Presented by:

Steve Parker Greg Rodgers

Stephen F. Austin State University

Department of Physics and Astronomy

Brief Overview

• Reduced Gravity Student Flight Opportunities Program

• Origin of Project

• Experiences

• Future flights and Research

• Acknowledgements

• Multimedia

Reduced Gravity Student Flight Opportunities Program

(RGSFOP)

• RGSFOP is a program sponsored by NASA and administered by the Texas Space Grant Consortium

• There goal is to prepare “America’s college Students for Research Aboard the INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION”

RGSFOP Homepage

next

• Reduced Gravity Program is operated by NASA

• Based out of Johnson Space Center

• Flights out of Ellington AFB in Houston, Texas and Glenn Research Center in Cleveland, Ohio

• Student Flight Opportunities is flown out of Houston, Texas only

• Fly DC-9 and modified KC-135 aircraft• KC-135 is a converted “tanker” and is a

variant of the Boeing 707• Only KC-135 is flown for Student Flight

Opportunities • “Weightless Wonder V” was built in 1963 and

has used approximately ½ of its parabolic lifespan by time of flight

Flight Operations Web page

• Back

• “The Texas Space Grant Consortium is a group of 34 institutions which include universities, industrial organizations, non-profit organizations, and government agencies within Texas that are joined to ensure that the benefits of space research and technology are available to all Texans.”

• Includes Universities, Colleges, and High Schools

• Administered the RGSFOP for seven years• Contact point for proposals and general

questions relating to student flight opportunities

• Offer grants and scholarships to members of their organization

• Offered SFA a grant to cover travel expenses

• Has recently announced that they will no longer administer the Student Flight Opportunities, but will continue to support their other interests

TSGC HomepageBack

• SFA decided to participate in this program • Sent a team to fly on the KC-135 using the

Atomic Force Microscope (AFM)• Team members:

Steve Parker – Team Contact

Greg Rodgers

Ryan Williams

Ryan Meador

Michael Johnson

Team Web page

Advisor: Dr. Robert Friedfeld

Origin of Project

• A team of four started over two years ago with several ideas– Build own active vibration isolation unit– Build a vacuum chamber– Try Electrodepositing Copper Indium

Diselenide (CuInSe2) onto substrate

– Growing Crystal structures

• Problems with some of the ideas– Active Vibration Isolation systems are

complicated and expensive– Electrodeposition takes 5 to 10 minutes– Time for crystal growth

• Settled on flying and successfully imaging with the AFM and if possible achieving atomic resolution

• Speculated that vibrations from the platform, whether KC-135 or ISS, were a serious problem– Purchased a commercial brand active vibration

platform to correct problem

• Acoustical sounds were a problem– Built a vacuum chamber

• Started with design ideas and improved them – CAD drawings

• Simultaneously started on the paperwork for the Spring 2001 Proposal– Needed to have clear objective/goal– Describe aspects of experiment– Considered safety factors– Weight requirements– Reasons NASA/TSGC should allow for research– Costs– Public Outreach

• First proposal was denied• next

back

• Started on Summer 2001 proposal– Clarified why this would be beneficial for

NASA/TSGC– Clarified objective/goals– Incorporated more safety features and factors– More specific on weights– Better CAD drawings– More elaborate public outreach program

• Continuing to manufacture parts and purchase material for project

• Second proposal was accepted on April 23, 2001

• Test Equipment Data Package (TEDP) was next hurdle– All materials had to be listed (bolts, nuts, frame

structure, etc…)– All voltage and current draws had to be

established– All equipment had to be examined for safety– Everything on assembly must take a 9-g shock– Weight distribution for footprint must not

exceed 200 lbs/ft2

– Involved knowledge of Statics/Dynamics and involved a great deal of calculations

• Collected additional paperwork– Flight physicals– Emergency forms– Visitor information– Flight preference– Journalist Information

• Continued to manufacture and assemble parts, order parts, test ideas and started a dizzying array of checklists

• Problems encountered– TEDP was returned for clarifications– Design elements for frame were not working as

thought or planned• Example:

– Footprint cannot exert more than 200 lbs/ft2

– Design sought was not practical to build

– Had to reconfigure the footprint for optimal load distribution

– Came up with 9 steel bars that are 23 ½ in long by 9 in wide arranged in a ladder box formation

– Example Calculation

• Take 23 ½ in x 2 in = 47 in2

• 9 bars x 47 in2 = 423 in2

• 423 in2 / 144 in2/ft2 = 2.9375 ft2

• Weight of experimental platform is estimated at 500 lbs

• Take 500 lbs / 2.9375 ft2 = 170.2127 lbs/ft2

• This is under the 200 lbs/ft2 maximum set by NASA and will be acceptable for use

