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By NASA
4 min read
Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)
NASA’s Athena Economical Payload Integration Cost mission, or Athena EPIC, is a test launch for an innovative, scalable space vehicle design to support future missions. The small satellite platform is engineered to share resources among the payloads onboard by managing routine functions so the individual payloads don’t have to.
This technology results in lower costs to taxpayers and a quicker path to launch.
Fully integrated, the Athena EPIC satellite undergoes performance testing in a NovaWurks cleanroom to prepare the sensor for launch. The optical module payload element may be seen near the top of the instrument with the single small telescope.NovaWurks “Increasing the speed of discovery is foundational to NASA. Our ability to leverage access to innovative space technologies across federal agencies through industry partners is the future,” said Clayton Turner, Associate Administrator for Space Technology Mission Directorate at NASA headquarters in Washington. “Athena EPIC is a valuable demonstration of the government at its best — serving humankind to advance knowledge with existing hardware configured to operate with new technologies.”
The NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) and the U.S. Space Force are government partners for this demo mission. Athena EPIC’s industry partner, NovaWurks, provided the space vehicle, which utilizes a small satellite platform assembled with a Hyper-Integrated Satlet, or HISat.
Engineers at NovaWurks in Long Beach prepare to mount the optical payload subassembly (center, silver) consisting of the payload optical module and single telescope mounted between gimbals on each of two HISats on either side of the module which will allow scanning across the Earth’s surface.NovaWurks The HISat instruments are similar in nature to a child’s toy interlocking building blocks. They’re engineered to be built into larger structures called SensorCraft. Those SensorCraft can share resources with multiple payloads and conform to different sizes and shapes to accommodate them. This easily configurable, building-block architecture allows a lot of flexibility with payload designs and concepts, ultimately giving payload providers easier, less expensive access to space and increased maneuverability between multiple orbits.
Scientists at NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia, designed and built the Athena sensor payload, which consists of an optical module, a calibration module, and a newly developed sensor electronics assembly. Athena EPIC’s sensor was built with spare parts from NASA’s CERES (Clouds and the Earth’s Radiant Energy System) mission. Several different generations of CERES satellite and space station instruments have tracked Earth’s radiation budget.
“Instead of Athena carrying its own processor, we’re using the processors on the HISats to control things like our heaters and do some of the control functions that typically would be done by a processor on our payload,” said Kory Priestley, principal investigator for Athena EPIC from NASA Langley. “So, this is merging an instrument and a satellite platform into what we are calling a SensorCraft. It’s a more integrated approach. We don’t need as many capabilities built into our key instrument because it’s being brought to us by the satellite host. We obtain greater redundancy, and it simplifies our payload.”
The fully assembled and tested Athena EPIC satellite which incorporates eight HISats mounted on a mock-up of a SpaceX provided launch pedestal which will hold Athena during launch.NovaWurks This is the first HISat mission led by NASA. Traditional satellites, like the ones that host the CERES instruments — are large, sometimes the size of a school bus, and carry multiple instruments. They tend to be custom units built with all of their own hardware and software to manage control, propulsion, cameras, carousels, processors, batteries, and more, and sometimes even require two of everything to guard against failures in the system. All of these factors, plus the need for a larger launch vehicle, significantly increase costs.
This transformational approach to getting instruments into space can reduce the cost from billions to millions per mission. “Now we are talking about something much smaller — SensorCraft the size of a mini refrigerator,” said Priestley. “If you do have failures on orbit, you can replace these much more economically. It’s a very different approach moving forward for Earth observation.”
The Athena EPIC satellite is shown here mounted onto a vibration table during pre-launch environmental testing. The optical payload is located at the top in this picture with the two solar arrays, stowed for launch, flanking the lower half sides of the satellite.NovaWurks Athena EPIC is scheduled to launch July 22 as a rideshare on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenberg Space Force Base, California. The primary NASA payload on the launch will be the TRACERS (Tandem Reconnection and Cusp Electrodynamics Reconnaissance Satellites) mission. The TRACERS mission is led by the University of Iowa for NASA’s Heliophysics Division within the Science Mission Directorate. NASA’s Earth Science Division also provided funding for Athena EPIC.
“Langley Research Center has long been a leader in developing remote sensing instruments for in-orbit satellites. As satellites become smaller, a less traditional, more efficient path to launch is needed in order to decrease complexity while simultaneously increasing the value of exploration, science, and technology measurements for the Nation,” added Turner.
