Venus high temperature atmospheric dropsonde and extreme-environment seismometer (HADES)

Abstract

The atmospheric composition and geologic structure of Venus have been identified by the US National Research Council's Decadal Survey for Planetary Science as priority targets for scientific exploration, however the high temperature and pressure at the surface, along with the highly corrosive chemistry of the Venus atmosphere, present significant obstacles to spacecraft design that have severely limited past and proposed landed missions. Following the methodology of the NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts (NIAC) proposal regime and the Collaborative Modeling and Parametric Assessment of Space Systems (COMPASS) design protocol, this paper presents a conceptual study and initial feasibility analysis for a Discovery-class Venus lander capable of an extended-duration mission at ambient temperature and pressure, incorporating emerging technologies within the field of high temperature electronics in combination with novel configurations of proven, high Technology Readiness Level (TRL) systems. Radioisotope Thermal Power (RTG) systems and silicon carbide (SiC) communications and data handling are examined in detail, and various high-temperature instruments are proposed, including a seismometer and an advanced photodiode imager. The study combines this technological analysis with proposals for a descent instrument package and a relay orbiter to demonstrate the viability of an integrated atmospheric and in-situ geologic exploratory mission that differs from previous proposals by greatly reducing the mass, power requirements, and cost, while achieving important scientific goals.

Non-Cooled Power System for Venus Lander

“…5,6,7,8,9,10 However, all of them required the power system to provide cooling to other components of their spacecraft, especially the science package. 11 This study 3 is different in that no cooling will be provided. This assumption is based on use of high § http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/planetary/planets/venuspage.html T Figure 1.…”

“…** This material will survive on the surface of Venus because its maximum temperature limit is 1423 K for long term exposure. It has a thermal conductivity of 0.0435 W/m-K at 1073 K, and a density of 450 kg/m 3 The Microtherm insulation needs to be kept in vacuum in order to function optimally. The carbon dioxide in the atmosphere of Venus will cause the thermal conductivity of the insulation to increase, which is not desired.…”

“…The present study analyzes a power system for a Venus surface lander 3 , consisting of a relay orbiter, a descent package, and a lander. The lander will be designed to live for 1 Venus solar day, or 117 Earth days, which is a significant leap from the survival time of the longest lived lander on the surface of Venus to date.…”

High Temperature Near-Field NanoThermoMechanical Rectification

“…Thermal logic devices 1 can be alternatives to electronic ones, which typically fail in special applications that require high temperatures and ionizing radiation tolerance (e.g., deep-Earth exploration for petroleum and geothermal energies, and the exploration of other planets such as Venus 2 3 4 ). Thermal logic devices exclusively employ heat (instead of electricity) to perform logic operations (i.e., calculations), hence they can be potentially powered by waste heat (~60% of the US energy consumption 5 ).…”