Lunarpedia:Outline draft

Draft topic & Subtopic Lunarpedia OUTLINE

This outline will expand as new topic areas come to mind or are suggested by contributors.

We expect that we have left out or forget whole topic areas. To suggest additional topics and subtopics contact us.

Version 1.01 October 17, 2006

PRELUDE

Analog Research Stations

Past, Present, Planned analog activities

• Oregon Moonbase
• Drumheller Badlands/Calgary Space Workers Habitat
• Moon Society exercises at MDRS
• MexLunaHab
• NASA mockups
• Seabed stations as an analog of isolation

Lunar Tourism

Tourism from orbit

• Loop-the-Moon tours
• Self-contained butterfly landers

Surface tourism

• Early land facilities, excursion support
• Early land excursions
• Scenic access
• Geological/scenic preserves & Lunar National Parks
• Scenic cableways
• Scenic roads
• Scenic overlooks
• Observation towers
• Tourist concessions
• Crew/passenger operable facilities
• Historical site access
• Settlement circuit
• Development of diverse architectures
• Development of diverse flora and fauna
• Development of diverse cultures
• Limb "peekaboo" locations
• Farside heavens
• The 7 wonders of the Moon
• Suborbital tours for Lunans
• other

Economic Geography: chemical, mineralogical, and topographic resources

Unfinished Robotic "Prospecting"

• Elements mapped at medium resolution to date: iron, thorium, hydrogen, calcium
• Need to map all major elements at higher resolution

Unfinished Robotic "Exploration"

• High resolution topographic contour map from which to identify contiguous areas of easy transit and most logical corridors linking them

Prerequisite for a global map of potential highway and railway corridors

Prerequisite for delisting interesting sites to that are access challenged

• Orbital mapping of subsurface voids

Local and irregular voids; possible gas pockets

Meandering linear voids: lavatubes

Surface ground truth probes

• Verify, quantify, qualify. and assess expected polar ice deposits in various crater permashade areas around both poles
• Explore suspected openings into lavatubes
• Final exploration of sites on the short list for an outpost installation
• Crater central peak sampling

Typography Assets

• Using Lavatubes
• Inflatables, factories, warehousing, agriculture, archiving
• Using Rilles
• Using Craters
• Using Catennae
• other

Predevelopment of Needed Technologies

Spin-up entrepreneurial opportunities

• Development of draft spin-up business plans

Getting Familiar with the Moon

Lunar Maps

• History of lunar mapmaking
• Online Atlases
• Hardcopy Atlases
• Lunar Nomenclature
• The persons after which craters have been named

Lunar Surface Features

• List of lunar mare (sea), oceanus (ocean), lacus (lake), sinus (bay), palus (swamp) lava flooded areas
• Lunar Craters

Large walled plains

Craters with central peaks

Flooded craters

Ghost craters

Ray craters

Crater chains

• Lunar rilles
• Lunar Mountains
• Lunar domes
• Other features

Understanding what you see

• The origin of the Moon
• The history of lunar bombardment
• The great lava floods

Observing the Moon

• Observing the Moon's familiar nearside
• The possibility of observing much of farside via telescopes in the L4 and L5 Lagrange points
• Lunar Observing Certificate Programs

WHERETO

Major Challenges to Settling the Moon

Dayspan Heat - Nightspan Cold

• The thermal problem as a superficial one in absence of a heat convecting atmosphere

Shading joints, lubricated areas, material interface areas

Development of cryo-lubricants

Operations management issues

Using materials with near-zero coefficient of thermal expansion

Using materials that are both heat- and cold-hardy

Dust Control Problems

• Exploring electrostatic dust repulsion systems
• Turtle back spacesuits & conformal airlocks* (*also minimizes airlock cycling losses of oxygen, nitrogen, water vapor)
• Biodegradable suit and boot coverings
• Paving or sintering vehicle and pedestrian approaches to airlocks
• Covering joints and lubricated areas to minimize dust problem

Power Options dayspan

• Solar concentrators
• Solar panels
• Circum global solar powered supermagnetic belt
• Solar arrays distributing beamed power by relay sats
• L4, L5, L1, L2
• Lunar polar power tower global networks
• Nuclear