For more information on NASA’s Athena EPIC mission:
https://science.nasa.gov/misshttps://science.nasa.gov/mission/athena/ion/athena/
About the Author
Charles G. Hatfield
Science Public Affairs Officer, NASA Langley Research Center
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Last Updated Jul 18, 2025 ContactCharles G. Hatfieldcharles.g.hatfield@nasa.govLocationNASA Langley Research Center Related Terms
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By NASA
4 Min Read Stay Cool: NASA Tests Innovative Technique for Super Cold Fuel Storage
The tank for NASA’s two-stage cooling tests is lowered into a vacuum chamber in Test Stand 300 at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama. Credits: NASA/Kathy Henkel In the vacuum of space, where temperatures can plunge to minus 455 degrees Fahrenheit, it might seem like keeping things cold would be easy. But the reality is more complex for preserving ultra-cold fluid propellants – or fuel – that can easily overheat from onboard systems, solar radiation, and spacecraft exhaust. The solution is a method called cryogenic fluid management, a suite of technologies that stores, transfers, and measures super cold fluids for the surface of the Moon, Mars, and future long-duration spaceflight missions.
Super cold, or cryogenic, fluids like liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen are the most common propellants for space exploration. Despite its chilling environment, space has a “hot” effect on these propellants because of their low boiling points – about minus 424 degrees Fahrenheit for liquid hydrogen and about minus 298 for liquid oxygen – putting them at risk of boiloff.
In a first-of-its-kind demonstration, teams at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, are testing an innovative approach to achieve zero boiloff storage of liquid hydrogen using two stages of active cooling which could prevent the loss of valuable propellant.
“Technologies for reducing propellant loss must be implemented for successful long-duration missions to deep space like the Moon and Mars,” said Kathy Henkel, acting manager of NASA’s Cryogenic Fluid Management Portfolio Project, based at NASA Marshall. “Two-stage cooling prevents propellant loss and successfully allows for long-term storage of propellants whether in transit or on the surface of a planetary body.”
The new technique, known as “tube on tank” cooling, integrates two cryocoolers, or cooling devices, to keep propellant cold and thwart multiple heat sources. Helium, chilled to about minus 424 degrees Fahrenheit, circulates through tubes attached to the outer wall of the propellant tank.
NASA’s two-stage cooling testing setup sits in a vacuum chamber in Test Stand 300 at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama. NASA/Tom Perrin The tank for NASA’s two-stage cooling tests is lowered into a vacuum chamber in Test Stand 300 at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama.NASA/Kathy Henkel The tank for NASA’s two-stage cooling tests is lowered into a vacuum chamber in Test Stand 300 at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama. NASA/Kathy Henkel The tank for NASA’s two-stage cooling tests is lowered into a vacuum chamber in Test Stand 300 at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama. NASA/Kathy Henkel Teams installed the propellant tank in a test stand at NASA Marshall in early June, and the 90-day test campaign is scheduled to conclude in September. The tank is wrapped in a multi-layer insulation blanket that includes a thin aluminum heat shield fitted between layers. A second set of tubes, carrying helium at about minus 298 Fahrenheit, is integrated into the shield. This intermediate cooling layer intercepts and rejects incoming heat before it reaches the tank, easing the heat load on the tube-on-tank system.
To prevent dangerous pressure buildup in the propellant tank in current spaceflight systems, boiloff vapors must be vented, resulting in the loss of valuable fuel. Eliminating such propellant losses is crucial to the success of NASA’s most ambitious missions, including future crewed journeys to Mars, which will require storing large amounts of cryogenic propellant in space for months or even years. So far, cryogenic fuels have only been used for missions lasting less than a week.
“To go to Mars and have a sustainable presence, you need to preserve cryogens for use as rocket or lander return propellant,” Henkel said. “Rockets currently control their propellant through margin, where larger tanks are designed to hold more propellant than what is needed for a mission. Propellant loss isn’t an issue with short trips because the loss is factored into this margin. But, human exploration missions to Mars or longer stays at the Moon will require a different approach because of the very large tanks that would be needed.”
The Cryogenic Fluid Management Portfolio Project is a cross-agency team based at NASA Marshall and the agency’s Glenn Research Center in Cleveland. The cryogenic portfolio’s work is under NASA’s Technology Demonstration Missions Program, part of NASA’s Space Technology Mission Directorate, and is comprised of more than 20 individual technology development activities.
Learn more about cryogenic fluid management:
https://go.nasa.gov/cfm
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Last Updated Jul 18, 2025 EditorLee MohonContactCorinne M. Beckingercorinne.m.beckinger@nasa.govLocationMarshall Space Flight Center Related Terms
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By NASA
3 min read
Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)
The Israel-Premier Tech team racing in the 2025 Tour de France uses Ekoï clothing and equipment, including products made with Outlast – a material developed with NASA’s assistance.Credit: Ekoï During the Tour de France, athletes have to maintain a constant speed while bike riding for dozens of miles through cold rains and summer heat. These cyclists need gear that adapts to the different environments they encounter. One company is using a material with NASA origins to ensure these athletes stay comfortable while taking their grand tours.
