FOIA: NASA/University Advanced Space Design Program - 2nd - 1986

ADVANCED_SPACE_DESIGN_PR OGRAM.pdf
NASA/University Advanced Space Design Program - 2nd - 1986
Abstracts from the 2nd annual NASA/University Advenced Space Design Program. These abstracts that cover a variety research subjects including lunar bases, mars exploration, space transportation and communications.
Document date: 1986-06-18
Department: Various universities
Author: various
Document type: report
pages: 31


Archivist's Notes: Good quality text document. Includes a list of attendees and conference program by day and hour.

Second Annual Conference
NASA/UNIVERSITY
ADVANCED SPACE DESIGN
PROGRAM
Kennedy Space Center, Florida
June 18-20, 1986

The Program:
The NASA University Advanced Space Design Program was conceived in
the fall of 1984 as a pilot project to foster engineering design education in the
universities and to supplement NASA's in house efforts in advanced missions.
("Advanced was defined as being post Space Station Initial Operating
Configuration.) Nine universities and five NASA centers participated in the first
year of the pilot project. Close cooperation between the NASA centers and the
universities, the careful selection of design topics, and the unbridled
enthusiasm of the students resulted in a successful first year and the decision to extend the experiment to a second year.
Nineteen universities (including the original nine) and eight NASA centers were involved in the second year's effort, the results of which are summarized herein.


Here are the highlights of the conference:

A LUNAR TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM
Due to large amounts of oxygen required for space
travel, a method of mining, transporting, and storing this
oxygen in space would facilitate further space exploration.
The following project deals specifically with the methods
for transporting liquid oxygen from the lunar surface to
the Lunar Orbit (LO) space station, and then to the Low
Earth Orbit (LEO) space station.
Two vehicles have been designed for operation….

DESIGN OF A MARS ROVER
This report summarizes the result of a ten week course
devoted to the design of a 500 kg, 500 watt Mars rover.
Its primary purposes are sample acquisition and study of
the Martian terrain. Special consideration was given to autonomous systems to reduce the amount of Mars-Earth communication necessary during the mission….

LUNAR FIBERGLASS: PROPERTIES AND
PROCESS DESIGN
Several sources have discussed the properties and
production of lunar fiberglass. The total cost of fiberglass
produced on the Moon from lunar raw materials and used
on the Moon and in low Earth orbit should be less than that of structural materials shipped from Earth…

2010: A CONCEPTUAL DESIGN FOR A MANNED,
ROTATING, GEOSYNCHRONOUS SPACE
STATION
The design of a permanently manned geosynchronous
space habitat (GSH), to be operational in 2010, poses a
unique design challenge. New technologies mandated for
the development of GSH include structures, shielding, power,
control systems, life support systems, and controlled
ecological life support system (CESS). These subsystems
can be applied to all future space missions…

DESIGN OF REGENERATNE SYSTEMS FOR
GROWING HIGHER PLANTS IN SPACE
…This work dealt primarily with issues of plant biology
and pathology, geometric configuration, structural design,
plant physical support, plant spacing, nutrient delivery,
lighting, atmospheric composition, plant propagation and
human involvement. The result was two alternative designs,
one centered on an aeroelectroponic nutrient delivery
system and the other on a liquid nutrient delivery system…

LUNAR MINING DEVICES & OTHER STUDIES
….The design projects centered about the theme of initial lunar construction and
manufacturing of materials from the lunar soil. Our plans for the next few years will be discussed along with the recently established engineering college design laboratory……
The ME 4 182 design projects chosen by the students were:
• Space vehicle shield
• Mobile lunar strip mining for oxygen
• Manufacturing of lunar bricks
• Space shuttle fuel tank reclamation
• Lunar freight lander
• Lunar electrical power station
• Space adaptation trainer
• Lunar material beneficiation for aerobrake construction
• Structural materials for lunar shelters
• Lunar surface/orbit cargo transport vehicle
• Ten meter lunar drill
• One hundred meter lunar drill
• Lunar material transport vehicle
• Lunar mining system
• Ten meter martian drilling system
• Transportable 100 meter multi-purpose lunar drill
• Soil-engagement excavator implement
• Structural element manufacturing Lunar bricks
• Self-propelled utility crane for the lunar environment
• Lifting and transport vehicle for lunar applications…..

LUNAR OXYGEN TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM
The design project, a Lunar Oxygen Transportation
System (LOTS), had the objective of supplying lunar liquid
oxygen (LLOX) to the space station (SS) in low Earth orbit
(LEO)…….

MOBILE REMOTE MANIPULATOR SYSTEM
The goal of the project was to design a mobile remote manipulator
system (MRMS) for the Space Station. We have carried out
a top-down design exercise starting from the basic
specifications for the MRMS as presented in the Space
Station Reference Configuration document and other more
recent published works including revised requirements…..

MARS EXPLORATION MISSIONS
This program is planned for the years 1990 to 2010 and consists
of two phases: the unmanned Exploratory Mission and the
Manned Mission. This program for the exploration of Mars
adopts NASA's objectives as its primary goals.
The Exploratory phase of the Mars mission paves the
way for future missions, collecting information vital to the
establishment of a manned surface base, as well as scientific
data for the better understanding of Mars, its history, and
its environment. This phase will examine possible base sites
with regard to surface features, meteorological, magnetic
and seismic environment, and composition.....

PROJECT KEPLER
Transporting personnel to Mars for a manned landing
and exploration is a major undertaking. To carry out this
mission, an efficient and reliable transportation system is
required. Advances in the technology areas of electric
propuision, nuclear electric power, thermal management
and control of large space structures will have to take place
before such a mission is possible.

