Development studies at NASA on large orbital structures, 1975–1985

This paper provides a review of early development studies on structures carried out by NASA and US aerospace contractors between 1975 and 1985 before and during the initiation of the Space Station programme. The studies envisioned very large structures built in orbit using the Space Shuttle, then in the process of entering service. Their original purpose was to function as solar power, antenna and communications platforms. The studies explored the application of automatically-fabricated trusses, then preassembled deployable trusses, and then astronaut-assembled erectable trusses. By the time of the Station’s go-ahead in 1984, a large erectable truss structure formed the backbone of the Station’s design. Erectable trusses were successfully tested on a Space Shuttle mission in 1985 but later abandoned after the Shuttle Challenger disaster in 1986. Taken together, the 1975–1985 development studies have much historical significance as the first generation of ideas about large engineered structures for extraterrestrial applications.