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Electro-luminescently Cooled Zero-boil-off Propellant Depots Enabling Crewed Exploration of Mars

Aaswath Pattabhi RamanUniversity of California, Los Angeles Exploration of Mars has captivated the public in recent decades with high-profile robotic missions and the images they have acquired seeding our collective imagination.

Posted January 4, 2024

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NIAC 2024 Selections

Phase I Matthew McQuinnSolar System-Scale VLBI to Dramatically Improve Cosmological Distance MeasurementsUniversity of Washington, SeattleSeattle, Washington 98195-10002024 Phase I Kenneth CarpenterA Lunar Long-Baseline Optical Imaging Interferometer: Artemis-enabled Stellar Imager (AeSI)NASA Goddard Space Flight CenterGreenbelt, MD 20771-24002024

Posted January 4, 2024

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A Revolutionary Approach to Interplanetary Space Travel: Studying Torpor in Animals for Space-health in Humans (STASH)

Ryan SprengerFauna Bio Inc. The use of non-model organisms in medical research is an expanding field that has already made a significant impact on human health. Insights gleaned from the study of unique mammalian traits are being used to develop novel therapeutic agents.

Posted January 4, 2024

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LIFA: Lightweight Fiber-based Antenna for Small Sat-Compatible Radiometry

Zhang, Beijia Zhang, BeijiaMassachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Lincoln Lab Very large space-based RF antennas can be large and expensive to manufacture and deploy.

Posted January 4, 2024

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Swarming Proxima Centauri: Coherent Picospacecraft Swarms Over Interstellar Distances

Thomas EubanksSpace Initiatives, Inc. Tiny gram-scale interstellar probes pushed by laser light are likely to be the only technology capable of reaching another star this century.

Posted January 4, 2024

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Add-on to Large-Scale Water Mining Operations on Mars to Screen for Introduced and Alien Life

Steven BennerFoundation For Applied Molecular Evolution As noted at NASA’s 2019 Carlsbad Conference we have good reason to think that: The purpose of this NIAC project is to change this view, and to do so before human arrival planned by NASA, the Chinese National Space Agency, and SpaceX, “by 2040”, “in 2033”, and “before 2030”, […]

Posted January 4, 2024

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Detoxifying Mars: the biocatalytic elimination of omnipresent perchlorates

Lynn RothschildNASA Ames Research Center (ARC) Water is the lifeblood of human survival and civilization and is critical for our sustained exploration beyond Earth. Fortunately, Mars has plenty of water to sustain our aspirations in the form of subsurface ice. Unfortunately, it is not clean water – it is contaminated by toxic perchlorates.

Posted January 4, 2024

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Magnetohydrodynamic Drive for Hydrogen and Oxygen Production in Mars Transfer

Alvaro Romero-CalvoGeorgia Tech Research Corporation Human space exploration is presented with multiple challenges, such as the near absence of buoyancy in orbit or the reliable, efficient, and sustainable operation of life support systems.

Posted January 4, 2024

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Mars Aerial and Ground Global Intelligent Explorer (MAGGIE)

Ge-Cheng ZhaCoflow Jet, LLC We propose to develop a novel global mobility Mars exploration platform , Mars Aerial and Ground Intelligent Explorer (MAGGIE).

Posted January 4, 2024

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Thin Film Isotope Nuclear Engine Rocket (TFINER)

James BickfordCharles Stark Draper Laboratory New exciting missions, such as a rendezvous with a passing interstellar object, or a multi-target observing effort at the solar gravitational focus, require velocities that are well in excess of conventional rocketry.

Posted January 4, 2024