How NASA Engineers Use Origami To Design Future Spacecraft

Summary

Origami, the Japanese art of paper folding, is revolutionizing space exploration by enabling the deployment of large, thin structures compactly. The International Space Station's solar array wings and Mars Phoenix lander's UltraFlex solar array exemplify this. NASA's Starshade project, a giant star blocker for imaging distant exoplanets, utilizes origami's mathematical folding principles to fit within a rocket and deploy with precision in space. This innovative application of an ancient art underscores the importance of thinking small to achieve big in space technology.

Takeaways

• 🎨 Origami, the Japanese art of paper folding, is not only used for art but also for practical applications like car airbags and medical stents.
• 🚀 In space exploration, origami principles are utilized to design large, thin structures that can be compactly folded for launch and then unfolded in space.
• 🛰️ The International Space Station (ISS) and Mars Phoenix lander have employed origami-inspired folding patterns for solar arrays to maximize surface area while minimizing launch volume.
• 🛰️ The Starshade project at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory is an example of a large-scale application of origami in space, designed to help astronomers image exoplanets by blocking out starlight.
• 🌞 The Starshade is a giant structure, about the size of a baseball diamond, which needs to be folded compactly for launch and then precisely unfolded in space.
• 📏 The folding and unfolding process of the Starshade is based on mathematically defined patterns that ensure it can be compactly packed and then accurately deployed.
• 🔍 The Starshade aims to enable detailed imaging of exoplanets by creating a shadow of the star they orbit, allowing telescopes to observe faint planetary details.
• 🛰️ The deployment of the Starshade requires millimeter-level accuracy in unfolding and positioning, which is crucial for its effectiveness in blocking starlight.
• 🌌 Once deployed, the Starshade will be maneuvered by thrusters to position it between a star and a space telescope, facilitating detailed exoplanet imaging.
• 🌟 Origami's principles are not only limited to the Starshade but are also applied to other space structures, such as solar sails and sun-shades for telescopes, showcasing its versatility in space technology.

Q & A

What is origami and how has it been used in unexpected ways?

Origami is the ancient Japanese art of paper folding, traditionally used for creating art. It has been applied in surprising ways such as in car airbags, medical stents, and space exploration, where its folding principles allow for compact storage and deployment of large structures.

Why is origami important for space exploration?

Origami is crucial for space exploration because it enables the creation of large, thin structures that can be folded into compact forms to fit within the limited space of rockets, and then unfolded in space.

How do the solar array wings on the International Space Station (ISS) utilize origami?

The solar array wings on the ISS use a zigzag folding pattern, allowing them to be compactly stored and then deployed in space to generate power.

What is the Mars Phoenix lander's solar array called and how does it use origami?

The Mars Phoenix lander's solar array is called the UltraFlex, which uses a fan-folded design inspired by origami to efficiently pack and deploy the solar panels.

What is the Starshade project and how does it relate to origami?

The Starshade project at NASA's Jet Propulsion Lab is developing a large, star-blocking device to help astronomers image exoplanets by blocking out the starlight. The Starshade's design involves origami principles to enable its precise folding and unfolding in space.

Why is it challenging to image exoplanets directly?

Directly imaging exoplanets is challenging because the stars they orbit are much brighter, which washes out the detail of the planets, making them difficult to observe.

How does the Starshade help in observing exoplanets?

The Starshade acts as a large external occulter that blocks the light from the star, allowing telescopes to capture detailed images of the faint exoplanets orbiting them.

What is the size of the Starshade and why is its folding mechanism important?

The Starshade is about the size of a baseball diamond. Its folding mechanism is important because it needs to be compactly folded to fit inside a rocket for launch and then unfold with millimeter accuracy in space.

How does the Starshade achieve the required precision in its deployment?

The Starshade achieves the required precision through a carefully designed folding pattern and deployment mechanism that allows it to unfold in space with millimeter accuracy, positioning it correctly between the star and the telescope.

What are some other space applications of origami mentioned in the script?

Other space applications of origami include solar sails for propulsion and sun-shades for space telescopes like Gaia and the James Webb Space Telescope.

What is the significance of origami in the future of space exploration?

