Request for Proposal_Global Future Space Scholars Meet_Qualifying Round 2026
IDSDO 2095
Welcome to the Year 2095
January 5th, 2095
Dear Aerospace Enterprises,
Welcome to this year's bidding process for the Demeter space settlement in the
asteroid belt. The International Deep Space Development Organization (IDSDO) is
excited to invite you to participate in this remarkable project.
Established in 2025 and jointly operated by leading aerospace powers worldwide,
IDSDO has been dedicated to the exploration, development, and utilization of deep
space resources for the benefit of all humanity. Over the past four decades, our
achievements in deep space exploration and space resource development have been
extraordinary. The innovative space hotels we pioneered in low Earth orbit (LEO)
have become standout examples of commercial success. The completed solar power
satellite (SPS) network effectively resolves Earth's energy challenges through the
utilization of space-based power generation and transmission technology. Our lunar
mining bases and industrial space settlements located at Earth-Moon Lagrange points
L4 and L5 continue to yield valuable resources, propelling our progress into the vast
reaches of space. This era witnessed a flourishing of space industries across sectors
such as refining, semiconductors, energy, pharmaceuticals, and tourism. In the 2060s,
IDSDO led Venus-focused investment and construction, establishing multiple orbital
and atmospheric space settlements. Their food, dry ice, and liquid nitrogen supplies
supported inner solar system deep-space exploration. From the 2070s, Mars
development became IDSDO’s top priority. Following over 20 years of efforts, a
systematic deep space infrastructure network was built, including Martian surface
industrial and scientific research bases, plus orbital space cities.
Since 2085, after 40 years of lunar and near-Earth asteroid (NEA) mining,
commercial mining of asteroid belt became a new hot spot. With the help of new
space fusion power generators and engines, a group of commercial companies began
to search for targets in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter for experimental
commercial mining. The technology of zero/low gravity mining performed by robots
was rapidly applied in this area. IDSDO also made a visionary decision, started to
lead a series of satellite and unmanned probe missions, and set up an asteroid
information database (AID) which was open to all the world .
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By 2090, the AID had collected nearly 8,000 valuable pieces of information of
asteroids, including their orbital information, spin state, radius, mass, composition and
vein distribution. At least five commercial companies became successful in this
area. Their usual mining model was used to build a 10-20 crew-manned, fusion-
powered mining and smelting base in the solar orbit near the target asteroid. The
small unmanned mining robots were then dropped onto the target asteroid and worked
on the detected vein. Then, the ore was transported to the base by electromagnetic
mass driver or unmanned small spacecrafts. At the base, the ore was refined or
smelted according to its type to produce various valuable materials such as aluminum,
magnesium, gold, platinum, water, liquid oxygen, and high-purity silicon. When the
resources of the target asteroid were exhausted, most of the equipment would be
recovered and the mining base towed by the spacecraft to the next target asteroid to
continue operations.
In 2095, to provide better services for asteroid mining companies and improve the
efficiency of resource acquisition, IDSDO has decided to build a large space
settlement in the asteroid belt. This space city will be constructed in a solar orbit near
the Psyche. Thanks to the Psyche’s abundant metal deposits, the area has become a
hub for asteroid mining. Building a large-scale infrastructure here will undoubtedly
greatly advance the development of the asteroid belt. The settlement will mainly
provide re-fueling, resupplies, maintenance and rescue services for mining bases and
cargo spacecraft. Raw materials, high-purity silicon, fuel, etc. transported from the
mining site will be traded and/or processed in it and then transported to other
places. Crews from mining bases will also visit this new city for recreational and
medical services. IDSDO has selected "Demeter" as the name of this new settlement,
after the goddess of harvest in Greek mythology, also recognizing the first main-belt
asteroid discovered, Ceres, her another name in Roman mythology. The name
Demeter also indicates that asteroid belt will not only serve as a resource base for the
inner solar system, but also provide a constant resupply of food and fuel for humans
to travel to deeper [Link] will officially release the Request for Proposal (RFP)
containing detailed requirements. Your company is invited to join us in this noble
endeavor by designing and submitting a proposal that fulfills all the specified
requirements. We wish you the best of luck in this exciting challenge in the days
ahead.
Dr. Richard Doe Richard Doe
Chair of International Deep Space Development Organization
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IDSDO 2095
Request for Proposal
5 January 2095
“Demeter” Space Settlement
The purpose of this Request for Proposal (RFP) is to invite entities with expertise in
various aspects of deep space development to submit proposals to the IDSDO
(International Deep Space Development Organization). The contenders will bid on the
development of “Demeter”, the first major settlement in the Asteroid belt. The project
will be awarded in June 2095. Once awarded, the contractor shall begin the design
and construction work to ensure the full operation of Demeter before 2100.
Statement of Work
1. Executive Summary
Demeter must provide a safe and pleasant living and working environment for 1,000
full-time residents and up to 1,000 visitors. The contractor shall describe the design,
construction and operation (maintenance) plans for this space settlement.
