Base On The Moon

[Dr. Shane]

NASA Plans Lunar Outpost

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NASA unveiled plans yesterday to set up a small and ultimately self-sustaining settlement of astronauts at the south pole of the moon sometime around 2020 -- the first step in an ambitious plan to resume manned exploration of the solar system.

The long-awaited proposal envisions initial stays of a week by four-person crews, followed by gradually longer visits until power and other supplies are in place to make a permanent presence possible by 2024.

The effort was presented as an unprecedented mission to learn about the moon and places beyond, as well as an integral part of a long-range plan to send astronauts to Mars. The moon settlement would ultimately be a way station for space travelers headed onward, and would provide not only a haven but also hydrogen and oxygen mined from the lunar surface to make water and rocket fuel.

I didn't think deep-space travel was possible.

Cosmic rays may prevent long-haul space travel

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Cosmic rays, which come from outer space and solar flares, are now regarded as a potential limiting factor for space travel. "I do not see how the problem of this hostile radiation environment can be easily overcome in the future," says Keran O'Brien, a space physicist from Northern Arizona University, US.

"A massive spacecraft built on the moon might possibly be constructed so that the shielding would reduce the radiation hazard," he told New Scientist. But even so he reckons that humans will be unable to travel more than 75 million kilometres (47 million miles) on a space mission – about half the distance from the Earth to the Sun. This allowance might get them to Mars or Venus, but not to Jupiter or Saturn.

[Dr. Shane]

Does water STILL flow on Mars?

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NASA researchers have documented the formation of new craters on the plant's surface and found bright, light-coloured deposits in gullies that were not present in previous photos.

They concluded the deposits - possibly mud, salt or frost - were left there when water recently cascaded through the channels.

In another photo a number of gullies on a crater wall can be clearly seen. The scientists believe that they may have been formed in relatively recent Martian history by erosion caused by flowing, liquid water.

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He predicted that the human race will need to venture far beyond the Earth to ensure its survival, saying: "There isn't anywhere like Earth in the solar system so we would have to go to another star."

He added that there could be a permanent base on the Moon in 20 years and a colony on Mars within the next 40.

So how do this folks propose to get past the cosmic ray issue?

[Amelia]

Maybe they will build a base underground?

[Dr. Shane]

From what I understand, going to and from the moon isn't so bad although astronauts have complained of seeing radiation flashes when they close their eyes. I believe the earth's gravity somehow reduces the radiation but if we were to travel outside the earth's gravity we would have little to no protection. Thus, no Star Trek in the near future. Unless its that great chariot in the sky.

[Bravus]

They might be able to do something with some kind of electromagnetic shielding field, rather than with physical shields (i.e. a spaceship that's a big ball o' lead with a little crew compartment in the middle).

As was noted, no other planet in this solar system is a habitat for humans, and so far we have no possible means of traveling to another star system that don't take hundreds of years (and therefore require 'generation ships'.) The radiation wouldn't be so much of an issue between stars, because we'd be away from our sun which causes the radiation, but the sheer timescale is prohibitive.

All of which means we should look at our explorations as a great adventure, a source of new science and possibly of new resources from elsewhere in our own solar system... but not as the search for a bolt-hole when we mess up the planet God gave us so badly it will no longer sustain us. It's why I believe it's important to be good stewards of this earth, our home and our gift from God, the world Adam was told to look after. {/soapbox}

But I am very excited about getting back into space... I think it shows a vision of growth and hope instead of just war and hopelessness and greed.

[Amelia]

When Jesus returns and the earth is made new, will the moon be made new also? Or will it be left out of the recreation process?

[Amelia]

NASA to set up polar moon camp

Plan is different from previous moon missions in nearly everything

By Leonard David

Space.com

Dec 5, 2006

HOUSTON - NASA announced Monday its strategy and rationale for robotic and human exploration of the moon, determining that a lunar outpost is the best approach to achieve a sustained, human presence there.

The base would be built in incremental steps, starting with four-person crews making several seven-day visits. The first mission would begin by 2020, with the base growing over time, beefed up with more power, mobility rovers and living quarters.

The moon base would eventually support 180-day lunar stays, a stretch of time seen as the best avenue to establish a permanent presence there, as well as prepare for future human exploration of Mars.

Here at the NASA Johnson Space Center, space agency planners detailed a global exploration strategy, outlining the themes and objectives of 21st century lunar exploration and the hardware needed to regain a foothold on the moon.

NASA’s lunar plan also encourages participation by other nations, as well as non-governmental organizations and commercial groups.

Location, location, location

“We’re going to go after a lunar base,” said Scott Horowitz, NASA associate administrator for the Exploration Systems Mission Directorate. The lunar base will be the central theme in NASA’s going back to the moon effort, he said, in preparation to go to Mars and beyond.

As to where on the moon such a post might be positioned—like real estate here on Earth—it’s location, location, location.

“What we’re looking at are polar locations…both the north pole and south pole,” said NASA Deputy Administrator Shana Dale. Picking between the two poles will be done once NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter begins surveying the moon after its launch in October 2008.

One particular area that’s already receiving high marks by NASA’s lunar architecture team is at the South Pole—a spot on the rim of Shackleton Crater that’s almost permanently sunlit.

“It’s also adjacent to a permanently dark region in which there are potentially volatiles that we can extract and use,” said NASA’s Doug Cooke, Deputy Associate Administrator of the Exploration Systems Mission Directorate.

Sphere of economic value

A key technology yet to be defined is a lunar lander—hardware that can be used in piloted or unpiloted mode to develop a capability on the moon more rapidly. “The more you can land the better it is,” Cooke added.

The lander will be designed to touchdown anywhere on the moon, likened to a lunar pickup truck, Horowitz said.

“The door is wide open in terms of participation by internationals,” Dale noted, and that includes providing power, habitats, mobility on the lunar surface, as well as technology to use the resources on the moon to life off the land.

Dale said that 2007 will feature “extensive dialogue with other countries” about the ways in which they want to participate in exploration activities. “I wouldn’t see it evolving as the same way as the International Space Station,” she told SPACE.com.

NASA’s lunar strategy is evolving from dialogue that has already taken place with 13 other space agencies, Dale explained. The framework for moving forward with other nations will be put in place next year, she said.

A moon outpost would yield tangible science benefits, as well as enlarge the sphere of economic activity beyond low Earth orbit, Horowitz suggested.

International participation

The role of international cooperation in bringing the vision into sharper focus is also being advanced by NASA chief, Mike Griffin.

For example, on December 1, Griffin spoke to the British Royal Society in London, England and pointed to the need for navigation infrastructure on the moon for future explorers and scientists.

Griffin spotlighted the scheduled launch in 2008 of NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter with its laser altimeter and other instruments than can produce an accurate global map of the moon for upcoming expeditions there.

“We’re still formulating our plans for providing communication and navigation for future explorers on the moon, but I can foresee NASA collaborating with other spacefaring nations like the United Kingdom in providing such infrastructure,” Griffin told the British Royal Society.

NASA has nearly 60 on-going space and Earth science missions, Griffin observed, and over half of these missions have some form of international participation.

“Two-thirds of all NASA missions currently under development incorporate international partners. And of course, NASA’s premier human spaceflight program, the development of the International Space Station, is an effort involving some 15 nations,” Griffin said.

[Dr. Shane]

Now they are talking about a radiation storm.

SpaceWeather.com

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The ongoing radiation storm has overwhelmed solar wind sensors onboard NASA's ACE spacecraft. Solar wind readings reported above are temporarily unreliable.