Category Archives: Lunar Volatiles

Friday / 22 January 2016

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Rocket Reusability Significant For Cislunar Space Development

Moon Rocket, Mining

Paul Spudis Article In Air & Space Notes Advancement Of Reusable Craft Capable Of Soft Landing, As Demonstrated By SpaceX & Blue Origin, Directly Relevant For Permanent Return To Moon & Supporting Missions To Mars / Solar System; Would Require Automated Landers & Reusable Propulsion Systems Utilizing Propellants Manufactured On Moon (Cryogenic Liquid O2, H, Methane); Inevitable Frequent Moon Missions & Cheaper Access To Space Bolsters Need To Define Lunar Property Rights

Credit: P. Spudis, NASA, EADS Astrium

Wednesday / 9 December 2015

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GLXP Confirms Moon Express, Rocket Lab 2017 Launch Contract; Possible ‘Test Flight’ In 2015

1292015Two 2017 Launches Scheduled For Moon Express (ME) Aboard The Electron Small Launch Vehicle (Still Under Development) By Rocket Lab; GLXP Senior Director Chanda Gonzalez Announced “We Are Extremely Proud To Officially Confirm Receipt And Verification Of Moon Express’ Launch Contract”; Rocket Lab Readying New Zealand Launch Complex After Which Test Flight Of Electron Vehicle Will Occur (Originally Planned For Dec 2015); ME CEO Bob Richards States “We Are Thrilled To Have Our Contract In Place With Rocket Lab” ME Chairman Naveen Jain Adds “Moon Express Is Building Disruptive Technologies…Like 3D Printing And Inexpensive Sensors To Collapse The Capital Needed To Access The Moon”

Pictured: Moon Express Inc Founders: Naveen Jain, Co-founder & Chairman, Bob Richards, Co-founder & CEO, Barney Pell, Co-founder & Vice Chairman

Credit: Moon Express, XPrize Foundation

Friday / 4 December 2015

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SSERVI-Hosted Lunar Workshop Discusses Permanently Shadowed Regions Regolith, Effects On Rovers & Volatiles

Lunar Volatiles

Six-Hour Virtual Workshop Held Yesterday, Featuring Dr. David Kring (R) PI At Center For Lunar Science & Exploration And Brad Bailey (L) Staff Scientist SSERVI, Sought To Collect Data On Potential Trafficability Issues Rovers Can Face In PSRs; Proposed Resource Prospector With RESOLVE Payload Would Map Polar Surface & Subsurface Hydrogen, Extract O2 From Regolith & Process With Hydrogen To Make H2O For Life Support Or Propellant – Could Launch 2018 & Involve Canada Or Japan Collaboration; Lunar Flashlight CubeSat To Locate Volatiles May Launch Dec 2017 On SLS EM-1

Credit: NASA, SSERVI, LPI, Center for Lunar Science & Exploration, GSFC, SVS

Wednesday / 2 December 2015

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Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) Delivering Four Billion Measurements And Counting

1222015In Year 7, LRO Continues To Provide Information Useful For Decades Of Future Human Exploration; LRO Deputy PI Benjamin Greenhagen Comments “We Honor The Moon As A Global Scientific Legacy”; Data Reveals 5 Key Lessons According To B. Dorminey (Forbes Article): Recent Volcanic Activity Confirmed By Interior Temperature & Cooling Implies Moon Is Likely Still Tectonically Active; Lunar Surface Shows Extreme Temperature Variations Of –247 °C In Permanently Shadowed Regions To +123 °C In Areas Exposed To Up To 243 Consecutive Days Of Sunlight; Moon May Hold Water / Other Volatiles Useful For Life-Support As Well As Other Resource Utilization Potentials; Moon South Pole Aitken Basin Offers Potential Samples Of Lunar Rock Originating From Interior Mantle; LRO Radiation Measurements Could Help Minimize Future Human Moon & Deep Space Exploration Hazards

Credit: NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, LRO, LPI

Tuesday / 24 November 2015

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Lunar & Planetary Exploration Advance With Mining Potential Under U.S. Commercial Space Launch Competitiveness Act (CSLCA)

11242015H.R. 2262 Bill To Allow American Enterprises To Own / Sell Materials Mined From Other Celestial Bodies May Spur New Off-Planet Economy; House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R) States “This Bill Will Unite Law With Innovation Allowing The Next Generation Of Pioneers To Experiment”; Honeybee Robotics Beginning Field Testing Of Drill For Hard Surfaces On Mars / Other Planetary Bodies & Has Several Lunar Technologies Addressing Lunar ISRU With Robotic Percussive Digger & Pneumatic Miner; Shackleton Energy Co. Working On Solutions To Mine Lunar Ice For Conversion Into Rocket Fuel; Moon Express CEO Bob Richards (L) Also Praises CSLCA Stating “Our Goal Is To Unlock The Resources Of The Moon For The Benefit Of Humanity”

