Usually there is little cross-fertilization between the unmanned mission operations systems and those used for manned spaceflight. Many mission operations systems and tools have been developed over the past decades as NASA has operated the Mars robotic missions, the Space Shuttle, and the International Space Station. NASA Ames Research Center has been developing and applying its advanced intelligent systems research to mission operations tools for both unmanned mars missions operations since 2001 and to manned operations with NASA Johnson Space Center since 2006. In particular, the experience and capabilities developed for mission operations systems for the Mars Exploration Rovers, Phoenix Lander, and 2009 Mars Science Laboratory have enhanced the development and application of advanced mission operation systems for the International Space Station and future Constellation Program spacecraft.
This paper discusses the application of a variety of intelligent systems technologies first demonstrated in the unmanned mission operations venues and then imported and adopted for manned mission operations. We discuss several specific projects between the Ames Research Center and the Johnson Space Center's MissionOperations Directorate, and how these technologies and projects preparing to support the Constellation Program.
I. Mission Operations at NASAASA's Constellation Program (CxP) is the next major step in the exploration of space, and will require the development of many new capabilities including the design of new spacecraft and lunar surface infrastructure, new launch services, and new processes and tools associated with the mission operations support. The mission operations support includes the planning of the CxP missions, the training of the crew and flight control team, and the mission execution. CxP plans to develop a new spacecraft, the Orion Crew Exploration Vehicle (CEV), and a new launch infrastructure, Ares. NASA also plans for the return of humans to the Moon, and the eventual human exploration of Mars. The range and complexity of these exploration missions will require an unprecedented use of automation and robotics in support of human crews. This will require the operations of manned spacecraft in close conjunction with planetary robotic systems.NASA's current space flight missions are largely segmented into unmanned missions funded by the NASA's Science Mission Directorate, and the human spaceflight missions operated by the Spaceflight Operations Mission Directorate. Typically the organizations within NASA that operate the unmanned missions are different from the organizations that operated crewed space systems. The mission operations requirements and needs for the robotic missions have been relatively distinct from those for the Space Shuttle and the International Space Station (ISS).Developing and validating the new exploration spacecraft and its associated infrastructure may place requirements on operations design for near-term explorations (e.g. lunar) missions. Separate mission operations processes-...
