“Lunar-Bus” Launch-Receive space platform concept

Paper number

IAC-08.A3.2.INT10

Author

Prof. Huifeng Li, Beihang University, China

Coauthor

Mr. Songbai Xue, China

Year

2008

Abstract

In the future hundreds of years, the moon exploration will become one of the most important activities of human being, and the transportation between the earth and moon will become more and more frequent. The transportation cost of today’s approach is really unacceptable for a long time frequent running.
We first analyzed the traditional method cost of earth-moon transportation, find the energy cost points and then based on the analysis this article presents a new concept of space transportation (Lunar-Bus), which may reduce the cost to 1/150 of that nowadays. Generally speaking, this idea is a combination of “space tether system”, “maglev wheel technology” and “transfer station” concept. The platform consists of four maglev wheel system bases and four 100m*100m trusses. The space tether is somehow the same as the tether in NASA’s space elevator program. It is warped on the maglev wheel and by controlling the angular velocity it can receive a returning vehicle or launch a LEO vehicle to the Moon or Mars just as the navy carrier do. The platform stores the kinetic energy in the receiving process and releases energy in the launch process. It can recharge the energy wheel by solar panels, and then use that to project the vehicle. The only energy needed to go to the moon is the orbit correction cost.
Then the article analyzes the advantages such as: Saving a huge amount of energy, vehicle reusable, LEO rocket replenishment and so on. Next we bring forward the key technology problems we have to deal with. Such as: the guidance law to guarantee the precision of impact, the orbit transferring control after receiving or launching, the energy budget of the guidance and so on. We also bring forward some other problems such as the structure problem, the tether problem, these questions may not have so much relationship with control or guidance, but they are really the key technology we must have.
We are now modeling this system in detail and preparing to investigate the guidance problem and the energy budget problem, then doing lots of simulation to verify this idea, no matter to prove it can be or can not be achieved. We expect that dozens of years later, there will appear a kind of “Space Carrier” like this “Lunar-Bus” system.

Abstract document

IAC-08.A3.2.INT10.pdf

Manuscript document

IAC-08.A3.2.INT10.pdf (🔒 authorized access only).

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