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...
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...
Evolution of the Space Station Freedom Module Pattern
The Space Station Freedom (SSF) is being designed to serve as a permanently manned platform in space to accommodate a growing amount of supported scientific research and, ultimately, to...
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...
Cargo Transport to the Lunar Surface Using a Three Rotor Sling
The three rotor sling, a momentum transfer device, is described. The dynamics of multi-rotor systems are explained, and the three rotor system is shown to be favored over one and two rotor...
Structural Design Methodology of Large Space Structures
This paper discusses considerations and outlines a methodology for structural design of large space structures (LSS) deployed in low earth orbit. It includes definition of mission requirements,...
A Methodology for Development of Spaced-Based Assembly Operations
Designing and constructing a large space-based science facility requires the integration of constraints and design variables with assembly operations. Development of such a facility requires...
Beneficiation of Lunar Rocks and Regolith: Concepts and Difficulties
Considerations of the resources which can provide feedstocks of ilmenite, glass, agglutinates, anorthite, etc. at a lunar base require an appreciation of the geology of the situation....
Mobile Continuous Lunar Excavation
The purpose of this paper is to explore the two main problems regarding current approaches to lunar mining and to recommend three candidate solutions which will be shown to have potentially...
Lunar He-3 Mining: Improvements on the Design of the UW Mark II Lunar Miner
One of the minor consituents of the solar wind which has been implanted in the lunar regolith over its several billion year history, is helium 3 (He-3), a rare isotope of helium which...
Ropeway Material Handling Systems for Lunar Mining Sites
The establishment of permanent lunar sites will be a requirement for future space explorations during early missions into space as well as long term. During all stages it will be necessary...
On the Beneficiation and Comminution of Lunar Regolith
A major concern in the area of planning for future lunar missions and for establishing a lunar base is the selection of a chemical process for liberation of oxygen from lunar regolith...
Transfer of Terrestrial Technology for Lunar Mining
Terrestrial mining equipment was evaluated for development of concepts and their application to lunar-based mining operations. The major operational differences between terrestrial and...
Spiral Mining for Lunar Volatiles
Lunar spiral mining, extending outward from a periodically mobile central power and processing station represents an alternative for comparison with more traditional mining schemes. In...
Preliminary Design of an Underground Lunar Mine
This paper presents a mining engineering viewpoint on the design and construction of an underground lunar mine. Upon completion, the facility will serve as a lunar habitat. Ore removed...
Design Criteria for an Underground Lunar Mine
Underground excavation and construction techniques have been well developed terrestrially and provide an attractive option for lunar mining and habitat construction. The lunar mine, processing...
Sintering of Lunar Glass and Basalt
Sintering of the regolith has been proposed as a method for producing construction materials from local resources at a lunar base. Applications for lunar 'bricks' include road beds, foundations,...
Strength and Fracture of Glass in the Lunar Environment
Due to the lack of water on the moon, the effects of hydrolytic depolymerization - stress corrosion cracking - will be nonexistent in glasses produced and used on the moon. This would...
Mechanical Properties of Compacted Lunar Simulant Using New Vacuum Triaxial Equipment
Mechanical stress-strain-strength properties of Arizona Lunar Simulant (ALS) are investigated by using a newly developed vacuum triaxial device that allows compaction under different initial...
Explosive Forming of Aluminum-Lithium Alloys
This paper proposes the use of explosive forming to form large, near net shape components for HLLV propellant tanks and structures in meeting this need. Combining with high strength to...
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