Introduction a brief history thoughts behind the program walk through the agenda

1
Introduction - a brief history -
thoughts behind the program - walk through
the agenda

• Firouz Naderi
• Mars Program Manager

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Mars Has Been a Favorite Target

• The opportunity to go to Mars comes around every
  26 months
• Since 1964 US has gone to Mars on nine such
  opportunities often with more than one S/C
• These missions have included several planetary
  first ever

Pathfinder -1997 First Rover on Another Planet
Viking -1975 First Lander on Another Planet
Mariner 4 - 1964 First S/C to Flyby Another
Planet and Send Back Images
Mariner 9 - 1971 First Orbiter Around Another
Planet
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Americas Mars Missions

• 1. Mariner 3 11/64 Flyby Failed LV
• 2. Mariner 4 11/64 Flyby Successful
• 3. Mariner 6 2/69 Flyby Successful
• 4. Mariner 7 3/69 Flyby Successful
• 5. Mariner 8 5/71 Orbiter Failed LV
• 6. Mariner 9 5/71 Orbiter Successful
• 7. Viking 1 (O) 8/75 Orbiter Successful
• 8. Viking 1 (L) 8/75 Lander Successful
• 9. Viking 2 (O) 9/75 Orbiter Successful
• 10. Viking 2 (L) 9/75 Lander Successful
• 11. Mars Observer 9/92 Orbiter Failed
• 12. MGS 11/96 Orbiter Successful
• 13. Mars Pathfinder 12/96 Lander Successful

Since 1964, US has launched 18 Mars missions
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The Road to Mars

• The Early Years
• Mariner 4 (1964) became the first spacecraft to
  fly by Mars
• Mariner 9 (1971) become the first spacecraft to
  orbit another planet
• Viking (1976) sent two orbiter/lander pairs to
  Mars
• Remarkable engineering/technological/scientific
  feat
• 4B in todays dollars
• Aimed specifically at finding life
• Lander instruments aimed at detecting living
  organisms
• When none was found Mars Program was essentially
  shut down

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The Road to Mars (cont.)

• The Revival
• Mars Observer (1992) was NASA's next attempt to
  explore the red planet
• Lost during its orbit insertion.
• This significant loss was an important factor in
  NASAs initiation of the "Faster, Better,
  Cheaper" (FBC) approach
• In 1994, NASA announced the start of the Mars
  Surveyor Program
• Called for launching an orbiter and a lander at
  each 26-month opportunity
• Subsequently as a result of ALH84001 a Mars
  Sample Return mission was added to the program
  with samples of Martian rocks targeted for return
  to Earth by 2008

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The Road to Mars (cont.)

• The Highs and Lows of Mars Surveyor Program
• The Highthe 1996 opportunity
• Mars Pathfinder Mission
• the poster child for FBC
• Technological success, worldwide public
  engagement, good science
• Mars Global Surveyor (MGS)
• A remarkable science success
• More data returned than all previous missions
  combined
• Still going strong in its third extended mission
• The Lowthe 1998 opportunity
• Mars Climate Orbiter (MCO)failed
• Mars Polar Lander (MPL)failed
• Failures were, in parts, blamed on overaggressive
  application of FBC

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The Road to Mars (cont.)

• In the aftermath of the98 mission failures, NASA
  Administrator chartered a senior independent team
  headed by Tom Young
• To assess the root cause of the failures
• Make recommendations to get the Program back on
  track
• New management structure at Hq. and JPL
• Garvin/Hubbard/Naderi join the team in early
  spring
• Near-term charge restructure the program
• Target Fall 2001 budget submission
• First order of business
• Stand down on plans to launch Mars Sample Return
  mission
• 2001 launch opportunity
• Launch the Odyssey orbiter after rigorous review
• Do not proceed with the lander
• MER selected for 2003
• Roadmapping options for 2005, 07, 09 and 11
  involved the community

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Mars Program Restructuring Summer of 2000

• Broad Outreach and Data Gathering
• RFI to industry (100 responses from 40
  companies)
• Mars Exploration workshop at LPI for new concepts
  by individual researchers (200 abstracts)
• Concepts requested from NASA Centers (9
  responded)
• Call for concepts from International Community (7
  responses)
• Science Goals, and prioritization of Objectives
  and Investigations by science community (MEPAG)
• Synthesis
• Two synthesis retreats conducted with the Mars
  community to arrive at mission options
• August 2000 retreat 64 attendees
• September finalization retreat 18 attendees

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Participants in August 2000 Mars Program
Restructuring Retreat
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Review of the Restructured Program-- Fall 2000

• Program Review and Roll out
• Review with Tom Young Committee Oct. 10-11
• Briefing to Goldin
• Discussions with OMB, OSTP
• External reviews with advisory committees in
  Nov./Dec.
• SSES, SSAC, NAC, COMPLEX

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Missions as They Were in Fall of 2000
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Key Changes Since Fall of 2000

