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launched to address this concern. The goal of the VMOC-CE project is to identify, develop, and infuse technology to enable
mission operations between onsite operators and on-call personnel in geographically dispersed locations. VMOC-CE enables
missions to more readily adopt automation because off-site operators and engineers can more easily identify, investigate, and
resolve anomalies without having to be present in the MOC. The VMOC-CE intent is to have a single access point for all
resources used in a collaborative mission operations environment. Team members will be able to interact during spacecraft
operations, specifically for resolving anomalies, utilizing a desktop computer and the Internet. Mission operations
management can use the VMOC-CE as a tool to participate in and monitor status of anomaly resolution or other mission
operations issues. In this paper we present the VMOC-CE project, system capabilities and technologies, operations concept,
and results of its pilot in support of the Earth Science Mission Operations System (ESMOS).
Author
Integrated Mission Control Center; Cost Reduction; Space Missions; Ground Based Control; Telecommunication; Problem
Solving; Systems Engineering; Decision Support Systems
20030025730 NASA Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, AL, USA
Magnetohydrodynamic Augmented Propulsion Experiment: I. Performance Analysis and Design
Litchford, R. J.; Cole, J. W.; Lineberry, J. T.; Chapman, J. N.; Schmidt, H. J.; Lineberry, C. W.; February 2003; 42 pp.; In
English; Original contains black and white illustrations
Report No.(s): NASA/TP-2003-212285; NAS 1.60:212285; M-1064; Copyright; Avail: CASI; A03, Hardcopy
The performance of conventional thermal propulsion systems is fundamentally constrained by the specific energy
limitations associated with chemical fuels and the thermal limits of available materials. Electromagnetic thrust augmentation
represents one intriguing possibility for improving the fuel composition of thermal propulsion systems, thereby increasing
overall specific energy characteristics; however, realization of such a system requires an extremely high-energy-density
electrical power source as well as an efficient plasma acceleration device. This Technical Publication describes the
development of an experimental research facility for investigating the use of cross-field magnetohydrodynamic (MHD)
accelerators as a possible thrust augmentation device for thermal propulsion systems. In this experiment,a 1.5-MW(sub e)
Aerotherm arc heater is used to drive a 2-MW(sub e) MHD accelerator. The heatsink MHD accelerator is configured as an
externally diagonalized, segmented channel, which is inserted into a large-bore, 2-T electromagnet. The performance analysis
and engineering design of the flow path are described as well as the parameter measurements and flow diagnostics planned
for the initial series of test runs.
Author
Thrust Augmentation; Magnetohydrodynamics; Electromagnetism; Propulsion System Performance; Plasma Acceleration;
Research Facilities; Reliability Analysis
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LAUNCH VEHICLES AND LAUNCH OPERATIONS
Includes all classes of launch vehicles, launch/space vehicle systems, and boosters; and launch operations. For related information see
also 18 Spacecraft Design, Testing and Performance; and 20 Spacecraft Propulsion and Power.
20030022661 NASA Glenn Research Center, Cleveland, OH, USA
High Altitude Launch for a Practical SSTO
Landis, Geoffrey A.; Denis, Vincent; Lyons, Valerie, Technical Monitor; February 2002; 6 pp.; In English; Conference on
Next Generation Space Transportation, Space Technology and Applications Forum, 2-6 Feb. 2002, Albuquerque, NM, USA;
Copyright; Avail: CASI; A02, Hardcopy
Existing engineering materials allow the construction of towers to heights of many kilometers. Orbital launch from a high
altitude has significant advantages over sea-level launch due to the reduced atmospheric pressure, resulting in lower
atmospheric drag on the vehicle and allowing higher rocket engine performance. High-altitude launch sites are particularly
advantageous for single-stage to orbit (SSTO) vehicles, where the payload is typically 2\% of the initial launch mass. An
earlier paper enumerated some of the advantages of high altitude launch of SSTO vehicles. In this paper, we calculate launch
trajectories for a candidate SSTO vehicle, and calculate the advantage of launch at launch altitudes 5 to 25 kilometer altitudes
above sea level. The performance increase can be directly translated into increased payload capability to orbit, ranging from
5 to 20\% increase in the mass to orbit. For a candidate vehicle with an initial payload fraction of 2\% of gross lift-off weight,
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