Using a Granular Dynamics Code to Investigate the Performance of a Helical Anchoring System Design

NASA is interested in designing a spacecraft capable of visiting a Near Earth Object (NEO), performing experiments, and then returning safely. Certain periods of this mission will require the spacecraft to remain stationary relative to the NEO. Due to the low gravity, such situations require an anchoring mechanism that is compact, easy to deploy and upon mission completion, easily removed. In the proposed approach, using Chrono::Engine (Tasora 2008; Negrut, Tasora et al. 2011; SBEL 2011), a simulation package capable of utilizing massively parallel GPU hardware, extensive validation experiments will first be performed. A set of parametric studies will concentrate on the simulation of the anchoring system. The outcome of this effort will be a systematic study that considers several different anchor designs, along with a recommendation on which anchor design is better suited to the task of anchoring. The anchors will be tested against a range of parameters relating to soil, environment and anchor penetration angles/velocities on a NEO to better understand their performance characteristics.