This topic focuses on the design, development, and testing of ablative thermal protective systems (TPS) and their constituents that have application in space exploration or strategic reentry missions. Areas of interest include novel and synergistic combinations of constituents and enhanced-performance architectures to allow improved thermal protection capabilities. In addition, cost and schedule-efficient advanced manufacturing allowing novel TPS geometries topics are desired. Understanding the charring of compositionally and structurally complex ablator systems, as well as volatile transport and heat-transfer mechanisms in extreme environments and their impact on performance also fall within this topic area.

This topic addresses emerging material innovations at lower TRL levels (1-3), encompassing both materials science and process development. Topic areas include novel and next-generation materials with improved properties, improved property retention in extreme environments, or novel materials processing. This may include microstructure, properties and/or processing of multifunctional materials, ceramics, metal alloys, shape memory alloys, composites, high temperature fiber development, thermoelectrics, sensors, and more.

This topic includes existing and emerging platforms for sounding rockets, LEO, MEO, GEO, and reentry/ascent to deliver or land payloads and experiments into their desired location. Abstracts are encouraged, but not limited to the following:

• Near term capabilities in development for delivering payloads into the desired environment;
• Pico/nano re-entry systems;
• Reusable upper stages;
• Hot structures for entry;
• Fairing recovery;
• Lunar, planetary, comet, asteroid (sample return);
• Decelerators;
• Unique CONOPS approaches;
• Emerging methods for disposal of on-orbit assets;
• Recent or near-term flight test activities;
• Requirements and understanding of projected payloads, orbits, and capabilities of emerging systems including associated technical challenges and timelines; and
• Government practices, programs, and technologies which potentially benefit the emerging suborbital and small launch industry.

This topic area focuses on the development and utilization of ground and flight test capabilities to support material, component, and system development. The renewed interest in hypersonics, as well as space access has resulted in the identification of gaps in the available test and evaluation infrastructure, as well as work force attrition. The aerospace community has recognized these gaps and has invested funding to improve the test capability and capacity supporting flight and space system development. These investments are focused on risk reduction to ensure that technology maturation can be adequately accomplished prior to operational fielding. System component T&E capabilities of interest include seekers, nose tips, leading edges, thermal protection systems, control surfaces, and propulsion systems. Topics covered in this session include test and evaluation capability with respect to:

• Test and evaluation infrastructure modernization and work force development within DoD, industry, and academia;
• Simulation of environments to address aerodynamics, aerothermodynamics, combined thermostructural, electromagnetic and radiation effects, boundary layer transition, space environments, environmental extremes, and weather encounter;
• Details on recent ground and flight test results and campaigns; and
• Ground and flight test and evaluation methodologies including digital engineering, modeling and simulation, test plan development, test fixture design, instrumentation, test diagnostics, and modeling and simulation validation.

This topic area addresses expendable strike and reusable hypersonic systems and requirements, materials & process development, and component/concept testing. Airframe topics include leading edges and nose tips, acreage TPS and hot structures, and control surfaces and windows/apertures. Propulsion topics include inlets, throat, injectors, and nozzle for airbreathing systems. Abstracts may cover materials, processing, manufacturing & (re)producibility, non-destructive investigation & quality, aerothermal structural concepts, and design, analysis & testing. Submitted abstracts should fall in one of the following:

• Requirements and modeling;
• Platform build or flight test;
• Aeroshell and acreage TPS;
• Leading edges and control surfaces;
• Apertures; and
• Propulsion.

This topic covers innovative test methodologies and platforms to mature small-sat and vehicle technologies in flight. Emphasis will be on the test and demonstration capabilities of test platforms to improve technology readiness levels (TRLs) of systems and components that may be useful to future satellites, launch vehicles, and upper stages such as guidance, communication, and propulsion in relevant environments. This can include on-orbit and/or re-entry testing. Abstracts are encouraged, but not limited to include:

• Test platform descriptions;
• Hypersonic testing techniques;
• Payloads preparation and integration methods;
• Results from previous flight tests;
• Payload recovery methods; and
• Approaches to increase flight cadence.

