Jump to content

New Frontiers program

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
For other uses, seeNew Frontier (disambiguation).

Header of the New Frontiers program website as of January 2016[1]

TheNew Frontiers programis a series of space exploration missions being conducted byNASAwith the purpose of furthering the understanding of theSolar System.[2]The program selects medium-class missions which can provide high science returns.

NASA is encouraging both domestic and internationalscientiststo submit mission proposals for the program.[3]New Frontiers was built on the innovative approach used by theDiscoveryandExplorerPrograms ofprincipal investigator-led missions. It is designed for medium-class missions that cannot be accomplished within the cost and time constraints of Discovery, but are not as large asLarge Strategic Science Missions(Flagship missions).

There are currently three New Frontiers missions in progress and one in development.New Horizons,which was launched in 2006 and reached Pluto in 2015,Juno,which was launched in 2011 and entered Jupiter orbit in 2016, andOSIRIS-REx,launched in September 2016 towards asteroidBennufor detailed studies from 2018 to 2021 and a sample return to Earth in 2023.

On June 27, 2019,Dragonflywas selected to become the fourth mission in the New Frontiers program.[4][5]

History[edit]

Junoviews Earth in October 2013 during the spacecraft's flyby en route to Jupiter.

The New Frontiers program was developed and advocated by NASA and granted by Congress in CY 2002 and 2003. This effort was led by two long-time NASA executives at headquarters at that time:Edward Weiler,Associate Administrator of Science, andColleen Hartman,Solar System Exploration Division Director. The mission to Pluto had already been selected before this program was successfully endorsed and funded, so the mission to Pluto, calledNew Horizons,was "grandfathered" into the New Frontiers program.[6]

The 2003Planetary Science Decadal Surveyfrom the National Academy of Sciences identified destinations that then served as the source of the first competition for the New Frontiers program. The NASA program name is based on President John F. Kennedy's "New Frontier"political agenda speech in 1960, in which he constantly used the words" New Frontier "to describe a variety of social issues and noted howpioneerexploration did not end with the American West as once thought.[7]As President, Kennedy would also invest heavily in funding for NASA.[7]

Examples of proposed mission concepts include three broad groups based onPlanetary Science Decadal Surveygoals.[8]

Missions in progress[edit]

New Horizons(New Frontiers 1)[edit]

Plutoviewed by the spacecraftNew Horizonson July 14, 2015
Pluto's moonCharonon July 14, 2015, imaged by "New Horizons"
Main article:New Horizons

New Horizons,a mission toPluto,was launched on January 19, 2006. After aJupitergravity assistin February 2007 the spacecraft continued towards Pluto. The primary mission flyby occurred on July 14, 2015, and the spacecraft was then targeted toward oneKuiper Beltobject called486958 Arrokothfor a January 1, 2019 flyby.[9][10]Another mission that was considered with this mission wasNew Horizons 2.[11]

Juno(New Frontiers 2)[edit]

Artists's concept ofJunoat Jupiter
Main article:Juno (spacecraft)

Junois aJupiterexploration mission which launched on August 5, 2011, and arrived in July 2016. It is the first solar-powered spacecraft to explore an outer planet. The craft was placed into apolar orbitin order to study the planet'smagnetic fieldand internal structure. NASA'sGalileomission to Jupiter provided extensive knowledge about its upper atmosphere, however, further study of Jupiter is crucial not only to the understanding of its origin and nature of the Solar System, but also of giantextrasolar planetsin general. TheJunospacecraft investigation is intended to address the following objectives for Jupiter:

  • Understand Jupiter's gross dynamical and structural properties through determination of the mass and size of Jupiter's core, its gravitational and magnetic fields, and internal convection;
  • Measure the Jovian atmospheric composition, particularly the condensable-gas abundances (H2O, NH3,CH4and H2S), the Jovian atmospheric temperature profile, wind velocity profile, and cloud opacity to greater depths than achieved by theGalileoentry probe with a goal of 100barat multiple latitudes; and
  • Investigate and characterize the three-dimensional structure of Jupiter's polar magnetosphere.

