http://lifesci3.arc.nasa.gov/spacesettlement/ orbital space settlements al globus march 2000 a...
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http://lifesci3.arc.nasa.gov/SpaceSettlement/
Orbital Space Settlements
Al GlobusMarch 2000
A scientist discovers what existsAn engineer creates what never was von Karmon
http://lifesci3.arc.nasa.gov/SpaceSettlement/
http://lifesci3.arc.nasa.gov/SpaceSettlement/
http://lifesci3.arc.nasa.gov/SpaceSettlement/
http://lifesci3.arc.nasa.gov/SpaceSettlement/
http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/history/shuttle-mir/photos/sts71/mir-imax/hmg0018.jpg
http://lifesci3.arc.nasa.gov/SpaceSettlement/
People Live Everywhere
• Every continent, including Antarctica
• Hottest, driest deserts• Coldest, iciest regions• Wettest rain forests• On water• For short periods, in orbit• 6,000,000,000 people on Earth
http://lifesci3.arc.nasa.gov/SpaceSettlement/
Life is Everywhere
• On nearly all land areas• In nearly all waters• In the rocks under the Earth• In near-boiling water• In ice• On desert rocks• On a spacecraft on the Moon
http://lifesci3.arc.nasa.gov/SpaceSettlement/
Next Target: Orbit
• Your lifetime: thousands of people living in orbit
• A few centuries: most of humanity in orbit.
• Next millenium: generation ships to the stars
http://lifesci3.arc.nasa.gov/SpaceSettlement/
Orbital Space Settlement• Who? Ordinary people. • What? Artificial ecosystems inside
gigantic rotating, pressurized spacecraft.
• Where? In orbit; near Earth at first. • How? With great difficulty.• Why? To grow. • When? Decades. • How much will it cost? If you have to
ask, you can't afford it.
http://lifesci3.arc.nasa.gov/SpaceSettlement/
Who
• Today: highly trained astronauts.– 200-400 million pesos tourist trip to Mir
• Tomorrow: everyone who wants to go.– 100 - 10,000,000 people per colony– Ultimately, thousands or even millions of
colonies
• Sounds unrealistic?– A hundred years ago nobody had ever
flown in an airplane.– Today ~ 500 million person/flights per
year.
http://lifesci3.arc.nasa.gov/SpaceSettlement/
What
• A space settlement is a home in orbit, not just a place to work.
• Live on the inside of air-tight, kilometer scale, rotating spacecraft.
http://lifesci3.arc.nasa.gov/SpaceSettlement/
Where
• In orbit, not on a planet or moon. • Moon (1/6g) and Mars (3/8g) gravity
too low. – Children will not have the bones and
muscles needed to visit Earth.– Orbital colonies rotate for 1g.
• Continuous solar energy.• Large-scale construction easier.• Much closer: hours not days or
months.
http://lifesci3.arc.nasa.gov/SpaceSettlement/
How• Materials
– Moon• Oxygen, silicon, metals, some hydrogen
for water.
– Near-Earth Asteroids• Wide variety of materials including water,
carbon, metals, and silicon.
– Radiation protection
• Life support: Biosphere II scientific failure, engineering success!
• Transportation critical and difficult.
http://lifesci3.arc.nasa.gov/SpaceSettlement/
http://lifesci3.arc.nasa.gov/SpaceSettlement/
Why
• Growth = survival.• Largest asteroid converted to
space settlements can produce living area ~500 times the surface area of the Earth. – 3D object to 2D shells– Uncrowded homes for trillions of
people. – New land.
• Nice place to live.
http://lifesci3.arc.nasa.gov/SpaceSettlement/
Real Estate Features
• Great views• Low/0-g recreation
– Human powered flight– Cylindrical swimming pools– Dance, gymnastics– Sports: football (soccer)
• Environmental independence• Custom living
– Weather art
http://lifesci3.arc.nasa.gov/SpaceSettlement/
When
• A few decades should be sufficient to build the first one.
• No serious effort now.• Technology requirements:
– Safer, cheaper launch– Extraterrestrial materials– Large scale orbital construction– Closed ecological life support systems– And much more
http://lifesci3.arc.nasa.gov/SpaceSettlement/
How much will it cost?
• A lot. – How much did Mexico City cost?
• Orbital space settlements will be far more expensive:– all materials imported– transportation difficult– build all life support – hostile environment– new techniques must be developed
http://lifesci3.arc.nasa.gov/SpaceSettlement/
Key Problem: Launch
Pesos/kg Pesos/me(73 kg)
Failure rate
Shuttle 200,000 14,600,000 0.5-1%
Commerciallauncher
varies varies 10-14%
airline 50 3,600 1/2,000,000
2010 NASA goal 20,000 1,460,000 1/10,000
2020 NASA goal 2,000 146,000 1/10,000
http://lifesci3.arc.nasa.gov/SpaceSettlement/
2020 Tourism
• Hotel• Doctors• Maids• Cooks• Recreational directors• Reservation clerks• etc.• These may be the first colonists.
http://lifesci3.arc.nasa.gov/SpaceSettlement/
Low/0-g Handicapped/Elderly
Colony• No wheelchairs needed.• No bed sores.• Easy to move body even when weak.• Never fall and break hip.• Grandchildren will love to visit.• First facilities for the extremely rich.• Need good medical facilities.• Probably can’t return to Earth.
http://lifesci3.arc.nasa.gov/SpaceSettlement/
Conclusion
The colonization of the solar system is the next great adventure for humanity. There is nothing but rock and radiation in space, no living things, no people. The solar system is waiting to be brought to life by humanity's touch.
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