Commercial Space Archive

The Commercial Space Archive gives the Space Studies Institute a public-facing retrieval system for early commercial space newsletters, reports, and historical records.

The experience turns a dense historical collection into something researchers, advocates, and space-curious visitors can browse with confidence. It pairs practical retrieval tools with a restrained technical bulletin aesthetic inspired by the era of the material itself.

Audience

Primary Commercial space researchers, historians, advocates, and SSI members

Secondary Space-curious visitors discovering the early commercial space movement

My Role

UX/UI Designer. I shaped the information architecture, visual system, archive card model, search and filter experience, and responsive implementation

Timeline

November 2026

Tools Used

WordPress, HTML/CSS, JavaScript, document metadata, responsive design, archive content strategy, and AI-assisted visual exploration

Challenge

The Problem

The archive needed to make a historically important document set feel approachable without flattening its technical character. The opportunity was to preserve the intelligence of the collection while making the path into it much clearer.

Give 140 reports across 14 years a browsable structure that rewards both quick scanning and deeper research
Let the site behave like a focused document utility with enough editorial context to explain why the archive matters
Support search, sorting, summaries, side filters, and direct PDF access without losing collection context
Preserve the original archival character while improving scale, contrast, and interaction comfort

Objectives

Project Goals

Create a clear editorial entry point that helps visitors understand the archive before they begin browsing
Build a searchable retrieval view with side filters, collection stats, sort controls, and document hierarchy
Design repeatable document cards for issue number, publication, date, topics, page count, file size, and PDF access
Use a warm aerospace palette and geometric/monospace typography while keeping the interface readable and fast to scan

Interactive prototype

Archive Flow

Approach

Design Process

01 Access Model
- Defined the archive around core research behaviors: search, browse, sort, scan, and open reports
- Kept the entry experience focused on historical context and access instead of decorative presentation
02 Visual System
- Explored a NASA memo direction, then refined it into a cleaner technical bulletin style
- Built around warm paper tones, structured accent bars, quiet status cues, geometric headings, and monospaced metadata
03 Document Cards
- Designed side filters, search states, sortable controls, collection stats, and a repeatable document card system
- Used index numbers, metadata bars, topic summaries, status labels, and clear PDF actions to improve scanning
04 Responsive Refinement
- Raised font sizes, strengthened contrast, increased checkbox and button hit areas, and tuned card backgrounds for readability
- Built the experience in WordPress with responsive behavior for long-form context, dense record cards, and embedded PDF viewing

Results

Outcome & Vision

Access A dense historical collection becomes browsable, searchable, and easier to enter.

Context Reports keep their archival character while gaining summaries, metadata, and clearer paths through the material.

Continuity Early commercial space thinking is framed as a living record with a clearer path for future readers.

The result is a public archive that treats access as part of preservation: helping visitors understand the commercial space movement before they download a single report.