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NASA is no stranger to seeing people tackle its manned flight plans. The latest target is the Lunar Orbital-Gateway platform, a new space station that will succeed the ISS. The Trump administration said that this new station could be set up as early as 2024 and that it should soon ask the industry for ideas regarding power and propulsion.
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NASA says the gateway will allow exploration of the solar system, but critics call it a waste of money and colossal effort. But if there was a way to save the idea – and that meant forgetting the astronauts?
The Lunar Gateway Explained
The NASA
Understanding the Moon Bridge begins with its orbit. The station would approach the moon, then whisk the space before going back. This six-day trip takes place on a strict schedule so that visitors can schedule an appointment and climb to the moon on the resort.
This orbit also keeps the bridge in the line of sight of the Earth. In this way, the station can serve as a communication relay between the mission control and the lunar surface. By using lasers to transmit large amounts of information, the station could help establish commercial and scientific missions on the surface of the moon.
"The Lunar Orbital-Gateway platform will drive our business with commercial and international partners and help us explore the moon and its resources," said NASA head William Gerstenmaier. "We will finally translate this experience into human missions on Mars."
The space station would be smaller than the ISS and would house 4 crew members for missions of one to three months. Astronauts would fly NASA's Space Launch System (SLS) rocket, but the universal airlock would work with commercial and international spacecraft. This flexibility is the gateway's position as a catalyst for other missions, no matter who runs them.
This is where NASA's astronaut attachment begins. In the idyllic view of NASA, the gateway is a place where locals learn valuable lessons about life outside the world. Here, the agency could hone life support systems and conduct exploration missions that would give NASA the confidence to put space boots on Mars. It would also be a service station for any other mission – NASA or otherwise – on the lunar surface. NASA sees this as the great advantage of the lunar gateway.
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Save the bridge, let people down
The JAXA / NHK
The best arguments against the bridge, however, are those that call into question the need for a crew. This is because there is a better place to explore the moon: the lunar surface.
The biggest reason is security. Being in space means being exposed to radiation, so the stations need extra shielding to protect the inhabitants. The lunar soil (regolith) can be packaged to provide ideal protection at the base of the moon, and existing volcanic tunnels, called rilles, are perfect for occupation.
Virtually all human activities proposed for the bridge can be covered by the lunar surface. Experiments with the human habitat are best conducted safely in low Earth orbit, and not on the moon.
Here's an idea: Transform the Lunar Gateway into a simpler and less expensive communication relay, with an endless power supply. Drop the 125 square meters of pressurized space into the front door and keep people safe in the volcanic tunnels of the moon. The catwalk could still hang on the spaceships to recharge their batteries or provide samples of the lunar surface that can be transported closer to Earth, and the best part is that more modules can be added when flying. other missions are online.
For example, future modules could include an automated fuel processor, making the bridge a repository for spacecraft on long-duration missions. Emergency supplies could also be offered at the station. An undercarriage could wait for the need for a new rover battery, an emergency shelter for astronauts in distress or anything that can be printed in 3D at the automated station.
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Congress can support this idea, as any bridge plan is a strong argument for NASA's new heavy rocket. The Block2 configuration of the SLS transports only goods and can lift more than 99,000 lbs in deep space. The construction and supply of the bridge would be of benefit to SLS and would preserve land-based manufacturing and space transport jobs. NASA would also have gained more experience in operating the SLS, which would make it much more likely to successfully deliver a Orion capsule piloted on the surface of Mars in the near future.
Boon or Boondoggle?
The NASA
The biggest problem with an inhabited gangway is that the mission does not have a "concrete objective of manned flights," writes recently former ISS commander Terry Virts. Ars Technica. "Instead, there is simply a fuzzy promise of having an" ecosystem "of capability in orbit around the moon that will eventually allow humans to reach Mars," he said.
This is a good point, in many ways, and a sure statement. NASA's manned flights have been drifting since the Space Shuttle retreat. Several presidents have chased destinations – Bush had the moon, Obama wanted to visit an asteroid – but their plans have died as an expensive mess. The SLS (the big delay and weight of NASA) that critics mock as a "rocket to nowhere" seems to be the same example of material without a destination.
Is the Lunar Bridge suitable for this model? To his credit, NASA tried to distinguish itself from the problems that prevented the first space flights when administrations and priorities changed. For example, the agency uses what is called an agency advertisement to solicit space station ideas. This means that the bidders of the space industry are free to develop their own designs and processes (in other words, it is not a purchase of equipment on which NASA decides on engineering). This could generate ideas that business entities will use to create their own bases. Unloading big projects in the private space is risky, but it's also a natural extension of what we see with companies like Blue Origin, Bigelow and SpaceX.
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As NASA continues to watch China and private companies like Blue Origin plan lunar landings, there comes a time when a smart settler should start selling picks instead of looking for gold. For NASA, it may not be a bad idea to set up a sophisticated cislunar satellite, open for business, whatever the future.
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