Colonization of the outer Solar System Colonization of the outer Solar System Many parts of the outer Solar System have been considered for possible future colonization. Most of the larger moons of the outer planets contain water ice, liquid water, and organic compounds that might be useful for sustaining human life. Colonies in the outer Solar System could also serve as centers for long-term investigation of the planet and the other moons. In particular, robotic devices could be controlled by humans without the very long time delays incurred in communicating with Earth. There have also been proposals to place robotic aerostats in the upper atmospheres of
Silicor Materials bricks, cut those bricks into wafers using wire saws and convert the wafers into solar cells. These cells are then assembled into conventional aluminum-framed, glass-encapsulated solar modules (also known as solar panels) for use in distributed and centralized solar applications. In contrast to the Siemens Process, which requires a total of four phase changes—solid to liquid, liquid to gas, gas to liquid, liquid to solid—Silicor's silicon only goes through two phase changes- solid to liquid and liquid to solid. This change reduces the manufacturing energy requirements to an estimated total usage of 10 to 25 kWh/kg. Silicor's method does not