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White Papers Issued by
The Space Resources Roundtable
To address an issue relating to space resource development, the SRR delivers a summarized briefing in the form of a White Paper. Papers issued to date are as follows.
Priorities for Demonstrating Lunar ISRU Capabilities (2006)
ISRU capabilities and their limitations are most effectively confirmed or denied through demonstrations on-site. However, the size, number, and duration of precursor missions are constrained by cost and timing.
Hard choices must be made: Which capabilities are so important they must be demonstrated first?
Download Document (35 kb) 
Statement of the Space Resources Roundtable (2004)
Economic reasons dictate that the promise of use of resources in space transcends current programs for the exploration of space. Not only will the availability of resources – materials and energy – reduce the difficulty and cost of exploration programs, by “living off the land,” but will allow commerce to take root outside of the Earth.
Download Document (46 kb)
The Need for Lunar Soil Simulants for ISRU Studies (2004)
The establishment of a base of operations on the Moon in preparation for and implementation of further exploration of the Solar System looms large upon the horizon. Paramount in these endeavors is the need to learn to “live off the land” on the Moon. This will involve the “In-Situ Resource Utilization” (ISRU) of the materials on the lunar surface for a myriad of uses. The surface mobility (rovers), scientific instrument, and EVA (extra vehicular activity) communities also must address the lunar materials as well. The various engineering and material science studies that are necessary for these endeavors will mostly address the lunar regolith (crushed rock) and soil (<1 cm of regolith) for their starting materials on the Moon and there is need of these materials for such pursuits. However, the Apollo lunar samples are a national treasure that must be protected from unnecessary usage. There is an obvious and important need for simulants of the lunar regolith/soil with which these investigations can meaningfully proceed.
Download Document (303 kb)
Developing the Resources of the Solar System (2001)
Permanent human habitation of space requires knowledge of the resources available from the Moon, Mars, and asteroids. This paper presents a near-term strategy for exploring for resources that is compatible with the main science goals of solar system exploration.
Download Document (38 kb)
These documents may be viewed with
the Adobe Acrobat Reader
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