Credit: Honeybee Robotics, Shackleton Energy Company, Moon Express, Congress.gov

Tuesday / 17 November 2015

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Virtual Workshop To Identify Preeminent Scientific Instruments For Lunar Polar Volatile Deposits

11172015The International Space Exploration Coordination Group (ISECG) Holding First Virtual Workshop 18 Nov As Part 1 Of Related On-Going Series; Goal Of Workshop “Establish An Internationally-Coordinated Effort To Address Scientific Knowledge Gaps And Exploration Capability Gaps Related To Lunar Water Ice And Other Polar Volatiles”; Discussion To Be Moderated By Dr. James Carpenter (ESA) With Panelists Including Dr. Mahesh Anand (Open University), Dr. Ko Hashizume (Osaka University), Dr. Paul Hayne (Jet Propulsion Laboratory), Dr. Paul Lucey (University of Hawaii), Dr. Igor Mitrofanov (Space Research Institute Of The Russian Academy Of Sciences) & Dr. Paul Spudis Of Lunar And Planetary Institute; Follow-Up Workshops To Be Held 16 Dec & 20 Jan

Credit: ISECG, ESA, LPI, University of Hawaii, NASA JPL

Thursday / 22 October 2015

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Russia-Europe To Collaborate On Human Lunar Settlement At Late 2016 Meetings

10222015Moscow Space Research Institute Prof Igor Mitrofanov (TL) Asserts “We Have To Go To The Moon” Due To Commercial, Astronomical Observation & Utilization Of Lunar Resource Benefits; Meeting Of Ministers To Decide Europe Participation Late 2016; Russia Vostochny Cosmodrome For Lunar, Planetary, Human Missions Described As “Biggest & Most Ambitious Projects” By Pres Putin (TR); ESA Lunar Exploration Head, Bérengère Houdou (BL) States “Ambition To Have European Astronauts On The Moon” & Lead Scientist Dr. James Carpenter (BR) Notes Moon South Pole Unique Characteristics Includes Possible Water Ice For “Use As Rocket Fuel; Luna-25 Luna-Glob Lander Expected 2018 & Luna-Resurs 1 Lander Expected 2020

Credit: ESA, EPA/ Alexei Nikolsky, University of Bristol, IKI

Friday / 9 October 2015

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LunarCubes: Secondary Payloads Aiming To Produce First-Class Science

LunarCubes

5th LunarCubes Workshop Hosted By Flexure Engineering 6-9 Oct Highlights Affordable, Innovative Options For Moon / Interplanetary Missions To Search For Volatiles, Map Surface, Support Human Exploration; Along With 8 Design Challenges, Various Talks Are Given On Missions Under Development By Private & Public Sectors: LunaH-Map (Craig Hardgrove, ASU), HALO (Michael Collier, NASA), Lunar Flashlight (John Baker, JPL), ILO-X & ILO-1 (Steve Durst, ILOA), FireFly (Dan Faber, DSI); Hack The Moon Event & Lunar Art / Flash Art Competition Being Held 9-11 Oct

Credit: Flexure Engineering, ASU, NASA, GSFC, JPL, Caltech

Wednesday / 30 September 2015

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Helium-3 Has Tenuous Potential As Lunar Energy Resource

9302015Engineering Capabilities Of Unproven Helium-3 Fusion Reactor Technology May Be Decades Out; Apollo Astronaut Harrison Schmitt (T) Advocates For Lunar Mining Of Helium-3 (He-3); China, Russia, Europe, USA, India Also Showing He-3 Interest; Other Energy Solutions Including Lunar Water-Ice Extraction Proposed By Shackleton Energy Company (SEC); Strategic SEC Partnership With Penguin Automated Systems, Dr. Greg Baiden (B) Declares “There’s Also The Potential For Solar Power Stations”

Credit: NASA, Arizona Geological Society, SEC, ESA, Greg Baiden

Weekend Edition
Fri-Mon / 28-31 August 2015

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LRO Furthering Technological Advancements For Volatiles Search

8292015LRO Detailed Mapping With Laser Altimetry & Moon South / North Pole Region Assessment Inspires Researchers Including Andreas Velten From University Of Wisconsin-Madison Laboratory For Optical & Computational Instrumentation (LOCI); Velten Developing Technology With Ability To “See Around Corners” On Lunar Surface / In Lunar Caves With Laser Light Pulses To Allow For Water / Other Volatile Discoveries Without Excavation; LRO Will Continue Search For New Impacts & Characterize Radiation Environment, Data Release 23 Expected In September

 

Credit: NASA, University of Wisconsin