Space-Based Manufacturing from Nonterrestrial Materials

Ever since the birth of the space age a short two decades ago, one bold concept after another has emerged, reached full development, and gone into practical application-earth satellites for communications, manned rocket voyages to the moon, exploration rockets launched to the far reaches of the solar system, and soon, the Space Shuttle, the key element of a routine space transportation system that will make near-earth space a familiar domain for man's many projects. It seems now that mankind may be ready for another bold concept, the establishment of permanent inhabited space colonies held in position by the forces of the earth, moon, and sun. Some of the most important engineering problems are dealt with in this book in a series of papers derived from a NASA-sponsored study organized by Prof. Gerard K. O'Neill: how to gather material resources from the nearby moon or even from nearby asteroids, how to convert the materials chemically and physically to useful forms, how to construct such gigantic space structures, and necessarily, how to plan and finance so vast a program. It will surely require much more study and much more detailed engineering analysis before the full potential of the idea of permanent space colonies, including space-based manufacturing facilities, can be assessed. This book constitutes a pioneer foray into the subject and should be valuable to those who wish to participate in the serious examination of the proposal.