Space Exploration Initiative aka the 90 days Study

[Michel Van]

Also Know as Exploration Systems Architecture Study

In 1989 President Bush proposed a 30 year Project for Space Exploration segmented in Three phase:

1990s - Building Space station FREEDOM in low orbit with Space Shuttle
2000s - Return to Moon and build Outpost
2010s - Manned expedition to Mars

Note I label this in Phase I-III to distinguish between Space Station, Moon Base and Mars Mission

Sadly Capitol Hill was not impress special the High Cost of $480 billion ($16 Billion/year)
And refused rising the NASA Budget from 10 billion to $16 Billion annually
To make matter worst, the NASA Administrator Bush appoint, not care about SEI,
Richard H. Truly just wanted keep NASA running...

Next the Space Shuttle planned use of Shuttle-C and it's derivate for more payload.
Orbital Tugs smaller for low orbit and bigger for GEO and Lunar mission using aerobraking to save Hydrolox.
Based on experience with Hardware during the Phase, influence the Hardware for Next phase.

 

[Byeman]

Also Know as Exploration Systems Architecture Study

In 1989 President Bush proposed a 30 year Project for Space Exploration segmented in Three phase:

1990s - Building Space station FREEDOM in low orbit with Space Shuttle
2000s - Return to Moon and build Outpost
2010s - Manned expedition to Mars

Sadly Capitol Hill was not impress special the High Cost of $480 billion ($16 Billion/year)
And refused rising the NASA Budget from 10 billion to $16 Billion annually
To make matter worst, the NASA Administrator Bush appoint, not care about SEI,
Richard H. Truly just wanted keep NASA running...

Next the Space Shuttle planned use of Shuttle-C and it's derivate for more payload.
Orbital Tugs smaller for low orbit and bigger for GEO and Lunar mission using aerobraking to save Hydrolox.
Based on experience with Hardware during the Phase, influence the Hardware for Next phase.

Nope. Different Bushes, different years, hence different studies.

As stated, SEI was in 1989. ESAS was in 2006, done by Griffin and Constellation was the result.

 

[Michel Van]

Nope. Different Bushes, different years, hence different studies.

As stated, SEI was in 1989. ESAS was in 2006, done by Griffin and Constellation was the result.

Thanks for the correction

 

[Archibald]

The plan was flawed and doomed from the beginning. Shuttle isn't very useful for lunar missions, its payload is too small. As for Freedom, it wasn't even born, it was already doomed by blue sky, pie-in-the-sky architectures. It almost died in 1993 (by one vote in Congress !) only for the ISS to happen. NASA planners were unable to get out of the Apollo paradigm, except making it worse. The 90 days study was sunk by an eye-watering cost estimate.

Later studies like FLO, LUNOX and Early Lunar Access were much better, but way too late : SLI was toast by 1990-91.
https://nss.org/lunar-base-studies-1992-first-lunar-outpost-flo/https://nss.org/lunar-base-studies-1993-lunox/https://nss.org/lunar-base-studies-1993-early-lunar-access-ela/
After what,
Shuttle lasted until 2011.
ISS lasted until 2031.
As long as they were running, it was almost impossible to start a new manned lunar program.
First try 2004 with the VSE. Not too bad, but ESAS sucked and Constellation went nowhere after 2010, except for Orion.
At least the Shuttle madness stopped in 2011.
Still, Artemis has happened (from 2017) but the Shuttle ghost so far has haunted it, through SLS.

A case can be make that SLI, ESAS and even Artemis are rotten from the inside by the Shuttle industrial base that stubbornely refuses to die, inside NASA and politically. But the Shuttle itself, back in 1972, was shoehorned into the Apollo own base and infrastructures like the VAB and LC-39 and many others.

 

[blackstar]

Also Know as Exploration Systems Architecture Study

In 1989 President Bush proposed a 30 year Project for Space Exploration segmented in Three phase:

1990s - Building Space station FREEDOM in low orbit with Space Shuttle
2000s - Return to Moon and build Outpost
2010s - Manned expedition to Mars

Sadly Capitol Hill was not impress special the High Cost of $480 billion ($16 Billion/year)
And refused rising the NASA Budget from 10 billion to $16 Billion annually
To make matter worst, the NASA Administrator Bush appoint, not care about SEI,
Richard H. Truly just wanted keep NASA running...

