V-Infinity

A book about moving into space

by Jerome L Wright

Available 2017 Q3.


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V-Infinity shows that all aspects of space development can be done in a minimum cost manner, which means that everyday people can participate. Space development can begin when costs come down.

The book is written in four parts. An excerpt:

Part Two. Planetoids

Design

Requirements

An effective design project needs to begin with a set of precise and realistic requirements and constraints. Even at this early stage, there are two sets with which to get started on systems for permanent habitation.

The first are requirements for human life:

  • A habitat shall provide substantial gravity
  • A habitat shall provide adequate utilities services in a reliable manner
  • A habitat shall provide an environment without hazardous levels of radiation
  • A habitat shall remain structurally and functionally adequate and sound for not less than TBD decades.

The second set are requirements for successful operations:

  • A habitat shall support ship operations at multiple ports
  • A habitat shall keep its center of rotation sufficiently close to the geometric center to enable effective and safe operations
  • A habitat shall keep its precession properties small enough to enable effective and safe operations.

These requirements are sufficient to enable conceptual design efforts. They would be greatly expanded before a construction effort begins. Requirements lists seem to unavoidably get long "wish lists" attached to them as well. Budgets and realistic engineering approaches typically keep the numbers of requirements and wishes under control. If not, a project can run into serious implementation problems.

It remains to be determined just how long the operational life of a habitat should be, but surely it would be not less than a century of productive life. Ideally, it should last for an indefinite operational life with effective maintenance, perhaps measured in millennia or greater. The largest planetoids should have operational lifetimes comparable to the useful life spans of natural planets, or greater.