Chang’E Program Moving Forward, Water / Helium-3 Content Confirmed in Returned Samples, Agriculture on TSS
CNSA has state approval for phase 4 of Chang’E lunar program, consisting of CE-6 farside sample return (NET 2024), CE-7 MSP exploration with rover / hopper (NET 2024), and CE-8 ISRU study (NET 2027) after CE-5 1.731-kg lunar samples show ~170 ppm OH/H2O, per CAS Institute of Geochemistry infrared / ion mass spectroscopy analysis; Additional study by Beijing Research Institute of Uranium Geology discovers 10 μm crystal of new mineral Changesite–(Y) and reportedly determines concentration and outlines extraction of 3He; China students participating remotely in thale cress / rice study on Tiangong Space Station under “Growing Plants Together with Astronauts” program
NASA CAPSTONE targeting 13-22 June launch window; KARI Danuri set for 2 Aug, NASA Artemis 1 team working to achieve WDR 19 June then NET Aug launch; Vessels are bound for ~1,609×70,006km NRHO, elliptical 100km polar orbit, and 100×61,155km DRO respectively; NASA PRISM science proposals Lunar-VISE (investigation of Gruithuisen Domes), LEIA (study of yeast exposed to lunar environment) to receive CLPS task orders for launch circa 2026; NASA SSTR awarding US$150K to Air Company Holdings / NYU for development of RP-1 production process using only CO2 / H2; NASA Break the Ice Lunar Challenge phase 2 distributing $3M for water harvesting tech
12-g Moon samples collected during Apollo 11, 12, 17 utilized by 3 researchers at UF Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences demonstrate viability of lunar regolith as growing medium; Arabidopsis thaliana (thale cress) seeds germinated at “rates close to 100%” within 48-60 hours, similar to control group with volcanic ash substrate; Regolith-grown plants were affected by higher differentially expressed gene rate which study authors attribute to solar wind, cosmic radiation effects, abundance of iron oxides; Outcomes varied by sample location with Apollo 17 most robust
Proposals for excavation / conveyance of ice-containing regolith from Moon Permanently Shadowed Regions, supporting long-duration human activity receiving US$500k through NASA Centennial Challenge; Redwire Space (Jacksonville FL) receives first place / $125k for Lunar Regolith Excavator (L-Rex) and Lunar Transporter (L-Tran); Colorado School of Mines (Golden CO) second place / $75k for Lunar Ice Digging System (LIDS); Austere Engineering (Littleton CO) third place / $50k; PRIME-1 ice drill to be delivered on CLPS IM-2, Q4 2022; CNSA Chang’e-6 to retrieve MSP sample 2024
Researchers with Indian Institute of Remote Sensing and U.R. Rao Satellite Centre, divisions of ISRO, confirm presence of lunar water H2O) in