Lunar Base: Team 1
Chase Lookofsky
Kevin Lim
Brookelynn Russey
Kevin Hainline
Erik Hoffman
Chris White
Luis Hernandez
Meredith Davis
Why did mammals survive the extinction
event that killed the dinosaurs?
Tunneling!!!
Tunnel Boring Machines (TBMs)
• Diameter from 5-50 ft
• Fastest construction method
available
for Tunneling
• Directional control
• Walls are built as the tunnel is
bored
– Wall segments will be 3-D printed
from
regolith.
Robbins TBM
Location = Peary Crater
• 45 miles wide
• Almost in permanent sunlight
• Will allow for reliable solar
power as a back up
• Very likely has frozen water near by
• “The crater is near stores of
water ice discovered by India's
Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft.
Melted, it would be vital for
drinking. Broken into hydrogen
and oxygen, the water could
provide breathable air and be
used to make rocket fuel for a
trip to Mars. The Peary crater
interior may also harbor water
deposits.” (Visions2200)
Structural Layout
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Facilities
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Living Area
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Science Stations/ Laboratories
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8 people
Floor Area is 105 m^2
Lighting using lamps
Training facility
Research Labs
Mineral Studies
Medical Bay
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MedPod Machine
Medical Supply Storage
http://lpod.wikispaces.com/May+17,+2013
Structural Layout
http://weyland.wikia.com/wiki/MedPod
Structural Layout
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Facilities
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Landing Zone
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Waste Management
Power/Energy Station
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Center of Crater
Cargo Hold
Storage
Vehicle Access
Underground
Nuclear Power
Air Lock, Decontamination
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Multiple Entrances
Radiation Protection
• 50-cm thick layer of lunar
regolith reduces to half the
acceptable levels
• 50% increase in thickness
yields about a 20%
decrease in exposure
• 75-cm thickness exposes
astronauts to 19.5 rem/yr
Self Healing Structures
• Self-healing structure composed of
a micro vascular substrate
(dicyclopentadiene (DCPD)) and a
brittle epoxy coating containing an
embedded catalyst (benzylidene
bis(tricyclohexylphosphine)dichlor
o ruthenium)
• Multiple healing events can occur
simultaneously
• Healing fluid channels to crack
through capillary action
Power System
• Base requires approximately 100kW of
power.
• Solution: Two Liquid Flouride Thorium
Reactors (LFTRs) Operating at 150 kW
each.
• Operating Temperature is higher
• Operating Pressure is lower
• Fuel Efficiency is near 100%
Radiators
LFTR
Base
Departure Railgun
• Railgun is used to takeoff from
lunar surface
• Requires 15.6GJ of energy to
launch 14 tons
• Requires a 11.6 km track to
accelerate the spacecraft to
orbital velocities
Water Locations
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Possible water locations:
– Green circles are anomalous craters
(high CPR value inside rim)
– Red circles are fresh craters (high CPR
value inside and outside rim)
CPR values:
– Circular Polarization Ratios
– Ratio of transmitted waves from same
sense to opposite sense
– Most of surface is low CPR
– High CPR locations indicate possible
ice locations
Water Harvesting
• Cold Plate/Microwave Technique
– Process discovered by Edwin Ethridge of NASA's
Marshall Space Flight Center and William Kaukler
of the University of Alabama
– Raise temperature of lunar soil with a microwave
to -50 ˚C and water ice will sublimate
– Holding a cold plate above the soil will cause the
vapor to form ice, which could be scraped off and
used as water
Food (Short Term)
• Plumpy’soy is ready to use
supplemental food for adults
• 2 packages per day gives
1000 kcal and 25g of protein,
along with all other nutrients
needed
• Shelf life of 24 months
• Look into flavoring to improve
astronaut psychological health
Food (Long Term)
• Lunar Greenhouse
design similar to
design at University of
Arizona
• Collapsible tubes for
easier travel
• Needs only water to
grow—no soil
• Placed inside station
to shield from
radiation
*Study effects of radiation on plant
growth for eventual “crop rotation”
to sustain large colonies*
Oxygen Production
• Algae tanks provide O2 and eliminate CO2
• 96 m2 necessary to support crew of 8
(scaled from previous semester’s estimate
of 144 m2)
• Oxygen also released in process of water
harvesting
Astronaut Health
• Physiological
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Effects of Microgravity
Lunar Dust
Radiation
Lack of natural environmental stimuli
• Psychological
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Separation from family
Close quarters and confinement
Long-term high risk conditions
Sleep disturbance
Limited habitability
• Psychosocial
– Interpersonal tension
• Moon base crew
• Ground support team
– “Host-Guest” phenomenon
Astronaut Health – Physiological
• Microgravity
– Medication
• Osteoporosis
• Heart Irregularities
– Exercise
• Daily activities
• Planned workouts
• Gym-type facility
• Lunar Dust
– Airlock Decontamination
– HVAC Filtration
• Electrostatic Precipitators
– Applies energy only to the
particulate matter being filtered
out
– Very power efficient
Astronaut Health – Physiological
• Radiation
– Underground base
• Shielding by lunar regolith
• Assuming 30 𝑐𝑆𝑣 𝑦𝑟
• Need minimum of 30 𝑔 𝑐𝑚2 of
regolith shielding
– Aluminum internal skin
– Environmental awareness
• When to perform EBA
• Environmental Stimuli
– Closely tied to psychological
effects
– Sleep Disturbance
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Altered circadian rhythms
– Artificial replacements
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Example: Sun Lamps
Relaxation Room/Common Area
Astronaut Health
• Psychological
– Small, close living quarters
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Can’t ‘Go outside’
– Family Separation
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Video calls, Internet
– JSC Behavioral Health &
Performance Team
– Virtual Environments
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Oculus Rifts
• Psychosocial
– Careful selection of crew
members
– Understanding and effective
communication between base and
ground teams
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CAPCOM equivalents
– International/Political concerns
Transportation
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tunnel_boring_machine
• Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM)
– Reduce the weight of the TBM
– TBM on Earth are not built with the weight being a great factor
• Power Plant
– To reach the desired temperature of operating.
