Single-Page Summary
The Reference Card
The entire HSS framework on one page. 12 systems. 6 hard limits. 1 question. Print it. Pin it. Live by it.
REFERENCE CARD // CLASSIFICATION: PUBLIC
HUMAN SPACE SUPPORT
The Colony Viability Framework · v1.0
12 SYSTEMS · 6 HARD LIMITS · 1 QUESTION
DOC ID
HSS-RC-001
// THE 12 SYSTEMS
OPERATIONAL DOMAINS · ALL TRACKED
SYS_01
THE FOOD CEILING
Calories vs storage volume.
2,400 cal/person/day baseline
SYS_02
THE AIR CONSTRAINT
Cannot be rationed.
1.83 lb O₂/person/day
SYS_03
THE WATER EQUATION
Recycling is the architecture.
1 gal/person/day baseline
SYS_04
HUMAN FRACTURE POINT
Faction onset by Day 90.
Modeled stress threshold 0.66
SYS_05
BODY UNDER PRESSURE
Continuous physical decline.
1–2% bone loss/month
SYS_06
AWAKENING PROTOCOL
Arrival vulnerability window.
30 days post-landing
SYS_07
ANTI-DECAY SYSTEM
Health is infrastructure.
3–4 hours/day maintenance
SYS_08
THE 150 HUMAN TEST
What normal humans actually consume.
Untested at scale
SYS_09
CONTINUITY OF LIFE
Multi-generational viability.
Pregnancy contraindicated
SYS_10
THE DECISION LAYER
Decisions degrade under pressure.
Untrained for delay
SYS_11
THE SKILL MAP
Single-point-of-human-failure.
Critical at crew < 50
SYS_12
THE CASCADE EFFECT
Small errors compound fast.
3% drift = M4 critical
// HARD LIMITS
PROVEN · PROJECTED · THEORETICAL
PROVEN
ORION
4 crew · 21 days
1,100 lb
PROJECTED
STARSHIP
100 crew · 180 days
116 tons
THEORETICAL
COLONY
150 crew · 365 days
800+ tons
// FAILURE MODES
SIX WAYS A MISSION ENDS
FORMULA
first_failure = MIN(threshold_day[system])
// FEASIBILITY SCALE
VIABILITY INDEX 0–100
Score = weighted output of all 12 systems
// THE QUESTION
Can humans remain in space — not as visitors, but as residents?
humanspacesupport.org
v1.0 · 2026
Usage
How to use this card
01 · Print
Print at A3 or A2 for wall display. Use the print button above — it strips all page chrome and outputs only the poster.
02 · Pin
Designed to be readable at a 24-inch viewing distance. Pin it where mission decisions are made — lab, classroom, ops room.
03 · Reference
Use it as a checklist. Every mission concept, every habitat design, every crew plan should answer all 12 systems.
// PRINT SPECIFICATIONS
Page Size
A3 Landscape
Recommended
A2 Wall
Read Distance
24 inches
Color Mode
B/W safe