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How could astronauts build a human settlement on the moon if traditional building materials were heavier than a space missile?
In 1975, three years after the last flight of an Apollo spacecraft, a British television channel aired for the first time a series entitled "Space: 1999", which had begun with a nuclear explosion tearing the moon. And the result of leaving an international human settlement on the surface of the Earth, carrying more than 300 people, for an unknown journey ending in space.
This episode has a clear impact on Canadian businessman Elon Mesk, founder of SpaceX, during his childhood because when he unveiled in August 2017 his plan to establish a human settlement on the moon, called "My Bees Alpha". What is the same name worn by the lunar colony that appeared in the series "Space: 1999".
- The water ice on the moon suggests a possibility of extraterrestrial life
- The race to space as never seen before
At the time, Mesk Zaydira had published the series as "very mediocre artistically" but added, "But I love him."
But the return of humans to the moon is not just a desire of Space X, shared by the Chinese Space Agency, which has announced the next steps of its successful mission to explore the moon, who quickly became "Zhang Ah 4". "Soft Landing" on the surface of the dark side and farther from the moon.
Chang'Ah 5 and Chang'E-6 have to collect samples and bring them back to Earth, while Chang'-7 will study the Antarctic region of the Moon, an area particularly important for the potential of the settlements humans. For this earthly space object, because it contains watery ice.
"We hope that Chang & # 39; e-8 will help test some techniques and perform some explorations to build a common base on the Moon shared by several countries," said Yan Khua, vice president of the Space Agency Chinese, the National Space Administration of China. .
China is not the only one to want this ambition either. Around the world, 50 years after landing on the Moon, the practical characteristics of the idea of establishing a human base are shaped. The paradox is that, although the United States is the only country whose citizens have landed on the moon, Americans must now be left behind.
By August 2018, they had not yet announced their intention to establish a permanent base on the moon. Until then, Mars was a top priority for NASA, and the European Space Agency (ESA) had taken the lead.
Village of Qumeriah
In 2016, the agency announced its intention to establish a permanent base on the moon, based on a vision adopted by its new managing director, Johan Dietrich Forner, on the creation of a "village of Qumeriah "with a diverse population of bands and disciplines ranging from scientists to artists and representatives of public and private institutions.
The project could aim to achieve such goals as conducting astronomical research, attracting tourists or exploring minerals that are not readily available on Earth.
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A permanent human settlement on the moon should probably be built beneath its surface to protect it from harmful cosmic rays.
Ariel Eckelow, founder of the US-based MTV Media Exploration Initiative, is seeking to "democratize space." To this end, it brings together multidisciplinary research groups, including robotics specialists and synthetic or alternative neuroscientists, for researchers and specialists in the fields of engineering, design, art and technology. of space.
Although this method of thinking is not common to all, I met the European Space Agency's scientific advisor, Eiden Cowley, one of the first researchers to have worked on the techniques of 39, exploration of the moon among astronauts of the agency in Cologne, Germany.
"At first everyone looked at me as if I were a second head, so it's very gratifying for me to see this little center of interest and growing interest in the moon," he said. he recalls, laughing.
Unlike NASA, which advocates a policy of refusal to cooperate with China in the field of space travel, ESA cooperates with its Chinese counterpart in this regard. This year, European leaders of their Chinese compatriots participated in some exercises, says Cowley.
NASA plans to send astronauts to the moon by 2030 and launch a space station in orbit around the moon called Getty.
Private companies are not lagging in the race for the moon, as Blue Origin, which collaborates with two other companies to carry out its project Blue Moon, which aims to send a freighter cargo on the moon.
But no matter who has access to the Moon first, his main priority will be to keep his members alive. The longest period during which humans lived on the moon did not exceed three days. If you are looking for a longer stay, let me tell you that this place will not be the most welcome destination.
Our destination to the moon
The temperature of the moon ranges from minus 127 degrees Celsius to 173 degrees below zero (from 196 degrees Fahrenheit to minus 343 degrees Fahrenheit). In addition, there is radiation on its surface and less gravity, about a sixth of its equivalent on Earth.
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The duration of the lunar day lasts about 29 days, which means we will spend two weeks in the light of day, followed by two dark weeks.
The lunar day extends over about 29 Earth days, which means that one will spend two weeks immersed in the light of day, followed by two dark weeks, which poses problem with regard to the production of energy. solar. Therefore, any technique related to the new moon and any life planning must be operational in such circumstances.
More recently, Blue Horizon, SpaceX, the European Space Agency and other organizations have created a non-profit organization called The Moon Race. In this context, competitions are organized between these international organizations to encourage them to develop technologies in the fields of manufacturing and resources (filling a bottle of liquefied water, for example), energy production and neighborhood preservation (construction of the first glass or moon-based greenhouse).
The project will be officially launched in October 2019 at the annual International Astronomical Congress.
"We will publish rules and guidelines over the next month," says Pierre Alexis-Guimel, co-founder of The Moon Rice, "because The Moon Rice's ambition is to help the team in get the best idea possible on the Moon ".
The prototypes of the techniques to be tested under the current conditions will be transported aboard a spaceship. According to Alexis-Gumel, the targeted flight in this context will likely belong to a space agency scheduled for 2024 or 2025.