– Penetrate the surface of the Moon
• Hohmann Transfer
– Travel to moon orbit while astronauts prepare for the upcoming
mission.
• Delta V1 3.081 km/s
• Delta V2 0.897 km/s
– 3720 km above the surface of the Moon
• Soft Landing utilizing thrust vectoring.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bunker_buster
Necessary Supplies
• Transport supply drops to desired
landing zone.
• Medical supplies, resistance
bands, solar panels, and artificial
food etc…
• These supplies would be sent to
the moon before hand.
• Future resupplies would be sent
this way.
http://www.universetoday.com/wp-content/uploads/lro_to_moon-1.jpg
On The Lunar Surface
• Lunar rover
– Reliability
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Acceleration
Temperatures
Pressure
Durable
– Compact
– Autonomous
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lunar_rover
Lunar Commercialization
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Providing commercial opportunities is necessary in order to secure privatized funding for this
venture
Initial investments for the rights to commercialization opportunities on the moon
Continuing funding from the commercial sector is desirable due to the permanent nature of lunar
colonization - requires sizeable and consistent sources of money
Multiple sources of funding ensures the entire budget cannot be eliminated by one decision
Methods of commercialization include mining, communications, tourism, remote sensing,
research, and property rights
Methods of Commercialization
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Mining
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Communications and Navigation
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Asteroids are composed of desirable rare earth elements and have been impacting the surface of the moon for a very long time
Resources can be mined and possibly refined on the surface of the moon then sent back to Earth to be sold for profit
A portion of these mined resources can also be used to support the lunar habitat
Opportunity for a company to establish themselves as the primary resource for interplanetary communication and navigation
systems
Commercial Space Flight and Lunar Tourism
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A moon colony requires an accessible method of travel between the Earth and the moon
Private aerospace companies are incentivized to invest in the moon colony because they will then have the opportunity to
dominate the private spaceflight industry that will inevitably explode from this venture
Potential for partnering with this venture in order to build tourist accommodations within the colony
Space lottery
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Research
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Property Rights
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Companies and individuals can secure property for future projects and ventures
Why should you be involved?
• Why invest at all?
– Profit: mining, communication, navigation, and tourism
– Reputation: champion of scientific research and human
colonization in space
• How is it a safe investment?
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Autonomous building reduces risk and cost of construction
International support
Allows you to be the one of the first in a growing industry
Allows for expansion
• Space ports, asteroid mining, weapons research ect…
– Various trade studies conducted for best possible design
Trade Studies
System
Trade Options
Base Location
• Peary Crater (North Pole)
• South Pole
• Far Side Equatorial Region
Topographical Location
• Surface
• Subterraneous
Habitat Structure
• Underground tunnel system
• Biosphere
• Mobile habitat
Power Supply
• Nuclear power reactor
• Solar power panels
Water Supply
• Imported
• Collected from deposits
Trade Studies
System
Trade Options
Food Source
• Import nutritional paste
• Grow in greenhouse
Life Support
• Import oxygen tanks
• Algae tanks
Gravity compensation
• Workout machines
• Centrifuge
Peary Crater
Subterraneou
s
Surface
Nuclear
reactor
Solar panel
farm
Water
Water
importe
collected
d
Water
collecte
d
Nuclear
reactor
Water
collected
Water
imported
Mobile surface
habitat
Surface
biosphere
Underground
tunnel system
Nuclear
reactor
Solar panel
farm
Water
imported
Water
collecte
d
Water
collected
Water
importe
d
Solar panel
farm
Water
imported
Water
collecte
d
Water
imported