Edmund Optics (Barrington, NJ) has increased the company’s capacity to make complex coatings with more than 100 layers by adding a new 45-in. diameter Vacuum Process Technology coating chamber. The coatings can be applied to many categories of catalog parts, including polarizers, laser mirrors, short wave pass and...

A report discusses a proposed system for mounting loaded pallets in the cargo bay of a next-generation space-shuttle-like spacecraft, such that the center of mass of the cargo would lie within a 1-in. (2.54- cm) cube that would also contain the center of mass of the spacecraft. The system...

A NOBOSS stands in contrast to compressed- gas and cryogenic air-supply systems. Compressed-gas systems necessarily include massive tanks that can hold only relatively small amounts of gases. Alternatively, gases can be stored compactly in greater quantities and at low pressures when they...

A document discusses a proposal to incorporate holographic optical elements into solar photon thrusters (SPTs). First suggested in 1990, SPTs would be systems of multiple reflective, emissive, and absorptive surfaces (solar sails) that would be attached to spacecraft orbiting the Earth to derive small...

A report presents a concept for an instrument to be flown in outer space, where it would detect dust particles — especially those associated with comets. The instrument would include a flat plate that would intercept the dust particles. The anticipated spacecraft/dust-particle relative...

According to a proposal, a phenomenon associated with excitation of quasiparticles in certain superconducting quantum devices would be exploited as a means of detecting photons with exquisite sensitivity. The phenomenon could also be exploited to perform medium-resolution spectroscopy. The proposal...

A prototype external-cavity diode laser (ECDL) has been developed for communication systems utilizing dense wavelength- division multiplexing (DWDM). This ECDL is an updated version of the ECDL reported in “Wavelength-Agile External-Cavity Diode Laser” (LEW- 17090),

The education and training module (ETM) in alertness management has now been integrated as part of the training regimen of the Pilot Proficiency Awards Program ("WINGS") of the Federal Aviation Administration. Originated and now maintained current by the Fatigue Countermeasures Group at NASA...

A short report discusses a methodology for designing Ka-band Deep-Space-to-Earth radio-communication links. This methodology is oriented toward minimizing the effects of weather on the Ka-band telecommunication link by maximizing the expected data return subject to minimum link...

“Methane to aromatics on Mars” (“METAMARS”) is the name of a process originally intended as a means of converting Martian atmospheric carbon dioxide to aromatic hydrocarbons and oxygen, which would be used as propellants for spacecraft to return to Earth. The process has...

A computer program performs level-2 processing of thermal- microwave-radiance data from observations of the limb of the Earth by the Earth Observing System (EOS) Microwave Limb Sounder (MLS). The purpose of the processing is to estimate the composition and temperature of the atmosphere versus altitude from ≈8...

A computer program implements the Earth side of the protocol that governs the transfer of data files generated by the Mars Exploration Rovers. It also provides tools for viewing data in these files and integrating data-product files into automated and manual processes. It reconstitutes...

A computer program uses data from more than 1,000 Global Positioning System (GPS) receivers in an Internetaccessible global network to generate daily estimates of the global distribution of vertical total electron content (VTEC) of the ionosphere. This program supersedes an older...

The New Millennium Program Space Technology 6 Project Autonomous Sciencecraft software implements an integrated system for autonomous planning and execution of scientific, engineering, and spacecraft- coordination actions. A prior version of this software was reported in "The TechSat 21 Autonomous...

The final version (3.0) of the Montage software has been released. To recapitulate from previous NASA Tech Briefs articles about Montage: This software generates custom, science-grade mosaics of astronomical images on demand from input files that comply with the Flexible Image Transport System (FITS) standard and contain...

Aurora is a software system enabling the rapid, easy solution of complex scheduling problems involving spatial and temporal constraints among operations and scarce resources (such as equipment, workspace, and human experts). Although developed for use in the International Space Station...

A computer program automatically builds large, full-resolution mosaics of multispectral images of Earth landmasses from images acquired by Landsat 7, complete with matching of colors and blending between adjacent scenes. While the code has been used extensively for Landsat, it could also be used for other data...

Software featuring a multilevel architecture is used to control the hardware on the K9 Rover, which is a mobile robot used in research on robots for scientific exploration and autonomous operation in general. The software consists of five types of modules:

Device Drivers — These modules, at the...

Additional information about a mathematical model denoted the high-fidelity generalized method of cells (HFGMC) and implementation of the HFGMC within version 4.0 of the MAC/GMC software has become available. MAC/GMC (Micromechanics Analysis Code With Generalized Method of Cells) was a topic of several prior NASA...

The MPLM Automated Activation/Deactivation application (MPLM means Multi-Purpose Logistic Module) was created with a three-fold purpose in mind:

To reduce the possibility of human error in issuing commands to, or interpreting telemetry from, the MPLM power, computer, and...

A programmable pulse-position- modulation (PPM) encoder has been designed for use in testing an optical communication link. The encoder includes a programmable state machine and an electronic code book that can be updated to accommodate different PPM coding schemes. The encoder includes a...

A document discusses selected aspects of a continuing effort to develop five micro-imagers for both still and video monitoring of cell cultures to be grown aboard the International Space Station. The approach taken in this effort is to modify and augment pre-existing electronic micro- cameras....

According to a proposal, a phenomenon associated with excitation of quasi- particles in certain superconducting quantum devices would be exploited as a means of detecting photons with exquisite sensitivity. The phenomenon could also be exploited to perform medium-resolution spectroscopy. The...

A prototype external-cavity diode laser (ECDL) has been developed for communication systems utilizing dense wavelength-division multiplexing (DWDM). This ECDL is an updated version of the ECDL reported in “Wavelength-Agile External-Cavity Diode Laser” (LEW-17090), NASA Tech Briefs, Vol....

A method of heat treatment has been developed to reverse some of the deleterious effects of friction stir welding of plates of aluminum alloy 7050. This alloy is considered unweldable by arc and high-energy-density beam fusion welding processes. The alloy can be friction stir welded,...

Application Designer v3.0 from Liekki (Lohja, Finland) is a simulation and design software environment for fiber lasers and amplifiers with new transient analysis capability. The software provides the ability to simulate the dynamic regime and transients of active components and new components such as time-dependent...

SensL (Blackrock, Ireland) has developed the PCDMini, a miniature photon counting system for applications in biosciences, astronomy, and remote sensing. The PCDMini is a printed circuit board with hermetically sealed detector. The basic unit features quenching architecture and is available with a number of optional snap-on...