CYCLIC VISITS TO MARS VIA ASTRONAUT HOTELS OR THE INTERPLANETARY RAPID TRANSIT (IRT) SYSTEM CYCLIC VISITS TO MARS VIA ASTRONAUT HOTELS OR THE INTERPLANETARY RAPID TRANSIT (IRT) SYSTEM Presentation to the NASA Institute for Advanced Concepts (NIAC) 4th Annual Meeting Lunar and Planetary Institute, Houston TX By Kerry Nock Global Aerospace Corporation http://www.gaerospace.com/ 12 June 2002 Global Aerospace Corporation
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CYCLIC VISITS TO MARS VIA ASTRONAUT HOTELSOR
THE INTERPLANETARY RAPID TRANSIT (IRT)SYSTEM
CYCLIC VISITS TO MARS VIA ASTRONAUT HOTELSOR
THE INTERPLANETARY RAPID TRANSIT (IRT)SYSTEM
Presentation to theNASA Institute for Advanced Concepts (NIAC) 4th Annual Meeting
Lunar and Planetary Institute, Houston TX
By Kerry NockGlobal Aerospace Corporationhttp://www.gaerospace.com/
12 June 2002
GlobalAerospace
Corporation
The Interplanetary Rapid Transit (IRT) System
Global Aerospace Corporation 3 KTN - Annual Meeting - June 12, 2002
GlobalAerospace
Corporation
TOPICSTOPICS• Phase II Contributors• Interplanetary Rapid Transit System (IRT) Concept Overview• Visions, Goals, Assumptions, and Realities• Orbital Tracks and Space Lines• Using the Atmosphere To Put The Brakes On• Taxi, Shuttle, Transport Hubs, and Hotel Design Concepts• Example Transit Schedule• Turning Planet Dirt Into Rocket Fuel and Other Useful Things• Technologies To Build Upon• What’s The Best Architecture and How Much Will It Cost?• Summary
The Interplanetary Rapid Transit (IRT) System
Global Aerospace Corporation 4 KTN - Annual Meeting - June 12, 2002
GlobalAerospace
Corporation PHASE II STUDY CONTRIBUTORSPHASE II STUDY CONTRIBUTORSGlobal Aerospace Corporation
Base Laboratory 2 13.6 27.2Mobile Laboratory 3 9.1 27.3200 m Drill 1 2.3 2.310 m Drill 3 0.1 0.3UAV 3 0.3 0.9Robotic Rovers 10 0.2 2.0Weather Station 5 0.2 1.0Survey Orbiters 2 0.8 1.6
62.6
Total 278.9
IRT ROUTE MAPIRT ROUTE MAP
Space Shuttle
Lunar Ice Mine
Phobos LOX Plant
Up Astrotel
EARTH
Gravity-assistDelta-V Aerocapture
Mars Shuttle
5 months
LEO
SpaceStation
Mars Spaceport
Earth Spaceport
Lunar Water Tanker
Phobos LOX
Tanker
PH
OB
OS
MO
ON
MarsBase
MARS
Spiral Escape
Mars Cargo Freighter
< 1 week
< 1 week
Spiral Departure
Taxi
TaxiAstrotelCargo
Freighter
Taxi
Spiral Capture
VISIONS, GOALS, ASSUMPTIONSAND REALITIES
VISIONS, GOALS, ASSUMPTIONSAND REALITIES
A VISION OF THE FUTUREA VISION OF THE FUTURE
• Permanent inhabitation of Mars by scientistsand explorers occurs as quickly as financiallyfeasible
• Earth-Mars transit system is created providingsafe, frequent and affordable travel
• Reduced reliance on Earth for space activities• Pathways are opened for exploration beyond
Mars
• Permanent inhabitation of Mars by scientistsand explorers occurs as quickly as financiallyfeasible