Construction of a house
Although the concept that originally prevailed when the idea of lunar bases was considered very broad, these rules would in fact be fundamental and composed of more fundamental components than those imagined, and even gray. Given the fact that traveling on the moon is very expensive, carrying heavier loads means more fuel and more cost. It makes sense to seek a settlement based on resources available on the Moon itself.
The so-called "lava pipes", tunnels formed during the volcanic past of the moon, can be used as sanctuaries for those who borrow them to reach the frozen ice under the moon. But the plan, which will be implemented first and urgently, will consist of building a place of residence using a lunar soil, a sand of gray basalt and soft, similar to the volcanic sand on the surface of the earth.
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If going to the moon is already a difficult task, what about a shelter on its surface?
Matthias Chebrel, a professor at the University of Cologne, in collaboration with the German Space Agency, uses volcanic ash to form blocks of bricks to simulate soft basalt sand on the surface of the moon. This "dirt" interacts with one another through a process using concentrated sunlight or lasers. The man used three-dimensional printers to form molds of different shapes of bricks, in order to determine which one would be the most practical and most useful in practice for the construction of the base.
These moldings "build a building similar to the dome-shaped Eskimo hut, which gives it the strength to withstand the additional pressures exposed from above". This pressure will come from a layer of about one meter of soft basalt sand, which will be loosely deposited to provide natural protection against radiation. This sand will stay in place because there is no wind on the moon that can be scattered.
"You will need to bring large objectives of one square meter or more, in order to collect the sun's rays, so that the soft lunar dust can be transformed into a solid material, or printed in various forms for the purpose 3D printers, "he explains. After that, you will need an astronaut or possibly a robot to assemble these parts in order to build a human settlement.
But the construction of only one of these buildings will be slow. According to Chebrel, making a single brick mold takes about five hours. If you know that "you will need 10,000 blocks to build one of these dome shacks, you will realize that the completion of the construction will take several months".
The process can be shortened if more lenses are used, and the settlement is built by robots rather than by astronauts.
"Today's technology gives you only one-fifth of that strength, which equals the hardness of gypsum, so you need to invest more to maximize strength and resistance," he said.
The next step is to assess progress in this area. Fortunately, construction will begin later this year in a large satellite site of the European Space Agency (ESA), which can help prepare the use of technologies for the construction of a human habitat on the moon, as well as to prepare the actual experience.
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NASA recently confirmed last August that lunar bases would be installed in its north and south poles because of the presence of pack ice in these areas.
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The landing of the "Chang & # 4" Chinese on the moon marks a new era in the exploration of this orb
It is no coincidence that the Yoy Tu vehicle, which is part of the Chinese spacecraft's Zhang Ah 4 mission, is currently collecting information in the Antarctic Basin region. It is possible to find ice water on the surface of permanent shaded areas, be it in volcanic crater areas or under the moon's ground.
On the other hand, oxygen can be extracted between the lunar folds, to breathe. The most likely source of this phenomenon is the alminate metal, which produces water vapor when it is combined with hydrogen at a temperature of about 1000 ° C (1832). ° F). This vapor must then be separated from its components in order to produce hydrogen and oxygen.
At first, however, astronauts will have to bring food and water. The mission of "Zhang Ah 4" sparked enthusiasm after cultivating and growing a seed. But producing what we can call sustainable food in the space is not the new idea. It all began in 1982 when Russian astronauts installed a plant called Rashad the Mouse Ear aboard the Celio 7 orbital space station.
In 2010, the University of Arizona developed a "greenhouse" or "greenhouse" pilot model. It is a system for agriculture in water or soilless, using a five and a half meter diaphragm covered length and equipped with cooled sodium vapor lamps. water, as well as "envelopes" to preserve the seeds. The system uses carbon dioxide from astronaut breathing and urine to provide water for cereals. Sunlight is provided via fiber optic cables.
Energy
The use of new energy production techniques will be essential to life on the moon. While ground hydrogen fuel cells require a chemical reaction between hydrogen and oxygen (often coming from the air) to generate electricity, with water as a by-product, all these components are present on the moon, but without air or atmosphere.
Cowley talks about the new techniques he has developed in this area by saying that we can analyze the water we have on the Moon and its components, and then bundle them overnight to generate electricity. "During the day, we get a lot of solar energy, maybe more than necessary to analyze the water and its components and to get hydrogen and oxygen. C & # 39, is a unique tool that we can use on the moon, "he says. Survival possibilities for teams involved in long-term space missions. "
In addition, it is possible to store thermal energy using a process similar to that on which heat pumps operate, namely devices for transferring thermal energy from hot springs to reservoirs. thermal. The lack of wind on the moon keeps the heat of the sun in the lunar retreat, says Cowley. He adds that it is possible to use lenses or mirrors to focus the sun on the lunar soil surface, and to use this source to keep the base warm or to generate heat. 39; electricity.
Once these techniques have been refined and their defects have been tested to ensure that they operate in the conditions prevailing on the moon, the astronauts will be able to build a lunar human colony. It will be closer than we think.
You can read the original article from BBC News.
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