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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
2 min read
Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)
NASA/Jacob Shaw
NASA’s X-59 quiet supersonic research aircraft has officially begun taxi tests, marking the first time this one-of-a-kind experimental aircraft has moved under its own power.
NASA test pilot Nils Larson and the X-59 team, made up of NASA and contractor Lockheed Martin personnel, completed the aircraft’s first low-speed taxi test at U.S. Air Force Plant 42 in Palmdale, California, on July 10, 2025.
The taxiing represents the X-59’s last series of ground tests before first flight. Over the coming weeks, the aircraft will gradually increase its speed, leading up to a high-speed taxi test that will take the aircraft just short of the point where it would take off.
During the low-speed tests, engineers and flight crews monitored how the X-59 handled as it moved across the runway, working to validate critical systems like steering and braking. These checks help ensure the aircraft’s stability and control across a range of conditions, giving pilots and engineers confidence that all systems are functioning as expected.
The X-59 is the centerpiece of NASA’s Quesst mission, which aims to demonstrate quiet supersonic flight by reducing the loud sonic boom to a quieter “thump.” Data gathered from the X-59 will be shared with U.S. and international regulators to inform the establishment of new, data-driven acceptable noise thresholds related to supersonic commercial flight over land.
NASA’s X-59 quiet supersonic research aircraft taxis across the runway during a low-speed taxi test at U.S. Air Force Plant 42 in Palmdale, California, on July 10, 2025. The test marks the start of taxi tests and the last series of ground tests before first flight.NASA/Carla Thomas NASA’s X-59 quiet supersonic research aircraft moves under its own power for the first time at Lockheed Martin’s Skunk Works facility in Palmdale, California, on July 10, 2025. Guided by the aircraft’s crew chief, the event marks the beginning of taxi tests – a key milestone and the final series of ground tests before first flight.NASA/Carla Thomas Share
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Last Updated Jul 17, 2025 Related Terms
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By NASA
3 min read
Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)
A team works together on their project during the 2024 NASA Space Apps Challenge event in in Arequipa, Peru. Teams have two days to respond to the challenges and submit their project for the chance to win one of 10 global awards. NASA invites innovators of all ages to register for the NASA Space Apps Challenge, held on Oct. 4-5. The 2025 theme is Learn, Launch, Lead, and participants will work alongside a vibrant community of scientists, technologists, and storytellers at more than 450 events worldwide. Participants can expect to learn skills to succeed in STEM fields, launch ideas that transform NASA’s open data into actionable tools, and lead their communities in driving technological innovation.
During the NASA Space Apps Challenge, participants in the U.S. and around the world gather at hundreds of in-person and virtual events to address challenges authored by subject matter experts across NASA divisions. These challenges range in complexity and topic, tasking participants with everything from creating machine learning models and leveraging artificial intelligence, to improving access to NASA research, to designing sustainable recycling systems for Mars, and to developing tools to evaluate local air quality here on Earth.
Dr. Yoseline Angel Lopez, a former space apps challenge winner and now an assistant research scientist at NASA’s Goddard Spaceflight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, can attest that the opportunity to Learn, Launch, Lead goes far beyond the hackathon.
“The NASA Space Apps Challenge gave me and my team a meaningful opportunity to apply science to real-world problems and gain validation from NASA scientists and industry experts,” said Angel.
In 2021, her team’s winning web-app prototype was adopted by Colombia’s Ministry of Agriculture, connecting smallholder farmers with local buyers. The platform also supported agricultural land-use monitoring using satellite imagery.
After the hackathon, project submissions are judged by NASA and space agency experts. Winners are selected for one of 10 global awards.
“Participating in the hackathon is exciting on its own. But when your project can lead to greater opportunities and make a difference in your community, that’s a dream come true,” said Angel. She will return to the 2025 hackathon as a NASA subject matter expert and challenge author, giving a Golden Age of innovators the opportunity to make a difference in their communities through the use of data from NASA and 14 space agency partners.
This year’s partners include: Bahrain Space Agency; Brazilian Space Agency; CSA (Canadian Space Agency); ESA (European Space Agency); ISRO (Indian Space Research Organisation); Italian Space Agency; JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency); Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre of the United Arab Emirates; National Space Activities Commission of Argentina; Paraguayan Space Agency; South African National Space Agency; Spanish Space Agency; Turkish Space Agency; and the UK Space Agency.
NASA Space Apps is funded by NASA’s Earth Science Division through a contract with Booz Allen Hamilton, Mindgrub, and SecondMuse.
We invite you to register for the 2025 NASA Space Apps Challenge and choose a virtual or in-person event near you at:
https://www.spaceappschallenge.org
Find videos about Space Apps at:
youtube.com/c/NASASpaceAppsChallenge
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