Microgravity-based Manufacturing and Production Applications

1. National Aeronautics and Space Administration
Richard T. French, Mechanical Engineer
Spacecraft Mechanical Engineering, 352M
NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory
California Institute of Technology
University of Michigan, Aerospace
September 5, 2014
Implementation of the Spin Subsystem on
Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP)
Not for Public Release or Redistribution. The technical data in this document is controlled under the U.S. Export Regulations;
release to foreign persons may require an export authorization.
Richard T. French
Space Technology Mission Directorate
NASA Headquarters
Technology Partnerships Office
Office of Space Technology
Jet Propulsion Laboratory,
California Institute of Technology
SwitchPitch Space
Long Beach Playhouse
May 3, 2017
NASA and Commercial Space
Opportunities – Problem Statements
© 2017 California Institute of Technology.
Government sponsorship acknowledged.
The cost information contained in this document is of
a budgetary and planning nature and is intended for
informational purposes only. It does not constitute a
commitment on the part of JPL and/or Caltech.

2. SwitchPitch Space
Overview
• Who am I?
• What is NASA?
• Overview of NASA Commercial Space Partnering Opportunities
• SwitchPitch Space Problem Statements
RTF-1© 2017 California Institute of Technology. Government sponsorship acknowledged.

3. SwitchPitch Space
Who am I?
• University of Michigan
– B.S.E Aerospace, 2006
– M. Eng. Space Engineering, 2007
• NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL)
– Crew Exploration Vehicle (CEV) Thermal Protection System (TPS) Advanced
Development Project (ADP) systems engineering
– Entry, Descent, and Landing (EDL), Mars Science Laboratory (MSL)
– Spin Subsystem Lead, Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP)
• Space Technology Mission Directorate (STMD), NASA Headquarters
(HQ)
– Staff Technologist, focused on commercial space technology development
– Market research, partnering opportunities, and new content development
– Tipping Point, Announcement of Collaborative Opportunity, SBIR/STTR
• NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL)
– Manager, Technology Partnerships Office, Office of Space Technology
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4. SwitchPitch Space
What is the National Aeronautics and Space
Administration (NASA)?
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NASA is ten (10) Field Centers + Headquarters
– Centers includes one (1) Federally Funded Research and Development Center (FFRDC), the Jet Propulsion Laboratory
– Many other facilities not shown (e.g., Wallops Flight Facility, Plumbrook Station, White Sands Test Facility, Michoud
Assembly Facility, DSN and NEN sites, International Space Station (ISS) National Laboratory)
• Ames Research Center
Jet Propulsion
Laboratory *
• Langley Research Center
Goddard Space Flight Center
• Glenn Research Center
Johnson Space Center •
• Stennis Space Center
• Armstrong Flight Research Center
• Kennedy Space Center
• Marshall Space Flight Center
* NASA Headquarters
* Where I sit
NASA is a diverse organization made up of 10 Field Centers and a Headquarters –
each with their own capabilities, interests, and stakeholders

5. SwitchPitch Space
• Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate (HEOMD) – $10,303M
– SLS/Orion/Ground System/R&D: $4,030M
– Space operations (ISS): $5,029.2M
– Commercial Crew: $1,243.8M
• Science Mission Directorate (SMD) – $5,589.4M
– Earth Science – $1,921M
– Planetary Science – $1,631M
– Astrophysics – $730.6M
– James Webb Space Telescope – $620M
– Heliophysics – $649.8M
– Education – $37M
• Space Technology Mission Directorate (STMD) * – $686.5M
• Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate (ARMD) – $640M
• Other – $3,309.9M
– Center Management/Agency Management – $2,768.6M
– Construction and Environmental Compliance – $388.9M
– Education – $115M
– Inspector General – $37.4M
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NASA is four (4) primary Mission Directorates – $19,285M (FY16 Appropriation)
* Where I sit
What is NASA?

6. SwitchPitch Space RTF-5
NASA is partnered with a wide industrial base for technology development/mission execution
Ex., Exploration Systems Development Partner Companies and Suppliers
What is NASA?

