Implemented OSIP ideas — October 2020

Open Discovery Ideas Channel

In October 2020, the following ideas were implemented through the Open Discovery Ideas Channel.

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Strategy of regolith utilisation as radiation protection of human habitats for long duration expeditions to the Moon and Mars

Institut Supérieur de l'Aéronautique et de l'Espace

Earth's magnetic field protects us from harmful galactic cosmic rays and solar particle radiation. Unfortunately astronauts on the Moon or Mars would not benefit from such protection. This research co-sponsorship project will search for integrated solutions for building habitats to protect astronauts against radiation using regolith (the layer of solid material making up a planet/moon's surface) as the main shielding material.

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Adaptive density minimal surfaces: discovery of a new method for the design of integrated structural geometries adapted to a multitude of simultaneous requirements

spherene AG

The advent of metal 3D printing brought a paradigm shift to the design and production of spacecraft components. This early technology development project will investigate a new type of 3D printed metal material that could be used to make extremely stiff but lightweight satellite chassis', novel heat exchangers and rocket structures doubling as internally cooled fuel tanks.

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Health monitoring of dams and bridges under Earth observation and data mining

Politecnico di Milano

Monitoring the health of structures is necessary to prevent catastrophic events and tragic losses. Recently, this has been made possible with images from Earth observation satellites, however it is difficult to do for large structures such as dams and cross-sea bridges. This research co-sponsorship project aims to develop and improve our ability to monitor large structures from space.

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Microgravity-wear

University College London

When in space for long periods of time, astronauts experience bone loss and muscular atrophy. This research co-sponsorship activity will research a suit that astronauts can wear inside a space station for musculoskeletal conditioning.

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Self-healing flexible materials for large inflatable structures

Politecnico di Milano

Inflatable structures such as habitats, airlocks and ballutes will be important for future space exploration. They are efficient to pack, light, and not too expensive to launch. However, in space they face dangers including micrometeoroids, sharp objects, intense radiation and temperature differences. This research co-sponsorship activity will investigate self-healing materials that can enable systems and structures to repair themselves after accidental damage.

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Design and measurement methodologies of high sensitivity sensors for low noise measurement of electromagnetic emissions

University of Cambridge

Detecting extremely low levels of electromagnetic radiation from electronic devices is very challenging due to ambient noise and interference from surrounding electronic devices. This research co-sponsorship activity will investigate the development of novel, sensitive receivers to make this possible.

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Miniaturised distributed optical fibre sensors based on photonic integrated circuits for space applications

Worthy Photonics

Distributed optical fibre sensors can monitor temperature, vibrations and strain, and would be very useful for many space applications. But there is a problem: they require careful, bulky packaging and are sensitive to vibrations, which has so far made them unsuitable for space. This early technology development project will investigate using photonic integrated circuits to bring benefits in size, cost, vibration tolerance and performance.

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Optical cryocooling for space applications

LUMIUM

Sensors on board Earth observation and science missions must be kept very cool to reduce thermal noise. A new cooling technique called optical cryocooling has the potential to enable revolutionary missions, but first, this early technology development activity will demonstrate the potential for further improvements in efficiency and cooling power.

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Solar cogeneration for space: acoustic generator for both heat and electric strategy

Creaspin

Thermoacoustics – the interaction between temperature, density and pressure variations of acoustic waves – could provide an innovative way to create heat and electricity on board a spacecraft. This early technology development project aims to investigate the technique to provide power to satellites and a possible future station on the Moon.

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Analysis of space debris recycling potential to supply raw materials for construction on the Moon

Orbit Recycling

More than 8000 tons of space debris orbit Earth, endangering all space activities. Satellite operators pay more than €14 million a year for evasive manoeuvres and $1 billion in insurance premiums. Through this study, Orbit Recycling seeks to change this by transporting space debris to the Moon where it can be used to build shelter for astronauts.

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Micro incubator biomedical autonomous (MIBA)

SME Dominique Dumas

Conserving, observing and transporting living material such as cells, organs and small animals requires a perfect environment in terms of parameters like temperature, pressure and gravity. There is currently no mobile and autonomous biomedical device that allows incubation and observation in real time. This study aims to further develop the MIBA device to do just this, which could be useful for taking living material to space.

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Radiation-hardened single-chip picosecond time-to-digital converter ASIC

MAGICS Instruments

Earth's magnetic field protects us from cosmic radiation. As electronic components in space do not enjoy such protection, they need to be 'radiation hardened', or made resistant to the damage that can potentially be caused by high levels of ionising radiation. Time-to-digital converters are crucial elements in many space systems, but there are currently no radiation-hardened versions on the market. This early technology development project aims to develop a version resistant to radiation.

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Robust and explainable mission planning and scheduling

University of Strathclyde

Space systems capable of autonomously creating plans from sensing information, or re-planning in response to failures or unexpected events, would greatly improve the scientific return of missions as well as increase system safety. This research co-sponsorship project will bring together the latest research in explainable artificial intelligence and probabilistic planning to equip future spacecraft with robust and interpretable mission planning and scheduling systems.

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Remote Sensing of Plastic Marine Litter

The following ideas were implemented through the OSIP Remote Sensing of Plastic Marine Litter Campaign.

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Can the microbial communities in the oceans help satellites to monitor microplastic pollution?

University of Stirling

Directly identifying microplastics in water is very challenging. This research co-sponsorship activity proposes something different: instead of attempting to identify the presence of microplastics themselves, it will look for the effects of plastic on the microbial environment and, as a consequence, on ocean surface characteristics.

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Thermal infrared sensing of floating plastic litter

North Highland College

For water and plastic at the same temperature, water emits more infrared radiation than plastic. This early technology development activity aims to explore the potential of measuring thermal infrared radiance as a novel remote sensing technology for floating plastic litter.

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Detecting riverine vegetation patches from space as proxy for marine plastic sources

Wageningen University & Research

Rivers are a major source of marine plastic pollution, but most pieces of plastic are too small to be detected from space. However, recent data from the Saigon River in Vietnam show a relation between river plastic and patches of vegetation, which accumulate plastic. These vegetation patches can be detected using images from the Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission; this early technology development project aims to explore whether it is possible to see whether these patches are dominated by vegetation or plastic.

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Enabling Harbour to Harbour Autonomous Shipping

The following idea was implemented through the OSIP Enabling Harbour to Harbour Autonomous Shipping Campaign.

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Driving a quantum ship: A quantum-secured autonomous communication link for autonomous shipping

PICOSATS

The aim of this activity is to perform a feasibility study of a quantum-mediated secure port-ship communication link for autonomous piloting of ships, based on the use of small satellites. Autonomous shipping requires high security to avoid external interference in communication. Only quantum optical communication can provide that security level.

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