OSIRIS-REx(New Frontiers 3)[edit]

Mission logo
Main article:OSIRIS-REx

OSIRIS-RExstands for "Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, Security, Regolith Explorer", and was launched on 8 September 2016.[12]This mission plan was to orbit an asteroid, at the time named1999 RQ36(now101955 Bennu), by 2020. After extensive measurements, the spacecraft collected a sample from the asteroid's surface for return to Earth in 2023. The mission, minus the cost of the launch vehicle ($183.5 million), is expected to cost approximately $800 million.[13][14]The returned sample will help scientists answer long-held questions about theformation of the Solar Systemand the origin of complexorganic moleculesnecessary for theorigin of life.[15][16]

Asteroid Bennu is a potential future Earth impactor and is listed on theSentry Risk Tablewith the third highest rating on thePalermo Technical Impact Hazard Scale(circa 2015).[17]In the late 2100s there is a cumulative chance of about 0.07% it could strike Earth, therefore there is a need to measure the composition andYarkovsky effectof the asteroid.[18]

Planned missions[edit]

Dragonfly(New Frontiers 4)[edit]

Artists concept of Dragonfly onTitan
Dragonfly Mission Insignia
Main article:Dragonfly (Titan space probe)

Dragonflywill send a mobile roboticrotorcraftto Saturn's biggest moonTitan[19]and will make use ofMulti-Mission Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generators(MMRTG) for power to navigate through the atmosphere of Titan.[3][20][21]The development cost cap is approximately $1 billion.[22]As of June 2024,Dragonflyis scheduled for launch in July 2028.[23]

The competition for the fourth mission began in January 2017. Per recommendation by the Decadal Survey, NASA's announcement of opportunity was limited to six mission themes:[22]

  1. Comet Surface Sample Return – acomet nucleuslander and sample return mission
  2. Lunar South Pole Sample Return – a mission to land at the Moon'sSouth Pole–Aitken basinand return samples to Earth
  3. Ocean Worlds (Titan and/or Enceladus)
  4. Saturn Probe – an atmospheric probe
  5. Trojan Tour and Rendezvous – a mission to fly by two or moreTrojanasteroids
  6. Venus Lander

NASA received and reviewed 12 proposals:[22][24]

Comet Surface Sample Return
Lunar South Pole Sample Return
Ocean Worlds
Saturn Probe
Trojan Tour and Rendezvous
Venus Lander

Out of 12 initial proposals, NASA selected two for additional concept studies on 20 December 2017, includingDragonfly.[38]

The two finalists,CAESARandDragonfly,each received $4 million funding through the end of 2018 to further develop and mature their concepts.[39]On June 27, 2019, NASA announced the selection ofDragonflyas the New Frontiers 4 mission for a launch in 2026,[40]later delayed to July 2028.[23]

New Frontiers 5[edit]

The Decadal Survey recommends that two New Frontiers missions be selected per decade. The 2018 Midterm Review of the 2013–2022 Decadal Survey found that NASA was falling behind on this cadence, and recommended the release of the New Frontiers 5 Announcement of Opportunity no later than December 2021.[41]Thomas Zurbuchen,Associate Administrator for theScience Mission Directorate,responded positively to the Midterm Review's recommendation, stating that NASA was "committed to conducting two New Frontiers competitions per decade" and planned to release the Announcement of Opportunity in 2021 or 2022,[42]though the Midterm Review estimated a release date as late as 2023.[41]

The Decadal Survey recommended the Io Observer and Lunar Geophysical Network proposals for New Frontiers 5, in addition to the previous recommendations.[43]

NASA released the draft of the Announcement of Opportunity New Frontiers 5 on January 10, 2023.[44]On August 24, 2023, NASA announced that due to budgetary constraints enacted through theFiscal Responsibility Act of 2023,the official release of the Announcement of Opportunity for New Frontiers 5 would be delayed to no earlier than 2026.[45]

See also[edit]

Notes[edit]

  1. ^TheLucyspacecraftwill perform a similar mission. It was selected as part of theDiscovery Programin January 2017, shortly before the New Frontiers 4 call for proposals.

References[edit]

