CASE STUDY /ModelCenter + Lockheed Martin Space
Lockheed Martin Space utilizes integrated Model-Based Systems Engineering (MBSE) tosimulate the mission trajectory of the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft“Automating and integrating the simulation into this system model then allows the team to rapidly
identify potential issues with changes to mission requirements, as well as perform continuous verification ofrequirements and mission design parameters throughout the lifecycle of the spacecraft... The overall
improvement versus the original process was about a 7x speedup in turnaround time.”
Phathom Athena Donald

Systems Engineer / Lockheed Martin Space™

On September 5, 2016 an Atlas V rocketed from Cape Canaveral carrying the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft on a mission to
discover the origin of our solar system by exploring the asteroid Bennu. Bennu may help us find answers to the questions
central to the human experience: Where did we come from? What is our destiny?
The specific mission had the following objectives:•••••

Return and analyze a sample of Bennu’s surface
Map the asteroid
Document the sample site
Measure the orbit deviation caused by non-gravitational forces (the Yarkovsky effect)
Compare observations at the asteroid to ground-based observations

In October 2020, OSIRIS-REx conducted a “touch-and-go” maneuver to collect at least 60 grams, a far larger sample size
than any other previous sample retrieval mission. On May 10, 2021, OSIRIS-REx fired its thrusters and heads on a 2.5-year
course back to Earth.
The OSIRIS-REx mission was complex and daunting. Preparing for it required months of testing, modeling, and analyzingeach step. This case study explores how Lockheed Martin planned for the mission using ModelCenter® and ModelCenter
MBSE to enable Model-Based Systems Engineering (MBSE) for the success of the mission.

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CASE STUDYMODEL-BASED SYSTEMS ENGINEERING (MBSE) / INTEGRATING SYSML WITH ENGINEERING SIMULATIONMODELCENTER® INTEGRATE / MODELCENTER® EXPLORE / MODELCENTER® MBSE/ Background
OSIRIS-REx – Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, Security,Regolith Explorer – was designed by NASA to study the asteroid 101955 Bennu andconduct a sample-return mission. The mission’s primary objective was to land aspacecraft of the surface of Bennu, collect a sample of at least 2oz and as much as
4.4 lbs. in weight, and return with the sample intact.
Bennu is a near-Earth asteroid that approaches the planet approximately once
every six years. Scientists are particularly interested in Bennu because only a few
candidate asteroids are identified as rich in carbon-based molecules. This information may hold significant evidence relating to the origins of life on Earth and thepossibility of life elsewhere within the solar system. The spacecraft collects otherscientific data that will provide a more accurate survey of all asteroids and understand the chemistry and mineral content of “B” type asteroids. It is also measuring
the ability of the sun’s radiation to effect slight changes in the asteroid’s orbit.
NASA contracted Lockheed Martin Space (LMS) to build the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft
and provide mission operations. LMS also conducted simulations on the many
parameters and constraints of the mission to ensure precise maneuvers andengagements.

Mosaic image of asteroid Bennu
Image credit: NASA/Goddard/University of
Arizona/ Challenge
Rocket science is already complex, and that is only getting the launch vehicle off the ground. Now try landing a spacecraft on amoving, rotating, debris expelling object to collect a sample while maintaining spacecraft communication and preventing damage tosensors from solar radiation. That was the challenge of NASA’s OSIRIS-REx mission.
To prepare for the mission, Lockheed Martin Space (LMS) sequenced about one week of mission-time operations and simulated thoseoperations on their testbed. Each test involved extensive manual operations, limiting the team’s ability to respond to change inrequirements and mission parameters.
One week of simulated mission activity equaled one day of real-time simulation. For a ten-year mission, that would have meant mean
months of simulating and analyzing data. Due to mission time constraints, the team was unable to simulate all possible variables andevents. Any unplanned-for changes could have jeopardized the entire mission.

OSIRIS-REX MISSIONOPERATION CHALLENGES
1)

Need to avoid the sun in the Thermal KOZ(Keep-Out-Zone) and the +Z area of thespacecraft2) Thermal constraints assert that the suncannot be in Thermal KOZ past a certainduration threshold

Photo credit: Lockheed Martin Space

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Case Study
Lockheed Martin Space | OSIRIS-REx/ Customer’s Objectives

Rapidly evaluate various
trajectories for thermal constraint
violations to identify the preferredmission trajectory

Provide a quicker, more flexible
approach for assessing geometry
constraints during the earlystages of mission planning

Efficiently track variables during
proposed OSIRIS REx trajectories/ Solution
Lockheed Martin Space (LMS) developed a Model-Based Systems Engineering (MBSE) architecture to represent the spacecraft and themission. To replicate and analyze the variables of space, they utilized mission simulation software. However, there was no bridgeconnecting the MBSE architecture to the simulations.
Utilizing ModelCenter® MBSE, LMS wasable to connect their MBSE models to thesimulation tools. The system model
captures mission and simulation parameters and thermal constraints. The parameter and constraints are time-steppedthrough a simulation that models thespacecraft’s orientation and trajectory
concerning the Sun, Earth, Moon, andother bodies in the solar system.
ModelCenter® will evaluate the resultsfrom the simulation to ensure adherence
to the mission constraints.

Photo credit: NASA/Glenn Benson

Solution Approach
Credit: Lockheed Martin Space/ Results
Lockheed Martin Space developed a formal system architecture for both the mission and spacecraft that enabled them to quickly andaccurately understand mission requirements and manage the relevant design parameters and their subsequent impact on varioussubsystems.
The team used ModelCenter® to automate and integrate the mission simulation with this system model. This allowed them to identify
potential problems early in the design process, verify complex mission requirements throughout the lifecycle of the spacecraft, andrespond to inevitable requirements changes.
LMS performed much more analysis than previous efforts, and their design tasks were accomplished seven times faster than theirprevious design process.

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Case Study
Lockheed Martin Space | OSIRIS-REx/ Additional Resources
Watch the Presentation On-Demand

Integrated Model-Based Systems Engineering (MBSE)
Applied to the Simulation of the OSIRIS-REx Mission
Presented by:

Phathom Athena Donald

Systems Engineer / Lockheed Martin Space™

www.phoenix-int.com/lms-osiris-rex-recording

View the Presentation PDF

Integrated Model-Based Systems Engineering (MBSE)
Applied to the Simulation of the OSIRIS-REx Mission
Presented by:

Phathom Athena Donald

Systems Engineer / Lockheed Martin Space™

PDF

www.phoenix-int.com/lms-osiris-rex-presentation

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