Origami is significant in the future of space exploration as it allows for the efficient packaging of large structures, enabling ambitious space missions with the constraint of limited rocket sizes.

Outlines

00:00

🚀 Origami in Space Exploration

This paragraph introduces origami as an ancient Japanese art form that has been adapted for modern applications in space technology. Origami's folding principles are used to create large, thin structures that can be compactly launched into space within the limited diameter of rockets. Examples include the solar array wings on the International Space Station (ISS) and the Mars Phoenix lander's UltraFlex solar array. The paragraph also discusses the Starshade project at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, which aims to use a large, foldable structure to block starlight, allowing for detailed imaging of exoplanets. The Starshade's design relies on precise origami folding patterns to achieve its necessary compact form for launch and precise unfolding in space.

Keywords

💡Origami

Origami is the traditional Japanese art of paper folding, which is central to the video's theme as it demonstrates how this art form is applied to modern technology and space exploration. The video explains how origami principles are used to design large, thin structures that can be compactly folded and launched into space, such as solar array wings on the ISS and the Mars Phoenix lander's UltraFlex solar array.

💡Paper Folding

Paper folding is a fundamental aspect of origami and is integral to the video's narrative. It refers to the technique of creating three-dimensional shapes from a flat sheet of paper by folding it along various crease patterns. The video uses paper folding as a metaphor for the development of space structures that can be compactly packed for launch and then unfolded in space.

💡Space Exploration

Space exploration is the overarching theme of the video, highlighting how origami is utilized in this field. The video discusses the challenges of deploying large structures in space and how origami's folding techniques offer solutions, such as the Starshade project, which aims to block starlight to image exoplanets more clearly.

💡Solar Array Wings

Solar array wings are large, thin structures used on spacecraft to collect solar energy. The video mentions that the solar array wings on the International Space Station (ISS) use a 'z' folding pattern, which is an application of origami principles to allow the wings to be compactly stored during launch and then unfolded in space.

💡Starshade

The Starshade is a project under development at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, featured in the video as an example of advanced origami application in space. It is designed as a large, foldable structure to block the light from stars, enabling telescopes to directly image exoplanets. The Starshade's design requires precise folding and deployment, illustrating the complexity and potential of origami in space technology.

💡Exoplanets

Exoplanets are planets that orbit stars outside our solar system. The video discusses the difficulty in imaging exoplanets due to the overwhelming brightness of their host stars. The Starshade project is introduced as a solution to this problem, utilizing origami to create a structure that can block starlight and allow for detailed exoplanet imaging.

💡Biosignatures

Biosignatures refer to signs of life, such as specific chemical compositions or atmospheric conditions, that can be detected remotely. The video mentions that one of the goals of using the Starshade in space exploration is to look for biosignatures on exoplanets, which could indicate the presence of life.

💡Isometric Map

An isometric map is a type of three-dimensional representation used in the video to describe how a flat sheet of material can be folded into a specific shape. In the context of the Starshade project, an isometric map helps define the necessary creases on a flat material to enable it to fold and unfold in a precise manner.

💡Folding Principles

Folding principles are the mathematical and geometric rules that govern how materials can be folded. The video emphasizes the importance of these principles in origami and how they are applied to space structures, such as the Starshade, to ensure that they can be folded compactly for launch and then unfolded with high precision in space.

💡Space Telescope

A space telescope is an observatory designed to be deployed in space, away from the Earth's atmosphere, to capture clearer images of celestial bodies. The video discusses how, with the help of the Starshade, a space telescope can image planets in detail, which would otherwise be impossible due to the brightness of their host stars.

💡Sun-Shades

Sun-shades are structures used in space to block sunlight from reaching sensitive instruments, such as telescopes. The video mentions sun-shades in the context of space telescopes like Gaia and the James Webb, which use origami-inspired designs to efficiently package and deploy large sun-shades in space.

Highlights

Origami is not only an art form but also has practical applications in technology and space exploration.

Origami principles are used to create large, thin structures that can be folded and launched into space.

The International Space Station (ISS) utilizes origami folding in its solar array wings.

