Many astronomical space missions observe at wavelengths which are absorbed by the atmosphere, as for example some infrared, ultraviolet or x-ray bands. Especially UV and x-ray optics have very stringent alignment tolerances due to the small wavelengths. Consequently, telescopes and instruments can only be tested at their operational wavelengths under vacuum conditions. Traditional methods for fixing optical elements and subassemblies (eg.

The project explores how to adapt Lithography Metal Manufacturing (LMM) to process scrap metal with lunar regolith contamination in a lunar environment, in view of the permanent and sustainable presence of a human outpost on the Moon with a reduced logistic demand, consequently released from onerous and not always timely terrestrial supplies.

The supra-THz (>3 THz) bands have been recently proposed for low Earth orbit THz remote sounding missions such as LOCUS (Low-Cost Upper-atmosphere Sounder). In order to achieve coherent detection, heterodyne receivers at supra-THz frequencies are under development by integrating in a single waveguide cavity a Schottky based mixers fed by a Quantum Cascade Laser (QCL) as Local Oscillator (LO). Thanks to the QCL, enough LO power is available to drive the mixer.

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Efforts for anomaly root cause analysis (e.g. GAIA) show the urgent need of using discipline models with flight data for diagnostic purposes. Acquiring more feedback from (also nominal) flight operations is also urgent to improve spacecraft related processes of engineering, analysis and verification. A spacecraft is equipped with several monitoring sensors that measure different attributes of the spacecraft. This results in a huge raw stream of data that has to be analysed to produce information about spacecraft behaviour and health status.

When setting up a lunar station, technologies for the use of locally available materials are crucial. Such technologies drastically reduce the need for transportation from Earth. This project idea aims to provide proof of a key technology, namely Mobile – Selective Laser Melting (M-SLM) for building large structures on the Moon.