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Advanced battery systems are sought for future NASA Exploration missions to address requirements for safe, human-rated, high specific energy, high energy density, and high efficiency power systems. Possible applications include extravehicular activities, landers, and rovers. Areas of emphasis include advanced cell chemistries with aggressive weight and volume performance improvements and safety advancements over state-of-the-art lithium-based systems.

NASA is developing fission power system technology for future space transportation and surface power applications using a stepwise approach. Early systems are envisioned in the 10 to 100 kWe range that utilize a 900 K liquid metal cooled reactor, dynamic power conversion, and water-based heat rejection. The anticipated design life is 8 to 15 years with no maintenance. Candidate mission applications include initial power sources for human outposts on the moon or Mars, and nuclear electric propulsion systems (NEP) for Mars cargo transport.

Advanced photovoltaic (PV) power generation and enabling power system technologies are sought for improvements in capability and reliability of PV power generation for space exploration missions. Power levels for PV applications may reach 100s of kWe. System and component technologies are sought that can deliver efficiency, cost, reliability, mass and volume improvements under various operating conditions.

The Entry, Descent, and Landing (EDL) Technology includes developments in Thermal Protection Systems (TPS) and Supersonic Retropropulsion (SRP). The Thermal Protection System (TPS) protects a spacecraft from the severe heating encountered during hypersonic flight through a planetary atmosphere. Supersonic Retropropulsion has been identified in past studies to be enabling for putting human-scale payloads on the surface of Mars. Thermal Protection Systems: In general, there are two classes of TPS: reusable and ablative.

The technologies described below support the goal of developing higher performance ablative TPS materials for future Exploration missions. Developments are sought for ablative TPS materials and heat shield systems that exhibit maximum robustness, reliability and survivability while maintaining minimum mass requirements, and are capable of enduring severe combined convective and radiative heating, including: development of acreage (main body, non-leading edge) materials, adhesives, joints, penetrations, and seals. Three classes of materials will be required:

The technologies below support the goal of developing advanced integrated hypersonic entry systems that meet the longer-term goals of realizing larger payload masses for future Exploration missions. Advanced integrated thermal protection systems are sought that address:

The Exploration Systems architecture presents cryogenic storage, distribution, and fluid handling challenges that require new technologies to be developed. Reliable knowledge of low-gravity cryogenic fluid management behavior is lacking and yet is critical for future manned and robotic exploration in the areas of storage, distribution, and low-gravity propellant management. Additionally, Earth-based and planetary surface missions will require success in storing and transferring liquid and gas commodities in applications.

This topic solicits technologies related to cryogenic propellant storage, transfer, and instrumentation to support NASA's exploration goals. Proposed technologies should feature enhanced safety, reliability, long-term space use, economic efficiency over current state-of-the-art, or enabling technologies to allow NASA to meet future space exploration goals. This includes a wide range of applications, scales, and environments consistent with future NASA missions. Specifically:

The SBIR topic area of Radiation Protection focuses on the development and testing of mitigation concepts to protect astronaut crews and exploration vehicles from the harmful effects of space radiation, both in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) and while conducting long-duration missions beyond LEO. Advances are needed in mitigation schema for the next generation of exploration vehicles inclusive of radiation shielding materials and structures technologies to protect humans from the hazards of space radiation during NASA missions.

Advances in radiation shielding materials technologies and systems are needed to protect humans from the hazards of space radiation during NASA missions. The primary areas of interest for this 2011 solicitation are radiation shielding materials systems for long-duration galactic cosmic radiation (GCR) and solar energetic particles (SEP) protection. Neutron protection and high-energy electron protection are also of interest. Research should be conducted to demonstrate technical feasibility during Phase I and to show a path toward a Phase II technology demonstration.