– Few parts were not easily found– Time running out

• Corrections were made and final assembly occurred one week before departure to Houston

• Padding was added to frame structure for safety

Padding

Experiences

• Had to travel to Houston area for 11 days– Take all supplies– Brought backup materials– Fortunate that we are located only 3

hours away almost all of the other teams had to fly to Houston and had their projects shipped by truck or air

– Only team to represent Texas until flight days

• Upon arrival at Ellington Field each team had to check in and make sure proper identification was obtained

• For the first couple of days each team had time to setup their experiment and prepare for the Test Readiness Review (TRR)

• This time was also used to socialize with other Universities and Colleges

• We Were present for a welcoming ceremony for recently returning Astronauts

• Attendance to lectures were mandatory– Overall almost an entire day was spent in

classrooms– Everything from the atmosphere to survival

techniques were taught – At the end of the class discussions a test was

given to review the past 3 days• Everyone passed

– Place classroom video here– Place coriolis video here

• A Hyperbaric chamber flight is required for all individuals flying on the KC-135 aircraft

• Individuals spend approximately 90 minutes in the chamber purging their bodies of nitrogen, experiencing first hand the effects of hypoxia and learn how to cope with lack of oxygen

• The chamber simulates the oxygen level at 25,000 ft

• Place chamber video here

• Before any experiment can fly on the KC-135 aircraft it must undergo scrutiny during a Test Readiness Review (TRR)

• Seven individuals ranging from safety engineers to aircraft maintenance personnel review each experiment – They listen to a two minute presentation by a

selected team member– They ask any questions they may have and

then make suggestions on how to make your experiment safer

– Any one of the safety officers can ground a crew

Place video of TRR here

• After each team has completed the chamber flight and passed the TRR they are allowed to load their experiment onto the aircraft

• Each team is allowed two days of flight– For SFA 2 flight team members + 1

journalist flew on day 1 and the remaining 2 flight team members flew on day 2

• A flight lasts from 90 to 120 minutes depending on conditions

• Anywhere from 30 to 40 parabolas are completed during this time

• A parabola starts around 24,000 ft and its vertex is typically near 34,000 ft– Actual flight paths may vary– For August 2, 2001 the “deck”, or lowest

altitude of the parabola, was reported at 7,500 ft!!!!!!

– During the top portion of a parabola weightlessness is achieved

– At the beginning of this maneuver the tail of the plane is “kicked” to allow the plane to regain lift once it starts to dive

Diagrams

• The first parabola is not an easy one– Your body tells you quickly that you should

not be there– People have a tendency to grab on to the

nearest item and hold on for dear life– Insert movie here (Mike)

• After about 3 completed parabolas things begin to get easier

• Some people can adapt well enough to endure the entire flight without getting “sick” or becoming a “kill”

• The voyage can be unpleasant

• Concentrating on your experiment and duties is not as easy as initially thought

• 2-g’s are experienced while the plane pulls out of the dive– A person can be seriously hurt if he/she does

not heed the 5 second “feet down” warning– Moving around during 2-g’s is NOT

recommended– Limit head movements

Future flights and Research

• There is room for improvement

• A few improvements:– Passive vibration isolation to complement

the active vibration system

– Smaller and lighter frame structure

– Better data acquisition • Accelerometer data

– In flight sample change

next

Takeoff Parabolas

Turn Around

MartianLunar

Landing

Accelerometer Data for the Entire Flight

Ups and DownTurn

Around“Weightless”3/8 g “Martian”1/6 g “Lunar”

~2g

Ups and Downs

Zero g

~2 g

Back

• Additional flights are needed– To acquire atomic resolution of a sample– Images– Improve the vibration isolation system– Test more than one sample– Tethered “free float” experiment– To compile a first-rate procedure for operation– To fine tune components for future placement on the

ISS

• Existing structure can be modified and used • Other structures can be built• Other proposals can be made and other

experiments producednext

back

• Other considerations:– Funding – grants, fundraisers and donations– Future teams– Upcoming proposals

• Contacts:– Dr. Robert Friedfeld

• Office – 322 I

• E-mail rfriedfeld@sfasu.edu

– Steve Parker– Ryan Williams

Acknowledgements

• Team members

• Department of Physics and Astronomy– Dr. Harry Downing – Dr. Dan Bruton

• Texas Space Grant Consortium

• NASA Reduced Gravity Program

• Department of Biology

• Bennet Montes and the use of the shop

• Dr. Robert Friedfeld– Show video of plaque and Friedfeld

Multimedia

AudioComputer has a problem

First Parabola anxiety

VideoTake off

Parabola

Apollo 13 Filming

Ryan Meador talking w/ ground

Superman

TRR

Chamber Ride

Twirling Around