Olivier de Weck

Recent growth in space activities has led to increased interest in space mobility services in the form of refueling and repositioning. Despite this interest, limited analysis has been conducted to quantify the value and impact of these services. Currently, the consideration and selection of space servicing options rely heavily on qualitative heuristics and subject-matter-expert judgment. To address this lack of quantitatively supported decision-making, this paper provides a comparative analysis of Earth-imaging satellite designs across various lifetime scenarios of use. Using a combination of epoch-era analysis, multi-attribute tradespace exploration, and technology data provided from a quantified state of technology progression analysis, the value of including or omitting compatibility with services in the form of on-orbit refueling and repositioning (OORR) for Earth-imaging satellite owner-operators is determined. Results from this analysis show that refueling and repositioning services can offer unique and tailorable advantages to stakeholders if used in the right circumstances. The demands and relationships of client satellite parameters, the environment in which the system is used, and the stakeholders who dictate the necessary performance of a system were found to directly influence the benefit or detriment of designing for compatibility with and using OORR during a system’s lifetime.

Future Mars satellites and landers could benefit from improved position, navigation, and timing (PNT) support. Enhanced PNT capability could be provided by constellation-based systems similar to the Global Positioning System (GPS) at Earth. However, deploying such systems at other destinations is challenging, as satellites must be delivered to multiple orbit planes of differing orientations, many of which are not readily accessible from a common approach trajectory. Given this constraint, this work examines the design and deployment of a Mars global navigation satellite system using aerocapture with plane rotation to insert satellites into the desired orbits. The results show that constellations providing GPS-like coverage standards can be deployed using aerocapture from a single approach vector, with improved performance requiring greater total launch mass. For a [ ] hyperbolic arrival velocity, a five-plane, four-satellite-per-plane, 60-deg Walker–Delta constellation at 10,000 km altitude can be deployed using a combination of biconic, ellipsled, and sphere-cone entry vehicles. If constituent satellite masses are kept low, the complete constellation could be delivered using a single Falcon Heavy launch. Beyond demonstrating its applicability to Mars PNT deployment, this investigation underscores the broader potential of aerocapture with plane rotation to enable a wide range of future space exploration missions.

Structural Complexity is perceived as driving cost in system development, yet managing it effectively requires empirical understanding. This study investigates human decision‐making using a toy transportation‐style network design task, focusing on how Structural Complexity, Effort, and Performance interact. Seventy‐four participants (primarily systems engineers) worked in small groups to design simple transportation‐style networks, drawing 188 designs across 20 node sets (each representing a distinct spatial configuration). This was a trial of a new type of experimental setup aiming to empirically test hypotheses in Systems Engineering, and though it is broadly promising, the design needs significant iteration for better controls. Such iteration could greatly help SE theory. Four hypotheses grounded in the proposed “Conservation of Complexity law” were explored, with early results showing that additional Effort was generally associated with modest improvements in Performance; Performance rises with Structural Complexity, but sees diminishing returns; additional Effort did not reliably reduce Structural Complexity at fixed Performance; and the Effort–Complexity relationship followed a sub‐linear trend. In parallel, we outline a practical, repeatable quantification method for structural complexity to support a more robust and comparable measurement in human‐in‐the‐loop experiments. Future experimental designs with standardized constraints, behavioral controls, and normalized performance metrics will be necessary to generalize these insights.

This descriptive study examines participant reactions to a new framework categorizing aging-in-place (AIP) services with AI and robotics through a think-aloud method. Using grounded theory, we examined older adults’ perceptions of AI’s role in promoting independence. The framework consists of four AI archetypes that address the cognitive and functional needs of the elderly with physical or digital interventions: Advisor AI, Burler Robot AI, Valet Robot AI, and Conductor AI. The authors conducted virtual interviews with four Boston-based retirees (mean age 70), revealing expectations and concerns regarding health monitoring, routine assistance, and social well-being. The findings emphasize inclusivity, adaptability, and practical relevance for aging populations and underscore the importance of trust, lifestyle integration, and adaptability in fostering meaningful AIP applications.

Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from livestock farms have steadily increased over the past two decades, yet waste-to-energy systems that can partly capture and reduce these emissions remain underutilized, particularly among small and medium farms. This study presents a novel optimization-based framework to evaluate regional biogas network designs that aggregate livestock manure for energy production. A non-linear bi-objective optimization model is developed, using validated field data from Southern Brazil, to maximize economic (profit) and environmental (GHG savings) objectives. The model identifies optimal infrastructure configurations and energy product pathways (biomethane vs. electricity) across multiple regions. Results demonstrate that biomethane production, under current market conditions in Brazil, is significantly more profitable and environmentally advantageous than electricity generation. Biomethane systems benefit from decentralized, municipality-level infrastructure, achieving profitability with minimal manure transport. In contrast, electricity production requires centralized facilities and regional coordination, resulting in higher transportation costs and emissions. Sensitivity analysis reveals that the relative pricing of electricity and biomethane is a critical determinant of the preferred system architecture. The most significant contribution of this research lies in the simultaneous optimization of technical design and spatial cooperation strategies for waste-to-energy systems—an area underexplored in prior work. The findings underscore the feasibility of economically and environmentally sustainable manure management systems in rural areas, offering a transferable framework to support strategic planning and policy development in other regions.