PHOBOS BASE
INITIAL BASE
EXPANDED BASE
TRUSS DESIGN
AIAA Graduate Life Sciences Phobos Design Competition
Heat Panels
Rigid Carbon Fiber Frame
First Place Timothy Bishop, Thomas Lagarde, Zach Taylor, Victor Kitmanyen
Foldable Carbon Fiber Structure
ABOUT With 50 million kilometers and a 20-minute communication delay separating Mars explorers from Earth’s resources and support, human missions to the red planet will be characterized by an unprecedented amount of autonomy and independence. In order to alleviate the logistics within Mars orbit,we propose a unique design for a permanently crewed base on the surface of Phobos. The baseline for a design approach was driven by analysis of habitability requirements, Phobos environmental conditions and capabilities of known launch systems. Those drivers called for researching and evaluating emerging technologies and their applicability to mission goals and objectives. Design concepts are evaluated for their safety provisions, emergency response strategies, and evolutionary growth potentials. After evaluations’ analysis, trade studies findings are incorporated into the final concept development. The team chose crew safety, health maintenance and operational sustainability for making critical design decisions. Trade studies reviewed zero-gravity countermeasures options, location and deployment sequence on Phobos surface, primary power sources, primary habitat structure choices, and support trusses configurations and materials. Special considerations are given to logistical re-supply missions from Earth and contingency plans that are critical for continues mission success but constrained by limitations posed by 26-month Earth-Mars synodic cycle. This design is therefore a proposal based on actual knowledge to establish a sustainable human presence in outer-space in order to facilitate human exploration of Mars and beyond.
1562 mm 3215 mm
1804 mm Grappling Mechanism
90 mm
The truss design is a key element in anchoring the Phobos base to Phobos. A series of trade studies was conducted for both its physical shape and its material composition. Our goal was to create a truss design that could provide the longest distance, the shortest foldable dimension, ease of assembly, the lowest amount of weight, and the highest robustness. This design uses heat Panels that are made of Minco Polyimide Thermofoil. These panels can work in (-200)°C to 200°C temperature ranges and have already been used by NASA in zero gravity conditions. The small panels require 17.49 watts per 1 unit to heat to 130°C, the necessary temperature to cause the carbon fiber to revert to its original position (a characteristic of memory shape-polymers) and secure the truss in its deployed position. It takes just 15 minutes for each section to be deployed.
Command Module
CENTRIFUGE MODULE
Crew Quarters
Support Module
Truss Collar
Power Module
Centrifuge
Spaceport
LAUNCH SEQUENCE DIAGRAM Support to Spaceport Shuttle
1
Year Quarter
Q1
Q2
2 Q3
Q4
Q1
Crew Rotation
Q2
3 Q3
Crew #1 Crew #2 Crew #3
Q4 Crew #1 Crew #2 Crew #3
Crew #4 Crew #5 Crew #6 Ground Ops
Cargo
4 x Phobos Support Phobos Recon Module GPS Probe LEO
Falcon Falcon Heavy Heavy SLS-B2
Crew Crew & habitat supplies Module LEO
Galley
Individual crew cabin
Crew #1 Crew #2 Crew #3
Q4
LEO
Crew #4 Crew #5 Crew #6
Q2
LEO
LEO
LEO
Phobos
LEO
Dragon Crew
Dragon Dragon Crew Crew
Dragon Crew
5 Q3
Crew #1 Crew #2 Crew #3 Crew #4 Crew #5 Crew #6
Q4
Q1
Crew #1 Crew #2 Crew #3 Crew #4 Crew #5 Crew #6
LEO
6 Q3
Crew #1 Crew #2 Crew #3
Q4
Crew #4 Crew #5 Crew #6
LEO
LEO
LEO
LEO
LEO
Dragon Dragon Crew Crew
LEO
Dragon Crew
Dragon Crew
Dragon Crew
Dragon Crew
Q3
Q4
GREENHOUSE TORUS
Berth support module with VASIMR module, fuel VASIMR module, begin spiral transfer to L1, dock with crew transfer vehicle Ops check facility, Phobos departure prep, Berth support module with VASIMR module, fuel VASIMR module, dock with Phobos Base, Set destination Phobos
VASIMR VASIMR Crew & Crew & module fuel & supplies supplies & supply supply LEO
SLS-B2 Dragon Crew
Q2
Crew #4 Crew #5 Crew #6
Unpack supplies, test equipment, repair & maintenance tasks, inventory items, maintain plant production, ECLSS fitting, grow plants, Ops check facility, conduct science, Berth support module with command module, Berth support module with power module Power Crew & Crew & Crew & module& supplies supplies supplies supplies
