Monday, September 20, 2010

EARTHSHIP I - Part II: Genesis

Starship Excelsior
Like so much of science fiction, the imaginative works of Gene Roddenberry and his Star Trek histories predict much of our future. This is definitely close to the truth in the overall design of the various starship spacecraft in Star Trek.

In this regard, we have borrowed an overview image of the Excelsior model starship as representative of what Earthship  I will resemble. Note, some of the aesthethic refinements in the image may not be in the real spacecraft; however, the main dinner-plate-like body will clearly illustrate the effective inclusion of an alternate gravity environment on board Earthship I.

The entire dinner plate internal area rotates at exactly 1.5 revolutions per minute thus sustaining an effective 1G gravity environment on board Earthship I. This is an actual application of the Stanford Torus concept. If you have visited the two links above you will know that Earthship I is very large in order to accommodate the necessary rotational arm radius that will create a 1G environment at the desired low RPM.. This is necessary to insure that an anti-gravity centrifuge design does not induce disorientation and other undesirable effects upon the crews.

The location of the propulsion units as shown on the Excelsior model are generally a good example. The units themselves will utilize basic plasma propulsion generated by, ideally, nuclear power. Each unit is independent of the other with respect to power generation. If this is to be the preferred propulsion technology then most likely Russia, an international space organization member, will manufacture and test the engines based upon their plans to utilize nuclear powered propulsion. This a clear advantage of an international space operation that pulls together the best designs and developments from the organization's members. This can save development costs, and speed up the entire process of producing Earthship I.

How on Earth are we going to do this in Low Earth Orbit? This is one of the reasons we have set a goal of by or before the end of the 21st century.  We will need to use some Heavy Lift Launch vehicles, but the real success of the program will depend upon the successful design, development and testing of space elevator systems.


Our original idea of assembling Earthship I in an MEO (Middle Earth Orbit) has been rejected due to the anticipated extreme cosmic radiation exposure. Constructing some type of shielded assembly site imposes both higher costs and serious project delays. Our plan now is to nestle the assembly process and testing withing the narrow band of LEO that lies beneath the lower region of the Van Allen Belt and is essentially shielded by the belt and the Earth's geomagnetism. This, as we know, is the same environment shared by the International Space Station.

Getting To The Assembly and Test Site is going to require both lift vehicles and active space elevators. The lift vehicle will be a very advanced adaptation of the scramjet spaceplane concept and will be used to move the "dinner-plate" shell of Earthship I up to the assembly and test site. This major section of the spacecraft will be assembled on Earth, but will not include the installation of all electronics, propulsion and control systems, and crew areas. All of these will be accomplished in LEO.

Encased in an aerodynamic shroud, this key portion of the spacecraft will be flown to its assembly point on a pair of powerful scramjet spaceplanes that are linked in parallel to each other. This is the first and only time that any part of Earthship I will either enter or exit a planetary atmosphere. All other components of the spacecraft are carried to the assembly area by space elevators and super shuttles that provide the link between the space elevator sites and the assembly area. In this regard, it is anticipated that the space elevator, spaceplane, and super-shuttle operations are all accomplished by international, commercial contractors.

Breakthrough technologies prevail in this program. Here is a list of the most significant:

  1. Design, development and production of the scramjet/spaceplane concept that utilizes the inclined rail launch concept. This overcomes the extreme lift demands for a standard rocket launch system.
  2. Successful assembly of a practical application of the Stanford Torus design to insure a safe, 1G environment within the Earthship I spacecraft.
  3. Design, development and inauguration of the Tether or SpaceElevator service; first as a cargo lift device and later as a unique passenger lift vehicle into space.
  4. Nuclear powered plasma propulsion systems that will provide travel speeds that will get Earthship I to Mars in less than a month and a half (35-40 days).
  5. Development and test of both super-shuttle and lander craft that support the entire Earthship I program. The lander craft are on board Earthship I and are capable of returning to the spacecraft after an exploration flight to a target planetary body.
  6. Personal and spacecraft radiation shielding technologies that provide structurally strong (spacecraft) and lightweight (personal and spacecraft) materials.
  7. Creation of several geo-synchronous orbiting space stations that support assembly test operations, transportation hubs, fueling stations, and new tourist sites as well as both anchor points and waystations for the spacelevators.
  8. A successful LEO Sweeper Operation, that patrols LEO and makes certain that all dangerous space junk is carefully disposed or captured and returned to an orbiting repair station.
Summary and Conclusion - Part II: Nobody will say any of this is easy and that it will not have some very knotty problems to solve, but the very effort will greatly enhance the scientific, engineering and technical strengths of every member nation of the ISO (international space organization). This, in turn, will produce significant growth in the economies and well-being of these same nations. It represents a major evolutionary step for humankind and gets us one step closer to our eventual ability to go well beyond our own solar system.

In Part III, soon to follow, we will join the crew of Earthship I for its maiden voyage. Please join us.





CREDITS:
Starship Exclesior: Courtesy of "The Celestial Motherlode" http://bit.ly/dePcAz

1 comment:

  1. Using the VASIMR type propulsion units it is anticipated that Earthship I can achieve a net velocity (thrust) from both engines that produces 35km/s which is equal to approx. 78000 mph. This will allow Earthship I to reach the moon from an LEO in approx 3 hours. This clearly makes a MoonBase as our first human step to deep space explorations a very practical one.

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