Shell worlds

Good points. Plus, when it comes to radiation shielding, anything over 2 meters is overkill. I hear people talk a lot about lunar lava tubes. But just dig a shallow trench in any desired location on the surface, lay your prefabricated module down in it, and then pile on 2 meters of regolith, and you're all set for radiation protection, micrometeoroid protection, and thermal insulation.

Regards,
Mike Combs

From: spacesettlers@yahoogroups.com [mailto:spacesettlers@yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of Al Globus
Sent: Wednesday, October 09, 2013 3:43 PM
To: ssi_list@yahoogroups.com
Cc: Space Settlers maillist
Subject: [spacesettlers] Re: [ssi_list] Shell worlds

On Oct 8, 2013, at 1:49 PM, GARY ANSORGE > wrote:

Mike, I've felt for a long time that initial off planet human habitation will commence with people living underground on the moon or asteroids,

It is a ***lot*** easier to build an orbital habitat out of a co-orbiting asteroid than to put a rotating structure inside of it. A lot. For the shielding, with a large asteroid, you just scoop up the regolith and put it in bags which you attach to the outside of the structure. To put a rotating structure inside the asteroid you need to hollow out a sufficiently large bit and then have active controls to proven the rotating habitat from touching the also-rotating-but-probably-at-a-different-rate asteroid. Getting the centers of mass to l! ine up means the structure and the asteroid are on slightly different orbits. Of course, if you screw up and contact is made the failure mode is catastrophic.

building rotating structures inside these objects to accommodate our G requirements. The external structure provides our vacuum/radiation protection. Our rotating structures could be as simple as a train running on rails, never stopping. We could mount the train from a rolling, four passenger "car", running alongside the "train". An adequate place to eat, obtain entertainment or to sleep. The rest of the time, off the train, we could use whatever local G fields are available for manufacturing, growing food, etc...eventually we will! build fully contained O'Neille structures but initially I expect we'l l be down and dirty,,,doing things the cheapest way possible...O'Neille colonies will require A.I. robotic systems to do the construction and those will get their start as tele operated critters on the moon,,,we humans will rarely ever go "outside"...

Gary Ansorge

Good points. Plus, when it comes to radiation shielding, anything over 2 meters is overkill. I hear people talk a lot about lunar lava tubes. But just dig a shallow trench in any desired location on the surface, lay your prefabricated module down in it, and then pile on 2 meters of regolith, and you're all set for radiation protection, micrometeoroid protection, and thermal insulation.

Regards,
Mike Combs

From:
spacesettlers@yahoogroups.com [mailto:spacesettlers@yahoogroups.com]
On Behalf Of
Al Globus
Sent:
Wednesday, October 09, 2013 3:43 PM
To:
ssi_list@yahoogroups.com
Cc:
Space Settlers maillist
Subject:
[spacesettlers] Re: [ssi_list] Shell worlds

On Oct 8, 2013, at 1:49 PM, GARY ANSORGE <
dead_naked_drummer@...
> wrote:

Mike, I've felt for a long time that initial off planet human habitation will commence with people living underground on the moon or asteroids,

It is a ***lot*** easier to build an orbital habitat out of a co-orbiting asteroid than to put a rotating structure inside of it. A lot. For the shielding, with a large asteroid, you just scoop up the regolith and put it in bags which you attach to the outside of the structure. To put a rotating structure inside the asteroid you need to hollow out a sufficiently large bit and then have active controls to proven the rotating habitat from touching the also-rotating-but-probably-at-a-different-rate asteroid. Getting the centers of mass to l! ine up means the structure and the asteroid are on slightly different orbits. Of course, if you screw up and contact is made the failure mode is catastrophic.

building rotating structures inside these objects to accommodate our G requirements. The external structure provides our vacuum/radiation protection. Our rotating structures could be as simple as a train running on rails, never stopping. We could mount the train from a rolling, four passenger "car", running alongside the "train". An adequate place to eat, obtain entertainment or to sleep. The rest of the time, off the train, we could use whatever local G fields are available for manufacturing, growing food, etc...eventually we will! build fully contained O'Neille structures but initially I expect we'l l be down and dirty,,,doing things the cheapest way possible...O'Neille colonies will require A.I. robotic systems to do the construction and those will get their start as tele operated critters on the moon,,,we humans will rarely ever go "outside"...

Gary Ansorge