Personal Interest Presentation: outline-in-progress

I'll edit this post as I develop more ideas for my outline

"Space, the final NanoPower frontier"

[Insert badly photoshopped picture of the Enterprise]

0)
Nanotech has potential in all areas of space exploration.
Nanotech will not immediately create new fields/devices, but rather, it has the potential to greatly improve existing devices. (especially in the near future)

0.1) Short overview of why we should be trying to use nanotubes (reference their positive charcteristics)

1) Existing use of nanotech in space
1.1) Space Nanotechnology laboratory at MIT (snl.mit.edu) has used nanotehc to build nanoscale components of NASA observers [Chandra X-Ray and others]

2) Nanoelectrical systems

2.1) Power systems, PMAD [Power Management and Distribution] systems
2.1.1) Applications in nuclear powersystems
2.1.2) Applications in solar powersystems

2.2) MEMS [Microelectromagnetic systems]: Combine microchips with electronics that would use them.
2.2.1) Important spacecraft electronics could be made smaller.
2.2.2) Micro-probes for imaging extraterrestrial objects

3) Nanocomposites as a spacecraft building material

3.1) "Armoring" against space debris
3.2) Useful in dealing with stresses of launch?

4) Types of space exploration; usage of nanotechnologies there

4.1) Deep-space travel
4.2) Colonization of extraterrestrial worlds

4.3) Surface exploration [using nanotech]
4.3.1) by humans

4.3.2) by probes/robots
4.3.2.1) Nanotechnology could enable you to build very small probes.

5) Use of nanotubes to transport stuff from Earth to low-Earth orbit
5.1) A space elevator?
5.1.1) Exciting theoretical possibility, but even the theory isn't completely ironed out yet.

* Many parts of this presentation will reference concepts discussed during Ryne Rafaelle's two presentations way back in Week 2. My notes are on this blog, and I still have access to the powerpoints, so memory of that material shouldn't be an issue.