The Mars Phoenix lander employed a fan-folded solar array known as the UltraFlex.

Large structures for space must be folded to fit within the limited diameter of rockets.

Origami's mathematical principles are key to understanding how large, thin sheets can be folded and unfolded.

NASA's Jet Propulsion Lab is developing 'The Starshade', a large star-blocking device to assist in exoplanet imaging.

Astronomers face challenges in imaging exoplanets due to the overwhelming brightness of their host stars.

The Starshade aims to block starlight, allowing for detailed imaging of exoplanets and the potential discovery of biosignatures.

The Starshade's size is comparable to a baseball diamond, requiring a complex folding mechanism for launch.

Origami folding patterns are essential for the Starshade's deployment in space.

An isometric map defines the necessary creases for the Starshade's folding and unfolding process.

The Starshade must unfold with millimeter precision to function effectively in space.

Once deployed, the Starshade positions itself between a star and a telescope to enable detailed planetary imaging.

Origami-inspired structures are used in various space applications, including solar sails and sun-shades for telescopes.

The future of space exploration relies on efficient packaging of large structures, drawing inspiration from origami.

The Starshade project exemplifies the intersection of traditional art and modern space technology.

Transcripts

Origami is the ancient art of Japanese paper folding. For years it has been used to create

stunning works of art. But it has also been used in maybe more surprising ways, like car

airbags, stents and even space exploration.

What we want in space are large structures, not necessarily massive, but large. Which

means you can make them out of thin materials, and whenever you can make them out of thin

materials you can use origami to fit them in these rockets.

Many space projects have used the folding principles of Origami; the solar array wings

on the ISS uses a z folding pattern and the Mars Phoenix lander used a fan-folded solar

array, called the UltraFlex.

Because the biggest rockets we have right now are only about 5 meters in diameter, we

have to come up with a way of folding up this very large structure so that we can launch

it in a rocket, and once it get to space it can unfold itself... origami is one the underlying

mathematics of how large thin sheets fold up.

One origami project currently in development at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Lab is The Starshade,

which is essentially a big star blocker. Have you ever tried to take a picture of someone

when the bright sun is beating down on them? Your subject is washed out and you won’t

be able to capture any detail. This is the same problem astronomers have when trying

to image exoplanets. Currently astronomers detect exoplanets indirectly using a shadow

technique called the transit method. For an earth sized exoplanet orbiting a sun like

star, they can’t be imaged in detail, because the stars they circle are much brighter than

they are. This is where the Starshade comes in, to help block that bright light to better

help astronomers learn more about these mysterious planets and look for biosignatures for life.

One of the ways in which we're thinking about suppressing the starlight is using something

called Starshade, which is a very large external occulter …that blocks out that starlight,

so we can see those really faint planets right next to it. Sounds easy enough, but the Starshade

is roughly the size of a baseball diamond.  Because the Starshade is so huge...we have

to come up with a way of folding up this very large structure into spaces that we can launch

it inside a rocket. And once it gets to space, it can unfold itself. Which is where origami

comes in. This is one of the candidate fold patterns that we had for the inner part of

the Starshade, what we call the optical shield. You can mathematically define how this sheet

of paper is folded up, and then by creating what's called an isometric map… you can

define what the creases have to be on a flat piece of paper to allow this sheet to fold

up in this very particular way. And the way it unfolds is just like that. And it's quite

remarkable in its simplicity. This giant space flower may seem simple in design but not in

implementation. The Starshade will need to unfold with millimeter accuracy. Once opened

thrusters will move the craft through space, positioning The Starshade between the star

and the space telescope. With the star now being shaded, the telescope can image the

planet in detail to find out whether conditions for life exist. Origami has been practiced

on Earth for  years, and scientists will continue to draw inspiration from it to help

package big space structures more efficiently.  From solar sails that use sunlight for propulsion,

to sun-shades for space telescopes like Gaia, and the James Webb once it launches in 2019.

We can take these ideas from origami and apply them to spacecraft structures. Because when

it comes to the future of space exploration, if we want to think big we also have to think

small. For more science documentaries, check out this one right here. Don't forget to subscribe

and keep coming back to Seeker for more videos.