General description

The project concept of developing the family of small orbital stations for realization of commercial, scientific and production programs on the orbit with participation of human-being.

The meaning of the concept of new manned program proposed by Atlas Aerospace Company and Space Regatta Consortium is shown in the following points:

1. Development of the spacecrafts for the maximum fulfillment of orbital tasks in the manned missions (as well as solving the transport tasks);
2. Creation of modules specialized on the high-quality fulfillment of one or two (several) main functions important for the customer. The transition from multifunctional modules, for the most part often used at present, to specialized ones.
3. Creation of combinations - orbital connections - of above mentioned spacecrafts and modules allowing to solve new problems formulated by the customer within the shortest periods of time. Such connections are called in given work small orbital stations (SOS).
4. Possibility of long-term conservation of orbital means and stopping the flight program with minimum residual cost of the means on the orbit (in case of unfavorable demand for space missions which could be necessary for timely adjustment of the space program).

Small orbital stations (SOS) are intended for the arrangement of flexible manned programs on commercial basis with the possibility of using the traditional Russian manned, cargo spacecrafts, their modifications and new modules oriented for the minimum costs and terms of orbital objects development.

оThe principle of SOS building is as follows: it is developed not as a separate self-sufficient project of an orbital station with a certain infrastructure of serving transport spacecrafts, but as a series (a family) of module-spacecrafts (modules) allowing to create manned objects having a special purpose or multifunctional manned objects - mini-stations - of various combinations in orbital connections. Besides, the elements of such mini-stations are not demanded to have a long-term capacity of exploitation (for example, during 15 years, as it is required in modern projects of orbital stations). The resource of module-spacecrafts (modules) must, on the one hand, be inferior to the level of reliability reached by Russian spacecrafts exploited within the stations, and, on the other hand, correspond to the terms of moral (technical, functional) obsolescence of this orbital element.

At the expense of this, it is planned to ensure:

• low cost of the SOS development and exploitation,
• shortening the preparation time for missions of special purpose to the orbit,
• flexible program of manned flights (oriented on the meeting interests of the customer),
• extension of spectrum of the potential customers for manned flights owing to the adaptive character of the services rendered (as compared with ISS, with autonomous flights by transport means),
• minimization of volume of works on orbital objects maintenance (repair, preventive measures),
• modern level of elemental base on the board, consequently - easy integration of the customer's equipment on board,
• minimum expenditures for utilization of the orbital means and its minimum residual cost, in case of making decision about the stoppage of "steady" (continuous in time) manned program.

The family of SOS has the following aims:

1. Realization of manned flights to near-earth orbits on basis of modernized manned and cargo spacecrafts for the duration period of up to 20 days (for the crew of 3 persons).
2. Return to the Earth of the scientific, commercial cargos of mass up to 800 kg.
3. Realization of manned flights to near-earth orbits for the period of up to 45-60 days (for the crew of 3 or 2 persons accordingly) using module-spacecrafts.
4. Development and exploitation of the visited orbital station with the duration of the expeditions of 35-45 days for 3 persons or 40-60 days for 2 persons, with possibility of "going out" the cosmonauts to the space and with possibility of return of the cargos of 70-800 kg to the Earth.
5. Realization of space experiments and productions on commercial basis requiring a periodical service (with participation of human-being) and of any duration of experiments (productions).

General requirements to the development of the SOS family:

• Possibility to begin realization of commercial projects in the current year.
• Maximum flexibility of manned program. It means a possibility of:
  • combination of various projects;
  • gradual development of orbital means;
  • long-term conservation of orbital objects with minimum operational expenses;
  • building up and reconfiguration of orbital means according to the market of the demanded space services.
• Minimum cost of development and exploitation of orbital means, correlated with the costs of existing Russian manned and cargo spacecrafts (of class "Soyuz", "Progress").
• Orbital means created during the first five years must base on the means of the class "Soyuz" and its modifications.
• Minimum cost of utilization of orbital objects. Minimum residual cost of the utilized means in case of stoppage of flight program (for example, because of the lack of orders).

Possibility of orbital objects exploitation during an unlimited time due to reconfiguration and partial utilization of the standard elements exhausted their resources.