IRNCLAM – InteRNational CisLunar Ascension Module Brian Anderson ASTE /11/23
Background Requirement: commercial development of ISS Solution: send tourists to Moon on Earth-Moon transport ISS to exist for ~10 more years use existing tech for cislunar transport
Concept Launch tourists & astronauts to ISS Depart ISS in Cislunar Transfer Vehicle Insert into Lunar orbit, stay few days Return to ISS Return to Earth
Vehicle Design Cislunar Transfer Vehicle 4x Centaur TLI stages Sundancer “habitation module” Radiation hardened for SPEs
Habitation Module – Bigelow Sundancer Pros Much MORE VOLUME for SIMILAR MASS as other space vehicles Designed with comfort in mind Existing ballistic protection + radiation shielding ECLSS as well as hygiene facilities Good exterior viewing possibilities Cons: Large surface area more mass for addt’l radiation hardening
Additional Radiation Hardening 5 g/cm^2 to protect against worst case SPE Al, LiOH, Polyethylene or H 2 0 (last two best) Sundancer Area~=2.35x10^6 cm^2 Rad shield mass~=11700kg Assuming Sundancer already has shielding equivalent to 2 g/cm^2 Rad shield mass~=7000kg
TLI – Centaur Upper Stage Pros Repeatedly flight tested design High Isp Cons Propellant mass could be higher for such a mission
Stack Design Requried V = 2x(3700 m/s)=7400 m/s Requires 4xCentaur stages!! Payload Mass = 15’600 kg Sundancer + Rad shield Total Propellant Mass = 83’320 kg Total Mass = Metric Tons Achieved V=7429 m/s
IRNCLAM Centaur Sundancer
Merits & Limitations Merits Uses existing designs Designed with passenger experience in mind Designed for space-only use, no mass for heat shield Limitations LARGE TLI stack due to Earth Orbit Injection and ISS docking ~14 days with no gravity
Future Studies Use water supply for radiation shielding? Direct Earth Reentry to reduce stack size? J2-X better option for TLI?
References Wertz, James R. Space Mission Analysis and Design. Dordrecht [u.a.: Kluwer Academic Publ., Print. Bigelow Aerospace er.php er.php Bernabeu, J., and I. Casanova. "Geant4- based Radiation Hazard Assessment for Human Exploration Missions." Advances in Space Research 40.9 (2007): Print.