Author Topic: Self Deployed, Extremely Large, Ultra-Low Mass Space Structures  (Read 1891 times)

Offline mapreader

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A NASA study that NIAC was looking into before budget cuts shut down that department.

The presentation:

http://www.niac.usra.edu/files/library/meetings/fellows/mar07/1314Crowe.pdf

A more in depth report:

http://www.niac.usra.edu/files/studies/final_report/1314Crowe.pdf


Its features:

• Bubbles and foam with individual cell sizes up to 100
meters
• Structural spans could exceed 10,000 kilometers in
micro-g environments
• Structural densities as low as 15 µg/cc
• Areal densities under 1g/m2
• Foam densities that tessellate volume in a structured  way to maximize density in regions of stress
• Phononic crystals designed into the foam tailor the  stiffness of structural members
• In-situ bubble and foam formation and rigidization allows  a deployed structure volume of up to ( ten to the power 8 ) times the spacecraft volume that deploys it


The applications and implications are staggering:

• Self-sustaining space habitats for extended duration uses (perhaps with superconducting magnet radiation shielding)
– Space stations
– Planetary expeditions
– Interstellar voyages
– Planetary surface buildings
• Astronomical telescope structures that replace formation flying requirements at very
large scales
– Interferometer arrays
– Pinhole imagers
– Long focal length Fresnel plate telescopes
• Large area photon sails, stellar energy collectors, or astronomical primary photon
collection surfaces
– Interstellar photon sailing
– Solar powered propulsion
– Laser propulsion at extreme ranges
– Beamed power transmission
– Photon perturbation of comet orbits for planetary protection
– Astronomical research on the origins of the universe and on evidence of life on planets within
other solar systems
– Solar earth shade for global warming mitigation
– Optical apertures with tailored radius of curvature up to 100 meters in diameter
– Solar ablation of cometary surfaces to deflect NEO objects from earth-intersecting orbits for
planetary defense


If this technology can be developed (it's already at a very high tech readiness level), we're talking about colossal space-based hypertelecopes, absolutely vast solar sails and huge, orbiting space stations. All would be extremely cheap and very, very light.

Deployed Structures

• Example Structures
– Orbiting large spheres with multi-kilometer dimensions
– Domes, or either cylindrical or rectangular prisms, for use as
buildings on planetary surfaces
– Long structural elements to hundreds of kilometers in size and
beyond
– Large area thin walls to tens of thousands of square kilometers
and beyond

• Deployment Methods
– Bubble inflation followed by rigidization
– Frame member inflation followed by rigidization
– Frame member inflation followed by suspending “soap film”
analogs followed by rigidization


Next Big Future looked at this tech:

http://nextbigfuture.com/2007/04/possibly-last-niac-studies-are-being.html

Quote
A single bubble can be 1 meter in earth gravity, 100 kilometer in low earth orbit or 1000 kilometers in deep space. Foams made of many bubbles could be far larger in size.

NOTE: the size of a 1000 kilometer bubble is nearly the size of Charon, the moon of Pluto. Charon is 1200 kilometers in diameter. Saturn's moon Tethys is 1050-1080 kilometers in diameter Ceres the largest object in the asteroid belt is 970 kilometers in diameter. A single tesselation foam (like in the picture) of 1000 kilometer bubbles would be about the size of Earth's moon. A Penrose tesselation like the one in the picture of 1000 kilometer bubbles would be in between the size of Neptune or Saturn. A Tesselation foam of 100 kilometer bubbles in earth orbit could form an object the size our existing moon or larger.

Metal can be evaporated to coat the inside of the bubble for reflective sails and telescopes.

The bubble system for making structures is compatible with the hypertelescope, New Worlds Imager and Maxim x-ray telescope and solar sails.

Large structures can make telescopes that are millions of times more powerful than the Hubble Space telescope and solar sails that are light weight and fast.
« Last Edit: 06/29/2012 05:22 pm by mapreader »

Offline savuporo

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Thats pretty interesting. I did not see a mention about micrometeorite impact effects, that would be a significant concern, i guess ?
Orion - the first and only manned not-too-deep-space craft

Offline watermod

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Was more research on this ever done?

« Last Edit: 01/22/2019 11:05 am by watermod »

Offline watermod

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A micro-sat with a can or two of "Great Stuff" spray foam would be an interesting experiment.


Offline Slarty1080

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I think there are a number of issues with such very large low mass structures such as the pressure from sunlight, residual atmospheric drag if in orbit around Earth and electrostatic effects.
My optimistic hope is that it will become cool to really think about things... rather than just doing reactive bullsh*t based on no knowledge (Brian Cox)

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