NASA Tests Inflatable Lunar Shelters

NASA Tests Inflatable Lunar Shelters

NASA is preparing to test an inflatable structure that might one day be used to establish an outpost on the Moon. Created by NASA contractor ILC Dover LP, the pumped-up structure sits poised for tests at the agency’s Langley Research Center in Virginia. “Right now it is a concept demonstrator,” said Inflatable Structures Project Leader Karen Whitley. “We use it for publicity and tours and exhibits for senior staff. We’ve had several congressmen come here to see it.”
The inflatable structure is made of multilayer fabric and looks like an ungainly white robot with legs. The main unit is 12 feet in diameter and 18 feet tall. It has a volume of about 1,600 cubic feet and is connected to an airlock, also inflatable. The two spaces are essentially pressurized cylinders, connected by an airtight door.