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Two separate studies of the Moon have identified ideal places for a lunar colony. In 2011, NASA's Gravity Recovery and Interior Laboratory, also known as GRAIL, consisting of two spacecraft, Ebb and Flow, mapped the gravitational field of the Moon in great detail. In 2007, the Japanese space agency, JAXA, used the spacecraft Kaguya, to map the Moon from orbit using a magnetometer, radar, and imaging instruments.
Fig. 1
The Ebb and Flow spacecraft from the
NASA project GRAIL
Fig. 2
Kayuga spacecraft from the Japanese
space agency JAXA
What they discovered was the presence of ancient lava tubes beneath the surface of the Moon. Thirty miles long; 340 feet wide; and, by some accounts, 3000 feet tall. There may be many such underground caverns on the moon.
Fig. 3 Artist's interpretation of the active
volcanism that create lava tubes and
pit craters or sinkholes.
volcanism that create lava tubes and
pit craters or sinkholes.
Fig. 4 Pit holes or sinkholes are collapsed roofs
of lava tubes. About two hundred have
been found on the Moon.
Fig. 5 String of pits
following a lava tube.
Besides being excellent candidates for collection sites of lunar ice, these would provide protection from the -298 to +224 degrees Fahrenheit swings of temperature found on the surface of the Moon. Protection from radiation is another important consideration. We take it for granted, but the Earth with its electromagnetic force field and atmosphere protects us from ionizing radiation coming from the depths of space. Cosmic rays are strong enough to rip apart atoms in human genetic material, making cancer and mutations much more likely. Radiation storms from solar flares can cause so much damage to unprotected human tissue that sickness or death are very likely. Radiation can also play havoc with electronics that are not properly protected: thus, the protracted angst concerning the possibility of a nuclear weapon in orbit that, if exploded there, could take out a continent-sized swath of Gameboys and iPhones. Civilization would be doomed.
Fig. 6 Illustration of the formation of a lava tube on the Moon.
It takes 4" of lead, 10" of steel, 24" of concrete, or 36" of packed dirt to properly shield humans from radiation. Now you get an inkling of how difficult the trip to Mars in a space ship is going to be. Can you imagine the fuel required to move a spaceship made of 10" steel plate? Of course, it will just be a small emergency room lined with special radiation absorbing plastic, but it is still extra weight. So, to find a radiation shelter ready-made on the Moon is amazingly wonderful news. The perfect hideaway for a lunar colony. But why? I mean why a colony on the Moon?
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Mankind is at a dangerous juncture. There is a real threat of the planet running low on critical resources. Climate change may be worse than we think. A super volcano could erupt. An asteroid could strike. A super-flu virus 3 times worse than the 1918 flu pandemic could decimate humankind. Therefore, we need a permanent, self-reliant human presence in space to carry on should any of these things take mankind back to neolithic levels of technology.
But impending doom is apparently not a good impetus for the human race to do anything. Even with all that stuff going on, a lunar colony is not going to happen if there is not money or its equivalent in the game. Good old greed is what we need to set the wheels in motion for a colony on the Moon. So, what is on the Moon that is worth us going back to it, sprucing up one of these lava tubes, and sitting around the metaphorical campfire in the cave feeling smug about finally being in space on a permanent basis?
Great way to carry your groceries; + trash, dirty clothes, food prep waste, garden clippings, etc.
As everyone knows, nuclear fusion will be a reality in 20 years. Ahahahahahaha! No, really. It could be. It's very close now. Helium-3 can make nuclear fusion much more efficient and eliminate nuclear waste and radiation. Several governments have plans to mine the Moon for helium-3 to facilitate nuclear fusion. Based on how much energy it would produce, it is worth about $3 billion dollars per metric ton. There is an estimated 1,100,000 metric tons trapped in lunar soil. That is $3,300,000,000,000,000. It would have to be cooked out of the regolith at 1100 degrees Fahrenheit, so the lava tube would make an excellent location for a helium-3 processing plant.
Fig. 7 Inside the Alcator C-mod tokamak
used in nuclear fusion research.
