B
baktothemoon
Guest
Here's the way I look at our current plans to explore space. I like the current plan for the CEV, but I worry that the program could easily get the ax just like apollo did. It is more permanant than apollo since we will likely establish a moon base, but it is still a one time use vehicle since we have to launch a new or refurbished one every time. Here's my plan to explore space: First NASA should start a mutual relationship with private industry to help private industry develop an orbital vehicle and a space station similar to the one being developed by bigelow aerospace. This space staton would serve as a spacedock for NASA. From here NASA would develop a fully reusable orbital vehicle that would never return to Earth. The vehicle would be built with the HLV that the CEV would use. It would serve as a kind of shuttle between Earth and any point up to mars. The vehicle should include a command and habitation module that would be Trans-Hab like and support a crew of more then ten. There would be a supply module that may use the Trans-Hab design but would not be required to use it. The spacecraft would be nuclear powered either by an RTG or an actual reactor. For propultion the vehicle would use NTR's similar to the technology developed in project NERVA. These engines may be of the gas-core type but not necessarily. For secondary propultion the vehicle would use nuclear electric engines along with solar sails for flights past the moon. There is no earth return capsule in this design because the vehicle would return to the spacedock to be resupplied and refueled by rockets from either private industry or NASA. The crew would arrive through the private industry's orbital vehicle while NASA would launch new landers and other equipment that would be needed. No part of the system other than the resupply lift vehicles would be expended. Everything that left the spacedock would return to be resupplied, refueled, and re-crewed. This way there would be a fleet of permanent re