NASA’s Ancillary Data System for Planetary Missions

33 Pages·2017·3.38 MB·English

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Navigation and Ancillary Information Facility
AAnn OOvveerrvviieeww ooff SSPPIICCEE
NASA’s Observation Geometry System
for Space Science Missions
October 2022
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What Can One Do With SPICE?
Navigation and Ancillary Information Facility
Compute many kinds of observation
geometry parameters at selected times
Examples
Positions and velocities of
•
planets, satellites, comets,
asteroids and spacecraft
Size, shape and orientation
•
of planets, satellites, comets
and asteroids
Orientation of a spacecraft
•
and its various moving
structures
Instrument field-of-view
•
location on a planet’s
surface or atmosphere
Overview of SPICE 2
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What One Can Do With SPICE
Navigation and Ancillary Information Facility
Find times when a specified “geometric event” occurs
Examples
50
100
150
When is the spacecraft’s
When is an object
altitude within a given
in shadow (occultation) ?
range (say 50 to 100 km)?
When is an
instrument
When is an object in front of
pointing at
another, as seen from a
an object?
spacecraft (transit)?
Overview of SPICE 3
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Examples of How SPICE Is Used
Navigation and Ancillary Information Facility
Evaluation of a
planned trajectory
Spacecraft Visibility
Angular size of Phobos
Station #1
as seen from the MEX spacecraft
Mission engineering
Station #2
analyses
Station #3
Time
Planning an instrument
pointing profile
Observation geometry
Elevation
visualization
e
Science data archiving d
u
t
and analysis ti
a
L
Longitude
Overview of SPICE 4
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SPICE Pictorial Summary
Navigation and Ancillary Information Facility
From assorted sources
Planet ephemeris
S/C trajectory
S/C orientation
Your Program
SPICE
Distances
Utility Your
Velocities
Programs Modules
Altitudes
SPICE
Latitudes
Kernels
Longitudes
(Data) A Few
SPICE Lighting Angles
Modules
etc., etc.
Text editor
Ancillary
Spacecraft geometry Observation
Data Files
Geometry
Instrument geometry
Parameters
Planet size, shape, orientation
or
From assorted sources
Time Intervals
Overview of SPICE 5
N IF What are “Ancillary Data?”
Navigation and Ancillary Information Facility
Orientation
and
size/shape
Antenna
J2000 reference frame
of Earth
reference
(ICRF)
frame Sun
Spacecraft
Reference frames
Earth
Positions/velocities • Solar System Barycenter
Orientations
Sizes/shapes
Instrument
reference frame
Time Conversions Positions and velocities
of spacecraft and
solar system bodies Planet
reference
Orientation
frame
of spacecraft
Orientation
and
size/shape
of planet
The Solar System
Planet
Time Conversion
Calculations
Overview of SPICE 6
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How Use Ancillary Data?
Navigation and Ancillary Information Facility
• Ancillary data are those that help scientists and
engineers determine observation geometry, such as:
– where the spacecraft was located
– how the spacecraft and its instruments were oriented (pointed)
– what was the location, size, shape and orientation of the target being
observed
– where on the surface the instrument was looking
• The text above uses past tense, but doing the same
functions for future times to support mission
planning is equally applicable
Overview of SPICE 7
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From Where do Ancillary Data Come?
Navigation and Ancillary Information Facility
• From the spacecraft
• From the mission control center
• From the spacecraft and instrument builders
• From science organizations
• SPICE is used to organize and package these data
in a collection of stable file types–called "kernels”–
used by scientists and engineers
Overview of SPICE 8
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Why Use SPICE?
Navigation and Ancillary Information Facility
• Knowing observation geometry and geometric
events is an important element of:
– space mission design,
– selection of observation opportunities,
– analysis of the science data returned from the instruments,
– mission engineering activities, and
– preparation of science data archives.
• Having a proven, extensive and reusable means for
producing and using ancillary data reduces cost
and risk, and can help scientists and engineers
achieve more substantive, accurate and timely
results.
Overview of SPICE 9
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SPICE System Components
Navigation and Ancillary Information Facility
Ancillary data files (“kernels”)………..…………
Software (SPICE Toolkit) …………..
Documentation ……….........
Tutorials ………......
Programming lessons …..
Training classes ……………………
User consultation ………….……………………....
Overview of SPICE 10