• Earth-Mars transit system is created providingsafe, frequent and affordable travel
• Reduced reliance on Earth for space activities• Pathways are opened for exploration beyond
Mars
SUGGESTED DEVELOPMENT GOALS OF AFUTURE TRANSIT SYSTEM
SUGGESTED DEVELOPMENT GOALS OF AFUTURE TRANSIT SYSTEM
• Demonstrate physiologically feasible travel toand from Mars (zero-g, radiation protection)
• Minimize transit system life cycle costs• Maximize use of natural resources• Establish context for future human space
exploration and development, space technologyadvance, and robotic missions
• Incorporate advanced technology to lower costsand make trips safer
KEY ARCHITECTURE STUDY ASSUMPTIONSKEY ARCHITECTURE STUDY ASSUMPTIONS
• Sustained Mars Base of 20 people that is selfsufficient except for hardware
• Earth launch costs are $2,000 per kg to lowEarth orbit
• Use solar energy for space and surface power• Use space resources to make rocket fuels• Use currently and clearly foreseeable
technologies• Transport crews and cargo in efficient steps
with specialized vehicles
• Sustained Mars Base of 20 people that is selfsufficient except for hardware
• Earth launch costs are $2,000 per kg to lowEarth orbit
• Use solar energy for space and surface power• Use space resources to make rocket fuels• Use currently and clearly foreseeable
technologies• Transport crews and cargo in efficient steps
with specialized vehicles
REALITIESREALITIES
• An Earth-Mars transportation system will beexpensive and will require– imagination to minimize costs,– significant and sustained political leadership and– international collaboration
• If used, space nuclear reactor system costs willbe very expensive without DOD and/or commercialapplications
• Launch costs will be an order of magnitude lesswhen they are
• An Earth-Mars transportation system will beexpensive and will require– imagination to minimize costs,– significant and sustained political leadership and– international collaboration
• If used, space nuclear reactor system costs willbe very expensive without DOD and/or commercialapplications
• Launch costs will be an order of magnitude lesswhen they are
ORBITAL TRACKS AND SPACE LINESORBITAL TRACKS AND SPACE LINES
The Interplanetary Rapid Transit (IRT) System
Global Aerospace Corporation 14 KTN - Annual Meeting - June 12, 2002
AEROBRAKE DESIGN• 20 m diameter, Viking aeroshell shape, open back• 30 deployable and stowable segments• Al structure & honeycomb substrate, STS-type TPS• Deployed at the Mars Spaceport• Stowed before departure from Mars surface
AEROBRAKE DESIGN• 20 m diameter, Viking aeroshell shape, open back• 30 deployable and stowable segments• Al structure & honeycomb substrate, STS-type TPS• Deployed at the Mars Spaceport• Stowed before departure from Mars surface
