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Completed TRL 6 (started at 6, targeting 6)
The lack of measured flight vibration data for payloads launching on ESPA rings, is preventing Goddard engineers from developing lighter, less expensive, small satellites. The SLAM ESPA Payload will capture and transmit inflight structural loads and vibroacoustic levels encountered by ESPA spacecraft. The SLAM Team will work with NASA's Launch Service Program (LSP) to validate the ESPA flight environment data and potentially update ESPA payload interface requirements. Goddard engineers will use the updated ESPA payload flight environment data to develop mass efficient ESPA payloads. Scientists can use the resources saved by these efficient small satellites, to develop more and/or larger science instruments.
The innovation of SLAM is in applying proven technology to take new measurements on new launch vehicles. The SLAM packaging concept will allow the ESPA Payload to fly on any open ESPA port and will be designed to be compatible over the range of L/V used for NASA payloads. The science community will benefit the most from
these new measurements. The current structural requirements are based on limited flight data and include a lot of conservatism. These new measurements on multiple vehicles, will allow us to update the ESPA spacecraft design requirements. This will let us develop spacecraft that are based on flight data, not conservative models. This should save the science community mass, volume, and costs, and they can use these resources to develop more and/or larger science instruments.
Another innovation of the SLAM system is the payload interface panel (PIP) on the top deck of the SLAM Payload. The SLAM Payload is hard mounted to a port on the ESPA ring, and the PIP panel is a plate on top of the SLAM module. The USSF/Space Test Program (STP) developed the PIP as a standard interface plate for tech demos and prototypes. SLAM, with an instrumented PIP panel, will allow short duration testing of tech demos on most flights of SLAM. In the future, SLAM could fly on a spare ESPA port, to demonstrate technology from NASA/STMD, NASA/SMD, DoD/STP, and other government and commercial organizations.
- Primary – Goddard projects developing rideshare spacecraft will benefit from having a more detailed understanding of the rideshare spacecraft launch environment. The SLAM launch environment data could potentially benefit 1) spacecraft development with less mass and less cost; 2) spacecraft test/qual with lower test requirements (lower risk and less cost); and 3) spacecraft accommodations on rideshare adapters less challenging, less complicated, and less cost.
- Secondary – the frequent flights of the SLAM Payload may benefit Goddard, NASA, and other government organizations by enabling more flight tech demo opportunities. Flying new technology early will position Goddard to win more science proposal by including new capabilities with flight heritage in our proposals.
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