  1. ^"New Frontiers Program Official Website (June 2016)".National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).January 15, 2016. Archived fromthe originalon June 10, 2016.RetrievedJanuary 15,2016.
  2. ^Harbaugh, Jennifer (June 18, 2019)."New Frontiers Program".NASA.RetrievedAugust 31,2020.
  3. ^abFoust, Jeff (January 8, 2016)."NASA Expands Frontiers of Next New Frontiers Competition".Space News.RetrievedJanuary 20,2016.
  4. ^Bridenstine, Jim (June 27, 2019)."New Science Mission to Explore Our Solar System".Twitter.RetrievedJune 27,2019.
  5. ^Brown, David W. (June 27, 2019)."NASA Announces New Dragonfly Drone Mission to Explore Titan – The quadcopter was selected to study the moon of Saturn after a" Shark Tank "-like competition that lasted two and a half years".The New York Times.RetrievedJune 27,2019.
  6. ^Foust, Jeff (July 7, 2003)."Space science gets big at NASA".The Space Review.RetrievedDecember 5,2022.
  7. ^abSwanson, Glen E. (October 29, 2020)."The New Frontier: Religion in America's National Space Rhetoric of the Cold War Era".Religions.11(11): 592.doi:10.3390/rel11110592.
  8. ^nasa nfArchivedAugust 19, 2015, at theWayback Machine
  9. ^"In Depth | New Horizons".solarsystem.nasa.gov.NASA.RetrievedMarch 9,2021.
  10. ^Redd, Nola (January 1, 2020)."One Year Ago, NASA's New Horizons Made the Most Distant Flyby in Space History".Space.RetrievedMarch 9,2021.
  11. ^"NEW HORIZONS 2 New Horizons: A Journey to New Frontiers"(PDF).Lunar and Planetary Institute.Universities Space Research Association.RetrievedMarch 9,2021.
  12. ^NASA."NASA to Launch New Science Mission to Asteroid in 2016".RetrievedMay 25,2011.
  13. ^"NASA Aims to Grab Asteroid Dust in 2020".Science Magazine.May 26, 2011. Archived fromthe originalon May 29, 2011.RetrievedMay 26,2011.
  14. ^Buck, Joshua; Diller, George (August 5, 2013)."NASA Selects Launch Services Contract for OSIRIS-REx Mission".NASA.RetrievedSeptember 8,2013.Public DomainThis article incorporates text from this source, which is in thepublic domain.
  15. ^"OSIRIS-REx ACRONYM".Asteroid Mission.Arizona Board of Regents.RetrievedApril 12,2021.
  16. ^"In Depth | OSIRIS-REx".NASA.RetrievedApril 12,2021.
  17. ^"Sentry Risk Table".NASA/JPLNear-Earth Object Program Office. July 21, 2015. Archived fromthe originalon July 21, 2015.RetrievedJuly 21,2015.
  18. ^Milani, Andrea; Chesley, Steven R.; Sansaturio, Maria Eugenia; Bernardi, Fabrizio; et al. (2009). "Long term impact risk for (101955) 1999 RQ36".Icarus.203(2): 460–471.arXiv:0901.3631.Bibcode:2009Icar..203..460M.doi:10.1016/j.icarus.2009.05.029.S2CID54594575.
  19. ^ab"Dragonfly: Titan Rotorcraft Lander".The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory.2017.RetrievedSeptember 20,2017.
  20. ^Clark, Stephen (September 7, 2016)."NASA official says new mission selections on track despite InSight woes".Spaceflight Now.RetrievedSeptember 8,2016.
  21. ^New Frontiers fourth announcement of opportunity.NASA, January 6, 2016.
  22. ^abcKeeter, Bill (May 5, 2017)."NASA Receives Proposals for Future Solar System Mission".NASA News.RetrievedSeptember 20,2017.
  23. ^abFoust, Jeff (November 28, 2023)."NASA postpones Dragonfly review, launch date".SpaceNews.RetrievedNovember 28,2023.
  24. ^abcdef"Proposed New Frontiers Missions".Future Planetary Exploration.August 4, 2017. Archived fromthe originalon September 20, 2017.RetrievedSeptember 20,2017.
  25. ^COmet Nucleus Dust and Organics Return (CONDOR): a New Frontiers 4 Mission Proposal.(PDF) M. Choukroun, C. Raymond, M. Wadhwa. EPSC Abstracts. Vol. 11, EPSC2017-413, 2017. European Planetary Science Congress 2017.
  26. ^CORSAIR (COmet Rendezvous, Sample Acquisition, Investigation, and Return): A New Frontiers Mission Concept to Collect Samples from a Comet and Return them to Earth for Study.(PDF) S. A. Sandford, N. L. Chabot, N. Dello Russo, J. C. Leary, E. L. Reynolds, H. A. Weaver, D. H. Wooden. 80th Annual Meeting of the Meteoritical Society 2017.