This topic covers novel technologies (or new applications of technologies not traditionally used in aerospace) that facilitates new capabilities or very significant improvements to existing launch vehicles, missiles, small satellites , re-entry systems and related platforms and architectures. (Papers may be submitted on Low TRL (1-3), or Medium TRL (4-6), or High TRL (7-9). Topics should be relevant to “to space”, “in space” and, “from space.”

This topic area addresses orbital maneuvering systems, with their propulsion systems that improve space mobility for the enterprise. Areas that emphasize system level advancement, critical materials, and processing technologies are desired. Of particular interest are commercial space development efforts applied to government requirements with a focus on modularity and agility. Additional topics of interest include innovative vehicle concepts and designs, structures and designs, materials and processes, and manufacturing fabrication concepts for:

• Spacecraft coatings (thermal, ESD control);
• Lightweight space structures and assembly;
• Existing and novel in-space propulsion technologies (chemical/electrical/nuclear electric/nuclear thermal propulsion);
• On-orbit fluids management and transfer (tanks/valves/PMD/etc);
• Materials compatibility with emerging propellants;
• Oxygen-compatible cathodes for electric propulsion;
• Additive manufacturing and digital engineering;
• High-temperature, oxidation-resistant catalysts, coatings and materials;
• Rendezvous, proximity operations, and docking systems;
• High Delta-V orbital transfer vehicles/orbital platforms;
• Automated spacecraft operations; and
• Novel system ConOps enabling rapid missions.

This topic area addresses current use and perspectives of IVHM/ISHM as an integral part of space systems. Applications will include, but are not limited to electric, hypersonic, liquid rocket, nuclear, and solid motor propulsion. Abstracts are encouraged, but not limited to include:

• Additive manufacturing technologies for enabling IVHM/ISHM;
• Business cases for IVHM/ISHM;
• Challenges during the IVHM/ISHM process, including requirements definition, design, integration, and test activities;
• Digital twin;
• Flight data collection and retrieval methods;
• Recent IVHM/ISHM application success stories;
• Sensor suite optimization for enabling IVHM/ISHM including fiber optic and wireless options;
• Solutions for closing IVHM/ISHM requirement gaps in affordability, performance, reliability, reusability, and safety; and
• Technology advancement needs to enable future IVHM/ISHM capabilities.

This topic area is focused on addressing material technology development and transition for tactical, strategic, missile and missile defense applications (to address both ballistic and hypersonic threats). Example topics of interest include:

• Program and system overviews describing dependence on material technologies;
• Ground and flight test material evaluations;
• Innovative manufacturing and producibility advancements;
• Modeling and simulation validation;
• Material technologies:
• Seeker windows (IR/RF);
• Thermal protection systems;
• Lightning protection and weather effects; and
• Propulsion device technology.

This topic area focuses on novel test methods, modeling, and Integrated Computational Materials Engineering (ICME). This includes test methods to verify base material attributes of next generation or heritage materials to provide a better understanding of basic material properties and reduce testing costs. Computationally-driven materials design, verification of microstructures, and predicted structure/property relationship models to accelerate materials development and lower materials development costs are within topic. Tools that support digital engineering and digital twin sustainment concepts are also encouraged.

This topic area addresses key materials technologies, requirements, novel designs, testing or materials development, and innovations for current and future space payloads, instruments, and mission operations including:

• Development of structural and thermal applications, contamination and radiation effects, material degradation in the space environment;
• Flight material applications and testing including nanomaterials, additively manufactured hardware, and satellite structures;
• Lunar and martian mission development (commercial payload services, human landing systems); technology developments in robotics missions, landing and redeployment; space suits; in-situ resource development; and environmental qualification;
• Development of novel SmallSat and CubeSat material applications, instruments, upcoming and completed MISSE-FF payloads and payloads for cost-efficient commercial missions;
• In-space assembly and servicing of telescopes, satellites, and mission extension;
• Laser applications, LIDAR, and associated materials testing; and
• Non-destructive testing techniques.

