ESA Station 1990 Alternate ESA Space Station Concept - BAe,1990. Credit: NASA via Marcus Lindroos. 44,258 bytes. 641 x 341 pixels.

British Aerospace Ltd. (BAe) investigated alternate European space station designs for the European Space Agency. One configuration would have consisted of self-contained modular 'building blocks' much like the Soviet Salyut and Mir space stations. Unlike the existing Columbus module design, each module could function as a free-flying spacecraft since it had its own solar panels, guidance and control capabilities etc.. The propulsion section at the base of each module would also be used on the Ariane (cargo-) Transfer Vehicle to achieve maximum commonality. In 1990, BAe's Long-Term Space Architecture Study group also investigated possible European contributions to President Bush's Space Exploration Initiative, including space stations in Earth and lunar orbit derived from their design.

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Alt. ESA Station - Alternate ESA Space Station Concept - BAe,1990. British Aerospace Ltd. (BAe) also investigated alternate European space station designs for the European Space Agency. The configuration shown here would have consisted of self-contained modular "building blocks" much like the Soviet Salyut and Mir space stations. Credit: ESA via Marcus Lindroos. 9,461 bytes. 594 x 322 pixels.

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ESA Station 1990 - Alternate ESA Space Station Concept - BAe,1990. In 1990, BAe's Long-Term Space Architecture Study group also investigated possible European contributions to President Bush's Space Exploration Initiative, including space stations in Earth and lunar orbit derived from the design shown here. Credit: ESA via Marcus Lindroos. 12,166 bytes. 633 x 351 pixels.

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