Space Resources, NASA SP-509 (1992)
- Overview. 44 pages. [HTML] [PDF 2.5 MB]
- Volume 1: Scenarios. 68 pages. [HTML] [PDF 3.4 MB]
- Volume 2: Energy, Power, and Transport. 182 pages. [HTML] [PDF 7.6 MB]
- Volume 3: Materials. 330 pages. [HTML] [PDF 14.4 MB]
- Volume 4: Social Concerns. 314 pages. [HTML] [PDF 14.8 MB]
Lunar Resources Utilization for Space Construction
Study conducted for NASA by General Dynamics Convair Division in 1979 concluded that lunar resources could supply 90% of the material for power satellite production and become cost effective if more than 30 satellites are produced. A nice summary of this study appears in Toward Distant Suns, Chapter 8.
Extraterrestrial Materials Processing and Construction
Lunar and Planetary Institute, Dr. David R. Criswell, Principal Investigator, NASA Contract NSR-09-051-001, September 1978, 476 pages. [PDF 14.9 MB]. Abstract: Applications of available terrestrial skills to the gathering of lunar materials and the processing of raw lunar materials into industrial feed stock were investigated. The literature on lunar soils and rocks was reviewed and the chemical processes by which major oxides and chemical elements can be extracted were identified. The gathering of lunar soil by means of excavation equipment was studied in terms of terrestrial experience with strip mining operations on earth. The application of electrostatic benefication techniques was examined for use on the moon to minimize the quantity of materials requiring surface transport and to optimize the stream of raw materials to be transported off the moon for subsequent industrial use.
Nonterrestrial Utilization of Materials: Automated Space Manufacturing Facility
Chapter 4 from Advanced Automation for Space Missions, NASA Conference Publication 2255, 1982, 115 pages. [PDF 8 MB]
Bibliography and Abstracts. NASA Scientific and Technical Information Program, 2004, 207 pages. [PDF 2.6 MB]
Additional papers
- Report of the In Situ Resources Utilization Workshop. NASA Conference Publication 3017, 1988, 102 pages. [PDF 4.5 MB]
- Workshop on Using In Situ Resources for Construction of Planetary Outposts. LPI Technical Report Number 98-01, 1998, 57 pages. [PDF 9.3 MB]
- The Technical and Economic Feasibility of Mining the Near-Earth Asteroids. M. J. Sonter. Paper presented at 49th International Astronautical Federation Congress, Sept 28 – Oct 2, 1998, Melbourne, Australia. [HTML]
- Near-Earth Asteroid Mining, by Shane D. Ross, 2001, 24 pages [PDF 180K]
- NASA In-Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU) Capability Roadmap, 2005, 49 pages. [PDF 523K]
