Draper’s DMEN Successfully Completes the Next Phase of Flight Testing
CAMBRIDGE, Mass., March 4, 2025 – Draper recently completed two new tests of its DMEN (Draper Multi-Environment Navigator) vision-based navigation and hazard detection technology for safe and accurate lunar landings.
DMEN is designed to help spacecraft land on the Moon with greater precision, using navigation system technology that rivals LiDAR, radar, and other camera-based solutions. DMEN uses vision-based terrain relative navigation technology to track features on the lunar surface and deliver precision localization information during a spacecraft’s descent.
“These test flights gather invaluable data to help us move DMEN from the laboratory into space,” said Brett Streetman, distinguished member of the technical staff at Draper. “By gathering data in multiple environments with different vehicles, we improve multiple aspects of our technology.”
The first test, conducted in the fall of 2024, focused on a monocular-vision, shadow-based hazard detection software system that is compatible with existing DMEN hardware. To validate the software, DMEN was deployed on Astrobotic’s Xodiac rocket lander, which reached an altitude of 500 meters, flew over a simulated hazard field, and executed an approach similar to a lunar landing.
Monocular vision-based hazard detection methods rely on challenging computations but have the potential advantage of significantly lower size, weight, and power constraints on the spacecraft. The data obtained in the Xodiac flight allows Draper to raise the technology readiness level (TRL) of its shadow-based methods.
The second test was completed on February 4, 2025, when DMEN flew as one of the research payloads on Blue Origin’s New Shepard NS-29. The flight simulated lunar gravity by executing a controlled spin of the capsule. DMEN was one of 30 payloads on the flight. This is the third flight test of DMEN on New Shepard.
The flight test provided the relevant environment needed to collect data and validate algorithms to advance the system in anticipation of CP-12, which is one of the deliveries NASA has funded under its Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) initiative. Draper’s advanced terrain relative navigation software will be used on the mission.
Previous DMEN tests focused on the ability to accurately gather terrain data at various altitudes and speeds, demonstrating the ability to provide real-time, terrain relative navigation in all three phases of flight: ascent, descent, and landing.
Flight testing and payload development for DMEN was funded in part under NASA’s Flight Opportunities program. DMEN has achieved TRL 6 for both ground and low-altitude operations. Test flights, like the ones on Astrobotic’s Xodiac and Blue Origin’s New Sheppard, allowed for the collection of data and validation of algorithms, which helps Draper advance the development of DMEN. The NASA-supported flight tests have helped DMEN achieve a TRL of 6/7 for lunar descent terrain relative navigation and a TRL of 4/5 for shadow-based hazard detection.
About Draper
Draper is a non-profit research and development company that solves some of the nation’s most important challenges. With more than 2,000 employees working in collaboration across 13 campuses, Draper delivers transformative, mission-driven solutions that successfully meet our customers’ requirements. These efforts focus on four critical mission areas: Strategic Systems, Space Systems, Electronic Systems, and Biotechnology Systems. To extend our legacy into the future, the Draper Scholars program engages with the next generation of innovators while DraperSPARX™ seeks to partner with startups and small businesses that can further our mission. To learn more about Draper, visit www.draper.com.
Released March 4, 2025
