ENAE 484 Project Planning
• Lecture #28 - December 8, 2020
RASC-AL 2021 Theme 1
Durable Low-Mass Lunar Habitat (Akin/Bowden)
• Support successive two-person crews for 30 days at lunar south pole
• Dry mass not to exceed 6000 kg
• Funding NTE $1B/year 2022-2028 including launch • First mission 2028
• Shall incorporate features to allow future expansion for more ambitious missions
RASC-AL 2021 Theme 2
Minimum Mars Ascent Vehicle (Akin/Bowden)
• Launch a crew of two from Mars surface to Mars orbit
• Dry mass ≤5000 kg; gross mass ≤20,000 kg
• Ready for launch by end of 2034
• Funding limit ≤$2B/yr 2025-2035
• Consider 5t landed system refueled on surface and 20t system landed fully fueled
RASC-AL 2021 Theme 3
Venus Fly-by Mission (Becnel)
• Crew of 4 for Venus fly-by mission to be completed by end of 2034
• Identify science elements to be carried on mission and deployed for Venus atmosphere/surface
during fly-by
• Consider low-latency teleoperation during fly-by • Identify utility of mission to support/validate
longer-duration human missions to Mars
RASC-AL 2021 Theme 4
Human Mission to Ceres (Young)
• Four-person mission to Ceres with landing before end of 2049
• Design planetary surface science to be delivered with mission and operated while in proximity
• At least two crew land and perform exploration on surface of Ceres
• Total mission duration ≤5 years
Why RASC-AL?
• We’ve got to do something…
• Themes usually align with human exploration-focus of ENAE 483/484
• Competition can be a good motivator (between universities and/or between ENAE 484 teams) • Goal of ENAE 484 as a capstone is to give you a
“real-world” experience (e.g., open-ended project,
working in teams) – RASC-AL provides an
external sponsor with hard deadlines (also typical of real-world programs)
RASC-AL Sponsor Requirements (1)
• For all RASC-AL projects, attention should be given to:
• Synergistic applications of NASA’s planned current investments
• Supporting engineering analyses
• Unique combinations of the planned elements with new innovative approaches/capabilities/
technologies to support crewed and robotic exploration of the solar system.
• Realistic assessment of costs for technology
RASC-AL Sponsor Requirements (2)
• Proposed designs should be consistent with human spacecraft requirements addressed in NASA Technical Standards 3000 and 3001 and other relevant NASA program specifications
• Find a balance between sound technical analysis and revolutionary concepts. Innovation will be rewarded and is highly desired, but not at the expense of fundamentals
RASC-AL Program Deadlines
• Oct. 15: Notice of Intent deadline (Done!) • March 4: Proposal (7 pgs. of text; 2 pgs. for
additional graphics) and video (2 min) due • March 29: Teams notified of selection status • May 27: Technical paper (15 pgs.) upload
• June 13: Presentation slides due
• June 14-17: RASC-AL Forum in Cocoa Beach,
including technical presentation and poster session • All details available on http://rascal.nianet.org
Fit to Spring 2021 Academic Year
• Jan. 25: First day of classes
• Week of Feb. 22: Preliminary Design Reviews
– Results of five weeks of work
– Preparatory to RASC-AL proposal March 4
• Week of April 26: Critical Design Reviews
– Results of additional seven weeks of work
– Last “course correction” before final products
• May 11: Last day of classes
– Comprehensive final report due – All RASC-AL products due
RASC-AL Proposal Deliverables
• Cover page
– University name – Project title
– Names of all team members and faculty advisors – Graphic of project
• Quad chart (see RASC-AL web site) • Max 9 page proposal
Proposal Contents (1)
• Identification of each of the Theme Requirements and how they are addressed (VERY IMPORTANT!) • Innovative approaches/capabilities/technology
• Detailed information about the work conducted in various trades, concepts, and mission constructs • Indicate WHY you chose your design/
configuration/system/approach in terms of
VALUE in the areas of technology readiness, system performance, affordability, programmatic
Proposal Contents (2)
• Original analysis and engineering • Mass and size estimates
• Key findings supporting the envisioned approach • Realistic technology assumptions, including realistic
Technology Readiness Levels (TRLs) and justifications • A realistic budget assessment and an explanation of
your assumptions (consider using analogs in current Aerospace, large construction like submarines,
Antarctic habitats, etc., to anchor and explain your assumptions)
Proposal Expectations (1)
• Proposals should clearly articulate the innovation and design being proposed, including original engineering analysis
planned and/or in progress. It will not be enough for teams to indicate they will address the requirements later in the
Technical Paper.
