Home - Search - Browse - Alphabetic Index: 0- 1- 2- 3- 4- 5- 6- 7- 8- 9
A- B- C- D- E- F- G- H- I- J- K- L- M- N- O- P- Q- R- S- T- U- V- W- X- Y- Z

---

Spacedock

---

Spacedock 1988
Space Station Spacedock. This 1988 illustration depicts a large "Drive-thru" spacedock facility for assembly and checkout of manned lunar spacecraft.
Credit: NASA via Marcus Lindroos

---

Status: Study 1986.

After the 1986 Space Shuttle Challenger accident, a number of space policy reports ('Pioneering the Space Frontier', 'Leadership and America's Future in Space') advocated an aggressive manned lunar/Mars program to restore America's lead in space. NASA now embarked on a number of studies to see how the downscaled Space Station Freedom could assist this goal. This would involve use of a large spacedock facility for assembly and checkout of manned lunar or planetary spacecraft.

Three designs were considered:

• The 'Drive-thru' spacedock would have weighed more than twice as much as the basic Space Station Freedom, which had an in-orbit mass of 200 metric tons. Lunar transfer vehicles would have been assembled, serviced and refueled in a rectangular enclosure on top.
• The 'Atrium' spacedock would also have utilized the same type of modules and structures as Space Station Freedom.
• The 'Platform' spacedock would have featured a large gravity gradient-stabilized extension at the bottom. The Canadian Mobile Servicing Center would have been capable of moving up and down this structure, transporting the lunar spacecraft stack along the way.

Article by Marcus Lindroos

Photo Gallery

---

---

Spacedock Space Station Spacedock. This free-flying "spacedock" would be constructed from Space Station subsystems such as solar thermodynamic power generators, radiators, truss segments etc.. The white tanks contain rocket propellant for the space tug. Credit: NASA via Marcus Lindroos

---

---

Atrium Spacedock The "Atrium" spacedock would also have utilized the same type of modules and structures as Space Station Freedom. Credit: NASA via Marcus Lindroos

---

---

Tether and Spacedock Space Station Spacedock. Most NASA studies preferred to develop a separate spacecraft assembly & checkout facility in order to minimize the impact on sensitive experiments onboard Space Station Freedom. This "spacedock" would be connected to the Space Station by a long tether. The space tug (top) will receive a free boost from the centrifugal forces when it releases the tether Credit: NASA via Marcus Lindroos

---

---

Spacedock Space Station Spacedock. The "Drive-thru" spacedock would have weighed more than twice as much as the basic Space Station Freedom, which had an in-orbit mass of 200 metric tons. Lunar transfer vehicles would have been assembled, serviced and refuelled in the rectangular enclosure on top. Credit: NASA via Marcus Lindroos

---

---

Spacedock Space Station Spacedock. The "Platform" spacedock would have featured a large gravity gradient-stabilized extension at the bottom. The Canadian Mobile Servicing Center would have been capable of moving up and down this structure, transporting the lunar spacecraft stack along the way. Credit: NASA via Marcus Lindroos

---