2. Structure and Construction
Demeter will be built in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, near 16 Psyche
and in orbit around the sun. It will be the busiest space port city in the asteroid belt.
You are required to provide detailed exterior designs, space distributions, and
construction sequence of Demeter.
2.1 Overall Design
The contractor shall show the overview and design of Demeter by drawings that
identify attributes and uses of the major enclosed volumes of the space city with
dimensions clearly labeled, including but not limited to the residential and
recreational area, the commercial area, the industrial area, the agricultural area, the
space port and the warehouses. The drawings should clearly illustrate how these
volumes are interconnected, emphasizing the spatial relationships between different
areas. Additionally, the locations and necessary dimensions of auxiliary facilities,
such as solar panels, communication antennas, radiators, docking ports, and airlocks,
should also be indicated on the diagrams.
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2.2 Volume Dimensions and Artificial Gravity
Show drawings of Demeter with the sizes (down-surface and space) of each volume
and specify the rotation radius, rotation speed, and gravity level for each volume.
2.3 Construction Method and Sequences
Well-designed assembly method and building process will greatly improve the
efficiency of construction, lower the cost, and enhance the early-stage operation
capability of Demeter. Thanks to the metal outputs from existing mining bases near
Psyche, as well as the water and silicate resources from other asteroid mining bases,
Demeter can rely more on in-situ resources for construction, thereby greatly reducing
material transportation costs. Show at least 5 intermediate steps with drawings and
rationale (from the aspects of economy and feasibility) for the process.
2.4 Shielding of Impact and Radiation (Note: This section is only required for the
Scholar Teams to design; the Explorer Teams is not required to complete this section.)
Allocating in the asteroid belt, Demeter will be facing much higher level threat from
collision with space objects. Demeter must provide shielding capability of impact
with meteoroids (diameter < 5 cm). However, strong and lightweight hull structure is
the key to save construction cost. Show the protection of radiation and space objects
by carefully designed hull structure and materials.
3. Operation and Life Support
Demeter must provide a safe and pleasant living, working and entertainment
environment for 1,000 residents and up to 1,000 visitors. The Design of facilities,
infrastructures and subsystems is needed for operation and maintenance.
3.1 Power Supply
Demeter requires sufficient electricity supply for its basic operations, life support
systems, industrial production and food production. At the same time, it must be able
to reserve energy to sustain its operation at minimum power for at least 100 days in
case of emergency. Specify a quantitative estimation and rationale of power
consumption (in kilowatts), power generation (in kilowatts) and power storage
amount (in kilowatt-hours, kWh).
3.2 Water Management System
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Asteroid mining will provide sufficient water for Demeter. However, carefully
designed water management is still necessary to ensure efficient operation. Show a
water management system with a flow chart for domestic, industrial and agricultural
use.
3.3 Air Circulation System
Incorporating both humans and crops grown in agricultural areas into the air cycle
will significantly reduce the demand for external gas supplementation. Please design
an air circulation system for Demeter and illustrate its key processes and products
with a flow chart.
3.4 Health Monitoring System (Note: This section is only required for the Scholar
Teams to design; the Explorer Teams is not required to complete this section.)
The physiological and psychological indicators of long-term residents shall be subject
to real-time monitoring, and timely measures shall be taken in the event of
abnormalities. Please list the health indicators to be monitored, their healthy ranges,
and response measures for abnormalities in the form of a table.
4. Human Factors
The population of Demeter will mainly consist of staffs, researchers, spacecraft crew
members, and visitors from mining sites. The community design must take into full
account the psychological and physical needs of residents and visitors to provide a
safe and comfortable living environment for them. As predicted, entertainment and
recreation demands from crews and miners will be huge, Demeter will be a “city that
never sleeps” after completion, where “work hard and play hard” will be the main
lifestyle in it. Previous experience on existing space habitations proves that adults
prefer to live at 0.8g artificial gravity level and low G environment is much suitable
for entertainment activities. However, they would enjoy to have physical exercises at
1g level. Especially, those who have worked in low G environment for a long time,
will be badly in need to get back in shape.
4.1 Residential and Community Design
Demeter will have a full-time resident staff up to 1,000 people, in addition to a
maximum of 1,000 visitors for a short-term stay of no more than two weeks. The
residents and visitors should be able to live together in the community. Show the
map(s) or layout(s) of the residential area and public spaces with dimensions and
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features clearly labeled. Describe how the design will help visitors quickly fit into the
community.
4.2 Design for Mental Well-being
Long-term space living is a significant psychological challenge for humans. Design a
facility in public spaces to effectively reduce the psychological loneliness of crew
members and visitors, and enhance their sense of well-being.
4.3 Contingency Plan
A sense of security is a basic need for all residents and visitors. Please list the
potential threats that Demeter may face, and provide graded emergency response
plans for each threat.
4.4 Entertainment and Recreation Services (Note: This section is only required for
the Scholar Teams to design; the Explorer Teams is not required to complete this
section.)