Phase-change materials use basic properties of matter to maintain a steady temperature. When a substance melts from a solid to a liquid, the material absorbs heat, and when it becomes solid again, it releases that heat. In the 1980s, Triangle Research Corporation received a NASA Small Business Innovation Research award to explore how phase-change materials could be incorporated into textiles to control temperatures in spacesuit gloves. By placing phase-change materials in small capsules woven throughout a textile, these temperature-regulating properties can be tuned to the comfort of the human body. While these textiles weren’t incorporated into any gloves flown on NASA missions, they formed the basis for a new product, sold under the name Outlast.
Outlast has since become one of the most widely distributed temperature-regulating fabrics, found in products such as bedding, loungewear, and office chairs. It has seen especially extensive use in activewear, ranging from jogging clothes to professional sports gear.
Founded in 2001 and based in Fréjus, France, the company Ekoï makes clothing and accessories for cyclists, particularly those who bike competitively. The company first encountered Outlast at the Performance Days fabric trade fair in Munich, Germany, and was impressed with its capabilities as well as its NASA heritage.
“When you say NASA, it’s always impressive.” said Celine Milan, director of textiles at Ekoï. “At the beginning we were even saying in here in our offices, ‘Wow, this technology was developed by NASA.’ It’s on another level.”
Ekoi’s Outlast line officially launched in July 2022, during that year’s Tour de France. Over the course of that race, the company found it improved cyclists’ performance in the event’s mountain stages, where elevation changes mean wide swings in temperature. It also improved athletes’ aerodynamics, as their jerseys could stay closed in warmer environments, rather than opening them to let in wind.
Today, Ekoï sells several products that incorporate Outlast materials, including jerseys, gloves, and socks. These products are internationally known for their NASA heritage. Whether engineering for astronaut’s comfort in space or competitive athletes, NASA aims for excellence.
Learn more about NASA’s Spinoff Technologies: https://spinoff.nasa.gov/
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By NASA
The four crew members of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-11 mission to the International Space Station train inside a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft in Hawthorne, California. From left to right: Roscosmos cosmonaut Oleg Platonov, NASA astronauts Mike Fincke and Zena Cardman, and JAXA astronaut Kimiya YuiSpaceX Four crew members are preparing to launch to the International Space Station as part of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-11 mission to perform research, technology demonstrations, and maintenance activities aboard the orbiting laboratory.
During the mission, Crew-11 also will contribute to NASA’s Artemis campaign by simulating Moon landing scenarios that astronauts may encounter near the lunar South Pole, showing how the space station helps prepare crews for deep space human exploration. The simulations will be performed before, during, and after their mission using handheld controllers and multiple screens to identify how changes in gravity affect spatial awareness and astronauts’ ability to pilot spacecraft, like a lunar lander.
NASA astronauts Zena Cardman and Mike Fincke, JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Kimiya Yui, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Oleg Platonov will lift off no earlier than 12:09 p.m. EDT on Thursday, July 31, from Launch Complex 39A at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on a long-duration mission. The cadre will fly aboard a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft, named Endeavour, which previously flew NASA’s SpaceX Demo-2, Crew-2, Crew-6, and Crew-8 missions, as well as private astronaut mission Axiom Mission 1.
The flight is the 11th crew rotation mission with SpaceX to the space station as part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. Overall, the Crew-11 mission is the 16th crewed Dragon flight to the space station, including Demo-2 in 2020 and 11 operational crew rotations for NASA, as well as four private astronaut missions.
As support teams progress through Dragon preflight milestones for Crew-11, they also are preparing a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket booster for its third flight. Once all rocket and spacecraft system checkouts are complete and all components are certified for flight, teams will mate Dragon to Falcon 9 in SpaceX’s hangar at the launch site. The integrated spacecraft and rocket will then be rolled to the pad and raised vertically for the crew’s dry dress rehearsal and an integrated static fire test before launch.
Meet Crew-11
The official crew portrait of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-11 members. Front row, from left, are Pilot Mike Fincke and Commander Zena Cardman, both NASA astronauts. In the back from left, are Mission Specialists Oleg Platonov of Roscosmos and Kimiya Yui of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency)NASA/Robert Markowitz Selected as a NASA astronaut in 2017, Cardman will conduct her first spaceflight. The Williamsburg, Virginia, native holds a bachelor’s degree in biology and a master’s degree in marine sciences from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. At the time of selection, she was pursuing a doctorate in geosciences. Cardman’s geobiology and geochemical cycling research focused on subsurface environments, from caves to deep sea sediments. Since completing initial training, Cardman has supported real-time station operations and lunar surface exploration planning. Follow @zenanaut on X and @zenanaut on Instagram.
