International Habitation module for the lunar orbital platform
July 2018 – September 2019
European Space Agency (ESA) Phase A/B study, under a subcontract to Airbus Bremen
This Phase A-B1 study includes the design concept phase of the international habitation module (i-HAB), part of the GATEWAY Lunar Orbital Platform, a collaboration between ESA, NASA, Roscosmos, JAXA, and CSA, targeted for completion in 2025.
Two teams assigned in parallel by the European Space Agency (ESA) complete the design concept phase; one headed by Thales Alenia Space Italy (TAS-I) in Turin and the other led by Airbus Defence and Space in Bremen. LIQUIFER Systems Group supported Airbus in architectural design development.
Stringent design parameters due to the launching capacities of rockets, the extreme environmental challenges of outer space, and the wide variety of crew-activities that need to be accommodated for over a 30-day mission period are observed. Architectural models, both virtual and physical, explore different spatial configurations for maximizing the utilisation of the module with an internal volume of 48 cubic meters, by a crew of four. The final design for this phase features deployable elements, such as sleeping quarters, a hygiene facility and science equipment and a galley.
Consortium partners Airbus Bremen – Germany / Airbus Friedrichshafen – Germany / Thales Alenia Space TAS-I – Italy / Sener – Spain / QuinetiQ – Spain / Space Applications Services – Belgium / Airbus Crisa – Spain / LIQUIFER Systems Group – Austria
LIQUIFER team Waltraut Hoheneder, Barbara Imhof, René Waclavicek, Bob Davenport, Molly Hogle, Damjan Minovski
Image credit: Gateway i-HAB