On-orbit propellant storage

[mdodson]

Saw an Aviation Week article today that dashed my hopes for water in shaded craters near the Moon's poles. So if I go to the rings of Saturn and drag back some ice (see Isaac Asimov's "Martian Way"), or distill it from Ceres, how do I store the water, or ice, to last for a couple of years, to be melted and electrolysed when needed? Who can recall past discussions or reading to give me a clue? Thx!

 

[scottb50]

Frozen with a thin coating to eliminate sublimation would work pretty well. As a liquid we've been carrying it around for milleniums in any number of ways. Though I doubt animal stomachs would hold up too well in Space but pretty much any other container would work. Even keeping it liquid would be relatively simple using Solar collectors.<br /><br />I think our only means of escaping this Planet have to use the water we have here, finding it and getting it somewhere else is going to take a lot to begin with and our only easily accessible supply is right here of Earth.<br /><br />Who knows maybe having colonies on the moon and Mars and exploring asteroids and comets might save New York from rising sea levels, letting us choke ourselves with our own industrial effulent like a superior species deserves. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[owenander]

We have a shortage of water (usable) here on Earth, we can't be carting tons of it off into space.<br /><br />We need to be able to utilize the elements already in space such as asteroids not only for water, but also necessary metals in order to build more things. If we can get to the point where we are only carting up humans that would be by far the best.<br /><br />The first company that developes space probes that can fly out and collect decent sized samples from asteroids etc will be who we should be thanking for expanding our space exploration capabilities.

 

[scottb50]

We don't have a shortage of water, what we have is a shortage of unpolluted usable water. Estimates are in 100 years New York will be pretty much under water due to the pollutants we are putting into the air.<br /><br />Other than water there is no other resource available. Do you think there is enough oil to use kerosene? The only way Nuclear would be practical is using Hydrogen gas as a coolant for the reactor and the superheated gas as propellant. Whre do you think you could get that much Hydrogen? From water.<br /><br />It would also we much easier if we find water on the moon, Mars, asteroids and comets. The problem is we have to get there to find it and get the equipment to exploit it there. Where is the power going to come from to do that?<br /><br />The one resource we have that will possibly work is water and it is the easiest to handle, the safest to transport and required for any form of life we would put into Space to begin with. For the mass of a reactor and it's fuel you could carry a lot of water and using it to produce electrical power you could use the same water over and over infinite numbers of times. Maybe its not as exotic and exciting as Nuclear but if you look at all the options it stands out as the best choice. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[owenander]

"We have a shortage of water (usable) here on Earth"<br /><br /><br />=o

 

[mdodson]

"We have a shortage of water (usable) here on Earth, we can't be carting tons of it off into space."<br /><br />You've stated the premise for the story 'Martian Way' by Asimov almost perfectly. One point in the story was that most of the water is expended getting out of earth's gravity well, and will find it's way back to the surface.