26th August 2013

NASA releases new imagery of asteroid mission

NASA has released new images and a video of its asteroid capture mission planned for the early 2020s.

NASA has released new photos and video animations depicting the agency's planned mission to find, capture, redirect and study a near-Earth asteroid. The images show crew operations including the Orion spacecraft's trip to and rendezvous with the relocated asteroid, as well as astronauts manoeuvring through a spacewalk to collect rock and dust samples.

Part of President Obama's 2014 budget request for NASA, the asteroid initiative aims to capitalise on activities across the agency's human exploration, space technology and science programs. NASA is enhancing its ongoing efforts to identify and characterise near-Earth objects for scientific investigation, and to find potentially hazardous asteroids and other targets appropriate for capture and exploration.

Earlier this month, NASA released a new map showing the orbital paths of more than 1,400 "potentially hazardous asteroids".

The agency is creating an asteroid mission baseline concept to develop further in 2014 to help engineers establish more details about the mission. Meanwhile, engineers and scientists across the agency continue to evaluate several alternatives, as well as ideas from the public, for consideration throughout mission planning.

The asteroid initiative will incorporate advanced solar electric propulsion technology as a power source for spacecraft, offering greater flexibility to the astronauts and mission planners. The mission also leverages the agency's progress on the Space Launch System, Orion spacecraft and other cutting-edge technology developments.

In late July, NASA conducted its asteroid mission formulation review, which brought together agency leaders from across the country to examine internal studies proposing multiple concepts and alternatives for each phase of the mission, and assessed technical and programmatic aspects of the mission. Currently, NASA is assessing more than 400 responses received to a request for information in which industry, universities and the public offered ideas for the initiative.

The agency will be hosting a technical workshop at the Lunar and Planetary Institute in Houston from 30th September to 2nd October to discuss those responses and the potential for new ideas to be incorporated into the mission concept. Virtual participation will be available to the public.

Click to enlarge

Comments »