International Mars Ice Mapper Mission
Update & Participation Opportunity:Reconnaissance/ScienceM e a s u r e m e n t D e f i n i t i o n Te a m ( M D T )Eric Ianson, Richard (Rick) Davis, Michael Meyer, & Tim Haltigin
Presentation to MEPAG
June 21, 2021
International Mars Ice Mapper Mission | MEPAG Presentation

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NASA Mission Status
NASA AGENCY-LEVEL RECONNAISSANCE MISSION: Assigned to SMD/MEP
Provides an opportunity for science and reconnaissance not otherwise possible given budget constraints• LRO: Analogous Exploration-driven, Science-serving Mission ModelØ Originally conceived for human exploration purposes with supplemental science (hybrid: ORDT process)Ø In operation since 2009, science-driven after exploration goals were achieved (> 1 petabits)
Ø LRO model cited in Decadal (2011) as a “positive example of synergy between the human exploration program andscience”; I-MIM can be as well

SIGNED MULTILATERAL STATEMENT OF INTENT (JAN 2021): Concept Study currently underway among ASI, CSA, JAXA & NASA
FY22 PRESIDENT’S BUDGET REQUEST:I-MIM identified as new budget line item within MEP

PRE-PROJECT LEAD CENTER:Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC)

PROGRAM MANAGEMENT ROLE:

Mars Program Office (MPO) at JPL for strategic alignment with MEP

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Mission Overview

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GENESIS: In a 2019 Agency-level multi-Directorate Summer Studyon Preparing for Human Exploration, NASA considered:“What grand science questions could be addressedwith the power of humans and machines at Mars?”- something worthy of the endeavor R E S U LT:

Search for Life, with Water Ice as a Focusing Requirement for the first Human Surface Mission
GAP: Broadly Distributed Surface Ice Deposits at Mid-low Latitudes:Where? What form? Enough for Sustainability? How accessible?
Provides significant insight into climatic & geologic history and potential astrobiology

H I G H ES T P R I O R I T Y R EC O N N A I S S A N C E R EQ U I R E M E N T F O R 2 0 2 0 s
Map and characterize accessible (top 0-10m) subsurface ice and its overburden,in mid-low latitudes, to support planning for first human mission.
ü Objective 1:
ü Objective 2:International Mars Ice Mapper Mission | MEPAG Presentation

Human-led, Robot-assisted accessing of subsurface ice & sample return
Improve understanding of water ice feedstocks for eventual ISRU
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Baseline Mission: Mars Ice Mapper Orbiter (“SAR-Bird”) Concept
Science Payload- L-band polarimetric SAR/Nadir SAR Sounder (CSA)- Potential Science Enhancement (NASA)Spacecraft (JAXA)- ~300 km altitude; sun synchronous, polar – 3PM LMST
- Approx. 2,800 kg, including 1,900 kg of propellant- Direct Insertion from Earth- 1,000 W power generation at EOL
Communications (ASI)- X-band Steerable Proximity Link: up to 30 Mb/s
- Ka-band DTE Antenna: 9 Mb/s (to DSN 34m @ 1.5 AU)- UHF Radio for surface relay
S A R - C A R RY I N GMars Ice Mapper OrbiterInternational Mars Ice Mapper Mission | MEPAG Presentation

Launch (NASA)- Medium lift Launch Vehicle- Transfer Orbit Launch with a total delta V of 2.4 km/s
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Reconnaissance Approach: Importance of Accessible Near-surface Ice
RECONNAISSANCE: “What do we need to know before we go?”•Targets high-priority science measurements for human exploration - human in situ science investigations (e.g., accessing theice, potentially through ice coring) and resources for sustainable human exploration (propellant etc.)•Drives eventual human landing site selection and a human mission architecture

CSA-PROVIDED RADAR ANCHOR PAYLOAD* ADDRESSES HIGHEST PRIORITY RECON OBJECTIVES[Validated By EXPERT REVIEW TEAM (Raney et al.), multiple studies including SAR data of Earth analogues, and articulated in forthcoming rationales White Paper]• Map Water Ice in the “Reconnaissance Zone” – mid-low latitudes where human missions
are operationally viable• Search for most equatorward ice-rich areas• Delineate the lateral and vertical extents of shallow ice at high spatial and vertical(depth) resolution• Characterize Ice Accessibility by evaluating geotechnical aspects of candidate humanlanding sites, including surface roughness and shallow subsurface compactness• Identify target areas of interest for high-resolution, advanced SAR techniques (e.g.,interferometic, tomographic) that would support candidate human landing sitecharacterizations*POLARIMETRIC L-BAND SYNTHETIC APERTURE RADAR (SAR)/NADIR SAR SOUNDERInternational Mars Ice Mapper Mission | MEPAG Presentation

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6Mission Formulation Status: Signed Statement of Intent (SOI), Jan 2021
Primary Payload• L-band polarimetric SAR/Nadir SAR SounderSpacecraft

