80ARC017M0008

Multiple year award with incremental funding for years one to five. This proposal is entitled "Project ESPRESSO: Exploration Science Pathfinder Research for Enhancing Solar System Observations." This is awarded in response to Cooperative Agreement Notice_CAN_NO. NNH16ZDA009C NASA Solar System Exploration Research Virtual Institute_SSERVI Cycle Three.

The principal investigator is Dr. Alex H. Parker with the Southwest Research Institute_SWRI.

Project summary: We propose the ESPRESSO project for SSERVI node that will pursue a broad range of pathfinding research with science and operations objectives relevant to enabling and enhancing exploration of near-Earth asteroids_NEAs, the Moon, and the moons of Mars. These objectives will be achieved with a tightly integrated interdisciplinary program to develop, implement, and characterize a suite of enabling facilities, analytical techniques, and instrumentation technologies.

The ESPRESSO objectives are guided by the following three themes:
1. Enhancing operational safety.
2. Enhancing target selection, sample selection, and in-situ resource utilization (ISRU) potential.
3. Enhancing target characterization and analysis capabilities.

By virtue of the distributed interdisciplinary team enabled by the Virtual Institute model, ESPRESSO will support a diverse ensemble of scientific and technical investigations guided by these themes.

The eight ESPRESSO investigations are:
1. Developing instrumented nano-impactors for remote geotechnical hazard assessments.
2. Characterizing grain-scale thermomechanical properties of target body constituents.
3. Predicting target body landslide hazards by adapting terrestrial hazard analysis tools.
4. Characterizing impact ejecta dynamics to understand potential size- and chemistry-dependent regolith mobilization processes on target bodies.
5. Experimentally characterizing target body regolith gardening and cratering processes.
6. Measuring optical constants of target body constituent materials for quantitative remote compositional analysis of target bodies.
7. Characterizing laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy_LIBS, Raman scattering, and laser-induced fluorescence for in situ target body composition analysis.
8. Determining the exploration roles of field LIBS and Raman for sample selection, resource prospecting, and hazard identification.

To enable investigations 1, 3, 4, and 5, SWRI has partnered with industry to develop the Airborne Space Environment Chamber_ASEC, a large general-purpose vacuum chamber flown in reduced gravity aircraft to provide ESPRESSO and other SSERVI teams with access to a space-like gravity and pressure experiment environment. There are 12 planned ASEC microgravity flights scheduled under the SWRI institutional contribution for ESPRESSO, with space available for other SSERVI experimental payloads.

ESPRESSO's investigations are directly relevant to 20 of the SSERVI CAN science and exploration topics and address at least seven NASA strategic knowledge gaps_SKGs, including small body SKGs II.D-2, II.D-2, III.A-1, III.A-2, III.D-1, IV.A-1, and NASA lunar exploration SKG III.C-1. ESPRESSO was designed to constructively integrate into the SSERVI network by expanding capabilities and facilities available to SSERVI, and we have developed key collaborations with five existing teams.

