THERE CURRENTLY EXISTS NO END-TO-END REACTOR/POWER CONVERSION MONITORING SYSTEM THAT CAN PROVIDE BOTH AUTON…

Public award description

THERE CURRENTLY EXISTS NO END-TO-END REACTOR/POWER CONVERSION MONITORING SYSTEM THAT CAN PROVIDE BOTH AUTONOMOUS HEALTH MONITORING, BUT ALSO IN-SITU SENSOR CALIBRATION AND RESPONSE TIME TESTING WITHOUT HUMAN INTERFACE. ONE OF THE KEY CHALLENGES FACING SPACE NUCLEAR POWER SYSTEMS IS THEIR EXTREMELY REMOTE LOCATION AND REQUIREMENT FOR MULTI-YEAR MISSIONS. THE CURRENT BENCHMARK SYSTEM HAS A MISSION LIFE OF AT LEAST 8 YEARS DURING WHICH TIME THERE IS NO OPPORTUNITY FOR REPAIR, SENSOR CALIBRATIONS, OR ANY MAINTENANCE OF ANY KIND. BY CONTRAST, TERRESTRIAL-BASED NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS UNDERGO PERIODIC OUTAGES DURING WHICH TIME SENSOR CALIBRATIONS CAN BE PERFORMED. CURRENT TECHNOLOGY RELIES HEAVILY ON REAL-TIME HUMAN INTERACTION, MONITORING AND CONTROL. DUE TO THE LONG COMMUNICATION TIMES BETWEEN THE EARTH AND MOON, OR MARS, REAL-TIME HUMAN CONTROL IS NOT POSSIBLE. THEREFORE, THESE EMERGING PROGRAMS HAVE A CRITICAL NEED TO DEVELOP AUTONOMOUS HEALTH MONITORING AND CONTROL TECHNOLOGY.