A Room with a View of Mars
The launch in mid-July of the first inflatable space
habitat marked another milestone in the commercialization
of space, and a step closer to the dream of a space
hotel to be realized next decade. This article will
review the origins and development of the first space
habitat, as well as plans for the first inflatable
space hotel (some more space articles).
Since the start of the Apollo space program and
the first moon landing in the 1960's, man has been
intrigued by the possibility of space tourism where
a room in space could be booked as conveniently and
cheaply as one on Earth. But this scenario may no
longer be purely science fiction. Approaching half
a century since Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin, the
first man in space, reached orbit, man is beginning
to commercialize the final frontier. Amateur astronauts
have taken part in official missions on several occasions
since the mid 1980's. Since the first space tourist,
American multimillionaire Dennis Tito, paid in excess
of $20 million for the opportunity to undergo extensive
training and spend a week on the multi-billion dollar
International Space Station (ISS) in 2001, three
others like him - South African Mark Shuttleworth,
American Gregory Olsen, and the first woman space
tourist, Iranian-born American Anousheh Ansari -
have followed.
Until recently, the only way to reach orbit was
either the space shuttle or the Soyuz space capsule.
In 2004, Scaled Composites launched the first non-government-sponsored
manned spacecraft, SpaceShipOne. Though the vehicle
attained only sub-orbital flight, it opened the door
to a new generation of privately-funded spaceflights.
Virgin Galactic is planning to launch SpaceShipTwo,
capable of carrying passengers into sub-orbital altitude
in late 2008, followed by a larger version capable
of real orbital reach a few years later.
Scoring a parking spot for your private spaceplane
in orbit is a different story. The ISS, which is
still unfinished (mainly due to the Columbia disaster),
is not a space hotel and, although occasional tourists
have boarded the Russian part of the station, it
is first and foremost a scientific laboratory that
will not be used to accommodate a large number of
space tourists. Seeking to launch a genuine space
hotel, hotelier Robert T. Bigelow created the space
tourism company, Bigelow Aerospace, in 1999. Following
seven years of development, Bigelow Aerospace launched
its first inflatable space structure, Genesis I,
on July 12th, 2006 using a Dnepr LV missile (a converted
Russian SS-18 Inter-Continental Ballistic Missile)
from the Yasny Launch Base in Russia. Measuring 4.4
m (~14 ft.) in length and 1.6 m (~5 ft.) in diameter
when compressed, the spacecraft successfully reached
a 483 km (300 mi.) orbit, then extended its solar
panels, and inflated in fifteen minutes, expanding
its width to a full 2.54 m (~8 ft.) in diameter.
The Genesis I prototype habitat will be followed
in a few months by Genesis II, a more sophisticated
habitat that will carry more cameras (18 as opposed
to Gensis I's 13). The next stage will be the larger
Galaxy-class of habitats with a volume of 23 cubic
meters, double that of the Genesis-class. The final
ambitious step will take place in about six years
with the launch of the huge 330 cubic meter Nautilus
habitat, approaching the ISS's 425 cubic meters of
usable volume. Launching this enormous 25 ton structure
into orbit is a daunting task and Bigelow Aerospace
plans to use a larger booster such as the SpaceX's
planned Falcon 9S rocket to launch it into Low Earth
Orbit (LEO).
Article
continues below
TransHab test at NASA (Credit: NASA)
The birth of Bigelow Aerospace and its inflatable space
hotel concept in 1999 was intimately connected to the
conceptualization and development of a space habitat
for the planed future manned Mars Mission. The so-called
TransHab project was initiated around 1997 by a NASA
team headed by William Schneider, a prominent NASA
engineer. The 600 cubic meters required for the habitat
would be too heavy and large to be lifted into orbit.
Thus, Schneider and his team of engineers devised a
light, inflatable module that could be loaded onto
a rocket or the space shuttle, squeezed to about a
third of its normal size, and inflated to its full
size once in orbit. The TransHab concept was also suggested
as a possible living quarters module for the ISS and,
though finally cancelled by Congress in 2000, it became
the basis of the Genesis-class space module.
TransHab
in NASA's test facility (Credit: NASA) One of
the most important design features of the
TransHab is its multi-layer (nearly two dozen),
foot-thick, inflatable shell made of various extremely
high-strength,
lightweight fibers with numerous protective features.
The outer layers of the shell break up space debris
and micro-meteorites that may hit the shell with
speeds of up to 7 km/s (about seven-times that
of a speeding bullet) and shield multiple inner "bladders",
which contain the module's air, preventing it from
escaping. The shell also insulates against the
extreme temperatures of outer space, ranging between
121
oC (250 oF) in the sun, to -128 oC (-200 oF) in
the shade.
TransHab's MMOD structure (Credit: NASA) The exterior
part of the shell, called the Micro-Meteoroid/Orbital
Debris (MMOD) impact shield, is composed of alternating
layers of Nextel, a material commonly used as insulation,
and several thick layers of foam, similar to that
used for chair cushions. A particle that impacts
the Nextel and foam layers shatters, losing progressively
more energy as it continues to penetrate. Far inside
the shell is embedded a layer of bullet-proof, lightweight
Kevlar that holds the module's shape once inflated
and surrounds three air-tight bladders made of Combitherm,
a material commonly used in the food-packing industry.
The innermost layer, forming the inside wall of the
module, is Nomex cloth, which is fireproof and also
protects the bladders from scratches from the inside
Though public interest in Bigelow's
space hotel concept is vast, space tourism will
remain a costly
affair for the near future, out of reach of most
people. Thus, Bigelow is building on a number of
other lucrative space initiatives; chief among
them will be selling space on its future habitats
to countries
that are unable to afford their own manned space
programs (see more articles). Currently underway
is the "Fly Your Stuff" program, an opportunity
for paying costumers to send items (smaller than
a golf ball) including pictures onboard the Genesis
II. For less than $300, an engagement ring can
be lofted into orbit where it will be filmed by
one
of the many cameras installed on the habitat, and
returned along with a keepsake video. Perhaps,
following a lengthy engagement, the honeymoon could
be booked
there as well.
TFOT interviewed Bigelow Aerospace Corporate Counsel,
Michael Gold, to learn more about the development
and future plans of Genesis I and Bigelow Aerospace.
by vaishal
