UFO'S of UAP'S, ASTRONOMIE, RUIMTEVAART, ARCHEOLOGIE, OUDHEIDKUNDE, SF-SNUFJES EN ANDERE ESOTERISCHE WETENSCHAPPEN

Plan to Turn Asteroids Into Spaceships Could Spur Off-Earth Mining — **Artist's illustration of an asteroid that has been turned into a giant mechanical spacecraft, which could fly itself to a mining outpost.**
**Credit: Made In Space**

A few decades from now, asteroids may be flying themselves to mining outposts in space, nobly sacrificing their abundant resources to help open the final frontier to humanity.

That's the vision of California-based company Made In Space, which was recently awarded NASA funding to investigate how to turn asteroids into giant, autonomous spacecraft.

The project, known as RAMA (Reconstituting Asteroids into Mechanical Automata), is part of Made In Space's long-term plan to enable space colonization by helping make off-Earth manufacturing efficient and economically viable. [How Asteroid Mining Could Work (Infographic)]

"Today, we have the ability to bring resources from Earth," Made In Space co-founder and chief technology officer Jason Dunn told Space.com. "But when we get to a tipping point where we need the resources in space, then the question becomes, 'Where do they come from and how do we get them, and how do we deliver them to the location that we need?' This is a way to do it."

**Diagram of an asteroid that has been converted into a mechanical spacecraft by a robotic "Seed Craft."**
**Credit: Zoe Brinkley**

The plan

Made In Space's idea involves sending an advanced, robotic "Seed Craft" out to rendezvous with a succession of near-Earth asteroids in space.

The Seed Craft would harvest material from the space rocks, then use this feedstock to construct propulsion, navigation, energy-storage and other key systems onsite with the aid of 3D printing and other technologies. (Made In Space has considerable 3D-printing expertise; the company built the two 3D printers that were installed aboard the International Space Station in the past year and a half.)

Thus transformed into autonomous spacecraft, the asteroids could be programmed to fly to a mining station in Earth-moon space, or anywhere else they were needed. This approach would be much more efficient than launching a new capture probe (or probes) to every single space rock targeted for resource exploitation, Made In Space representatives said.

The converted asteroids wouldn't resemble the traditional idea of spacecraft, with rocket engines and complex electronic circuitry. Rather, everything would be mechanical and relatively primitive.

For example, the computer would be analog, akin, perhaps, to the Antikythera mechanism invented by the ancient Greeks to chart the motion of heavenly bodies, Dunn said. And the propulsion system might be some sort of catapult that launches boulders or other material off the asteroid in a controlled way, thereby pushing the space rock in the opposite direction (as described by Newton's Third Law of Motion), he added.

"At the end of the day, the thing that we want the asteroid to be is technology that has existed for a long time. The question is, 'Can we convert an asteroid into that technology at some point in the future?'" Dunn said. "We think the answer is yes."

Project RAMA is not starting from scratch. Autonomous 3D printers that use mechanically driven systems already exist, Dunn noted, as do mechanical computers made of 3D-printed parts.

Still, making it happen will require significant advances in a number of areas, including in-situ resource utilization (ISRU) — the art of living off the land. Made In Space is counting on NASA to push ISRU technology forward, Dunn said. (Advanced ISRU tech will be vital for supporting astronauts on Mars and other off-Earth outposts, NASA officials have said.) [What Technology Will Humans Need to Explore Mars? (Video)]

Asteroid Basics:

Asteroids are fascinating for lots of reasons. They contain a variety of valuable resources and slam into our planet on a regular basis, occasionally snuffing out most of Earth's lifeforms. How much do you know about space rocks?

Early days yet

Made In Space's larger vision won't be realized for a while, because RAMA is still in the very early stages.

In April, the project received a Phase 1 grant from the NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts (NIAC) program, which aims to encourage the development of potentially revolutionary space-exploration technologies.

Phase 1 NIAC awardees get $100,000 for nine months' worth of initial feasibility studies. (Recipients can then apply for a Phase 2 NIAC award, which is worth about $500,000 and funds two years of further concept development.)

Any discussion of Project RAMA timelines is therefore incredibly speculative, Dunn stressed. Still, he estimated that the effort might require 20 years or so of technology development and other work. If that's the case, the first Seed Craft may get off the ground in the late 2030s — perhaps just as asteroid-mining and off-Earth manufacturing are coming into their own.

"The anticipation is that the RAMA architecture is a long time line, and when it becomes capable is about the same time that people really need the resources," Dunn said.

Project RAMA could also have applications here on Earth, he added, saying that machines similar to Seed Craft could do a variety of jobs around the planet.

"You could build infrastructure in remote locations somewhat autonomously, and convert resources into useful devices and mechanical machines," Dunn said. "This actually could solve some pretty big problems on Earth, from housing to construction of things that make people's lives better."

You can read more about Project RAMA at Made In Space's NIAC page and in a piece that Dunn wrote for Medium.com.

Follow Mike Wall on Twitter @michaeldwall and Google+. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook or Google+. Originally published on Space.com.

When Sputnik 1 reached low Earth orbit in 1957, it did more than kick-start America’s space program and send American schoolchildren scurrying for cover under their desks. It launched the satellite age. The orbiting platforms, which now number in the thousands, revolutionized communication, navigation, and watching football.

Satellites, though, are expensive to build, expensive to launch, and difficult to update once in orbit. Drones are another story. They’re relatively cheap, easily launched, and readily updated. Of course, they can’t stay aloft very long.

