Gateway’s Habitation and Logistics Outpost (HALO) Environmental Control and Life Support System (ECLSS) Concept of Operations Overview

This Concept of Operations (ConOps) overview paper will detail Gateway’s Habitation and Logistics Outpost (HALO) mission timeline, the first and core component of Gateway. Gateway is a pivotal element of NASA’s Artemis program which aims to establish a sustainable human presence in lunar orbit, support boots-on-the-moon lunar operations, and facilitate further research and expansion for crewed missions to Mars and beyond. This overview will outline HALO’s mission objectives and will address each phase of flight from launch to deorbit, focusing on HALO’s advanced life support system, integration of autonomous systems for maintenance and operation, and impact for a sustained human presence on the moon. It will also detail how the ConOps impacted the design and overall mission architecture, as well as implications for other HALO interfacing vehicles. Ultimately, this paper aims to provide a clear understanding of the operational framework of HALO’s mission as well as highlighting how HALO serves as critical infrastructure for lunar exploration and beyond.