Solar system

Abstract:

Astrobotic's Peregrine Mission-1 spacecraft experienced a propulsion system anomaly that prevented the lander from reaching the Moon. During the mission, several instruments operated successfully in cis-lunar space. Among them, the Peregrine Ion Trap Mass Spectrometer (PITMS) measured both the presence of outgassing water and nitrogen oxides traceable to the MON-25 oxidizer. We performed Direct Simulation Monte Carlo (DSMC) studies of the oxidizer leak on Peregrine to characterize the gas diffusion from the leak to the instrument, mediated by inter-species collisions and gas–surface interaction. We conclude that the latter process was prevalent and that diffusion paths through Peregrine are necessary to explain the PITMS detections. Our DSMC study and estimation of Peregrine's outgassing rate suggest that, at the early stage of the mission, the spacecraft released water at a rate comparable to the Space Shuttle and at a much larger rate than typical spacecraft during science operations. This provides useful information for planning future operations of science instruments on commercial missions.

Abstract:

The Regolith and Ice Drill for Exploration of New Terrains (TRIDENT) is a 1 m class drill developed for capturing regolith and ice during the Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Rover (VIPER) and the Polar Resources Ice Mining Experiment (PRIME-1) lander missions to the south pole of the Moon. The drill employs decoupled rotation and percussion mechanisms to allow for three modes: rotation, percussion, and rotation–percussion, depending on operational goals and the material strength. TRIDENT can be operated in such a way that it can characterize subsurface material and deliver cuttings to the surface for characterization by other instruments. TRIDENT includes a drill-bit-integrated temperature sensor and an auger-integrated heater with a colocated temperature sensor 35 cm above the bit for thermal conductivity measurement. The heater can also be used in cases of ice adherence (freezing in) and to enhance the sublimation of ice from the cuttings pile. TRIDENT collects and delivers subsurface regolith onto the surface using a “bite” sampling approach: cuttings are captured in the auger flutes, the auger is retracted after drilling a 10 cm bite, and then 10 cm worth of cuttings are deposited onto the surface, forming a cuttings cone. This regolith cone is then analyzed by instruments Mass Spectrometer Observing Lunar Operations (MSOLO) and NIRVSS on the VIPER and MSOLO on the PRIME-1 missions. The drilling activity creates a seismic signal that can be detected on any associated inertial measurement unit that is turned on during the activity, which enables seismic science. TRIDENT represents two decades of technology development for planetary applications and could be deployed on any future missions to other solar system bodies. TRIDENT on the PRIME-1 mission has been successfully deployed in horizontal orientation (this orientation was due to the lander being in an off nominal landing orientation). All actuators, sensors, and heaters worked as designed. Even though the drill did not penetrate regolith, it was covered in regolith that fell onto the drill during the landing operation. VIPER is scheduled to launch to the Moon at the end of 2027 on Blue Origin’s Mk1 lander.

Abstract:

NASA’s VIPER mission was designed to explore the Moon’s south pole region, with a primary objective of identifying and characterising volatile compounds such as water ice. Despite having been fully built and having passed all preflight environmental testing, the mission was cancelled by NASA in 2024 July, and the rover remains in storage. In this paper we outline why it remains crucial that a route to flying this mission, such as that outlined by NASA in 2025 September, is found. These reasons include laying the groundwork for both US and international exploration and habitation of the Moon, the development of the lunar economy, and the eventual goal of human exploration of Mars.

Abstract:

We needed to evaluate available orbital data of NASA’s Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Rover (VIPER) mission area in order to derive a variety of maps to help the science team identify scientifically interesting places for the rover to visit and to provide scientific context for our mission. Some of these maps also fulfilled engineering and mission design needs to enable safe and efficient landing and roving. We incorporated data from the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera, the Lunar Orbital Laser Altimeter, the Mini-RF instrument, the Chandrayaan-2 Orbital High Resolution Camera, the Korean Pathfinder Lunar Orbiter’s Shadowcam, the Kaguya Spectral Profiler and Multiband Imager, and the Chandrayaan-1 Moon Mineralogy Mapper. We used a variety of techniques to build these maps, including stereogrammetry, shape-from-shading, ice stability depth and surface temperature calculations, and the horizon method for solar illumination and direct-to-Earth communications maps. Altogether, these maps allowed us to survey for boulders, evaluate features in permanently shadowed regions that VIPER might explore, provide mineralogic context for what VIPER’s instruments may learn, estimate the ages and radar properties of craters in the VIPER mission area, and evaluate the potential for gravity traverses with the rover. These data and techniques provided a rich set of information from which both the VIPER science team and engineering teams were able to draw in order to plan a safe landing and to plan a VIPER surface mission that will be both scientifically valuable and robust from an operational perspective.