NASA NIAC returns!

[Dr Mordrid]

NIAC is to advanced space science as DARPA is to military mad science - a place for off the hook innovation. NIAC has been in the woods for years, but it looks to be making a comeback....

NASA press release....

NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts (NIAC) Phase I Solicitation Now Open!

NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts (NIAC) Phase I Solicitation Now Open!

The NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts (NIAC) Program seeks to inspire and nurture revolutionary concepts that could transform future aerospace endeavors. NIAC will fund early studies of visionary, long term concepts - aerospace architectures, systems, or missions (not focused technologies). The goal of NIAC is to give visionary ideas a chance. NASA recognizes that concepts to transform the future may come from innovators across the nation, so this exciting program is open to everyone. If you have a revolutionary concept that NASA should consider, you are encouraged to submit a NIAC proposal.

This solicitation NNH11ZUA001N is for NIAC Phase I studies. Typical awards will be up to $100K for a typical duration for up to 1 year. Phase I proposals are limited to 8 pages in length for the science/technical/ management section. Final proposals will be due May 2, 2011. Awards based on this solicitation are contingent on appropriated funds.

NRA Overview

The NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts (NIAC) Phase I studies are focused on early studies of visionary concepts. NASA will seek proposals that align with the agency's Space Technology Roadmaps and NASA's Space Technology Grand Challenges. These must be:

Aerospace architecture, mission, or system concepts

Revolutionary, yet technically substantiated

Very early development (TRL 1-2 or early 3; aiming 10 or more years out)

To further clarify, NASA is explicitly not soliciting NIAC proposals that
Are incremental in nature. There are other programs for continuing research or evolutionary technology development. NIAC seeks breakthrough concepts that could redefine the future possibilities for NASA.

Are narrowly focused. NIAC develops aerospace architecture, mission, or system concepts. The improvement of smaller constituents (e.g., subsystems, components, instruments, materials) alone is not the intent of this program.

Fail to identify a concept or stop short of developing it. The proposal must begin with a clear concept. A literature search, workshop, or research plan may be an interim step, but not an end in itself. The results must then be applied to assess and mature the concept.

Lack an architecture or mission context. Solely performing experiments on fundamental processes, analysis, or theoretical derivations is not sufficient. They must be clearly connected to a concept as described above.

Eligibility

This is an open announcement. NIAC proposals will be welcome from unaffiliated individuals, or those affiliated with any educational institution, commercial or not-for-profit organization, research laboratory, agency, or NASA Center (including JPL). The lead proposer must be a U.S. citizen or working in the U.S., but teaming by non-US organizations will be permitted, subject to NASA’s policy on foreign participation.

Obtain additional programmatic information from:
Dr. Jay Falker, NASA HQ
Email: hq-niac@mail.gov

Full details will be in the NASA Broad Agency Announcement (BAA), which is posted in NSPIRES. One can register in NSPIRES to automatically receive email notification about new solicitations.

[KRSESQ]

ALL RIGHT! Here we go! Time to dust off that old Mars terraforming proposal!

Kevin

[UtwigMU]

It's really sad to see manned space travel regressing worldwide. Obama has canceled Constellation which was to go to the Moon by 2020 and latter to Mars, Shuttle is phased out, what orbital capability is still left in USA now? Seems like Shuttle is the heaviest launcher in existence and you need 50t to LEO for any manned Lunar or Mars missions.

ESA has a cargo ship but is dependent on USA and Russia for ISS modules and Russians only have Soyuz and Progress which were developed in mid 60s. There are some plans for successor to Soyuz but no serious plans for heavier stuff. Chinese and Japanese also space programs but China is about where USA/Russia were in mid 60s (Gemini, Voshod, Soyuz).

[Dr Mordrid]

The shuttle is being retired because a) it's been flying ~16. years longer than planned and b) it's now understood that is unsafe for several reasons, only two of which have manifested themselves.

Constellation (most recent Moon-Mars) was hopelessly expensive, years late and likely to not have its heavy lifter until 2028+, more than 12 years after it was due. As it was $30B had been spend with zero flight hardware even close to being finished - not even the avionocs boxes.

As for no US spacecraft - there may be a 3-4 year gap, but several will fly by then;

SpaceX's Dragon: 7 passengers, capable of LEO and BEO

Sierra Nevada Dream Chaser: 7 passenger LEO

Boeing CST-100: 7-8 passenger LEO

Lockheed Martin Orion: 4-6 passenger LEO and BEO

Orbital Sciences Prometheus: 5 passenger LEO

Dragon is flying its cargo qualification missions; Dream Chaser starts drop tests early next year; the test articles for Orion and CST-100 are immenent; and Prometheus design is near final and test article construction is said to be starting within months.

Dragon has the obvious lead with Dream Chaser and CST-100 very far along and under construction at Boeing Phantom Works (where they build Area 51 stuff)

VERY much a black project rumored to have military and intelligence agencies involved;

Blue Origin New Shepard: 5-6 passenger LEO

[UtwigMU]

There is a book called Problem of travel in space from 1928 which describes large revolving wheel (gravity) space station concept and almost 100 years latter ISS is still not there. It's very detailed: multistage rockets, discussing different rocket propellants, airlocks, using solar mirrors for energy, orbit height, orbital velocities, weightlessness...

I think the problem is in 1960s rocketry and space race was so important mainly for ICBMs and spy satellites, thus earth orbit was perfected very rapidly. Anything else not of strategic importance or seen as too far away for pay-off within a life time had very little funding. Thus based on speed of development Mars landing was predicted in 1985 and lunar bases in 2000.

Since cold war ended (ICBMs are being reduced from Clinton/Yelcin to Obama/Medvedyev) there is much less need for colossal space program. So there are also less civilian byproducts. The rate of unmanned probes such as Pioneer and Voyager and rovers was higher in 1970s than it is now.

There are plans on paper for Moon exploration and mining He3 in Russia, China and USA but until one of them becomes serious and starts launching heavy boosters race won't heat up again. Private funding is also promising but I'm skeptical of manned Mars landing within next 30 years.

Attached illustration of view of space station with it's 3 objects (station, solar mirror, observatory) as seen from space ship 35900km in earth orbit currently in Berlin meridian from 1928 book

[UtwigMU]

Here are two sections of "living wheel" concept from 1928. The wheel revolves around central axis for artificial gravity. The bottom mirror is facing the sun. There are collection mirrors on the outside as well.

[Dr Mordrid]

NASA NAUTILUS-X (CIS-Lunar version) - using Bigelow inflatable habitat tech


Centrifuge detail -