7. SwitchPitch Space RTF-6
What is NASA?
NASA is partnered with a wide academic community for technology development/mission execution
Exploration Systems Development Partner Companies and Suppliers
Texas A&M University
Texas Tech University
Tufts University
University of Akron
University of Alabama, Huntsville
University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa
University of Arizona
University of Arkansas
University of California, Berkeley
University of California, Davis
University of California, Irvine
University of California, Los Angeles
University of California, San Diego
University of California, Santa Barbara
University of Colorado, Boulder
University of Delaware
University of Florida
University of Hawaii
Arizona State University
Auburn University
Boston University
Brigham Young University
Brown University
California Institute of Technology
Carnegie Mellon University
Case Western Reserve University
Clemson University
Colorado State University
Columbia University
Cornell University
Duke University
Florida Institute of Technology
Georgia Institute of Technology
Harvard University
Illinois Institute of Technology
Iowa State University
Johns Hopkins University
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Michigan State University
Michigan Technological University
Mississippi State University
Missouri University of Science and Technology
Montana State University
New Jersey Institute of Technology
New Mexico State University
New York University
North Carolina State University
Northeastern University
Northwestern University
Ohio State University
Oregon State University
Pennsylvania State University
Princeton University
Purdue University
Rochester Institute of Technology
Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology
Rutgers University
South Dakota School of Mines and Technology
Stanford University
State University of New York, College of Nanoscale
Science & Engineering
State University of New York, Stony Brook
STRG Element To date Active
NSTRF 301 ~200
ECF 25 24
ESI 46 45
STRI 2 2
University of Houston
University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign
University of Iowa
University of Kentucky
University of Maine
University of Maryland
University of Massachusetts, Amherst
University of Massachusetts, Lowell
University of Michigan
University of Minnesota
University of Nebraska, Lincoln
University of New Hampshire
University of Notre Dame
University of Pennsylvania
University of Puerto Rico, Rio Pedras
University of Rochester
University of South Carolina
University of South Florida
University of Southern California
University of Tennessee
University of Texas, Austin
University of Utah
University of Vermont
University of Virginia
University of Washington
University of Wisconsin, Madison
Utah State University
Vanderbilt University
Virginia Polytechnic Institute & State University
Washington State University
Washington University, St. Louis
West Virginia University
William Marsh Rice University
Worcester Polytechnic Institute
Yale University
Ex., Space Technology Research Grant (STRG)
Partner Universities

8. SwitchPitch Space
Human Exploration and Operations Mission
Directorate (HEOMD) Commercial Opportunities
• Commercial Cargo to ISS (~$18.2B invested in development or open service contracts)
– COTS ($716M) – Demonstration of Commercial Partner’s capability to deliver cargo to ISS
– Commercial Resupply Services (CRS) – service contracts, $3.5B announced in in 2008, up to $14B announced in 2016
• Commercial Crew to ISS (~$8.26B invested in development or open service contracts)
– CCDev1/2/3/CPC1/2 – research and development for commercial human spaceflight services to ISS
• Collaborations for Commercial Space Capabilities (CCSC)
– Non-reimbursable partnerships to develop new space capabilities available to the government and other customers
• Launch Services Program (LSP)
– Manages all NASA (and some OGA) launch services procurements - indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity (IDIQ) contract
• Latest contract awarded in 2010 for up to 70 launches valued at up to $15B from 4 firms over 10 years
– Venture Class Launch Services (VCLS) partnership w/ SMD Earth Science Division for small spacecraft launch capabilities (~$17M)
• Advanced Exploration Systems (AES) Program
– CubeSat Launch Initiate (CLSI)/Educational Launch of Nanosatellites (ELaNa) – Small satellites as secondary payloads on NASA
launches and partners with to deploy small spacecraft from the International Space Station
– Next Space Technologies for Exploration Partnerships (NextSTEP) Broad Agency Announcement – Concept and technology
development projects in three key areas: advanced propulsion, habitation, life support, and small satellites
– Lunar Cargo Transportation and Landing by Soft Touchdown (Lunar CATALYST) – To encourage the development of robotic lunar
landers that can be integrated with U.S. commercial launch capabilities to deliver payloads to the lunar surface
• International Space Station (ISS) Program and Center for the Advancement of Science in Space (CASIS)
– Leverages significant industry capabilities for operation of the ISS and for ongoing technology development and research efforts in
support of a wide range of NASA goals from physical and biological science up through applied deep space crewed technologies
– CASIS is the manager of the International Space Station (ISS) U.S. National Laboratory, provides seed money, facilitates
accommodation, and access to launch for non-NASA research on ISS
• Center of Excellence for Collaborative Innovation (CoECI)
– Employs crowd-sourced challenges to solve tough, mission-critical problems under the umbrella of the NASA Tournament Lab (NTL)
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HEOMD has strong partnerships with commercial space to advance crewed exploration goals
through technology development and acquisition