Waste treatment

Waste disposal

Lunar nuclear fuels industry

Scavenging nuclear wastes from Earth

A lunar nuclear fuels industry based on the thorium 232 > uranium 233 cycle

Power Options nightspan

• Nuclear (see subcategories under Power Options Dayspan)
• Potentiation cycles - storing potential energy

Water-oxygen fuel cells

Flywheels

Storage rings

Hydroelectric loops

Magma pools

other

• Operations management

Energy intensive dayspan tasks

Energy-light nightspan tasks

Site Type Pros & Cons

Polar Sites

• Pros

Both poles have "peaks of eternal sunshine" for power generation

Thermal conditions do not vary greatly through the sunth (lunar month)

Both poles are in the center of extensive coldtrap or permashade areas where we expect to find water-ice deposits

• Cons

Both poles are rugged highland areas in which construction may be difficult

The sunlight always comes in at, just above, or just below the horizon sibility and location identification problems

The high amount of total tonnage needed to erect a solar power tower system

Expected polar ice-deposits are of unknown quantity, concentration, and difficulty of extraction

All our efforts mastering the challenges of the polar areas, will not prepare or enable us to set up outposts elsewhere on the Moon

The polar highlands do not offer all the resources needed for industrialization

Solar wind hydrogen, with which to make water, is available anywhere on the Moon

Mare-Highland Coast sites

• Pros

Access to both major regolith suites

Some coastal sites are also ilmenite rich

Some coastal sites may involve potassium and phosphorus rich KREEP deposits

Some coastal sites involve subsurface lavatubes

Maria provide extensive areas of obstacle free transit

Some coastal sites are much closer to the nearest circumpolar coldtraps, than either pole itself is to the nearest coast

other

• Cons

Extreme dayspan-nightspan temperature swings are a challenge to vehicle and structure design, as well as to lubricants

The need to store up enough power during dayspan to get through the lunar nightspan

Counterpoint: mastering these twin challenges will allow us to set up shop and settle anywhere on the Moon.

THE RETURN

Getting to the Moon

Commodity carriers

• Launch tracks

Modular pod transport systems

• Finished hard habitat modules
• Inflatable module packs
• Modular factory systems
• Modular utility systems

Power generation

Air recycling

Water recycling

Waste recycling

Personnel carriers

• Crew cabins
• Landing craft
• Ascent craft

Pressurized

Open-cockpit

Earth to Moon Way Stations

L1 Depot

• Growing L! in step with the growth of surface operations

Teleoperations

Pre-landing teleoperations

• Site exploration, asset & obstacle mapping
• Site preparation
• Shielding emplacement
• Initial roadways and paving
• other

post landing teleoperations

• Robotic exploration of areas of interest
• Robotic preliminary prospecting
• Robotic installation of self-help service stations, relays, way points, beacons
• other

Shielding Options

Direct

• Raw regolith
• Processed regolith less iron, volatiles, large rocks
• Modular regolith: blocks, bags, baffle systems, saddlebags
• Shielding styling, cladding, coloring and other ways of personalization of the exterior of a personal or corporate habitat

Shielding indirect

• Modular hangar structures and interfaces, surface prep
• Shielded warehousing
• Expansion options

Site management issues

Warehousing systems

• Sorting for reuse

By material (knock-down (KD) items)

Mixed materials

• Barcoding for locatability
• Shielded vs. unshielded warehousing

Canopy covered storage

Lavatube storage

• Tank farms

BREAKOUT AGENDA

ISRU - development of local resources

Raw regolith-based materials

• Sintered regolith products

Exterior paving

Shielding systems

Unpressurized structures

• Cast basalt products

Furnishings

Flooring

Regolith handling components

Raw glass uses

• Indoor furnishings
• Artwork
• Tableware

Minimally processed regolith products

• Glass-glass composites

Habitat modules

Table tops

Tiles

Spaceframe spars

other

• Fiberglass reinforced concrete

Habitat modules

Outside building components

other

• Sintered iron fines

Sundry small low performance components

other

Production of key elements

• Oxygen for air, fuel, fuel cells
• Silicon for solar cells
• Iron, aluminum, titanium, magnesium
• Sulfur, sodium, potassium, phosphorus
• Chromium
• Thorium
• Metal oxide colorants,
• other