Southwest Research Institute

MULTIPLE YEAR AWARD WITH INCREMENTAL FUNDING FOR YEARS ONE TO FIVE. THIS PROPOSAL IS ENTITLED PROJECT ESPRESSO: EXPLORATION SCIENCE PATHFINDER RESEARCH FOR ENHANCING SOLAR SYSTEM OBSERVATIONS. THIS IS AWARDED IN RESPONSE TO COOPERATIVE AGREEMENT NOTICE (CAN) NO. NNH16ZDA009C NASA SOLAR SYSTEM EXPLORATION RESEARCH VIRTUAL INSTITUTE (SSERVI) CYCLE THREE (3). THE PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR IS DR. ALEX H. PARKER WITH THE SOUTHWEST RESEARCH INSTITUTE (SWRI). PROJECT SUMMARY: WE PROPOSAL THE ESPRESSO PROJECT FOR SSERVI NODE THAT WILL PURSUE A BROAD RANGE OF PATHFINDING RESEARCH WITH SCIENCE AND OPERATIONS OBJECTIVES RELEVANT TO ENABLING AND ENHANCING EXPLORATION OF NEAR-EARTH ASTEROIDS (NEAS) THE MOON AND THE MOONS OF MARS. THESE OBJECTIVES WILL BE ACHIEVED WITH A TIGHTLY INTEGRATEDINTERDISCIPLINARY PROGRAM TO DEVELOP IMPLEMENT AND CHARACTERIZED A SUITE OF ENABLING FACILITIES ANALYTICAL TECHNIQUES AND INSTRUMENTATION TECHNOLOGIES. THE ESPRESSO OBJECTIVES ARE GUIDED BY THE FOLLOWING THREE THEMES:1) ENHANCING OPERATIONAL SAFETY.2) ENHANCING TARGET SELECTION SAMPLE SELECTION AND IN-SITU RESOURCE UTILIZATION (ISRU) POTENTIAL.3) ENHANCING TARGET CHARACTERIZATION AND ANALYSIS CAPABILITIES.BY VIRTUE OF THE DISTRIBUTED INTERDISCIPLINARY TEAM ENABLED BY THE VIRTUAL INSTITUTE MODEL ESPRESSO WILL SUPPORT A DIVERSE ENSEMBLE OF SCIENTIFIC AND TECHNICAL INVESTIGATIONS GUIDED BY THESE THEMES. THE EIGHT ESPRESSO INVESTIGATIONS ARE:1) DEVELOPING INSTRUMENTED NANO-IMPACTORS FOR REMOTE GEOTECHNICAL HAZARD ASSESSMENTS.2) CHARACTERIZING GRAIN-SCALE THERMOMECHANICAL PROPERTIES OF TARGET BODY CONSTITUENTS.3) PREDICTING TARGET BODY LANDSLIDE HAZARDS BY ADAPTING TERRESTRIAL HAZARD ANALYSIS TOOLS.4) CHARACTERIZING IMPACT EJECTA DYNAMICS TO UNDERSTAND POTENTIAL SIZE- AND CHEMISTRY-DEPENDENT REGOLITH MOBILIZATION PROCESSES ON TARGET BODIES.5) EXPERIMENTALLY CHARACTERIZING TARGET BODY REGOLITH GARDENING AND CRATERING PROCESSES.6) MEASURING OPTICAL CONSTANTS OF TARGET BODY CONSTITUENT MATERIALS FOR QUANTITATIVE REMOTE COMPOSITIONAL ANALYSIS OF TARGET BODIES.7) CHARACTERIZING LASER INDUCED BREAKDOWN SPECTROSCOPY (LIBS) RAMAN SCATTERING AND LASER-INDUCED FLUORESCENCE FOR IN SITU TARGET BODY COMPOSITION ANALYSIS.8)DETERMINING THE EXPLORATION ROLES OF FIELD LIBS AND RAMAN FOR SAMPLE SELECTION RESOURCE PROSPECTING AND HAZARD IDENTIFICATION.TOENABLE INVESTIGATIONS 1 3 4 AND 5 SWRI HAS PARTNERED WITH INDUSTRY TO DEVELOP THE AIRBORNE SPACE ENVIRONMENT CHAMBER (ASEC) A LARGE GENERAL-PURPOSE VACUUM CHAMBER FLOWN IN REDUCED GRAVITY AIRCRAFT TO PROVIDE ESPRESSO AND OTHER SSERVI TEAMS WITH ACCESS TO A SPACE-LIKE GRAVITY AND PRESSURE EXPERIMENT ENVIRONMENT. THERE ARE 12 PLANNED ASEC MICROGRAVITY FLIGHTS SCHEDULED UNDER THE SWRI INSTITUTIONAL CONTRIBUTION FOR ESPRESSO WITH ASED FLIGHT SPACE AVAILABLE FOR OTHER SSERVI EXPERIMENTAL PAYLOADS. EXPRESSOS INVESTIGATIONS ARE DIRECTLY RELEVANT TO 20 OF THE SSERVI CAN SCIENCE AND EXPLORATION TOPICS AND ADDRESS AT LEAST SEVEN NASA STRATEGIC KNOWLEDGEGAPS (SKGS) INCLUDING SMALL BODY SKGS II.D-2 II.D-2 III.A-1 III.A-2 III.D-1 IV.A-1 AND NASA LUNAR EXPLORATION SKG III.C-1.ESPRESSO WAS DESIGNED TO CONSTRUCTIVELY INTEGRATE INTO THE SSERVI NETWORK BY EXPANDING CAPABILITIES AND FACILITIES AVAILABLE TO SSERVI AND WE HAVE DEVELOPED KEY COLLABORATIONS WITH FIVE EXISTING TEAMS.

43.001 - Science

Shared Services Center (NSSC) [NASA]

Ames Research Center (ARC) [NASA]

San Antonio, Texas 78238-5166 United States

Single Zip Code

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Amendment Since initial award the End Date has been extended from 05/31/22 to 05/31/24 and the total obligations have increased 1654% from $319,116 to $5,598,596.