Design of Low-Cost Space Missions

A Near-Term Income-Generating, Lunar Settlement

Living on the Moon in the Next Decade

• • Dr. James R. Wertz—University of Southern California, Microcosm, Inc.
  • Dr. Shirley Dyke—Purdue University

Course Handouts

• ASTE-523, Spring 2023 Course Administration Info
• ASTE-523 Spring, 2023 Section 0-1
• ASTE-523 Spring, 2023 Course Syllabus
• NASA Lunar Exploration Objectives Table
• The Lunar Commerce Portfolio
• Gerard K O’Neill 1977 Video
• ASTE-523 Spring, 2023 Part 2
• ASTE-523 Spring, 2023 Part 3
• Feb. 2 Guest Lecture Dr. Shirley Dyke—Purdue University
• ASTE-523, Spring 2023 Lunar Bibliography (**UPDATED** 3/24/23)
• Crawford, Ian A. “Lunar Resources: A Review” Accepted for publication in Progress in Physical Geography.
• “NASA’s Exploration Systems Architecture Study.” NASA-TM-2005-214062. November 2005. 
• ASTE-523 Spring, 2023 Part 3
• ASTE-523 Spring, 2023 Supplement-1
• ASTE-523 Spring, 2023 Supplement-2
• Foust, Jeff. “Intuitive Machines completes SPAC Merger.” SPACE NEWS Feb. 13, 2023.
• NASA/TP—2022-0018058 “State-of-the-Art Small Spacecraft Technology.” Small Spacecraft Systems Virtual Institute, Ames Research Center, Jan. 2023.
• Tognetti, Laurence. “‘PneumoPlanet’ inflatable moon habitat could house 32 astronauts.” space.com, Feb. 10.
• “The Global Expert Group on Sustainable Lunar Activities just published The Recommended Framework and Key Elements for Peaceful and Sustainable Lunar Activities.” Press Release. Vienna, Austria, Feb. 10, 2023.
• ASTE-523 Spring, 2023 Part 4B 
• ASTE-523 Spring, 2023 Part 5B 
• “Low-Cost, Large-Scale, Near-Term Sustainable Lunar Colony” May 30, 2015 NASA 2015 RASC-AL Competition. University of Southern California. 
• ASTE-523 Spring, 2023 Midterm Instructions
• ASTE-523 Spring, 2023 Part 5D
• ASTE-523 Spring, 2023 Supplement 3
• National Cislunar Science & Technology Strategy November 2022
• “Space Policy and Our Return to the Moon.” USC Department of Astronautical Engineering ASTE Seminar by Dr. Greg Autry.  Flyer Thursday Mar. 30. 
• ASTE-523 Spring, 2023 Part 6
• ASTE-523 Spring, 2023 Part 7
• Academic Research in The University of Southern California (USC) Near Term Lunar Settlement Research Group (N-TLSRG) and on the Moon Description 
• Lunar Settle Project 2023. Near-Term Lunar Settlement Research Group (N-TLSRG) Questionnaire

Homework Assignments (Adobe .pdf files)

• ASTE-523 Spring, 2023 Homework #1.pdf (68 kb)  
• ASTE-523 Spring, 2023 Homework #2.pdf (117 kb)
• ASTE-523 Spring, 2023 Homework #3.pdf (91 kb)
• ASTE-523 Spring, 2023 Homework #4A.pdf (83 kb)
• ASTE-523 Spring, 2023 Homework #5.pdf (69 kb)
• ASTE-523 Spring, 2023 Homework #6.pdf (88 kb)

Answers to Homework Assignments and Exams (Adobe .pdf files)

• ASTE-523 Spring, 2023 Homework #2 ANSWERS.pdf (162 kb)
• ASTE-523 Spring, 2023 Homework #4A ANSWERS.pdf (130 kb)

Grades to Date (Adobe .pdf file)

Nothing posted at this time.

Final Grades (Adobe .pdf file)

Nothing posted at this time.

