Demonstration of a safe & precise planetary landing system on-board a terrestrial rocket

The Autonomous Landing and Hazard Avoidance Technology (ALHAT) Project is a multiyear NASA technology development effort focused on A(utonomous)-GNC and sensor technology to enable safe and precise planetary landings. The culmination of this project work involves field testing of the developed technology in a relevant terrestrial environment. These tests will demonstrate the capability of the ALHAT AGNC and sensor system, raising the Technology Readiness Level (TRL), in preparation for a next generation planetary lander. With this system, a next generation lander will be capable of safe and precise landings regardless of local lighting conditions. At least two independent terrestrial rocket systems will be utilized for demonstration of aspects of the ALHAT system. This paper discusses the use of the commercial Masten Space Systems terrestrial rocket for ALHAT demonstration purposes. This demonstration is being performed through the NASA Flight Opportunities program. This Terrestrial Test Rocket (TTR) will have the ALHAT AGNC software and hardware system integrated with Masten as a secondary, independent GNC system that will fly the vehicle closed-loop through highly dynamic lunar- and Mars-like approach and landing trajectories. With the AGNC system demonstrated, advanced ALHAT sensor systems will then be incorporated with the TTR, enabling autonomous hazard detection and avoidance in conjunction with a highly precise landing. Details of the hardware and software integration process with Masten are discussed along with performance results from recent tests.