Decades of EO SAR expertise• Spacecraft bus and operations

through RADARSAT missions

Extensive spacecraft & SAR expertise(Hayabusa, Hayabusa2, MMX, ALOS L-band, GPM SAR)

Mission Architect / Mission Management••

Launch vehicle/services
Recon/Science Team Co-lead

Communications Subsystem• Communications Subsystem on SARbird

Decades of experience at Mars

Decades of Radar + Communications Expertise(Cassini, JUICE, Bepi Columbo)

Likely launch date: 2028
Concept Team roles only; partners have not yet made formal commitment. Additional partners are possible.
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Reconnaissance/Science Measurement Definition Team (MDT)International Mars Ice Mapper Mission | MEPAG Presentation

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Assumptions•

Core mission requirements are reconnaissance-driven•

Recon requirements must satisfy “measurement stakeholders”:
Ø Detection of Adequate Near-surface Water Ice (for human-led surface sciencesuch as ice coring and ISRU)

Ice Detection

Ø Overburden characterization
Ø Accessibility (potential ice coring, drilling, ISRU)
Ø “Solid ground” for human-class EDL and ascent from the Martian surface
and other assessments (e.g., plume impingement zones)
Ø Civil engineering (structures, roads, additive manufacturing potential etc.

OverburdenCharacterization

Candidate
Human Landing
Site Assessments

Ø Candidate human landing site assessments•

Per Agency partners’ commitment to maximize return on investment, highvalue, investigation-driven supplemental science and mission-supportobjectives will be a complementary focus

International Mars Ice Mapper Mission | MEPAG Presentation

Ice Mapper measurement themes tied to reconnaissance objectives
to satisfy core mission requirements
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Status and Measurement Definition Team Opportunity• Requirements for ice detection are relatively well-defined, but require refinement• Requirements for overburden characterization (e.g., for ISRU, EDL, CE) and Human Landing Site Assessment are
not well-defined• Seeking community contributions to supplement concept study team expertise

EXPERTISE SOUGHT: 15-20 (TBC) multidisciplinary/international expert, with representatives from each partner Agency(and potentially other nations) who together provide comprehensive knowledge of:Ø Microwave remote sensing of volatiles (SAR, Radar Sounding)Ø Geologic context for the subsurface sequestration of water ice (with associated climatology)
Ø Astrobiology, Glaciology, Remote Sensing etc.
Ø In situ resource utilization (ISRU), human-class entry descent, and landing (EDL) and ascent, and civilengineering (CE)Ø Other related specialties
International Mars Ice Mapper Mission | MEPAG Presentation

21 JUNE 202110Recon/Science Measurement Definition Team Differs from Traditional SDT• In a traditional process, a Science Definition Team defines mission objectives, observation requirements, and anotional payload suite.
• For I-MIM:•Agency partners have agreed upon preliminary Mission Concept goals, objectives, and spacecraft/payload assumptions toreflect both common and unique national reconnaissance and science goals for Mars exploration•

the MDT is international, selected through multilateral process by a coordinated committee of Agency partners•

the MDT is multidisciplinary, bringing together the traditional planetary science community AND users of the requirementsdriven reconnaissance measurement data for human mission planning•

MDT main tasks are:
1. Defining measurements traceable to Recon Requirements (ice detection, overburden characterization, andcandidate human landing site characterization) and ways to optimize the payload(s) for these purposes
2. Recommending potential high-value science/mission support enhancements to maximize return on investment
3. Describing a model concept of operations for tasks 1 and 2•

With these MDT recommendations, the multilateral Agency partners will modify the mission concept as appropriate, in
preparation for Mission Concept Review (MCR)

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11Schedule
2021
SUMMER

SEP

NOV

DEC

Recon/Science MDT

Prep & Selection

June/early
July:
InviteApplicati
ons

OCT

2022

Sep 1:MDT Kickoff

Mid-Aug:
MDT
Selections
Announced
International Mars Ice Mapper Mission | MEPAG Presentation

Oct 19:Interim
ReportJAN
Holidays

Include Results inMission Concept

FEB

MAR
Preparation for Mission
Concept Review (MCR)

Dec 17:
Final Report
Dec 1:
Near-final Summary(recommendations not expected to change
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Draft* Additional Post-MDT Avenues for International Science Community Involvement
Core Recon/Science Team
• SAR Anchor Payload development, observation planning, commanding, health monitoring, data processing &archiving, delivery of L1 reconnaissance objectives• Team membership competed prior to, or during, Phase A (member Agencies determine own TBD processes)
Investigations• Observatory Proposal Teams: Teams bid to carry out observation campaigns; work with core science team togenerate necessary data and analyze results
Observations of Opportunity• Currently considering models
o Notional Example: “SAR-Wish” modeled after Hi-Wish for HiRISE; users submit targets of interest andreceive data to complement ongoing independent investigations*In development. Subject to modifications, per current multilateral deliberations among Concept Team Agencies.
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