Next the Space Shuttle planned use of Shuttle-C and it's derivate for more payload.
Orbital Tugs smaller for low orbit and bigger for GEO and Lunar mission using aerobraking to save Hydrolox.
Based on experience with Hardware during the Phase, influence the Hardware for Next phase.

You could read what I have written on SEI. Or John Logsdon's recent monograph. There are good resources on this topic.

 

[Michel Van]

First Phase from 1990 to 1999
was to be Space Station Freedom

It had to be build literally out of thousand of parts launch with Space Shuttle
and Assembly by Astronauts in 28°Low Earth orbit.
most parts were for fragile looking thrust structure
but that let more Shuttle launches and to 2,282-3,276 hours of EVA for Astronauts /year
this needed new Space Suits like the AX-5 hard-shell and ZPS Mark 3

There were solution like launch pre assembly thrust structure with Shuttle or Shuttle-C
Later needed small Space Tug to move the piece from Shuttle-C to the Station orbit.

Original concept

Later version with pre assembly thrust structure

 

[Michel Van]

Phase II were very ambitious

Space Station Freedom is extended with more Modules
the thrust structure is expanded and hangars are installed
even a Shuttle ET is dock on the station as Propellant tank for Space Tugs
That be assembly in new Hanger of Parts launch by Shuttle and it C version

There were alternative proposal to install a Propellants depot in same orbit just 50 km behind Freedom.

Now the Space Tug nicknamed "Turtle" do there Heat shield for Aerodynamic breaking on Return
using modified RL10 engine, they need Hydrolox propellants, hinge the ET as Propellant tank
however the Tugs drop tanks could be launch by Shuttle-C

the Picture show
Space Station Freedom here in configuration for Case of Mars Mission
A turtle Tug and larger Manned Mars craft of Phase III

 

[blackstar]

Phase I and II from where? What document laid out these "phases"?

SEI was amorphous. The giant "90-Day Study" at the beginning only established possibilities. But it immediately got attacked, and the SEI proposal/policy was under fire immediately.

 

[Michel Van]

Phase I and II from where? What document laid out these "phases"?

That with Phase is from Me to distinguish between Space Station, Moon Base and Mars Mission
i forgot to mention it, sorry...

 

[publiusr]

That with Phase is from Me to distinguish between Space Station, Moon Base and Mars Mission
i forgot to mention it, sorry...

The last gasp of SEI
https://spaceflighthistory.blogspot.com/2017/07/sei-swan-song-international-lunar.html

 

[Brett Davidson]

Phase II were very ambitious

Space Station Freedom is extended with more Modules
the thrust structure is expanded and hangars are installed
even a Shuttle ET is dock on the station as Propellant tank for Space Tugs
That be assembly in new Hanger of Parts launch by Shuttle and it C version

There were alternative proposal to install a Propellants depot in same orbit just 50 km behind Freedom.

Now the Space Tug nicknamed "Turtle" do there Heat shield for Aerodynamic breaking on Return
using modified RL10 engine, they need Hydrolox propellants, hinge the ET as Propellant tank
however the Tugs drop tanks could be launch by Shuttle-C

the Picture show
Space Station Freedom here in configuration for Case of Mars Mission
A turtle Tug and larger Manned Mars craft of Phase III

More by Carter Emmart for a study presented at the Case For Mars II conference.

http://www.astronautix.com/c/caseformarsii.html
https://www.thespacereview.com/article/5085/1
Three spacecraft were to be launched and then docked to make a three-spoked centrifuge en route.

 

[blackstar]

That with Phase is from Me to distinguish between Space Station, Moon Base and Mars Mission
i forgot to mention it, sorry...

But that is just making stuff up. The space station was announced in the early 1980s, SEI in 1989. SEI was really dead on arrival, but it was totally dead by 1992.

 

[TwoTribes]

High res image