Starlift: Cislunar Space Supply Chain Logistics

About

Starlift aims to establish the foundational celestial mechanics, operations, and autonomy concepts that optimize performance of a network of spacecraft providing intercept, servicing, and provisioning (including propellant delivery) capabilities throughout cislunar space. StarLift is a multi-year project funded by the Air Force Research Lab (AFRL) in collaboration with SSDS, Elaine Petro's ASTRAlab, Dmitry Savransky's SIOSlab, Rob Shepherd's ORL, the Naval Postgraduate School (NPS), and the Air Force Institute of Technology (AFIT). This will be done by producing a reference logistics network design focusing on reference parking orbits, fleet description, distribution of resource hubs, and specific aspects of orbital control related to proximity operations and in-space servicing, assembly, and manufacturing (ISAM). Additionally, we are producing a validated, subsystem-level design for the modular spacecraft composing the network. Lastly, there is development and evaluation of new techniques to autonomously control highly flexible, variable-mass space robots for on-orbit servicing and assembly, including the design, manufacture and evaluation of 3D-printed Tendon Actuated Light Networks (TALN).