SPACE STATIONS AND
TRANSPORTATION SYSTEMS
…The projects selected were an
earth-moon transportation system, a space construction
and repair facility, and a space-based moon ore capture
system and manufacturing plant.

MANNED MARS MlSSION
…The scenario requires the design of five major
components a cargo craft, an insertion assist vehicle, a
personnel transport vehicle, a Mars orbiting station, and
a Mars lander. The Mars orbiting station consists of a hub
containing docking bays for the Mars lander and orbital
transfer vehicles…..



[edit on 12-12-2007 by frozen_snowman]

MARS SURFACE-BASED FACTORY PHASE I - A CONCEPTUAL DESIGN
…Based on this similarity, the structure of the
factory design will include:
( 1 ) thermo-chemical process definition;
(2) automatic and logic control, and power source definition;
(3) system and process analysis, and implementation;
(4) computer-aided design and manufacturing; and
(5) definition of the factory's function, requirements, mobility,
stability, limitations, and reliability….

LUNAR LAUNCH AND LANDING FACILITIES
….Preliminary launch and landing facilities site selection,
crew requirements, control tower, landing pads location and
the subsystems configurations were studied, and a layout
is presented…..

ADVANCED LUNAR SURVEY SYSTEM
....to design an Advanced Lunar Survey System to determine the feasibility of a permanent manned lunar base and to provide groundwork for future lunar activities. To accomplish this, a manned
base camp will be established on the moon in 2005. This camp will perform experiments to examine the lunar environment in greater detail.

MULTI-MEGAWATT NUCLEAR POWER SYSTEM
FOR LUNAR BASE APPLICATION
The cornerstone of any successful lunar base is the
availability of large amounts of power: power to conduct
scientific experiments, power to process industrial materials,
power to expand the base using lunar resources. In addition
to a large output….

MARS HABITAT AND RELATED SUPPORT
The following four major topics were investigated:
1)Habitat structure
2) Mars rover
3) Oxygen production
4)Greenhouse lighting…..

LUNAR ECOSYSTEM AND ARCHITECTURAL PROTOTYPE
Presented are concepts for an initial lunar base, which
can serve as the core facility for larger lunar settlements
as needs and activities evolve…….

Document page 14 was not included – note on page 15: preceding page blank not filmed / page 14 intentionally blank

Workshop Summaries

SPACE AND RE-ENTRY ENVIRONMENTS
WORKSHOP
…. There may be a large number of potential conflicts
between lunar surface based science and the system
needed for future lunar exploration and exploitation. For
example, drilling and mining may interfere with seismology
instruments and research.

AUTOMATION & ROBOTIHCS WORKSHOP
The group considered automation and robotics technology needs for the missions considered at this conference.
In what follows, we describe
(1) technology needs for advanced lunar and martian missions
(2) key technology tasks in the field of automation and robotics, and
(3)research areas in this field that appear to offer high payoff
for these missions

SPACE MANUFACTURING WORKSHOP
The term “space manufacturing” applied to production on the surfaces of
the Moon and Mars and was not limited to work on the
Space Station. Although the observation seems trivial in
the present conference, it is important to realize that
research in planetary engineering is sparsely represented in
current NASA programs. Therefore, recommendations
arising from student studies can have a high leverage in
shaping future research initiatives in NASA.

STRUCTURES AND MATERIALS WORKSHOP
Many common mission elements; differences arise via
relative mission durations (longer to Mars), relative solar
distances, and from environmental differences between
Mars and Moon. Man’s presence assumed in all cases….

SPACE POWER WORKSHOP
….. To achieve higher power levels, nuclear systems appear to be the
most practical for most applications, since they are lighter
and more compact than solar-based systems…..

INFORMATION SYSTEMS/COMMUNICATIONS/
DATA REQUIREMENTS WORKSHOP
The group first addressed the problems faced by each in
their own group and expanded that to problems currently
faced in this area by all space vehicles.

MISSION PLANNING WORKSHOP
The objective of mission planning is to develop, describe,
analyze, critique, and improve the elements of program
activities leading to the realization of the established space
agency goals and objectives.
The process of mission planning is initiated as the result
of having a mission goal defined and having top level
mission objectives developed. A mission plan is developed
as the top level mission objectives are assembled into
alternative mission scenarios. The scenarios are compared
using engineering trade studies, cost-benefit analyses,
critical technology assessments, and risk analyses. The
final choice of a mission scenario and plan may be made
on the basis of cost, risk, engineering trades, political
factors, etc……

SPACE PROPULSION WORKSHOP
Propulsion Systems:
- Combined cycle engines
- Electric propulsion, e g , electrostatic, mass driver
- Nuclear powered
- Solar powered
- Cleaner “burning” systems to control contamination of
- Other fuel possibilities; eg, orbital assets
- Lunar aluminum-based fuels
- Methane in the martian system
- Laser heated systems; rocket and air breathing
- Magnetic plasma dynamics systems
- He fusion system
- Anti-matter system
- Solar sailing
- Tethered systems
- Nuclear thermal
- Rail guns

LIFE SCIENCE / HUMAN FACTORS/
LIFE SUPPORT SYSTEMS WORKSHOP
Primary words to described this conference:
- Informative
- Impressive
- Refreshing
- Inspiring
-Frustrating (That there is so very much we have to
teach and share with each other and yet time, travel budgets .etc are such limits)


[edit on 12-12-2007 by frozen_snowman]