Scientific and Engineering Requirments for a Sustainable Space Exploration Architecture: A Long Term Analysis

Paper number

IAC-07-D3.3.07

Author

Mr. Scott G. Moon, International Space University (ISU), France

Coauthor

Mr. Gary Martin, International Space University (ISU), France

Year

2007

Abstract

During the last decade, the nations of the world have begun to return to the question of human exploration of the solar system. Initiatives such as the new Vision for Space Exploration (VSE) announced by United States President George Bush, or the European Space Agency’s (ESA) Aurora Programme, have detailed multiple roadmaps that, if followed, will propel mankind beyond the International Space Station. One of the greatest threats to these roadmaps is the time scale. To be an effective guide to the future, the space exploration architectures created from these roadmaps and policies must be sustainable and feasible over decades of exploration. Consequently, the systems that support this architecture must be sustainable as well.\\
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While sustainability can be discussed in the context of financial, political, scientific and engineering sustainability, this paper focuses on the latter two, providing requirements that must be satisfied in order to have a sustainable system. The links to the other two areas of sustainability, and how their interconnectivity influences each other is explored briefly. Four main aspects of sustainability have been identified: flexibility, robustness, extensibility and feasibility. These characteristics are applied to current space technology not as a criticism but as a contrast, to highlight changes that must take place at both system and subsystem levels within contemporary design architectures to produce a sustainable system. The analysis reveals certain specific factors that must be incorporated to produce a sustainable architecture, such as standardized interfaces. Examples of the incorporation, or lack thereof, are used in order to point the way towards the implementation of a sustainable architecture within modern day constraints and risks. The paper concludes with three specific technical based recommendations for sustainable architecture generation based on mission design, scientific knowledge returns and engineering design.

Abstract document

IAC-07-D3.3.07.pdf

Manuscript document

IAC-07-D3.3.07.pdf (🔒 authorized access only).

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