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Active TRL 3 (started at 3, targeting 6)
Building on the success of the Mars Ingenuity helicopter technology demonstration mission, NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) is developing new power systems to enable larger, more capable planetary rotorcraft. These innovations will allow the next generation of vehicles to both carry science payloads and fly for longer durations and distances.
Future Mars helicopters will need to carry a significant amount of mass, including scientific instruments, added structural components, and more cabling, batteries, and electronics. This makes executing these missions even more challenging since flight occurs in the very thin Mars atmosphere. To address this challenge, JPL is designing, building and testing a new class of high-efficiency power converters based on a switched capacitor design. This technology will reduce reliance on traditional heavy magnetic components used in power electronics, and support a higher operating voltage, which in turn reduces the mass of the power cables and harnessing on the helicopter.
In parallel, the team is evaluating and developing advanced battery cells that can store more energy and handle higher power levels for a given mass. These new cells feature advanced, higher capacity electrodes as well as custom electrolytes, which are being developed for future battery modules that can be recharged at lower temperatures. This reduces the amount of energy needed to heat the batteries to allowable flight temperatures and allows flights to occur earlier in the Martian morning, when atmospheric conditions are more favorable for flying.
These advancements are crucial for unlocking the full potential of planetary rotorcraft, allowing scientists to explore new areas of Mars and collect vital data that was previously not possible with only ground-based assets such as landers and rovers. With high voltage, higher efficiency converters and higher specific energy and power batteries, much longer flight times can be achieved, with more distance covered per flight.
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