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Investigating Ground Interactions Of A Rotocraft Landing Vehicle On Titan, Adam Rozman
Investigating Ground Interactions Of A Rotocraft Landing Vehicle On Titan, Adam Rozman
Honors Undergraduate Theses
The exploration of celestial bodies has recently advanced from rovers to rotorcraft. This includes the recent flights of Mars Ingenuity and the upcoming Dragonfly mission to explore the terrain of Saturn’s moon Titan as part of NASA’s New Frontiers Program. Flight-based landers can travel quickly to sites kilometers apart and land in complex terrain. Although cruise conditions for these rotorcrafts are well understood, studies are necessary to understand take-off and landing. In ground effect conditions, a rotor wake impinges and reflects off the ground, creating changes in aerodynamics such as increased lift. Additionally, operating over loose surfaces, the rotors can …
Molten Regolith Electrolysis Processing For Lunar Isru: Financial And Physics Analysis Of Spacex Starship Transportation, Cheyenne Harper
Molten Regolith Electrolysis Processing For Lunar Isru: Financial And Physics Analysis Of Spacex Starship Transportation, Cheyenne Harper
Honors Undergraduate Theses
The purpose of the following research is to explore molten regolith electrolysis (MRE) methodology for in-situ resource utilization (ISRU) of Highlands lunar regolith, to be explored during the initial Artemis missions. An analysis of potential commercial launch providers for MRE-equipment based on technology-readiness level (TRL), payload mass support, and $ USD/kg payload price is provided. SpaceX is ultimately proposed as a launch provider of MRE equipment following multi-factorial analysis, with the SpaceX Starship human landing system (HLS) variant proposed for supporting MRE payload. Finally, customers of regolith-derived oxygen, aluminum, and silicon are distinguished to form the business case for operating …