ASTE-523 Bibliography

1. Howe, A. Scott. “50-year Window to Establish a Space Faring Civilization”, 2015.
2. Zegler, F. “A Commercially Based Lunar Architecture.” 2009.
3. Zuniga, Allison F. “A Viable and Sustainable Economic Plan for Building and Maintaining an International Lunar Station.” 2015.
4. Wertz, James R. “An O’Neill Lunar Colony Living on the Moon in the Next Decade.” 2022.
5. Wertz, James R. “Architecture for Developing an Economically Viable International, Lunar Surface Exploration.” 2012.
6. Crawford, I. A. “Back to the Moon: The Scientific Rationale for Resuming Lunar Surface Exploration,” 2012.
7. Stone, Jerry. “BIS Study Project Advancing Colony Engineering-References and Source Material.” 2015
8. Books for USC Library.
9. Lemarquis, Natalia. “Business Case Study for the Cycler: A Circumlunar Vehicle for Development of Space Tourism and Lunar Infrastructure by 2030.” 2022.
10. Miller, Charles. “Economic Assessment and Systems Analysis of an Evolvable Lunar Architecture that Leverages Commercial Space Capabilities and Public-Private-Partnerships.” 2015.
11. Johnson, Kaitlyn. “Fly Me to The Moon: Worldwide Cislunar and Lunar Missions.” 2022.
12. Levrino, Luca. “Human Life Support in Permanent Lunar Base Architectures.” 2014.
13. Altaf, Naeem. “IBM Space Overview.” 2022.
14. Gatto, Giacomo. “Incremental Architectures for a Permanent Human Lunar Outpost with a Focus on ISRU Technologies.” 2014.
15. CNN Travel. “Inside the Space Hotel Scheduled to Open in 2025.” 2022.
16. Borowski, Stanley K. “Key Technologies, Systems, and Infrastructures Enabling the Commercialization and Human Settlement of Low Earth Orbit, the Moon, and Cislunar Space.” 2021.
17. Zuniga, Allison F. “Kickstarting a New Era of Lunar Industrialization via Campaign of Lunar COTS Missions.” 2018.
18. Thomas, Stephanie. “LCOE Model Breakdown.” 2020.
19. Ancarola, B. “LUME (Lunar Mission for Exploration): A New ASI Proposal for Lunar Exploration and In-Situ Resource Utilization.” 2004.
20. International Space University. “Luna Gaia: A Closed Loop Habitat for the Moon Final Report.” 2006.
21. Zuniga, Allison F. “Lunar COTS: An Economical and Sustainable Approach to Reaching Mars.” 
22. Schmitt, Harrison H. “Lunar Helium-3 Fusion Resource Distribution.” 2006.
23. Berger, Eric. “NASA is Supporting Some Seriously Risky Missions to the Moon-It’s About time.” 2022.
24. Maryniak, George E. “Resources of Free Space vs. Flags and Footprints on Mars.” 1996.
25. Sanders, Gerald B. “Results From the NASA Capability Roadmap Team for In-Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU).” 2004.
26. Brahambhatt, Rupendra. “Scientists Grow Plants in Soil Samples Collected from the Moon.” 2022.
27. McLeod, Claire L. “Sources of Extraterrestrial Rare Earth Elements: To the Moon and Beyond.” 2017.
28. Henn, Norbert. “Space Exploration – Why Humans Should Go to the Moon First.” 2013.
29. Eder, Dani. “Space Systems Engineering-Fundamentals, Technologies, and Projects for the 21st Century.” 2018.
30. Sowers, George F. “The Business Case for Lunar Ice Mining.” 2021.
31. Reibaldi, Giuseppe. “The Lunar Commerce Portfolio, First Edition.” 2022.
32. Jordan, Matthew Ryan. “The Road to Red Rocks: A History and Critique of Mars Exploration and Select Mars Mission Models.” 2017.
33. Montague, Michael. “The Role of Synthetic Biology for In-Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU).” 2012.
34. Moore, C. B. “Total Carbon and Nitrogen Abundances in Apollo 11 Lunar Samples and Selected Achondrites and
    Basalts.” 1970.
35. Purves, Lloyd R. “Use of a Lunar Outpost for Developing Space Settlement Technologies.” 2008.
36. “Use of Lunar Resources on Earth.” 2022.
37. Baxenddle, Helen. “Video of Construction of Air Tight Radiation Protection Cover for Chernobyl Site.” 2016.
38. Asimov, Isaac. “Why We Must Colonize the Moon.” 1969.