This topic focuses on the design, development, demonstration, and testing of non-ablative and minimally ablative (i.e. geometrically-stable) refractory composites and environmental barrier coatings for sustained hypersonic flight or reentry. Carbon, silicon carbide, refractory oxides, and ultra high temperature ceramics (UHTCs) are some examples of constituent chemistries relevant to this topic. Areas of interest include novel and synergistic combinations of constituents, architectures to allow improved thermo-structural capabilities, extended survivability in high heat-flux, oxidative, shear and shock environments, while also targeting cost-efficient and high-quality and throughput manufacturing. Understanding the failure mechanisms of compositionally and structurally complex composite systems, including heat transfer and oxidative phenomena, as well as their impact on performance are also within topic scope. In addition, advanced manufacturing methodologies allowing accelerated fabrication and novel structure geometries are of interest. Composite constituent development is also within scope, as long as it is clearly associated with the mission space of interest.

This topic area addresses launch vehicles and their propulsion systems that improve space access. Areas that emphasize system level advancement, critical materials, and processing technologies are desired. Of particular interest are commercial space development efforts applied to government requirements with a focus on modularity and agility. Additional topics of interest include innovative vehicle concepts and designs, structures and designs, materials and processes, and manufacturing fabrication concepts for:

• Existing and novel launch vehicles and propulsion technologies (liquids/solids/hybrids/other);
• Turbopumps/cryogenic/fluid management/propellant tanks;
• Thermal management/protection systems;
• Nuclear propulsion and related component technology;
• LOX/methane assessments;
• Rotating detonating engines (RDEs);
• High-temperature, oxidation-resistant coatings and materials;
• Long-lifetime, cost-effective, high heat flux materials;
• Case/binder/insulation concepts; and
• Reusability and modular design.

This topic area addresses key technologies involved in the creation of spacecraft buses and enabling instrumentation. This includes novel components and subsystems, including:

• Power systems including solar arrays, batteries, and alternative energy generation (fuel cell and nuclear);
• Thermal systems including novel coatings & other technologies;
• Novel GNC sensors enabling automated control of multi-ball space vehicles & constellations;
• Deployable structures enabling dynamic space operations;
• Novel propulsion subsystems including pumps, tank designs, and valves;
• Intrasatellite link technologies enabling local communication; and
• Other novel components.

This topic area focuses on the ground segment and how to reduce costs while improving operability. This includes advanced and/or low-cost range concepts. Abstracts are encouraged, but not limited to include:

• Capabilities of new/emerging non-federal spaceports/launch sites;
• Data collection technologies;
• Air & launch traffic control;
• Sensors for vehicle tracking and characterization;
• Clean pad concepts;
• Vertical versus horizontal integration;
• Innovative ground test methods;
• Technologies that will reduce cost per launch (or re-entry), turn-around time, and overall life cycle cost;
• FAA commercial launch license and (experimental) permit process issues;
• Range utilization of autonomy/automation and/or artificial intelligence to streamline and reduce ground operation costs or timelines; and
• Developments/initiatives to minimize impact of launch (orbital and sub-orbital) and re-entry on other National Airspace (NAS) users.

This topic area encompasses industry and government concepts for future space architectures and systems. A major focus of this area is on the opportunities and challenges to multi-vehicle aggregation to achieve both commercial and DoD missions. Regimes of interest include suborbital and orbital access (land/sea/air launch), in-space (VLEO/LEO/MEO/GEO/ XGEO), or any combination. Abstracts are encouraged, but not limited to include:

• Modularity and interoperability;
• Potential on-orbit servicing constructs (hub-spoke, distributed);
• Responsive and scheduled launch enhancements;
• Economics of space logistics (tech upgrade/repair, on-orbit refueling);
• The role of emerging technologies on space architectures operations;
• High Delta-V missions of interest;
• Value proposition for suborbital demonstration; and
• Government regulations, practices, and technologies to accelerate adoption of promising space architectures.