  27. ^"Home | Comet Astrobiology Exploration SAmple Return".caesar.cornell.edu.Cornell University.RetrievedMarch 9,2021.
  28. ^Sotin, C., Hayes, A., Malaska, M., Nimmo, F., Trainer, M. D., Tortora, P.. (2017)."OCEANUS: A New Frontiers orbiter to study Titan's potential habitability."19th EGU General Assembly, EGU2017, proceedings from the conference held 23–28 April 2017 in Vienna, Austria., p.10958
  29. ^Redd, Nola Taylor (April 25, 2017)."'Dragonfly' Drone Could Explore Saturn Moon Titan ".Space.RetrievedSeptember 20,2017.
  30. ^Cofield, Calla (April 14, 2017)."Enceladus' Subsurface Energy Source: What It Means for Search for Life".Space.
  31. ^Chang, Kenneth (September 15, 2017)."Back to Saturn? Five Missions Proposed to Follow Cassini".The New York Times.
  32. ^Inner Workings: Icy ocean worlds offer chances to find life.Adam Mann,PNAS,2 May 2017, vol. 114 no. 18 4566–4568, doi: 10.1073/pnas.1703361114
  33. ^McIntyre, Ocean (September 17, 2017)."Cassini: The legend and legacy of one of NASA's most prolific missions".Spaceflight Insider.Archived fromthe originalon September 20, 2017.RetrievedSeptember 20,2017.
  34. ^Saturn PRobe Interior and aTmosphere Explorer (SPRITE).Simon, Amy Banfield, D. Atkinson, D. Atreya, S. Brinckerhoff, W. Colaprete, A. Coustenis, A. Fletcher, L. Guillot, T. Hofstadter, M. June 11, 2016.
  35. ^Venus In Situ Atmospheric and Geochemical Explorer (VISAGE): A Proposed New Frontiers Mission.(PDF) Esposito, L. W.Lunar and Planetary ScienceXLVIII (2017)
  36. ^VICI: Venus In situ Composition Investigations.(PDF) L. Glaze, J. Garvin, N. Johnson, G. Arney, D. Atkinson, S. Atreya, A. Beck, B. Bezard, J. Blacksberg, B. Campbell, S. Clegg, D. Crisp, D. Dyar, F. Forget, M. Gilmore, D. Grinspoon, Juliane Gross, S. Guzewich, N. Izenberg, J. Johnson, W. Kiefer, D. Lawrence, S. Lebonnois, R. Lorenz, P. Mahaffy, S. Maurice, M. McCanta, A. Parsons, A. Pavlov, S. Sharma, M. Trainer, C. Webster, R. Wiens, K. Zahnle, M. Zolotov. EPSC Abstracts, Vol. 11, EPSC2017-346, 2017. European Planetary Science Congress 2017.
  37. ^Venus Origins Explorer New Frontiers Proposal.Future Planetary Exploration.1 October 2017.
  38. ^Kane, Van (August 29, 2017)."Selecting the Next New Frontiers Mission".The Planetary Society.
  39. ^Chang, Kenneth (November 20, 2017)."Finalists in NASA's Spacecraft Sweepstakes: A Drone on Titan, and a Comet-Chaser".The New York Times.
  40. ^Stirone, Shannon."New NASA Mission Will Fly Titan's Frigid Skies to Search for Life's Beginnings".Scientific American.RetrievedJune 27,2019.
  41. ^ab"Assessment of Current Progress vis-à-vis Vision and Voyages and Guidance for the Rest of the Decade".Visions into Voyages for Planetary Science in the Decade 2013-2022: A Midterm Review.Washington, DC:National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine,The National Academies Press.2018. pp. 66–68.doi:10.17226/25186.ISBN978-0-309-47933-2.S2CID239549664.RetrievedJuly 1,2019.
  42. ^Zurbuchen, Thomas H.(April 16, 2019)."NASA Response to Visions Into Voyages for Planetary Science in the Decade 2013–2022: A Midterm Review"(PDF).NASA.Archived(PDF)from the original on July 2, 2019.RetrievedJuly 2,2019.
  43. ^Vision and Voyages for Planetary Science in the Decade 2013-2022(PDF).The National Academies Press. 2011. pp. 15–16.ISBN978-0-309-22464-2.
  44. ^"DRAFT Announcement of Opportunity New Frontiers 5: Comments due March 3 2023".NASA.February 17, 2023.RetrievedFebruary 17,2023.
  45. ^Foust, Jeff (August 28, 2023)."NASA confirms multi-year delay in next New Frontiers competition".SpaceNews.RetrievedAugust 31,2023.

External links[edit]

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=New_Frontiers_program&oldid=1232279044"