It can be foreseen that a significant proportion of the visitors will be the crews of
cargo spacecraft and the miners from mining sites. They will need entertainment and
recreational activities to unwind after long, hard and lonely work. Describe one
entertainment and leisure activity/facility that will appeal to the visitors during their
stay of up to 2 weeks.
5. Facility and Infrastructure
Demeter is composed of multiple functional zones. Provide design of the following
facilities and infrastructures for it.
5.1 Transportation Infrastructure
Demeter is positioned to be the largest trading and transshipment hub in the asteroid
belt in the future. Therefore, it requires a comprehensive transportation system
incorporating personnel access, raw ore, semi-processed metals, metal products,
various gas and liquid supplies, food outputs, and other items. Design such a
transportation system for Demeter, and specify the transportation routes and methods
for various goods and personnel.
5.2 Communication Infrastructure
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Demeter needs to maintain stable and reliable communication with surrounding
mining bases, spacecraft, and various space cities in the inner solar system.
Meanwhile, its internal personnel and equipment also require stable and reliable
internal communication. Design a conceptual diagram of the communication system,
and specify the adopted technologies and bandwidth specifications for each
communication link.
5.3 AI System
Demeter aims to have a highly intelligent AI system. Please use a system architecture
diagram to illustrate how the AI system collaborates with humans to jointly operate
Demeter and support long-term human activities. Please also conduct a
comprehensive analysis to identify specific tasks that cannot be effectively
accomplished by AI and need human intervention.
5.4 Mining Robot (Note: This section is only required for the Scholar Teams to
design; the Explorer Teams is not required to complete this section.)
Demeter operates near Psyche and also undertakes the task of developing metal
resources on Psyche. Design a robot that can work under Psyche’s low-gravity
environment and complete excavation and mining work. Provide a design drawing
with functional and dimensional annotations.
6. Schedule and Cost
6.1 Schedule
The project is scheduled to be awarded in June 2095. Upon being awarded, the
contractor will commence the design and construction work to ensure the complete
operationalization of Demeter by the year 2100. Please create a comprehensive
project plan using a detailed Gantt Chart format, outlining the major stages and
milestones of the project starting from the contract award date (June 2095) until the
full operation and occupation of Demeter, with time intervals measured in months.
6.2 Cost
Specify costs billed per year of Demeter design through construction in billion
yuan/RMB, without consideration for economic inflation. Estimate numbers of
employees working during each stage of design and construction in the justification
for contract costs. Clearly show the total cost that shall be billed to IDSDO upon
transfer of deed.
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Requirements for Submission
(1) The submission should be a PDF version of the presentation slideshow. Please use
appropriate software to create the slides.
(2) Please use the following filename convention: “Proposal_[Team
Name]_Division.pdf”, e.g. Proposal_Skywork Parabolas_Space [Link]. A
penalty of point deduction will be applied to submissions that violate the naming
convention.
(3) The aspect ratio of the submission must be set to 16:9.
(4) It is recommended that the submission does not exceed 30 pages of slides
(5) The diagrams and drawings in the slides can be created using any CAD modeling
software or as hand-drawn illustrations. However, regardless of the method used, it is
imperative to provide dimensions for the schematic designs in metric units, e.g., [m].
(6) AI may assist in certain aspects such as drafting concepts and outlines, but
students must complete research, writing, and structure. Compliance with Honor Code
is required. Moreover, although AI can be used, it is not recommended to directly
generate graphs with it, as they often lack scientific and rational elements and may not
meet the RFP requirements.
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Criteria of Evaluation
The entry will be evaluated by a panel of juries from aerospace industry and related
scientific research areas. The evaluation process will encompass a comprehensive
assessment of the following factors:
(1) Thoroughness
The proposal requirements, including implied requirements, are fully outlined in the
"Statement of Work" section attached to this document. Qualified proposals must
satisfactorily address all specified requirements.
(2) Rationality
A strong emphasis will be placed on designs with a sound scientific foundation and a
reasonable application of engineering technology. Innovation and original thinking
will be highly encouraged. Contestants can present reasonable predictions for future
technological advancements, as long as they align with the principles of science and
engineering. The rationality of the proposed scheme will be the most crucial factor in
the evaluation.
(3) Systematic
Considering the magnitude of the project, it is essential that the chosen contractor
showcases a strong capacity for systematic problem-solving. Your proposal should
present substantial evidence of these capabilities. One of the key evaluation criteria
will be the consistency demonstrated throughout various sections of the proposal,
including descriptions, dimensions, units, and both quantitative and qualitative
analyses.
(4) Economy
Given the limited availability of equipment, materials, and space in outer space, the
efficiency of the design will be of utmost importance. The committee places
significant value on trade-off analyses that aim to identify the most balanced solutions
when multiple options are presented. It is crucial to demonstrate a thorough
understanding of resource constraints and the ability to optimize design choices
accordingly.
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