NASA In-Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU) Project: Development and Implementation

Abstract

The establishment of sustained human presence on the Moon for science and exploration combines the design, integration, and operation challenges experienced from both the short Apollo lunar missions and the build-up and sustained crew operations of the International Space Station (ISS). With the goal of establishing a lunar Outpost on the Moon to extend human presence, pursue scientific activities, use the Moon to prepare for future human missions to Mars, and expand Earth’s economic sphere, a change in how both the Apollo and ISS Programs were planned and executed is required for this new international lunar exploration program. Since the Vision for Space Exploration (VSE) was released in 2004, NASA, in conjunction with international space agencies, industry, and academia, has continued to define and refine plans for sustained and affordable robotic and human exploration of the Moon and beyond. One area NASA is developing that can significantly change how systems required for sustained human presence are designed and integrated, as well as potentially break our reliance on Earth supplied logistics, is In-Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU). ISRU, also known “living off the land”, involves the extraction and processing of local resources into useful products. In particular, the ability to make propellants, life support consumables, fuel cell reagents, and radiation shielding can significantly reduce the cost, mass, and risk of sustained human activities beyond Earth. The ability to modify the lunar landscape for safer landing, transfer of payloads from the lander to an outpost, dust generation mitigation, and infrastructure placement and buildup are also extremely important for longterm lunar operations. Because ISRU hardware and systems have never been demonstrated before, NASA is examining how these capabilities can be added into mission designs and plans such that lunar mission success is currently not relying on these capabilities, but that the systems developed are flexible enough to incorporate the capabilities once they have been demonstrated. With this in mind, the ISRU Project within the Exploration Technology Development Program (ETDP) has initiated development and testing of hardware and systems in three main focus areas: (1) Regolith Excavation, Handling and Material Transportation; (2) Oxygen Extraction from Regolith; and (3) ISRU Precursor Activities. To minimize cost and ensure that ISRU technologies, systems, and functions are integrated properly into the Outpost, technology development efforts are being coordinated with other ETDP development areas such as Surface Mobility, Surface Power, Life Support, EVA, and Propulsion, as well as outside government agencies, industry, academia, and International Partners to the maximum extent possible to leverage funding and increase commonality of hardware at the Outpost. Lastly, laboratory and field system-level tests and demonstrations will be performed as often as possible to demonstrate improvements in: Capabilities (ex. 1 ISRU Project Manager for ETDP, EP, and AIAA Member 2 Chief, Applied Science Division, KT-D-2, and AIAA Member 3 ISRU Lead for Excavation, MS 77-5, and AIAA Member 4 Deputy for ISRU Development Support, VP33, and AIAA Member AIAA SPACE 2008 Conference & Exposition 9 11 September 2008, San Diego, California AIAA 2008-7853 Copyright © 2008 by the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Inc. The U.S. Government has a royalty-free license to exercise all rights under the copyright claimed herein for Governmental purposes. All other rights are reserved by the copyright owner. American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics 2 digging deeper); Performance (ex. lower power); and Duration (ex. more autonomy or more robustness), as well as form the partnerships with industry and International Partners that will be needed once actual Outpost flight hardware development and deployment begins. This paper will provide the status of work performed to date within the NASA ISRU Project with respect to technology and system development and field demonstration activities, as well as the current strategy to implement ISRU in future robotic and human lunar exploration missions.