Definition and Development of Habitation Readiness Level (HRLs) for Planetary Surface Habitats

The concept of the Technology Readiness Level is widely used in government agencies to compare the relative implementability of various design concepts and physical hardware. Recognizing the need for a similar metric for use with habitation systems, NASA has initiated an effort to develop a Habitation Readiness Level for use in comparing various proposed habitation systems for a lunar outpost, and eventually for Mars expeditions. With many concepts for planetary habitats proposed over the past 20 years, there are many strategic technical challenges facing designers of planetary habitats that will support NASA's exploration of the Moon and Mars. The systematic assessment of a variety of planetary habitat options will offer an important approach and will influence guideline requirements for human design, volumetrics, functionality, systems hardware and operations.