SBIR-STTR Award

The Space Ionizing Radiation Environment and Effects Advanced Climatology (SIRE2-AC) tool will enhance the capabilities of space climatology, system design, and system performance evaluation. The SIRE2 toolkit will be modified to interface with the new iPATH tool, using the current conditions around the Sun to propagate the radiation environment to the Earth over the next few days. The radiation environment can then be propagated into the Earth’s geomagnetic field and an electronic part using the models available in SIRE2. The SIRE2-AC proposal is submitted to the Space Weather Research-to-Operations/Operations-to-Research (R2O/O2R) Technology Development subtopic and will provide an innovative tool to the space weather forecasting. The new capability for SIRE2 will provide enhanced forecasts of the energetic particle conditions encounter by spacecraft within Earth’s magnetosphere. SIRE2 can calculate the environment inside the Earth’s magnetosphere using the built-in geomagnetic cutoff models. Arbitrary trajectories can be read into SIRE2, allowing for environment calculations anywhere in the Earth’s magnetosphere, including Lunar space environments. The proposed Phase I effort will result in a demonstration of the SIRE2 toolkit that is able to use iPATH databases of the solar radiation component. This Phase I effort will also develop a synthesized SPE environment from the iPATH model for a selected significant SPE event. One such candidate events would be the August 1972 event. Potential NASA Applications (Limit 1500 characters, approximately 150 words): When the goals of the Phase I effort are completed, NASA will have access to a tool that can provide enhanced forecasts for any mission to space. The demonstrative version of SIRE2 will be to use the iPATH output for the current conditions of the Sun. The current NASA programs, projects or missions that could benefit from this effort are the Artemis Mission, International Space Station, Space Launch System, Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicles, and any satellite or instrument inside the Earth’s magnetosphere (JASON-3, SMAP, etc.). Potential Non-NASA Applications (Limit 1500 characters, approximately 150 words): Companies like SpaceX and Blue Origin can utilize this Phase I/II work support future space adventure plans. SIRE2 could provide these companies with state-of-the-art models to support their space missions. The Phase I/II effort could be used to support SpaceX’s missions to the International Space Station. There are also numerous DoD and DoE programs that could benefit from enhanced forecasting. Duration: 6

The Space Ionizing Radiation Environment and Effects (SIRE2) toolkit was developed to provide the space radiation environment and effects community with state-of-the-art models that can be used not just for satellites but also for arbitrary trajectories. The SIRE2 Advance Climatology (SIRE2-AC) capabilities will be developed for the SIRE2 toolkit. SIRE2-AC will provide the space radiation community with a tool that can calculate the environment at a spacecraft that is on a trajectory in the inner Solar System. The Fifth Gait team is also planning to expand the radiation transport capabilities in SIRE2 to allow for complex shielding configurations to specified for a calculation inside of SIRE2 to enable human dose calculations inside of SIRE2. In addition, Fifth Gait will construct a mission-integrated fluence model that can be used for trajectories in the inner Solar System. As a stretch goal for this Phase II, the Fifth Gait team will update MSSREM peak flux model with large historical SEP events modeled with RISCS. The Fifth Gait team plans to use the RISCS toolset, which is a operationally viable version of the iPATH model. We plan to fine-tune the physical models and numerical algorithms in RISCS to enable the capability to model more complex SEP events. These SEP events will be compiled in the SIRE2 RISCS databases that will be used by all the SIRE2-AC capabilities. The SIRE2-AC proposal is submitted to the Space Weather Research-to-Operations/Operations-to-Research (R2O/O2R) Technology Development subtopic. SIRE2-AC will provide enhanced forecasts of the energetic particle conditions encounter by spacecraft in the inner Solar System. Arbitrary trajectories can be read into SIRE2, allowing for environment calculations along these trajectories, including Lunar and Mars-based space environments. The proposed Phase I effort will result in numerous deliverables, include the new environment models and environment calculations in the inner Solar System. Potential NASA Applications (Limit 1500 characters, approximately 150 words): When the goals of the Phase II effort are completed, NASA will have access to a tool that can space radiation environment calculations for the inner Solar System. SIRE2-AC will rely on the SIRE2 RISCS databases generated during this Phase II that inlcudes SEP events modeled at multiple locations in the inner Solar System. The current NASA programs, projects or missions that could benefit from this effort are the Artemis Mission, ISS, Space Launch System, Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicles, JASON-3, SMAP, and the Moon to Mars campaign. Potential Non-NASA Applications (Limit 1500 characters, approximately 150 words): Companies like SpaceX and Blue Origin can utilize this Phase I/II work support future space adventure plans. SIRE2 could provide these companies with state-of-the-art models to support their space missions. This Phase II effort could be used to support SpaceX’s missions to the International Space Station. There are also numerous DoD and DoE programs that could benefit from enhanced forecasting. Duration: 24