Projects

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This page lists projects and groups hosted by DevelopSpace. DevelopSpace intends to host projects and groups that are relevant to DevelopSpace's mission of building up the technical foundations for human space activities. Projects/groups do not need to be created or operated by DevelopSpace in order to be hosted here -- if you would like additional information on hosting your project with DevelopSpace, please email info@developspace.net.

Project Listing

Current Projects

  • Mars Surface Water Production. Project investigates different approaches to water production from a variety of sources (atmosphere, subsurface, etc.) on the surface of Mars over a range of possible water demands from habitation-only to in-situ propellant production demands.
  • Minimalist Human Mars Mission. Project aims to design a near-term feasible human Mars mission based on the concept of sending humans one way to Mars (possibly with an initial emergency return capability). This initial Mars outpost could also be the nucleus of an initial Mars colony. Includes reference data, system analysis, and investigation of design options. Also known as the MinMars project.
  • Mars Solar Power. Project to investigate the feasibility of solar power on the surface of Mars for either as the sole primary power source or in conjunction with other power source (e.g., nuclear reactors). Note that this is related to the activities of the MinMars project, although is intended to stand alone as well in that it need not be tied to the particular mission architecture.
  • Reference Library. The DevelopSpace reference library catalogs relevant information for space systems development. The library will be expanded over time with the aim towards providing a comprehensive set of information for the technical aspects of space activities.
  • Open Source Engineering Tools. This is a DevelopSpace project to aid the space systems development by providing access to relevant, open source engineering software tools, using input provided by both DevelopSpace contributors and the wider space engineering community. We aim to both provide information on existing tools and identify areas in which new tools would be of use so as to encourage the development of such tools.
  • Mars Surface System Development. This project is intended to develop capabilities needed for human activities on the surface of Mars, including as related to sustaining life, expanding available infrastructure, and supporting transportation systems. In practice, this is envisioned as being achieved through various affiliated (in some cases loosely, in others more strongly) projects working in detail on specific technologies or systems.
  • Concrete Production and Construction. A type of cement called Magnesium Oxychloride Cement (MOC) has shown promise in aplications on Mars and can possibly be produced locally with minimal equipment and energy input. This project will cover production processes and construction methods.

Archived Projects

The following projects were at one time active on DevelopSpace, but have since been completed, gone dormant, or moved their online activities elsewhere. We keep the list around as some items still may be useful as references.

  • Interplanetary Transfer Vehicle. This project presents design concepts for interplanetary transfer vehicles that could be used to carry out deep space missions envisioned by the “Flexible Path” scenario described in the final report of the Augustine Commission. These include missions to lunar orbit, libration points, Geostationary Orbit (GEO), Near Earth Objects (NEOs), as well as a lunar flyby. The focus of the analysis presented here is on interplanetary transfer vehicle concepts which can be realized in the near-term, i.e. by the end of the 2010s or the beginning of the 2020s. The selection of preferred interplanetary transfer vehicle designs is based on a comprehensive integrated performance analysis of mission types and propulsive capabilities.
  • MIT Rocket Team. A hosted set of pages for a student group at MIT devoted to getting students involved with projects related to rocketry (chiefly focused on liquid fuel propulsion). The team is still active, with their current activities described at http://rocketry.mit.edu/