Closed-Loop Life Support for a Fifth-Coordinate Transit Capsule: Consumables Budget Across Crossing Durations
Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: This paper presents a complete design study of the device is the closed-loop life-support system of a four-person transit capsule designed for fifth-coordinate crossings, sized not for the crossing itself, which occupies seconds, but for the gate dwell, delay, and contingency durations that surround it, derived from stated assumptions and computed throughout by the accompanying script. The four-person capsule fitted for a three-day contingency carries 11.23 kg of net consumables, against 112.32 kg for a thirty-day fit, a saving of 90.0 percent that follows from crossing speed and gate reliability rather than from any improvement in recycling. Every figure in the study is a computed result of the stated model and nothing was built or tested: the study is SIMULATED, NOT MEASURED, and its limits are stated as plainly as its performance.
Author: Aldred, William Alexander
Language: English
Subfield: Aerospace Engineering
Field: Engineering
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W7225816209