• Submissions must be original, the work must be of the
Candidates, and must not violate the rights of other parties. – Each submitting team represents and warrants that the team is the
sole author and owner of the submission, that the submission is wholly original, that it does not infringe on any copyright or any other rights of any third party of which the team is aware, and that the electronic proposal and video submission is free of malware.
Proposal Expectations (2)
• Robust proposals are expected that demonstrate
significant progress in your design and analysis. The RASC-AL Steering Committee will be looking for mature mission concepts at the proposal stage. The proposal should reflect the total scope planned for the final paper. All analysis results to-date (in
summary form if necessary due to space limitations) should be included (leaving placeholders for analysis not yet completed). It is imperative that you apply all of the criteria from the theme descriptions to show your design details.
Judges’ Tips on Proposals (1)
• Start with a big picture view of your concept,
rationale, and goals. Don’t jump immediately into the details of the power, communications system, etc.
• A picture is worth a thousand words and can convey a lot of information. Pictures for the proposal are a plus. Show us your innovation!
(There should not be any hand-drawn sketches at this phase of the design).
Judges’ Tips on Proposals (2)
• If results/details are not available yet or are still being finalized, it is still valuable to indicate that you will have them and how you are determining them. If it is not mentioned, judges will assume it is not being addressed.
• Report quality can impact the judges’ scoring. Poor grammar, typographical errors, etc. do not reflect well on your team.
• Make use of published papers and reports
Video Formatting Instructions (1)
• Videos are limited to a maximum length of 2 minutes
• Videos should be uploaded to YouTube, and teams will provide their video’s Youtube URL on the
online proposal submission form.
• Videos need to be publicly viewable via a link. Videos should be “Unlisted” or “Public” on YouTube (Troubleshooting Tip: YouTube
accounts sometimes need to be verified prior to being able to fully upload videos.)
Video Formatting Instructions (2)
• All of the team members should appear in the video, if at all possible
• Your university name and project title should appear in text at the front of the video
• Do not use music or images which may violate copyright law. You may use images created by NASA.
Proposal Evaluation Criteria (1)
• Sound technical/scientific/engineering analysis, evaluation and rationale of mission concept, including evidence of thorough and proper research conducted (30 pts.);
• Synergistic application and supporting original engineering analysis of innovative approaches, capabilities, and/or new technologies for evolutionary architecture
development to enable future missions, reduce cost, and/ or improve safety (15 pts.);
Proposal Evaluation Criteria (2)
• Realistic preliminary budget assessments, including an assessment of cost margin (15 pts.);
• Realistic technology assumptions, including realistic
Technology Readiness Levels (TRLs) and justifications (15 pts.);
• Adherence to the 2021 RASC-AL themes and mission objectives as stated in the relevant theme description (10 pts.)
RASC-AL Evaluation Criteria (1)
• Adherence to the requirements and constraints of the selected topic and the design competition
• Synergistic application and supporting original engineering analysis of innovative approaches, capabilities and/or new technologies for
evolutionary architecture development to enable future missions, reduce cost, and/or improve
safety
• Technical merit and rationale of mission operations in support of an exciting and sustainable space exploration program
RASC-AL Evaluation Criteria (2)
• Key technologies, including technology readiness levels (TRLs), as well as the systems engineering and architectural trades that guide the
recommended approach
• Reliability and human safety consideration in trading various design options
• Realistic assessment of project schedule and test plan, as well as realistic development and annual operating costs (i.e., budget)
Things You Need to Know
• We’ll probably be remote the whole term
– Collaboration may be easier… and harder
– Opportunities for hardware/experimental activities?
• This is your project!
– Faculty are advisors and reviewers – you supply the leaders and leadership
– You get out of it what you put into it
• You are a team.
Closing Thoughts
• Your capstone experience should be the highlight of your undergraduate education
• For the first time, you have the freedom to design something from scratch, and shape its final form • NASA is interested and wants to see your solution! • It should
– Engage your interest and provide focus
– Challenge your skills and use what you have learned – Be enjoyable professionally and personally
