Moonplane—A Spacecraft for Regular Delivery of Astronauts onto the Moon ()
ABSTRACT
A
project of spacecraft “moonplane” for regular delivery of astronauts onto the
Moon is considered. At the first stage of flight by using a carrier rocket,
equipped with a chemical rocket engine, the astronauts are delivered on the
international space station ISS. For flights from Earth orbit into Moon orbit,
the design of a moonplane “MOND”, consisting of an interorbital module and a
lunar module, has been developed. The interorbital module is an electric rocket, equipped with four
superconductive magnetoplasma engine MARS. To power supply of the
electromotors, a solar battery of gallium arsenide is used. The
design of the lunar module with cabin astronauts, which is equipped with a chemical rocket engine for landing and take-off from
the surface of the Moon, is developed. A method and a device for refuelling
of the electrical rocket engines with nitrogen and for refuelling of the
chemical rocket engines with oxygen and hydrogen, which are stored in cryogenic
tanks of the moonplane in the liquid state is developed.
The developed spacecraft is capable to regularly transport four
astronauts off a moorage of ISS onto the surface of the Moon and back
during 6 days. The total cost delivery of one astronaut is 4 million US
dollars.
Share and Cite:
Rubinraut, A. (2019) Moonplane—A Spacecraft for Regular Delivery of Astronauts onto the Moon.
Advances in Aerospace Science and Technology,
4, 43-56. doi:
10.4236/aast.2019.43004.