A Layered Architecture for Mitigation of Dust for Manned and Robotic Space Exploration

Multiple methods, technologies and protocols have been proposed to address the many disparate aspects of dust mitigation. Effective integration of this emerging patchwork of solutions will require consistent metrics across disciplines. We posit a multi-layered mitigation architecture with attainable criteria for each layer. With astronaut(s) at the `center' of the protection layers, environmental standards would set the criteria for the innermost level. Construction of the architecture will establish specific definitions, specifications, standards, implementation contexts and exceptions. Key to the success of the methodology proposed are successive layers of application, providing a robust redundancy. The baseline environmental definitions deliberately set the design points to reasonable and adequate standards. Provisional working standards are set as placeholders. The architecture will serve to align the many mitigation opportunities into a manageable set of engineering guidelines.