Older References

1. Hopkins, Mark Myron. “A Cost Benefit Analysis of Space Manufacturing Facilities.”
2. Driggers, Gerald W. “A Factory Concept for Processing and Manufacturing with Lunar Material.”
3. Buddington Patricia A. “A Lunar Propellant Supply System.”
4. Siegel, Yanai Z. “A Survey of Lunar Property Law.”
5. Koelle, H. H. “A Systems Architecture of Extraterrestrial Production.”
6. Keller, Rudolf. “Aluminum-A Lunar Engineering Material.”
7. Crockett R. S. “Application of Ceramic-Ceramic Joining To In-Situ Resources in the Construction of Large Lunar
   Structures.”
8. Glaeser, Ludwig. “Architecture Studies for a Space Habitat.”
9. Kolm, Henry H. “Basic Coaxial Mass Driver Reference Design.”
10. Redd, Larry. “Cost-Effectiveness of Lunar Oxygen and Lunar Hydrogen in Future Space Transportation.”
11. Hornik, Morris; and Carole Hornik. “Defining the Critical path: Summary of a Discussion.”
12. Criswell, David. “Demandite, Lunar Materials and Space Industrialization.”
13. Maruyama, Magoroh. “Diversity, Survival Value, and Enrichment: Design Principles for Extraterrestrial Communities.”
14. Bialla, Paul H. “Early Lunar Access.”
15. Kirk, Brian. “Entrepreneurial Space Business.”
16. Carrier, W. David. “Excavation Costs for Lunar Materials.”
17. Finney, Ben R. “Exploring and Settling Pacific Ocean Space.”
18. Kline, Richard L. “Fabrication Methods for Large space Structures.”
19. Wong-Swanson, Belinda. “Factors Which Affect Heat Rejection System Design For Lunar Production Systems.”
20. Vajk, J. Peter. “Financing Alternatives for Space Industrialization.”
21. Eisenberg, S. David. “Funding the High Frontier–A Different Approach.”
22. Dunstan, James. “Funding the High Frontier–Old Lessons We Must Once Again Learn.”
23. Altenberg, B. H. “Identifying the Challenges of a Lunar Materials Processing Plant.”
24. Barmby, John G. “Improving the Justification For Space Industrialization.”
25. Eder, Dani. “Lunar Base Logistics.”
26. Criswell, David. “Lunar Materials.” 
27. Steurer, Wolfgang H. “Lunar Overview by Vapor Phase Pyrolysis.”
28. Keller, Rudolf. “Lunar Production of Oxygen by Electrolysis.”
29. Landis, Geoffrey A. “Lunar Production of Solar Cells: A Near-Term Product for a Lunar Industrial Facility.”
30. Garvey, John. “Lunar Resource Processing Using Solar Energy-A Research Project Status Report.”
31. Phinney, William C. “Lunar Resources and their Utilization.”
32. Risley, Robert C. “Lunar Resources Utilization-An Economic Assessment.”
33. Beyer, Larry A. “Lunarcrete.”
34. Cutler, Andrew Hall. “Metallurgical Properties of Lunar and Asteroidial Steels.”
35. Hannah, Eric Cabot. “Meteroid and Cosmic-Ray Protection.”
36. Tischler, Adelbert O. “Near Term Chemically-Propelled Space Transport Systems.”
37. O’Neill, Gerard K. “Overview and Outline of Mass-Driver Two.”
38. Waldron, R. D. “Overview of Methods for Extraterrestrial Materials Processing.”
39. Jenson, Eric B. “Oxygen Liquefaction and Storage System for a Luna Oxygen Production Plant.”
40. Lin, T. D. “Physical Properties of Concrete made with Apollo 16 Lunar Soil Samples.”
41. Trivelpiece, Keith. “Potential Benefits of a Vegetarian Diet in Space Settlements.”
42. Leggett, Nickolaus E. “Proposal for the Development and Application of the Mass Driver.”
43. O’Neill, Gerard K. “Recent Developments in Mass Drivers.”
44. Engel, Joseph H. “Start Up Considerations for a Space Manufacturing Enterprise.”
45. Criswell, David R. “Scaling and the Start-Up Phase of Space Industrialization.”
46. Keller, Rudolg. “Silicon, Aluminum and Oxygen From Lunar Ore.”
47. Goldman, Nathan C. “Space Law: The Third Generation.”
48. Podnieks, E. R. “Terrestrial Mining Technology Applied to Lunar Mining.”
49. Sterns, Patricia M. “The Art of Living in Space: A Preliminary Study for the Local Government of a Space Community.”
50. Goldberg, Aaron H. “The Economics of Bootstrapping Space Industries-Development of an Analytica Computer Model.”
51. Heiss, Klaus P. “The Economics of Space Industrialization: A Phased Approach.”
52. Demisch, Wolfgang H. “The Financial Climate for Space Development.”
53. Maryniak, Gregg E. “The High Frontier Vision: 1993 Status and Strategy.”
54. White, Frank. “The Overview Effect: A Study of the Impact of Space Exploration on Individual and Social Awareness.”
55. Dupas, Alain. “The Potential Global market in 2025 for Satellite Solar Power Stations.”
56. Heppenheimer, T. A. “Trajectory Dynamics in the Earth-Moon System.”
57. Cutler, Andrew Hall. “Transportation Economics of Extraterrestrial Resource Utilization.”