CommonCrew Module
CommonCrew Module
Cargo ContainersCargo Containers
LOX TankLOX Tank
LH TankLH Tank
MARS SHUTTLE LANDINGMARS SHUTTLE LANDING
MARS SHUTTLE AFTER LAUNCHMARS SHUTTLE AFTER LAUNCH
Stowed AerobrakeStowed Aerobrake
3 Rocket Engines(Adv. RL-10 type, 2 req.)
3 Rocket Engines(Adv. RL-10 type, 2 req.)
IRT TRANSIT SCHEDULEIRT TRANSIT SCHEDULE
EARTH
MARS
Low Earth Orbit
Lunar Orbit Radius
Phobos Orbit Radius
UPCYCLER
DOWNCYCLER
Hyperbolic Rendezvous
Hyperbolic Rendezvous
2026 2029 203020272025 2028
Space Station
Earth Spaceport
Mars Spaceport
The Interplanetary Rapid Transit (IRT) System
Global Aerospace Corporation 29 KTN - Annual Meeting - June 12, 2002
GlobalAerospace
Corporation KEY ADVANTAGES OF ALDRINCYCLERS
KEY ADVANTAGES OF ALDRINCYCLERS
• Astrotels can take advantage of ion propulsions system (IPS)technology
• Astrotels never stop• With IPS, one can incrementally increase the Astrotel capability
over time with very little propulsion cost– Increase radiation shielding thickness– Incorporate artificial gravity if needed– Add redundant Taxi and/or escape vehicles– Grow a cache of repair hardware, propellants and consumables
TURNING PLANET DIRT INTO ROCKETFUEL AND OTHER USEFUL THINGS
TURNING PLANET DIRT INTO ROCKETFUEL AND OTHER USEFUL THINGS
The Interplanetary Rapid Transit (IRT) System
Global Aerospace Corporation 31 KTN - Annual Meeting - June 12, 2002
GlobalAerospace
Corporation
TURNING NATURAL RESOURCESINTO ROCKET FUEL
TURNING NATURAL RESOURCESINTO ROCKET FUEL
• Moon --> Water from Polar ice• Phobos --> O2-bearing regolith• Mars Surface --> Water-bearing regolith• Spaceports --> Electrolysis of water to and/or
storage of LH and LOX using solar energy
The Interplanetary Rapid Transit (IRT) System
Global Aerospace Corporation 32 KTN - Annual Meeting - June 12, 2002
GlobalAerospace
Corporation SPACE RESOURCE PROPELLANTPRODUCTION SYSTEMS
SPACE RESOURCE PROPELLANTPRODUCTION SYSTEMS
Excavator• Bucket wheel• Scraper Transporter
• Integrated withexcavator
• Separate vehicle Reactor• Thermal
extraction• Carbothermal
reactor• Electrolysis• Liquefaction
Storage
• Cryogenic• Transfer
The Interplanetary Rapid Transit (IRT) System
Global Aerospace Corporation 33 KTN - Annual Meeting - June 12, 2002
GlobalAerospace
Corporation PHOBOS/MARS BUCKET WHEELEXCAVATOR SYSTEM DEVELOPMENT
PHOBOS/MARS BUCKET WHEELEXCAVATOR SYSTEM DEVELOPMENT
MARS PROPELLANT PRODUCTION ANDSTORAGE FACILITY CONCEPT
MARS PROPELLANT PRODUCTION ANDSTORAGE FACILITY CONCEPT
TECHNOLOGIES TO BUILD UPONTECHNOLOGIES TO BUILD UPON
The Interplanetary Rapid Transit (IRT) System
Global Aerospace Corporation 36 KTN - Annual Meeting - June 12, 2002
GlobalAerospace
Corporation
TECHNOLOGIES TO BUILD UPONTECHNOLOGIES TO BUILD UPON• Human physiology and life support in space• Automation and robotics• Assembly and operations in space• Aero-assist• Ion propulsion systems• Space resource mining, processing and manufacture• Photovoltaic energy generation• Fuel cell energy storage• High-strength, lightweight structures• Advanced Computers• High-bandwidth interplanetary communications
WHAT’S THE BEST IRT DESIGN ANDHOW MUCH WILL IT COST?
WHAT’S THE BEST IRT DESIGN ANDHOW MUCH WILL IT COST?
