Combined artificial star, temperature lidar and magnetometer

The objective of the project is to develop and field a combined artificial star, temperature lidar and magnetometer system. The goal is make a prototype of a low-cost portable system. This is both a mission concept maturation and technology maturation for risk reduction. The time horizon for getting mission/customer funding for infusion is FY2018 - 2020. The customers/applications are 1) NASA HQ optical communication 2) NASA astronomy/astrophysics 3) NASA Earth/Planetary magnetometry 4) NASA Heliophysics Earth Mesosphere Science 5) US Air Force. All of these will lead to 1) a transportable combined communication/science ground facility 2) groundwork for spaceflight missions. The innovative elements are:

1. New GGAO optical communication ground station (funded via FY18 Technical Facilities Resource funds). Work is underway for the concrete pad, concrete telescope pedestal, dome, and equipment trailer. Gimballed telescope and fine steering mirror are in-hand. The artificial star allows real-time correction for atmospheric turbulence using adaptive optics.
2. New patent-pending (Case: GSC-18045-1) pulsed Raman laser[1].
3. R&D leverage from NASA Heliophysics proposed mission – Atmospheric, Coupling and Dynamics across the Mesosphere (ACaDaMe). This includes sodium lidar system design, laser frequency-locking and narrow-band etalon receivers.
4. R&D leverage from remote magnetometry NASA Minority University (Delaware State) grant: https://oscar.desu.edu/uncategorized/dr-renu-tripathi-receives-727691-nasa-research-grant
5. The wavelength is 589 nm.

The work plan is: 1) Demonstrate high-power, single-frequency (>2 W) Nd:YVO4/GdYVO4 Raman laser operating at Na resonance (D2 line = 589 nm wavelength) - with diode laser injection seeder that is frequency locked to a sodium gas cell; 2) Engineer and construct a robust version of 1); 3) Transport and operate at the Goddard Geophysical and Astronomical Observatory (GGAO) 4) Construct the remainder of the guide-star/lidar/magnetometer transmit and receive optics and optical receiver 5) Operate the guide-star guide-star/lidar/magnetometer 6) Operate system with an adaptive optics receiver.

[1] “Progress on Raman laser for sodium resonance fluorescence lidar” Steven Li ; Anthony Yu ; Michael Krainak ; Yingxin Bai ; Oleg Konoplev ; Molly Fahey ; Kenji Numata Proc. SPIE. 10511, Solid State Lasers XXVII: Technology and Devices

The "payoff" - 1) a transportable communication/science ground facility 2) groundwork for spaceflight missions - is to both GSFC science and engineering and to the US Air Force.

The application areas that benefit are: 1) Optical free-space communication – adaptive-optics enhancement for large telescope receiver optical-ground-stations for Exploration, 2) Enhanced-imaging for orbital debris tracking for Exploration, 3) Astronomy - artificial star for ground observations, 3) Earth/Planetary magnetometry – remote Larmor magnetometry, 4) Heliophysics Earth Mesosphere Science – stand-alone & cal/val for ACaDaMe – temperature lidar on ISS, 5) US Air Force – artificial star and lidar

The return on investment is for optical communication funding to the center the NASA Space Network GRound Optical Operational Testbed (GROOT) program was proposed in the Communication and Navigation budget PPBE20 overguide (potentially several $M per year to Goddard). This will provide strategic positioning for the near-future optical Tracking and Data Relay Satellite System (TDRS).

This is early/mid-stage (TRL 4) — the most realistic path in is NASA SBIR/STTR, which funds small businesses and research institutions to develop technology aligned with NASA's needs (equity-free, phased funding). Check whether a current SBIR/STTR solicitation topic overlaps with this project's technology area, or contact the project directly (above) to ask.

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