9. SwitchPitch Space
Science Mission Directorate (STMD)
Commercial Opportunities
• Commercial Partnering Through Strategic Science Mission Implementation
– In-house Flagship missions (e.g., Mars Science Laboratory, Mars 2020, etc.) and other directed missions (Soil Moisture Active
Passive, etc.) rely heavily on industry for key component, subsystem, and system implementations, and also for competed
instruments, representing a significant opportunity for commercial space and industry partnerships
• Commercial Partnering Through Competitive Mission Implementation
– New Frontiers missions focused on key planetary science themes identified in the Planetary Science Decadal such as Comet
Surface Sample Return, Lunar South Pole-Aitken Basin Sample Return, and Venus In Situ Explorer
– Explorer missions (MIDEX, SMEX, UNEX, etc.) across all four science Divisions (Earth, Planetary, Astrophysics, & Heliophysics)
provide flight opportunities for space science investigations, using innovative, streamlined, and efficient management approaches
– Discovery Program complements Planetary Science flagships through lower cost missions with shorter development times
• Earth System Science Pathfinder (ESSP) Program
– Earth Venture Mission (EVM) are low-to-moderate cost, small to medium-sized, competitively selected missions for high-return Earth
Science missions launched within 5 years of initiation
– Earth Venture Instruments (EVI) develops spaceborne instruments for flight as missions of opportunity
– Earth Venture Sub-Orbital (EVS) support suborbital/airborne investigations
• Earth Science Technology Office (ESTO)
– Performs strategic technology planning and development for a range of Earth science technology needs through the Instrument
Incubator Program (IIP), Advanced Information Systems Technology (AIST), Advanced Component Technology (ACT), In-space
Validation of Earth Science Technologies (InVEST) programs, and other special initiatives
– Ex. in 2016 6 new projects were selected through the Sustainable Land Imaging-Technology program to develop future Landsat-like
instruments, sensors, components, and measurement concepts
• Research Opportunities in Space and Earth Science (ROSES) and SMD Technology Development
– SMD’s annual omnibus NASA Research Announcement features appendices for specific research, technology, and mission needs,
many of them focused on technology developments of interest to industry and commercial space firms
– Wide range of industry technology development opportunities across the TRL spectrum (PICASSO, MatISSE, PSTAR, H-TIDeS)
– Ex., in 2016 the COLDTech appendix solicited for spacecraft technologies required for future Oceans worlds missions
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SMD partners with industry for technology development and mission implementation to
deliver Decadal-class Earth, Astrophysics, Heliophysics, and Planetary science

10. SwitchPitch Space
• NASA Motivation
– NASA is pushing into deep space with crewed missions and, while NASA will always maintain a strong
presence in low Earth orbit, there is a desire that commercial partners increasingly take the lead in LEO
– Commercial demand for persistent tended platforms in microgravity remains soft, posing a strategic
challenge for NASA human exploration and operations transition plans
– NASA desires maximum utilization of the ISS to develop the technology for crewed deep space
exploration and to demonstrate commercial capabilities that exploit the microgravity environment
• Commercial Space Market Research
– A small number of commercial space firms are developing plans to manufacture advanced materials like
optical glass fiber or semi-conductors as well as services to support biological and life science research
– Interest in commercial microgravity applications is growing but most business plans have too much risk
for investors due to a lack of demonstration of the efficacy and benefit of microgravity manufacturing
– While demand for access to space is strong, demand for commercial Earth return vehicle capabilities
also remains weak, challenging business plan closure for those capabilities
• Challenge
– Develop payloads to demonstrate the efficacy of new biological, life sciences, and advanced materials
products that exploit the microgravity environment and have extraordinary value to expand demand for
access to LEO, commercial LEO platform utilization, and commercial Earth return capabilities
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New commercial applications that exploit the space environment could drive demand for commercial
LEO platforms and help resolve NASA’s strategic challenge to transition human exploration
Problem 3 – Microgravity-based Manufacturing and
Production Applications