(MAPLD Conference)
B7: Jack McCabe
NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
"Radiation Hard Reconfigurable Field Programmable Array"
NASA’s Goddard Space
Flight Center (GSFC), has accepted the broad range mission to expand and enhance research
and development in the areas of Earth science, technology, and Space science. To achieve
these goals GSFC must commit itself to excellence in scientific investigation, the
development and operation of space systems and last but not least in the advancement of
essential technologies. GSFC, during the past year, has developed a multi-faceted approach
to address these long-term goals. One such approach is to apply recent commercial advances
in field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) technology to the new area of On-Orbit
reconfigurable array based data processing.
Reconfigurable processing is itself not new to the commercial world,
but its successful application in Satellite instrument/data systems requires detailed
attention not only to the standard environmental issues but more importantly to the
effects of radiation. A satellite Instrument/data system, to operate as intended, must be
fault tolerant to the radiation environment of earth’s orbit. This level of radiation
tolerance can be achieved in many ways; the most robust and efficient method is to harden
the silicon of those devices in the critical path of the functioning system. In an
instrument/data system that implements reconfigurable array based processing the critical
device that must be hardened to the effects of radiation is the reconfigurable FPGA
(rFPGA).
GSFC, in standing by its commitment to advance essential technologies,
has embarked on a program that will over the next two years design, develop, test and
fabricate radiation hardened reconfigurable Field Programmable Gate Array (RH rFPGA)
devices. GSFC is partnered with Sandia National Laboratories, Honeywell and Atmel to bring
about the successful conversion of the commercial AT6010 to the RH rFPGA device. The RH
rFPGA device will pave the way for the development of Rad-Hard reconfigurable array based
information systems for space flight applications in the areas of display, analysis,
archiving and distribution
of space and Earth science data.
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