Description: This SBIR Phase I effort will be devoted to exploring possible improvements for the NASA ARCSTONE instrument. One possible improvement will be to utilize total internal reflection optics for the fore-optics of the system. Possible benefits include reduced polarization and smaller size. A second possible improvement will be to use an optical design that requires only one focal plane array for the entire spectral range of 350-2,300 nm. The primary advantage of this approach would be reduced size and weight. During this effort optical ray-trace designs will be developed and optimized, followed by development of preliminary opto-mechanical designs. This will enable side-by-side comparisons with the existing ARCSTONE instrument. If warranted, plans will be developed for prototype fabrication and testing in Phase II.

Benefits: The improvements developed during this effort will be integrated into the existing NASA ARCSTONE project devoted to calibrating the lunar reflectance.

There are currently no envisioned non-NASA applications.