ISRU, local resources and first Mars industry
This course develops a capability that was still missing from the core curriculum. It starts from concepts and units, builds the necessary calculations, then connects each method to real Mars engineering decisions.
Mastery objectives
- explain quantities, units and assumptions
- repeat at least one calculation by hand
- identify uncertainty, limits and failure modes
- turn the result into a decision for a Mars architecture
1. ISRU replaces cargo with a process chain
In-situ resource utilisation can reduce launch mass, but oxygen from Mars CO₂ still requires compression, reaction, power, purification, storage and maintenance.
Every kilogram not launched from Earth becomes an industrial obligation on Mars.
Engineering reflex. Identify what is measured, assumed and calculated, then state what would change the decision.
2. MOXIE proved a principle, not a settlement plant
MOXIE demonstrated small-scale oxygen production from the Martian atmosphere under varied conditions. It validated technology, not human-mission propellant capacity.
Scaling from grams per hour to tonnes changes power, compression, thermal control, lifetime and cryogenic storage.
Engineering reflex. Identify what is measured, assumed and calculated, then state what would change the decision.
3. Water is a resource only when extraction is defined
Ice may support drinking, oxygen and hydrogen production, but extraction depends on depth, concentration, temperature and surrounding material.
Base-site selection therefore trades landing safety, energy, science and resources.
Engineering reflex. Identify what is measured, assumed and calculated, then state what would change the decision.
4. Regolith to materials
Regolith can be sorted, compacted, heated or used as process feedstock, but properties vary and contaminants may require treatment.
Industry begins with characterisation: grain size, mineralogy, volatiles and mechanical behaviour.
Engineering reflex. Identify what is measured, assumed and calculated, then state what would change the decision.
5. The first factory must be repairable
A plant that saves cargo but needs one unique Earth-made part every few months does not create durable autonomy.
Performance must track energy per kilogram, availability, purity, maintenance burden and imported dependencies.
Engineering reflex. Identify what is measured, assumed and calculated, then state what would change the decision.
Worked example step by step
Build a nominal case and a degraded variant. Write every input with units, convert to one coherent system, perform the calculation, then translate the result into a sentence. Finally vary the most uncertain parameter by ±20% and check whether the decision changes.
Progressive exercise
- Choose a Mars subsystem and list five inputs.
- Classify each input: measured, sourced, assumed or calculated.
- Calculate the nominal case.
- Inject uncertainty or a failure.
- Decide: continue, degrade, stop or reconfigure.
Reasoned solution
A good solution shows units, reasoning, sensitivity and the decision. A numerical result without physical interpretation is not a complete solution.
Validation mini-project
Produce a three-to-five-page engineering note with need, assumptions, diagram, calculation, uncertainty, injected failure, decision criterion and at least three primary sources.