Paper Session III-C - Considerations for Large- Scale Construction in Orbit (original) (raw)

2001

To sustain and expand the human presence in space, a space-based economy must be developed. This in turn requires the development of infrastructure to utilize extra-terrestrial resources. This paper revisits concepts for large-scale construction in space from the 1970s, in the context of developing a space-based economy. Developments in robotics, solar power generation, microgravity manufacturing and earth-based launch costs significantly alter the models envisaged in the ‘70s. These changes are illustrated by considering the assembly of the outer shell of a 1 km-radius rotating cylindrical habitat.