• In Fall of 2001 MSL was moved from 2007 to 2009
  so as to allow
• Make available funds to address needs by MER
• Agency desire to incorporate nuclear power source
• Long life, latitude independence, rejuvenate
  nuclear space application
• Allow more time between MRO and MSL to take full
  advantage of MRO mapping
• Allow more time for critical analytical
  instruments to mature
• International participation did not pan out
• Italian participation in Mars 2007 Telesat
  rescinded
• A U.S. only Mars telesat (MTO) replaced it in
  2009
• Partnership with French on MSR did not happen
• MSR as currently envisioned entails both lander
  and orbiter provided by NASA

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Mars Exploration Missions
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Mars Program An Interconnected Set Of Missions
2009 Orbiter
2007 CNES Orbiter
Atmosphere Monitoring for Aerobreaking
96 MGS
Aerobraking
Aerobraking
2001 Odyssey
2009 MTO
Rendezvous Capture
Regional Imaging
Landing Site Options
2005 MRO
Com Relay
2013 MSR
Com Relay
Com Relay
Com Relay
Com Relay
2003 MER
Landing Site Selection
EDL System Mobility
In Situ Science
2009 Smart Laboratory
In Situ Science
96 Mars Pathfinder
MAV, Sample Containment
EDL System
Mars Scouts
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Technology Pipeline
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Paving the Road to Mars Sample Return
MRO

• Optical Navigation
• Site Survey
• Com. Relay

MTO
MSR
MTO

• Autonomous Rendezvous
• Com. Relay

MSL
MSL

• Guided Entry
• Precision Landing
• Potential Caching

SOM
SOM-L

• Pinpoint Landing

MTP

• Mars Ascend Vehicle
• Planetary Protection

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A Thought Process

• Science Objectives of the Mars Exploration
  Program
• Search for possible extinct or extant life
• Understand Mars as a Planet
• Climate
• Geology
• Characterize the environment for potential human
  exploration

• In recent years search for life has become the
  focal point
• It can be decomposed into 2 questions

• Did Mars ever have conditions necessary for
  emergence of life?
• If so, did life ever emerge on Mars?

• Where to look?
• Once zeroed in on a site how to look for life?

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Where to Look?

• Mars is a large planet (as much land surface as
  the Earth) and our resources are limited. Where
  on Mars should we look for an answer?

• Look in areas with High Habitability Potential
• Areas that have several elements considered
  necessary for life
• Key
• Water where it might have been and, where it
  might be now
• Complex carbon chemistry

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A Thought Process How to Look

• Once you have identified target areas with high
  habitability potential how do you look for life

• Look for the Organisms directly
• Structure?
• Chemical biosignatures?
• Life effects on environment e.g methane
• Life residues e.g complex carbon molecules
• Others?

• How Would you go about it?
• Robotic In-situ?
• Sample Return?
• Humans?

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Elements of a Program

• Orbital reconnaissance
• Macroscopic exploration
• Global context
• Compass for the landed explorers
• Landed explorers,
• Microscopic follow through
• Ground truth for orbiters observations
• Sample return
• More accurate analysis in Earth laboratories

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A Thought ProcessHow to Structure a Program

• How do you structure a program that walks (runs?)
  through these steps?

• Linear/step by step/systematic
• Does one worry about the stamina/attention
  span/patience of the public and resource
  providers if the process takes too long?
• Forget about the bunt single Swing for the
  fences
• How many strikes are you allowed?
• A hybrid approach?

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Identifying Areas with High Potential for
Habitability
Orbital Reconnaissance
Next Decade
MGS
MRO
Odyssey
AFL
Deep Drill
This Decade
Follow up In-situ Investigation (and Ground
Truth)
MSR
Phoenix
MSL
MER
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Connection to Human Exploration?

• Question
• Has the announcement of the new vision for space
  exploration changed the objectives of robotic
  Mars exploration program?
• Has it changed the implementation strategy
  pace? Order?

• How do you couple the science driven robotic
  program with the emerging human program?
• What are the elements of each program that can be
  leveraged against the assets of the other?

• How do you feed forward science/technology/enginee
  ring
• Between robotic and human missions
• What will scale?
• What requires technological paradigm shift?

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An Example of Evolving Technology
Space Mirror Technology
250
300
200
Areal Density - kg/m2
100
35
15
5-1
1980
2010
1990
2000
AMSD Objective
LTSI Objective
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ScalabilityLander Mass at Mars Atmospheric Entry

• Human missions will require landed masses in the
  tens of tons

Reference Point 6 crew, 60 days 500 x 33,572
km 82,800 kg
90 100 mt
70 - 80 mt
Lander Aerobrake Mass (tons)
50 - 60 mt
Number of Crew Days on Mars Surface
Mars Circular Staging Orbit Altitude (km)
Courtesy J. Geffre/JSC
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What You Will and Not Hear Today
Advanced Program Integration Office (APIO)
Mars Human Robotic Roadmap
Lunar Roadmap
Launch Vehicle Roadmap
?
Mars Human Roadmap
Mars Robotic Roadmap
?
Past Studies
?
Potential Bridges