Preliminar moon mission design: ALSPRO
The ALSPRO (Autonomous Lunar Site Preparation Robot) project proposes a lightweight robotic precursor designed to reduce the risks associated with lunar landings by preparing touchdown zones prior to the arrival of heavy or crewed landers. This thesis presents a complete preliminary mission design t...
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| Tipo de recurso: | tesis de maestría |
| Fecha de publicación: | 2025 |
| País: | España |
| Institución: | Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (UPC) |
| Repositorio: | UPCommons. Portal del coneixement obert de la UPC |
| Idioma: | inglés |
| OAI Identifier: | oai:upcommons.upc.edu:2117/442276 |
| Acceso en línea: | https://hdl.handle.net/2117/442276 |
| Access Level: | acceso abierto |
| Palabra clave: | Robotics Space vehicles Moon--Exploration Lunar Robot Rover Lunar landing Robòtica Vehicles espacials Lluna--Exploració Àrees temàtiques de la UPC::Aeronàutica i espai |
| Sumario: | The ALSPRO (Autonomous Lunar Site Preparation Robot) project proposes a lightweight robotic precursor designed to reduce the risks associated with lunar landings by preparing touchdown zones prior to the arrival of heavy or crewed landers. This thesis presents a complete preliminary mission design that integrates site selection, mission architecture, and an autonomous robotic platform derived from the Mona Luna rover. ALSPRO's payload suite combines high-resolution mapping, obstacle detection and removal, terrain leveling, and in-situ regolith stabilization techniques (microwave sintering, vibratory compaction, and concentrated solar sintering). The study assesses technical feasibility, including inherited subsystems, expected technology readiness level (TRL) gaps, and required testing to reach TRL 6-7. An economic analysis evaluates mission cost drivers and highlights potential commercialization and sustainability benefits from in-situ resource utilization (ISRU). Results indicate that an ALSPRO-class mission can materially reduce landing hazards and materially increase the probability of success for subsequent heavy or crewed missions, providing a cost-effective step toward sustainable lunar operations at polar sites. Key re-commendations include targeted hardware maturation, environmental testing in lunar-analog conditions, and collaborative partnerships to accelerate technology validation. |
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