Green Propellant Infusion Mission: Program Construct, Technology Development, and Mission Results
Christopher H. McLean
Abstract
The Green Propellant Infusion Mission (GPIM) is a project in the NASA Space Technology Mission Directorate (STMD) managed by the Technology Demonstration Mission (TDM) program office at Marshall Space Flight Center. The TDM organization manages demonstration projects bridging the gap between technology development and the infusion of system-level technologies into missions undertaken by Industry, NASA, and the Department of Defense. The GPIM project provided a space-flight demonstration for an advanced, high-performance, non-toxic ‘green’ monopropellant. This technology promises higher performance for future satellites by providing options for longer mission durations, additional maneuverability, increased payload mass, and simplified launch processing. The green propellant for this mission is AF-M315E (recently renamed ACSENT), a hydroxylammonium nitrate (HAN) blend. During the GPIM project 1 N thrusters were developed by Aerojet Rocketdyne to a proto-flight level. A cross-cutting, nationwide team of NASA centers, DoD, and industry partners resolved the numerous technology challenges required for the flight program, providing a basis for the infusion of this technology. Three Space Experiment Review Board (SERB) payloads were incorporated onto the spacevehicle measuring plasma density, space environments, and demonstrating advanced LEO position and velocity technology. A NASA STMD SBIR thermal control payload was incorporated on the spacevehicle at no cost to the program. The flight program was tailored to maximize data from all payloads. The GPIM spacecraft, which was designed, manufactured, and acceptance tested by Ball Aerospace, was launched on 25 June of 2019 as a secondary payload on the Air Force STP-2 Falcon Heavy launch vehicle. GPIM is completing mission operations with an anticipated reentry in late August 2020. GPIM adds to the 15 years of cumulative flight time for the Ball Aerospace BCP-100 space vehicle line.