Other elements in relative abundance are oxygen, aluminum, calcium, titanium, silica, and iron. You might think these would not be for export (except, maybe, the titanium and the oxygen), and that they would mainly go toward helping build the lunar colony. They would, but think of the possibilities. Titanium, aluminum, and iron (used to make high-grade steel) in combination with 3D printers that print with even high-temperature metal will make the Moon the Home Depot of the Solar System. Spacecraft and space habitat parts will be designed on Earth. These files will be sent to the Moon where they will be printed out. From the Moon they will be lifted into orbit for much less than the same parts coming from Earth. Not only is there one sixth the gravity, the rocket taking it into orbit will be magnitudes cheaper because it can ignore streamlining and thermal insulation. A surface to orbit moon lifter would be an ungainly looking device, mostly metal frames encircling the cargo pod with rocket motors attached to that frame.
High temperature ceramic parts can also be made from material on the Moon. These are critical for some space applications. The lunar crust is about 40 percent oxygen so there will be no shortage of that for breathing or burning.
There might be a future for powdered aluminum as rocket fuel as well. This, in combination with the obvious oxygen, and the Moon becomes the Exxon Mobil of the Solar System.
Water! Six hundred million metric tons of water at the north pole of the Moon. Similar conditions (perpetual darkness) exist at the south pole, so there could be twice that much. Drinking, bathing, and hydroponics would be the main human uses. It would still be considered an extremely valuable resource and recycled over and over ad infinitum a la Dune. The other uses would be industrial; perhaps as a coolant for machining metal parts but certainly for splitting into oxygen and hydrogen for their usefulness in industrial and chemical processes. The hydrogen would be more important since there is plenty of oxygen in the lunar regolith.
One lava tube has a sinkhole that is almost perfectly circular. Imagine that portion of the lava tube used for a colony or Moon base. Silica is converted to glass to completely cover this sinkhole with a glass dome or ceiling. The whole thing is converted to a giant greenhouse/ hydroponics garden. Food could then be grown on a scale making export feasible. The water would also be sold to spacecraft making the Mars/Earth trip cycle and to space habitats near the Lagrange points of the Moon. Exporting all that food and water would make the Moon the Safeway of the Solar System.
Fig. 8 Lunar garden dome; the tourist section
next to the Lunar Hilton.
Power! People are not going to complain about that solar panel farm in their back yard on the Moon. There is a lot of space to soak up the Sun's rays and they aren't weakened by atmosphere. Photovoltaic panels will absorb about 20 percent more energy because of this. Silicon, the main ingredient in most solar panels, is the second most prevalent element in the Moon's crust, oxygen being the first. The panels can be made right there on the Moon. Now you can make virtually as much power as you need to do anything you want and have enough left over to sell by microwaving it to spacecraft, satellites, and space habitats that may need it. This makes the Moon, you guessed it, the Consolidated Edison of the Solar System.
Fig. 9 This would be a small solar panel installation on the Moon.
We've only been talking about physical stuff. There are other sources of treasure on the Moon. Tourism is one. A lot of wealthy people would be willing to plunk down good money to come to the Moon and stay at the Lunar Hilton. Besides going to the greenhouse dome, strapping on wings and flying (break a plant, you buy it), they could take trips to see where man first set foot on the Moon. Don't forget to buy that little souvenir cube of lunar rock before you go home. Doomsday preppers might consider it the ultimate survival bunker. People that find it hard to move around would go there for the burden lifted from their bodies. Military high ground is another. That aspect is worth a lot to governments. No major nation is going to let another nation claim the Moon for themselves for this reason. That is why there is likely to be international cooperation just so everyone can keep an eye on everyone else. Science is another. What a great place for giant telescopes. The low gravity and vacuum will be a natural laboratory for many experiments.
Fig. 10 The Lunar Hilton
These are the reasons we will live on the Moon. These are the reasons we should be tripping over ourselves getting back to the Moon. Men with vision and resources like Elon Musk, Sir Charles Branson, and Jeff Bezos should lead the charge in an obvious next step in our conquest of space and guaranteeing the continuity of the human race. Governments should realize the validity of these ideas, these realities, and make it easier by participating in the finance and technology of such an endeavor. To the Moon!
Fig. 11 The Moon.
May you be inspired.
Glen Hendrix
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