The Interplanetary Rapid Transit (IRT) System
Global Aerospace Corporation 38 KTN - Annual Meeting - June 12, 2002
GlobalAerospace
Corporation MISSION ARCHITECTURE MODEL ANDANALYZER (MAMA) DESCRIPTION
• MAMA is a tool to support trade study analyses of MarsAstrotel Concepts
• MAMA integrates multiple lower-level models enablingassessment of technology selection/definition impacts on anoverall Mars Astrotel scenario’s life cycle requirements
• MAMA maintains a database of past runs to allow comparisonof features from different Astrotel scenarios
• MAMA will use a multi-level approach for collecting inputs
MAMA is better for comparing different options than generatingabsolute cost estimates
MARS ASTROTEL MODEL ARCHITECTURE - SYSTEM INTEGRATOR 21-Nov-00
MAMA SI Version 1.0
Current Run: Current Date: 2/6/2002 12:22
TRANSPORTATION SYSTEMS AND ORBITAL ELEMENTS OUTPUTS Chart Outputs
LUNAR/MARS BASES & ISRU TANKERS
IN SITU RESOURCE UTILIZATION (ISRU) SYSTEMS
TEST CONCEPT 1A
WBS Elements
& Life Cycle Costs
Master
Equipment List
ASTROTELS
TAXIS
MARS CARGO FREIGHTERS LEO SHUTTLE
EARTH & MARS
SPACEPORTS
ASTROTEL CARGO
FREIGHTERSESCAPE POD
LUNAR WATER
TANKER
MARS SHUTTLE
PHOBOS LOX
TANKERMARS BASELUNAR BASE
LUNAR WATER MINE
L1 WATER ELECTROLYSIS &
CYRO STORAGE
PHOBOS LOX
PLANT
MARS SURFACE WATER PLANT
MARS ORBIT
PROPELLANT STORAGE
Non-Recurring
CostsRecurring Costs
Flight System Development
Costs
Refurb HW
Costs
Initial HW
Masses
Refurb HW
Masses
Life Cycle Cost
Summary
SUM M ARY PRINTOUT (11pgs)
MAMA INPUTS AND SYSTEM ELEMENTMAMA INPUTS AND SYSTEM ELEMENT
The Interplanetary Rapid Transit (IRT) System
Global Aerospace Corporation 40 KTN - Annual Meeting - June 12, 2002
GlobalAerospace
Corporation
MAMA LIFE CYCLE COST OUTPUTMAMA LIFE CYCLE COST OUTPUT
0
5,000
10,000
15,000
20,000
25,000
30,000
Ad
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ech
De
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Ad
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Flig
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Sys
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Flig
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Ass
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nte
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Te
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LV
Gro
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aci
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Pro
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La
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Ch
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Orb
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Ass
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&T
Sta
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SS
Op
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furb
ish
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Ha
rdw
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Dis
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$M
4.0 Operations
3.0 LaunchServices
2.0 FlightSystem Dev
1.0 AdvancedTechnology Dev
AdvTech DEVELOPMENT & LAUNCH OPERATIONS
* 15 Years
*
The Interplanetary Rapid Transit (IRT) System
Global Aerospace Corporation 41 KTN - Annual Meeting - June 12, 2002
GlobalAerospace
Corporation SUMMARY OF EARLY,ROUGH MAMA COST ESTIMATES
SUMMARY OF EARLY,ROUGH MAMA COST ESTIMATES
Development: ~$5B/yr for 10 yearsOperations: ~$3B/yr
View Results- Details for CurrentArchitecture Scenario- Comparison ofMultiple Scenariosfrom MAMA Database
Modify Lower-Level Inputs- Provides visibility to lower-levelmodel inputs and allowsmodification of selected inputs- For more experienced usersonly
ADVANCED MAMA INFORMATION FLOW
The Interplanetary Rapid Transit (IRT) System
Global Aerospace Corporation 43 KTN - Annual Meeting - June 12, 2002
GlobalAerospace
Corporation
POSSIBLE MAMA STUDIESPOSSIBLE MAMA STUDIES
• Different cyclic orbit options• Alternative transportation nodes• Solar vs nuclear reactor power• No use of natural space resources• Higher/lower launch costs• ISRU aerobrakes• Impact of cyclic orbit option on increased Astrotel mass for
Global Aerospace Corporation 45 KTN - Annual Meeting - June 12, 2002
GlobalAerospace
Corporation SUMMARYSUMMARY
• The Astrotel interplanetary rapid transit system architecture:– Is cost effective because it reuses transit system elements– Uses natural space resources to produce low-cost propellants– Enhances human health and performance due to short trips– With Aldrin cyclers, can easily expand Astrotel to enhance system, and– Can rely entirely on solar power systems
• Concepts have been developed that could be utilized in roboticpathfinder exploration, high Earth orbit operations missions,and expedition phases of Mars exploration
• The tools developed during this study can be used to analyzeand compare future technology and system options