Analyzing Critical Criteria of Spaceport Site Selection Based on Spherical Fuzzy AHP Method

Abstract

Spaceport site selection is an essential phase of the spacecraft program since it consists of many essential work steps and requirements for the success of the constructed system. Most of the criteria are related to the system’s total cost, but some technical requirements and social conditions are also taken into account for aggregated performance. Based on that, in this study, we present a comprehensive decision-making structure for evaluating the spaceport, considering both international applications the Turkey’s individual ecosystem. Through that, a decision-making method, the spherical fuzzy AHP method, is applied to determine the importance of the weights. Spherical fuzzy sets are an extension of intuitionistic fuzzy sets that offer to involve the evaluations’ impreciseness and the hesitancy of the experts in the mathematical formulation of the problem to better reflect the input data to the outcomes. As a result of the application, we found that technical requirements, cost and economy, and infrastructure are the most important main criteria for the success of the spaceports based on the desired objectives. Related to the main criteria, technical factors, population density, operational cost, and transportation cost are determined as the most important sub-criteria. When considering the constructed decision-making structure, the results are mostly related to the investments and other cost-based parameters, which are in line with Turkey’s condition as a developing country.