Or can they?

Airbus recently announced the successful maiden flight of its Zephyr T aircraft, a drone powered only by sunshine. Six decades after Sputnik launched the space race, the European firm joins the likes of NASA and Facebook in a race to build high-altitude drones that combine the advantages of a satellite and the flexibility of a plane. “You don’t have to go through the rigor that current space-based satellite systems use,” says John Del Frate, an aerospace engineer at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center.

These “high altitude pseudo satellites,” as Airbus calls them, won’t drop bombs or deliver packages. They’ll do many of the things satellites do and return periodically for new batteries or new tech. One day, swarms of solar-powered drones could monitor military or intelligence targets, track forest fires, or provide communications in an emergency. By flying far lower than satellites, drones could provide sharper photos of Earth. They could provide high-bandwidth links, using lasers to relay information to other drones or receivers on the ground, providing the sort of line-of-sight communication isn’t possible with satellites that orbit the planet and disappear over the horizon.

Fresh Real Estate

NASA’s 1999 Helios prototype was among the first forays into this technology. In one experiment, NASA used boomerang-like aircraft, made of carbon fiber and Styrofoam, as an airborne cell phone tower. It was funky but graceful, with a wingspan of 247 feet and 14 electric propellers, but crashed into the Pacific near Kauai in 2003. Helios topped out at more than 96,000 feet, and was designed to stay in the air for at least 24 hours.

Flying something at those extreme altitudes, for long stretches, and on solar power, poses new challenges. For Helios, the killer was power storage. The team experimented with fuel cells, but batteries are a better choice. “Endurance is huge,” says Del Frate, who managed the program. “Anything you put up there has to be ultra-reliable. It’s kind of like your refrigerator, you just want to plug it in and forget it.”

Airbus started working on pseudo satellites in 2008, aiming to fill the “capability gap” between satellites in orbit and the low-altitude, limited drones of the day. In 2010, Zephyr 7 smashed the world record for longest flight without refueling (14 days). After that, the company decided to move to commercialization with two new models, the Zephyr Sand Zephyr T. The British Ministry of Defense has dibs on the first two S models, and will likely use them for surveillance. Airbus just tested a one-quarter scale model of the T, which will stretch the Zephyr S’s 82-foot wingspan to 108 feet. It will quadruple its payload capacity to 44 pounds, enough to carry the radar and other gear military customers will want to keep airborne.

The solar-powered planes are designed to cruise at around 65,000 feet, nearly twice the altitude of commercial airliners. The Zephyr 7 prototype can fly for 14 days on end. Airbus plans to get that up to at least a month.

To achieve that, the team is taking cues from nature, says Steve Whitby, head of business development for the Zephyr program. Instead of the upturned winglets now common on commercial aircraft, his aircraft sport downturned tips, like a buzzard’s wings. “Because of the speed we’re flying at, which is quite slow, we want to gain the maximum lift,” he says. This aerodynamic trick effectively gathers wind beneath the wings, for a 15 percent efficiency gain. Weighing as little as possible helps, too: The S model—which resembles a wire hanger that’s figured out how to fly—is just 143 pounds. The twin-tailed T weighs just over 300, counting its payload.

The biggest issue impacting endurance is what happens in the dark, when photovoltaic cells can’t generate power. A solar plane currently circumnavigating the planet offers one idea: Solar Impulse 2 spends the day at about 30,000 feet, then slowly descends to 5,000 at night, trading altitude for distance. Zephyr can’t drift down quite so much, or it will enter commercial airspace and spend all day returning to its operational height. Airbus says the electric propulsion it uses is already efficient, but expects improves as battery tech advances.

There’s plenty of competition here. The Solar Impulse team says its next project will focus on a lightweight solar drone capable of remaining aloft for six months. Google isexperimenting with high-altitude drones and balloons to provide wireless service. Facebook is developing a solar drone called Aquila, which would fly for three months at a time to provide Internet access to remote areas.

Airbus hopes to combine the lessons from Zephyr program with its experience building conventional satellites to launch and maintain a fleet of forever drones. This isn’t a concept anymore—the Zephyr Sis already in production, and before long will be pinging above our heads, just like Sputnik 1.

IN BRIEF

Airbus is developing a solar-powered drone that could spend years roaming the stratosphere—and may replace expensive satellites.

European aviation firm Airbus recently announced the successful maiden flight of its high-flying, solar-powered drone—the Zephyr T.

The success of this initiative would mean that the company is flying in the right direction with their ambitious dream of replacing the current webwork of space-based satellites with what they are calling “high altitude pseudo satellites.” These are essentially autonomous drones that would execute all the functions of current satellites, but at a drastically lower cost; and they could potentially operate for much longer periods than satellites, only returning occasionally for power and tech upgrades.

Airbus started developing pseudo satellites in 2008—bridging the gap between satellites in space and the drones flying above people’s roofs. The company made a world record in 2010 with the Zephyr 7, which flew for 14 days without refueling.

The solar-powered drones could be used for military monitoring, emergency communications, and even for high-speed internet connection.

Airbus is working on the endurance issue, or simply what happens to the solar-powered drone when there is no Sun. The company said the Zephyr’s electric propulsion is already efficient, but can still improve with battery tech advances.

In the meantime, we eagerly await a world where high-flying armadas of drones eliminate the dangers of space junk and declutter Low Earth Orbit.