January 15, 2008

Boeing propellant depot: useful space stations for space development

Boeing has plans for a space gas station which would allow up to 15 times more payload to
be sent to the moon in some missions. The system would allow for two to three times more
payload for many missions. The system would also be able to leverage rockets that are three
to five times cheaper than NASA ($10,000/kg) launch systems.

Efficiently stocked gas stations and supply depots in space would make a huge difference to
the cost and efficiency of space development. LEO gas stations supplied with $2000/kg [Russian
Dnepr rocket] or cheaper rockets [SpaceX target of $500/kg] would make it cheaper for any
rocket to get anywhere else. If fuel can be produced on the Moon it has the potential to be
cheaper to bring it out of a gravity well that is 6 times weaker than Earth's gravity.

More details and diagrams here:

http://nextbigfuture.com/2008/01/boeing-propellant-depot-useful-space.html