Construction Challenges on Planetary Surfaces
In July 1989 those who advocate a vigorous U.S. space program received a significant boost from the President's declaration that we should return to the Moon, this time to stay, and then...
The Application of Open System Architecture to Planetary Surface Systems
This paper investigates the issues that future planet surface activities must confront, defines the basic concepts that provide the basis for establishing an Open System Architecture,...
Lunar Resource Base
A lunar base that exploits local resources to enhance the productivity of a total SEI scenario is discussed. The goals were to emphasize lunar science and to land men on Mars in 2016 using...
In-situ Release of Solar Wind Gases from Lunar Soil
A concept is described which has the potential to perform the in-situ heating of the lunar regolith in order to release the solar wind gases. The poor thermal conductivity of the lunar...
Isotopic Separation of ?He/4He From Solar Wind Gases Evolved from the Lunar Regolith
The potential benefits of 3He when utilized in a nuclear fusion reactor to provide clean, safe electricity in the 21st century for the world's inhabitants...
Assessing Lunar Resources with Remote Sensing
Four strategic architectures have been identified as part of the U.S. Space Exploration Initiative (SEI) to achieve U.S. goals with respect to the Moon. One of these architectures, space...
A Modified Sulfate Process to Lunar Oxygen
A modified sulfate process which produces oxygen from iron oxide-bearing minerals in lunar soil is under development. Reaction rates of ilmenite in varying strength sulfuric acid have...
Evaluation of Processing Options for Lunar Oxygen Production
Recent work on space resource utilization has lead to the identification of certain modifications of previously proposed processes which can be properly characterized as 'second generation'...
Materials and Structures Synergistic with In-Space Materials Utilization
The objective of this paper is to clearly demonstrate the significant advances made in recent months toward actual hardware realizations of various concepts for the utilization of in-space...
The Feasibility of Processes for the Production of Oxygen on the Moon
Twenty different processes for the production of oxygen on the Moon have been proposed. An evaluation of their perceived feasibility is presented. The lunar liquid oxygen (LLOX) production...
The Affordable Space Platform: The STS External Tank
Future development of space requires establishing affordable work platforms in orbit. This paper surveys possible uses of the Space Transportation System's External Tank (ET) to provide...
Back to the Future: A Saturn V-Based Low Earth Orbital Transportation Node
The Space Exploration Initiative requires a heavy-lift launch vehicle to succeed. Reviving the Saturn V represents the best option for regaining heavy-lift. Utilizing the Saturn V's two-stage-to-orbit...
Impact Craters on Cosmic Dust: Do Damage to the Spacecraft
The discovery and study of impact crater on cosmic dust to understand the overall micrometeoroid environment and space engineering requirement are important. In this paper, we attempt...
On-Orbit Assembly of Large Space Structures: A Mars Aerobrake Mock-up Study
As design requirements for space structures become larger in dimension, the issues of shipping and assembling these structures in space become more critical. One example of such a structure...
Regolith Dynamics
Due to the differences of the gravitational accelerations of the Earth and Lunar environments, geotechnical engineering must be applied differently in the two environments. This study...
A New Era in Space Operations
The United States has embarked on a bold new course in space. We are in the process of deploying global missile defenses which promises to help realize an extended era of international...
The Initial Exploration of Mars: Rationale for a Return Mission to Chryse Planitia and the Viking 1 Lander
The concepts behind planning a landing site on Mars are discussed. Based on the engineering constraints and the scientific objectives which will likely be imposed on the first few missions...
The Virtual Mission: A Step-Wise Approach to Large Space Missions
The new Virtual Mission concept will provide NASA's Science Program with a powerful new, 'go-as-you-pay,' flexible, and resilient way of accomplishing its science observing program. The...
ESCAPE: Small Payload Strategies
The Extreme ultraviolet Solar Contained Autonomous Payload Experiment (ESCAPE) is a small payload scheduled to fly on the Space Shuttle in April 1992. This payload has been developed at...
Architectures for Mission Control at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory
One of the most vital, but often overlooked, research areas for space missions is flight operations. The imbalance is caused by many factors. Among them, the manner in which space missions...
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