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Completed TRL 4 (started at 3, targeting 4)
cGIANT is an on-board autonomous OpNav tool that was developed to perform state-of-the-art OpNav and image processing on a spacecraft as part of the autoNGC software suite for autonomous operations. It is based on the Goddard Image Analysis and Navigation Tool (GIANT) developed and used by the Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, Security-Regolith Explorer (OSIRIS-REx) mission.
The objective of this IRAD is to develop a new capability in cGIANT for generating bearing measurements to multiple known celestial bodies (planets, moons, asteroids, comets, etc.) in monocular (2D) images. We note here that the bodies that we observe do not need to be (and indeed are generally not) the end target for the spacecraft, instead we can choose any bodies which are visible through our cameras for which we have sufficiently good knowledge of its trajectory. By generating observations of multiple bodies, we can effectively triangulate the location of the spacecraft/camera over time through the use of a filter (like GEONS), enabling us to navigate the spacecraft fully autonomously to its intended destination. This a process that lends itself well to data fusion with other measurement techniques, such as one way forward doppler from the DSN or can stand on its own as the sole measurement type.
CelNav can be both a supporting and enabling technology. It supports by reducing subscription on ground-tracking during interplanetary cruise, freeing up more resources for data downlink for missions already at their intended targets. It can enable for missions where the light time delay between Earth and the spacecraft is too long (or the Earth to spacecraft line of sight is obscured) to support critical operations, such as maneuver design with no ground in the loop (another place where autoNGC excels). It also can enable for smaller mission classes such as SIMPLEX where DSN time is cost prohibitive for tracking use, enabling them to save cost to focus primarily on data downlink.
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