

A Paradigm-Shift in Aerospace Vehicle Design Synthesis and Technology Forecasting

in Rana, Loveneesh (Ed.) A Paradigm-Shift in Aerospace Vehicle Design Synthesis and Technology Forecasting (2018, September 15)

Classically, aerospace design synthesis methodologies have been developed for a specified problem, with limited or no adaptability and expandability for application to a new problem not considered in the ... [more ▼]

Classically, aerospace design synthesis methodologies have been developed for a specified problem, with limited or no adaptability and expandability for application to a new problem not considered in the original development. This inability eventually limits the application of a conventional ASDS towards exploration of novel concepts. Thus, the institutions using their proprietary legacy ASDS systems become confined within the product and technology range which is imposed by their system’s limitations. Such a scenario presents a grave situation as it hinders innovation and exploration at the conceptual stage, the design phase where design freedom is maximum. In response to this need, a new modular system is being developed, tested, and applied at the Aerospace Vehicle Design (AVD) Laboratory at the University of Texas at Arlington. The system, called as the Aerospace Vehicle Design Database Management System (AVD-DBMS, or simply the DBMS), provides a unique capability of developing custom-tailored sizing codes specific to the problem at hand. In this regard, the DBMS is not a synthesis system by itself. Rather, it is a system that creates custom problem-specific synthesis architectures tailor made to address the needs of the user. Such a capability represents a paradigm-shift in the way conceptual design has been traditionally implemented. This paper presents an overview of the research effort of six researchers over a span of eight years. The primary focus of this paper is to provide the conceptual solution logic, the development process and system specification of the DBMS. Additionally, four distinct case-studies are presented that demonstrate DBMS’s superior capability to explore novel design concepts and provide the decision-maker with informed and smart decision-making support. [less ▲]

Design Evolution and AHP-based Historiography of Lifting Reentry Vehicle Space Programs

in AIAA SPACE 2016 Proceedings (2016, September)