Opportunity ID | 18595 |
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Opportunity URL | https://npp.usra.edu/opportunities/details/?ro=18595 |
Location |
Ames Research Center Moffett Field, CA 94035 |
Field of Science | Planetary Science |
Advisor | Brian Glass 650-604-3512 brian.glass@nasa.gov |
Citizenship Requirement |
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Description | Looking for volatiles, extant life and accessing subsurface ices on Mars will require the ability to explore below the desiccated and irradiated surface. Missions that sample Near-Earth Objects or sample Jovian satellites, or missions with drills or corers, such as Icebreaker, MAX-C ExoMars, and Mars Sample Return missions in 2018 and onward, benefit from being able to target their precious drilling resources at sites with the best potential astrobiological value.
This opportunity proposes to study and develop a method for real-time localized vibration analysis of drills and excavators for planetary surfaces. We have past experience in detecting and characterizing structural defects and motions using commercially-available Laser Doppler Vibrometers (LDVs) for the automated control of exploratory drilling and for the detection of hidden damage in aerospace structures (fuselage and wing panels). Automation technologies employed will demonstrate hands-off measurement of ground and drill responses, using vibrational dynamical analysis methods.
Field deployments and laboratory tests will provide a rigorous test of fault characterization and ground truth from lightweight permafrost drilling to 2m depth. A goal is to demonstrate realistic systems-level sampling instrument operations in a terrestrial analog environment in order to develop and test the system in a relevant environment and will characterize local strata near/below the drill to a depth of 4-5m. |