NASA Science Technology Development Programs for Ocean Worlds Exploration
Publication: Earth and Space 2022
ABSTRACT
The exploration of ocean worlds such as Europa and Enceladus supports NASA’s goal to search for life and potentially habitable regions elsewhere in the universe, and further promises to help us understand the origins, evolution, and limits of life on Earth. Over the past several years, NASA’s Planetary Science Division has funded several technology development programs to enable future surface and subsurface missions to ocean worlds. These programs include Instrument Concepts for Europa Exploration (ICEE), Concepts for Ocean worlds Life Detection Technology (COLDTech), Scientific Exploration Subsurface Access Mechanism for Europa (SESAME), Applied Information Systems Research: Autonomous Robotics Research for Ocean Worlds (AISR:ARROW), and Astrodynamics in Support of Icy Worlds Missions. Tasks selected under these programs include the development of scientific instruments including seismometers, imagers, spectrometers, and organic analyzers, and platform technologies including drills, melt probes, through-ice communications, radiation-hard electronics, and autonomy for surface operations. This paper describes the objectives of each of these programs and provides a summary of the work that has been completed or is underway in each.
Get full access to this article
View all available purchase options and get full access to this chapter.
REFERENCES
NASA (2020). “Science 2020-2024: A Vision for Scientific Excellence,” https://science.nasa.gov/science-red/s3fs-public/atoms/files/2020-2024_Science.pdf (accessed Dec. 28, 2021).
Neveu, M., Hays, L.E., Voytek, M.A., New, M.H., and Schulte, M.D. (2018). “The Ladder of Life Detection,” Astrobiology, Vol 18, No. 11, pp. 1375–1402. See also https://astrobiology.nasa.gov/research/life-detection/ladder/ (accessed Dec. 28, 2021)
Hendrix, A.R., Hurford, T.A., Barge, L.M., Bland, M.T., Bowman, J.S., Brinckerhoff, W., Buratti, B.J., Cable, M.L., Castillo-Rogez, J., Collins, G.C., Diniega, S., German, C.R., Hayes, A.G., Hoehler, T., Hosseini, S., Howett, C.J.A., McEwen, A.S., Neish, C.D., Neveu, M., Nordheim, T.A., Patterson, G.W., Patthoff, D.A., Phillips, C., Rhoden, A., Schmidt, B.E., Singer, K.N., Soderblom, J.M., and Vance, S.D. (2019). “The NASA Roadmap to Ocean Worlds,” Astrobiology, Vol 19, No. 1, pp. 1–27.
NASA (2012). “Europa Study 2012 Report,” https://europa.nasa.gov/resources/63/europa-study-2012-report/ (accessed Dec. 28, 2021).
NASA (2017). “Seven SMD-supported instruments to search for evidence of life on Europa.” Phys Org, https://phys.org/news/2017-03-smd-supported-instruments-evidence-life-europa.html (accessed Oct. 30, 2021).
NASA (2016). “Europa Lander Study 2016 Report,” https://europa.nasa.gov/resources/58/europa-lander-study-2016-report/ (accessed Dec. 28, 2021)
Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Earth and Space 2022
Pages: 308 - 320
History
Published online: Jan 5, 2023
Authors
Metrics & Citations
Metrics
Citations
Download citation
If you have the appropriate software installed, you can download article citation data to the citation manager of your choice. Simply select your manager software from the list below and click Download.