Q1
Crew #1 Crew #2 Crew #3
Berth support module with power module
SLS-B2 Dragon Crew
Q2
Crew #4 Crew #5 Crew #6
Berth support module with command module
Truss CommCrew & Crew & Crew & Crew & Crew & Crew & landing & and supplies supplies supplies supplies supplies supplies assembly module
SLS-B2 Dragon Crew
Q1
Crew #1 Crew #2 Crew #3
Supervise Phobos landing
Atlas V
Crew Vehicles
Command Module interior
Q3
Unpack supplies, test equipment, repair & maintenance tasks, inventory items, ECLSS fitting, grow plants, Ops check facility, conduct science
Target Location Phobos Phobos Cargo Vehicles
Q2
Crew #4 Crew #5 Crew #6
Supervise orbit insertion, supervise Berth with support module probe operations, position into orbit, deploy solar arrays
Crew Ops
Q1
4
The base features an intermittent artificial gravity centrifuge system compromising of two rotating, counterbalancing, modules that travel on a rail along the perimeter of the base just below the platform. At a radius of 90 m, these modules rotate at 3 rpm to produce a 1 g environment with a negligible gravity gradient. Both modules serve as an exercise facility for strength and conditioning while providing a highfidelity VR training ground for Mars mission preparation. Built-in treadmills utilize a screen to simulate different running scenes and exercise racks provide strength training with resistance bands. One end of the space houses gravity-related science racks as well as a small restroom. The floor of both modules is slightly curved with respect to the curvature of the base to prevent the perception of slopes.
Dragon Crew
LEO
LEO
LEO
L1
L1
SLS-B2
Falcon Heavy
Phobos Base
Dragon Dragon Crew Crew
Dragon Crew
Dragon Crew
Perspective of crew cabin
BASE ASSEMBLY STAGING Transfer floor with CBM hatches
Medical bay with surgical robot
View of the Power Control Room
Spaceport hallway 9.1000 12.5036
BASE LAYOUT The base is arranged on a vertical axis to simplify the center of mass as well as circulation for zero gravity conditions during transit as well as the microgravity of the Phobos surface. This configuration allows system networks for water, air, data, and electrical piping go down a centralized, easily accessed, corridor. The modules that compose the Phobos base are broken down into five sections; the Command Module, Crew Quarters, Support Module, Power Module, and Spaceport / Centrifuge module. Our unique truss design allows for large-scale expansion projects once the base begins to see higher traffic volumes coming through its airlocks. To power these expansions, a nonproliferation nuclear power generator has been designed and it utilizes designs similar to molten salt nuclear reactors which run on thorium, a non-fissile radioactive and highly abundant element. Furthermore, the power generation capabilities are built to withstand loads of up to 2 MWe to facilitate the myriad of operations Phobos base is capable of supporting now and in the future. We integrated a large number of hatches into the original design which allows for the smoothest integration of additional hardware when it is eventually needed.
5.3352
31.1000 5.0000
8.7000 4.3500
4.35
14.4000
13.6000
14.0000
12.4000
15.9859 6.2840
8.8000 8.7000 9.1000 8.0000
9.1000 10.0000
Launch 1 Truss & bracing system SLS block 2, 10m fairing
Launch 2 Power Module SLS block 2, 8m fairing
Launch 3 Support Module SLS block 2, 10m fairing
Launch 4 Command Module SLS block 2, 10m fairing
The goal of this system is to provide for 50% of the required food for a crew of twelve over a twenty four month period. According to NASA studies, about 30 square meters if crops would be needed to support the mostly vegan diet of the crew. The best possible choice to insure a continuous and healthy diet of vegetables is through a technology utilizing a rotating garden, it will combine the principle of aquaponics with the design of a commercially available product by Omega Garden™. Auxins is a plant hormone that causes the elongation of cells in shoots and is involved in regulating plant growth. It is most important in a plant life as it tells the plant in which direction to grow and how. Experiments on current and past space stations (being in microgravity) have shown that the lack of gravity impacts negatively the plants and do not promote plant growth.