This mission will be Fincke’s fourth trip to the space station, having logged 382 days in space and nine spacewalks during Expedition 9 in 2004, Expedition 18 in 2008, and STS-134 in 2011, the final flight of space shuttle Endeavour. Throughout the past decade, Fincke has applied his expertise to NASA’s Commercial Crew Program, advancing the development and testing of Dragon and Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft toward operational certification. The Emsworth, Pennsylvania, native is a graduate of the United States Air Force Test Pilot School and holds bachelors’ degrees from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, in both aeronautics and astronautics, as well as Earth, atmospheric, and planetary sciences. He also has a master’s degree in aeronautics and astronautics from Stanford University in California. Fincke is a retired U.S. Air Force colonel with more than 2,000 flight hours in over 30 different aircraft. Follow @AstroIronMike on X and Instagram.
With 142 days in space, this mission will be Yui’s second trip to the space station. After his selection as a JAXA astronaut in 2009, Yui flew as a flight engineer for Expedition 44/45 and became the first Japanese astronaut to capture JAXA’s H-II Transfer Vehicle using the station’s robotic arm. In addition to constructing a new experimental environment aboard Kibo, he conducted a total of 21 experiments for JAXA. In November 2016, Yui was assigned as chief of the JAXA Astronaut Group. He graduated from the School of Science and Engineering at the National Defense Academy of Japan in 1992. He later joined the Air Self-Defense Force at the Japan Defense Agency (currently the Ministry of Defense). In 2008, Yui joined the Air Staff Office at the Ministry of Defense as a lieutenant colonel. Follow @astro_kimiya on X.
The mission will be Platonov’s first spaceflight. Before his selection as a cosmonaut in 2018, Platonov earned a degree in engineering from Krasnodar Air Force Academy in aircraft operations and air traffic management. He also earned a bachelor’s degree in state and municipal management in 2016 from the Far Eastern Federal University in Vladivostok, Russia. Assigned as a test cosmonaut in 2021, he has experience in piloting aircraft, zero gravity training, scuba diving, and wilderness survival.
Mission Overview
From left to right: Roscosmos cosmonaut Oleg Platonov, NASA astronauts Mike Fincke and Zena Cardman, and JAXA astronaut Kimiya Yui pictured after participating in a training simulation inside a mockup at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in HoustonNASA/Robert Markowitz Following liftoff, Falcon 9 will accelerate Dragon to approximately 17,500 mph. Once in orbit, the crew, NASA, and SpaceX mission control will monitor a series of maneuvers that will guide Dragon to the forward-facing port of the station’s Harmony module. The spacecraft is designed to dock autonomously, but the crew can pilot it manually, if necessary.
After docking, Crew-11 will be welcomed aboard the station by the seven-member Expedition 73 crew, before conducting a short handover period on research and maintenance activities with the departing Crew-10 crew members. Then, NASA astronauts Anne McClain, Nichole Ayers, JAXA astronaut Takuya Onishi, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Kirill Peskov will undock from the space station and return to Earth. Ahead of Crew-10’s return, mission teams will review weather conditions at the splashdown sites off the coast of California before departure from the station.
Cardman, Fincke, and Yui will conduct scientific research to prepare for human exploration beyond low Earth orbit and benefit humanity on Earth. Participating crew members will simulate lunar landings, test strategies to safeguard vision, and advance other human spaceflight studies led by NASA’s Human Research Program. The crew also will study plant cell division and microgravity’s effects on bacteria-killing viruses, as well as perform experiments to produce a higher volume of human stem cells and generate on-demand nutrients.
While aboard the orbiting laboratory, Crew-11 will welcome a Soyuz spacecraft in November with three new crew members, including NASA astronaut Chris Williams. They also will bid farewell to the Soyuz carrying NASA astronaut Jonny Kim. The crew also is expected to see the arrival of the Dragon, Roscosmos Progress spacecraft, and Northrop Grumman’s Cygnus spacecraft to resupply the station.
NASA’s SpaceX Crew-11 mission will be aboard the International Space Station on Nov. 2, when the orbiting laboratory surpasses 25 years of a continuous human presence. Since the first crew expedition arrived, the space station has enabled more than 4,000 groundbreaking experiments in the unique microgravity environment, while becoming a springboard for building a low Earth orbit economy and preparing for NASA’s future exploration of the Moon and Mars.
Learn more about the space station, its research, and crew, at:
https://www.nasa.gov/station
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By European Space Agency
When the European Space Agency’s Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer (Juice) flew past our Moon in August 2024, its Radar for Icy Moon Exploration (RIME) instrument listened to radio wave echoes to reveal the height of the lunar surface.
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