Systems Engineering Paper Competition

NASA Exploration System Mission Directorate
Higher Education Project
in partnership with the
National Space Grant College and Fellowship Program

2011 ESMD Space Grant Systems Engineering Paper Competition

NASA Exploration Systems Mission Directorate (ESMD) Space Grant Project invites U.S. College and University teams to submit a paper on a project related to one of the ESMD areas; Spacecraft, Propulsion, Lunar and Planetary Surface Systems or Grounds Operations, using a systems engineering approach. These are the design, engineering, and research areas that are critical to the future of space exploration. The purpose of the ESMD Systems Engineering Paper Competition is to train and develop the highly skilled scientific, engineering, and technical workforce of the future needed to implement the U.S. Space Exploration Policy.

› Eligibility
› Awards
› Registration and Deadlines
› Topics
› Judging
› Scoring Rubric
› References
› Contact Information

Eligibility

Undergraduate and graduate student teams enrolled in a U.S. College or University are eligible to enter the competition.

Awards

First Place: $3500 cash scholarship
Second Place: $2500 cash scholarship
Third Place: $1500 cash scholarship

Team winners will also be invited to Kennedy Space Center for an upcoming launch.

Awards will be announced in April 2011.

Registration and Deadlines

Registration Deadline is March 7, 2011. Visit https://secure.spacegrant.org/esmdsg/forms/?form=syseng1 to apply for the competition. You will be notified via e-mail when your application is approved for registration.

The Systems Engineering Paper is due March 21, 2011. Visit https://secure.spacegrant.org/esmdsg/forms/?form=syseng2 to submit the paper. You will be notified via e-mail that your paper has been receieved.

Topics

The paper must cover one of the following ESMD-relevant areas:

Spacecraft: Guidance, navigation and control; thermal; electrical; structures; software; avionics; displays; high speed re-entry; modeling; power systems; interoperability/commonality; advanced spacecraft materials; crew/vehicle monitoring; life-support

Propulsion: Propulsion methods that will utilize materials found on the moon or Mars, "green" propellants, on-orbit propellant storage, motors, testing, fuels, manufacturing, soft landing, throttle-able propellants, high performance, and descent

Lunar and Planetary Surface Systems: Precision landing hardware, software, in-situ resource utilization (ISRU), navigation systems, extended surface operations, robotics (specifically environmental scouting prior to human arrival, outpost maintenance with and without humans present, and assisting astronauts with geologic exploration) environmental analysis, radiation protection, spacesuits, life support, power systems

Ground Operations: Pre-launch, launch, mission operations, command and control software systems, communications, landing and recovery

Judging

Papers are presented to a panel of NASA engineers who collectively represent a diverse set of technology disciplines

Scoring Rubric

The cover page must include: team name, title of paper, full names of all team members, university name and faculty advisor's full name. The topic must be ESMD relevant and achieve a minimum score of 18 out of 24 points to qualify. Topics that are not ESMD relevant are not eligible. Appendices are not included in the page limitation and the judges are not obligated to consider lengthy appendices in the evaluation process. In the case of a tie, the judges will choose the winning Systems Engineering Paper. The judges’ decision is final.

Elements	4 Points	3 Points	2 Points	1 Point
Content: • Formatted professionally, clearly organized, correct grammar and spelling, 50 page maximum; 12 font size; single spaced. • Cover page • Introduction • Purpose • Sources	All five elements are clearly demonstrated	Four elements are clearly demonstrated	Three elements are clearly demonstrated	Two or less elements are clearly demonstrated
Intrinsic Merit: • Deliverables identified • Budget • Schedule • Major reviews: system requirements, preliminary design and critical design • Illustrations support the technical content	All five elements are clearly demonstrated	Four elements are clearly demonstrated	Three elements are clearly demonstrated	Two or less elements are clearly demonstrated
ESMD Relevance: • Demonstrates innovative ideas • Solves new technological problems • Enhances current technological developments • Evidence of thorough research	All four elements are clearly demonstrated	Three elements are clearly demonstrated	Two elements are clearly demonstrated	One element is clearly demonstrated
Technical Merit: • Concept of operations • System Hierarchy • Basis of design • Interfaces defined • Requirements definition • Design margins • Trade-off assessment • Risk assessment • Reliability • Verification • Requirement flow-down to validation and checkout • Use of system life cycle	One point for each element clearly demonstrated up to twelve points.

References
NASA Systems Engineering Handbook

Topic Presentations by NASA Systems Engineers

The Art and Science of Systems Engineering

Congratulations to the winners of the 2010 ESMD Systems Engineering Paper Competition:

Team Castor of Massachusetts Institute of Technology
with their paper on the topic of
"Cathode/Anode Satellite Thruster for Orbital Repositioning" (PDF Download)

Team C.O.L.B.E.R.T. of Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech)
with their paper on the topic of
"Athena: Proving Insight Into the History of the Universe" (PDF Download)

The University of Michigan team
with their paper on the topic of
"MOM-E: Moon-orbiting Mothership Explorer" (PDF Download)

Congratulations to the winners of the 2009 ESMD Systems Engineering Paper Competition:

Picture of the Team Hokie students

Team Hokie of Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech)
with their paper on the topic of
"CANSAT: Design of a Small Autonomous Sounding Rocket Payload" (PDF Download)

And

Team Taurus of Rice University
with their paper on the topic of

"Bone Remodeling Monitor" (PDF Download)

Congratulations to the winners of the 2008 ESMD Systems Engineering Paper Competition:

Picture of ESMD Space Grant Systems Engineering Paper 1st and 2nd Place Winners from Georgia Tech

Picture of ESMD Space Grant Systems Engineering Paper 1st and 2nd Place Winners from Georgia Tech

First Place:
Team LEXco of Georgia Institute of Technology
with their paper on the topic of
"Yamato - Bringing the Moon to the Earth... Again" (PDF Download)

Second Place:

Team SALEH "say-lee" of Georgia Institute of Technology

with their paper on the topic of

"WOLF What's on the Lunar Farside" (PDF Download)

Third Place:

The Virginia Tech CanSat Team of Virginia Tech

with their paper on the topic of
"CanSat Competition" (PDF Download)

Point of Contact

Direct any questions to the POC below.

Diane Ingraham
C&C Int’l Computer and Consultants, Inc.
ESMD Space Grant Education Project Specialist
E-mail: Zola.D.Ingraham@nasa.gov

We look forward to evaluating your entries and awarding our winning teams!

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