Mars habitat power consumption constraints, prioritization, and optimization

Abstract

The Hawai'i Space Exploration Analog and Simulation (HI-SEAS) is an experiment simulating long-duration life in a Mars habitat. Power for the habitat is generated by a photovoltaic system that exhibits daily variation in production rates. During days with cloud cover, the crew need to adapt their work schedule and support systems to ensure they can continue to function under low-power constraints. This paper accordingly presents the development and implementation of power budget profiles for low-, medium-, and high-power production days during Mission 5 of the HI-SEAS experiment. The applied power budget profiles limit which systems and devices can be used and for what duration. To generate these profiles, the HI-SEAS power subsystem was first characterized though power audits and data from daily crew use trends. The methods used to determine a prioritized list of habitat equipment for crew-member usage and compliance with restrictions are then discussed. Finally, an optimization method is proposed to determine the most efficient schedule to match each power usage profile with respect to crew preferences. The data from this experiment provide a novel opportunity to gain insight into power usage in space exploration habitats, establishing a foundation for the development of proper power generation and management technologies. Thus, this research can be used to provide meaningful guidance to most manned space systems in ensuring optimal power consumption under a variety of power generation conditions.