The Role of Logistics Centres in Space Logistics Systems

Journal article, 2022

The development and advancement of human civilization have led it to its next great step – the exploration and colonization of outer space. Humans have had a continuous presence in outer space for more than twenty years, but until now, this was on the level of individual, isolated space missions. Reaching the cosmic level of civilization requires the planning and development of sustainable, long-lasting systems of space logistics. Previous scientific literature did not define the space logistics system adequately, nor did it identify the key elements and stakeholders/participants of such systems. The contribution of this article is in providing an encompassing definition of space logistics, the definition of space logistics system structure, and the role of different categories of logistics centres in its planning and development. The article provides a brief literature review in the domain of all types of human activities that take place in outer space and relates them with the realization of logistics processes to support those activities. Based on that, the main processes and functions that would take place in space logistics systems are defined, which dictate the emergence of diverse, specialized categories of space logistics centres. The identification and planning of appropriate space logistics cetres categories impacts the development directions and patterns of sustainable space logistics systems and enables the spatial integration of systems that cover enormous geographical dimensions and distances.