Answer 1:
As you may know, the term "space settlement"
refers to the colonizing of space by using
extraterrestrial resources to construct
artificial, closed-ecology habitats in orbit or on
other worlds. There are a lot of factors one
needs to consider, including where to get raw
material, where and how to harness energy, where
to position your habitat, how to reliably get
people, animals, plants, etc from earth to your
habitat, etc. Before you embark on this project,
stop and look around you. Look carefully. Pay
attention to the those things which you take for
granted. For example, the soil in your backyard.
You can grow plants in that soil, but will they
grow in lunar soil for example? On the moon,
temperature differences between day and night are
about 500 degrees Fahrenheit. Those are the sorts
of questions that need to be addressed should
humankind decide to colonize space or other
worlds.
The "space settlement" is was
essentially conceived and popularized by Gerard K.
O'Neill (1927-1992), who was a physicist with
Princeton University's Institute for Advanced
Study. Prior to popularizing space development,
O'Neill was well known as a researcher in
high-energy physics, and as the inventor of the
colliding-beam storage ring, an innovation now
standard on most particle accelerators. Try to
find books written by him. Also, there are a
couple of great books by Werner Von Braun which
address this subject (W. Von Braun is a german
rocket scientist who is primarily responsible for
the success of the American space program).
Finally, there are a number of resources on
the web that will get you started (see links
below). Good luck. Maybe someday I'll get to
visit your space settlement. Do you think you'll
need a marine biologist?
http://members.aol.com/oscarcombs/spacsetl.htm
http://www.nasa.gov/
http://www.panix.com/~kingdon/space/settle.html
http://www.permanent.com/in-view2.htm
http://members.aol.com/dsfportree/explore.htm |
Answer 2:
Is this project related to the International space
settlement design competition? I'd be happy to
answer more specific questions -- but for one so
general I can only offer pointers:
1. Cost
of materials in space is strongly related to
abundance and difficulty in getting them where you
want-- currently earmarked are Ti, Al, B and
related metals because they are strong and much
lighter than steel. This make sense if you are
using earth -- but if you use the moon (much
cheaper materials after development), you should
check the abundance of Lunar materials
-- again
Ti is big, B, Al and others are common as
well.
2. Biggest cost is organics and
related compounds in space -- can't get much from
the Moon, so you have to be creative... Comets
maybe -- if you can figure how to get them
cheap...
3. Power is easy -- but waste heat
is hard to fix...
4. Radiation is a tricky
problem -- especially in Solar Flare
seasons
5. Positioning and attitude
adjustment must use a minimum of exhaustible
resources -- I suggest you look at magnetic
interactions for earth orbit habitats.
Hope
this helps -- I would be happy to answer (if I
can) a more specific
question.
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