Gas scavenging - harvesting Solar Wind donations

• Hydrogen
• Helium(4) and He3
• Argon and Neon
• Nitrogen
• Carbon

Specially enriched regolith areas

• Low titanium basalt
• High titanium basalt, ilmenite
• Highland material
• KREEP splashout (Potassium, Rare earth Elements, Phosphorus)
• Central peek mantle extrusions
• other

Polar water-ice harvesting

• Ground truth assessments, quantity, extent, concentration, extraction options
• Coldtraps nearest to mare/highland shores
• Carbon oxide ices
• Other ices
• Ice refinery products

Pipeline materials

Methane

Ammonia

Water

Ice

Expansion Human Factors

Morale perks

• More personal elbow room
• Customizable quarters
• Flextime scheduling
• Arts & crafts using regolith-derived media
• Introducing lunar holidays, special festivities
• Fostering an "at home on the Moon" culture
• Physical fitness, exercise, sports, dance facilities
• Garden-enriched food & menu diversity
• Allowing births
• Finding weight-pulling functions for youth, retirees
• Escape valves (import bazaar, getaways, changes of pace, job switches, travel options)

SETTLEMENT GROWTH

Lunar Industry

Building & Manufacturing Materials

• Metal Alloys
• Glass Composites
• Sulfur Composites

Outfitting Products

• Interior dividers
• Interior surfaces
• Furnishing Products

Manufacturing Protocols

Recycling Needs

• Assembled for ease of disassembly to enable recycling by material
• Alternatives to use of bonding adhesives

Small Market Challenges

• Finished goods lines
• Customer-finish lines

Lunar Architecture

Special structures

• Lunar hi-rises and skyscrapers
• Observation towers
• other

Surface transport

Frogs & Toads - converted lunar ferry crew cabins

• Passenger coaches
• Construction shacks
• Private coaches

Railroads

• Market

Passengers

Freight

Bulk

• Tracks

Thermal expansion issue

Switching issue

Derailment avoidance issue

Vestibulation issue

Gauge

• Motive power

Solar electric network

Polar power tower network

Maglev

Conventional

Nuclear

Fuel cell

Lunar fuels

• Right of way

Real estate grants

Siding-based starter settlements

Pipelines

Roads

Roads

• Construction
• Route definition
• Junctions
• Bridges
• Tunnels
• Mare vs. highlands
• Solar flare sheds
• Self-service stations
• Signage protocols
• Toll roads

Vehicle motive power

• Local power beaming nets
• Solar power recharging
• Fuel cells
• Lunar fuels development
• Lunar fueled engine development
• Nuclear
• Solar

Biosphere technologies

Climates

• Temperate plants
• Subtropical plants
• Tropical plants
• Arid zone plants

Horticulture - homestead gardening

Architectural considerations

• Lighting
• Watering systems
• Gardenscaping

Agricultural Products

Food products

• Fruits
• Vegetables
• Herbs & spices
• Fiber sources
• Protein sources
• Nutrition supplement sources
• Menu variety and diversity
• Supported cuisines
• Food processing
• Local marketing specialties
• Later developments

Small livestock

TRADE & THE BOTTOM LINE

Exports & Market Development

Specific markets

• Low Earth Orbit industrial parks
• Low Earth Orbit tourist facilities
• Mars, Phobos, Deimos

made-on-Luna heavy equipment

Nuclear fuels (lunar thorium 232 > uranium 233)

Seasoned pioneers

Technology expertise

• Asteroids
• other

Value added product types

• Products made for domestic use
• Construction materials
• Furnishings
• Arts & crafts
• Unique jewelry
• Food products
• New crop variety seeds
• Lunar-sourced chemical fuels
• Lunar-produced nuclear fuels (the thorium 232 > uranium 233 cycle), essential to the opening of Mars to settlement
• other

Technology licenses

• Biospheric technologies
• Agricultural technologies
• Recycling technologies
• Building material technologies
• Poor ore mining technologies
• other

Infotainment products

• Travelogues
• Explorations
• Dance, sport, music, etc.

Energy exports

• Lunar fuels

Hydrogen

Oxygen

Silane

other

Lunar processed nuclear fuels (thorium 232 > uranium 233)

• Lunar solar arrays
• Helium-3
• Building materials for solar power satellites
• other

HEALTHY CITIZENS

Intentional communities

other

This outline will expand as new topic areas come to mind or are suggested by contributors. To suggest additional topics and subtopics contact us.