Comparative assessment of human–Mars-mission technologies and architectures

We compare a variety of mission scenarios to assess the strengths and weaknesses of options for Mars exploration. The mission design space is modeled along two dimensions: trajectory architectures and propulsion system technologies. We examine direct, semi-direct, stop-over, semi-cycler, and cycler architectures, and we include electric propulsion, nuclear thermal rockets, methane and oxygen production on Mars, Mars water excavation, aerocapture, and reusable propulsion systems in our technology assessment. The mission sensitivity to crew size, vehicle masses, and crew travel time is also examined. Many different combinations of technologies and architectures are applied to the same Mars mission to determine which combinations provide the greatest potential reduction in the injected mass to LEO. We approximate the technology readiness level of a mission to rank development risk, but omit development cost and time calculations in our assessment. It is found that Earth–Mars semi-cyclers and cyclers require the least injected mass to LEO of any architecture and that the discovery of accessible water on Mars has the most dramatic effect on the evolution of Mars exploration.     

美国新型载人火星探测技术方案

文章概括介绍了＂发现号＂宇宙飞船的布局结构。然后详细介绍了飞船用于火星探测的两种着陆舱的具体设计方案以及载人火星探测的任务剖面。最后分析了＂发现号＂宇宙飞船火星探测方案的关键可行技术和诸多设计优点。     

“凤凰号”火星探测器着陆过程

文章主要介绍了＂凤凰号＂火星着陆器的着陆过程、着陆点选择方法原则、巡航阶段工作任务,对进入（Entry）、下降（Descent）和着陆（Landing）即EDL阶段的蒙特卡罗分析结果和飞行器重建数值结果进行了总结比较。并对＂凤凰号＂相关的经验和教训进行了比较总结,这对中国未来的火星探测以及其他深空探测具有一定的借鉴作用。     

月面巡视探测器行为控制初探

阐述了月面巡视探测器几种行为控制结构的特点,详细阐述了巡视探测器的导航运动控制方式,研究了国外巡视探测器的导航运动控制特点;并以此提出了巡视探测器基于模糊逻辑的分层行为控制模式,举例说明了巡视探测器的行为描述方式。     

A Revisit of the Phobos Events

The magnetic field disturbances detected by the Phobos-2 spacecraft in 1989 have been suggested to be caused by a ring of dust and/or gas emitted from the Martian moon, Phobos. The physical nature of these ``Phobos events' is examined using results from related investigations over the last twenty years. It is concluded that there is no clear evidence at present to support the association of magnetic field disturbances in the solar wind with Phobos. The situation will be further clarified taking advantage of the multi-spacecraft observations of the Yinghuo-1(YH-1), Mars Express and MAVEN missions beginning in 2012. It is expected that many novel features of solar wind interaction with Phobos (and possibly also Deimos) itself will also be revealed.      

梯形齿车轮月面牵引性能的离散元分析

采用离散元法分析梯形齿车轮在月面软土地形的通过性,提出不规则形状颗粒群系统的离散元建模技术,建立车轮牵引性能参数的细观表达式.基于模拟月壤的直剪实验数据,通过反复调试获得最佳土单元模型参数.轮-土作用的离散元分析结果表明:车轮在月壤地形的牵引性能与滑转率和轮齿结构有关,增加滑转率可获得更高的挂钩牵引力,但同时车轮所需的驱动转矩提高;增加轮齿高度可获得更大的土壤推力,但行驶阻力也相应增大;轮齿数量对车轮牵引性能影响较小,但影响车轮在行驶中的平顺性.     

火星探测直接转移轨道精确求解研究

针对火星探测直接转移轨道精确求解问题, 提出了一种快速微分修正算法. 基于二体模型建立控制参数和目标参数偏差关系的数学模型, 并由此求解系统的偏导数矩阵; 采用B平面参数作为中间变量, 对算法进行两层迭代设计, 有效地减少了求解过程中的积分运算次数. 以2018年火星探测机会为例对算法进行了验证, 仿真结果表明, 利用圆锥曲线拼接法得到的轨道初值, 求解一条标准轨道只需6~9次积分迭代. 通过STK对计算结果进行了对比和验证.      

Human response to high-background radiation environments on Earth and in space

The main long-term objective of the space exploration program is the colonization of the planets of the Solar System. The high cosmic radiation equivalent dose rate represents an inescapable problem for the safe establishment of permanent human settlements on these planets. The unshielded equivalent dose rate on Mars ranges between 100 and 200 mSv/year, depending on the Solar cycle and altitude, and can reach values as high as 360 mSv/year on the Moon. The average annual effective dose on Earth is about 3 mSv, nearly 85% of which comes from natural background radiation, reduced to less than 1 mSv if man-made sources and the internal exposure to Rn daughters are excluded. However, some areas on Earth display anomalously high levels of background radiation, as is the case with thorium-rich monazite bearing sand deposits where values 200–400 times higher than the world average can be found. About 2% of the world’s population live above 3 km and receive a disproportionate 10% of the annual effective collective dose due to cosmic radiation, with a net contribution to effective dose by the neutron component which is 3–4 fold that at sea level. Thus far, epidemiological studies have failed to show any adverse health effects in the populations living in these terrestrial high-background radiation areas (HBRA), which provide an unique opportunity to study the health implications of an environment that, as closely as possibly achievable on Earth, resembles the chronic exposure of future space colonists to higher-than-normal levels of ionizing radiation. Chromosomal aberrations in the peripheral blood lymphocytes from the HBRA residents have been measured in several studies because chromosomal damage represents an early biomarker of cancer risk. Similar cytogenetic studies have been recently performed in a cohort of astronauts involved in single or repeated space flights over many years. The cytogenetic findings in populations exposed to high dose-rate background radiation on Earth or in space will be discussed.     

月面巡视探测器动力学建模

动力学模型是研究星球探测车运动的基础。以某月面巡视探测器原理样机为背景,建立了其动力学模型,并进行了数值仿真分析。在说明月壤机械特性的基础上,结合地面车辆力学的知识,分析了松散月壤上刚性车轮的受力,考虑了主动驱动和被动驱动的情形,利用数学拟合的方法得到了满足工程要求的简化模型。在一定假设条件下,以牛顿欧拉法建立了三自由度整车动力学模型,建模时同时考虑了驱动和转向的相互影响。最后,数值仿真结果定性地验证了月面巡视探测器动力学模型的正确性。     

火星探测器使命轨道捕获策略研究

分析了火星探测器使命轨道捕获策略研究需求,给出了三种可用的典型捕获策略,建立了速度纵向平面内的飞行动力学方程,对三种典型策略进行了飞行动力学仿真,给出了各策略完成捕获所需速度增量、任务耗时及过。通过对仿真结果的分析比较,得出研究结论为：直接制动捕获任务耗时及过载较小,但速度增量需求较大;多次穿越后捕获任务耗时较长,但速度增量需求和过载较小;一次穿越后捕获速度增量需求较小且任务耗时较短,但过载较大。