Non-NASA applications potentially include gathering samples in hostile environments such as nuclear or hazardous waste sites. These require robotic interfaces to isolate human operators from the dangerous environment.
A large number of potential NASA missions have been identified that would utilize the SPRC including sample return missions to Mars, the Moon, Titan, comets, asteroids, and Trojan/Centaurs. Each of these missions would require the canister described in this proposal or an adaptation thereof. The SPRC could also find use for in-situ resource utilization (ISRU) prospecting. Samples would have to be acquired and analyzed for their volatile content in order to make detailed decisions on mining locations. Additional science applications (through NASA or other government organizations such as the NSF) include terrestrial investigations requiring the securing of pristine samples, particularly those containing volatiles of interest - Arctic and Antarctic ice, untouched water reservoirs, volcanic samples etc. While containers are available commercially that can be filled and sealed by a human operator, these environments are not accessible to humans and require a robotic-compatible container.
More »